:
SoFlo: WHERE WE LIVE -
# Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State, appeared noontime at a book-signing event for her new opus, Memo To the President Elect, in the Plantation branch of Barnes & Noble at the Broward Mall and seems to have attracted quite a large crowd.
# Hats, Hoods, Masks & Shades:
Citing Florida's recent plague of bank robberies, which increased 40 percent in 2007, the Florida Bankers Association has proposed new rules that will prohibit hats, hoods, sunglasses or anything that might obscure a person's identity in Florida banks. [sent]
+ What ever happened to the "Klan Mask Laws," and why don't they already cover this issue? Just asking . . . But don't expect any intelligent discussion of this issue any time soon . . . until maybe CGI Mustafah Headroom complains. Shazzam the Goat Boy is probably cooking up the video right now while you are reading this ;-)
+ typo corrected: 1/20 at 11:12am.
...
Friday, January 18
:
INTERNET TRICKS -
Rudy Villanueva, it turns out . . .
not only had a MySpace page on the internet,
but was allegedly operating an online bordello, too.
Law enforcement said they will release
more details about the case on Friday.
+ See BIRD ROAD below:
1/17 at 12:33 AM for previous entry.
...
INTERNET TRICKS -
Rudy Villanueva, it turns out . . .
not only had a MySpace page on the internet,
but was allegedly operating an online bordello, too.
Law enforcement said they will release
more details about the case on Friday.
+ See BIRD ROAD below:
1/17 at 12:33 AM for previous entry.
...
:
SEEKING TO IDENTIFY (2#) -
# Attorneys for a convicted murderer said in court Wednesday that they want the IP addresses of everyone who accessed the web site of the newspaper... to see if any of the jurors who convicted her violated a court order not to read about the case.
# "Last month, an investigator at Kansas University delivered a search warrant to the Lawrence Journal-World, a highly regarded newspaper in Lawrence, Kansas, demanding access to their computer servers in order to get information about the identity of a user who had posted comments on the paper's website. The warrant, which appears to violate the federal Privacy Protection Act, raises serious concerns about governmental overreaching and highlights the need for adequate procedural protections for anonymous online speech." [Ardia]
NB: Link for printer-friendly version at bottom of entry.
...
SEEKING TO IDENTIFY (2#) -
# Attorneys for a convicted murderer said in court Wednesday that they want the IP addresses of everyone who accessed the web site of the newspaper... to see if any of the jurors who convicted her violated a court order not to read about the case.
# "Last month, an investigator at Kansas University delivered a search warrant to the Lawrence Journal-World, a highly regarded newspaper in Lawrence, Kansas, demanding access to their computer servers in order to get information about the identity of a user who had posted comments on the paper's website. The warrant, which appears to violate the federal Privacy Protection Act, raises serious concerns about governmental overreaching and highlights the need for adequate procedural protections for anonymous online speech." [Ardia]
NB: Link for printer-friendly version at bottom of entry.
...
Thursday, January 17
:
BAD FAIRIES ON THE NET -
Doesn't Play Well With Others -
# According to ICANN, the Russian government wants to establish a Cyrillic Net, but Russian internet users fear being boxed in to a separate ghetto on the worldwide web, rendering them more vulnerable to government control, spying, and restrictions. [Viv Groskop]
# The Miami Herald's Bad Fairy
was out and about again last night, harassing visitors to register and refusing them entry if they declined to
follow orders . . .
The last time their Bad Fairy came out, Management claimed it was due to a software breakdown, but I did not believe them then and I don't believe it now.
I will not register under any circumstances; nor will I give them my email address or any other personal information about myself.
I just dropped by The Herald again a few minutes ago.
Their Bad Fairy is still harassing visitors.
...
BAD FAIRIES ON THE NET -
Doesn't Play Well With Others -
# According to ICANN, the Russian government wants to establish a Cyrillic Net, but Russian internet users fear being boxed in to a separate ghetto on the worldwide web, rendering them more vulnerable to government control, spying, and restrictions. [Viv Groskop]
# The Miami Herald's Bad Fairy
was out and about again last night, harassing visitors to register and refusing them entry if they declined to
follow orders . . .
The last time their Bad Fairy came out, Management claimed it was due to a software breakdown, but I did not believe them then and I don't believe it now.
I will not register under any circumstances; nor will I give them my email address or any other personal information about myself.
