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tclittle Professional Forum Ninja from Somewhere Down in Texas Since: Apr, 2010
Professional Forum Ninja
#57501: Jul 2nd 2013 at 1:52:03 AM

This article points out a few "insane" laws that started yesterday.

The ones that were pointed out?

  • In North Dakota, it is now illegal to abort a pregnancy after 6 weeks.
  • Colorado requires background checks on for gun sales and outlawed high-capacity magazines (not sure if that's truly insane or not).
  • Some states are allowing concealed handguns in church.
  • School employees in Kansas will now be permitted to carry conceled handguns.
  • Restrictions on cellphone use while driving in Hawaii and West Virgina.
  • Idaho now prevents anyone from using a drone to spy on others.
  • Washington now considers Freshman too sexist, and will now be using first-year students.
  • Kentucky has lifted a ban on Election Day drinking.
  • New Jersey forbids children younger than 14 from getting a spray tan.

In other news, A Conroe, Texas Baptist church has disbanded their Boy Scout troop in order to disassociate themselves from the BSA after it started allowing openly gay scouts.

Remember that lawsuit started by the League of United Latin American Citizens against the Texas redistricting maps that were created back in '11?" Well, a panel of Federal judges decided to keep the lawsuit alive despite a new set of maps being drawn and the repealing of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

edited 2nd Jul '13 1:59:13 AM by tclittle

"We're all paper, we're all scissors, we're all fightin' with our mirrors, scared we'll never find somebody to love."
Achaemenid HGW XX/7 from Ruschestraße 103, Haus 1 Since: Dec, 2011 Relationship Status: Giving love a bad name
HGW XX/7
#57502: Jul 2nd 2013 at 2:39:55 AM

[up]

In North Dakota, it is now illegal to abort a pregnancy after 6 weeks.

Insane and sinister.

Colorado requires background checks on for gun sales and outlawed high-capacity magazines

The first part is fairly sane, the second is somewhat pointless, given that spree shooters aren't really the issue and that most extensively plan their massacres, so they will just learn to reload faster. I can see why they are doing it after Aurora, though. Nothing jumps out at me as being "insane", though.

Some states are allowing concealed handguns in church.

If you have a concealed carry license why wouldn't you take your guns into church?

School employees in Kansas will now be permitted to carry conceled handguns.

This could end badly...

Restrictions on cellphone use while driving in Hawaii and West Virgina.

Talking on the phone whilst driving is a very silly thing to do. The UK's banned it for ages, so this doesn't seem all that insane to me.

Idaho now prevents anyone from using a drone to spy on others.

Good.

Washington now considers Freshman too sexist, and will now be using first-year students.

If they actually made a law for that, then that is somewhat insane. Unless you just mean universities in Washington and not the state?

Kentucky has lifted a ban on Election Day drinking.

Good idea, insane law anyway, glad its gone.

New Jersey forbids children younger than 14 from getting a spray tan.

Playing up to stereotypes much? [lol]

Schild und Schwert der Partei
Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#57503: Jul 2nd 2013 at 2:43:32 AM

Some of those aren't that insane... especially the one about driving and cellphones. I hear its almost as bad as drinking when it comes to the impact on awareness/reaction time.

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
MarqFJA The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer from Deserts of the Middle East (Before Recorded History) Relationship Status: Anime is my true love
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
#57504: Jul 2nd 2013 at 2:44:31 AM

So I come here to ask a simple question out of curiosity: What's the general opinion on Edward Snowden, besides the question over the morality/ethicality of what he did? I mean, do you think he should've delayed the leaks until he properly secured political asylum first, for example?

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.
tclittle Professional Forum Ninja from Somewhere Down in Texas Since: Apr, 2010
Professional Forum Ninja
#57505: Jul 2nd 2013 at 2:46:41 AM

[up][up][up] Drone use is restricted to EVERYONE. Not just police or government personnel.

[up] He did do something illegal, that could get a lot of American's killed. Some of that stuff needed to get out, but considering he put his name on the leakage, it smells of more of an ego thing to me.

edited 2nd Jul '13 2:48:16 AM by tclittle

"We're all paper, we're all scissors, we're all fightin' with our mirrors, scared we'll never find somebody to love."
Achaemenid HGW XX/7 from Ruschestraße 103, Haus 1 Since: Dec, 2011 Relationship Status: Giving love a bad name
HGW XX/7
#57506: Jul 2nd 2013 at 2:53:50 AM

[up]

Why shouldn't the government prevent citizens from spying on each other with drones?

[up][up]

For someone who complains about spying, lack of transparency, and a surveillance state to seek asylum in Russia (via China) is hypocritical in the extreme - especially, given Putin's form, had Snowden and Greenwald been Russian journalists they would likely end updead.

However, it is a sad fact that almost nowhere nicer would have him thanks to their links with the USA, and Ecuador/Venezuela/Cuba type governments are equally shifty. The trouble is, almost no modern government has its hands clean, though the ones Snowden has sounded out have been dirtier than others. If I were facing a potentially long jail sentence, I would flee. So I can't hold it against him, much, but personally I think the most principled thing to do for him at the moment would be to seek asylum in Iceland and take his chances that public opinion would be on his side. Of course, I don't blame him for not wanting to risk his freedom.

