News Jun 2, 2013 at 8:51 am

Comments

1
re: SPD pursuit case..
"The crux of the case is whether police were chasing the Cadillac, in violation of an SPD policy banning high speed pursuits, unless officers think a serious crime has been committed."

If only we had some sort of recording devices that could be placed on the dashboard of police cars. They would record everything the police car does, and there wouldn't be $35M lawsuits that come down to victim's word vs police's word. We could call them "dashcams"!
2
The SPD pursuit case sounds like more trying to get more money for her medical care. This is a case that should had been settled out of court via insurance companies. The person that be paying is the driver, but I doubt he has the money or can make a large settlement..
3
Actress Jean Stapleton, Edith Bunker on TV's All in the Family, has died at 90.

I thought she'd been gone for years. Must have been thinking of Maureen Stapleton (to whom she was not related).

UI is way too young to remember, but that show cracked open some important social issues in the 1970's.
4
"Soccer (football, actually)"

d'awwwww, aren't you cute
5
According to SLOG the Terena indigenous group are anti-urbanists who want more land so their villages can sprawl. These natives should be content with 90 story apodhuts made out of recycled rainforest canopy.
6
As much as Assange's criticism of the Big Tech Portal future projection of more devices and (Insert OS here)-everywhere thinking is somewhat funny and biting, most of the radical-hip politics presented so far is every bit as retrograde.

Whether it's the Occupy movement as a musical theatre tribute to 1968, or Assange's own Warholesque attention craving sensationalism, the bottom line is nothing changes.

These "uprisings" end up being no more effective then the attempts by Allen Ginsberg and a phalanx of Yippies to levitate the Pentagon. The Pentagon is still there, surviving even a plane crash, while Hoffman and Ginsberg are gone, living on only as inspirations to a new class of admen and MTV producers.

7
Turkey had better heed the protesters. If it doesn't, it risks it's relationship with the EU and NATO at a crucial time with both it's security and economy. Erdogan seems bent on ignoring their demands.
8
That video clip gives a pretty good idea of what an ordinary day in Canada is like. So fun! I'm going out to slide with some penguins right now (don't believe the scientist propaganda...we DO have Japanese penguins in the north...).
9
@7

Which demands would those be? The riot police have been called off, and construction of the mall has been halted by court order, at least for the time being.

Which other orders from the protesters should "Turkey" be obeying?

12
@10, you doubtless noticed that reporting on India's no-GM, no-herbicide rice revolution was sponsored by... the Gates Foundation.
13
Unless you want to charge all cars for miles driven, you must charge hybrid and electric cars an extra fee. A hybrid uses the road the same as a gas vehicle, but doesn't pay the same amount in gas taxes, the primary method of funding for road infrastructure/repair.
14
@13, it's a complicated issue and needs to be carefully analyzed and considered without lobbying influences, which of course means it won't be.

But a few thoughts: First, it's probably worth delaying special fees on electrics and hybrids a bit to speed their entry into the market. Second, it's not just excise taxes on gas (and hybrids can use quite a bit of gas too)--there are hidden taxes on tires, vehicle purchase price, and often on other aspects of ownership/maintenance as well, depending on local jurisdictions. Third, excise taxes are regressive. Fourth, a mileage tax is likely to spawn both a huge new bureaucracy and a resurgence of paying crooks to illegally tamper with odometers or other tracking devices. Fifth, by far the greatest damage is done to roads by big trucks due to the heavy loads they carry, and right now automobile drivers are heavily subsidizing the trucking industry (and I don't want to forget the awful position owner-operators are in now, where giant trucking companies are forcing them to assume all of the risks and expenses while cutting them off from employment benefits and pensions--we need to re-regulate the industry and break up the oligopolies).

I'm not at all averse to high-economy vehicles (of any type) paying fairly applied road-use fees, but let's have some transparency and thorough accounting before legislatures take it up.
15
@14 technically, we already had a long period of federal tax subsidies. It's "never" time to end subsidies.

Just ask Oil, the 18th Century wonder fuel we subsidize.
16

#13, 14

The only cars worth building a FCVs.

Europe is already taking delivery of production models from Hyundai and have a lengthy, if not yet robust, hydrogen highway.

Obama has been thwarting introduction of the one realistic alternative fuel because he is bought and paid for the companies that have an interest in unworkable batteries.

We could have started ending air pollution 4 years ago were it not for Obama. Every school that sits near a highway, breathing carbon monoxide, has Obama to thank for the harm it is causing to the students.

17
Am I the only one enjoying Sgt Doom's "no one will listen to me!!!" rants?

Every time I think I've seen everything on SLOG, someone surprises me. Kudos to you Sgt Doom. You batshit pleas for attention have officially made me smile.
19
Anyone want to summarize that Assange piece in a sentence or two? I'm curious if he's making a good point, but Angelina Jolie has starred in less tediously written cyberpunk dramas.
20
@17 (six shooter): I guess what constitutes "ranting" lies in the eye of the smug, complacent, conformist beholder.I usually find sgt. doom's posts worthwhile and feel lucky that he hasn't stopped posting here. Pearls before swine, and all that...

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