For all the fans of your big benevolent governments out there remember this: there is no crime so minor or infraction so small it's agents will not happily kill you to enforce. Right here in the Good Ol' USA the penalty for missing a court date is the summary execution of your entire family by FBI snipers.

A big benevolent government requires massive civilian oversight, otherwise it becomes a totalitarian oligarchy.

 

Uh oh, spaghettios! Now Bill Mahr is going to get run out of town! Well, whenever Sagat wakes up.

Dolphins Seem to Use Toxic Pufferfish to Get High

 

one can almost predict which obsidian forumites will be most intrigued by the linked article.

 

HA! Good Fun!

 

Dolphins Seem to Use Toxic Pufferfish to Get High

 

one can almost predict which obsidian forumites will be most intrigued by the linked article.

 

HA! Good Fun!

 

 

Not the first time that animals have been shown to use stuff to get high or something, catnip for example.

 

 

Dolphins Seem to Use Toxic Pufferfish to Get High

 

one can almost predict which obsidian forumites will be most intrigued by the linked article.

 

HA! Good Fun!

 

 

Not the first time that animals have been shown to use stuff to get high or something, catnip for example.

 

nobody suggested it were a first

 

"humans aren’t the only creatures that suffer from substance abuse problems. Horses eat hallucinogenic weeds, elephants get drunk on overripe fruit and big horn sheep love narcotic lichen. Monkeys’ attraction to sugar-rich and ethanol-containing fruit, in fact, may explain our own attraction to alcohol, some researchers think."

 

*shrug*

 

HA! Good Fun!

Why Everyone Believes in Magic (Even You)

Wasn't sure where to put it, but some Bollywood production was hosted at my hometown for some shots to their movie and they also made a video clip to one of the songs for that movie. It's odd to me to say the least :D

Turns out that some Australian birds of prey intentionally use fire as a tool rather than incidentially. https://www.inverse.com/article/40018-australian-birds-light-prey-on-fire The research doesn't say whether this is a learned behavior passed down by parents or more instinctual, but it's definetly interesting. They can't create fire themselves though, obviously.

Somebody show show a video of this to a crow. All hell might break loose.

Do we have a space thread somewhere?

 

SpaceX may have failed to get an expensive government sat into orbit. Ouch, this is gonna hurt their reputation for a while. At least until they can find out what went wrong.

It's light on details due to it being a classified mission and the main source being WSJ.

We don't have a 'cute & cuddly things' thread so I'll just post this here:

 

Edited January 9, 20188 yr by Katphood

Should be a nice blowback from this. Hopefully they rotate the cop through a warzone. I loved his threat to arrest more for 'public intimidation'

Edited January 9, 20188 yr by Malcador

Federal charges against Cliven, Ammon, and Ryan Bundy dismissed with prejudice. https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/bundy-blm/judge-in-las-vegas-dismisses-case-against-cliven-bundy-2-sons/

 

This stems back to the big stand off in Nevada a few years ago. The BLM decided to resolve a simple grazing contract dispute with automatic weapons, snipers, mace, and beatings. Oh, and a flagrant disregard of the 4th Amendment.  I would not go so far as call the Bundy's the "good guys" but the government was definitely the "bad guys" in this debacle.

Should sue the gov't for abuse of power, Nazism, and evil corruption. This goes for both the teacher situation and the Bundy situation.

Federal charges against Cliven, Ammon, and Ryan Bundy dismissed with prejudice. https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/bundy-blm/judge-in-las-vegas-dismisses-case-against-cliven-bundy-2-sons/

 

This stems back to the big stand off in Nevada a few years ago. The BLM decided to resolve a simple grazing contract dispute with automatic weapons, snipers, mace, and beatings. Oh, and a flagrant disregard of the 4th Amendment.  I would not go so far as call the Bundy's the "good guys" but the government was definitely the "bad guys" in this debacle.

 

the bundy folks is bad guys.  doesn't matter though.  US system is a bit weird.  most o' the rest o' the civilized world do not let bad guys go free 'cause the government made a mistake or acted unlawful.  govt. malfeasance is not a "get out of jail free" card virtual anywheres but the US. may not be logical, but there is wisdom in the US system, even if we personal do not like it.  to discourage future malfeasance by the govt., bad guys is allowed to walk free when government is a wrongdoer. doesn't matter if the defendant is a bad guy as govt bad actions trump. bundys is bad, but it don't matter in this case.  government can't get away with doing wrong 'cause it is later shown the victim o' the govt wrongdoing were also a bad guy.  the State is held to a higher standard. 

 

there is any number o' practical disadvantages to being a defendant in a criminal proceeding.  however, there is many systematic advantages to being the defendant.  with competent counsel (if the defendant is able to afford such) there is much challenge to getting a conviction o' even the obvious/clear guilty in the US system... which like it or not, is part o' the design. should never be surprised when bad cops or bundys or evil drug dealers go free.  the system is consciously rigged to favor such folks. 

 

HA! Good Fun!

I suppose the big question is whether it is better to falsely imprison someone, or let a guilty party roam free. 

I suppose the big question is whether it is better to falsely imprison someone, or let a guilty party roam free. 

 

 

agreed... but is difficult for many to accept the injustices which results.

 

“for the law holds, that it is better that ten guilty persons escape, than that one innocent suffer.”

 

HA! Good Fun!

am gonna add one thing by noting how exclusion ain't so much protection o' innocence or future innocence.  rules 'which set guilty free when govt violates rules ain't so much 'bout protecting the innocent as is 'bout protecting rights of everybody, innocent or guilty.  is the kinda thing which should make gd happy 'cause makes rights more important than justice or even people.  we go to great the lengths in this country to protect intangible ideals from government interference, even to the point we is protecting wrongdoers, evildoers, from the State. 

 

HA! Good Fun!

Well.. because the 'state' is usually amongst the most 'evil doers'. LMAO

Wasn't the whole Bundy situation about the govt taking things it's not supposed to have the right to and them fighting back?

 

Weither they bad guys or good, I'm happy to hear the result.

Besides morality is subjective, govt making what can be own subjective....

Thought it was the Bundys refusing to pay grazing fees and then the gov't overreacting

Edited January 10, 20188 yr by ShadySands

I thought it was about the Bundys   not being bullied by the gov't's  bullying tatics  even if the Bundys aren't 'squeaky clean'. Neither is the gov't.

Ha, 3 posts and 3 different answers.

 

I suppose we could just look it up

Thought it was the Bundys refusing to pay grazing fees and then the gov't overreacting

This was it. It's a little more complex than that because the land the cattle was grazing on was supposed to have been turned over to the state a long time ago. So there was a dispute to just who grazing fees even were owed to. Plus there was a Chinese owned power company that had an interest in leasing the land and some of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's family members were involved in brokering the deal. 

 

Like most stories this one had more layers than was obvious from the news. 

am gonna add one thing by noting how exclusion ain't so much protection o' innocence or future innocence.  rules 'which set guilty free when govt violates rules ain't so much 'bout protecting the innocent as is 'bout protecting rights of everybody, innocent or guilty.  is the kinda thing which should make gd happy 'cause makes rights more important than justice or even people.  we go to great the lengths in this country to protect intangible ideals from government interference, even to the point we is protecting wrongdoers, evildoers, from the State. 

 

HA! Good Fun!

Exactly correct. There are far too many examples of heavy handed abuse of the citizens by the US government. Frankly I am surprised this whole thing ended as peacefully as it did. It's hardly unheard of for Federal law enforcement is to shoot the suspects and all the witnesses. I