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Posts Tagged ‘Unsafe for Human Consumption’

The government has such loose standards that they let people weaponize them.  –  J.D. Lott

Torture Chamber (Chamber of Horrors)

The State tortures thousands of people for crossing an imaginary line:

For years, federal investigators…immigrants, and advocates have called for ICE to shutter the Winn [Migrant Torture] Center…[due to rampant] abuse, mismanagement, and inhumane conditions, [yet] in May, the Biden administration temporarily extended the facility’s contract…and..ICE will likely extend it again for five more years…During…a…protest [in January the prison sent in a goon squad]…dressed in black riot gear…who…began deploying canisters of pepper spray without warning…[while yelling] “Shut up motherfuckers!” [at] the[ir victims]…then [swarm]ed through…[the dungeon, pepper-]spraying detainees in the face…they…then exited the [scene of their crime], locked the doors and windows, and cut power and water.  For three hours or so, the immigrants…were denied medical care, aside from a few individuals who had [been beaten unconscious by the thug gang]…

A Broker in Pillage (#1373)

These evil schemes need to be completely shut down as unconstitutional:

Detroit police can no longer s[teal] cars through civil asset forfeiture unless they can show that the car was used for trafficking drugs…the Michigan Supreme Court ruled…that…it is not enough to merely claim that a car was near a suspected drug crime or that a passenger possessed drugs for personal use…The ruling is the second recent court decision limiting the asset forfeiture powers of Wayne County, which encompasses Detroit, and the second one specifically involving [Stephanie] Wilson’s Saturn Ion…[which cops stole] in 2019 because she gave rides to her daughter’s father to or from a residence [cops had pointed at while oinking “]drug activity[“, but]…Wilson was never cited, arrested, or charged with a crime…Wayne County s[tole] over 2,600 vehicles  between 2017 and 2019 and raked in over $1.2 million in [ransom] revenues…

You Were Warned (#1383)

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

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer…[is about to] force a vote…on…KOSA…a[n internet-censorship bill which invents]…a “duty of care” for a huge swath of digital companies…to protect minors from exposure to anything that [politicians decide is a]…”harm”…The only way to “prevent and mitigate” services from contributing to these [politically-designated “]harms[“] is for companies to either drastically censor every user’s speech or to block minors from using [thei]r service, which means checking IDs for everyone.  Even if used in the most neutral and narrow of ways possible, the potential disruption of free speech and anonymity online is cataclysmic.  And…the political appointees at the Federal Trade Commission…will wind up…[using] KOSA to further specific political agendas—including crusades against abortion, LGBTQ rights, second-amendment rights, sex worker rights, big businesses, language that progressives deem disrespectful, and sexuality broadly…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1388)

Cops won’t drop this fantasy until “news” media stop obediently parroting it:

A…[whiny-baby cop in] Southport [Indiana had a panic attack while harassing a motorist]…Tony Wilson…[was root]ing [through his victim’s] car…[and saw] a dollar bill [with traces of white powder]…he [fantasized] was fentanyl…he [was so terrified he pissed himself]…and [then fainted]…his bosses [used the non-event as an excuse for swaggering and oinking out a lot of hysterical self-aggrandizing nonsense]…

Without Let or Hindrance (#1392)

Calling “child protection” on people is merely a quieter form of “swatting”:

J.D. Lott…his wife Britney…[and] their eight kids…[were] three years into a cross-country, home-schooling, Instagram-documented road trip in a bus they refashioned into an RV…wh[en]…online trolls…[decided] to weaponize child protective services…a group, FundieSnarkUncensored, that makes fun of people it believes are Christian Fundamentalists…had been…armchair diagnosing…the[ir] healthy newborn [Boone, claiming he] had “severe sunburn,” “was lethargic,” and had “jaundice”…they used a…video the Lotts had posted from their Florida campground stay to geolocate the[m]…then…called the local Florida DCF office and repeated, verbatim, the accusations…the [agency] decided t[o destroy their lives and]…threatened to issue a nationwide order to [abduct all of their] kids…Lott called the Family Freedom Project…a Texas nonprofit that helps families wrongly accused of abuse by child services…the FFP…found a…[lawyer and] a…[non-government] doctor…to have [a] child welfare evaluation…As soon as the Lotts pulled into the parking lot, a cop car pulled in behind them, lights flashing…the [doctor] took a look at baby Boone and determined that he did not have jaundice, severe sunburn, or lethargy.  The other seven children were examined and found to be in good health as well.  The doctor informed the family that the cops would not be [abduct]ing the kids…But when the state threatens to take away your kids, it’s not exactly no harm, no foul, sorry for the inconvenience.  The experience still gives some of the kids nightmares…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1447)

Everyone abused by cops using this error-prone surveillance system needs to sue:

In 2020, Robert Williams was wrongfully arrested after facial recognition software incorrectly identified him as the person responsible for a 2018 shoplifting spree.  Detroit, Michigan, police jailed Williams for more than 30 hours—even after it became clear that he was not responsible…Williams ultimately sued.  Last month, the case was settled, with Williams set to receive a $300,000 payout for his wrongful arrest…Donald Bussa, [the pig] who conducted the investigation, relied almost exclusively on the facial recognition software, not even looking into Williams’ whereabouts at the time of the crime…or interviewing [store] employees who were [actually present]…After Williams was arrested…he was held for hours before being interviewed…[and] once he was…the case against him quickly unraveled…[but] even after police [admitt]ed they had the wrong person, Williams still wasn’t released for another eight hours.  It took nearly two weeks for the charges against him to be dropped…

To Molest and Rape (#1457)

“Lewd and lascivious conduct” sounds so much nicer than “raping a 10-year-old”:

A [typical and representative] Vermont [cop named Todd Chisholm] has been [let off with a mere] 30 days in prison a[fter making a sweetheart] plea [deal] in which he pleaded guilty to lewd and lascivious conduct…[after repeatedly raping his girlfriend’s 10-year-old daughter starting] in…2003…Chisholm…[also has] 6 years of probation…[but] if [he hadn’t been a cop], Chisholm could have been facing life in prison…

 

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 can, indeed, convince ourselves that boogeymen are real.
–  Claire Zagorski & Ryan Marino

Legal Is as Legal Does

Who but a politician could conceive of fighting some crime by criminalizing legal business?