Schild und Schwert der Partei
GlennMagusHarvey Since: Jan, 2001
#57507: Jul 2nd 2013 at 2:54:15 AM

Re drone spying: Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's private information?

edited 2nd Jul '13 2:54:22 AM by GlennMagusHarvey

RavenWilder Since: Apr, 2009
#57508: Jul 2nd 2013 at 2:59:32 AM

But a drone's not gonna be able to see anything a guy with stilts and binoculars couldn't see anyway.

Achaemenid HGW XX/7 from Ruschestraße 103, Haus 1 Since: Dec, 2011 Relationship Status: Giving love a bad name
HGW XX/7
#57509: Jul 2nd 2013 at 3:01:37 AM

[up]

And I'd rather they didn't do that either, but every little helps.

Schild und Schwert der Partei
tclittle Professional Forum Ninja from Somewhere Down in Texas Since: Apr, 2010
Professional Forum Ninja
#57510: Jul 2nd 2013 at 3:05:37 AM

[up][up][up][up] I was just pointing out the actual wording of the law.

Planned Parenthood enlists the aid of celebrities Natalie Maines, Connie Britton, Lisa Edelstein, and Stephanie March for help in fighting the abortion bill being pushed through the second special session in Texas.

Perry's statement on the start of the Second Special Session of the 83rd Legislative Session of the Texas Congress:

The Texas Legislature is poised to finish its history-making work this year by passing legislation to protect the unborn and women’s health, invest in our transportation infrastructure and ensure our justice system is fair but firm. This work will build on the historic steps we took during the 83rd Legislative session, addressing our needs for water, cutting the tax burden on Texans and establishing a new university in South Texas. As we open the second special session, we must remember the people of Texas hired us to do our job, and that’s what we must do.

edited 2nd Jul '13 3:05:50 AM by tclittle

"We're all paper, we're all scissors, we're all fightin' with our mirrors, scared we'll never find somebody to love."
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#57511: Jul 2nd 2013 at 3:17:50 AM

How are they going to pay for the tax cuts? With "magic asterisks"?

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
Greenmantle V from Greater Wessex, Britannia Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Hiding
V
#57512: Jul 2nd 2013 at 3:18:51 AM

But a drone's not gonna be able to see anything a guy with stilts and binoculars couldn't see anyway.

Or, say, a Helicopter or Light Aircraft — Police helicopters often have the exact same FLIR Turrets fitted to "Drones".

So I can't hold it against him, much, but personally I think the most principled thing to do for him at the moment would be to seek asylum in Iceland and take his chances that public opinion would be on his side. Of course, I don't blame him for not wanting to risk his freedom.

The thing is that the US has withdrawn his travel documents, so he can't go anywhere without Russia's permission. The ball is in Russia's court, and they won't do anything that isn't in their interest.

edited 2nd Jul '13 3:21:29 AM by Greenmantle

Keep Rolling On
DeviantBraeburn Wandering Jew from Dysfunctional California Since: Aug, 2012
Wandering Jew
#57513: Jul 2nd 2013 at 4:47:03 AM

@Glen

It's meant to be satirical.

Poll: Clinton tops Bush, Rubio among Hispanic voters for 2016

Everything is Possible. But some things are more Probable than others. JEBAGEDDON 2016
SKJAM Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Baby don't hurt me!
#57514: Jul 2nd 2013 at 5:20:02 AM

The "no serving alcohol on Election Day" law existed because it was the custom of political machines back in the day to offer free booze if you voted the way they wanted. This resulted in all the public drunkenness problems you would expect. (Plus of course the stink of political corruption, but everyone was used to that.)

Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#57515: Jul 2nd 2013 at 6:12:26 AM

Drunken voting is also the reason that the UK has its elections on a Thursday, since it couldn't be the weekend (I assume due to religious rules) and Friday was the day men got their pay-check and went to the pub. Thus elections are on a Thursday so as to prevent people voting drunk.

Though I've no idea if it makes any difference these days.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
Greenmantle V from Greater Wessex, Britannia Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Hiding
V
#57516: Jul 2nd 2013 at 6:13:33 AM

...and Friday was the day men got their pay-check and went to the pub.

Don't they still do? smile

Keep Rolling On
Zarastro Since: Sep, 2010
#57517: Jul 2nd 2013 at 6:23:10 AM

I don't know how much coverage the whole Snowden-affair gets in the USA, but this is a huge deal in Germany because a)Germany was the main target and b) because privacy protection is a sensible thing in Germany due to historical reasons (Gestapo Stasi).

The opposition will use this in their election campaign and there are some German M Ps who want to offer Snowden asyl in Germany.

NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#57518: Jul 2nd 2013 at 6:28:28 AM

In other news, A Conroe, Texas Baptist church has disbanded their Boy Scout troop in order to disassociate themselves from the BSA after it started allowing openly gay scouts.
Not quite — they just stopped letting the scouts use their facilities for meetings. They have no authority to actually disband a Boy Scout troop (though the troop could conceivably disband for lack of a place to meet).

