Archive for January, 2014

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Fundament, hindquarters, hind end, keister, posterior.

Tuesday, January 14th, 2014

Donavan Raynold Hunt, aka “Tanka 2”, is in custody.

Mr. Hunt was involved in an incident last November at a place called the “Quantum Lounge”. (The Statesman does not note if there are any cats in the Quantum Lounge, nor does it mention the living or dead status of said cats, nor does it give a position for said establishment. I think we can safely assume it has zero momentum.)

Anyway, Mr. Hunt was performing with his musical group, “Da Young Outlawz”, when they got into a dispute with some other folks.

The argument became so heated that the club’s management asked Hunt and his friends to leave, according to an affidavit, and both groups went outside and continued to argue. Around 1:40 a.m. on Nov. 8, a fight broke out and Hunt pulled a gun and started to shoot, according to the affidavit. One man was hit in the arm, side and foot, and a second man was hit in the butt.

“hit in the butt”? Are the Statesman writers and editors ten year olds? Couldn’t they have found a better word than “butt”? Perhaps “upper part of the thigh” as a homage to Robert B. Parker? “Posterior” isn’t a bad word, either. You say someone’s been “shot in the posterior” and everyone knows what you’re talking about.

But “in the butt”, Bob? Really?

Posted in Clippings, Law, Media | Comments Closed

Kelly Thomas.

Tuesday, January 14th, 2014

Since I’ve started thinking seriously (as a grown-up adult, not a child) about criminal justice issues, I’ve maintained certain positions.

One of those positions is that the verdict of a jury deserves a certain amount of deference. Yes, I may disagree with the verdict the jury returns. But: they were there in the courtroom. I was not. They watched all the testimony in person. I did not. They were able to see subtle cues of tone and inflection. I was not. At best, what I am basing my judgment on is what I read in the newspaper or saw on TV. These things are subject to conscious and unconscious bias, as well as errors and omissions. How can I question the verdict a jury returns without all the information they had access to? George Zimmerman or OJ Simpson, I’ve always thought the jury should be respected.

But I’m having trouble reconciling that with the acquittals of Manuel Ramos and Jay Cicinelli in the beating death of Kelly Thomas. (Previously. Also previously and graphic image warning.)

How does a jury return a verdict that says hitting a man in the face twenty times with a Taser is okay? How does a jury return a verdict that says telling a man “See these fists? They’re getting ready to [expletive] you up.” and then beating him until he can’t breathe and his blood is pooling on the sidewalk is not, at the very least, involuntary manslaughter? What evidence did they see that we did not?

And is it a compromise of my principles that I’m hoping the Justice Department indicts Ramos and Cicinelli?

Fiat justitia ruat caelum. But what is justice in this case?

Posted in California Über Alles, Clippings, Cops, Law, Rage | Comments Closed

You’re going down in flames, you tax-fattened hyena! watch (#7 in a series)

Monday, January 13th, 2014

In some haste, because I’m out and about. But: as previously announced, and as everyone expected, Robert “Ratso” Rizzo, former city manager of Bell, has pled guilty to “filing a false tax return and conspiring to file a false tax return”.

Rizzo, according to the charges, illegally claimed losses of $409,731 between 2006 and 2009 by falsely claiming his horse ranch outside Seattle as rental property. He also admitted in a plea agreement that he paid for more than $80,000 in personal expenses in 2009 and $120,000 in construction work on his Huntington Beach home in 2010 while claiming they were used for his horse ranch.

Also as expected, Rizzo has agreed to “cooperate with federal authorities”, which is generally being interpreted to mean he’s going to roll on his former subordinate, Angela Spaccia, once she’s actually charged. (Tax charges against her are expected, but have not been filed yet.)

Also as previously discussed, it is expected that Rizzo’s sentence (which could be “up to eight years in federal prison and a $500,000 fine on the tax case”, though I am not a lawyer and am not clear if that’s within the federal sentencing guidelines) will be served concurrently with the twelve years he’s already serving on the other corruption charges he’s pled to. I’d like to see him serve more time, but this is still better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

Posted in California Über Alles, Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

Random notes: January 12, 2014.