[Due to] the discovery of a U.S. citizen with two girls, aged 12 and 13…in a luxury hotel in Medellín…[Colombia]…Mayor Federico Gutiérrez…[has] prohibit[ed] sex work in…for six months, and…[declared] a 1 a.m. closing time for bars…for a month…Gutiérrez…says he is acting under extraordinary circumstances…[to] fight…back against the mafias that he says run [the] El Poblado [neighborhood by denying legal income to legal businesspeople, and subjecting them to police harassment]…He also announced that there would be meetings with owners of bars and hotels to clarify new “rules of the game”.  Establishments that do not comply with the rules…will not only be subject to closure, but also to [the government stealing their property]…Timothy Allan Livingston…was arrested and detained for 12 hours…[but] released…because he had not been [actually] caught in the act of sexually abusing the girls.  He was released on [March 29th], and boarded a flight to Fort Lauderdale, Florida…

The chief danger of a “tolerated” system is that cops or politicians can suddenly and without warning decide to be intolerant.

Torture Chamber (#1153)

The government tried to establish a precedent that it need not feed its prisoners:

The federal government is required to “expeditiously” house migrant [minors] who cross into the United States [without permission], rather than allow them to remain in unsafe open-air sites along the border…Federal District Court…Judge Dolly M. Gee [ruled]…in a class-action lawsuit…minors at the sites [a]re in legal custody of the Department of Homeland Security and thus…entitled to certain rights and protections, such as a safe and sanitary environment, even if they ha[ve] not yet been formally processed…The outdoor areas where migrants have been waiting [because the US refuses to let them continue north] lack shelter, food and sanitation…Unaccompanied children and young families sometimes arrive in poor health…dehydration and heat stroke have become common problems…and nighttime temperatures, wind and rain are creating conditions ripe for hypothermia…The government had argued that the children [and adolescents] were not yet in U.S. custody so it had no obligation to provide services….[yet] Border Patrol…control[s] the minors’ ability to leave the sites…Judge Gee denied the [government’s] request for a specific time limit for how long minors could be held [without food, water, shelter, or medical care]…

Welcome to the Future (#1351)

Indiscriminate murder is so much easier when blamed on machines:

…the Israeli army has developed a…[computer] program known as “Lavender”…to generate targets for…bombing…the…system is designed to mark all suspected operatives in the military wings of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), including low-ranking ones, as potential…targets…human personnel…serve…only as a “rubber stamp” for the machine’s decisions…the Israeli army systematically attacked the targeted individuals while they were in their homes — usually at night while their whole families were present — rather than during the course of military activity…Additional automated systems, including one called “Where’s Daddy?”…were used…to track the targeted individuals and carry out bombings when they had entered their family’s residences…The result…is that thousands of Palestinians — most of them women and children or [noncombatants] — were wiped out by Israeli airstrikes, especially during the first weeks of the war, because of [a computer]’s [mindless] decisions…the army…decided…that, for every junior Hamas operative that Lavender marked, it was permissible to kill up to 15 or 20 civilians…[and if] the target was a senior Hamas official…the army on several occasions authorized the killing of more than 100 civilians…[to eliminate] a single commander…

You Were Warned (#1361)

Ignorant, irrelevant authoritarian spouts ignorant irrelevancies in support of more authoritarianism; what a shock:

Hillary Clinton is the latest to jump on the “Repeal Section 230” bandwagon…Both Joe Biden and Donald Trump have insisted that it needs to be repealed.  Senators [from] both sides of the [uniparty]…are supporting bills to repeal [it].  And now Hillary Clinton has joined the crew of ignorant political pundits spouting nonsense about 230…removing Section 230 will not fix whatever problem any of these people think it will fix…Section 230 serves a particularly useful purpose: preventing frivolous lawsuits.  What everyone calling for its repeal is effectively saying is that they want more frivolous lawsuits, most of which will simply be stopped eventually by the First Amendment, but after much more significant expense for websites…what Biden and Clinton seem to be admitting in their desire to remove liability protections is that they want to suppress speech…because they know that any threat of more frivolous litigation would lead companies to…[be far more] censorial…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1391)

Politicians are always happy to wreck lives by inventing new crimes from copaganda:

…While addiction and drug policy experts have repeatedly refuted the idea that touching fentanyl alone can cause an overdose, like a stubborn weed, the lie keeps coming back.  And now the myth has drifted upward to poli[tician]s…At this moment, three bills — one in Florida (SB 718), one in West Virginia (HB 5319) and the other in Tennessee (SB 1754) — are making their way through their respective state legislatures.  All three will allow for a felony charge to be levied against people who [possess]…fentanyl or a fentanyl analog, such as carfentanil or remifentanil…[if a cop has a panic attack nearby]…HB 5319 casts an even wider net, encompassing any opioid regardless of potency…[but] does include language which would require a laboratory test for opioids be administered to the [panicky pig.  But]…SB 718 and SB 1754 [allow charges based entirely in a cop’s imagination]…

If Men Were Angels (ROTW #8)

Turns out he isn’t just a wannabe cop:

Monte Chitty, the [Florida] pastor [who drugged and molested a 15-year-old girl], [was] released on a $75,000 bond soon after his March arrest…[he] was supposed to be arraigned [on April 1st, but] fled in a white van with out-of-state plates and is no longer believed to be in…Florida…he…has lived in 25 states where he’s worked in churches and may have places to hide out; [prosecutor Dennis] Ward [said]…“This guy’s a former cop from Alaska…so I’m concerned about everybody in [his] path”…

The Punitive Mindset (#1426) 

Let’s hope we can soon say, “Good riddance to bad rubbish”:

Last week, the nation’s largest prison and jail telecom corporation, Securus, effectively defaulted on more than a billion dollars of debt.  After decades of preying on incarcerated people and their loved ones with exploitative call rates and other predatory practices that have driven millions of families into debt, Securus is being crushed under the weight of its own.  In March, the company’s creditors gave the corporation an eight-month extension to pay up, urging its sale to a new owner to stave off an otherwise imminent bankruptcy…The slow death of the largest player in this space is not accidental.  It follows six years of intense advocacy to expose the vulnerability of the prison telecom industry’s business model on both ethical and economic grounds.  Organizers have waged a strategic war against Securus, educating investors and the public about the company’s predatory practices while successfully advocating for legislation and regulation to rein them in…The company’s failure would represent a remarkable victory for advocates—and a potential beginning of the end for the prison telecom industry as we know it…

 

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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There aren’t just piles of fentanyl powder out in parks.  –  Ryan Marino

Hot Mess Alabama

Alabama is still trying to make up for its late start by violently spewing “sex trafficking” idiocy most other states have quietly dropped:

…the Sound of Freedom Act would institute the “toughest law in the nation” for human trafficking of minors…Named after the 2023 [propaganda] film of the same name [which glorifies a con artist and serial rapist], the Sound of Freedom Act would institute an automatic life sentence for anyone convicted of trafficking a victim under the age of 18.  Under the bill, it would not be required that the [target have actually committed an actual crime] to be given a life sentence…

Unchristian Nation (#1339)

Government at every level crusades against Christian charity:

…an…Ohio pastor…[was] issued 18 zoning law violations [for] keeping his church open to people who needed a warm place to sleep…Chris Avell, pastor of Dad’s Place in Bryan, Ohio…kept his church open 24/7 to provide warmth to the unhoused…[but] Ohio law prohibits residential use in first-floor buildings in a business district…the city…[sent] Avell…a letter on Nov. 3 [demand]ing…he [obey Caesar rather than God]…and during a New Year’s Eve service, police arrived and issued violations…Jeremy Dys, Avell’s attorney, [said]…“The city would rather kick these folks to the curb in…December and…January than allow the church to remain open…to those who need it the most”…

Panopticon (#1342)

If there’s a camera, cops will conscript it for use as a surveillance tool:

A food delivery robot company that delivers for Uber Eats in Los Angeles provided video filmed by one of its robots to [LAPD]…The incident highlights the fact that delivery robots that are being deployed to sidewalks all around the country are essentially always filming, and that their footage can and has been [handed to the pigs without even asking for a warrant]…The specific incident in question was a grand larceny case where two men tried (and failed) to steal a robot owned and operated by Serve Robotics, which ultimately wants to deploy “up to 2,000 robots” to deliver food for UberEats [while collaborating with the pigs]…

To Molest and Rape (#1363)

Some rapist cops are indiscriminate in their choice of victim:

A [typical and representative] Baton Rouge [cop who] was charged [last August for child molestation has now been charged with] rape [of an adult woman]…Demichael Robertson…rape[d the woman]…in December 2022…[but she was afraid to report him until she heard about the child molestation charge]…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1399)

Prohibitionists believe that outright, blatant lying is an acceptable means of advancing their authoritarian agenda:

The Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office has pulled down a p[ropaganda] announcement from its website [attempting to terrify voters with scary tales] about the painkiller fentanyl…an…audio spot…[claimed a six-year-old named Lindsey saw] some white powder [at a playground] and touched it…[and then instantly dropped dead].  But, it’s not based on anything real…”It’s impossible…touching powder fentanyl cannot cause an overdose in any way,” said Dr. Ryan Marino…a medical toxicologist…and addiction medicine specialist…”What a crazy amount of misinformation”…the DA [was unapologetic and said]…”I am not concerned about…[lying if it advances the police state]. Period.  I am not”…[but] “Lindsey’s Story” disappeared from the DA’s website shortly after [reporters] inquired about it…

Shame, Shame (#1405)

The latest internet-wrecking censorship attempt from self-important clowns who actually think fake nude pictures are worse than totalitarianism:

…the…No AI FRAUD…Act…would…create…a right to sue someone who uses your likeness or voice without your permission…the…agreement must involve a lawyer, and its terms must be governed by a collective bargaining agreement…it applies to the voices and depictions of all human beings “living or dead”…it defines…Likeness [as] any “actual or simulated image… regardless of the means of creation, that is readily identifiable as the individual”…These definitions…[are] broad enough to include reenactments in a true-crime show, a parody TikTok account…depictions of a historical figure in a movie…sketch-comedy skits, political cartoons…memes…or a cartoon like South Park or Family Guy including a depiction of a celebrity.  And it doesn’t matter if the intent is not to trick anyone…What’s more, it’s not just the creators…that could be sued.  Potentially liable parties include anyone …who “publishes, performs, distributes, transmits, or otherwise makes available to the public…[an imita]tion”…This is broad enough to ensnare social media platforms, video platforms, newsletter services, web hosting services, and any entity that enables the sharing of art, entertainment, and commentary.  It also applies to the makers of tools that merely allow others to create…[imita]tions…

To Molest and Rape (#1406)

In which “sex with minors” is used to mean “raping young children”:

San Antonio [cop]…Albert Sanchez [wa]s charged with possession or promotion of child pornography after he admitted to a witness that he was [raping prepubescent children]…“both male and female”…Sanchez was immediately [rewarded with a paid vacation after]…a search…[of his] cellphone…found multiple explicit pictures of [children]…younger than 10…

When the state or its pet media want to infantilize young adults, they are referred to as “children”.  But when they want to downplay a cop’s horrendous crimes, prepubescent children become “minors” and “juveniles”, as though they were 16 or 17.

