Another Senseless Tragedy Involving Guns

This time at a Sikh Temple in suburbs near Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

At least seven people, including a gunman shot by a police officer, were killed Sunday in an attack on worshippers at a Sikh temple in the Milwaukee suburb of Oak Creek, police said.

The officer was wounded but "returned fire, and that shooter was put down," said Bradley Wentlandt, the police chief in nearby Greenfield, who briefed reporters. Investigators who picked through the building afterward found four bodies inside the temple and two other victims outside, plus the gunman, Wentlandt said.

At an afternoon news conference, Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards said that authorities are treating the shooting as a "domestic terrorist-type incident," adding that the FBI will head the investigation.

Two semi-automatic handguns believed used by the shooter were recovered from the scene, a law enforcement source directly involved in the investigation told CNN.

At least three wounded, including the officer, were being treated at Milwaukee's Froedtert Hospital, spokeswoman Carolyn Bellin told CNN. All three were in critical condition.

The suspect, described as a "heavyset, bald white man with a 9/11 tattoo" apparently opened fire on the temple gathering Sunday morning and took hostages, including children, before police were able to bring him down.  Reports are still conflicting as to exactly what happened, but this definitely looks like domestic terrorism against a specific group.  The FBI agrees.

Tattoos on the body of the slain Sikh temple gunman and certain biographical details led the FBI to treat the attack at a Milwaukee-area temple as an act of domestic terrorism, officials said Sunday.

The shooter is dead, so we may never know exactly what motivated this terror attack, but once again America has yet to come to grips with the very real issue of near endless gun violence in this country, and it's only getting worse.  CNN claims more details about the shooter:

The gunman who shot six people to death and wounded three others during a rampage at a Sikh temple in a Milwaukee suburb was an Army veteran who may have been a white supremacist, according to a law enforcement source involved in the investigation.

More on this as details become clear.  I've been saying all along that this was going to happen eventually, that the skinhead assholes on the far right were going to make their move before the election, and at least one of them have.

Domestic terrorism at its most racist, crude, and deadly.

By the way, Oak Creek, south of Milwaukee, is in Rep. Paul Ryan's district.  I wonder if he'll be calling for a closer look at America's little domestic terror problem now that his own constituents lie dead as a result.

I doubt it, however.

StupidiNews!

• The Mars Curiosity rover has successfully landed in Gale Crater on the surface of the red planet, and is happily exploring the terrain.
• The recently bankrupted city of Stockton, California is running into a stiff legal challenge from a municipal bond insurance company in the Bahamas who wants its money back.
• The 2014 expansion of the Panama Canal could shift trade patterns across the globe as US ports are scrambling to expand facilities to handle super-sized container ships.
• Italian PM Mario Monti is warning of a eurozone breakup unless more aid from Germany and the ECB arrives.
• Two MIT students have created the first portable 3-D fabrication printer that stores in a metal briefcase.

Last Call

Another "We're in the worst case scenario for climate change right now" story, and given how awful this summer has been (here in the Cincy area we were setting 90+ degree record highs in March) I tend to agree with NASA's James Hansen about the shift from "preventing climate change catastrophes" to "we must act immediately to limit the damage".  We won't, of course.  We'll do nothing.  And millions will die as a result.

When I testified before the Senate in the hot summer of 1988 , I warned of the kind of future that climate change would bring to us and our planet. I painted a grim picture of the consequences of steadily increasing temperatures, driven by mankind’s use of fossil fuels.

But I have a confession to make: I was too optimistic.

My projections about increasing global temperature have been proved true. But I failed to fully explore how quickly that average rise would drive an increase in extreme weather.

In a new analysis of the past six decades of global temperatures, which will be published Monday, my colleagues and I have revealed a stunning increase in the frequency of extremely hot summers, with deeply troubling ramifications for not only our future but also for our present.

