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Posts Tagged ‘Australia’

Links #742

Posted in Current Events, Links, Miscellaneous, Music, Obituary, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 21, 2024| 2 Comments »

I’m going to feel like the biggest idiot taking this to court.  –  foolish cop

To honor the passing of Tito Jackson, I’ve chosen this performance of “I Want You Back” on The Ed Sullivan Show, mostly because it’s my favorite Jackson 5 song.  The links above it were provided by Jesse Walker, Walter Olson, C.J. Ciaramella, T. Greg Doucette, Aaron Ross Powell, and Phoenix Calida (x2), in that order.

From the Archives

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1450)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, The Dark Side, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 29, 2024| 1 Comment »

This is arguing for banning video games because some kids who play video games might someday drive a few miles per hour over the posted speed limit.  –  Eric Boehm

Bits and Pieces (#9)

Assange was freed as soon as it became politically expedient:

…Julian Assange flew out of the UK on [June 24] apparently a free man after reaching a plea deal with US authorities…to plead guilty to a single espionage charge in a court appearance on [the] US-controlled Pacific island [of Saipan, east of the Philippines] and prosecutors will seek a sentence equivalent to time served…Assange has been a wanted man since 2010 when WikiLeaks released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on Washington’s wars in Afghanistan and Iraq…In 2012, as authorities circled him for that and [long-since abandoned] sex crime allegations from [the Swedish government], he fled into London’s Ecuadorian embassy where he remained for seven years…After falling out with [Ecuador]’s rulers he was dragged out…in 2019 and locked up in [a UK prison] while the US attempted to extradite him.  But that legal process ended abruptly [when the US found it convenient], and WikiLeaks broke the news with a [Twitter] post…reading: “Julian Assange is free!”…

Above the Law

Your “leaders” at work:

[Michigan politician] Neil Friske…was arrested [at his house for]…chasing a stripper and firing a weapon….[after] sexually assault[ing]…her…The [political] district is no stranger to scandal…[politician] Lee Chatfield…who represented it from 2015 to 2021, had his own guns-and-strippers controversy.

Quiet Genocide (#1248)

Truthful headline: “Chinese rename other people’s villages against their wishes”:

Chinese [bureaucrats] in Xinjiang have been systematically changing hundreds of village names with religious, historical, or cultural meaning for Uyghurs into names reflecting recent Chinese Communist Party ideology…Human Rights Watch research has identified about 630 villages where the names have been changed that way.  The top three most common replacement village names are “Happiness,” “Unity,” and “Harmony”…Maya Wang, [HRW] China director [said]…“These name changes appear part of Chinese government efforts to erase the cultural and religious expressions of Uyghurs”…most of these changes occurred between 2017 and 2019, when the Chinese government’s crimes against humanity escalated in the region…

To Molest and Rape (ROTW #1)

When a woman dies by “hanging”, it’s nearly always a murder:

A prominent forensic pathologist hired by the family of Sandra Birchmore, the young woman who was…groomed [and molested] by three [typical and representative Massachusetts cops], has concluded that her death was a homicide, contradicting earlier findings by [cop cronies] that there was no evidence of foul play…Dr. Michael Baden…cited the extent of Birchmore’s injuries and the placement of a ligature found on her body as factors in his determination…that Birchmore…[had not] killed herself by hanging…“The cause of Ms. Birchmore’s death is ‘Strangulation’ and the manner of death is ‘Homicide’,” Baden wrote…Birchmore’s estate is suing [the] three [rapist cops] for wrongful death…They are [the murderer,] Matthew G. Farwell…[the] father [of] Birchmore[‘s unborn child]…as well as his twin brother, William, and Robert C. Devine…a [typical and representative cop and sexual predator] who…led the department’s [grooming] program…the state medical examiner [covered up the murder by]…not send[ing] fetal tissue for DNA analysis to determine [paternity]…On Feb. 1, 2021, surveillance cameras captured Matthew Farwell arriving and then leaving Birchmore’s apartment…and [nobody ever saw] her alive [again after his visit]…

I Spy (#1360) 

The government thinks you shouldn’t be allowed any privacy whatsoever:

The U.S. Postal Service has shared information from thousands of Americans’ letters and packages with [cop shops and spook houses] every year for the past decade, conveying the names, addresses and other details from the outside of boxes and envelopes without requiring a court order.  Postal inspectors [pretend] they fulfill such requests only when mail monitoring can help find a fugitive or investigate a crime.  But…[the pigs and spooks get to define “crime” and] Postal Service officials have received more than 60,000 requests…[of this sort] since 2015, and…97 percent of the requests were approved…[totaling] more than 312,000 letters and packages between 2015 and 2023…

When Ambulance-Chasers Run the Hospitals (#1444)

The claims in these nuisance lawsuits are increasingly absurd:

…a dozen [nuisance] lawsuits filed since last year by the attorneys general of 45 states and the District of Columbia…accuse [Facebook] of [magical]ly ensnaring teenagers and children on Instagram and Facebook while deceiving the public about the [power of the magical spells used].  Using a [playbook] reminiscent of the government’s pursuit of Big Tobacco in the 1990s, the attorneys general seek to [profit from Facebook while bringing it more under their control]…The state lawsuits…reflect mounting [fantasies] that [interactions] on social media [are magically different from those in real life]…and [that young people can be hypnot]ically induced into compulsive online use…Vivek H. Murthy, the [charlatan currently holding the often-politicized post of] United States surgeon general, [absurdly] called for warning labels to be placed on social networks, [pretend]ing the platforms present a public health risk to young people.  His [childish hysterics] could boost momentum in Congress to pass the Kids Online Safety Act, a[n internet-censorship] bill that would [enshrine catastrophic internet censorship into law]…

A Moral Cancer (#1446)

Prohibitionism is a dangerous mental illness:

Molly A. Bowdring, a c[rypto-moral]ist at Stanford…wrote this week in STAT that nonalcoholic drinks meant to resemble beer or cocktails are “a potential public health crisis”…[because] drinks that contain no alcohol are generally not subjected to limitations placed on drinks that do contain alcohol…and…Bowdring [pearl-clutches that]…”Among minors, consuming non-alcoholic beverages can socialize them to the drinking culture, with the beverages being perceived as cool, adult, and modern.”  Goodness gracious, not that…

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1449)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 26, 2024| 1 Comment »

Illegal drugs are cheaper, more readily available, more potent, [and] more widely used than they were 20 years ago.  –  James Martin

If Men Were Angels

“Inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady” is a helluva way to say “molesting a 12-year-old”:

Robert Morris, founding pastor of Gateway [mega]Church in Southlake, Texas…has confessed to…sexually abusing [Cindy Clemishire] over multiple years beginning when she was 12…Morris [burbled a lot of evangelical buzzwords like]…repented…walked in purity and accountability…blessing…and…forgiveness…[but] Clemishire [explained]…that…when Morris began abusing her…he…was a 20-year-old traveling evangelist…[already] married…[with a young] son…Morris…[betrayed] her family[‘s]…friends[hip after being] invited into their home and…repeatedly abused her in Texas and Oklahoma…[while telling] his wife that he was merely “counseling” her…For years…she has been warning churches…about Morris because she doesn’t believe she’s the only one who suffered his abuse…

Long Hidden

Cops aren’t the only violent profession whose members feel sexually entitled:

…hundreds of Kenyan women [have] filed complaints with the UK military over the years, a[fter being raped by British soldiers]…in the remote villages where the British Army trains its soldiers in Kenya. The British Army Training Unit, Kenya (BATUK), is headquartered in the town of Nanyuki…[and] Britain pays Kenya about $400,000 a year to allow its soldiers to train…mostly in the expansive wildlife conservancies in Laikipia and Samburu counties.  Kenya renewed the defense pact in 2021 despite strong local opposition…[due to numerous] allegations of rape and other crimes, including murder, by British soldiers deployed there [since] the 1950s…hundreds of women from the mostly pastoralist Maasai and Samburu communities who accused the British Army of rapes in the 1970s and 80s…were represented by the British lawyer Martyn Day in a landmark civil case in London in the early 2000s…[but] in 2007, Britain’s Ministry of Defense dismissed claims…brought by 2,187 women…[claiming] the…evidence appeared to have been fabricated…[and refusing to] conduct DNA tests on any of the 69 mixed-race children…born from rape by British soldiers…[but as they] can now be sued in Kenyan courts…as part of a new addition to the 2021 defense pact…lawyer Kelvin Kubai has signed up more than 300 of the women who previously brought rape claims and is working to reintroduce the case in Kenyan courts…

Rooted in Racism (#1305)

Never forget that this barbarity began using the excuse of “fighting human trafficking”:

The Greek coastguard has caused the deaths of dozens of migrants in the Mediterranean over a three-year period…including nine who were deliberately thrown into the water.  The [others]…died as a result of being forced out of Greek territorial waters, or taken back out to sea after reaching Greek islands…The Greek government has long…forced returns – pushing people back towards Turkey, where they have crossed from, which is illegal under international law.  But this is the first time the…number of…fatalities…[due directly to] the Greek coastguard’s actions [has been calculated]…

Panopticon (#1316)

This is too useful a tool of state control for the rulers to give it up:

A new lawsuit says that Illinois’ widespread use of…automatic license plate readers…violates the Fourth Amendment…because it breaches citizens’ reasonable expectations of privacy…”Defendants are tracking anyone who drives to work in Cook County—or to school, or a grocery store, or a doctor’s office, or a pharmacy, or a political rally, or a romantic encounter, or family gathering—every day…without any reason to suspect anyone of anything, and are holding onto those whereabouts just in case they decide in the future that some citizen might be an appropriate target”…Illinois’ highway [panopticon] began in 2019 [as so many civil liberties abominations do,] with the passage of [a law bearing a crime victim’s name]…Illinois State Police [started with] a $12.5 million state grant in 2021…which was more than doubled in June 2022…[so far] Illinois…has purchased 652 license plate cameras, of which 340 are installed in Cook County…

Permanent Record (#1380)

I can’t feel sorry for someone whose job is ruining lives for violating arbitrary diktats when they get in trouble due to a similar diktat:

Nashville [cop] Sean Herman was recently arrested…weeks after it was revealed that he appeared in a viral OnlyFans clip in [his magical clown costume].  He faces two felony official misconduct charges for [using the clown suit for something other than terrorizing people]…If found guilty, Herman could face prison…[cop shop busybodies] reportedly “discovered the video and identified him as the person in [the magical clown costume], seen in the video from the chest down, who took part in a mock traffic stop in an OnlyFans skit during which he groped the exposed breast of the female driver”…

A Moral Cancer (#1396)

Australia expands the Drug War, and prohibitionists pretend the wholly-predictable consequences are somehow surprising:

Since March of last year, the Australian state of Victoria has been rocked by a series of [murders,] arsons and firebombings…in an escalating turf war between rival gangs…the drug at the center of this conflict: nicotine…[prohibitionists prai]se…Australia…for its graphic warnings on cigarette packs, extremely high cigarette taxes, and strict prohibitions on e-cigarettes…[which together constitute] a form of “de facto prohibition”…[so] predictably…the share of tobacco sold illegally…has…doubled [in recent years] to…nearly a quarter of Australian sales…There are 1.8 million vapers in Australia and about nine out of 10 of them source their vapes illegally…[either by buying] e-cigarette components and…nicotine liquid from abroad…or [by getting] disposable vapes manufactured cheaply in China…Australia’s…response…is to crack down even harder…in…contrast…New Zealand, which has similarly high cigarette taxes but embraces a much more liberal approach to vaping…now boasts one of the world’s lowest rates of smoking…

