North Carolina driver Kristen Leigh Phillips, 40, is facing misdemeanor charges after she was caught on videotape in a bizarre road road incident that left a small child screaming and a mother driver in shock. The video of the victim is below.
Continue reading “North Carolina Woman Charged In Road Rage Incident Caught On Tape”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
In keeping with an ancient American proverb: “If it can be driven, it can be driven under the influence,” Fargo police arrested Steven Anderson for allegedly driving a Zamboni ice surfacing machine while under the influence.
In a Twitter post with the hashtag “bumperzamboni,” a spectator at the arena reported that, “I’ve never seen a zamboni have so much trouble around the edges.” The incident offered a refreshing nuance to what would otherwise have been a rather ordinary and languishing youth hockey game.
Continue reading “ZUI: North Dakotan Arrested for Allegedly Driving Zamboni Under The Influence”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
We previously wrote HERE and HERE of the arrest, conviction, and sentencing to seven years Al Jazeera reporter Peter Greste for the dubious accusation of aiding the Muslim Brotherhood through their coverage of the “civil war” in Egypt. During sentencing, as we previously reported, the Court insisted that the reporters “took advantage of the noble profession of journalism … and turned it from a profession aimed at looking for the truth to a profession aimed at falsifying the truth.” It then added that “The devil guided them to use journalism and direct it toward activities against this nation.” That “devil” work was reporting on the crackdown on the supporters of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
I have long complained how SUV owners seem more likely to crash because they think that 4WD gives them magic powers and relieves them of the need to learn how to drive on snow. It appears that 4PD (four paw drive) does little more for the dog world.
Continue reading “4WD Does Little On Ice For Man . . . or Man’s Best Friend”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
In another case of police wannabes acting on impulse and getting themselves arrested, Shawn Robinson of Alexandria, Virginia is alleged to have pulled over a driver and announcing he was a police officer. The joke was apparently on him when the suspect he pulled over was an actual police officer who gave chase.
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
Police in Everett, Washington made multiple arrests after a social medial linked crime spree at an elderly woman’s home while she was out of state seeking treatment for emphysema and heart disease.
Thieves waited after each other to burglarize the residence then pilfered and ransacked the house retrieving whatever remained. But police soon discovered the game and offered their response in kind.
Continue reading “Police Arrest Ten For Allegedly Burglarizing Sick Woman’s Residence Eight Times”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
Under the pre-text of combatting terrorism, the European Commission is mulling a proposed regulation that would require telecommunications companies and internet service providers to retain records of European Citizens’ communications. Courts struck down on constitutional privacy grounds a previous law.
The measure comes just after the deadly terrorist attacks stemming from the Charlie Hebdo rampage in Paris in early January. The situation does appear to a lesser degree reminiscent of the changes in government approaches to privacy in the wake of terrorist outrages in other nations such as those in the United States in 2001 and the railway attacks in Spain and the United Kingdom.
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
An unfortunate result of the “Occupy” movement in Hong Kong has made freedom of the press one of the casualties.
Unlike other large cities and China generally, Hong Kong reporters enjoy considerable latitude comparatively but there are indications that even this is suffering erosion. Reports are emerging from journalists and other news and civil rights NGOs that Chinese authorities are beginning to import their restrictions into the former British Colony, where formerly the national government had allowed some deference due to the long standing culture and western traditions of the “special administrative region.”
Continue reading “Press Freedom On The Decline In Hong Kong”
High school teacher Jesse Hagopian is reportedly planning to sue the city of Seattle after a police officer sprayed him with chemical irritant as he left a rally on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. He was simply walking away while speaking on a cellphone, as the video below captures.
Continue reading “Video: Seattle Officer Pepper Sprays Man Brandishing . . . A Cellphone”
As new study by the respected Pew Research Center shows a striking disconnect between the views of scientists and the public on basic scientific questions. In eight out of thirteen science-oriented issues, there was a 20 percentage point or more difference between the two groups on issues like genetically modified food, global warming, or evolution.
The White House again seems to be struggling with barriers of both language and logic as many raise comparisons between the controversial Bergdahl swap and the effort this week of Jordan to swap a terrorist for one of its downed pilots with Islamic State. During a week where one of the five Taliban leaders released by the Administration has been found trying to communicate with the Taliban, the Jordanian swap has reignited the criticism of the swap for Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, which violated federal law and released Taliban leaders with long and bloody records. The White House seems to be trying to argue that the Taliban are not terrorists in direct contradiction to its prior position that they are indeed terrorists. It shows the fluidity of these terms and how the government uses or withdraws designations as terrorists to suit its purposes. The familiarities between Islamic State (IS) and the Taliban appear to be something in the eye of beholder or, to quote a certain former president, “It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.”
We recently discussed the $600,000 fine levied against Marriott for blocking customers’ personal Wi-Fi hotspots at a Nashville, Tennessee hotel for blocking the WiFi of guests to force them to use the hotel’s WiFi at a high cost. Many of us condemned Marriott for its action, but the hotel was not only unbowed but actually sought to change the rule to allow hotels everywhere to bilk guests. On Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission said no and told Marriott that its actions against its own guests is strictly “prohibited.” Unlike the hotel slogan, it appears that something you just can’t “Revive” . . . like trapping and charging guests in your hotels.
I will have the honor of appearing today as part of the confirmation hearings in the Senate Judiciary Committee for Loretta Lynch, nominee to serve as United States Attorney General. Below is my written testimony for the hearing today.
Continue reading “Turley Testimony In Senate Confirmation Hearing Of Loretta Lynch”
There is an interesting case out of Pittsburgh public defender Andrew Capone, 29, has been criminally charged for allegedly given inaccurate information to a judge’s staff about whether his client had appeared for trial in a sex assault case. The case is troubling because, based on what has been released, it is difficult to see where the line was drawn between criminal and noncriminal conduct for counsel.
We have been discussing for years how China has allowed pollution contaminate the soil, water, and air of its country to a shocking degree. That is no more apparent (literally) than the air in Beijing (here and here and here and here). Now the city is being called “unliveable.” That is nothing new except this is Beijing’s own mayor, Wang Anshun.
Continue reading “Mayor: Beijing Is Now “Unliveable” Due to Pollution”