Homeland Security Coming to a Screen Near You?

The Department of Homeland Security is now pursuing people who download illegal movies. Why? Because they consider illegal downloads part of the war on terror. Yes, they are being serious. Civil-liberties-be-damned and mission-creep serious. More HERE.

“The reason the Department of Homeland Security is protecting Shrek is because we are all about protecting the homeland. We’re all about protecting American interests,” says John Morton, assistant secretary of DHS...“If you don’t think undermining Hollywood’s ability to produce a “Shrek,” undermining the creativity that goes into creating a “Shrek,” undermines the United States,” Morton says, “you are sadly mistaken.”

Who the heck pays these people? Oh, wait, we do. Sigh.

E.B. White and Independence

E.B. White: "I think the Court again heard clearly the simple theme that ennobles our Constitution: that no one shall be made to feel uncomfortable or unsafe because of nonconformity."

Happy 4th of July.

Mario's Story: My Highest Recommendation

Mario's Story (2007): "[E]ventually good triumphs, but before it triumphs, a lot of people have to suffer."

I highly recommend Mario's Story, about Mario Rocha, a man who was wrongfully imprisoned for murder.

Equinox Flower

From the Japanese film, Equinox Flower: "Then everyone's inconsistent. Everyone but God. Life is absurd. We're not all perfect. As a scholar said, 'The sum total of inconsistencies is life.'"

Reminds me of Walt Whitman:

Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself,
(I am large, I contain multitudes.)

Immigration

Interesting piece on immigration, both legal and non-legal:

http://www.windypundit.com/archives/2010/05/so_what_if_its_illegal.html

Interesting Rankings of States and Countries

I can't believe I didn't discover these links sooner:

http://www.forbes.com/2010/01/20/global-debt-bomb-business-wall-street-debt-10_land.html

http://www.forbes.com/lists/2010/44/debt-10_Global-Debt-Crisis_Rank.html

http://www.forbes.com/2009/11/11/taxes-employment-government-business-beltway-tax-burdens.html

Beautiful statistics. And congrats to Utah for its fiscal responsibility.

Notes from a Legal Seminar

Some notes from a recent legal seminar:

Judge: "[Court] Trials are civilized combat."

An example of an opening statement to a jury: you've got the facts, the law, and your common sense.

Judge Conrad Rushing on CMCs:

1) Make every appearance count; and

2) Don't continue it out. [i.e., avoid continuances.]

California has a 95% settlement rate, i.e., 95% of cases in the state do not go to trial.

In mediation, if there is an impasse, ask the side that is refusing to budge the following questions:

1. What do you think the case is worth?

2. If they offered that much, how much would you counter with?