Sunday, January 12th, 2014

Various news sources are reporting that the local cedar pollen count was 16,785 grains per cubic meter yesterday, and 13,340 today. For the record, these numbers are. (Records, that is.) This would explain why my skin feels like it is trying to crawl off of my body.

(“Why don’t you take some Benadryl, or a good anti-histamine?” Well, I don’t have any Benadryl, and I wouldn’t want to take it unless I was about to go to bed. I have an entire box of the good Zyrtec that I haven’t even opened yet, because, as scratchy as I am, getting the good stuff is such a hassle that I want to wait until I really, really need to use it before opening the box. Meanwhile, the Mexicans are purchasing pseudoephedrine in bulk and turning out high quality meth. Thanks, Obama!)

A Mr. Richard Feder of Fort Lee, New Jersey writes….

Lawrence made what I thought was a profound observation at dinner last night: every now and then, the NYT publishes a story that seems to be crafted in such a way as to make you hate not just the subjects, and not just the writers, but the entire population of New York City.

A half-dozen people were gathered around the tasting bar at the Henley Vaporium in SoHo on a recent Friday evening.

Let me interrupt here: where did the name “Henley Vaporium” come from?

The name, according to Ms. Eisenberg, has no significance other than that it sounded “cool” and “British.”

They should have named it “Henway”. What’s a “Henway”? About three pounds, give or take a few ounces. But I digress. Jumping back to where we were…

Behind the bar, two vapologists in white lab coats stood before a selection of dozens of tiny bottles, each containing liquid nicotine. The customers, all students or young professionals, leisurely inhaled on their so-called vape pens. Clouds of mist curled upward and vanished. A slightly sweet smell lingered in the air.

“Vapologist”?

…the title was actually stitched on the breast of each lab coat…

Their parents must be so proud.

After an hour sampling the “juices,” Chris Gsell, 39, a director of product development at a nearby ad agency, settled on creamy banana. “It’s delicious,” he said between pulls from his vape pen.

By a strange coincidence, “creamy banana” was also the flavor of the bubblegum cigars I used to chew when I was five years old.

You know, I try not to be judgmental about what people put into their bodies. And it does seem like e-cigarettes are less harmful for you than regular ones; if this is what gets you through the night, God bless you. But the “vape” culture that seems to be springing up around what is a replacement for smoking is starting to try my last nerve.

Posted in Clippings, Media | 2 Comments »

Dunder Mifflin won’t save you.

Saturday, January 11th, 2014

The city of Scranton, Pennsylvania has a problem.

Faced with a $20-million deficit, Scranton had to do some tricky maneuvering to balance its budget and avoid defaulting on loans. Most of this maneuvering has involved increasing taxes and fees paid by the people who still live in the town, which has seen its population drop by half since the 1930s.

How much?

In its 2014 budget, the city raised property taxes and trash fees nearly 60% and tripled rental registration fees. The city’s school district, which faced a $4-million deficit, raised taxes 2.4%.

The city already has a 5% tax on “live entertainment”, is discussing a 10% “drink tax”, and has jacked up parking rates. That’s going to help a lot:

The taxes are especially egregious to some because so many of the city’s residents are elderly and living on fixed incomes. The median household income in Scranton is $37,000, and nearly one-fifth of residents live below the poverty line.

I imagine a lot of those folks are going downtown and drinking in the downtown bars. Both of them. There’s only two left: all the others have gone out of business.

The city’s financial problems were accelerated by a 2011 Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision that found that the city owed its police and firefighters unions back pay — about $21 million. The settlement money became due in 2013, but the city bickered over how to come up with the funds for so long that Moody’s warned in November that Scranton faced the threat of default.

How bad is it? Many of the city residents quoted in the LAT would welcome a municipal bankruptcy.

“We’re watching what Detroit is doing, and just figure, with all the money we owe the police and all them, we’re going to be broke for the next 20 years, so why not file for bankruptcy?” said Walter David, a lifelong Scranton resident.

Why not indeed?

Posted in Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

Got nothing.

Friday, January 10th, 2014

I hate being silent for two days straight, but I don’t have any thing I feel is worth writing about.

