I'm fascinated by people who can do useless things very well, so I liked Grandinite's link to a video of a guy who's won a fast freehand circle drawing contest. … [Read more...] about A Perfect Circle
Restitution of Famous Murderers
Is it ethical to sell-off a criminal's possessions to pay restitution to his victims? You'd certainly think so. After all, he took something from the victims, so he should have to give them back enough money to make up for what they lost. It's a basic case of making good for the damage done. When the crime is murder, of course, the victim isn't around any more, and money … [Read more...] about Restitution of Famous Murderers
Comparing Strange and Culosi
Here's a disturbing comparison between a pair of news items: Jennifer Lea Strange dies from drinking too much at a water drinking contest hosted by KDND, a Sacramento, California radio station. The very next day the station cancels the show and fires everyone involved. Fairfax, Virginia Police shoot and kill Sal Culosi as he emerges unarmed from his house to meet a friend … [Read more...] about Comparing Strange and Culosi
Power and Relationships
Eugene Volokh points out that Washington state has some really strict laws about the relationships between healthcare providers and their patients. The usual rationale behind these laws is that an exploitive power relationship exists between a doctor and his patients, but I don't understand how that works. Perhaps in some (possibly mythical) past era doctors were viewed as … [Read more...] about Power and Relationships
The Black Donnellys
This show has not been on the air yet, but as a critic, I am able to get advanced copies of shows. Okay, I’m full of it. I got it from Netflix. It's available on DVD with a mid-season recap of the show Heroes. NBC doesn’t seem to be fully behind this show. The Netflix DVD gives Heroes top billing and it only features a recap of the season so far. You would think that … [Read more...] about The Black Donnellys