This is not a climate model or a prediction but actual observations of weather events and temperatures that have happened. Our analysis shows that it is no longer enough to say that global warming will increase the likelihood of extreme weather and to repeat the caveat that no individual weather event can be directly linked to climate change. To the contrary, our analysis shows that, for the extreme hot weather of the recent past, there is virtually no explanation other than climate change.

The deadly European heat wave of 2003, the fiery Russian heat wave of 2010 and catastrophic droughts in Texas and Oklahoma last year can each be attributed to climate change. And once the data are gathered in a few weeks’ time, it’s likely that the same will be true for the extremely hot summer the United States is suffering through right now.

These weather events are not simply an example of what climate change could bring. They are caused by climate change. The odds that natural variability created these extremes are minuscule, vanishingly small. To count on those odds would be like quitting your job and playing the lottery every morning to pay the bills.

We're in the ghost story, as they say.   Get used to 105+ degree summer days here in the Midwest, folks.  Get used to 50% of the counties in America being under disaster-level drought conditions nearly every year.  Expect food prices to skyrocket as farmers lose their crops year after year. 2012 is just the beginning.  It's far worse than anyone thought as we're well into the first stages of global warming.

Some 24 years after global warming was predicted, the effects are now here.  We wasted a generation doing nothing as our corporate masters screamed at us to obey the Almighty Profit and we rolled over.  Now we will all pay, and some of us will pay dearly.  And we still refuse to do anything to limit the damage.

Our children and grandchildren will never forgive us, of course.  Nor do we deserve their forgiveness.

Loughner To Plead Guilty In Arizona Giffords Shooting

The LA Times is reporting that Jared Lee Loughner, the man accused of shooting Arizona Democratic Rep. Gabby Giffords in the head in January 2011, will plead guilty on Tuesday to an unknown number of charges.

At the hearing Tuesday morning in U.S. District Court in Tucson, psychiatric experts who have examined Loughner, 23, are scheduled to testify that they have concluded that despite wide swings in his mental capacity, at this time he comprehends what happened and acknowledges the gravity of the charges, according to two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case was still unfolding.

The terms of the plea arrangement remained unclear Saturday on whether Loughner would admit guilt to all or some of the charges in return for a lengthy prison sentence rather than risk a potential death penalty verdict at trial.

State prosecutors in Tucson initially said they would pursue charges against Loughner as well, but the federal government went first. They now would probably review their options and decide whether it would be wise to go forward.

Many of the victims of the Jan. 8, 2011, attack and their families are likely to attend the hearing in downtown Tucson, not far from the site of the attack during Giffords’ Congress On Your Corner event. Survivors would be invited to testify about the assault and their injuries at a separate hearing yet to be scheduled, in which Loughner would be formally sentenced.

Loughner’s agreement to plead guilty, if finalized in court Tuesday, would probably end more than a year and a half of psychiatric evaluations and testing, including some periods in which he was medicated at a federal prison hospital. It also would close out complex legal disagreements between prosecutors and defense attorneys over his mental capacity.

Frankly, considering my views on the death penalty (I'm absolutely against it) the notion that this asshole ends up in a federal prison for the next 60 plus years for killing multiple people including a 9-year-old girl is perfectly alright with me.  Anything less than life without the possibility of parole is too lenient.  This guy needs to rot for the rest of his life for what he did.  He was completely aware and it looks like the proper medical officials have made it clear just what choices Loughner has:  life in prison or a very short stay behind bars followed by a longer one in the ground.

I'm of the general mindset that life behind bars in cases like this is far more of a punishment than death.  Killing Loughner means nothing to him.  Having him grow old enough to become increasingly filled with horror and remorse for his actions?  I'm good with that instructive device.

We'll see what he pleads out to on Tuesday.