I just dropped by The Herald again a few minutes ago.
Their Bad Fairy is still harassing visitors.
...
:
PAKISTAN update (3#) -
A Tragic Battle in NWFP & Wired Moms -
# "Fort Sararogha fell Wednesday to the men of Baitullah Mehsud in South Waziristan because the Frontier Constabulary men guarding the fort were outgunned 42 to 200... The main purpose of the raid was capture of 24 hostages whom the warlord took from Sararogha to facilitate his next round of negotiations with the government."
# :: Local Account ::
**********************************
# Face to Face Surprise:
Karachi kids are flabbergasted
to discover their moms showing up
on Facebook. :: By Uroos Ahmed ::
...
PAKISTAN update (3#) -
A Tragic Battle in NWFP & Wired Moms -
# "Fort Sararogha fell Wednesday to the men of Baitullah Mehsud in South Waziristan because the Frontier Constabulary men guarding the fort were outgunned 42 to 200... The main purpose of the raid was capture of 24 hostages whom the warlord took from Sararogha to facilitate his next round of negotiations with the government."
# :: Local Account ::
**********************************
# Face to Face Surprise:
Karachi kids are flabbergasted
to discover their moms showing up
on Facebook. :: By Uroos Ahmed ::
...
:
SoFlo: BIRD ROAD
GANGSTER LOCKED UP -
A Miami self-styled gangster man posted video of himself on YouTube which shows him brandishing an AK-47 and expressing a declaration of war. In the video, he seems to be taunting the local police to arrest him, but for no apparent reason.
Much of his behavior in the video didn't seem to make any sense, and I could only guess he may have been in an altered state of mind, messed up by chemicals, while he was performing for the camera.
Wednesday morning he was arrested by Federal authorities.
While executing a search warrant, they discovered what appeared to be the weapon displayed in the video, additional guns, and almost 800 rounds of ammunition.
He has been booked into the Federal Detention
Center in Miami.
I found this whole episode very troubling
for complex reasons.
:: CBS4 TV ::
...
SoFlo: BIRD ROAD
GANGSTER LOCKED UP -
A Miami self-styled gangster man posted video of himself on YouTube which shows him brandishing an AK-47 and expressing a declaration of war. In the video, he seems to be taunting the local police to arrest him, but for no apparent reason.
Much of his behavior in the video didn't seem to make any sense, and I could only guess he may have been in an altered state of mind, messed up by chemicals, while he was performing for the camera.
Wednesday morning he was arrested by Federal authorities.
While executing a search warrant, they discovered what appeared to be the weapon displayed in the video, additional guns, and almost 800 rounds of ammunition.
He has been booked into the Federal Detention
Center in Miami.
I found this whole episode very troubling
for complex reasons.
:: CBS4 TV ::
...
Wednesday, January 16
:
SoFlo: UNDER SIEGE - (2#) -
Residents of South Florida are currently living here under siege. Terrorists, who are prosecuting a low-intensity guerilla war against us, are frequently seen running around, brandishing AK-47s or similar weapons. And they are clearly engaged in armed insurrection.
*Assault weapons are leaving a bloody trail of violence in South Florida... In Miami, assault weapons were used in about 4 percent of all homicides in 2004; last year, the figure was
21 percent...*
"The guns keep coming in, their prices are
dropping, and they've become ubiquitous.''
But many people are still in denial.
**********************************
*Florida is facing what is likely the nation's fastest-growing gang problem, with at least 1,500 gangs with more than 65,000 members.*
"They control neighborhoods and oppress
our citizens by using violence and threats."
*While painting a sordid picture of how gangs operate in Florida, using assault weapons and fists to intimidate, the 56-page report delivered to the state Supreme Court on Tuesday said gangs are growing at an "increasingly alarming" rate, and placed much of the blame on illegal immigration.*
+ In my opinion, they should be reclassified as terrorists and treated as such. The reason they are brandishing AK-47s is to terrorize people. And, by their own public admission, they are conducting a war against us.
...
SoFlo: UNDER SIEGE - (2#) -
Residents of South Florida are currently living here under siege. Terrorists, who are prosecuting a low-intensity guerilla war against us, are frequently seen running around, brandishing AK-47s or similar weapons. And they are clearly engaged in armed insurrection.