Eavesdropping (#1417)

Even cops are starting to admit Shotspotter is a boondoggle:

New York City [has wasted tens of millions] on gunshot detection technology that rarely works…ShotSpotter…uses microphones and…software in an attempt to detect the sound of gunshots…When a sound triggers the system, ShotSpotter alerts the police department, and officers are dispatched to the scene…[but] an analysis…found that 87% of the time [cop]s were dispatched to a scene where there was no evidence of a shooting…“The evidence shows that NYPD is wasting precious time and money on this technology and needs to do a better job managing its resources,” [said City Comptroller Brad] Lander… “Chasing down car backfires and construction noise does not make us safer”…It marks the latest report calling the technology’s efficacy into question.  A 2021 audit by Chicago’s Office of Inspector General found that of more than 50,000 alerts there, only 9.1% resulted in evidence of a gun-related offense…Houston Mayor John Whitmire also said he would cancel the city’s contract with the company, telling the Houston Chronicle that it is a “gimmick”…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1444)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 8, 2024| Leave a Comment »

It would be nice to see more companies [fight censorial, authoritarian governments].  –  Mike Masnick

Grace Bellavue

Grace Bellavue was a…sex worker…activist and modern-day maverick, until suddenly, she died…Award winning artist, and fellow South Australian, Michaela Burger (A Migrant’s Son, Exposing Edith) explores her legacy in this new one-woman show.  Through Grace’s writing – unpublished hip hop lyrics, monologues, and musings – Burger explores her multifaceted life.  Her outrageously funny wit and charm, fearlessness and “fuck it” outlook on life will seduce you into marching with this social justice warrior who was determined to decriminalise the sex industry.  Presenting Grace’s moving story through a mix of spoken word, song and movement, Michaela Burger explores the mind of the woman in the headlines and brings her audience on the fascinating journey…[at] Edinburgh’s [Festival] Fringe audiences this August…

Michaela’s been working on this show for over a year, so I’m happy to see it coming to fruition!

Choke Point (#839) 

A rare good decision from the current SCOTUS:

…all nine Supreme Court justices found in favor of the NRA…because the behavior of New York State, to try to silence the NRA by threatening third parties, was so constitutionally alarming.  If New York could get away with doing what it had done, and threaten a speaker’s business relationships as a means of punishing the speaker, then so could any other state against any other speaker, including those who might be trying to speak out against the NRA…[or] those at odds with…the preferred policies of states like Texas and Florida…This decision is not the first time that courts have said no to this sort of siege warfare state officials have tried to wage against speakers they don’t like, to cut them off from relationships the speakers depend on when they can’t attack the speakers directly…

Choke Point (#1190) 

Can you even imagine this happening in the US?

A Melbourne-based gay sex worker has resolved a discrimination case against two Australian financial service providers, in a “great victory” that he wants to protect others from falling victim to “debanking”…Matthew Roberts…was debanked and denied a…[credit card processing] machine…[after] finance company Mint Payments…switched the institution it used for transactions…and the company asked him to reapply for [the] machine [he had been using for years]…he dealt with company honestly, disclosing his occupation.  But his application was denied…[because] his business was within “a restricted category”…But that…was…after Victoria decriminalised sex work…[making it] illegal to discriminate against someone on the basis of their profession, trade or occupation…Matthew took the companies to court in June last year…and…the case was settled out of court confidentially late last year.  Matthew went public [last] week and said he received no money from the legal action…[but] the two [offending] companies agreed to not restrict services offered to people engaged in lawful sex work…

Opting Out (#1268)

Twitter shifts to an opt-in model:

[Twitter] now officially allows pornographic content…but says it will block adult and violent posts from being seen by users who are under 18 or who do not opt-in to see it.  The…new policies…come as [cens]or pressure grows for platforms around the world to…[censor content by shouting “The] children[!!!!!!” at]…social media [companies].  Historically…Twitter…has not prevented people posting adult content…[but] users who [do so]…have now been asked…to adjust media settings so that their images and videos are put behind a content warning…Users under 18 or those who do not put a birthdate in their profile will be unable to view this content…Similar rules have been put in place for violent content…

This appears to be an attempt to head off the nitwit parade led by authoritarians in various US states, Canada, the U.K., France, Germany, and Russia.

When Ambulance-Chasers Run the Hospitals (#1382)

The claims in these nuisance lawsuits are increasingly absurd:

The state of Utah has filed another lawsuit against…TikTok…[fantasiz]ing the video app “created a virtual strip club” that allowed young people to be sexually exploited in exchange for money that TikTok takes a cut of.  The lawsuit [was] filed…by the Utah Division of Consumer Protection, a[n increasingly-popular angle that allows authoritarian governments to circumvent due process]…the…lawsuit also [imagines]…that TikTok LIVE’s virtual currency could allow criminals to host illegal gambling, sell drugs and fund terrorist activities…The state…is also suing…Facebook…[over imaginary “]harm to the mental health of Utah youth[” and]…has passed bills [attack]ing…social platforms…prompt[ing] a coalition of…companies…[and a group of] content creators [to sue over]…the state’s [egregious 1st Amendment violations]…

Creepy Coppers (#1437)

It’s too bad cops don’t spend all their time policing their own gang:

A [typical and representative Missouri cop named]…David K. Blankenship…and his wife Karlie Blankenship…[have been] charged with…attempt[ing to find] a child [they could use to make child porn after] David Blankenship…uploaded a [similar] video [to] TikTok [and the upload was reported by TikTok]…David and…Karlie…were having “sexually themed conversations” via TikTok direct message, shared videos of young girls they found attractive and discussed their sexual desires involving children under 14 and “how to locate children that are local”…Another search warrant [executed] at Blankenship’s…home found additional evidence…

Free advice: if your sexual fantasies involve anything that would be illegal in real life, don’t share them in writing, especially not electronically.

