Archive for March, 2013
Trespassing on train tracks: illegal, romantic, and dangerous
A few years back, the winning entry (by Alan Cheuse) of NPR’s 3-minute fiction competition started like this: “In Tucson, we found the train-hopping kids, and went with them to New York City. I was 15 and had never been out of Arizona. That summer, I’d learned to eat from Dumpsters, carry a knife in my […]
Violent military tactics used by police investigated by ACLU
After a decade of wartime innovations, some of those military technologies are finding their way into local and state police stations. Law enforcement is already successfully using predictive technology in capturing serial offenders on American soil. Originally developed by the military to help bomb squads in Iraq and Afghanistan figure out where explosives were buried, police have […]
Bring your gun to work law passed in Tennessee
A recent gun law is pitting employers and employees in Tennessee against each other–and each group has the law on their side. A new bill, signed by Governor Bill Haslam, will allow people with handgun carry permits to store these weapons in their vehicles, no matter where they’re parked. However, the new bill conflicts with […]
Sovereign citizens and private property
Tabitha Gentry locked up the gate on her beautiful multi-million dollar home in East Memphis with a chain and padlock, alerting reporters that they were on private property. Gentry didn’t acquire the property by getting a mortgage with a bank that’s regulated and protected by the federal government. She’s a sovereign citizen, and is part […]
Internet privacy and the market for your information
Telescopes may have been invented to gaze at the stars, but they also gave peeping toms the ability to invade privacies from a comfortable distance, rather than just window-adjacent tree branches. And although outdoor security cameras were an achievement in the durability of electronics, they raise major privacy concerns that rage to this day. Google […]
Dog bites nun: how to prevent dog attacks
On February 13, 2013, a Buddhist nun filed a frightening lawsuit against her neighbor, the owner of a dog grooming business. While gardening in her yard, Linda Nguyen, the nun, was attacked by three dogs that escaped through the rickety fence surrounding Carlos Davis’ property. The dogs tore at the flesh of her arms, legs, […]