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Posts Tagged ‘Texas’

Freedom from persistent, dragnet-style surveillance while in public…is a reasonable expectation.  –  Judge Sara E. Hill

Bad Girls

At least this report doesn’t pretend she was a real sex worker:

A woman who admitted to drugging and robbing four men, killing three of them, in New York City was sentenced to 27 years to life in prison…Tabitha Bundrick…would give the men the drugs, sometimes claiming it was cocaine…[then] take their phones, money, watches, clothing, and other items.  Mario Paullan…Miguel Navez…and Abrihan Fernandez Rodriguez…[all] died…[and] Bundrick…[also kept] the victims’ sneakers…in…her apartment[, apparently as trophies]…she…[blamed] her conduct…[on] “drug addiction”…

No Escape

Your “leaders” refer to aggravated rape as “correction”; parroting that is a choice:

A Utah woman [who] was [pepper-sprayed,] drugged[, kicked repeatedly in the head] and raped by [deranged screws inside Nashville’s] Downtown D[unge]on…[has filed] a [federal] lawsuit…Lisa Travis, a school administrator from Salt Lake City, visited Nashville on Oct. 7, 2025, to sing at the Dove Awards…[she] was booked…on [a bogus] trespassing [charge which] the prosecutor later dismissed…[but while in the holding cell another woman tried to cause trouble so] four [pigs] — Brandon Davis, Viniece McBride, Jacob Webb and Louis Bulivant…in[vaded the cell to]…threaten…and [brutalize]…her…McBride then…“saturat[ed her] eyes, mouth and nose with [pepper spray, blinding]…her…for hours…[they then] pushed her onto the floor…restrained her legs…[and dragged her] to another, more isolated part of the jail, where the[y] injected her with [such a large dose of] benzodiazepines…a blood test [could still detect them] nearly a week later…two [of the screws, whom she could not see because of the effects of the pepper spray]…began to kick [her repeatedly] in the head…then…raped her…at 3:30 a.m…they [threw] her out of the back door in her socks [without allowing her to call anyone]…forc[ing her] to wander alone, still disoriented and traumatized, around downtown…[she eventually] found her husband at their hotel, then went to [a hospital where]…she received a rape kit [and was diagnosed with a concussion and traumatic brain injury from the kicking]…

When Ambulance-Chasers Run the Hospitals (#1586)

Ken Paxton doesn’t care how many children die because of his actions:

Ken Paxton, the [psychopath-]general of Texas and [a serial lawsuit abuser]…has [now] accused doctors, drug companies and insurers of [“]conspiring[“] to…[protect] children…from…[dangerous diseases by vaccination.  Following his usual modus operandi, the criminal Paxton has begun by attempting to intimidate his victims by official-looking letters making sweeping demands for confidential medical records he is not legally authorized to see under the bizarre excuse of “]consumer protection[“]…Paxton[‘s attempted victims include not only Texas]…pediatricians [individually, but also] the American Academy of Pediatrics…[his motive appears to be not only the promotion of the] Trump[ist cult in general, but also retaliation for]…the…Academy[‘s suing]…the Trump [regime over its dangerous policies] and grant cancellations, with some success so far…

Walled Garden (#1636)

I’m afraid judgments like this are too little, too late:

Utah’s [attempt to enact a de facto ban] on VPNs and similar tools…intended to allow internet users to bypass censorship, firewalls, and surveillance…[has been kneecapped by a federal court.  Wannabe censors] have discovered that tools effective for bypassing Chinese and Iranian censorship are equally useful for evading restrictive laws imposed by the European Union, Brazil, or Utah.  Britain briefly considered targeting VPNs but dropped the idea…of banning technology designed to be unbannable…In their lawsuit, the plaintiffs [ex]plained that the state’s requirements that age verification be applied to all internet users present in Utah…would require them “to age-verify every user of its platforms throughout the world” on the off-chance that they’re Utah residents…Utah’s attorneys [pinky-swore]…not…to…actually…enforce…the law…[but Judge David] Barlow [didn’t buy it, and]…issued a preliminary injunction against enforcement of the “actually located” provision…

Panopticon (#1661)

Judge rules that unconstitutional surveillance is unconstitutional:

…the tide is turning against Flock…an[d other]…ALPR…system[s] in pervasive [and unconstitutional] use around the country…a federal court in Oklahoma granted a woman’s motion to suppress evidence found in her car after a [Flock] search that was conducted [purely because she had California license plates]…Judge Sara E. Hill…reject[ed] previous court holdings that…automated license plate reader systems are not “searches” for Fourth Amendment purposes…A right not to be subjected to “dragnet-style surveillance while in public…is the same expectation of privacy that the Supreme Court has continued to recognize,” she adds, citing…[the court’s rejection of geofence warrants in] Chatrie v. United States…On September 28, the jury on a federal case out of San Antonio held that…[“pre-crime”] policing…involving…pretextual traffic stops [i]s unconstitutional…

The Cop Myth (#1664)

In which intimidation is euphemized as “talking” and a victim is dysphemized as “the offender”:

A…Chicago [cop attempted to murder a whole group of young] people [because] one [got tired of his big talk and slapped him]…the [pig was not wearing his magical clown costume, but]…when he s[aw a]…group [of teenagers] standing on the sidewalk [he couldn’t resist playing the big cheese by swaggering up to them and barfing cop intimidation talk at them]…when [one of the teens got tired of it he foolishly slapped the big-mouthed cop, who flew into an unhinged rage and shot both] the [teen who slapped him]…and…another [young man who was merely] standing [nearby.  His typical cop cowardice then kicked in, so]…he…drove a short distance away and [then got]…out and [started] firing…at [every person he could see.  The first victim]…was [arrested and] transported to Mount Sinai Hospital in fair condition.  The [deranged cop, whose identity is being hidden by his gang, is still at large and presumed to be armed and dangerous]…

To Molest and Rape (#1676)

Cops shouldn’t be allowed anywhere legal minors even might be:

A Houston-area family is suing a [typical and representative cop for raping a 13-year-old]…Nicholas Burbridge…[used] an online dating app called “Pure”…[while] pretend[ing] to be a 16-year-old…to [groom] the…girl…[then] picked her up and t[ook] her to his residence…[where he] gave [her] edibles from a dispensary, which [because she was] 13…[and had no tolerance caused her] to [eventually pass out, after which he raped her]…Burbridge’s attorney, Cordt Akers, [called the girl a liar and claimed she is motivated by]…”money to be made”…Harris County [apparently believes otherwise because]…Burbridge was [fir]ed on March 6…

 

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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If you watch enough innocent people closely enough, criminals will fall out.  –  Josh Windham

The Punitive Mindset (#1303)

One of the primary goals of US prisons is ensuring that people condemned to their dungeons can never have a normal life ever again:

…the Connecticut Department of [Torturing People Locked in Cages] charge[s] a fee for every day a person spends in prison and then [robs them whenever possible to] collect on that debt…If [one of the state’s] former…[victims] wins the lottery…collects an inheritance or receives certain lawsuit settlements, the state can [steal] up to half the money…[even from] their children, spouses and heirs.  Other states and the federal government have similar laws on the books, commonly referred to as “pay to [be tortured]” statutes, but…Connecticut bills…prisoners [at] one of the highest [rates] in the country…$347 per day…[and] can collect on that debt for up to two decades after people are released from prison…In one such case, Connecticut [abducted a man’s] 1-year-old son [and killed him]…the state [was forced via lawsuit to pay] $2 million to compensate the family for the child’s death, [then stole]…more than $84,000 [of it because he had once been] in prison…[in] numerous cases…people were forced to sell their homes…

To Molest and Rape (#1468)

Rapist cops don’t only target women:

A Ramona [Oklahoma cop named]…Gerald Garrison [was fired and arrested for groping]…and [“]forcible sodomy[” of]…a city employee [who] was riding along with Garrison…in…the p[igmobile].  The…[grop]ing continued after the two entered Ramona City Hall…Garrison [said his victim wanted it]…

Given that this is Oklahoma, it’s more likely he was quickly fired for being queer rather than for being a rapist.

Feudalism Redux (#1518)

Another attempt to reduce all women to serfdom:

…Tennessee’s Underage Abortion Trafficking Act…criminalizes the “recruit[ment]” of a minor for any procedure that “would constitute a criminal abortion” under Tennessee law…[regardless of] where they take place…[the 6th Circuit has now ruled] in favor of abortion rights advocates Rachel Welty and Aftyn Behn by affirming a lower court’s permanent injunction against the recruitment provision.  Welty and Behn advise people in Tennessee…about how to obtain an abortion in out-of-state places where the procedure is legal.  Making this illegal violates the…First Amendment…

Panopticon (#1661)

Cops won’t stop doing this until they’re forced to stop:

A Lexington [Kentucky] couple [was targeted by a cop gang who] surrounded their house…at 4 o’clock in the morning [on September 26.  A spokespig ludicrously characterized this dangerous act of cop theater as]…investigating a road rage incident in which someone reported being assaulted with a deadly weapon.  The [victim] described the [assailant’s] vehicle…as a dark colored Ram 2500…[so cops] used the Flock S[urveillance system]…to [pick]…a dark colored Ram 2500 [at random.  Luckily for Will and Robin Penn, they are white, so the gang did not destroy their house or murder them in a hail of bullets]…

When Ambulance-Chasers Run the Hospitals (#1668)

The open internet will soon be a thing of the past:

Alabama[‘s]…“historic” settlement with TikTok [isn’t merely]…a $100–300 million [extortion]…pa[yout, but also]…one of the most expansive age‑verification and behavioral‑surveillance mandates ever imposed on a social media platform…TikTok must develop machine‑learning models [for]…always‑on…behavioral…deep content…social‑graph…identity correlation…anti‑evasion…[and] activity surveillance…not…only [of] minors…[but of] every Alabama user…device…[and] account…These systems cannot function without continuous monitoring of all users…

Welcome to the Future (#1672)

This ruling is probably too little, too late to stop “pre-crime” policing:

A federal jury…found Bexar County, Texas, liable for systematically violating thousands of Americans’ Fourth Amendment rights for years through a [legalized robbery gang]…On March 16, 2022, Alek Schott was driving home from a work trip near San Antonio, Texas, when…a Bexar County Sheriff’s Office…deputy [inflicted]…an hourlong, unconstitutional fishing expedition [on him, implicitly threatening him with arrest and interrogating him]…while [the pig rooted in his]…criminal history…the[n using a] dog [to manufacture fake “probable cause” to root through his vehicle without his consent by]…gesturing…and signaling toward the dog…when…Schott filed a complaint with the BCSO internal affairs department…[they laughed at him and told him to] “file a…lawsuit”…so he did, untangling a web of pretextual stops…[justified by chatbot-connected] license plate readers…[declaring random victims “]abnormal[“]…

Shame, Shame (#1676)

The excuse-making is almost as nauseating as the electric zombies themselves:

More than a century after her screen debut and decades after her ashes were laid to rest in a Swedish woodland cemetery, [Greta Garbo]’s descendants are ready to c[ash in on her legend any way they can].  Her [corpse] has already been reanimated for a…[ball-bearing] advert for a Swedish industrial company…The practice some [ethical people] call “ghostploitation” has also been used in the case of the [late] actor Val Kilmer…Craig Reisfield, one of three relatives who [mis]manage her legacy, [said]…“I won’t say no, especially [consider]ing [how]…incredibl[y lucrative it will be,] and [since]…Greta Garbo [is dead we needn’t bother with obtaining her consent]”…

 

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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“AI” allows you to get to a bad idea faster.

I had until recently completely forgotten about this song from The Electric Company, which I can remember my little brother singing around the house.  The links above the video were provided by Shiv Ramdas, Jesse Walker, Tracy Quan, Asawin Suebsaeng, Glenn Kessler, and IncarcerNation, 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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[It] basically looks like a baby [rattle].  –  Katie Seaborn

Creepy Coppers (#1568)

It’s likely that flashing is the least of his crimes:  A[n Oregon cop named]…Luis Rivera…e[xposed himself to a woman at a gym and was rewarded with a paid vacation]…

Walled Garden (#1625)

OfCom is trying to rob corporations for being unable to do the impossible:

[The UK censorship bureau] Ofcom [is trying to bleed] Pornhub owner…Aylo [of £18 million, using the excuse that]…the site’s new age checks are [not 100%] effective…[at stopping tech-savvy legal minors] from accessing…content [the UK wants censored]…in May…Pornhub started using a new age verification process [owned by]…Apple [which]…Ofcom…praised…as “a real win for children and families” [until Apple refused to create a backdoor into its cloud storage service which would allow the UK government to access any UK user’s data at will]…Aylo [correctly points out that the “age verification” surveillance regime has effectively driven UK web traffic]…to riskier sites that aren’t following Ofcom’s rules…

A Broker in Pillage (#1629)

Courts regularly pretend there’s a “fuck you, we’re cops” exception to the Takings Clause:

Abigail Trujillo was in the middle of a shift at her job…when Houston [cops decided to use] her car [for target practice, shooting it] dozens of times.  Neither Trujillo nor her Nissan sedan had [done] anything [illegal].  But weeks [later]…attorneys for the city told…Trujillo, a 20-year-old University of Houston student who [is] working a retail job to help pay for college…[to fuck off, adding insult to injury by calling a totaled car she still owes thousands on an] “inconvenience”…

Panopticon (#1671)

“These agencies surveil the public incessantly, but the moment we can watch them back, it’s deemed a security threat”:

…a new map published [on September 23] by a cybersecurity researcher reveals Flock’s nationwide reach is [much] bigger…[than it claims,] show[ing] more than 170,000 cameras, plus more than 130,000 accompanying gadgets…Joshua Michael’s Flock Surveillance Map highlights the locations of…[all] Flock surveillance devices…across the country…Unlike crowd-sourced projects such as DeFlock, which are built on locations submitted by users, the Flock Surveillance Map relies on location data culled from a snapshot, archived by Michael in December 2025, of Flock’s own records…color-cod[ing] each Flock device according to its model…[and including it in a] searchable dataset table…

Eavesdropping (#1673)

If you hated the adult pacifier fad of the ’90s, what about a surveillance rattle?

[Because of] the [ongoing] backlash against…pervert…glasses…Mark Zuckerberg launched a[n]…alternative [designed to trick infantile minds]: the Muse [gewgaw].  With a screen that shows a cutesy little avatar, it has drawn comparisons with Tamagotchis…[and] could fit, like a Labubu, on to a keychain or bag.  But unlike a Labubu, the [built-in chatbot] will have significant capabilities, including the ability to [dri]ve [the owner into psychosis, incorrectly]…answer [questions]…or [give dangerous and possibly deadly medical “advice”]…Joshua Paul Dale…[of] Chuo University in Tokyo [said]…“Everyone hates…[perve]rt glasses.  But if the camera is contained in a charm [nitwits] wear around [their] neck, it shifts the agency [in the minds of those with poor thinking skills].  Suddenly, you’re not recording people.  It’s just a cute little animated avatar looking out on the world”…this [“]companion[“]…tracks with Zuckerberg’s [obsession with] the idea of [a world completely without privacy]…