You Were Warned (#1438)

Wins against censors are increasingly rare these days:

The real fight for free speech…means being willing to stand up to extremist authoritarian bullies, even when the odds are stacked against you.  Challenging regimes where a single satirical post, a meme, or a critical blog can put someone behind bars requires bravery.  But sometimes people have to fight, because it’s the right thing to do…The notoriously thin-skinned authoritarian Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has sued thousands of people for the crime of “insulting” him (or comparing him to Gollum).  He has jailed journalists for criticizing his government and claims that social media…is a “threat to democracy” for allowing his critics to speak…the makers of WordPress, Automattic…fought back…[un]like…Twitter…after a [2015] demand to remove a critical blog…basically a decade later it has prevailed…this is a rare and surprising outcome.  Turkish courts have rejected similar attempts by the company, but the company hasn’t stopped fighting these fights…It’s especially notable that the main law Turkey relies on for this broad censorship was directly modeled on similar “internet regulations” in Europe (especially Germany’s NetzDG law, which partially inspired the DSA across the EU)…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1442)

Posted in Current Events, History, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 1, 2024| Leave a Comment »

When a movement reaches a point of threat, the powers that be begin actively trying to scare them out of existence.  –  Dan Berger

Do As I Say, Not As I Do

Apparently, this wasn’t a rape attempt, just a cop being a dumbass:

A San Diego [cop named]…Anthony Hair…arrested [a woman] on suspicion of stealing a car outside a convenience store…She also had a bench warrant out for her arrest…In bodycam footage released by the SDPD, [s]he…was heard…off[ering him] sex [in exchange for letting her go, saying]…“What’s it gonna hurt me if I work the system, you know what I mean? That’s the way I see shit”…Hair turned off his bodycam and [parked in] a residential street, the[n]…about 20 minutes later…called for a[nother member of his gang] to help him out of the p[igmobile because he had accidentally locked himself into the back seat while collecting his bribe]…Hair [tried to claim that he was there because he] believed the woman was suffering from a medical emergency…[but] police found traces of semen on Hair’s belt…

Down Under

Kaytlin Bailey on the realities of sex work Down Under:

What does decriminalized sex work look like in practice?  People in…New South Wales…and New Zealand know the answer, because they decriminalized sex work decades ago.  I recently spent six weeks touring my one-woman show, Whore’s Eye View, in Australia and New Zealand, where I met sex workers, clients, and brothel owners who negotiate sexual services openly without fear of arrest.  After my shows, people from the sex industry—both workers and clients—stayed to tell me their stories…Decriminalization has reduced violence and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and it has made it easier for sex workers to hold people accountable who try to hurt them…

The Face of Trafficking

Note that cases of actual coercion don’t look much like the myths:

Ikbahl Singh Machhal…and [his mother] Shila Devi…were bound over to stand trial…on…Human Trafficking [charges]..for…forc[ing Machal’s wife] to move from Pennsylvania to Michigan when…Devi [bought a convenience store]…in Michigan…[they forced her to] work…at the…store…[without] pay…for…8 to 9 hours a day, 7 days a week, against her will and under threat of severe physical, mental, and emotional abuse…for approximately 8 years [starting in 2012] until the victim [fled] with the assistance of…a…domestic violence char[ity]…

To Molest and Rape

Rapist cops often specifically target vulnerable women:

A [typical and representative Indianapolis cop named]…Myron Howard…ha[s] been…[arrested and] charged…with rape…and various other [associated crimes after specifically targeting]…a domestic violence [victim]…after [her] boyfriend was arrested…Howard [returned to her]…house [after the other cops left and threatened her with jail if she refused]…him…he rep[ea]tedly [harassed her via text]…messaging…[over the next] month…[so] she [eventually gathered the courage to]…report…[him].  When interviewed by detectives, Howard admitted to [fuck]ing…the woman…but [claimed] she had [not only wanted it but initiated it]…He also [absurdly claimed that] “ladies hit on me a lot”, and…admitted [to raping other women, but pretended] that…[the] victims [had wanted it those times as well]…IMPD Chief Bailey [barfed up nonsense about how this typical and representative cop was not representative]…

The Cop Myth (#1403)

Most coverage of this story hides the fact that the abuser was a screw:  “A [Connecticut screw named David Martins] died by suicide [after beating his wife]…on [May 25th.  Fortunately the wife’s]… injuries [were] not considered life-threatening…”

Stalkers in Blue (#1408)

Cops are nothing more than state-sponsored terrorists:

Atlanta police have been carrying out around-the-clock surveillance in several neighborhoods for months, on people and houses linked to opposition against the police training center colloquially known as “Cop City”.  The surveillance…has included following people in cars, blasting sirens outside bedroom windows and shining headlights into houses at night…The ongoing actions started soon after an 8 February pre-dawn, Swat-style raid on three…houses in which [pigs] and [ATF spooks]…sought evidence relating to arson of construction and police equipment…Social movement historian Dan Berger said this low-tech type of surveillance and related behavior – blasting sirens and flashing lights, following people – has precedence dating at least to the civil rights era.  He called the actions “naked intimidation with plausible deniability attached to it”…

No Escape (ROTW #11)

Once again: it does not help young victims of state violence to infantilize them as “children”.