The Chris Christie thing is now being covered by everyone else in the world. I don’t have anything new to add, or anything more to say, about the gun show thing; there’s going to be a Saxet show this month per the existing contract, and Premier is going to have shows in Cedar Park during April and June. I’m frankly a little burned out on this fight, and I’m not sure what else we can do. (“If voting could change the system, it wouldn’t be legal.”)

More than anything else, I’m just feeling cranky and upset and tired and depressed. I think part of it is the season and part of it is the weather. I don’t know. I’m having trouble concentrating on stuff: I’m still trying to write the King of Sports review and do coursework, but both are struggles.

Maybe I just need a weekend. One more day to go.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Closed

TMQ Watch: January 7, 2014.

Wednesday, January 8th, 2014

Ah, the promise of the new year. Ah, the promise of Gregg Easterbrook’s first column of the year. Ah, the promise of the playoffs.

After the jump, this week’s TMQ…

(more…)

Posted in Clippings, Mixology, NFL, Sports, TMQ watch, TV | 2 Comments »

Juggalo law.

Wednesday, January 8th, 2014

The Michigan rap group Insane Clown Posse filed suit on Wednesday against the Justice Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, saying that the United States government had made the “unwarranted and unlawful decision” to classify fans of the band as criminal gang members, leading to their harassment by law enforcement and causing them “significant harm.”

This by way of a rather cryptic tweet from Popehat:

(Sorry, Mom.)

Not being a lawyer, I’m not sure what Popehat is referring to here as far as the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, though I’m hoping it wasn’t just a play on ICP’s most famous quote and we’ll get a fuller explanation later. As a guess, I want to say that Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope may not have standing to sue, as it isn’t clear to me that they have actually been damaged directly by the government’s actions.

Posted in Clippings, IANAL, Law | Comments Closed

Second verse, same as the first!

Wednesday, January 8th, 2014

My mother sent the kids an email this morning:

No more gun shows, big Velvetta shortage. Makes me want to get a gun and the big box of Velvetta.

And I said, “Whaaaaaaaaaat?” I wasn’t aware there was a gun show issue. As a matter of fact, I’d checked the Saxet Shows schedule just the other night (while dining with Lawrence) and they have shows scheduled through December 2014. So I figured we were done with the bolshie bushwa. Right?

Wrong.

Travis County leaders voted Tuesday not to extend a lease allowing Saxet Gun Shows to hold the event at the county-owned Exposition Center in Austin.

Here’s a report from yesterday. Basically, the county commissioners couldn’t agree on what to do:

After concerns with citizens last year, the county added a provision in the contract that Saxet require it’s private gun vendors to conduct background checks for shows at the Travis County Expo Center. Judge Sam Biscoe proposed the county halt attempts to negotiate with Saxet until they agree to the background check provision of the contract. That proposal failed. Precinct Three Commissioner Gerald Daugherty then proposed to continue the original contract without the background check provision, which also failed.

Oh, look. By way of KLBJ, here’s a non-paywalled Statesman link.

“If you use a public facility to sell guns, we really oughta have background checks done. Or don’t use the facility,” County Judge Sam Biscoe, the chairman of the commissioners, told reporters after the meeting.

And since licensed dealers at gun shows are already required to do background checks, that will accomplish…nothing. Except drive Saxet out of Austin and into someplace like Round Rock or Cedar Park, and reduce Expo Center revenue. Private sales between individuals are still going to take place, gun show or no show.

Perhaps some of my readers might wish to give Judge Biscoe and the other members of the Commissioner’s Court who aren’t Gerald Daugherty a call. I’d recommend being polite and professional. Judge Biscoe has nothing to lose, since he’s retiring this year. So perhaps you should also make a note on your calender for election time…

Posted in Clippings, Guns, Politics, Travis County | 2 Comments »

Random notes: January 8, 2014.

Wednesday, January 8th, 2014

Jeff Ireland out as general manager in Miami, on the heels of the Mike Sherman firing. This is being spun as “by mutual agreement”:

A club source said Ireland was going to lose much, if not all, of his decision-making power. Owner Stephen Ross intended to hire an executive with personnel authority over Ireland, a situation that was not acceptable to Ireland.

106 individuals charged in a massive, multi-decade long Social Security disability fraud scheme. Included in the indictments are 72 former NYC police officers and eight former NYC firefighters.

