What’s Next? Thought Police?

This has been bugging me since I heard about it and I’ve been meaning to write a post about it, so here goes.

Sometimes, news reporters can be so dumb. After the Dawson College shooting incident, somebody found the shooter’s blog, and oh what a blog. It was full of dark pictures, guns, messages of hatred for the world and all the people in it, lots of talk of violence and all that good stuff. Incidentally, they forgot there was also mundane messages about purple freezies, eating eggs for breakfast, his enjoyment of different kinds of music, and some other crap that had nothing to do with shootings. So here’s the part that really got me mad. After reading out pieces of his blog, the reporters did what I expected. “If only we had seen this in time. Maybe this shooting could have been prevented.”

No! no no no! Did they ever stop to think that a blog is a place of expression? Did they ever stop to think that the blog is just words, and nothing more? That blog could have easily been a work of fiction. Anybody heard of a blog novel? Even if there was some truth to it, it could have been an extreme exaggeration written by someone who is frustrated. Lots of extreme shit is written up on blogs and it’s not all written by deranged shooters in long, black trenchcoats. At the very least, it could have been some kind of release. For someone other than this guy, the act of writing in that blog could have prevented them from shooting up a college. Do they really want a world where people get scooped up and carted away based on the contents of their blogs? I’m getting serious 1984 visions, and it’s not just because I just read the book.

When will people realize that the way to prevent this kind of crime is not to read people’s blogs and make judgements? When will people realize that the only way to try and prevent this kind of crime is by someone close to the shooter noticing they’re acting more than a bit off and saying, “Hey dude, are you ok? You might wanna get some help.” I’m not saying that’s a perfect solution, but it’s a lot less frightening and a lot more accurate than rushing to judgment based on some words on a page.

Guide Dogs for the Blind, Here I Come!

Well, after stressing out about the guide dog interview, and waiting for what seemed like an eternity, I finally got the news! I’ve been accepted to Guide Dogs for the Blind! There will be no more assessments! I will once again have a puppy! The only small downer about this bit of news is I will have to wait until spring before I’ll be able to train since they don’t want to send me home in the snow. Ok, fair enough. I can take that small bit of waiting. I’ve waited long enough, what’s a little more? But I will have a doggy again! I made it!

Poop n Scoop Barbie?

I heard about the strangest Barbie accessory ever. Now, Barbie is learning how to pick up dog doodoos. Mattel has decided to create a strange pet dog for Barbie, named Tanner, that, immediately after being fed brown biscuits, shoots them out its back end, looking exactly the same as they did when they went in its mouth I might add, so she can pick them up with a magnetic pooper scooper.

At first, after I stopped laughing, I thought this was a cool idea, for every little girl who said, “I want a puppy I want a puppy I want a puppy!” Now they can have a fake puppy and still have to pick up its poop. If they consistently pick up its poop, *maybe* they can move on to a real one. Then I got thinking. Those poor little girls who get a real puppy are going to be in for a surprise when the real doggy doodoos aren’t so pleasant and easy to pick up.

I Guess This Is The Part Where I’m Supposed To Make The Joke About Him Getting Off

Charges dropped in sex aid-bomb mixup.

CHICAGO (AP) – Prosecutors dropped all charges against a man who said an airport security guard misunderstood him when she thought he said a sexual device in his backpack was really a bomb.

Mardin Amin, who appeared in court Wednesday morning, has said he actually told the female security guard at O’Hare International Airport last month a small, black object was a “pump” – as in a penis pump.

Prosecutors chose to follow the lead of the U.S. Transportation Safety Administration, which recently concluded the matter did not warrant prosecution, said Cook County state’s attorney spokesman John Gorman.

Amin, 29, an Iraq-born Skokie, Ill., resident had been charged with felony disorderly conduct and faced up to three years in prison if convicted.

His lawyer, Eileen O’Neill-Burke, did not immediately return a message Wednesday seeking comment.

She explained earlier her client was embarrassed to explain the object to the security guard in front of his mother, who was travelling with him – so he whispered. The guard misunderstood his accented English and thought he said “bomb,” O’Neill-Burke said.

The Blue Screen Of Life Sentence

The Zichuan District People’s Court in China is being criticized for using a computer program to determine sentences in more than 1500 criminal cases.

The software, which is said to be programmed to work with about 100 different types of cases, allows judges to enter details of a particular crime into the system, which then provides a sentence for the accused.

Its developers claim that the program is meant to help standardize sentencing in China, while the court’s Chief Judge feels that it is a good way to avoid abuse of power by judges due to corruption or insufficient training.

On the other side of the debate are those who feel that the computer is a stupid idea that does nothing but highlight the laziness of the court system.

Strangely, none of these people saw fit to mention that a system like this, especially in a place like China, can’t possibly do a thing to curb a corruption problem. Everybody reading this surely knows how easy it is to push a few buttons on a keyboard and instantly make a situation into something that it’s not. What’s to stop a judge from using some of that “discretionary power” that the computer hopes to take away to leave out a few details that he doesn’t really feel are all that important, embellish a few that probably aren’t to make them appear as though they are, or even worse, throw in a few that flat out don’t exist? Nothing, that’s what. And even if somebody wants to argue that records are kept, I counter that with this. We’re talking about fucking China here. They aren’t exactly known for their glimmering human rights record. If you honestly believe that a government that causes *people* to vanish from the face of the Earth on a daily basis is going to think twice about messing with a few computer files, you either work for that government, or you’re completely and utterly batshit insane. then again, I think that might be a requirement for getting a Chinese government job in the first place, so I guess there can only be one reason to be on side with a system like this.

Wow! Ontario’s Coming to its Senses!

Remember the story about identity thieves selling a person’s house right out from under the real owner? Well, finally a law is getting written to help with that. Apparently, duh, they’ve finally realized that maybe if a purchase is deemed fraudulent, maybe measures should be taken to reverse it so the real owner can have back what he never sold in the first place, and the account in the name of the fake can be revoked. What a concept! Plus, if this law goes through, they’re planning to stiffen fines. I can’t believe that, as of now, the fine for title fraud is only $1000. For what they’ve done, you can’t even call that a disinsentive! Not even a real slap on the wrist! What the hel is that?

They’re also intervening in some cases, what makes those cases worthy of intervention I don’t know. I hope the case I wrote about is one of them. The poor old guy doesn’t need to do this all on his own.

I wonder how some people get high positions of power when they don’t seem to have functioning brains. Peter Kormos of the NDP says this law isn’t enough because it doesn’t prevent forged documents from getting into the title registry. Um, laws don’t prevent forged documents from getting in, diligent officials prevent forged documents from *getting* into the registry, and victims who speak up prevent forged documents from *staying* in the registry. You can’t write that into a law. Even I know that! Wanna know something extra scary? That guy used to be the NDP’s disability critic! Weren’t we in good hands?

So the moral of the story is there is hope! Let’s hope this law goes through and is strong enough!

5th Anniversary

Well we all know what today is the anniversary of – and while I didn’t think it was appropriate to let the day go by without acknowledgement, I also, personally, feel I do not posess the words to respectfully enough voice the feelings that so many people would have on a day like this, for many of their own reasons – so I leave you with just one comment on my behalf, and will respectfully not comment further.

Peace, Love, Unity, Respect.

Take Care