Dozens of [legal minors] suffered physical and sexual abuse including violent rapes inside juvenile [prison]s and similar facilities in Pennsylvania, according to four related lawsuits..[which] describe how 66 people, now adults…were victimized by guards, nurses, supervisors and others…attacks [that] were reported…were ignored or met with disbelief…Jerome Block, who…[filed the suits]…has also pursued similar lawsuits in Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey and Michigan…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

Read Full Post »

In the News (#1438)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Perception, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 18, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Forcing random, innocent individuals to shoulder th[e] cost [of police actions] would be as fair as conducting a lottery to determine who has to pay the police chief’s salary each year.  –  Slaybaugh v. Rutherford County

Leaving the 20th Century (#1223)

This is not “decriminalization” as previously claimed, but rather an overhaul in the existing legalization regime:

A new law in Belgium…is being touted as a win by UTSOPI, the Belgium Union of Sex Workers…the legislation…outlines that prostitutes will receive health insurance, a pension, maternity and holiday leave, and unemployment benefits.  Their pimps will be forced to provide them with a “safety button” to use for emergencies…Prostitutes are to be granted “rights” to refuse sexual acts, stop sexual acts, perform sexual acts in the manner they prefer, and refuse to sit behind Amsterdam-style windows…However, should a prostitute use these “rights” 10 times within six months, their pimp can then call on a government mediator to intervene…

“Pimp” appears to be used here to mean “brothel owner”; the article is silent on what the law says about escorts and other non-brothel sex workers.

Panopticon (#1349)

Rural residents are less affected by state surveillance than urbanites, but they aren’t safe:

In December 2022, Reason reported that both state and federal wildlife agents routinely trespass onto private land and plant cameras.  Two Tennessee homeowners successfully sued the state over the practice…the state appealed…and…the court of appeals [has now] ruled in the homeowners’ favor…In the case of Terry Rainwaters and Hunter Hollingsworth, [agents] not only entered their…properties but also installed trail cameras…without a warrant and ignoring “No Trespassing” signs…

Censor Chic (#1366)

Government censors are growing ever bolder:

…federal agencies such as the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) [have] restarted [their jawboning attempts] with [social media] platforms…[under the tissue-thin guise of] “removing disinformation on their sites as the November presidential election nears”…these [attempt]s resumed in March, around the same time oral arguments in Murthy v. Missouri — which centers on the feds’ censorship efforts — were heard before the U.S. Supreme Court…Neither agency provided an answer when questioned on how they determine what constitutes “disinformation” or what other federal agencies they are collaborating with in these efforts to have “disinformation” removed from social media…

Opting Out (#1376)

A new censorship regime has been imposed on British subjects:

[The UK censorship agency] Ofcom [wants more censorship power over] Instagram, YouTube and 150,000 other web services [using the popular excuse of “]child safety[“ to push]… tech firms to [deny users anonymity], [censor] and downrank content [the government dislikes], and apply around 40 other steps to [give the government more control over what its]…subjects [can see, hear, and read]…That suggests Brits may need to get accustomed to [us]ing [a VPN if] they [want to] access a range of online content…

A Broker in Pillage (#1400)

There are many ways for governments to steal things that don’t belong to them:

A federal court…heard arguments in an appeal concerning…the…”police powers”…exception to the [Constitution]…Mollie and Michael Slaybaugh…are…on the hook for over $70,000 after a SWAT team destroyed much of their home in Smyrna, Tennessee…in…[pursuit of Mollie’s] adult son, James Jackson Conn—who did not live with her but had recently arrived to visit…she offered to speak to Conn and bring him out of her house, [but the cops prevented]…her [from] re-enter[ing and instead]…broke down the door and launched dozens of tear gas grenades into the Slaybaughs’ home, laying waste to nearly everything…Their insurance [refused] to assist them, as their policy—like many policies—does not cover damage caused by the government…The notion that “police powers” immunize the government from liability is what doomed Leo Lech’s lawsuit, which he filed after a SWAT team did so much damage to his home…that it had to be demolished…Los Angeles refused to compensate Carlos Pena after a SWAT team destroyed his…print shop  in pursuit of a suspect who barricaded himself inside, and…Vicki Baker[‘s]…judgment from a federal jury…was ultimately overturned by the…5th Circuit, which ruled there was a “[fuck you]” exception to the Takings Clause…

Civil rights advocates often joke that the Third Amendment is the only one that hasn’t been undermined, but I fail to see any important difference between the government forcibly taking people’s homes to quarter troops and forcibly taking them to enable cops and robbers games.

The Cop Myth (#1410)

Why are people shocked when men paid and encouraged to behave violently, behave violently?

A…Memphis [cop in full magic clown regalia] kidnapped a man, shot him in the head and unsuccessfully tried getting rid of his body…Patric J. Ferguson [murdered Robert Howard]…on Jan. 5, 2021, [because Howard was dating Ferguson’s ex-girlfriend.  Ferguson then] dumped his body in the Wolf River in Memphis with the help of another man, Joshua M. Rogers…who [has been]…charged with accessory after the fact…

Sleeping with a cop is not only dangerous to the woman who does so, but to everyone else in her life, especially after she stops sleeping with the cop.

You Were Warned (#1434)

At least there are a few judges willing to restrain other judges’ megalomania:

[Twitter] had a win over the Australian government after the Federal Court overturned a legal block on videos of the Sydney church stabbing.  The [Australian censorship] Commission won a temporary court injunction last month after [Twitter] refused to comply with a…global [censorship order]…Justice Geoffrey Kennett…rejected a bid to extend the injunction until a full trial…The decision does not represent a final legal win…but senior legal sources…said the interim decision…proved the legitimacy of [Twitter’s] case…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1436)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Perception, The Dark Side, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Sex workers…are not selling themselves, they are selling a service.  –  Tammy Franks

Surplus Women

Why does this story avoid the obvious?