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
Ramidel Since: Jan, 2001
#57519: Jul 2nd 2013 at 6:35:22 AM

@Zarastro: Not happening, though. You guys already ban so much as privately recording police malfeasance.

Barkey Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
#57520: Jul 2nd 2013 at 10:12:04 AM

high-capacity magazines

-twitch- That terminology is actually only correct for rifle magazines over 30.

Anyhow, on the Edward Snowden thing..

One thing I don't think folks realize is that they are looking at his choices of China and Russia as "siding with the enemy". What I don't think enough people are considering is that the US has so much pull with the "leaders of the free world" elsewhere, that any country stereotypically thought of as free would probably extradite him.

It's not that he ran to China or Russia because they are champions of free speech. He ran to China and Russia because he knew, for sure, that they would be very resistant to playing ball with the US, and would be more apt to jump at the chance to give us the middle finger instead.

Something interesting in the legal backing against PRISM. I wish Arlen Specter were still alive. To translate the legalese of the wiretapping portion of the law.. It basically means the NSA can do whatever the fuck they want, regardless of what our constitution says, if the President feels it's important to national security.

Also, the streets of the US are 'bout to get safer..

This amendment to LEOSA(the Law Enforcement Officer Safety Act, which is what gives the right to carry credentials and firearms off-duty to civilian police officers) now means that all military police and Do D Federal Police will soon be able to get concealed carry permits for off-duty, as well as credentials. It's essentially opening the opportunity for federal-level CCW's for several hundred thousand law enforcement professionals who were previously left flapping in the breeze when it came to being recognized as actual police officers.

We won't have the authority to arrest people under the UCMJ off-duty, as most people are not covered under the UCMJ out in town. But this will greatly expand security in a variety of cities and towns where the military has a heavy presence. It's going to essentially double or even triple the amount of off-duty cops who are actually recognized as cops walking out and about in military installation adjacent communities, which I feel is a good thing.

Better yet, it means California can kiss my ass, because I'll finally have status as a federal officer. I have a Cali CCW, but I have to worry about losing it every year because of how my state treats gun owners like lepers. This means I'll be able to permanently go over the head of the state government, and also means I'll be able to purchase firearms of the same restrictions as civilian police officers.

Which means standard capacity magazines, scary black plastic, and pistol grips. Hell yeah.

Currently, each branch is developing their own policy on how they will implement this change, so a branch might not be too gung-ho on this and may make it rather restrictive. I know for a fact though that the Air Force is going full bore on this, it's HQ Security Forces new pet project cause. Our Top Cop, General Jameson, is being really responsive on facebook discussing questions and concerns rather often about how this will be implemented. It looks like the AF isn't going to try and ass Security Forces out of CCW's, it's going to be based on submitting a request at the local commander level. So when the ink hits the paper for the Air Force policy, my squadron commander can issue me my permit and credentials. The Air Force is also doing a policy for retired and separated MP's where so long as they qualify annually with their own money, if they have aggregate 10 years of service as an MP or more, they are also qualified for retired LEO credentials and CCW.

edited 2nd Jul '13 10:46:07 AM by Barkey

Achaemenid HGW XX/7 from Ruschestraße 103, Haus 1 Since: Dec, 2011 Relationship Status: Giving love a bad name
HGW XX/7
#57521: Jul 2nd 2013 at 10:15:29 AM

[up]

Precisely. I like to think if it was me I wouldn't give Russia and China the opportunity to score points like this, because they are as bad if not worse, but I'm not in Snowden's position, and, if I'm honest, if I was I'd probably want to get somewhere where there was zero chance of me ending up in your awful prison system (no offence).

Schild und Schwert der Partei
Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#57523: Jul 2nd 2013 at 11:16:19 AM

The BBC has a list of the places that he's tried for. His options are getting pretty narrow.

Rejected: Austria, Brazil, Finland, India, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Spain, Switzerland

Withdrawn: Russia

Pending: Bolivia, China, Cuba, Ecuador, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Netherlands, Nicaragua

Unconfirmed: France, Venezuela

edited 2nd Jul '13 11:16:31 AM by Silasw

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
GlennMagusHarvey Since: Jan, 2001
#57524: Jul 2nd 2013 at 11:24:09 AM

But a drone's not gonna be able to see anything a guy with stilts and binoculars couldn't see anyway.

So basically, thou shalt not covet thy non-neighbor's private information.

3of4 Just a harmless giant from a foreign land. from Five Seconds in the Future. Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: GAR for Archer
Just a harmless giant from a foreign land.
#57525: Jul 2nd 2013 at 11:24:54 AM

The german MP's who want to offer Snowden Asylum are pretty much just blowing air. As far as I'm aware we have an extradition treaty which would mean we would have to give him to the US.

Its just the Greens climbing up on their high moral horse and ride on, without looking for holes in the road. Some of them (and the Lefts) tend to do that. Added with a teeny bit of creeping "we are not going to be in the majority again!"...

edited 2nd Jul '13 11:29:31 AM by 3of4

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