A man who killed his wife because she would not quit smoking has been detained indefinitely under the mental health act.

BBC NEWS | England | Smoking drove man to kill family

Lectures include:
    Unlocking the Promise of Stem Cells
    A New American Empire?
    The College Experience
    Magic of Numbers
    E.O. Wilson, on the relation of science and the humanities

Harvard@Home

Monroe County Family Court Judge Marilyn O'Connor ruled March 31 that both parents ``should not have yet another child which must be cared for at public expense.''

Judge Orders N.Y. Couple Not to Conceive

Decius wrote:
] ] One of the nation's wealthiest towns will soon have
] ] cameras and computers running background checks on every
] ] car and driver that passes through.
]
] The license plate takes another step closer to it's destiny.

If there's no expectation of privacy in public places, why aren't floridians forced to walk around Naked?

RE: newsobserver.com - Florida town to use surveillance cameras

] "Toothing" is a new craze where strangers on trains,
] buses, in bars and even supermarkets hook up for illicit
] meetings using messages sent via the latest in phone
] technology.
]
] "Toothing is a form of anonymous sex with strangers --
] usually on some form of transport or enclosed area such
] as a conference or training seminar," says the
] "Beginner's Guide To Toothing" on a Web site dedicated to
] the pursuit.

heh. I just got a USB Bluetooth adapter for my laptop. I was just thinking that my cellphone now does just about everything less than sucking my dick. Toothing, huh?

Reuters | Breaking News from Around the Globe

The AP reporter tried to explain that she had a digital recording device, so there was no tape to give up. Ms. Konz said the deputy seemed baffled by that.

You do not like green eggs and ham /
I do not like them, Sam I Am.

I see a tape recorder and I grab it /
No, you can’t have it back, silly rabbit

She needs to sue.

A Justice's Sense of Privilege

] Although there is debate over the exact date it started,
] on November 02, 2000, a person calling themselves
] Timetravel_0, and later John Titor, started posting on a
] public forum that he was a time traveler from the year
] 2036.
]
] One of the first things he did was post pictures of his
] time machine and its operations manual. As the weeks went
] by, more and more people began questioning him about why
] he was here, the physics of time travel and his thoughts
] about our time. He also posted on other forums including
] the old Art Bell site. In his posts John Titor
] entertained, angered, frightened and even belittled those
] who engaged him in conversation.
]
] On March 24, 2001, John Titor told us he would be leaving
] our time and returning to 2036. After that, he was never
] heard from again. Speculation and investigation about who
] John Titor was and why he was online continues to this
] day.

An interesting read at the very least. A great use of sci fi to rephrase relevant social points.

John Titor :: Time traveler

WASHINGTON (BP)--The U.S. Senate finally will vote on a bill that would recognize an unborn child as a crime victim when he or she is injured or slain during the commission of a crime against a pregnant woman.

I'd like to see a fetus file a complaint. That would make my day. Other than that, this a shitty way to decide where life begins.

Unborn victims bill slated for Senate inaugural vote - (BP)

RSF says the Chinese government has shut down two blog hosting sites, for allowing bloggers to post articles critical of the government. At least 15,000 weblogs have been shut down as a result. [ed: Chinese political bloggers might like to investigate Invisiblog.com, an untraceable weblog publishing service]

vigilant.tv - China shuts down blogs

] CNSNews.com) - In a vote of 254-163, the House Thursday
] passed the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, a measure that
] would allow a defendant to be charged with two federal
] crimes when an unborn baby is injured or killed during an
] attack on the pregnant mother.

Sneaky way to decide on when life begins. Not good.

House Passes Unborn Victims of Violence Act -- 02/26/2004