Crime and Punishment

You heard it here first.

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How soon until the news media starts investigating, harassing and ridiculing Police Sergeant James Crowley, and his wife and family?

Obama’s media allies defend him by trying to impose personal misery, and if possible, professional destruction, on anyone who crosses him.

Obama chose to get involved in this, so it is about him now.

Sgt. Crowley and his family are next.

Watch.

UPDATE: While some of the facts are not yet in — statements from other witnesses for example, which I have not seen, though they may be on the Net somewhere — it appears for now that the police officer was doing his job and that Prof. Gates was out of line to the point that he was within the scope of the Massachusetts disorderly conduct statute. I base this on the police report, in large part, as well as the known facts, i.e. that there was a report of an attempted break-in, that there had been break-ins in the neighborhood, that Gates was locked out and trying to get into his own house, that the police arrived to investigate, and (some speculation) that Gates was probably in a foul mood, sensitive to real or imaginary racial slights, and failed to exercise self-control. Do cops lie on police reports? Yes, some do, from time to time. Do cops act abusively, or condescendingly or blusteringly? Of course, we have all seen this from time to time. Do we have any basis to say this officer did anything wrong or inappropriate? Only if you accept what Gates says and discount the police report to zero. I am inclined to see the conflicting stories as at best a wash, with Gates’ story making less sense overall. Were there witnesses to this episode? Yes, apparently there were. Can they confirm or rebut what was in the police report versus what Gates says happened? Maybe. Will this investigation continue? Apparently not formally. Will the news media keep it alive as a controversy? Likely. Will we get more clarity, or only heat and not light? Too soon to say. I am open to contrary facts, but I am not seeing them yet. So far, I see no basis to assume that Sgt. Crowley was (1) racist, (2) stupid, or (3) abusing his authority.

My point is that since Obama inserted himself into this, I predict his allies will rally to him and use all available means to smear and intimidate and harass someone who has found himself adverse to Obama.

UPDATE II: Mr. Gates lives in a city with a black mayor, a state with a black governor and a country with a black President.

Was Michael Jackson Murdered?

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I know I shouldn’t wallow in tabloid speculation but this profile of Michael Jackson [h/t/ Instapundit] suggests that he might have been.  

If the story is true, Jackson would have been worth more alive than dead to many people including his  entourage. If Jackson failed to perform due to ill health, the promoters of his upcoming series of 50 London concerts would lose all the money they put in. If he died, they could recover some or all of their investment from insurance. Someone in his  entourage  might have feared that Jackson would be sued and wiped out if the concert promoters had learned he had been too ill to perform when he made the contract. If he died, they at least would have the estate and children to pick over (or thought they would). His Nation of Islam  bodyguards  might be the obvious suspects because (1) no one can murder an individual easier than their own bodyguards and (2) they may have detested Jackson for his homosexuality.  

As I wrote before, we see in superstars like Jackson all the psychopathologies that used to afflict the absolute rulers of old.  Assassination  would be just one more parallel.  

Maybe we should issue an Intrade contract for when the first murder conspiracy book will be published. I’d put my money on 30 days.

What Scandal?

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Milo asks if there is any foreign news coverage of the recent scandal in Great Britain.

I can’t say that there was. In fact, I was surprised by the news that there was a scandal playing out. Such was the dearth of news concerning the issue in the US.

So what was the whole hullaboo about?

The Speaker of the House of Commons, Michael Martin, resigned today under a cloud of corruption allegations. Besides the fact that he was using public funds for private use, he also allowed the police to search the offices of a fellow member of Parliament without a warrant. It was the first time in 300 years that The Speaker was ousted.

Why don’t we seem to care? I can’t speak for anyone else, but it seems to me that this is a private internal affair. The charges of corruption seem to be pretty well established, there is almost certainly something behind them, but it really doesn’t effect American interests. This is something the voters in the UK need to straighten out.

(Cross posted at Hell in a Handbasket.)

At Least They Caught Them

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Strategypage reports that someone was caught trying to sell nuclear material….

“Ukrainian police arrested three men trying to sell eight pounds of plutonium, for $10 million. It turned out that they did not have plutonium, but the less radioactive (and not suitable for nuclear weapons) Americium (which could be used for a dirty bomb). The three arrested (a politician and two businessmen from Western Ukraine) had obtained the radioactive material (which was originally produced inside Russia) from someone outside Ukraine.”

Seems this happens on a fairly regular basis.

The essay goes on to discuss how much nuclear material is floating around out there. It is unlikely that terrorists could cobble together a nuclear bomb, but a dirty bomb is certainly something within their capabilities.

Just thought I’d brighten up your Monday.