September 25, 2018

Why we shouldn't "just enforce the law"

fromLawFare: The case of a woman who may be prosecuted for sheltering animals during Hurricane Florence highlights some reasons why it is often wrong to enforce the law.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

Gov. Brown signs stupid straw bill

fromLawFare: Goofy governor insures California maintains its status as the gold standard for nitwittery.
Political Correctness and Other Nitwittery       Regulation Nation

Quick Notes on the Rosenstein Revelations

fromLawFare: There is a lot to chew over in the blockbuster New York Times story about Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s erratic behavior in his first few weeks on the job.
Politics and Other Official Acts of Corruption

WATCH: Assange’s last interview before blackout released—”this is the last free generation”

fromFreeThoughtProject: In his last interview before going dark, Julian Assange had some rather grim views to express to the world.
Individual Liberty: America's First Principle     Government is Watching Every Move You Make

Why these five states would be better independent countries

fromTheDailyBell: The federal two-party system ensures a perpetually unhappy populace. Each tries to force their will on the other when it is “their turn.” And the rest of us, who aren’t on one side or the other, constantly lose.
The Government is Not Us

VIDEO: Steve Silverman: 5 rules for recording police

fromFlexYourRights/YouTube: Citizens always have right to record the police in public. Steve Silverman (Flex Your Rights) discusses police body cameras and recording misconduct.
Police State America      Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

May 17, 2016

Supreme Court strikes down federal law that prohibited states from legalizing sports gambling

fromReason: “A more direct affront to state sovereignty is not easy to imagine.”
The War Against Unapproved Voluntary Exchange

Seattle plans to punish the productive in order to subsidize bums

fromDailyMail: Democrats take care of their constituency. Seattle will tax companies including Amazon and Starbucks $275 per employee to provide shelter for the homeless in $48million scheme.
Economic Policy: Statism Versus The Free Market

The issue is liberty, not gambling

fromTheWallStreetJournal: The high court takes a rare stand in defense of the Tenth Amendment.
The War Against Unapproved Voluntary Exchange     Individual Liberty: America's First Principle

The University of New Hampshire earns FIRE’s top rating for free speech

fromFosters: The free exchange of ideas continues to survive in some quarters.
Indoctrination and Censorship

Stop asking what happened before someone started filming police brutality

fromTheIntercept: Most folks don't wear camcorders and only start filming when things start turning ugly.
Police State America

Justices Thomas and Gorsuch just hinted they would end privacy as we know it

fromTheDailyBeast: The rights of the individual continue to shrink as the authority of the government continues to expand, as Thomas and Gorsuch seem to have joined the parade.
Justice is a Result, Not Just a Process

CTV News: Watch What You Say In Front Of A Smart TV!

You might want a dumb tv.     A "smart" TV that listens and responds to your voice commands? Sounds like a nifty idea -- until the manufacturer reminds you that your TV is listening to your private conversations too. Samsung recently unveiled a new line of Internet-connected Smart TVs that can stream customized content and show recommendations. ... MORE

Ed Krayewski: Video Captures A Knife-Wielding Man Surrounded And Executed By A Firing Squad Of Cops

Police admit five of the officers fired their guns.  Police in San Francisco shot and killed a man they say was a suspected stabber after he approached an officer while holding a knife. Video posted of the incident to Instagram shows at least nine officers pointing their guns at the man, who appears to be trying to walk away as an officer moves in   ... MORE

Rowan Lee: ACLU Releases App To Track & Record Police

What if citizens required justice? The ACLU has begun to roll out a new program through the form of an app that they call the Mobile Justice Crime Unit. Currently only a handful of states carry the program, as shown here with California’s service, but the app’s outreach is growing. The website is ultra-modern – achieving the  ... MORE      Available on iTunes 

Jacob Sullum: Walter Scott Shooting Highlights Cops’ Contempt For The Citizen's Right to Record Police

Harassing camera-carrying bystanders needs to stop.  Even before it became clear that Feidin Santana was witnessing what local authorities now describe as a murder, it took guts for him to record the police encounter that ended in Walter Scott's death. Santana, who was walking to work at a barbershop in North Charleston, South       ... MORE

VIDEO: Can You Legally Film The Police?

Jacob Sullum: South Carolina Cop Charged With Murder After Video Shows Him Shooting Motorist in the Back

Bystander video reveals inconvenient truth.    In a column last December, I noted that video footage, while not necessarily decisive in cases where police use deadly force, can make a crucial difference. Here is a good example: Today police in North Charleston, South Carolina, arrested one of their own, Patrolman Michael Slager, and charged ... MORE

VIDEO - Nanny Of The Month (March 2015)

Busybodies minding our own business.

Matt Agorist: Florida Woman Had To Film Herself Being Raped By A Cop So That Police Would Believe Her Story

Badges don't grant special rights.   A man whose job was to help guide people after they’ve been released from prison, has been arrested himself, after being accused of vile criminal acts. A parole officer in South Florida was arrested this week for sexually assaulting a woman on probation. The woman was so scared of violating her probation   ... MORE

LA County To Pay Photographers Over Police Harassment

by Jillian Steinhauer.  A move toward respecting citizen rights. In the resolution of a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Southern California, Los Angeles County will pay three photographers who were harassed by members of the LA County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) a total of $50,000 in damages. The LASD has  ... MORE

VIDEO: 7 Creepy Robots For Cops

VIDEO: What To Do When The Police Question You

VIDEO: Why Recording The Police Is So Important

Police State America: Man Jailed For Recording Cops

Public servants don't want their behavior public.   An Orlando man was jailed for recording police as they arrested another individual. The man subsequently sued for taking his phone and for false arrest and won a settlement of $15,000. The Blaze reported: Alberto Troche, who sued Orlando police for wrongfully jailing him and taking     ... MORE

Body Cameras For Police Officers And Ordinary Citizens

by Steve Mann and Brian D. Wassom.      In the wake of the fatal encounters between police and citizens in Ferguson, New York and Cleveland, President Obama recently announced millions of dollars in funding to equip police officers with body-worn video cameras. The concept is not new; scores of police departments across the     ... MORE

It Is Now A Felony for Illinois Citizens To Record Cops

by Matt Agorist.      Government cockroaches prefer darkness to light. In March of this year the Illinois Supreme Court struck down the state’s eavesdropping law, and rightfully so, as it was touted as the most unconstitutional law of its kind in the country. But Illinois, being the the corrupt and violent police state that it is, couldn’t let their    ... MORE

Jacob Sullum: Catching Cops On Camera Can Be Crucial

A powerful weapon against police brutality.        Last week, in response to the shooting of Michael Brown and other controversial uses of deadly force by police, President Obama proposed federal funding for body cameras to record interactions between cops and members of the public. Two days later, a Staten Island grand jury cast doubt    ... MORE

Tyrannical Governing Body Placed Under Citizen's Arrest

by Phil Rogers and Patrick McCraney.   In a highly unusual move, the leader of a Downstate watchdog group placed an entire park district board under a citizen's arrest for failing to allow public comment and violating a state disclosure law. Public boards are used to facing angry crowds, but most have never dealt with what happened at one   ... MORE

VIDEO: Public Servants Conduct Safety Checkpoint