Saturday 30 October, 2004 at 12:03AM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (7)

This is kinda scary. A LiveJournal weblogger just had a visit from the Secret Service for comments they made on a personal weblog. Specifically, the author, anniesj, wrote a satirical prayer against Bush that I wont repeat lest I end up on the same shitlist as her. Now before jumping to any analogies between the US Secret Service and the nazi SS, I should mention that the action was initiated by some asshole misguided patriot reporting the 'prayer' to the Secret Service, which meant the Secret Service were then duty bound to investigate. WTF was the person who reported it thinking? Sounds like a damn good way to get someone in trouble if they pissed you off...

The original entry has since been removed, but the experience has prompted anniesj to write an entry of warning to others about just how free their freedom of speech really is. Here's some quotes from it:

At 9:45 last night, the Secret Service showed up on my mother's front door to talk to me about what I said about the President, as what I said could apparently be misconstrued as a threat to his life. After about ten minutes of talking to me and my family, they quickly came to the conclusion that I was not a threat to national security (mostly because we are the least threatening people in the entire world) and told me that they would not recommend that any further action be taken with my case. However, I do now have a file with the FBI that includes my photograph, my e-mail address, and the location of my LJ. This will follow me around for the rest of my life, regardless of the fact that the Secret Service knows that I am not a threat.

There was quite a bit more about the post itself and how the Secret Service came to be involved (which is sounding very Big Brother-ish in the sense of citizens reporting other citizens on the slightest whim), but the following message in the entry was particularly worth quoting as well:

What happened to me CAN happen to you. This is really the main reason why I am posting this publicly. I WANT you to make an example out of me. I want you to tell your friends to be CAREFUL about what they say on the Internet, because someone IS reading it and it CAN come back and bite you on the ass. And as nice as the Sekkrit Service dudes were (and honestly, they WERE very nice - we even gave them coffee and shit, and they laughed with us and were generally very cool about the entire situation), you don't want them coming to your house. It's just not very fun. What you say on the Internet can affect your real life. Due to what I said online, I now have an FBI file. And due to certain policies that a certain administration has instituted, I could now be placed on the government's "no-fly" list, could be subject to random searches of private property without my knowledge or permission, and could be subject to wiretapping surveillance. I doubt that any of these things will happen (except with the "no-fly" list - according to my attorney, that's a strong possibility and is something we are looking into), and I could just be being paranoid, but after the Secret Service showed up on my doorstep, I think I'm entitled to a little paranoia. Because shit, I never thought THAT would happen, either. So be aware.

This case reminded me of another case a couple of years ago where the owner of a fairly controversial political website was jailed (and the website taken down) because some time earlier an unknown person among many thousands had posted a comment or something on an old entry giving details of how to make a chlorine bomb (something that most adolescent schoolboys have done at some stage or another). That comment was viewed as a threat to national security and the webmaster held responsible. What is possibly likely is that the website itself was making people sit up and think about what was going on in the US, so someone in power decided to shut the webmaster up.

In light of stories like this becoming more and more commonplace, I'm seriously thinking of editing through and deleting any entries over the last three years on Urban Scrawl that might be seen as 'anti-establishment' and could therefore get me in trouble or on some shitlist (hence the title of this entry, The Beginning of The End?). The fact that I'm even considering this speaks volumes. I'm studying Orwell's novel 1984 at the moment.. it's sounding far less fictional than it ever used to when I read it years ago.

strange happenings

      Thursday 28 October, 2004 at 5:27PM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (1)

I'd only just got home from class a few minutes and there was a very loud helicopter noise outside. I'm looking out our apartment window right now there's a big Black Hawk type Army helicopter hovering almost right above our apartment building (I guess it's one of the stripped down Black Hawks they have for Manhattan for emergency use since 911). It's been hovering there for about 15 minutes now.

There is also a smaller police helicopter circling at the same time now. I've heard some sirens, but that's hardly unusual. Kinda concerning with elections in a couple of days. Nothing on NY1 news about it so I guess I'll update if anything comes of it. They're still there btw, it's been about 25-30mins now.

slava's snowshow

      Saturday 16 October, 2004 at 10:18AM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (9)

Last night we (Ice, Altie and myself) met up outside Barnes and Nobles in Union Square in Manhattan (the one on E17th and Broadway), had a nice dinner at a noisy restaurant/bar in Union Square, which I'm still unsure if it was the famous Union Square Cafe or not, then headed to the Union Square Theater to watch a show. The show was Slava's Snowshow.

Words really can't even come close to doing justice as to just how amazingly good this show was - it was absolutely stunning. I think it's probably ruined me for all future Broadway shows - I seriously doubt anything will be able top this one. The visuals are simply stunning (hell, it snows inside the theater) and there is a substantial amount of audience involvement. It is a moving show that pulls you right into it (whether you want to or not, hehe) and brings you back to a childhood where all your troubles are left at the door. You'll come out smiling, of that there is no doubt. If you have a chance, GO SEE IT, you'll be glad you did.

We met Slava Polounine for a short while at the end of the show, and he even got a kiss from Ice. He seems to genuinely enjoy what he does, and heck, who wouldn't enjoy a 'job' where you get to transform serious-looking be-suited wall street types into grinning idiots having snowball fights at the end of the show. Yup, it's that kind of show, you just can't help yourself. I want to go again. Thanks Slava, and thanks Ice and Alt for taking me.

submarine for sale

      Friday 15 October, 2004 at 12:20PM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (1)

This is just out there. If I were to say the words "Neiman Marcus", what would you immediately think of? Clothing, catalogs, and an online department store, right? Well now you can add submarines to that list.

