how to be a civil libertarian

This comes from About.com (which has some excellent material on the topic of Civil Liberty). Here's how to be a civil libertarian:

1. Recognize that the highest political value is personal freedom.
   
   
2. Keep in mind that freedom is of utmost importance especially when it's inconvenient.
   
   
3. Remember that the right to criticize the government doesn't end when a war begins; that's when it's especially needed.
   
   
4. Be consistent. There are freedoms that you favor and freedoms you don't. The right to be left alone applies to them all, equally.
   
   

(Via Political Disgruntlement and Technology from Utah )

A revolution in sound

This site chooses the top 100 albums of the 1980s. Broken down is sets of 10, brief reviews are included with each, makes for an interesting read if you were influenced by the music of that era. You're guaranteed to find a few of your favorites on the list.

It's said that the 1980s are responsible for the worst fashion, fads, and music of any decade of the 20th century. But as we see the decade recycled and updated with post-millennial minimalism, it's becoming clear that the 1980s had more to offer than we've given them credit for. As the calendar left the classless earthtones and polyester of the 1970s behind, musicians looked to the future for inspiration in new genres.

Crassmas Shopping

Luke Sullivan chimes in with his perspective on the Christmas-has-just-become-so-commercialized" chorus

Shopping is suddenly "bad." And why? We've been coming out of stores all year long, teetering under piles of merchandise that would drop a Sherpa. Eleven straight months of spend, spend, spend, but have a turkey drumstick, watch a football game and boom -- the nation's stores form their own axis of evil.

I've been doing my shopping online, but I haven't decided which is worst, the onslaught of human spending machines at the mall or those pesky pop-up adds that will not let me shop in peace.

Knicks Take Sting Out of Hornets

Kurt Thomas hit two free throws with 26.1 seconds left to force overtime and Latrell Sprewell scored six of his 19 points in the extra session as the Knicks took a 92-86 win over New Orleans on Saturday. Allan Houston led New York with 20 points and Othella Harrington scored 10 of his 17 in the fourth.

Let's build on that fellows!

Oliver and guests opine on the issue of why black students are lagging.

Perspective

I stopped a man walking down the street once to ask for directions, he proceeded to give me accurate and precise directions and then ended with a poem.

Being a New Yorker, I've come to expect anything. I wasn't phased by the encounter but I have to admit that there are some very complicated, interesting and spacey folks out there. Sometimes It's hard to determine whether I'm dealing with intelligent men who are bluffing or imbeciles who are being sincere.

Perhaps I'm being too analytical, but many people cover up who they really are and try to be too complicated or too open minded.

I try to keep an open mind. But I'm reminded often of what Samuel Butler once said:

"An open mind is all very well in its way, but it ought not be so open that there is no keeping anything in or out of it. We should be able of shutting its doors sometimes, or it may be found a little too drafty"

That is one reason why I strive to be practical and basic by looking at simple truths intelligently.

George Bernard Shaw said:
"Common sense is instinct - enough of it is genius"

Out of the red and in the black

Omar Wasow, 31, executive director of BlackPlanet.com explains how the site is, by far, the most heavily trafficked African-American Web destination, with 1.5 million different visitors in any given month, according to the Nielsen /NetRatings service.

"People didn't believe there was a business to be had serving African-Americans online," he says. "And to the extent that business was there, they were convinced `Why would a start-up succeed when you've got all these big media companies doing the same thing?' "

BlackPlanet, which is privately held and began in September 1999, just recorded its first quarterly profit, Mr. Wasow says, though he won't reveal how much. " ... It's not a major milestone, but for an Internet company, it's a big deal."

So what accounts for BlackPlanet's success and popularity? Omar explains

Your Online Rights

Do you know your online rights? It's always been important to me to stay informed regarding this issue. That is one reason why I have a legalities page in place which touches on the issue of fair use.

If you're online rights are a concern to you, Chilling Effects aims to help you understand the protections that the First Amendment and intellectual property laws give to your online activities.