A…Bothell [Washington politician named James McNeal]…was arrested [on April 30th] after a 20-year-old woman was found dead inside [his] home…”laying face up in a bed, fully nude” and covered by bedding…the King County Medical Examiner’s Office found “injury marks” on [her] neck and “under the left side of her jaw”…the woman had been dead for about 24 hours at the time [cops] found [her].  Evidence …“indicates death from asphyxia”…

Monkey Business 

So much for human uniqueness:

A Sumatran orangutan in Indonesia has self-medicated using a paste made from plants to heal a large wound on his cheek…It is the first time a creature in the wild has been recorded treating an injury with a medicinal plant…A research team…spotted Rakus with a large wound on his cheek in June 2022…then saw Rakus chewing the stem and leaves of plant called Akar Kuning – an anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial plant that is also used locally to treat malaria and diabetes.  He repeatedly applied the liquid onto his cheek for seven minutes…then smeared the chewed leaves onto his wound until it was fully covered.  He continued to feed on the plant for over 30 minutes…the researchers saw no sign of infection and the wound closed within five days.  After a month, Rakus was fully healed.  The scientists concluded that Rakus knew he was applying medicine because orangutans very rarely eat this particular plant and because of the length of the treatment…

If Men Were Angels (#947) 

The problem isn’t Catholicism, Christianity or even religion; it’s teaching kids to blindly submit to authority:

A criminal investigation into the Archdiocese of New Orleans is based on a suspicion that it may be linked to child sex trafficking…The affidavit requesting the search warrant…alleges that multiple sex abuse victims…were transported to other parishes and outside of Louisiana, where they were sexually abused.  It further alleges a scheme…in which abused children were instructed to provide “gifts” to certain priests…to signal that the children were targets for sexual abuse…multiple victims reported that they were brought to the New Orleans Seminary, where they were instructed to “swim naked in the pool and would be sexually assaulted or abused”…the information that led to a suspicion of sex trafficking was obtained by police during an earlier investigation into a retired priest named Lawrence Hecker, who is accused of raping an underage teenage boy in the 1970s…

The Mob Rules (#1323)

Until this batshittery is declared unconstitutional, things will keep getting worse:

As soon as Collin Davis found out his ex-partner was planning to travel to Colorado to have an abortion in late February, the Texas man retained a high-powered antiabortion attorney — who…immediately issued a legal threat…[of] “wrongful-death claims”…Davis…is…[now] asking for the power to investigate…[so he can] sue either under the state’s wrongful-death statute or the novel Texas law…that allows private citizens to file suit against anyone who “aids or abets” an…abortion…The case also illustrates the role that [abusive] men who [want revenge on former] partners…could play…either by filing their own civil lawsuits or by [snitching] to [the pigs like bootlicking little tattletales]…Davis’s petition — filed…by Jonathan Mitchell, a prominent antiabortion [fanatic]…follows a lawsuit filed last spring by another Texas man, Marcus Silva, who is attempting to sue three women who allegedly helped his ex-wife obtain abortion pills…

The Course of a Disease (#1372)

Australian prohibitionists won’t stop trying to impose this evil scheme:

South Australia’s upper house voted 10-9 to reject…“Nordic model” [criminalization of] prostitution…[beside the usual Swedish rot features] the Bill…would also have compelled government to [treat] sex workers [as cases of arrested development unable to make work decisions without State]…assistance…Greens member Tammy Franks led the charge against the [criminalization attempt] in a furious speech, denouncing the Bill as “slavery” for sex workers…Franks and other members of the Labor Party…expressed support for full decriminalisation of the industry…Franks…expressed alarm about how close [the vote] was and…said…“I think they’ll be back for another attempt at some stage”…

You Were Warned (#1383)

Politicians no longer care about whether their new diktats are Constitutional:

Apparently, the world needs even more terrible bills that let ignorant senators grandstand to the media about how they’re “protecting the kids online”…This one is called the “The Kids Off Social Media Act” (KOSMA) and it’s an unconstitutional mess built on a long list of debunked and faulty premises…The…bill…would be an outright ban on social media accounts for anyone under the age of 13…we kinda already have a “soft” version of that because of COPPA, which puts much stricter rules on sites directed at those under 13.  Because most sites don’t want to deal with those stricter rules, they officially limit account creation to those over the age of 13…all this generally did was to have parents teach kids that “it’s okay to lie,” as parents wanted kids to use social media tools to communicate with grandparents.  Making that “soft” ban a hard ban is going to create a much bigger mess and prevent all sorts of useful and important communications (which, yeah, is a 1st Amendment issue)…

The Last Shall Be First (#1408)

This needs to happen to every State tattle-site regardless of intended target:

Utah set up an online form for people to accuse other[s]…of violating the state’s… “bathroom bill”…[which] is being flooded with memes and troll comments…the auditor also left the submissions database open to the public—without…protections [to prevent] viewing other people’s submissions…One can also attach images to the form…those included photos of Barry Wood, characters from Bee Movie, and Shutterstock images of bull testicles…Trolling snitch lines set up to enforce bad laws is a time-honored tradition online.  When Indiana launched a form for reporting schools “that teach about LGBTQ+ issues…[or] Black history”…people flooded [it] with memes…A similar outcome happened for Virginia’s tip line against teachers who taught “critical race theory”.  In 2020, New York City[‘s]…snitch line to report [people]…not social distancing…[was] filled…with dick pics…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1434)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »

I can’t breathe.  –  Demetrio Jackson

I Can’t Breathe

Paramedics should not be injecting people with powerful drugs for the convenience of cops:

…The practice of [forcibly inject]ing sedatives [in]to people detained by police [without the victim’s consent] has spread quietly across the nation over the last 15 years, built on [pseudo]science…backed by police-aligned experts…At least 94 people died [in this way between]…2012 [and] 2021…That’s nearly 10% of the more than 1,000 deaths identified during [an] investigation of people subdued by police in ways that are not supposed to be fatal.  About half of the 94…were Black…Behind the racial disparity is a [make-believe] medical condition called excited delirium, which fueled the rise of sedation outside hospitals…the [investigation] found…[that most of the victims were] agitated people…held by police facedown…handcuffed and with [pigs sitt]ing on their backs…[while they] struggled to breathe and tried to get free.  [Barfing out the magic cop word “]combativeness[” justified cops demanding] paramedics administer…sedatives, [predictably] slowing their breathing.  Cardiac and respiratory arrest often occurred within minutes…