Submarines? Yes, I'm talking the real thing here - 22 foot long, two-person submarines able to dive down to 1,500 feet with up to 24 hours life support. Don't believe me? Check it out for yourself. Go to neimanmarcus.com and do a search for 'submarine' and you'll find it, or just go direct to this eyebrow-raising item right here.

The Underwater Aviator comes with a price tag of US$1.7mil, so have all your credit cards handy. This would be one very kewl toy to have ..you hear me Santa? 'Only in America', as the saying goes. Man I'd love to pop up out the back of Raglan in one of these and jump out for a surf!

getting cooler, classes going well

      Thursday 14 October, 2004 at 5:59PM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (0)  ::  trackbacks (1)

The weather is definitely cooling down now, we're seeing very few 80°+F days, if any. Most days are around mid-60 to 70°F (near 20°C). Temperature-wise it's very similar to what Auckland (New Zealand) is getting right now, but with less wind and rain, which is a good thing.

I've had a couple more exams, as I think I mentioned recently. I got 90% for the latest Trigonometry exam, and 102% for Psychology. You're wondering how it's possible to get 102%, right? Ok, the exam had a bunch of questions that make up the 100% total, then there was an optional 'bonus' question (well, two of them really) that would give you a couple of extra percentage points and help to cover marks lost where you may have messed up in the main part of the exam. I got it all correct apparently, hence 102%. Make sense now? Yup, clear as mud.

six apart scores

      Saturday 9 October, 2004 at 8:07PM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (2)

Some all too rare good news - Six Apart, authors of TypePad and the Movable Type content management system (in use on this domain), have offered Jay Allen a position as Product Manager with Six Apart in San Francisco, which Jay has accepted. This means a big move back to the US for Jay, who has been living in Budapest, Hungary, for the last few years. Jay is the author of (among other things) the utterly indispensible MT-Blacklist weblog anti-spam utility, which I've had the privelege of being part of a small group of beta testers over the last few months. I can't say enough in praise of Jay's work in combatting spam and the development of MT-Blacklist, which has been entirely free since its inception. The dude's got a heart of gold and a whole heap of skill to boot, and will definitely be an asset to Six Apart. Gratz Jay, you certainly earned it.

organ donor? be afraid

      Friday 8 October, 2004 at 11:22AM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (6)

If you've elected to be an organ donor, you may want to reconsider. The following story comes from the pages of The Daily Sentinel, a widely circulated western Colorado newspaper.

William Rardin, 36, had shot himself (it was not specified whether it was accidental or otherwise) and was declared brain dead at Montrose Memorial Hospital on September 26. The Donor Alliance, the organization that coordinates organ donation for Colorado and Wyoming, did not accept the declaration of death at Montrose and suggested Rardin be flown to St. Mary's Hospital, an experienced trauma center. Rardin was transferred by helicopter, and was again declared brain dead before surgeons removed his heart, liver, pancreas and two kidneys. All five organs were transplanted into Colorado patients.

Allegedly, neither hospital's declaration met state guidelines. There's six tests that can be done to determine if someone is brain dead, yet only one was done, and that test wasn't successfully passed (it was inconclusine).

Montrose County Coroner Mark Young has since ruled the death of William Rardin was a homicide, the cause of death determined as the removal of Rardin's organs by an organ recovery team, after determining the two hospitals improperly decided the man was brain dead. Translation: Rardin was murdered by the hospital(s). Young added that it did not mean Rardin would have otherwise walked out of the hospital; "The hospitals didn't really know that until after the autopsy, but the outcome would have been the same. He wouldn't have survived," Young said. The point is that they apparently didn't have this information when they removed his organs.

Young has turned over all information in the case to the district attorney to decide whether charges are warranted but said under law, the physicians and hospitals performing organ donations cannot be held liable in civil or criminal court.

What the hell? How did a law get passed that physicians and hospitals performing organ donations are not responsible when (in this case) it appears to be a clear cut case of negligence. That's unreal. Will anything happen with this? Probably not, it'll just get swept under the carpet and a few people will get paid off to shut up about it. The coroner actually went as far to say, "This has me so concerned I'm taking the donor option off my driver's license. I don't mind donating if I'm dead, but hopefully the results of this incident will mean new standards will be established [to make sure I am dead first]."

The thing is, there are set standards it seems, but these two hospitals didn't carry them out. That's unacceptable.

..update 16th October..

The matter has been fully investigated and it has been determined that the Colorado man (William Rardin) was in fact brain dead before his organs were removed for donation and that the correct tests were done to determine brain death. The incident is viewed as a grave error in judgment by the coroner (Mark Young) who initially declared the death a homicide. The conclusion of the report states, "Not only was Mr. Young incorrect in his conclusion regarding the cause of death, his actions seriously undermine the best interests of the citizens of our state, and caused undue distress to Mr. Rardin's family."

Please read the comments section, particularly this comment from Lisa Heyden. Thanks Lisa :)

whar's me parrot? arrrr!

      Friday 1 October, 2004 at 6:42PM (Nereus)  ::  permalink  ::  comments (0)

Classic story. A man believed he was a pirate at sea when he was actually a prisoner in the Dunedin police cells (New Zealand). The man was found naked on the roof of a South Dunedin building at 10am last Sunday and taken to the Dunedin Police Station, where inquiries found that on Saturday the man drank cactus juice (mescaline) which is a Class A drug. While in custody he continued to believe he was a pirate at sea and was using a rolled-up magazine as a telescope. He has been admitted to Dunedin Hospital after his drug-induced psychosis failed to wear off 24 hours later (48 hours after taking the substance); according to police, the man was apparently still heavily affected by the drug and 'appeared quite agitated and excited' on his little pirate fantasy. Maybe he really is a pirate? heh. North Dunedin is the location of Otago University (where I spent one year doing medical intermediate) and has about an 85% student population. Definitely a party town. I'm guessing this guy was a student there.

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