Weird Science

According to the university's website announcing the grant award, many anecdotal reports of the afterlife abound, but there has been "no comprehensive and rigorous, scientific study of global reports about near-death and other experiences, or of how belief in immortality influences human behavior." The research will look at a range of phenomena, including heaven, hell, purgatory, and karma.  The grant is the largest ever awarded to a humanities professor at UC Riverside, and one of the largest given to an individual at the university.

Fischer said in a statement, "We will be very careful in documenting near-death experiences and other phenomena, trying to figure out if these offer plausible glimpses of an afterlife or are biologically induced illusions," Fischer said. 

Some will find it strange, but I think it makes perfect sense.  We have little data on death.  For something we all will face, it's a topic most scientists avoid. There is little opportunity to measure and get hard data.  Or is there?  It's worth exploring, which is the purpose of this project.  We have the ability to reach places that until recently were impossible.

Death is an event that we need to understand on a biological, psychological and intellectual level. Gathering facts and bringing it together will be a daunting task.

How Hot Is It, You Stupid People? Hot Enough To Kill Kids.

It's August.  In one of the hottest years we've seen in a generation.  Mid-day.

It's hot enough to kill children, and why can't people figure this out?  This is as simple as not giving them poison, or refusing to let them play with guns.  Do not leave kids in cars in the sun.  They will die.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) -- Arkansas authorities are investigating the deaths of two children who apparently were left in hot vehicles.

Springdale police Lt. Kevin Lewis told the Northwest Arkansas Times a two-year-old boy died after his great-grandparents left him inside a car in a Walmart parking lot.  Lewis says the child didn't have a pulse when paramedics arrived.

The child was pronounced dead at Northwest Medical Center.

They said they thought it was less than an hour, but security footage says it was closer to two hours.  While they strolled in air-conditioned bliss, their great-grandchild died a death not fit for a criminal.

It's gotten so bad I look as I walk into Wal-Mart, the store, just about anywhere.  I look for motion, and have decided I wouldn't hesitate for a second to break a window.  If possible, with the forehead of the jackass who leaves kids or pets locked in brutal conditions while they ponder plaid vs. stripes.

 While writing this, I wondered for the first time how many kids live but hurt because of morons like this.  Say it ain't so.  

Cap'n Ed Gets It 100% Right On Ohio Early Voting

In the "credit where credit is die" department, Ed Morrissey over at Hot Air looks into the nonsense repeated on FOX this week that the Obama administration is suing the state of Ohio to "restrict military early voting".  First, the baloney as the Romney camp is seizing on the latest fake outrage:

Mitt Romney on Saturday said the Obama campaign's lawsuit in Ohio to limit military voters to the same early voting dates as non-military voters was an "outrage."

"President Obama's lawsuit claiming it is unconstitutional for Ohio to allow servicemen and women extended early voting privileges during the state's early voting period is an outrage," he said in a statement posted to Facebook Saturday afternoon. "The brave men and women of our military make tremendous sacrifices to protect and defend our freedoms, and we should do everything we can to protect their fundamental right to vote. I stand with the fifteen military groups that are defending the rights of military voters, and if I'm entrusted to be the commander-in-chief, I'll work to protect the voting rights of our military, not undermine them."

The horror, right?  Why does Obama hate voting?  Why does he hate the military?  OUTRAAAAAAAAAAAA -- wait, it's all horse hockey? Cap'n Ed actually looks at what the brief says.

Like I said, the likely remedy proposed would be to remove the Friday deadline for everyone — and that’s exactly what the plaintiffs are proposing.  Gabriel Malor forwarded me a link to the brief, and the relevant language within it:

WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs request of this Court the following equitable relief:…
B. A preliminary and permanent order prohibiting the Defendants, their respective agents, servants, employees, attorneys, successors, and all persons acting in concert with each or any of them, from implementing or enforcing lines 863 and 864 of Sec. 3509.03 (I) in HB 224, and/or the SB 295 enactment of Ohio Revised Code § 3509.03 with the HB 224 amendments, thereby restoring in-person early voting on the three days immediately preceding Election Day for all eligible Ohio voters;

So no, they aren’t trying to block military members from getting to the polls, but arguing that since the polls will be open anyway, everyone else should have access to them as well.  A couple of commenters think this will be a “logistical nightmare,” but the logistics aren’t really that scaleable.  Having the polls open for a few would be the same as having them open for many.  There may need to be  few more election judges, but those positions are voluntary anyway.