Censorship Ascendant

Cops claim reporting their crimes is “an inherent danger to the community”:

Calling her “an inherent danger to the community,” prosecutors [have] asked a Miami judge to throw a 51-year-old [woman] back into jail for posting news articles on Facebook recounting her arrest on charges of stalking a Miami [cop] who had [murder]ed her mentally ill son.  Prosecutors say Gamaly Hollis violated a judge’s order against using social media by sharing several stories this week about the June 2022 [murder] of her son…Richard Hollis…by [cop] Jaime Pino…a year earlier, [Pino] had [threate]ned [to murder] her son if he ever [saw him holding] a gun…Hollis…took to the streets and the internet, [truthfully] calling [murderous pig] Pino a killer and once confronting him [in public.  Cops] arrested her on charges of aggravated stalking, resisting arrest and trespassing.  After a year in jail, she was [recently] released on bond…[but cops are scheming to] jail [her] again — this time simply for sharing news stories, without comment, on Facebook…

You Were Warned (#1383)

Australia’s rulers seem even more eager to destroy the internet than US rulers:

…An Australian judge…[petulantly demanded] that [Twitter] must block every user in the world from accessing video of a bishop being stabbed in a Sydney church…Despite disagreeing with the…takedown order, [Twitter]’s Global Government Affairs team…”complied with the directive pending a legal challenge“…[but now Australian politicians and bureaucrats want to] control…what can be seen by people…every place on the globe outside Australia’s borders.  If Canberra can impose its rules across the world on any online platform that happens to do business in Australia, why can’t China, or Russia, or Saudi Arabia do the same?…If [Australia is] successful [in its megalomanical demands], the same reach would be available to every government everywhere, including those even more authoritarian than the notoriously illiberal democracy…Australia’s censorious officials…may be exploiting the conflict…to promote legislation restricting “misinformation”…

Vulture Watching (#1404)

Politicians really believe everyone lies as blithely as they do:

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador c[laimed that] doctors…[are lying about] transferring an increasing number of patients out of state for care to comply with the state’s strict abortion laws…[at] a U.S. Supreme Court hearing…[to] de[cid]e whether Idaho abortion law conflicts with…EMTALA…St. Luke’s chief physician executive Dr. Jim Souza…[said] the hospital system has transported six patients out of state for obstetric emergencies since January, when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Idaho’s law to fully take effect.  In 2023, St. Luke’s transferred a single patient out of state for an emergency abortion…Labrador…implied that those transfers either didn’t happen or were unnecessary…“It’s really hard for me [as a medical ignoramus and moral imbecile] to conceive of a single instance where a woman has to be airlifted out of Idaho to perform an abortion,” Labrador said…

Dangerous Speech (#1409)

Couldn’t she have done this before driving Jim Larkin to suicide?

A federal judge has acquitted Backpage co-founder Michael Lacey of dozens of counts, including a majority of those on which federal prosecutors planned to retry [him] later this year.  U.S. District Judge Diane Humetewa also acquitted former Backpage executives Jed Brunst and Scott Spear on multiple counts of which they were convicted by a jury last fall…In November, a jury found Lacey guilty of just one the 86 counts against him and not guilty of one count…[but] hung on the other 84 counts…The feds then decided to retry Lacey on those 84 counts, despite the fact that there had already been two [mis]trials on the same charges…Lacey is still looking at a retrial later this year on the [31] remaining counts…and on June 17, Lacey is scheduled to be sentenced on the one count…on which the jury found him guilty…[which] Lacey plans to appeal…Brunst is scheduled to be sentenced along with Lacey in June and…still faces sentencing on 14 counts.  And Spear, who is scheduled to be sentenced on July 9, still faces sentencing on 29 counts.

I Spy (#1422)

Is having a shiny new status symbol really worth being spied on and price-gouged?

…I’m the reporter who broke the story [about GM’s spying on its customers, and] I recently discovered that I’m among the drivers who was spied on…This month, my husband received his “consumer disclosure files” from LexisNexis Risk Solutions and Verisk, two data brokers that work with the insurance industry and that G.M. had been providing with data…I had requested my own LexisNexis file while reporting, but…though both of our names are on the car’s title, the data from our Bolt accrued to my husband alone because the G.M. dealership listed him as the primary owner.  G.M.’s spokeswoman had told me that this data collection happened only to people who turned on OnStar…and enrolled in Smart Driver, a[n ironically-misnamed] program that offers feedback and digital badges for [“]good[“] driving…I had connected our car to the MyChevrolet app to see if we were enrolled in Smart Driver.  The app said we weren’t…But in April, when we found out our driving had been tracked, my husband signed into a browser-based version of his account page, on GM.com, which said our car was enrolled in “OnStar Smart Driver+.”  G.M. says this discrepancy between the app and the website was the result of “a bug”…We couldn’t get insights into our driving, but insurance companies could…

To Molest and Rape (#1431)

Even by the standards of rapist cops, this is horrifying:

A…Pennsylvania [cop named]…Steven Kyle Cugini was arrested [for raping]…a 13-month-old child [sometime] between April 11 and April 15…the infant had a broken tibia and fibula in her left leg and other injuries that showed evidence of sexual abuse…Cugini blamed the injuries on diaper rash, a fall and the family dog…police were notified by a day care center after the [victim] was dropped off with “severe bruising” on her face and head and wounds on her left foot…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1431)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 20, 2024| Leave a Comment »

To prohibit vice is not ordinarily considered within the police power of the state.  –  Justice Jackson Temple, 1887

