The FTC goes after Four Loko again, this time for packaging the drink in cans that are apparently too large.
CBS reporter says White House “screamed” at her over Fast & Furious story.
Speaking of which, the Obama administration apparently thinks it’s fine to sell guns to murderous Mexican drug cartels, but they draw the line at pot-smoking cancer patients.
While I was in Chicago last week, I state with my friends Javad and Mollie. This is their very cute daughter Nayda, named after Neda Agha-Soltan. (Javad is from Iran.) Here’s hoping she’ll someday get to Tehran to visit a memorial to her namesake.
I for one am shocked to learn that governments around the world fear and want to rein in something beyond their control that gives power to citizens makes governments themselves more transparent and accountable.
Dick Cheney praises Obama, demands apology for suggesting they’re all that different. He probably has a point on the second part.
What’s that? You’d like to see a photo of Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg? And you’d like for them to be riding an elephant? Lemme see what I can do.
While I was in Chicago last weekend, a friend of mine managed to get tickets to Next, the latest Grant Achatz restaurant. It’s a pretty nifty concept. It’s themed to a specific time and place. So Next opened with a menu you might have seen in Paris in the year 1906. Every three months the theme—and with it the entire restaurant—changes. You buy tickets in advance, as you would for a concert or sporting event. Everything is included in the cost. The current theme is a tour of Thailand. (See a New York Times review here.)
My review? I have no doubt that Grant Achatz and his team could make me the best meal I’ve had in my life. And this was the best Thai food I’ve ever had. But it wasn’t anywhere near the best meal I’ve had. And given the hype (not to mention the cost), in the end, it all felt a little underwhelming. That may be because the concept itself is fairly self-limiting. The theme at the moment is authentic Thai, not variations on Thai, or food inspired by Thailand. And there’s really only so much you can to with Thai food and still be authentic. It was good enough and an interesting enough experience that I’ll probably try to go again when the theme changes. The next theme is “Childhood”.
We started with drinks at Aviary, Achatz’s cocktail bar next door. The drinks there were really creative and a hell of a lot of fun. Lots of deconstructed takes on classic drinks, and one oolong tea drink that was prepared in a way that made me think for a minute that they were going to tell us to pass it around and smoke it. If you go, I suggest you pass on the “bites”, the tip-of-your-finger-sized appetizers. They’re interesting, but they’re tiny, tiny portions, and probably not worth the $4-6 apiece you’ll pay for them. (See the very tiny shrimp bite below.)
I will say that between the cocktails, the sweet wines, and the length of the meal, my hangover started before I left the restaurant.
Banking customers angry over entirely predictable consequence of federal “consumer protection” legislation.
Mark Draughn lays out the basics of that University of Wisconsin poster controversy. When a university statement begins with some language about the school’s commitment to free expression and the the First Amendment, you can bet what follows is inconsistent with free expression and the First Amendment. And when the statement ends with an assertion that the actions the statement is addressing aren’t censorship, it’s also a pretty safe bet that they are.
When sending your kid to a better school is a crime.
Bear wanders into backyard where children are playing. Father kills bear. Father charged with felony.
MORE: The bear story is a bit dated. Via the comments, it looks like the bear shooter was fined $1,000. Also, the father was initially charged with a misdemeanor, not a felony, though it was punishable by up to a year in jail and a $50,000 fine.
The Internet is full of license plate covers that claim to be able to help drivers avoid getting a red light or speed camera ticket.
According to New Orleans Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas, one of his high-ranking officers, Capt. Michael Glasser, had this type of distortion device on his police cruiser. Serpas took away his car, and the matter is now under review by the NOPD’s Public Integrity Bureau.
“No police officer has the right to violate the rules and the law and police supervisors are especially responsible for insuring that the officers follow the rules,” said Serpas.
According to Louisiana law, license plates “shall be maintained free from foreign materials and in a condition to be clearly legible.”
Glasser’s attorney Frank Desalvo said license plate covers are not illegal.
“I think the state law says if your license plate has to be visible from 50 feet away,” said Desalvo. “I think these things affect the visibility from a certain angle.”
Glasser’s case is particularly thorny because of the unit he commands.
He is the integrity control officer for the Special Operations Division, which also includes highway enforcement, the department that reviews red-light tickets.
“This inquiry is going to get to the bottom of it and it would be terribly troubling to us if a captain who was also responsible for insuring integrity had in fact broken our rules,” said Serpas.
I have no idea if the product Glasser uses it technically illegal under Louisiana law, but it would be interesting to see how many motorists Glasser’s unit has fined for using similar techniques to obscure their license plates from red light cameras. Bonus points: Glasser is president of the New Orleans police union. More bonus points to his lawyer for putting up the “everybody else is doing it” defense.
[Serpasj] claims there are other police cars out there with illegal tint and improper license plates.
Think about that for a second. Glasser’s attorney is arguing that his client, a high-ranking cop, shouldn’t be disciplined for possibly violating the law because lots of other New Orleans cops also violate similar laws—laws that regular, non badge-wearing residents of New Orleans are expected to follow.
Radley Balko’s address, “You’re Going To Jail: The Criminalization of Nearly Everything,” will be held Thursday, October 6, 2011, between noon and 1 p.m. in room 257 of the law school’s Weinmann Hall (6329 Freret Street, New Orleans, Uptown Campus). Commentary by Tulane law professor Jancy Hoeffel , as well as a reception and lunch on the MPR patio will follow Balko’s remarks.
I’ll re-post this on Monday or Tuesday, but any interest among New Orleans-area readers in a meet-up? I’m thinking Friday night would probably work best.
Last week, Steven Hayne testified for the defense in a Mississippi murder trial. If you’ll remember, now that he’s no longer permitted to do official state autopsies for prosecutors, Hayne has been shopping his services to the defense bar. This particular case was in Lowndes County, served by District Attorney Forrest Allgood, a third of the longtime Hayne/West/Allgood triumverate of injustice.
The defendant in this case was acquitted, thanks in large part to Hayne’s testimony. Nut graph:
The defense’s case was strengthened by the testimony of forensic pathologist Dr. Steven Hayne, who concluded, based on the original autopsy report and Sharp’s testimony, that the first bullets fired hit Cole in the front of his body, while the two entrance wounds to his back were among the last to occur….
During rebuttal, prosecutor Rhonda Hayes-Ellis recalled forensic pathologist, Dr. Adele Lewis, who performed the autopsy on Cole’s body. Lewis said Wednesday that there was no way to determine which shot was fired first because of the multiple variables involved — the position of the person shooting the gun and how the gun was angled.
Lewis stuck to that finding Friday.
“There’s an infinite number of scenarios in which you can pose the shooter,” Lewis said. “An honest and competent pathologist would not be able to tell you which order the shots were fired and the position of the person. It’s not scientifically possible.”
It’ll be interesting to see how much tolerance Mississippi judges, coroners, and prosecutors have for Hayne now that he’s working against them.
I’m also interested in what defense attorneys think about this. Is it ethical to use Hayne if you know he’s a fraud and an opinion for hire, even though Mississippi courts are still willing to certify him as an expert witness?
TheAgitator.com