So in reality, the Obama administration is suing to restore early voting for all Ohio voters, not just military voters.   They want to expand early voting after Ohio Republicans ended early voting for all non-military voters in the state.  FOX News is...surprise!...Lying to you!  They openly believe you're stupid enough to believe them.

That's the truth.  And this is why I openly call FOX News and Mitt Romney outright liars.  They lie, period.

Last Call

Sick of your cable company and not having a real competitive options for lowering the price of your internet?  Help may be on the way:  Google Fiber's test marketing in Kansas City is going swimmingly.

Google Fiber appears to be connecting with residents of Kansas City. Just over a week after Google launched its ultra high-speed (1 gigabit) Internet service, at least 46 neighborhoods — or fiberhoods, as Google calls them — have signed-up to receive the service.

To put that number in context: That’s 22 percent of the 202 “fiberhoods” that Google has drawn up to cover households in Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas, two distinct cities that form one major metropolitan region on the border between Kansas state and Missouri.

Google declined to specify how many individual households had signed up to receive the service, but a spokesperson told TPM that: “Fiberhoods contain anywhere between 250 to 1500 households.”

Another firm, Macquarie Capital, estimates that Google has signed up 7,000 households, or 4 percent of the total region, as The Business Insider reported. 

A straight fiber connection?  Yeah, I'd jump on this in a second if it were available here in Cincy.  Not bad for just one week.  Certainly Google's competition is running scared, Time Warner in KC is giving away $50 gift cards to keep customers.

Here's hoping we can get real internet in the US like they do in other countries.

A New Era In Versus The Stupid

Bon and I have been working on putting together a short podcast for listeners where we talk about a number of things, current events, posts we've made, and whatever else tickles our fancy.  We're working with Blog Talk Radio and we hope to have something for you guys starting in the next week or so.  Hell, we might even have guests!  Maybe.  We'll see.

A preview of what to expect:



Be on the lookout for Podcast Versus The Stupid:  Coming soon!

Yo, Serena Coming!

Serena Williams:  14 Grand Slam singles titles, 15 Grand Slam doubles titles, 2 Olympic golds in doubles, and with a 6-1 6-0 piledriving of Maria Sharpova today in London, Olympics singles gold.  She's the first woman to earn at least one each of all 10 in a career "Golden Slam".

Also, this happened when she won.






















Winner. I'm gonna say best of all time at this point. 32 major wins, 31 years old. She still have half a dozen years left, I would think. Yes, Steffi and Martina have more singles titles, Serena has more overall counting her doubles wins with her sister Venus.  She can play both styles and dominates them both on any surface, period.

I'd say that qualifies her, yes?

Doh, A Deer

Police spent over four hours rescuing a baby deer Thursday that fell 20 feet into a manhole in Long Island, N.Y.

Landscapers working by a vacant lot under construction in Mount Sinai, N.Y., called Suffolk County Police just after 3:30 p.m. when they noticed the fawn had fallen into the manhole, police said.

The officers hoisted the deer to ground level at around 8 p.m. and then brought up Justincic back up.

The officers then released the deer and it ran into the woods, seemingly unscathed. 

That's a whole lot of work for a baby deer.  Acts of compassion make up for the other stuff we have to face every day.  By the way, go read the whole article for adorable baby deer pictures and one burly cop about to go in the ground.

 

Cop Uses Taser On 12-Year-Old girl

South St. Louis County (KSDK) - A police officer tased a 12-year-old girl inside a Victoria's Secret Wednesday afternoon at South County Center. 