 

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 spent almost a year in a locked-down facility, with a disgusting, horny, grown man that’s supposedly my probation officer.  –  victim statement

I Spy (#1060)

Fascism in action:

A federal inquiry has found that several major pharmacy chains have a policy of turning over customers’ pharmacy records to police without a warrant.  The results [are]…concern[ing]…especially as fights over prescription abortion medication continue nationwide…these [porcine] demands typically come in the form of a subpoena, an order that doesn’t require approval from a judge, unlike a warrant…as debates over controversial medications—from abortion pills to opioid medications—loom large, customers’ ability to keep their prescription history private from [rooting pigs] is paramount…

The Implosion Begins (#1145)

I am deeply amused by mainstream media furiously backpedaling from a hysteria they eagerly promoted for two decades:

Prominent [MAGATs]…are promoting a…[fantasy, founded in the popular “sex trafficking” hysteria,] that pedophiles have been using Etsy to distribute child porn, sold under the guise of wildly expensive digital downloads of images of pizza.  This new [myth] has emerged from the fecund muck of [“child sex trafficking” hysteria, aggressively promoted by cops, politicians, “rescue” profiteers, and the mainstream media since the mid-Oughts, which more recently developed into] QAnon and Pizzagate…The fixation with pizza among [“sex trafficking”] adherents stems from the [constant repetition of the moronic myth] that “[getting a ‘sex trafficking victim’ online is as easy as ordering a pizza]”…or that pizza, generally, can be a veiled reference to pedophilia…[recently, nut cases on] Twitter…began [obsessing about] strange listings on Etsy…[which] purported to sell digital downloads of images of pizza — some of them marketed with images of hungry children — for exorbitant prices, running thousands of dollars…YummyYumPizza…was offering an encrypted “Pizza file” for $4,000.  Another…offered a similar “Pizza Image” for $9,000…These shops are no longer active on the site…because they violate…policies…[against] inflated pricing…

“Sex trafficking” hysterics’ bizarre fixation on pizza is so popular, I have an entire tag dedicated to it.

Eavesdropping (#1152)

“Smart” devices aren’t, part umpteen:

A marketing team within…Cox Media Group…claims it has the capability to listen to ambient conversations of consumers through embedded microphones in smartphones, smart TVs, and other devices to gather data and use it to target ads…Called “Active Listening,” CMG claims the capability can identify potential customers “based on casual conversations in real time.”  The news signals that what a huge swath of the public has believed for years—that smartphones are listening to people in order to deliver ads—may finally be a reality in certain situations.  Until now, there was no evidence that such a capability actually existed, but its myth permeated due to how sophisticated other ad tracking methods have become.  It is not immediately clear if the capability CMG is advertising…is being used on devices in the market today, but the company [call]s it…“a marketing technique fit for the future. Available today”…

Torture Chamber (#1267)

This will continue as long as sexually-aggressive men are given power over young women:

Faced with roughly 1,500 plaintiffs [su]ing the county [for] tolerating unchecked sexual abuse at its juvenile [jails, Los Angeles]…has spent the last two years removing [serial] sexual abusers from its ranks…[usually by letting them retire or giving them paid vacations]…Courtney Thom, whose [law] firm represents roughly 150 clients suing the county, said…“that number — and I guarantee it’s probably double if not more — it just shows how irresponsible the county is”…In April, the county estimated it will need to spend $1.6 billion to $3 billion to resolve a deluge of lawsuits [result]ing [from the] county [tolerating] staffers…raping and molesting the [legal minors] they were paid to [confine and torture]…officials said at the time that they expected roughly 3,000 people to sue.  But as of early November, the county had seen roughly 3,800 plaintiffs [including the] 1,500 [who were raped or otherwise] sexual[ly] abuse[d] at the probation halls and camps.  Nearly all the rest [were raped or molested by thugs working for] the county’s Department of Children and Family Services…

A little over a year ago, I said of this abuse, “I guarantee you that the number is a lot higher than 70, probably by at least one order of magnitude.”  Of course I was right, as usual.

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1378)

Whatever these kids ate wasn’t fentanyl, because these aren’t opioid symptoms:

Two people have been arrested and charged after seven Virginia elementary students ate gummy bears from a plastic baggie that [cops pointed at and oinked “]fentanyl[” after using a notoriously-unreliable]…field test [on] the bag…The students – all fourth-graders – experienced symptoms including nausea, vomiting, headache and muscle spasms…

Field tests used by cops “have an error rate so high that they’re akin to ‘witchcraft, phrenology or simply picking a number out of a hat’.”

Business Opportunity (#1394)

Sometimes, a little light is all it takes to send the cockroaches scurrying:

After over a month of mounting public criticism, the government of Hanover County, North Carolina, has decided to drop its plans to s[teal] the strip club adjacent to its government center building…the county will now explore a voluntary purchase of the club…

To Molest and Rape (#1397)

Cops should not be allowed anywhere near legal minors:

A [Pennsylvania cop named]…Tyler Humphreys, was charged with rape, statutory sexual assault…[and] other…[offenses against] a 9-year-old boy and two girls [aged]…15…and…11…[he violently] assaulted [the] 9-year-old…[when he] was [only] 12 [himself, but]…rap[ed the] 15-year-old [last December and molested the 11-year-old for years]…

They often use their cop privileges to stalk victims:

A Staten Island cop arrested for sexual…abuse of teen…[boys stalked]…his victims…using an NYPD database…Christopher Terranova…[found one victim] after the boy had been the victim of a robbery…

And sometimes they’re even convicted:

A [typical and representative Louisiana cop named]…Bryan Dawayne Kibodeaux was found guilty of…rap[ing three]…juvenile…victims…from 2016 through 2019…he faces two life sentences…[plus] 125-495 years…

 

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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All of us are time travelers, and though the process is both slow and unidirectional, it inevitably brings us into a world very different from the one where we started.   –  “Welcome to the Future

Computers and the internet have made the creation and dissemination of graphics so easy that any ass can accomplish it; naturally, that means there are a lot of wholly asinine graphics on the internet.
–  “Painfully Clueless

Most drugs aren’t “unsafe for human consumption” when properly-prepared doses are used responsibly; prohibition, however, has been repeatedly proven to be unsafe to humans in any form.  –  “Unsafe for Human Consumption

Both Team MAGA and Team {unpronounceable string of umpteen capital letters} are much too busy dreaming of inflicting their own flavor of totalitarian dystopia on everyone else to bother even attempting to learn from those who went before.  –  “Peculiar Ignorance

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When have the people who ban books ever been the good guys?
–  Keri Lambert

Stalkers in Blue

This creepy shit appears to be a cop’s twisted idea of “flirting”:

[Florida cop] Dylan Fruh [resigned before he could be fired for stalking]…a 17-year-old girl whom he traffic-stopped [on a flimsy pretext and demanded]…her phone number…[he then] followed her and parked 3 spaces over…and…[started repeatedly] texting and calling her…When this was reported…[he claimed to his] superiors…that he had followed her to make her more comfortable with cops…While investigating this, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office searched his phone and found yet another c[reepy stalking of] yet another [underage] girl…No photo [of Fruh] can be found on the Marion County Sheriff’s Office page or elsewhere…

Why do so many cops seem to believe that stalking and harassing women will “build trust“?