The Camel’s Nose (#584)

There is nothing as hard to kill as a bad law:

Twelve years ago, internet users spoke up with one voice to reject a law that would build censorship into the internet at a fundamental level.  This week, the Motion Picture Association…announced that it hoped we’d all forgotten how dangerous this idea was…What the MPA wants is the power to block entire websites…using the same tools as repressive regimes like China and Russia.  To it, instances of possible copyright infringement should be played like a trump card to shut off our access to entire websites…It is not simply calling for the ability to take down instances of infringement—a power they already have, without even having to ask a judge—but for the keys to the internet…The bills known as SOPA/PIPA would have created a new, rapid path for…major studios to use court orders against sites they accuse of infringing copyright.  Internet service providers…receiving one of those orders would have to block all of their customers from accessing the identified websites.  The orders would also apply to domain name registries…registrars…and…other companies and organizations that make up the internet’s basic infrastructure…all of those would have to build new infrastructure dedicated to site-blocking, inviting over-blocking and all kinds of abuse…In other words, the right to choose what websites you visit would be taken away from you and given to giant media companies and ISPs.  And the very shape of the internet would have to be changed to allow it…

The Peril

As I have said many times, all prohibition is the same, yet people often fail to understand just how much the same it is.  In this article, Reason‘s Jacob Sullum traces the origin of the US drug war back to exactly the same root as the US War on Whores: the deeply racist anti-Chinese moral panic of the 1870s.  Unless you’re already intimately familiar with the topic, you will definitely want to read this one in its entirety.

Creepy Coppers

Seems like a significant fraction of child porn is spread by cops:

[A Phoenix, Arizona cop named] Alaa Robert Bartley…[regularly engaged in ageplay with] a Michigan woman [named] Sarah Elizabeth Chadwick…via…WhatsApp…[Chadwick] transmitted child pornography to Bartley on several occasions, and…[when she] was arrested in November 2023…and…federally charged with…child pornography…[the] FBI [rooted in her]…phone[, thus leading them to] Bartley…On April 4, co[ps tossed]…Bartley’s person, residence, personal vehicles, and…phone…[and found] over 49,000 images and 700 videos…of [child porn]…

The Last Shall Be First (#1332) 

Missouri seems completely uninterested in controlling its psychopathic politicians:

…a St. Louis judge has allowed Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s investigation into…gender-affirming care services to proceed.  Last year, Planned Parenthood…sued Bailey over his [illegal] demand that they turn over patient documents disclosing private information on minors to whom the clinic provided gender-affirming care…Judge Michael Stelzer denied Bailey’s [illegal] Demand for these [HIPAA-protected] patient documents, but has allowed his investigation into the clinic’s care to continue…Bailey treated the decision as a political win [despite its stopping his attempt to criminalize and harass the parents of trans youth]…

Texas’ attorney general is conducting a similar theatrical “investigation”.

You Were Warned (#1377)

“Monkey see, monkey do” politicians never bother to observe the consequences of laws they ape:

Google has temporarily blocked links from local news outlets in California from appearing in search results in response to the advancement of [yet another arse-backward “link tax”] bill that would require [internet] companies to pay publications for [sending them free traffic]…Google will also…cut…California publications from its…News Showcase…[Facebook has] said it would be forced to [take similar measures if politicians foolishly pass the law]…The California bill is the latest [mind-bogglingly stupid attempt] to [break the internet]…Facebook…and…Google…have [been forced to take] similar [action due to similar idiotic] legislation in Australia and Canada…Similar legislation is being considered in Illinois [despite the obvious fact that the outcome will be exactly the same]…

To Molest and Rape (ROTW #8)

Give sexually-aggressive thugs power over teens; what could possibly go wrong?

A…Wisconsin [cop assigned to spy on, harass, and intimidate students] has been arrested on a felony sexual assault charge for [molesting] a female student…after [her] parents reported…his…behavior…Kewaskum Police Chief Thomas Bishop immediately [started bloviating hot air about isolated incidents and “high moral standards”, yet is hiding the identity of the porcine molester]…

UPDATE: Molester cop Steven Rosales’ name and picture were revealed after he was also caught fucking his dog.

To Molest and Rape (#1429)

This will continue for as long as cops are allowed to “police” themselves:

David Gregson was around 12 years old…when…[New York cop] Roger L. Coon Jr…[began to subject him to] four years of sexual abuse…Coon — who died in 2003 at age 73 — molested him at his house, at a camp he furnished behind his property, and “dozens” of times in his [pigmobile] during a period stretching from around 1977 to 1981…Gregson is [now] suing the state of New York…under the 2019 Child Victims Act, which temporarily lifted the statute of limitations for…child sexual abuse.  Although Coon…sexually abus[ed] numerous boys over a period of decades, and [was] convicted twice…[for it], the state is fighting Gregson’s lawsuit…[cops covered for Coon until] September 1982, after a [different] teenager [reported] Coon…[who was allowed] to retire two weeks later…without facing any discipline or criminal consequences…Two years after his retirement, Coon pleaded guilty…to molesting three boys between the ages of 10 and 12 years old…he…was sentenced to three years’ probation…but [insisted] he [ha]dn’t…done anything wrong [because] there was “never any force” used in his sexual abuse…In 2001, Coon was sentenced to six months in jail and five years probation for sexually abusing a 9-year-old boy…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Links #718

Posted in Current Events, Links, Miscellaneous, Music, Obituary, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 7, 2024| Leave a Comment »

I can’t breathe.  –  Tangi Johnson

I recently heard this song for the first time in many years, and it reminded me that I rather liked Springsteen in the days when I jokingly referred to him as “Bruce Mumblesing”.  The links above it were provided by Nun Ya, Radley Balko, Jesse Walker (x2), Franklin Harris, IncarcerNation, and Violet Blue, in that order.

From the Archives

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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