We are excited about the new opportunities the Internet offers individuals to express their views, parody politicians, celebrate their favorite movie stars, or criticize businesses. But we've noticed that not everyone feels the same way. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some individuals and corporations are using intellectual property and other laws to silence other online users. Chilling Effects encourages respect for intellectual property law, while frowning on its misuse to "chill" legitimate activity.

The website offers background material and explanations of the law for people whose websites deal with topics such as Fan Fiction, Copyright, Domain Names and Trademarks, Anonymous Speech, and Defamation and more.

Here's an excerpt from the site on the practice of "Deep Linking" for example (which refers to the creation of hyperlinks to a page other than a website's homepage).

Some website owners complain that deep links "steal" traffic to their homepages or disrupt the intended flow of their websites. In particular, Ticketmaster has argued that other sites should not be permitted to send browsers directly to Ticketmaster event listings.

Here is what the court decided:

From Ticketmaster v. Tickets.com opinion:

"...Further, hyperlinking does not itself involve a violation of the Copyright Act (whatever it may do for other claims) since no copying is involved. The customer is automatically transferred to the particular genuine web page of the original author. There is no deception in what is happening. This is analogous to using a library's card index to get reference to particular items, albeit faster and more efficiently".

So far, courts have found that deep links to web pages were neither a copyright infringement nor a trespass.

It's interesting to note however that as the internet grows, we can expect to see more questions raised concerning the legality of certain practices. Stay tuned and be sure to bookmark ChillingEffects.org.

Doing the right thing vs Doing things right

An NYPD officer was suspended from the force after refusing to arrest two homeless men who were sleeping in a Union Square parking garage. Eduardo Delacruz, an eight-year veteran of the NYPD, was suspended without pay for refusing an order to arrest the men for trespassing.

The New York Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit this week to stop the NYPD for allegedly singling out the homeless for arrest.

"It's cruel and heartless to pick on those who are most in need of society's help," Donna Lieberman of the New York Civil Liberties Union said Tuesday. "But it's also no substitute for a humane policy to address the growing problem of homelessness."

Cheney Denied

Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, scored another legal victory today in its quest to release the documents from the super-secretive Cheney Energy Task Force.

The Honorable Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled early Wednesday morning that the Bush/Cheney Administration’s request for appeal of the court’s repeated orders to produce documents was denied. The Judge stated that the“Defendants have fallen far short of demonstrating that the questions of law presented by the challenged orders arise under such exceptional circumstances as to warrant disruption of the favored process of appellate’s review following final judgment.”

To view the order click here.

Cheney also faces a lawsuit from the General Accounting Office, Congress' investigative agency. Arguments in that case were heard in September, but U.S. District Judge John Bates has not ruled.

Of course the media seems to be looking the other way on these matters. Forget about hearing this on your evening news.

Hello Santa

Hello Santa ... Santa, Santa.

Who's that calling my name, can't you see I'm trying to get my groove on son.

It's me Ray ... from Citiblog.

Ray who ... Oh Ray! Who loves ya baby! What's going on Son? Join the party.

Well, I just wanted to remind you that I want a New PC for Xmas ... Preferably a top of the line Dell. Please make a note of it.

Dude ...maybe you'll get a Dell, maybe you won't, you'll know for sure when I come to town. Just be sure to leave a glass of Courvoisier by the fireplace for me, hear..

So Santa, who are the babes? the one in the green seems to be all up in your ...

Ho Ho Ho son, Let's just say that she's going to get her Xmas present early this year ...you heard me? *wink*

Santa, you are the man! You got your mojo back I see.

Oh behave yourself Ray, I have to get going son, I'll see you on or around Dec. 25th. keep the citiblog blogging baby! Love ya!

Right on Santa!

Knicks get the cigar

with just less than 2 minutes to go, I thought it was going to be another one of those "close but no cigar" kind of games ... But the Knicks proved me wrong.

Houston scored 22 of his 30 points after halftime as the Knicks get an 87-81 victory of the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday.

The Raptors rallied from a 14-point third-quarter deficit and took a 76-74 lead on Carter's jumper with 2:06 remaining.

New York's Kurt Thomas tied it with a turnaround jumper, and Houston gave the Knicks the lead for good on a 20-foot jumper with 65 seconds to go.

