The video below shows two bicyclists who were struck by a car in Berkeley, California — victims of a hit and run. That would normally be the end of it except that one of the bicyclists had a bike-mounted camera and put the video on YouTube. Later police identified the Black Acura Integra of suspect Michael Medaglia, who was arrested.
Continue reading “Bike-Mounted Video Camera Leads To Arrest of Hit And Run Suspect”
On our blog, we have all been enriched by the commentary and insights of Larry Rafferty. Larry is an attorney from Chicago and, despite being a White Sox fan, I asked Larry to be one of our weekend bloggers after reading his uniformly civil and insightful thoughts on legal and political issues. I was not aware until recently about Larry’s father and his disappearance after World War II. Last week, the Chicago Tribune ran a story about Larry’s father, Air Force Capt. Lawrence Rafferty, who was buried at Arlington this year. Mark Esposito and his wife were in attendance representing our community with the Rafferty family and friends. Larry’s mother, Frances, 89, (shown below) was present to see her husband given the honor that he so richly deserved. Captain Rafferty now has a place with other American heroes at Arlington and I wanted to share his incredible story with members of our blog.
Continue reading “In Memory of Captain Lawrence E. Rafferty — American Hero”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
During the Supreme Court oral arguments regarding the health care law’s individual mandate, J. Scalia considered the result of allowing the Federal Government to force people to buy health insurance by asking if the government “can make people buy broccoli.”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
The Susan G. Komen breast cancer charity is having trouble meeting their fund-raising goals as a result of their controversial decision to defund Planned Parenthood. Resignations at the local and national level continue to plague the organization.
Continue reading “From The “What Did You Expect Would Happen?” Department”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
We present The Beatles without that annoying harmonica drop-out at the beginning.
Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger
On September 16, 1962 Edward R. Murrow, who was the greatest TV Journalist and a particular hero of mine http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=murrowedwar, premiered the opening of Public Television on Channel 13 in New York City. You can watch that very short broadcast in this link so you can understand the mission of this station at its beginnings: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gr-QxU1Sz0
At the age of 17, I watched Mr. Murrow enthralled as he laid out the defined purpose of this station, which was to provide educational, non-commercial television, that would innovate new programming to educate/inform and amuse its’ listeners. This opening occurred two weeks after the death of my mother. My father (who would die a year later) and I watched this show together, bonded by the sorrow we shared and by the fact that Ed Murrow had been someone whose news shows we three had watched together for a decade. Given that he was a ninth grade dropout, my father was a man of intellectual depth who read Camus, Sartre and was a devotee of avante garde cinema. He passed his tastes on to me. So for us, this was a momentous event, given the inanity that characterized much of commercial TV with its’ intellectual paucity. This beginning initiated an emotional link with me to the concept of public TV that has lasted ever since.
In the years that followed Channel 13 would become an anchoring member of the Public Broadcasting System. I was a dedicated viewer and modest financial contributor via yearly membership. I could go into a litany of the presentations that informed me, moved me and entertained me through the years, but that is not my purpose here. Somewhere along the way from the beginning of non-commercial television until today, I became skeptical about contributing to it, while still availing myself of it’s’ services. I write about why this skepticism developed and why it remains. Continue reading “PBS: Why I Watch, But Don’t Contribute”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Click to enlarge. Bonus points available. Solution below the fold.
By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Zachary P. Ramirez, 21, of Naperville, Illinois, is a man on a mission. Naperville Police Sgt. Gregg Bell said Ramirez was clocked at 111 miles per hour in his black 1994 Honda Prelude while traveling through the Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve. The speed limit is 45. Officers said at about 2:00 a.m., they observed the local resident first run a red light and then a stop sign.
When finally stopped, the young man had an innovative excuse. According to police, Ramirez said he was “trying to go have sex with a girl he liked.” A search of the car revealed 2.5 grams or less of marijuana. Ramirez was charged with speeding 40 mph or more over the limit, reckless driving, disobeying a traffic control signal, disobeying a stop sign and possession.
Source: Chicago Sun Times
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Lambs may not be laying down with wolves just yet as the Good Book predicts but a wonderful story out of North Wales might be the precursor. Seems canine, Merlin, has teamed up with barn owl, Willow, to become inseparable friends. The two met when the owl’s daily exercise overlapped Merlin’s walk at the Peny Bryn Falconry centre in North Wales.
“They are inseparable. People always stop and smile when they see them going by,” said Lorwi Peacock, Willow’s handler. Willow’s favorite activity is stretching out her wings as Merlin goes for a run. No grousing so far from Merlin about the extra drag.
Source: msnbc
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
We have been discussing the increasing disciplining of students and teachers for comments and photos on social media sites. Just yesterday in a story out of Indiana, we saw students expelled for comments viewed as bullying. Now, Georgia legislators are moving to make this controversial trend an actual law for schools to discipline students for mean comments on sites like Facebook. This comes at the same time that a lawsuit shows how the common law can serve as an adequate protection for victims, in my view.
We have been discussing the story that ran on various sites about the consideration of an Egyptian law that would allow husbands to have sex with their wives up to six hours after death. Our last blog noted that some were still reporting the story while others have questioned the truth of the story. Now a story below appears to have debunked the story, at least in part. While not addressing the alleged consideration of lowering the age for marriage of girls to 14, the story says that the “farewell intercourse” law claim was made by Amr Abdul Samea, a supporter of the deposed Hosni Mubarak. An Islamic cleric did in fact say that Muslim men (and women) could have sex with their dead spouses up to six hours after death, but there is no indication that this view was put into a proposed law.
Continue reading “Dead Letter? Egyptian Necrophilia Law Called Hoax By Mubarak Supporter”
State Representative Ronald Reynolds, the first African American elected in Fort Bend County to the Texas legislature since reconstruction, has been arrested on barratry charges. Once selected as “Freshman of the Year” by his colleagues, Reynolds was arrested and charged with barratry –both in the solicitation of clients on his own and through the office of a local chiropractor.
Continue reading “Texas State Representative Arrested For Barratry”
Do you remember HAL (Heuristically programmed ALgorithmic computer) in 2001 Space Odyssey, the super intelligent computer? Well, meet Quantum the new crystal-based computer. In Nature Magazine, scientists have announced that they have a crystal that will allow the creation of a quantum computer that would take a computer the size of the known universe to match it. To those scientists at the University of Sydney, just be careful when Quantum says “I know I’ve made some very poor decisions recently, but I can give you my complete assurance that my work will be back to normal. I’ve still got the greatest enthusiasm and confidence in the mission. And I want to help you.” If you hear that, run for the airlock.
Emily Herx, a teacher at the St. Vincent de Paul school in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has sued the school and the Catholic Diocese, for allegedly firing her for using in vitro fertilization (IVF) to try to get pregnant. Herx (shown here with her husband) says that the local pastor told her that she was a “grave, immoral sinner” for using the process. It is another example of the growing tension between discrimination laws and religious freedom, the subject of a past column. The case could prove quite important in defining the outer reaches of the “ministerial exception” to anti-discrimination laws.
Continue reading “Teacher At Catholic School Allegedly Fired For Using IVF As “Grave, Immoral” Act”