Thought Control (#1356)

Surely you didn’t think this crusade would stop with libraries and the internet?

Murfreesboro [Tennessee] passed an ordinance in June banning “indecent behavior”…[and] specifically [referencing] Section 21-72 of the city code…[which defin]es homosexuality [as “sexual conduct”]…An ACLU-backed challenge…has already been launched, but that hasn’t stopped [politicians] from [us]ing the measure [for its intended purpose, banning LGBT-themed]…books…from the public library…[including] the books Flamer, Let’s Talk About It, Queerfully and Wonderfully Made, and This Book Is Gay.  The board also implemented a new library card system that categorizes books into certain age groups…[so] children and teenagers will only be able to check out books that correspond to their age group; they will need permission from a parent or guardian to check out “adult” books…[including] many classic high school books, such as To Kill a Mockingbird…

Dangerous Speech (#1373)

The main phase of this evil self-parody is finally over:

After a dozen years of legal tussles, seven years in the crosshairs of ambitious prosecutors, and five-and-a-half years fighting a federal case that saw his business forcibly shuttered, his assets s[tolen], and his longtime partner [harrassed into] suicide, alt-weekly newspaper impresario Michael Lacey was found guilty Thursday on just one of the 86 criminal charges levied against him…But the government’s fanatical pursuit of Lacey and his four other Backpage co-defendants is far from over…[the] award-winning investigative journalist…was found guilty of international concealment money laundering, which could land him in prison for up to 20 years, and not guilty of international promotional money laundering.  But after a week of contentious deliberations, the jury could not come to agreement on the other 84 charges, prompting U.S. District Judge Diane Humetewa to declare a second mistrial…That means Lacey could face a third federal trial…for the crime of running a classified ads site…executives Scott Spear and John Brunst were found guilty of…over 20 counts apiece…[and] could very easily spend the rest of their lives in prison…Andrew Padilla and Joy Vaught, [who were charged specifically to goad them into testifying for the prosecution,] were found not guilty on their 51 prostitution counts…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1375)

Opportunists taking advantage of cop gullibility by selling them ordinary gear at inflated prices just by slapping the word “fentanyl” on it would be hilarious if it were their own money these idiots were throwing away, but of course it isn’t; it’s money they steal from others, either indirectly (by taxation) or directly (by pointing at it and belching “drugs”).  And now that they’ve extended their panic to dogs, there are even more opportunities to wreck lives by accusing victims of the made-up crime of “exposing” others to fentanyl.

Counterfeit Comfort (#1383) 

It’s good to see someone with a functional moral compass addressing this topic:

Meaghan Ybos…is president of Women Against Registry, an organization dedicated to ending sex offender registration…when her rapist was finally caught, nine years after the attack…she…learned that the Memphis Police Department had neglected to test the majority of the rape kits it collected, including hers.  Since then, she’s been pushing back against the myth of the rape kit “backlog”…[which she describes as “]political theater…It’s…politicians and law enforcement…using victims like me as a currency…A lot of times the retort to people arguing against the registry is, “You should tell that to so-and-so who was raped when she was 16 by a stranger.” OK: Well, I was. That was my case. I actually have a rare type of stranger rape that doesn’t even happen to that many people, and I’m still against this…Is it good for a society to be able to punish people after they’ve served their punishment? Is it good for our society to accept the government keeping lists of people for whom constitutional rights can be suspended?…the registry is counterproductive as any supposed crime reduction goal[“]…

The Puritan Recrudescence (#1389)

The latest entry in the currently-fashionable “monkey see, monkey do” parade:

Indiana [politician] Mike Bohacek…has filed a bill that he [doesn’t admit is to monitor adults] online…[it] would require age verification for websites [politicians summarily deem] pornographic…[and invent a new crime for] a website operator [to fail to guess what politicians might declare]…pornographic material without [spying on users]…

To Molest and Rape (#1389)

Cops should not be allowed anywhere near legal minors:

A [typical and representative Colorado cop named]…Dylan Miller…was arrested…[for] kidnapping [and] sex[ually] assault[ing]…a 15-year-old girl…in July at the North Lake Park in Loveland [Colorado]…Miller…[target]ed the girl [by using the pretext that she was] in [the] park after-hours…[he demanded she] walk with him to a secluded area of the park…[and] sexually assaulted her…

 

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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Technology doesn’t make better people.  –  Vera, from Aqkol, Kazakhstan

Creepy Coppers

Police departments attract predatory garbage even to positions that don’t involve directly inflicting violence on citizens:  “[Typical and representative Tennessee cop employee] John Herring was arrested and charged…[with] possession of child pornography…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1291)

All too often, evil arrives cloaked in the mantle of expediency:

…Smart Aqkol [is] a pilot study in digitized urban infrastructure for Kazakhstan…[using] Chinese surveillance [technology to establish a]…Chinese-style public surveillance system…The government…[sells the system with the usual rhetoric about] public safety…But the hardware came through…China’s…Silk Road initiative…and…uses surveillance cameras made by Chinese firms Dahua and Hikvision, which in China have been used — and touted, even — for their ability to track “suspicious” people and groups.  Both companies are sanctioned by the U.S. due to their involvement in surveilling and aiding in the repression of ethnic Uyghurs in Xinjiang…Kazakhstan…is home to a large Uyghur diaspora of more than 300,000 people, many of whom have deep ties to Xinjiang…Hikvision announced in December 2022 that its software is used by Chinese police to set up “alarms” that are triggered when cameras detect “unlawful gatherings” in public…its cameras can detect ethnic minorities based on their unique facial features…