"We've gradually been improving in the fourth quarter," said Knicks coach Don Chaney . " [The Knicks] are starting to get over the hump in terms of believing in themselves. It's all about executing late in the game."

You're damn skippy about that coach. Now let's go get the Hornets on Saturday.

Kissinger's back

Why should the selection of Henry Kissinger to head a new blue-ribbon commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks provoke cynicism? David Corn provides some poignant answers. I have no words to add, I'm in disbelief.

Move Right? Move Left? How About Just Standing Up?

The Waldman Political Report has posted what may be the best statement yet of what the Democratic party REALLY needs:

As they look to 2004, Democrats are worried. Should they pick a conservative like Joe Lieberman, or someone more liberal like John Kerry? Someone who can appeal to southerners, or someone who can excite African-Americans? Someone with foreign policy experience, or someone who is strong on domestic issues? But they're asking the wrong questions. What they should be looking for are leaders - regardless of whether they're liberal or centrist - who know what they believe and aren't afraid to say it. And who know how to throw a punch. more

Put another way (to paraphrase Michael Dukakis), it's not about ideology. It's about balls.

Paranoia for bloggers

One Blogger asks:

You really think Poindexter’s Total Information Awareness office will be checking blogs?

Nah, not the little ones. Let’s rabble and blow off steam. But if you ever got big, got a lot of readers and looked to be a potential leader or lightening rod or somethin…Boom, here comes the boys in black, hustling you off to 8x9 cell never to be heard from again.

Blow off steam, I like that analogy, surely that's one of the things we do here. Whether you're you're getting one million hits or one hundred hits a month I don't think Poindexter is interested in blogs ... um, perhaps not just yet.

Being thankful and vice versa

Jackson Thoreau's essay Thoughts from sitting around a dead bird resonates well on this turkey day.

Happy Thanksgiving

The temperature was 26 degrees, with a light breeze, but The cold air did not diminish the fun and excitement of the 76th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Broadway.

It is estimated that more than two-and-a-half million spectators lined the streets to watch the two-and-a-half mile march through Manhattan.

Bundled in blankets and coats and sipping cocoa and coffee, spectators cheered Charlie Brown, Big Bird and other gigantic balloons.

The photo on the left is of Tom Turkey making his way down Broadway.

Other balloon debuts in the parade included Mr. Monopoly of boardgame fame, dapperly dressed in a tuxedo. Kermit the Frog also returned after a 12-year absence

Santa and his reindeer trailed a parade featuring 1,000 cheerleaders, 500 clowns, 25 floats, 12 marching bands, 10 novelty balloons, four toy floats and three falloons — Macy’s hybrid "balloon-floats."

(Via the AP and Newsday)

Supply your own caption ...

Plea For Internet Prisoners

Human rights organization, Amnesty International, is pleading with China to release those arrested for accessing government-banned sites and expressing pro-democratic views online, reports MediaGuardian and BBC News Online.

The organization has requested the release of at least 33 people who went to prison for using the Net to share information or express views. "Everyone detained purely for peacefully publishing their views or other information on the Internet or for accessing certain Web sites are prisoners of conscience," said an Amnesty International statement.

One of those jailed is Li Dawei, who is serving an 11-year sentence for downloading material from pro-democracy Web sites, Amnesty International reports. "Anyone surfing the Internet could potentially be at risk of arbitrary detention and imprisonment," the group said.

The country has also established an Internet police unit specializing in hunting down those accessing online material it deems subversive. With almost 46 million Net users, China is now the second largest Internet nation after the U.S.

Verdict, Death.

The man behind the Wendy's massacre John Taylor, was sentenced to die for the murders of five workers who were bound, gagged and shot at point-blank range in the restaurant during an armed robbery in 2000

The jury of eight men and four women, the second in New York City to vote for execution since the state reinstated capital punishment in 1995, deliberated for eight hours over two days before returning their verdict against John B. Taylor, 38, yesterday afternoon in a packed courtroom.

This was a very sad crime for the city and it's good to see that justice has been served. Most New Yorkers, including yours truly agree that this criminal got exactly what he deserved.