*Assault weapons are leaving a bloody trail of violence in South Florida... In Miami, assault weapons were used in about 4 percent of all homicides in 2004; last year, the figure was
21 percent...*
"The guns keep coming in, their prices are
dropping, and they've become ubiquitous.''
But many people are still in denial.
**********************************
*Florida is facing what is likely the nation's fastest-growing gang problem, with at least 1,500 gangs with more than 65,000 members.*
"They control neighborhoods and oppress
our citizens by using violence and threats."
*While painting a sordid picture of how gangs operate in Florida, using assault weapons and fists to intimidate, the 56-page report delivered to the state Supreme Court on Tuesday said gangs are growing at an "increasingly alarming" rate, and placed much of the blame on illegal immigration.*
+ In my opinion, they should be reclassified as terrorists and treated as such. The reason they are brandishing AK-47s is to terrorize people. And, by their own public admission, they are conducting a war against us.
...
:
GOOSE CREEK INCIDENT update (2#) -
Attorney John Fitzgibbons has separated
from the case of an Egyptian student
facing federal explosives charges.
"I'm now going to dance the Irish jig
as I go down Franklin Street," he said.
Ahmed Mohamed has a new attorney;
Bruce G. Howie has been appointed to represent him.
...
GOOSE CREEK INCIDENT update (2#) -
Attorney John Fitzgibbons has separated
from the case of an Egyptian student
facing federal explosives charges.
"I'm now going to dance the Irish jig
as I go down Franklin Street," he said.
Ahmed Mohamed has a new attorney;
Bruce G. Howie has been appointed to represent him.
...
Monday, January 14
:
PK: POP HAPPENS (2#) -
# Burqa Britney? Folks on the Sub-Continent and further afield are chattering up a storm about Britney Spears' rumoured romance with Pakistani photog Adnan Ghalib. Lotsa Buzz. But some feel a fatwa against Spears coming on.
# Hot Pundits: Fatima Bhutto, the 25-year-old niece of the late Benazir Bhutto, writes a local newspaper column on which she has posted her contact info. Since the recent publicity about her aunt's murder, she has been bombarded with marriage proposals and more.
...
PK: POP HAPPENS (2#) -
# Burqa Britney? Folks on the Sub-Continent and further afield are chattering up a storm about Britney Spears' rumoured romance with Pakistani photog Adnan Ghalib. Lotsa Buzz. But some feel a fatwa against Spears coming on.
# Hot Pundits: Fatima Bhutto, the 25-year-old niece of the late Benazir Bhutto, writes a local newspaper column on which she has posted her contact info. Since the recent publicity about her aunt's murder, she has been bombarded with marriage proposals and more.
...
:
MAKING THE WORLD
MORE STUPID: One Poppy at a Time (3#) -
# American Ambassador William Wood met Sunday with Mullah Abdul Salaam, a former Taliban commander now in charge of Musa Qala, Afghanistan, and told Salaam that Afghans must stop "producing poison."
He was referring to the Poppy Trade.
"Wood has said officials discovered $500 million worth of heroin in dozens of labs around Musa Qala."
The 82nd Airborne currently rings the town, but will be leaving in a few days.
*********************************
# Stop Poppy Cultivation - ::VOA::
*********************************
# Backgrounder:
Who is Mullah Abdul Salaam?
:::: By Anthony Loyd :: UK Times
...
MAKING THE WORLD
MORE STUPID: One Poppy at a Time (3#) -
# American Ambassador William Wood met Sunday with Mullah Abdul Salaam, a former Taliban commander now in charge of Musa Qala, Afghanistan, and told Salaam that Afghans must stop "producing poison."
He was referring to the Poppy Trade.
"Wood has said officials discovered $500 million worth of heroin in dozens of labs around Musa Qala."
The 82nd Airborne currently rings the town, but will be leaving in a few days.
*********************************
# Stop Poppy Cultivation - ::VOA::
*********************************
# Backgrounder:
Who is Mullah Abdul Salaam?
:::: By Anthony Loyd :: UK Times
...
:
THE WAR AGAINST MISS MARPLE (2#) -
The Russian government is trying to shut down British Council offices in two Russian cities. The British Council is an organization which promotes British culture.
"David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, has likened Russia's attitude to Burma and Iran, where the British Council has also been forbidden from operating."