I Spy (#1340)

It’s good to see sane people speaking up about this:

…the European Union…have bent themselves towards breaking up “monopolistic” (i.e., huge and non-European) services on the Internet, in the name of benefitting…user choice…this effort is at least equally motivated by a desire to delay adoption of end-to-end secure messaging solutions that lack…means to passively “backdoor” them…the latest draft of Section 45 of the EU’s eIDAS proposal contains phenomenally dangerous propositions that will clearly undermine the security and privacy of millions, even billions (because Europeans also speak with non-Europeans) of people.  They are a replay of the widely derided ChatControl proposal…and they too deserve to be roundly and loudly rejected by the privacy-loving European public …“Browsers” are not somehow conspiring to exclude European innovation.  It’s simply safer and clearer and more transparent to have just one agreed, well-oiled, open, global, standard website trust mechanism, especially where it’s proposed to be regionally usurped by something that is so clearly undermining trust and enabling surveillance…

Choke Point (#1354) 

It always starts with a politically-unpopular group like sex workers or gun owners, but never stops there:

The [pretexts] vary, but the scene that plays out is almost always the same.  Bank customers get a letter…saying their institution is closing all of their checking and savings accounts.  Their debit and credit cards are shuttered, too.  The explanation, if there is one, usually lacks any useful detail.  Or…instead, they discover that their accounts no longer work while they’re at the grocery store, rental car counter or A.T.M.  When they call their bank, frantic, representatives show concern at first…then comes the telltale pause and shift in tone.  “Per your account agreement, we can close your account for any reason at any time,” the script often goes…This isn’t your standard boot for people who have bounced too many checks.  Instead, a vast security apparatus has kicked into gear, starting with [bureaucrats] in Washington and [imposed on] bank security managers…The [pretext used] is to crack down on fraud, terrorism, [and invented political “crimes” such as sex work and “]money laundering[“…]

The Widening Gyre (#1368)

Apparently, as “sex trafficking” hysteria has shrink in popularity, imaginary “sex traffickers” have been forced to give up their ambitious schemes to abduct women and children from big-box stores such as Target and Ikea, and instead to stalk them at gas stations.  And while they could once afford to lure them with roses, honey, or $100 bills, or to mark cars with various objects such as zip ties or litter, they’ve now been reduced to rather pathetically begging for help.  I’m a bit disappointed that Sara didn’t describe her fantasy stalker’s vehicle as a windowless white van, though.

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1370)

The way local media parrots copaganda in the face of clear evidence of its foolishness is utterly pathetic:

A…Sonoma County [California cop had a panic attack]…after a c[opsuck]er reported finding what [he imagined was] fentanyl.  The [suggestion was strong enough for the weak-minded cop to have psychosomatic symptoms, feeling]…lightheaded and dizzy, and experienc[ing] rapid tunnel vision, [none of which are] symptoms of…fentanyl…a[nother cop]…quickly administered naloxone, which [calmed the crybaby cop due to the placebo effect]…

A Moral Cancer (#1379)

Anyone whose brain isn’t rotted by prohibitionism could’ve predicted this:

The Biden administration’s flavored cigarettes and cigars ban, currently under final review by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), will soon make it illegal to buy or sell menthol and flavored tobacco products in the United States…its [claimed] intention [is] to prevent people, especially [imaginary] children, from becoming addicted to cigarettes…[but] a similar ban in Brazil gives us a window into the probable outcome of [this new theater in the Drug War]…In 2012…Brazil became one of the first countries in the world to fully ban flavored cigarettes…But…demand for…flavored cigarettes…only increased.  Illegal actors quickly entered the market, leading the Brazilian government to conduct dangerous raids…[which have often resulted] in bystanders being killed in the crossfire.  The Brazilian government has lost billions of dollars in enforcement and tax revenues…[and] Brazil now has one of the largest cigarette markets in the world, [because]…of…prohibition…the illegal cigarette market now represents about half of the entire cigarette market

 

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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The implication is that [edible] manufacturers want to trick kids into getting high, although it’s not clear why that would be a sensible business strategy.  –  Jacob Sullum

Bottleneck

Worldwide, over 90% of whores prefer to work illegally than submit to “registration”:

The Dutch Cabinet’s plan to register sex workers…will…worsen their situation, the Dutch Data Protection Authority (AP) warned…The Cabinet’s proposal would allow municipalities to [demand]…sex workers…register their personal data, and to require businesses operating in the space to force their workers to do the same.  The Cabinet [justified] the [scheme by barfing out that all-purpose excuse for violating women’s rights, “]human trafficking[“, but in reality]…sex workers would wind up plying their trade underground “for fear of registration and loss of privacy.”  As a result, they would fall out of view of authorities…

Law of the Instrument (#974)

In a moral panic, ordinary business arrangements get spun into “exploitation” and “crime”:

[Mike Jeffries,] the ex-CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch and his British partner [Matthew Smith]…used a middleman to find young men for…events, [and now eight] of [them] allege…they were exploited or abused…the couple’s middleman denied any wrongdoing and said men went into these events “with their eyes wide open”.  Abercrombie & Fitch…[bloviated pearl-clutching nonsense against Jeffries to protect its] brand…Two former US prosecutors…have called for an investigation to determine whether charges for sex trafficking could be brought…

The Clueless Leading the Hysterical (#1185)

Why do so many morons refuse to grasp that nobody is going to give expensive cannabis edibles to their spawn for free?