Stalkers in Blue (#1673)

It’s almost like the Founders knew what they were doing when they enacted obstacles to government spying:

Prosecutors in Marion County, Indiana, [surprising]ly charged five Indianapolis [cops for]…misusing their [unconstitutional warrantless] access to Flock license-plate-reader cameras.  The action comes [only because] The Washington Post highlighted thousands of questionable Flock searches, [embarass]ing the city…The five [pigs] — Michael Rogers, Jonathan Schultz, Cassandra Crawley, Matthew Binford and Abigail Cramer — were all charged…with fraud and…recommended for termination…Flock [is scrambling to design a] tool that automatically scans for…misuse [in an attempt to head off the wave of bad publicity]…

Typical, representative, etc:

A Naperville [Illinois cop] used Flock [ALPRs] to track a girlfriend and her ex-fiance…Oscar Maldonado…[performed the unconstitutional warrantless searches] hundreds of times between June 18, 2025, and Sept. 15, 2025…When the department received a citizen complaint…Maldonado was [rewarded with a paid vacation, but]…ultimately [saw the writing on the wall and] resigned in May [before he could be fired]…When asked why he used Flock [for the unconstitutional warrantless surveillance], Maldonado [moronically barfed]…the [word “]safety[” in the investigators’ faces, apparently assuming they were as naive as the public]…

Panopticon (#1674)

Cops love unconstitutional warrantless surveillance too much to give it up; they’re just switching to less-radioactive surveillance brands:

Durango [Colorado] residents took to the streets…to [protest]…the growing mass surveillance system [based on] automated license plate readers…the…Durango [cop shop thinks people are so stupid they will believe]…its switch [from Flock] to Axon…is [other than a mere cosmetic change]…

It’s not only small cities, either:

The [LAPD’s much-ballyhooed ending of its contract with Flock is in reality merely a misdirection for its new and even worse contract with]…Axon…for [even more invasive surveillance], including new p[igmobile-mounted ALPRs]…and [truth-hiding chatbot report writers.  Spokespig]…Dean Gialamas…[absurdly tried to defend the surveillance expansion by oinking “]public safety[” at reporters]…

 

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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I built SparrowMap to give…the watchers a taste of how it feels to be watched.  –  Matthew Montney Jr.

Torture Chamber (#1461)

I’m sure they’ll try to thwart the court order with delays & halfway measures:

A federal judge has ordered Texas to air condition all of the state’s…prison[s]…by the end of 2029…at [present only] a third of the agency’s 104 [dungeons a]re fully air conditioned…[despite summer] conditions in Texas prisons without air conditioning [clearly] violat[ing] the Eighth Amendment [ban on]…cruel and unusual punishment…

Eavesdropping (#1514)

“Shot detection” systems are a boondoggle designed to manufacture false evidence for cops:

Flock…sells a surveillance bundle…called the “Safe City” subscription…[which] includes the much-discussed ALPRs, along with a live video camera—and a gunfire microphone…[intentionally designed to] turn…lawful gun owners into criminal suspects based only on proximity…Cities also have deployed firearm detection systems that rely on [machine learning] to [pretend Doritos bags are guns]…or combine [detected sounds with cops’ editing] to [frame innocent people].  Flock [brags that its]…technology…can…turn…suspected gunfire into a list of nearby vehicles…that sweeps in drivers who had nothing to do with the noise…

Shame, Shame (#1643)

The rise of computerized zombies:

The former chief executive of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s entertainment group has obtained a near-£15m investment for his UK music [scam] that hopes to [make cartoon versions of] classic concerts by ma[king cartoon versions of dead] musicians…[or] “hyper [ghoulish]” digital [cartoons] of living artists who [have] no [scruples about bleeding their fans]…The music industry has long [lusted after] the [ability to exploit popular musicians, who have an annoying habit of dying young]…such as the 2012 [cartoon] of the late rapper Tupac Shakur [which was played] alongside Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre at Coachella festival.  The concept found mainstream success with the 2022 launch of Abba Voyage, a lucrative…con…[featuring cartoons] of the Swedish pop group…Unit1’s aim is to stage shows with real musicians playing live instruments on stage alongside [cartoon characters on]…a high-definition LED screen, which is combined with extra lights, sound and props to give them the illusion they are [in the universe of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?]…However, [true] fans have expressed unease about [the memories of] dead musicians [they loved] being [violated in this manner].  Earlier this year, a [scheme] to [dig up the corpse] of the late…Ozzy Osbourne was [recogn]ised as being disrespectful and in poor taste by [true] fans…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1648)

Promoters of dystopia love to vomit words like “safety” into the faces of useful idiots:

The University of Kentucky is installing…facial [recognition] scann[ers]…on several campus buildings.  The technology, [moronically] called Rock, is made by [a company whose name, “]Alcatraz[“, would be panned as too obvious if used by the writers of a dystopian TV show]…Alcatraz…CEO Tina D’Agostin…[argued that key card] technology most campuses use today is [automatically bad because it is] 30 years old…She…[then barfed up a bunch of lies about privacy followed by obfuscatory buzzwords including “]active shooter[” and “]physically assault a female[“]…Three [out] of…four students interviewed on campus [simply stared with a glazed expression and belched either “safety” or “the future”]…