"The dispute comes amid broader tension over Litvinenko's radiation poisoning death in London in November 2006. Russia has refused Britain's request to extradite the man it considers the main suspect; this summer Britain expelled four Russian diplomats in response, and Russia kicked out four British diplomats... Russia has been angry at Britain for years over its refusal to extradite tycoon Boris Berezovsky and Chechen separatist envoy Akhmed Zakayev."
+ From Sherlock Holmes to Harry Potter, British culture and entertainment is popular around the world. The Russian government's current campaign may not be very well received by their own population.
...
THE WAR AGAINST MISS MARPLE (2#) -
The Russian government is trying to shut down British Council offices in two Russian cities. The British Council is an organization which promotes British culture.
"David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, has likened Russia's attitude to Burma and Iran, where the British Council has also been forbidden from operating."
"The dispute comes amid broader tension over Litvinenko's radiation poisoning death in London in November 2006. Russia has refused Britain's request to extradite the man it considers the main suspect; this summer Britain expelled four Russian diplomats in response, and Russia kicked out four British diplomats... Russia has been angry at Britain for years over its refusal to extradite tycoon Boris Berezovsky and Chechen separatist envoy Akhmed Zakayev."
+ From Sherlock Holmes to Harry Potter, British culture and entertainment is popular around the world. The Russian government's current campaign may not be very well received by their own population.
...
Sunday, January 13
:
EXPLORING THE DARK SIDE -
A Role-Playing Game Turned Deadly?
American college student Amanda Knox is a key suspect in the murder of her British roommate, Meredith Kercher, last November 1 in Perugia, Italy.
*Precisely how an attractive, gifted, wholesome American student found herself at the heart of a particularly sordid and brutal murder has yet to be established by prosecutors and the police.*
Could it have anything to do with this?
In December 2006, Amanda Knox posted a short story on M*Space in which a young woman is drugged and raped by another young woman. One passage reads: "She fell on the floor, she felt the blood on her mouth and swallowed it."
According to the autopsy report:
*Kercher was stabbed three times in the neck. The last and deepest thrust missed her carotid artery, but Kercher is believed to have been in agony for about 10 minutes before bleeding to death.*
I have been following this case and have formed the impression that this scenario may have started out as a kind of Role-Playing Game based on the widely popular TV shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel or, perhaps, the Anne Rice books and movies about Vampires - until the game turned deadly.
For most youngsters these TV shows, books and movies are harmless fantasy forms of entertainment; but for other young people who have some serious problems, they can provide a vehicle to explore taboo endeavors like vampirism or even murder as exciting adventures.
*John Follain spent two months in Italy and Seattle finding out the truth about Amanda Knox.*
Mr Follain has done an excellent job as an investigative journalist in this extensive article. And the presentation here is quite comprehensive.
"Is this the face of a killer?"
:: By John Follain - UK Times ::
...
EXPLORING THE DARK SIDE -
A Role-Playing Game Turned Deadly?
American college student Amanda Knox is a key suspect in the murder of her British roommate, Meredith Kercher, last November 1 in Perugia, Italy.
*Precisely how an attractive, gifted, wholesome American student found herself at the heart of a particularly sordid and brutal murder has yet to be established by prosecutors and the police.*
Could it have anything to do with this?
In December 2006, Amanda Knox posted a short story on M*Space in which a young woman is drugged and raped by another young woman. One passage reads: "She fell on the floor, she felt the blood on her mouth and swallowed it."
According to the autopsy report:
*Kercher was stabbed three times in the neck. The last and deepest thrust missed her carotid artery, but Kercher is believed to have been in agony for about 10 minutes before bleeding to death.*
I have been following this case and have formed the impression that this scenario may have started out as a kind of Role-Playing Game based on the widely popular TV shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel or, perhaps, the Anne Rice books and movies about Vampires - until the game turned deadly.
For most youngsters these TV shows, books and movies are harmless fantasy forms of entertainment; but for other young people who have some serious problems, they can provide a vehicle to explore taboo endeavors like vampirism or even murder as exciting adventures.
*John Follain spent two months in Italy and Seattle finding out the truth about Amanda Knox.*
Mr Follain has done an excellent job as an investigative journalist in this extensive article. And the presentation here is quite comprehensive.
"Is this the face of a killer?"
:: By John Follain - UK Times ::
...
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