It’s October, which means it is time for alarmist cops and credulous reporters to start [attempt]ing [to panic] parents about the purported menace of cannabis edibles in trick-or-treat bags.  KSNT…in Topeka, Kansas, got a jump on that annual rite last month, when it amplified a “community advisory” from the…[local cop shop] about “THC-infused gummies and snacks marketed to children ahead of the holidays”…

Without Let or Hindrance (#1303)

These abuses are finally getting the attention they’ve needed for a generation:

It’s hard to overstate how little mainstream news attention has been paid to…problems with the [“child welfare”] system, which…is more akin to law enforcement than social services, given its ability to surveil parents and hand down the ultimate punishment — terminating the legal bonds between parent and child.  Families ensnared in the system lack many basic due process rights in navigating a punitive bureaucracy, and they typically don’t receive a lawyer until the state seeks temporary or permanent custody of their child in court.  Regardless, children…aren’t actually made safer; the rates of maltreatment for children in foster care are abysmal, and research has repeatedly found that children who enter the system fare worse on multiple measures than children left in their homes…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1304)

If you didn’t foresee where this was going, you haven’t been paying attention:

A woman has been [condemn]ed to life in [a cage] after [a gang of whiny-baby cops had panic attacks while rooting through]…Jessica Thomas[‘ possessions without her permission after using]…a…traffic stop [as a pretext]…Douglas County sheriff Dan Coverley [spouted a lot of pseudoscientific nonsense about an “]increase in pressure from transporting the drugs from low elevation to high elevation[” somehow magically changing the physical and chemical properties]…of…fentanyl [so it would behave as cops imagine it does rather than as it actually does in the real world]…

Checklist (#1363)

Airlines:  do you really want to keep accepting liability for employees racially profiling passengers due to the government propaganda you force-feed them?

American Airlines has apologized to a Black musician who…was [harassed using the asinine pretext] that he was trafficking his own children, [based solely on their being] biracial…David Ryan Harris…and two of his children, Truman, 12, and Hendrix, 7, were flying…from Atlanta to Los Angeles on Sept. 15…[when an air hostess started peppering] his children [with nosy] questions…After the plane landed, Mr. Harris…and his children were [confronted] at the top of the jet bridge by an American Airlines employee and [a pack of] four [scowling cops]…They…were eventually allowed to continue on to the baggage claim area, but were not given an apology….[until] he p[ublicized the harassment on] Instagram…

Permanent Record (#1379)

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:

The Minneapolis Police Department is looking into a [female cop] who moonlights as an OnlyFans model.  [Local news] is not identifying the [cop, though they would never extend the same courtesy to any other sex worker]…

 

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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[Screws] punish people who can’t fight back.  –  Gregory Hyde

The Truth About “The Truth About…”

Just another of those nonexistent false rape accusations:

Gerardo Cabanillas…[rotted] in prison for nearly three decades…[after being] accused [by cops] of a brutal robbery at gunpoint and sexual assault of a young woman in [Los Angeles] in 1995…The 18-year-old had been involved in a separate robbery in the area and [vaguely] matched the description given by the woman, so [incompetent cops] assumed the crimes were linked…During a seven-hour interrogation during which Cabanillas [was denied] access to an attorney, [pig inquisitor] Jack Lee Alirez promised the young man he would be released on probation if he admitted to what he was being accused of…[that was a lie, and] Cabanillas was [instead] charged with 14 felonies, convicted and sentenced to a de facto life sentence…The victim…never identified him in court…and…[her] boyfriend [only] identified Cabanillas [because the cops]…told him…Cabanillas…had confessed…his case was finally taken up by the California Innocence Project in 2017…[and] this year, DNA evidence not only cleared Cabanillas, but also identified another suspect, who was already in prison awaiting trial for murder…Th[e actual rapist]…went on to commit additional sexual assaults…

If Men Were Angels

Even the distancing “former” is the same as for rapist cops:

A [typical and representative Iowa] pastor…[named] Mark Benson…gave a young girl medicine to make her sleep, then sexually assaulted her several times between 2009 and 2012, when she was between 10 and 13 years old…

Perquisites (#840) 

Expect use of this term to continue expanding wildly:

..former NU cheerleader Hayden Richardson…alleges that University employees repeatedly put [her] and her peers in situations where they were groped, harassed and assaulted by fans and alumni for the purpose of soliciting donations to the school…In June 2021, NU filed a motion to dismiss federal claims including forced labor, sex trafficking and forced-labor trafficking and state claims related to breach of contract and emotional distress…U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang [has now] ruled…that the University failed to argue that the Trafficking Victims Protection Act does not apply under the provisions listed by Richardson…noting that the “Spirit Squad Contract” Richardson signed with the University amounted to financial coercion.  Had Richardson not attended [such] mandatory events…and thus had to leave the team, she would have owed NU more than $10,000 for her scholarships and cheer-related expenses…

I Spy (#1184)

“Child porn” is merely a pretext for mass surveillance on an unprecedented scale:

…in October [Swedish politician Ylva] Johansson’s [mass surveillance] proposal [will be] put to a vote in the Civil Liberties Committee of the European Parliament…The regulation would obligate digital platforms – from Facebook to Telegram, Signal to Snapchat, TikTok to clouds and online gaming websites – to [snoop into user’s private files and communications] and report any [image a mindless, error-prone algorithm decides is] child [porn]…so-called “client-side scanning”…will unleash a massive new surveillance system and threaten the use of end-to-end encryption…Johansson, however, [keeps barfing out the word] “children”…and…is…“influenced by companies pretending to be NGOs but acting more like tech companies”, said Arda Gerkens, former director of Europe’s oldest hotline for reporting online [child porn].  “Groups like Thorn use everything they can to put this legislation forward…because they have a commercial interest in doing so…Who will benefit from the legislation?…Not the children.”