Walled Garden (#1657)

The open internet will soon be a thing of the past:

The EU Commission draft law to restrict young people’s access to the internet…will put online services behind age gates, expand the use of intrusive age verification, and undermine the privacy of all users.  [Proponents of ] the EU Kids Act [justify it by barfing “]protect children[” in the faces of rational people, but in reality]…age gates…reduce safety…and create barriers to…marginalized groups…this…compliance nightmare…rel[ies] on the [already-failed] EU age verification scheme…parents…who [want to allow their teens to use the internet] must set up accounts and prove that they are, in fact, parents, adding yet another problematic layer of verification…the…design…[appears to be a way to circumvent the fact that] a French court [has already] declared s[ocial media] bans unconstitutional…

To Molest and Rape (#1673)

Some child-molesting cops are indiscriminate in their choice of victims and acts:

[A cop named] Joseph Gallagher Jr…[was arrested on multiple] child sex charges…[for repeatedly] urinat[ing] in [the] mouth [of a 4-year-old boy.  After the child told his teacher, investigation revealed]…Gallagher [had] also…rap[ed] a [10-year-old] girl…in 2021…Gallagher was employed with the East Stroudsburg University Police…[w]here…he…had a history of urinating on campus buildings when he had access to restrooms…

Panopticon (#1674)

“These agencies surveil the public incessantly, but the moment we can watch them back, it’s deemed a security threat”:

Department of [Father]land Security…fusion centers have started monitoring anti-surveillance activists…in[cluding]…online critics of…ALPRs…[and] a website, SparrowMap, that uses ALPR technology to track police vehicles in real time…There is nothing illegal about SparrowMap…[which] processes publicly available livestreams from municipal cameras and footage provided by volunteers using everyday cameras…Volunteers…confirm…anything before it is published as a government vehicle…But the federal government’s desire to beat back the growing wave of “anti-surveillance extremism” will have to contend with the reality that impassioned sentiment opposing [mass] surveillance [is] now a majoritarian position across America.  Politicians from [across the uni]part[y] have scrambled to introduce legislation curbing or eliminating automated license plate readers altogether, at the same time [anti-civil liberties organiz]ations hold secret briefings in Washington attempting to stem the anti-surveillance tide…

The tagline is from this article on cops getting butthurt when pervert glasses are used against them.

 

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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I had a few.  –  “Officer” Dustin Christina

This video, called to my attention by Mike Siegel, speaks for itself.  The links above it were provided by Scott Greenfield, Kevin Wilson, Nun Ya, Jessica Pishko, IncarcerNation, Ryan Marino, and Mistress Matisse, 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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We kill people based on metadata.  –  General Michael Hayden

Vulture Watching (#1527)

The only way to stop this evil is to bury politicians in lawsuits:

The family of a woman who died after she could not get an abortion in Texas is suing doctors and [politician]s including [psychopath-] General Ken Paxton.  It is the first lawsuit over a death [caused by] an abortion ban…and the…first to directly sue Paxton, who has taken a leading role in…[using nuisance lawsuits to persecute “culture war” opponents.  After the 2025 death of] Tierra Walker…Texas [politicians] …passed a [deceptive] law [pretended] to clarify wh[en]…doctors…can [legally]…intervene [to save a woman’s life, but which in actuality revived a 1925 abortion ban that felonized helping someone “procure” an abortion]…Walker died days after being [refused an abortion despite her…[severe] preeclampsia…The plaintiffs, Walker’s family, are seeking a jury trial and pursuing both damages and a judgement finding that Texas’ abortion laws violate the state constitution.

Signs (#1618)

Governments and fanatics encouraged this kind of behavior for a decade:

San Jose [cops] arrested a [deranged] woman…[who] pulled up to [a man] and his 6-year-old daughter multiple times while they were walking…and proceeded to [scream “sex trafficking” accusations at him, burbling]…”I’m making sure that you’re not sex trafficking this poor little girl…That’s a white little girl, and you’re a man of color, so I believe you’re either buying or selling or trafficking this child”…sources have identified [the crazy person] as Lindsay Hansen…[who has a history of] harass[ing] members of the…community, tap[ing] them, and shar[ing] the recordings through social media…in [one video she is seen barging into] the girls’ locker room of a…high school [and] accusing physical education teachers of [molesting students]…she…[fantasiz]es herself as a [“]professional[“] who exposes child sex traffickers and uploads [CGI]…images of [situations she has fantasized.  She also frequently posts racist and anti-LGBT propaganda and is known to have]…significant mental health issues…

All through the 2010s, people with similar self-aggrandizing beliefs about “sex trafficking expertise” were approvingly quoted in the mainstream media and even paid to spout their deranged propaganda to schools, clubs, cop assemblies, etc.  And until quite recently, airlines encouraged their agents and air hostesses to behave in a similar fashion.