More to come. I’m getting a slow start this morning, but I do plan a gun show post as soon as I’m able to get one up. Assuming Lawrence doesn’t beat me to it.

Posted in Clippings, Cops, Firings, Law, NFL, Sports | Comments Closed

Banana republicans watch: January 7, 2014.

Tuesday, January 7th, 2014

This story started breaking this morning, but I wanted to wait for the official word before posting anything.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca has decided to drop his re-election bid, and is retiring as sheriff at the end of January.

Sheriff Baca and his department have been a frequent subject of coverage here, most recently as the result of 18 of his deputies being indicted on federal charges. But that’s just part of the story; Baca’s department has a long history of issues, including deputies beating the crap out of each other at the Christmas party, questionable hiring decisions, and questionable tactics. Browse the “California Uber Alles” category for more.

I have the feeling that this is another one of those “pass the popcorn” moments, and I look forward to finding out what happens next.

Posted in California Über Alles, Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

Firings and other random notes: January 7, 2014.

Tuesday, January 7th, 2014

At this point, it is probably easier to list who the Houston Texans have not fired:

Assistant head coach/defensive line Bill Kollar.

Also out of a job: Miami offensive coordinator (and former Texas A&M head coach) Mike Sherman.

The latest episode of “American Experience”, which is airing tonight on most PBS stations (7 PM on KLRU, with repeats at 1 AM and 3 AM) is an adaptation of Deborah Blum’s The Poisoner’s Handbook, about forensic toxicology in New York during the 1920s and 1930s. I thought this was a swell book, and I generally enjoy the “American Experience” documentaries, so I commend this to your attention.

Posted in Books, Clippings, Firings, Geek, NFL, Sports | Comments Closed

And another one down…

Saturday, January 4th, 2014

Legendary former Houston Oiler Mike Munchak, who went on to coach the Tennessee Titans for three seasons, was fired today.

He was 22-26; the team finished 7-9 this year.

The decision ends Munchak’s 31-year run with the franchise that dated back to him being drafted by the Houston Oilers in 1982. Munchak later served as a long-time offensive line coach with the team before he was hired to replace Jeff Fisher in 2011.

Also:

The team offered him an opportunity to return, with conditions. Among them included parting ways with a good portion of his coaching staff. Munchak declined to do so, and the two sides agreed to part ways.

Posted in Clippings, Firings, NFL | Comments Closed

Ballad of the Houston Texans.

Saturday, January 4th, 2014

Now that Bill O’Brien has taken over, what’s going on?

Answer: he fired everybody just as hard as he could go. He fired Wade Philips and he fired Rick Dennison, and he fired some people that he didn’t even know.

Seriously: Wade Philips is gone as defensive coordinator. Rick Dennison is gone as offensive coordinator. Quarterback coach Karl Dorrell is gone. Defensive backs coach Vance Johnson is gone.

Reports from elsewhere say everyone is going to be fired before the day is out.

Musical hattip:

Don Helms from Wikipedia.

Posted in Clippings, Firings, Music, NFL | Comments Closed

Legal update part 2.

Friday, January 3rd, 2014

Gerhard Becker has pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter and been sentenced to serve one year in jail. With time served and time off for good behavior, it seems likely he will go free in six months.

I’ve written about this case previously. For those who don’t recall: Becker was an architect who remodeled a home in Hollywood Hills. After the final inspection, and after having lied to the inspectors, Becker installed fire pits designed for outdoor use inside the home. The home eventually caught fire, and Glenn Allen, a firefighter with the LA Fire Department, was fatally injured while fighting the fire. Allen’s death resulted in the charge against Becker.

Posted in Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

TMQ watch: December 31, 2013.

Friday, January 3rd, 2014

More “we’re just not feeling the clever this week”. Might as well just open the box. After the jump, this week’s TMQ…

(more…)

Posted in Clippings, Mixology, NFL, Sports, TMQ watch, TV | Comments Closed

Legal update part 1.

Friday, January 3rd, 2014

The lawsuit by Alexander Calder’s heirs against his former dealer has been dismissed.