The Punitive Mindset (#1196) 

“Drugs” are a popular pretext for petty vindictiveness in US prisons:

Another state prison system is facing a lawsuit over its use of inaccurate drug field tests to throw incarcerated people in solitary confinement.  The class-action lawsuit, filed…by Columbia Legal Services in a Washington state circuit court, alleges that the Washington State Department of [Torturing Caged Humans (TCH)] uses unreliable field kits to test mail for drugs and then uses the unverified results to put inmates in solitary confinement, move them to higher security prisons, and strip them of visitation rights and other privileges…items that have tested “presumptive positive” include blank notebook paper and manila envelopes purchased directly from [TCH]’s commissary…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1279)

The stupider the belief, the harder it is to debunk:

[Facts and common sense have]n’t kept [hysteria] over rainbow fentanyl from gaining momentum again as Halloween nears…police in Tulalip, Washington, [tried to panic] parents after finding pastel-colored fentanyl pills at a local casino…”rainbow fentanyl” pills were also seized near Charlotte, North Carolina…”Joe Camel” [inanely barfed] Charles Odell, the CEO of a [company profiting from prohibition, oblivious to this being a non sequitur]…

The Cop Myth (#1374)

Sleeping with a cop is one of the most dangerous things a woman can do:

…[typical and representative] Pennsylvania [cop] Ronald K. Davis [has been charged] with felony strangulation, unlawful restraint, false imprisonment…and o[ther crimes after trying to discredit his mistress by having her committed]…he took a [non-cop buddy] and [attacked] her…[but his buddy] captured the [assault] on video.  That video…and text communications with Davis show that [the mistress] was rational and the involuntary commitment was improper.  As a result of Davis’ actions, [she] was involuntarily committed for five days…

 

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 are holding my puppy for ransom.  –  Caleb Gibson

If Men Were Angels

“Pastor and sex offender” is a large and ever-expanding group:

…a [Florida] pastor [was arrested] after two underage girls described the sexual abuse they endured at his hands…Derrell Redding…abuse[d one young teen and one girl under 12, but]…in August…the two girls decided to tell their aunt and uncle…

Many of them are “youth pastors”:

A [California preacher named]…Nicholas Garrett Corl…was [arrested for molesting]…a child under 14…an employee from [his]…church [called the cops on him]…Corl…[is] Youth Pastor…teaches…classes, [and] is the athletics director and basketball coach…

Others don’t have a church of their own:

A [California] priest…[named] Rodolfo Martinez-Guevara…[h]as [been] arrested…[for] possessing “over 600 images of child sexual abuse material, including…prepubescent…boys”…Martinez-Guevara…is affiliated with the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit Religious Order…[but] has been removed from ministry by the archdiocese and his order…

The Mote and the Beam (#786)

The government’s latest sleazy trick: attacking with civil suits rather than criminal charges, because the burden of proof is reversed:

A lawsuit filed by the Los Angeles city attorney’s office targets a motel…with a [harassment campaign] that…[is intended to make political coin out of the moribund “]sex trafficking[” hysteria for the politically-ambitious but unimaginative] Hydee Feldstein Soto[, who bloviated mathematically-imbecilic talking points from over a decade ago but lacks the spine to admit she hates whores]…

Between the Ears (#1104)

“Smart” devices aren’t, part umpteen:

A company that makes a [male] chastity device…that can be controlled by a partner over the internet exposed users’ email addresses, plaintext passwords, home addresses and IP addresses, and — in some cases — GPS coordinates, due to several flaws in its servers, according to a security researcher…who…gained access to a database containing records of more than 10,000 users, thanks to two vulnerabilities…He…reached out to the company on June 17 alerting them of the issues in an attempt to get them to fix the vulnerabilities and protect their users’ data…[but] the company…[neither] fix[ed] the vulnerabilities…no[r] respond[ed]…Given that he wasn’t getting any answers, on August 23 the researcher defaced the company’s homepage in an attempt to warn the company again, as well as its users…Less than 24 hours later, the company removed the researcher’s warning and restored the website…but…did not fix the flaws, which remain present and exploitable…

Property of the State (#1245)

The government thinks it even has the right to leer at the inside of your body:

Scientists in Poland have…developed lab tests that can detect whether people have taken abortion pills—and those tests are already being used to investigate pregnancy outcomes under the country’s abortion ban…Advocates in the U.S. have told people for years that, if they had to go to the hospital after taking the pills by mouth, medical workers wouldn’t be able to tell…these drug tests could mean even more people criminalized by the healthcare system…Hospitals in the U.S. routinely test pregnant women for drugs without their consent, sometimes [abducting] their newborns and other children as a result…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1304)

“Fentanyl” is becoming another porcine pretext for harassing and robbing people:

Days after Irvine [California cops pretend] they saved a pit bull puppy from a fentanyl overdose…a preliminary drug test on the pup came back negative.  [Now]…the city [is demanding] more than $2,000…ransom…[from] Caleb Gibson, the dog’s owner, [who said]…“I’m a college student on financial aid, so I don’t have that kind of money to throw around”…[cops] maintain…that the animal had overdosed [despite the negative test]…the…[fact] that dogs are far less sensitive to the drug than humans…and…[the fact that] it is not possible for [humans or] animals to overdose simply from being exposed to the substance by touching or inhaling it, despite police [fantasies]…to the contrary…

Served Cold (#1359)

Surprising absolutely no one who understands McNeill’s Law:

Tim Ballard’s exit from Operation Underground Railroad…followed an investigation into…sexual misconduct involving seven women…the [rescue industry con art]ist, who appears to be preparing for a Senate run, invited women to act as his “wife” on…overseas missions [suposed]ly aimed at rescuing victims of sex trafficking.  He would then…coerce those women into sharing a bed or showering together, claiming that it was necessary to fool traffickers…The total number of women involved is believed to be higher than seven, as that would only account for employees, not contractors or volunteers…Ballard…[already has a] new [rescue industry] organization, the SPEAR Fund; and…the [Mormon] Church…[has] accused Ballard of inappropriately using the name of a church elder…“for Tim Ballard’s personal advantage and activity regarded as morally unacceptable.”

Spotlight (#1373)

While I’m pleased to see Asstoon fall, the surveillance company he founded will still be outing sex workers to the pigs without him:

Ashton Kutcher has resigned as chairman of the board of Thorn, the anti…sex [worker] organization he co-founded in 2009 with his then-wife Demi Moore.  His wife Mila Kunis, who served as an observer on the organization’s board, is also stepping down.  The move comes in the wake of outrage over their letters of support for Danny Masterson, who has been convicted of raping two women…

 

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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