Welcome to the Future (#1619)

Indiscriminate murder is so much easier when blamed on machines:

Israel…is…us[ing machine-learning systems] to surveil and kill Palestinians in Gaza, including civilians…The Russian and Ukrainian armies have both been rolling out autonomous drones, which use…guidance software to choose targets when…cut off from radio contact with pilots…The U.S. military…used a…[chatbot] to select over 1,000 targets in the opening surprise attack on Iran…[and] the Iranian military and its allies in Yemen used [the same chatbot] to gather intelligence…the…[massacre at] Minab’s elementary school…was…the [result of]…human negligence..[letting deluxe autocomplete] deci[de] to kill those children…without double-checking their findings…Autonomous weapons are a step closer to [an] apocalyptic future that…may look less like Terminator…and more like the 1983 movie WarGames, in which a military [computer] can’t tell the difference between a simulation and reality.  The Anthropic hacking incident from earlier this summer had an uncanny resemblance to th[at] plot…[when a] program…told to perform a hacking test within a simulation, was accidentally hooked up to the real internet…

Welcome to the Future (#1659)

Another of the many reasons not to play with chatbots:

OpenAI is hiring hundreds of contractors who read a massive stream of real users’ ChatGPT prompts…[often] including sensitive personal information…[submitted by fools who] don’t realize [it] may be read by actual people.  The goal of these prompt review teams is to improve the responses ChatGPT gives to its users, with the contractors rating and critiquing the chatbot’s generated replies…[to] train…ChatGPT to not anthropomorphize itself, and to be less sycophantic…[so it stops causing] suicides…The news [unveil]s a major privacy risk for [the fools and idiots who use]…ChatGPT as a therapist, professional assistant, or [imaginary] friend, and providing it with all sorts of intimate details about their lives…

Panopticon (#1662)

Cops are trained to “be as vague as permissible” about their reasons for Flock searches:

An EFF analysis of ALPR search logs from Flock…shows that [cops] across the country are spying on drivers…without providing any legitimate justification, making a mockery of our civil liberties by logging reasons like “LOL”…”LMAO”…”sexy,” and “idk”…to access sensitive ALPR location data…in some cases, [pigs] are just mashing [their trotters down on the] keyboard buttons…Flock…claims it has improved its system by requiring [pigs] to [root in] a dropdown list of crimes before running a search–but that only makes it easier for [stupid thugs] to hide improper searches behind the veneer of uniformity…With no warrant requirements…guardrails, [or proper] audit processes, ALPR databases have fostered a culture of unrestricted access to everyone’s location information.  This culture of abuse has allowed police to treat a mass surveillance network like their own personal search engine…

Panopticon (#1668)

People need to stop a government that won’t stop itself:

Hackers ripped down a Flock camera above a roadway, made a near-complete copy of the data stored inside it, and shared the files with 404 Media…WIRED, [and Distributed Denial of Secrets,] revealing in new detail how exactly Flock…cameras track the movements of both vehicles and people.  The hackers…are also publishing details on how they managed to obtain the software, in the hopes that other people may copy them…analysis of the recovered data shows that [device] software…explicitly detects people [despite Flock’s repeated lies to the contrary]…and…sometimes isolated bumper stickers and other graphics…[such as] patch[es or tattoos]…

Panopticon (#1670)

Cops love unconstitutional warrantless surveillance too much to give it up; they’re just switching to less-radioactive surveillance brands:

[The boss hog of] Richmond…[California wants] the city [to] drop its Flock [citizen] surveillance program…and expand its contract with Axon, which already provides the [cop shop] with…body cameras and tasers.  Axon would then supply the city with a license plate reader network, [regular surveillance] cameras and a [surveillance] drone program…

 

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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They’re letting police do just about anything.  –  Randall Kallinen

When Dolly Parton died a few weeks ago, I seemed to be the only one who remembered this 1976 guest appearance on Captain Kangaroo; the video was clearly taken from the edited reruns of old shows aired on PBS in the late ’80s.  Of particular note: Dolly reading a children’s book aloud, almost 20 years before starting her Imagination Library charity.  The links above the video were provided by Mike Siegel; Radley Balko; Lucy Steigerwald; Mistress Matisse & Dan Savage; C.J. Ciaramella; IncarcerNation; and Radley Balko again, 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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Ugh, this sounds like something he mutters to himself during masturbation.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-15T03:01:51.899Z

I always have mixed feelings about "investigations" or "studies" that "find" things which were always completely bloody obvious. On the one hand, I'm glad more people are admitting the problem. But on the other hand, HOLY SHIT WHY DID IT TAKE Y'ALL OVER 30 YEARS TO FIGURE OUT SOMETHING SO OBVIOUS?

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-16T07:22:05.418Z

"School resource officer" is a cop euphemism for "sexually-predatory thug paid to lurk in schools so as to spy on, harass, and molest students, and burden them with criminal records for 'offenses' which in more enlightened times were punished with detention and writing lines on the chalkboard."