*Update*
The first New York City resident sentenced to death since the state reinstituted the death penalty in 1995 was Darrel K. Harris , who admitted killing three people at a Brooklyn social club in 1996. The Court of Appeals overturned his conviction in July, and Harris is now serving a life sentence without any chance of parole. No one has been executed in New York state since 1963. For background on the New York capital punishment law, go to The Gotham Gazette.

Proper Weapons Inspector Etiquette

LOOKING FOR STUFF
Be aware that your Iraqi hosts may have attempted to conceal biological, chemical or nuclear weapons. Try some of these common hiding places first:
- Kitchen cupboards
- Rotating bookcases
- Innocuous-looking steel drums labeled "Circus Peanuts"
- Wall safes obscured by oil portraits of Saddam Hussein
- Behind Iraqi soldiers who are whistling casually and rolling their eyes in a pantomime of innocence

Should you find what you believe to be a chemical, biological or nuclear agent, do the following:
Step 1: Dip index finger in suspected agent.
Step 2: Place index finger on tip of tongue.
Step 3: Gruffly exclaim, "It's pure."
Step 4: See a doctor immediately.

FINDING STUFF YOU WEREN'T EVEN
LOOKING FOR IN THE FIRST PLACE
In the course of your search, you may unwittingly uncover Osama bin Laden. If so, do not panic. Send a S.A.S.E. to:
"I Found Osama"
Central Intelligence Agency
Washington, DC 20559
Or log onto www.ifoundosama.com
Then stall him with small talk until the arrival of U.S. Special Forces or Hellfire missiles. [More]

So much trouble in the world now
Bless my eyes this morning
JAH sun is on the rise once again
The way earthly things are going
Anything can happen

You see men sailing on their ego trips
Blast off on their spaceships
Million miles from reality
No care for you, no care for me
So much trouble in the world now
All you've got to do is give a little
Give a little, give a little
One more time ye-a-h! ye-ah!

So you think you have found the solution
But it's just another illusion
So before you check out your tide
Don't leave another cornerstone standing there behind
We have got to face the day, ooh we come what may
We the street people talking, we the people struggling

Now they are sitting on a time bomb
Now I now the time has come
What goes up must come down
Goes around comes around
So much trouble in the world
So much trouble in the world
So much trouble in the world

Survey Says

New York City's popularity is on the decline, according to a poll published in TheNew York Post. The Quinnipiac survey of 1235 Americans found that only 32 percent had a "very positive" image of the city, down from 40 percent in the wake of Sept. 11. The Post puts a cheerful spin on the numbers: "On the plus side, the number of people with a 'somewhat positive' view of the city rose to 45 percent from 37 percent in the year since the attacks."

Toasts of the Town

If you've been invited to dinner this holiday season, that bottle of Mumm parked next to the cash register just won't cut it as a present for your host. Some of New York's top chefs, sommeliers, and restauranteurs gave us their picks on what bottles to bring — plus a little background info on each to impress your host.

School Watch

NY 1 has this article:

NYC Schools Chancellor Joel Klein on Monday announced a new school safety initiative, which includes the installation of security cameras in the city’s 30 most violent schools. Klein says the cameras will have a positive effect on school safety because students will know they're being monitored.

The plan calls for a tough new disciplinary process, including community service for minor infractions, and short and long-term removal from the classroom, and even the school, for more serious ones

Kim du Toit and Connie du Toit have initiated a new Homeland Security Watchdog website.

Liberty Dogs is a community weblog focused exclusively on monitoring developments in the new Homeland Security Department. The purpose is to have a place to keep track of all the great commentary on the web and all the news reports on this important topic. I will be a contributing member.

Secret Documents Reveal Tobacco Industry
Influence on African American Groups

Previously secret documents show that tobacco companies provided money, cultivated social and political ties, and aggressively offered free cigarettes to African American leadership groups -- even as the evidence grew that African Americans bear a disproportionate share of the tobacco-related disease burden.

The study shows that tobacco industry representatives sought out African American leaders to oppose policies restricting smoking in public places and to circumvent laws and policies prohibiting cigarette sampling in public schools and parks, said Yerger. In addition, the industry relied heavily on African American leaders to make the case that raising cigarette taxes hurt African Americans. To accomplish this, tobacco industry representatives coordinated press conferences and provided material for op-eds that appeared in the black press.

