Kudos to Obama for sacking McChrystal. It seriously made my morning. Obama didn’t cave and that kind of rank insubordination must not stand.
In terms of cojones-to-political-climate-pressure ratio, this ranks slightly behind Truman-MacArthur and way way behind Lincoln-McClellan, but awesome nonetheless. The latter two actually involved dangers to the republic as opposed to an HR incident, but we have to understand that today’s paradigms have also changed.
Wait, why am I rambling on about this? WTG, Obama! Kick some whiny ass republican ass and watch the rightostan blogosphere implode as they try to reconcile praising Rolling Stone and an insubordinate general in a time of war at the same time.
Hooray for activist judges! 9th circuit just issued a ruling articulating a standard regarding the acceptable use of tasers by cops.
A federal appeals court on Monday issued one of the most comprehensive rulings yet limiting police use of Tasers against low-level offenders who seem to pose little threat and may be mentally ill.
In a case out of San Diego County, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals criticized an officer who, without warning, shot an emotionally troubled man with a Taser when he was unarmed, yards away, and neither fleeing nor advancing on the officer.
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The San Diego County case is the latest ruling to address the issue.The court recounted the facts of the case: In the summer of 2005, Carl Bryan, 21, was pulled over for a seat-belt violation and did not follow an officer’s order to stay in the car. Earlier, he had received a speeding ticket and had taken off his T-shirt to wipe away tears. He was wearing only the underwear he’d slept in because a woman had taken his keys, the court said without further explanation.During his second traffic stop in Coronado, he got out of the car.
He was “agitated … yelling gibberish and hitting his thighs, clad only in his boxer shorts and tennis shoes” but did not threaten the officer verbally or physically, the judges wrote.
That’s when Coronado Police Officer Brian McPherson, who was standing about 20 feet away watching Bryan’s “bizarre tantrum,” fired his Taser, the court said.
Without a word of warning, he hit Bryan in the arm with two metal darts, delivering a 1,200-volt jolt.Temporarily paralyzed and in intense pain, Bryan fell face-first on the pavement. The fall shattered four of his front teeth and left him with facial abrasions and swelling.
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A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit affirmed the trial judge’s ruling on Monday, concluding that the level of force used by the officer was excessive.McPherson could have waited for backup or tried to talk the man down, the judges said. If Bryan was mentally ill, as the officer contended, then there was even more reason to use “less intrusive means,” the judges said.”Officer McPherson’s desire to quickly and decisively end an unusual and tense situation is understandable,” Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw wrote for the court. “His chosen method for doing so violated Bryan’s constitutional right to be free from excessive force.”
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“Certainly the officer should be able to articulate the reason the force (was used), and a mere resistance to comply may not be enough,” said Sheriff John McGinness.
Barney makes my real world job more difficult, but I can’t help but love the guy. Finally, a dem stands up to the astroturfed ragemonkeys. Reminds me of the Army-McCarthy hearings…
When we look back on this, I think Obama will be a turning point for many things. Besides the obvious racial acceptance, generational, and maturity he represents, Obama stands, right now, as the perfect – and first – post-Nixon president of optimism. And that lack of cynicism is a fresh breeze I’m going to relax in and enjoy for a bit.
Then it’s on to the war crimes tribunals for the Busheviks.
Watch ’til the end (or just watch the last 15 seconds or so, same diff), where Brian Williams totally busts Luke Russert:
A few things:
a) Luke Russert. Mmmm… nepotism. Look, I’m sorry his dad died, but Luke sucks, brings nothing to the table, and has horrible hair. Fuck this shit.
b) From the reaction, I’m preeeeeeetty sure Luke and the victory hookup had already hit it.
c) Nice job, Brian! That was the best scolding-slash-breakup inducing moment ever. Ev-er.
d) I totally love how the entire crowd runs away from Luke like he’s a oily little droplet in their bucket of water. The frustrated and lonely chagrin on Luke’s face is priceless. This is precisely how he would have been treated if his dad dad daddy-o weren’t Tim Russert. Looooove it.
Oh, and since I’ve been too busy with other things to post during this epochal event – Sarah, your God has done what’s right for America. Now STFU and get back to your low-grade tyrannical corruption.
Please, Sarah, run in 2012. I’m begging you. Pleeeeeeeeeaaaase. It would be like Fitzmas all over again, only this time with the entire destruction of the GOP under my tree.
VARGAS: But the point being that you haven’t been so bruised by some of the double standard, the sexism on the campaign trail, to say, “I’ve had it. I’m going back to Alaska.”
PALIN: Absolutely not. I think that, if I were to give up and wave a white flag of surrender against some of the political shots that we’ve taken, that … that would … bring this whole … I’m not doin’ this for naught.
As a side note, the entire circular firing squad in the GOP rat’s nest going on right now is a thing of beauty. This massive implosion, embarrassment, and extreme displays of cowardice couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of choda scrubbers. That Palin has gone rogue and is using McCain’s carcass for a national run and that McCain obviously blames her for everything up to and including the soon-to-be loss (except, of course, for his pick of her in the first place) is just icing on the cake.
U.S. Senator Ted Stevens was convicted of all seven felony charges of failing to report gifts from a company in his home state of Alaska, a possibly fatal blow to the career of the Senate’s longest-serving Republican.