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Month: August 2012

Interview with Brandon Raub

Via Wendy McElroy, John Whitehead of the Rutherford Institute interviews Brandon Raub, the young man locked in the loony bin because of his Facebook postings. Raub was released on a judge’s order because the petition for Raub’s detainment was “… so devoid of any factual allegations that it could not be reasonably expected to give rise to a case or controversy.” A wrongful-arrest lawsuit is now in the works. —– Of course, Raub violated the first commandment, which is …?

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Tell me about home-security cameras

Checking my Amazon vendor stats this morning, I discovered that somebody (I’ll never know who unless they choose to “uncloak”; thank you, Mysterious Stranger) just bought one of these: Wireless IP Pan/Tilt/ Night Vision Internet Surveillance Camera Built-in Microphone With Phone remote monitoring support. Yeah, that’s a mouthful. But that’s also a lot of camera for $50. Until recently, I’d never thought about getting home-security cameras because a) I have nothing worth stealing and b) not many bad guys are going to choose a house with three dogs. But just this week the thought crossed my mind that a camera…

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Wednesday links

Don’t worry; I haven’t forgotten … well, all the things you might be thinking I’ve forgotten. I will write a post to kick off a women-and-carry-guns discussion (per yesterday’s comment thread). I will get the second draft of the snitch book done and off to you volunteer reviewers (next week with some luck). And I will get that long-promised raffle rifle decorated — although at this point I admit that promise still falls in the category of vaporware. And perhaps even verges on “political promise” territory. I can’t believe how busy this year has been. But it looks as if…

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Hey, computer-music geeks

A good friend of mine (and of this blog and of dogs) is also a fan of Animusic. Several years ago he sent me their first two DVDs. Even though I’m as sadly non-musical as it gets, I found them awesome. Now Animusic is crowdsourcing funding for DVD number three and they are alllllllmost over the top. Check ’em out and if you can give their fundraising a little kick via Kickstarter, great. If you can’t or don’t want to contribute, how about spreading the word to any music fans or computer animation geeks you know? One more week to…

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Freeloading neighbors, part III:In which I’m reminded of yet another reason I don’t open carry

Soooo … less than a week after I think I’ve cleverly gotten rid of Mr. Freeloader … knock, knock. It’s Mr. Freeloader’s oldest son (about 10). “Can I borrow $5?” Last time, Dad definitely sent the kids over to “borrow” money. This time, it’s not at all clear whether Dad did the sending or the kid has just learned Dad’s lessons and decided on his own that neighbors might be bottomless pits of favors. All I know is it’s damned hard to look an adorable urchin in the face and say, “No, you can never borrow anything from me again…

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Monday links

Fedgov issues “healthy meal standards” for schools that are so bureaucratic they threaten an actual healthy meal program (that even teaches kids about growing their own food). Don’t think I’ve ever seen anything that shows so profoundly how tangled and deep the relationships of snitches can be with both handlers and targets. Wish Mr. Aoki had agreed to talk more before he died. Not that anything he said would have been believable. The Tesla Museum: closer to becoming a reality thanks to a cartoonist’s crowdsourcery. Two cases in which dogs died in hot cars, apparently because air conditioning systems failed…

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Dog days and funny stuff

For your edification entertainment and h-wording pleasure, here’s a post all about dogs and funny stuff. Pit bull adopts lion cub. Marines’ top dog, Chesty, gets a promotion after dissing Panetta’s pooch. (This one’s for a young friend of the blog who’s currently at Twenty-Nine Palms getting his butt shot off via CAX) Boy wants to give his dying service dog a taste of the world. Well (farggle) that! (H/T PT) “Four-legged reason to keep it together.” (Tip o’ hat to Jim Bovard.) Barkour! (H/T Jim B.) Finally, you heard this week about the octagenarian woman who, with the best…

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Thoughts while shingling the house, trapping cats, deadlining my arse off, having a Margarita AND eating chocolates

This year has been the busiest I’ve had since back in my 20s when, for a brief, delusional few years I worked like a Silicon Valley maniac. I don’t approve of work. I discourage all my friends from doing too much of it (and “too much” can have a pretty liberal definition). So how did I get into this state? I ask myself that all the time as I bang nails and computer keys (mercifully not at the same time, but as tired as I’ve gotten a few days this week there’s some chance I might mix up the two,…

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Sad anniversary — and nothing’s changed

Jim Bovard reminded me of an anniversary I thought I’d never forget: twenty years ago today, the federal government murdered Vicki Weaver. Twenty years ago yesterday, federal marshals kicked off the Ruby Ridge seige by killing a boy and his dog. I was already a freedomista before the Weaver monstrosity, but that was my radicalization. I knew from the moment I saw the fuzzy helicopter images of the Weavers’ cabin on the little antenna-driven TV I had then that something was rotten, foul, unspeakable, and more wrong than words could express. While attending parts of the trial, I also got…

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Update on freeloading neighbor

I was going to just drop this into the comment section in the original post about my freeloading neighbor. But I forgot that webmaster Oliver has closed comments on old blog entries to deter spammers. So anyhow, here’s an update. It’s been five weeks since Mr. Freeloader has asked for any favors. I assumed (and hoped) that guilt over not returning things was keeping him from asking for anything else. It may have been. But this morning at 10:00 he showed up again. When I opened the door he was standing there with his hands tented under his chin in…

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