Police say the officer came into the Victoria's Secret looking for the teenager's mom, who had warrants for her arrest. But it was the teen who got tased. 

"This one goes in my chest. It was stuck in there so she had to keep on pulling trying to pull it out," said Dejamon Baker, as she pointed to a small wound on her chest. 

Baker has a matching wound on her stomach. 

"I had fell on the floor and I couldn't control myself I just kept on shaking and stuff," said the girl. 

Baker said, "I was just crying. I guess he got mad because I was crying or something, then he just took it out and just tased me." 

A police spokesman says the officer stated the girl was physically getting involved and would not back away, but Dejamon and her mother deny that.  

Sorry, but if you can't gain control of a 12-year-old child, perhaps law enforcement isn't your thing.  Using that on a child is beyond insane.  I've never suffered from it personally, but I have seen tough people crumble and weep like... well, like little girls.

This guy should lose his badge and never be allowed to have authority again.  Jesus.

Happy Birthday, Mr. President!

Barack Obama turns 51 today, and he's taking the day off. 

President Barack Obama is playing a round of golf on his 51st birthday, kicking off a quiet birthday weekend away from re-election campaigning.

Obama was playing golf at Andrews Air Force Base on Saturday before heading to Camp David, the private presidential retreat in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains.

Obama got some early birthday wishes on Thursday during a campaign rally in Florida, where supporters sang "Happy Birthday" to the president.

Obama joked that his birthday wishes "probably would have to do with electoral votes. Winning Florida wouldn't be a bad birthday present."

No doubt the wingers will scream and call him lazy.  Even a birthday celebration drivers the haters insane.

Happy Birthday, Mr. President.

Beaten Down To The Truth

Our favorite "fact checker" Glenn Kessler can apparently discern the truth when it's right in front of him after all as he awards the latest Obama campaign assault on Romney's tax plan the coveted Gepetto Checkmark for being the truth. 

The ad talks about how Romney's tax plan will mean higher taxes for a lot of middle-class Americans, and given the fact that Romney refuses to release details of his own plan, the neutral Tax Policy Center last week released an analysis of the plan showing that in order to complete all its stated goals, Romney will have to eliminate tax breaks for the middle-class.  The Romney campaign is screaming foul, but Kessler actually does his job for once:

This ad is tough, but we cannot fault the accuracy of its key points. To some extent, the Romney campaign has been hoist with its own petard by refusing to provide sufficient detail that shows how the numbers add up in Romney’s tax and budget plans. So we are left with the judgment of a respected and independent third party.

We hold campaign ads to a high standard, particularly attack ads. If Romney releases the missing details, and a new analysis finds that Romney can meet the stated goals of his tax plan, then we can certainly revisit this analysis. But, until then, for the first time in this frequently nasty campaign, we award a rare Geppetto Checkmark for a campaign ad.

Do you think Kessler learned his lesson after this?  I hae to believe there's at least hope, which makes his earlier nonsense last month all the more shameful and obnoxious.  John Cole summed it up on Twitter last night when I asked him about it:

There is a lesson to be learned here. When we on the left beat down their bullshit with the ferocity...

...That they normally see from the right. They see the light. 

Amen to that, brother.

StupidiNews, Weekend Edition!

• The family of former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno want to appeal the school's unprecedented sanctions, but the NCAA is insisting that the sanctions are simply not subject to appeal.
• The Tennessee Democratic Party is disavowing its own Senate candidate due to ties to a hate group, and is asking Democrats in the state to write-in another candidate.
• The first Saudi woman to compete in the Olympics lasted all of 82 seconds in her judo match, but Wodjan Shaherkani still made history.
• The deal between mobile giant Verizon and cable giant Comcast to split spectrum is facing sharp criticism from regulators.
• Sen. Rand Paul wants to protect the internet from goverment snooping...but he also wants to kill regulations aimed at evening the playing field for net neutrality.