Blogger Jane Galt expounds on the wisdom of the NYC fare increase.

"25 or 50 cents -- the proposed raises -- are a drop in the bucket. ... they're [New Yorkers] complaining because they don't want to pay. Liking to get things for less than the cost of providing them is hardly unique, but neither is fulfilling those wishes some sort of civic duty. It's time for New Yorkers to pay their way".

I have no problems with the issues surrounding the rate hike and I'm willing to pay the extra 50 cents. I think that $2 a ride is still the cheapest way to get around in NYC. My only concern is that a fare increases may chase away riders. With NYC's streets already overflowing with cars, the MTA needs to make alternatives to driving as attractive as possible.

An ongoing poll on the issue so far, suggests that there are more non-supporters of a rate hike. And, opinions on the matter are mixed at best.

NY Newsday has a nice chart showing the progression of NYC fare hikes from 1904 to present that puts things in perspective.

The Ill Fated TIPS program

Proposal to Enlist Citizen Spies Was Doomed From Start

The Justice Department's Operation TIPS program, which would have enlisted tens of thousands of truckers, bus drivers and other workers as citizen spies, was doomed before it began.

The Homeland Security package approved by the Senate last week and slated to be signed by President Bush includes language explicitly prohibiting the government from implementing the controversial initiative. It was hounded by criticism from civil libertarians and targeted for elimination by key lawmakers.

TIPS -- the Terrorism Information and Prevention System -- was envisioned as a "national system for reporting suspicious and potentially terrorist-related activity" involving "millions of American workers who, in the daily course of their work, are in a unique position to see potentially unusual or suspicious activity in public places,"

"This program epitomized the government's insatiable appetite for surveillance of law-abiding citizens," said Laura W. Murphy, director of the ACLU's Washington office. "Too many people thought that the government's anti-terrorism policies wouldn't have an impact on their lives, but this showed that they would."

This certainly proves that standing and speaking up for your rights can be effective (even if it's to a certain extent).

To have the cable guy, postman, meter readers, all snooping around a citizen's house would be unacceptable. Imagine the telephone guy or the UPS delivery person glancing around your property and scribbling down notes ... Scary.

One can now say that TIPS is officially dead, even though this is good news, we still have this developing situation to pay attention to.

Make Theirs a Double

Cheers to the Bush twins, who turn 21 today and can finally throw away their fake IDs. Jenna and Barbara Bush, whose hijinx have given their presidential father headaches, will finally reach legal age and can have a cocktail without worrying about the cops. [more]

Foilage Foliage

"Spell check" may have provided a one-stop cure for the plague of misspelling, but what about the problem of mispronunciation ? ... The 100 most often mispronounced words in the english language are Here.

Gored!

The new, improved Al Gore tells Salon he suspects demonizing Saddam was a Bush campaign ploy -- and explains why it took him so long to speak out.

Skyscraper at Ground Zero

Plans for redeveloping the World Trade Center site include proposals for memorials on the tops of buildings and below ground, a garden and the tallest building in the world, a published report said.

Although it is not yet known which elements will make it into the final design, the director of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., the agency charged with overseeing the redevelopment process, praised the new plans for their creativity, the New York Times reported Friday.

Sir Charles Puckers Up

For one night, Charles Barkley's TNT talk show, "Listen Up!", could have been renamed "Pucker Up!" Barkley, whose outspokenness on everything from politics to movies to golf has raised eyebrows, last night made good on an unfortunate, highly publicized on-air wager: He kissed colleague Kenny Smith's ass, although it's not what you might envision.

Last Thursday, during TNT's NBA coverage, Smith and Barkley were debating the play of Yao Ming, the Rockets' 7-5 rookie, when Barkley vowed that if Yao scored 19 points in a game this season he would kiss Smith's rear end "right here." Two days later, Yao, averaging 3.3 points at the time, sank 9 of 9 shots and scored 20 points against the Shaq-less Lakers. [more] (Via Newsday)

Make no mistake about it Charles, Yao Ming's got game