Wednesday, July 29, 2009
What I'm reading:
I havent been doing many "what I'm reading" posts this year. I'll be nowhere close to 50 books for the year unless I go thru a stack of Dr Suess's. Mostly I'm not reading books, partly I'm not blogging them as I read. Most recent was Charlie Stross' The Atrocity Archives. This is the first time I've read him on paper. I read his accelerando a few years ago probably on a tip from wil wheaton. (serindiptously, there's a box for the stand by me deluxe edition next to me on the desk here. Wil's one of my trusted recommenders, at least for books and web sites.) I bought it at an AIDS thrift on Halstead in Chicago, which I stopped in at on the way home from Milwaukee for a medical study I didn't get into, but before I got arrested in Boone County Indiana for a busted taillight. Liked the book. Kind of fantasy/science fiction/hardboiled detective, with a hint of political satire about all those survelliance cameras in the UK. Anyway, here's Charlie's 90 page online autobiography.
I havent been doing many "what I'm reading" posts this year. I'll be nowhere close to 50 books for the year unless I go thru a stack of Dr Suess's. Mostly I'm not reading books, partly I'm not blogging them as I read. Most recent was Charlie Stross' The Atrocity Archives. This is the first time I've read him on paper. I read his accelerando a few years ago probably on a tip from wil wheaton. (serindiptously, there's a box for the stand by me deluxe edition next to me on the desk here. Wil's one of my trusted recommenders, at least for books and web sites.) I bought it at an AIDS thrift on Halstead in Chicago, which I stopped in at on the way home from Milwaukee for a medical study I didn't get into, but before I got arrested in Boone County Indiana for a busted taillight. Liked the book. Kind of fantasy/science fiction/hardboiled detective, with a hint of political satire about all those survelliance cameras in the UK. Anyway, here's Charlie's 90 page online autobiography.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
The mayors of Hoboken, Secaucus, Ridgefield were among 40 people arrested in early morning raids across New Jersey this morning as federal officials unveiled a long-ranging probe into public corruption and international money laundering, officials said.
Officials say separate from the corruption probe, some of the suspects charged today were also connected to an illegal human organ-selling ring. Investigators say some charged would take cash payments to help find organs for sick patients in need of transplants. It's unclear where the body parts might have come from or how many surgeries may have been done. All were Democrats - watch the coverage to see if that factoid gets edited out.
Officials say separate from the corruption probe, some of the suspects charged today were also connected to an illegal human organ-selling ring. Investigators say some charged would take cash payments to help find organs for sick patients in need of transplants. It's unclear where the body parts might have come from or how many surgeries may have been done. All were Democrats - watch the coverage to see if that factoid gets edited out.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
word for the day: snidification.
The constitution-in-exile movement has filed a brief pdf in the chicago 2nd amendment case, reports Lyle at scotusblog.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
I once did a radio debate opposing affirmative action at my law school, mizzou. I was up against a man who was later my criminal procedure prof. My position on that topic later changed when I learned about Mizzou's history of discrimination. Here's a NYT article about Lloyd Gaines, who won the suit that desegregated the law school, and the mystery of his disappearance. I wish someone would put up a reward for solving the mystery. At mizzou, I was put in the affirmative action class. While I am white, I was a non-traditional returning adult student and they weren't sure what to do with me. I'd flunked out of college 4 times and had the highest LSAT scores in my class. The class was very helpful; helped me figure out what kind of answer they were looking for on an essay test, which as an undergrad I'd never really understood. I've emailed the NYT reporter encouraging him to do a story on Manual Talley.
A federal appeals court today unanimously ruled in favor of a group of D.C. residents who are challenging vehicle checkpoints used by the Metropolitan Police Department.
http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2009/07/court-dc-police-checkpoints-unconstitutional.html
The temporary vehicle checkpoints were initiated last year and set up in response to violence in the Trinidad neighborhood in Northeast Washington.
Police barred 48 motorists—including the four plaintiffs—from entry into the neighborhood in June 2008 when the motorists failed to provide sufficient information about where the motorist was going. A district court judge in D.C. rejected a motion for a preliminary injunction against the city.
http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2009/07/court-dc-police-checkpoints-unconstitutional.html
The temporary vehicle checkpoints were initiated last year and set up in response to violence in the Trinidad neighborhood in Northeast Washington.
Police barred 48 motorists—including the four plaintiffs—from entry into the neighborhood in June 2008 when the motorists failed to provide sufficient information about where the motorist was going. A district court judge in D.C. rejected a motion for a preliminary injunction against the city.
Saturday, July 04, 2009
Friday, July 03, 2009
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
> # Fruit soup. Cold fruit soups are an awesome summer treat. I was first introduced to these one very hot day in July, when I popped into a local restaurant that featured a strawberry soup—deevyyne. First, a cantaloupe one. You can drink this one as a drink, too, if you like; this mix could go nicely with vanilla vodka… speaking purely hypothetically, of course. Take 1 cantaloupe, peel it, and scoop out the seeds. Chop into big chunks. Into the blender, pour 2 cups of unsweetened orange juice, a shot of lime juice, and about 1/2 teaspoon each of cinnamon and cardamom. Fire up the blender and add chopped cantaloupe gradually (often if you add it all at once it sort of gums up the blender, so add it a bit at a time). Garnish with mint to serve if you like. I’ve tried adding other fruits in here too if I’m aiming to drink this as a juice. Banana works great, as do berries. Unsweetened grapefruit juice is nice. Mango left a bunch of little fibres in the mix, though. This cantaloupe-orange-lime stuff is a lovely base for a protein smoothie, too.
I think the guy at 1 million giraffes is going to lose his bet, but it's a fun project.
UK scraps mandatory ID cards.