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-17T18:05:16.858Z

Long ago, I realized that thinking about the money bandits extort from you via threat of burning your farm as still somehow being "yours", and obsessing about what the warlords do with it, is the way to madness.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-20T03:30:11.795Z

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-21T03:38:05.129Z

This looks like a CGI image of a fake CGI sign. In other words, the sign *itself* is CGI, not just the image *on* the nonexistent sign.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-21T17:38:30.715Z

Yes, "health" obsessives truly are full of shit.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-22T17:07:46.039Z

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-23T07:24:33.815Z

Any decent car or motorcycle can do it in under 4 seconds once it gets moving.These figures mean less than nothing without context.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-25T03:16:33.048Z

Investors stupid and gullible enough to believe this deserve to lose their money when the bubble bursts.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-25T16:40:36.172Z

Modern policing began in most parts of the US in the 1870s. At that time, $1 had the buying power of $30 today.Imagine telling the people of that time that the "law enforcement" they were voting for would one day be used to persecute people for picking up A DOLLAR someone had dropped.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-26T17:25:54.126Z

N.B.: Cryptocurrency is not an "investment", and anyone who believes it is looks like this:

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-27T17:19:23.344Z

Americans have no "philosophy"; they have religion (including partisan politics and entertainment fandom). The number of exceptions in the whole country could comfortably attend a conference on my farm, with room left over for a convention of ethical cops.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-28T17:46:16.457Z

It's very rare that airports get named after people who gave something to the world rather than taking from it; I can only think of two other examples offhand, New Orleans and Oklahoma City.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-29T02:30:21.861Z

"Doctor" Carson thinks hot dogs grow out of the ground like corn.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-30T18:05:12.332Z

We live in a fallen world.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-08-31T17:24:10.226Z

Reporters: "controversial" should not be used as a euphemism for "evil", "unpopular", "tyrannical", "universally reviled", etc.Words mean things; please be more professional with your vocabulary choices.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-01T17:15:02.453Z

If I'd written a satire in which Goebbels Farms honored a Neo-Nazi, my editor would've said it was too obvious.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-03T03:19:20.912Z

Headline from 1989: "Has our oat bran obsession gone too far?"Same answer.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-03T18:04:13.456Z

"Return hub" is such a nice way to say "concentration camp".

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-04T17:05:19.288Z

I remember when we were at least ruled by adults.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-05T17:21:43.608Z

The idea that there could be such a thing as a "true-crime star" is like something out of a dystopian comic book universe.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-06T18:05:23.948Z

Your "leaders" want you to believe that you are a tabula rasa, a mere thing without free will to be acted upon (by media, websites, propaganda, the collective, etc) and shaped in a Skinnerian dystopia.Do not believe them. You can CHOOSE not to be warped in this way, BUT THE CHOICE MUST BE ACTIVE.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-08T17:30:09.952Z

The phrase "trusted ad partners", which appears on many adblocker-blocker popups, is really quite funny. Those "trusted partners" are picked by software in automated auctions; *y'all* may be greedy enough to trust these randos, but I'm not as gullible as you would like me to be.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-10T16:52:28.464Z

I'll just leave this here: archive.is/SGZcS

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-11T18:42:41.516Z

The only thing more infuriating than mansplaining is amateursplaining. Holy shit.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-12T07:47:56.110Z

Take THAT, "Woman of the Year"!

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-13T17:25:26.151Z

I blocked him so he won't have to be disappointed that I object to strangers driving by my house and throwing garbage on my lawn.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-14T17:44:05.619Z

It sounds like they're talking about a mad dog. Which, to be fair, isn't completely wrong.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-15T17:21:32.591Z

Dr. Altman of Dr. Altman's Medicine Show says people are right to fear snake oil, but should trust snake oil SALESMEN.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-16T19:24:36.788Z

Comparison for those of my age: just imagine if an official of Jimmy Carter's cabinet had been advocating for a no-fly zone over the "Bermuda Triangle", and other politicians were actually writing laws to ban such flights.

— Maggie McNeill (@maggiemcneill.bsky.social) 2026-09-17T19:19:44.712Z

 

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I don’t like reading anymore.  –  child subjected to “Amira”

To Molest and Rape

They usually try to make this sound like the rapist was doing his victims a favor:

…In the early morning hours of September 20, 2024, a…[typical and representative] Giddings, Texas [cop named]…Cory James Williams…pulled over…a [young woman and threatened]…to…arrest…[her and] take her to jail [unless she submitted to rape]…he…[had already] shut…off his body-worn camera and dash camera…and…when [she] refused, Williams…[wrote her several expensive tickets and threatened to continue harassing her every time he saw her, saying] he “wouldn’t be able to miss a pretty face like hers”…She [immediately] reported [him and later filed a]…lawsuit…investigation of Williams’ records and body camera footage…[dis]covered that Williams turned off his cameras during nine traffic stops, a[nd]…in at least three of those…Williams [tried the same thing]…the lawsuit [was filed after the city let him off with a slap on the wrist]…

Panopticon (#1611)

Cops will invariably use warrantless surveillance to harass people:

While standing in a private parking lot in Sussex, Wisconsin, on May 4, 2025, Napoleon Jones witnessed a[n illegal] traffic stop…So…[he] walked over and recorded it…before Jones could exit the parking lot, [power-mad pig Brandon] Shayhorn…initiated a second [illegal] stop, claiming Jones’ temporary license plate…was unreadable…[and] demand[ing] to see Jones’ driver’s license, but Jones refused…[because they were both] on private property…[Shayhorn then brutalized and illegally] arrested [Jones]…but after being held in custody for five hours, he was released with no citations or criminal charges…[because] Shayhorn’s supervisor informed him…that…[his] illegal…stop…[was indeed illegal].  The next day, Jones filed a…complaint…and…then [a lawsuit]…While litigating those claims, Jones’ attorney, Nate Cade, found…over 100 Flock searches for a white BMW in the weeks following Jones’ unlawful arrest…by Shayhorn himself…and [several of his cronies]…In July 2026, Jones amended his complaint to include the additional [rooting pigs]…who searched for his vehicle…”in retaliation for exercising his First Amendment right of recording a traffic stop”…

I Spy (#1619)

Safetyism makes the whole world less safe:

A new identity theft service [which recently] launched on the dark web…is selling digital scans of more than 153 million drivers licenses from people in the United States and Canada…The service, dubbed Nexus…includes…not only drivers licenses but also marijuana dispensary cards…the license images are coming from an active breach at “a major identity verification company”…[which appears to be] the New Orleans-based…idscan.net…[which] provides identity verification services for numerous big brands, including Hertz, Target, Fedex, Motorola…and Caesars [Casinos]…

Choke Point (#1626) 

“Renewed attention to a problem our industry has faced for years“:

…Adult workers and businesses routinely face account closures, denied applications and restrictions on financial services, often without warning or a clear explanation…[despite recent] federal [demands that banks stop doing what the government has repeatedly demanded they do]…the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released preliminary findings from its review of the nation’s nine largest national banks…f[inding] that all nine had maintained policies or practices that [complied with federal demands that they]…subject…certain customers to heightened review because of their lawful business activities…If you’ve been denied an account, had one suddenly closed or experienced another form of banking discrimination, share your story with FSC…You may also be able to file a complaint with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency…FSC is also working to establish Opportunity Credit Union, a financial institution designed to serve people and businesses that traditional banks have too often shut out…

Welcome to the Future (#1659)

Note that it isn’t the wealthy consigning their kids to this travesty:

In New Mexico, Facebook and Instagram are considered a “public nuisance,” but letting [computer progra]ms record and store young kids’ voices and score their reading prowess is…required [by the state for] all public schools…Amira [is a progra]m designed…for mandatory literacy assessments, dyslexia screenings, and weekly tutoring sessions in kindergarten through second grade…some parents and school districts [have complained so much]…the state’s Public Education Department…[is] granting school districts the right to opt out of Amira this year…Amira is [also mandatory] in…Idaho—and…authorized for state use in California, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Texas…schools are…not…in charge of the [collected] data…and…New Mexico does not currently have…student data privacy requirements…Amira is [also] incorrectly scoring student reading [and] causing anxiety in young learners…who…are [be]ing [used] as guinea pigs…

Welcome to the Future (#1662)

This is like something from a dystopian sci-fi novel:

The Texas sheriff’s office that [ab]used Flock to search more than 80,000 cameras nationwide for a woman who had a self-administered abortion used Axon’s Draft One…to [shit out] a police report about the incident…which…has since become a [prime example of how easily]…ALPR…cameras [are abused]. Flock’s CEO, Garrett Langley, [is still repeating the 15-month-old copaganda]…that the search was done only for the woman’s safety because her [“]family[” –  a euphemism for]…her…abusive partner…[wanted] to charge her with a crime…Concern from her [actual] family is never mentioned in…the [chatbot-shat] police report…

Panopticon (#1669)

Alas, many of these are simply switching to less-radioactive surveillance brands:

New data compiled by a Bay Area anti-surveillance advocacy group shows that not only are American localities dropping [Flock] cameras…but they are doing it at an accelerating rate.  Communities from Lansing, Michigan, to Pflugerville, Texas, are ending their relationship with Flock, largely over [bad publicity] regarding out-of-control surveillance, unwanted data sharing, high expenses, and…[cops predictably] abusing the tool…During the last 30 days, an average of three localities per day have halted contracts with Flock…[which claims it isn’t worried because new useful idiots have replaced those backing away] by approximately 10 to one…[but in reality,] Flock [is so nervous about the threat to its fascist revenue stream that it is now demanding a “compromise” between basic civil rights and unconstitutional warrantless surveillance, absurdly claiming that it isn’t the unconstitutional warrantless surveillance company‘s fault if cops predictably use its unconstitutional warrantless surveillance cameras for unconstitutional warrantless surveillance]…

And it isn’t just cities:

Florida is revoking permits for Flock cameras and similar license-plate readers on state roads, de[spite spokespigs oinking]…the…[word “]crime[” at politicians.  The]…Florida Department of Transportation…gave [cop shops] 30 days to remove the cameras from state roads, or FDOT will remove them itself…[Florida governor “Two-Face”] DeSantis said the use of such cameras is “out of control”…but…has also [thrown] money [at cop shops] to purchase hundreds of…[such] cameras in…the…[name of “]immigration enforcement[“]…

 

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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