In a decision dated Dec. 23, Judge Shirley Werner Kornreich wrote that “all of these allegations are so patently inadequate that the court can only conclude that they were brought solely for the purposes of harassment or embarrassment, without any consideration of their legal sufficiency.”
The judge also invoked the statute of limitations, writing that the plaintiffs were trying to litigate issues that stretched back “decades without any personal knowledge or contemporaneous records, where nearly all of the people who had personal knowledge of the facts are dead.”

(Previously.)

(I expect to have a second legal update later today; I’m just waiting on events.)

Posted in Art, Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

New year, new list.

Friday, January 3rd, 2014

I wasn’t all that wild about what the NYT did with this year’s “The Lives They Led” obituary roundup.

But this, this is a swell article:

But the diesel engine was too loud, and the Anna Mary, on autopilot, moving due south at six and a half knots, was already out of reach, its navigation lights receding into the night. Aldridge shouted once more, panic rising in his throat, and then silence descended. He was alone in the darkness. A single thought gripped his mind: This is how I’m going to die.

One aspect of this that fascinates me: the Coast Guard’s use of computers in search and rescue.

The Coast Guard has used computer simulations in search and rescue since the mid-1970s, but Sarops has been in use since only 2007. At its heart is a Monte Carlo-style simulator that can generate, in just a few minutes, as many as 10,000 points to represent how far and in what direction a “search object” might have drifted. Operators input a variety of data, from the last known location of a lost mariner to the ocean currents and wind direction. Sarops then creates a map of a search area — in this case, of the ocean south of Montauk — with colored squares representing each potential location for the search object. Red and orange squares represent the most likely locations; gray squares represent the least likely.

Posted in 2014, Clippings, Food, Geek, Lobsters, Reading list | 1 Comment »

Firings watch.

Friday, January 3rd, 2014

Carol Ross, head coach of the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, was fired yesterday.

Well, actually, she was laid off. Along with her staff. And the entire front office staff.

And the team’s current owner has said that they are “no longer in a position” to continue with the team.

Asked if the Sparks would field a team for the 2014 season, or if the franchise would fold, [WNBA President Laurel] Richie repeatedly said that several entities have expressed an interest in owning a WNBA team and the league is exploring those options regarding the Sparks.

Posted in Clippings, Firings, Sports | Comments Closed

Random notes: January 3, 2014.

Friday, January 3rd, 2014

WE’RE ALL GOING TO DIE!*

(* Offer not valid outside of New York City.)

I’m not sure I understand the point of this article. Ostensibly, it is about the supposed economic impact on the neighborhood businesses of “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” closing.

But even a full house at the 1,930-seat Foxwoods, the biggest Broadway theater, is just a drop in the bucket of the roughly 400,000 people moving through Times Square daily at this time of year.
And it can be hard to determine just where audience members for “Spider-Man” — some 89 percent of whom are from out of town, according to the show’s most recent research — have been spending their dollars, though some businesses popular with tourists seeking a classic Broadway experience say the show’s absence will be felt.

So it doesn’t seem like the NYT has any way to quantify the impact, just a bunch of anecdotes from businesses in the neighborhood. Some of them expect reduced business, others say they expect people (especially actors) to keep showing up. Is there a point?

Strippers. Always with the strippers.

The new agreement freed the 16 clubs involved in the lawsuits from abiding by the 1997 law and required the owners to contribute $1 million annually to a unit in the Houston Police Department devoted to fighting human trafficking. But a number of religious leaders and advocates for sex-trafficking victims have opposed the deal. They said it sent the wrong message about Houston’s tolerance for such entertainment, and allowed the 16 clubs to buy their way out of complying with the law. The Houston Area Pastor Council is considering suing the city over the agreement.

Is that $1 million from each club, or $1 million total? And is it just me, or is there something odd about private businesses giving money to the police department to enforce the law?

Posted in Clippings, Hysteria, Law, Theatre | Comments Closed

In case you were wondering…

Wednesday, January 1st, 2014

…Joe Allen will not be adding a poster for “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” to his “wall of flops”.

“Any show that plays for three years on Broadway, providing steady employment to members of the theater community and pumping money into the local economy, is no failure in my book.”

(Previously.)

Posted in Clippings, Spiders, Theatre | Comments Closed

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