Google just sent me an early Christmas present

Yup. I'm testing the new ChromeOS. Yeehaw!

Are Marines too prejudiced against gays to fight effectively?

"Mistakes and inattention or distractions cost Marines lives," he said. "That's the currency of this fight."

"I take that very, very seriously," he added. "I don't want to lose any Marines to the distraction. I don't want to have any Marines that I'm visiting at Bethesda [National Naval Medical Center, in Maryland] with no legs be the result of any type of distraction."

via voices.washingtonpost.com

That's Marine Commandant Gen. James Amos, discussing his opposition to repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell.

As others have noted, though, there are certainly gay men and women serving in the Marines -- DADT only prohibits them from being *openly* gay. So it's certainly the case that gay troops have *already* demonstrated the discipline not (as some have inferred from Amos' remarks) to come onto their comrades-in-arms in a combat situation.

I'm not sure that was what Amos is trying to imply, though. It seems to me that what he's really saying is that his own Marines are simply far too prejudiced to be able to fight effectively with an openly gay colleague at their side. That seems an uncharitable judgment, to say the least -- "I'd like to take aim at this Taliban member with the machine gun, but Tony likes dudes!" -- and moreover, it would seem to reflect an extremely poor assessment of the commanders (like Amos) whose job it is to instill discipline and battle-readiness in those Marines.

And not to let my Mennonite background shine through too clearly here, but that's astonishing when you think about it. The Marines can teach young men and women to put aside thousands of years of civilization and lifetimes of moral training so that they can *kill other human beings* -- which is a huge, huge training challenge -- but their commanders don't trust them to simply *be cool and professional* around gay colleagues who share a commitment to defending the country. Are our armed forces really that fragile? I don't think so.

I don't understand Netflix's recommendation engine sometimes

Me @Macworld: Friends syncs social networks with iPhone contacts

The market for iPhone apps that combine a user’s social networks grew more crowded Wednesday with the debut of Friends, an offering from San Fransisco’s Taptivate.

via macworld.com

Mike Vick wants a DOG?

The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback, interviewed by NBC News and the website TheGrio.com, said he and his family miss having a dog. He said he wants to show people that he can be a responsible pet owner and that he would not take the opportunity for granted.

"I would love to get another dog in the future. I think it would be a big step for me in the rehabilitation process," Vick said, according to NBC News and TheGrio.com. The full interview was scheduled to be shown on TheGrio.com on Wednesday.

via sports.espn.go.com

Whatever else you think of Mike Vick, this at least proves that he's really, really not media savvy. He's had such a good year for the Eagles that people were focusing on the positive side of the story -- his comeback from a layoff to return to elite NFL status. Now he'll have people reeling and asking themselves about his judgment all over again. The wise thing to do? Accept your doglessness as a consequence, and above all *don't lament that punishment in public.* Most people regard him as lucky to have his career back. Michael Vick as a dog-owner would be a bridge too far for most of us.

Hat-tip: @lexfri

Me @Macworld: Humble Indie Bundle 2 lets gamers choose their price

Just in time for the holidays, the people behind last spring’s Humble Indie Bundle have returned with an all-new grab bag of pay-what-you-want games, with proceeds going to independent developers and charity.

via macworld.com

Bradley Manning: Locked up, key thrown away

Bradley Manning, the 22-year-old U.S. Army Private accused of leaking classified documents to WikiLeaks, has never been convicted of that crime, nor of any other crime.  Despite that, he has been detained at the U.S. Marine brig in Quantico, Virginia for five months -- and for two months before that in a military jail in Kuwait -- under conditions that constitute cruel and inhumane treatment and, by the standards of many nations, even torture.  Interviews with several people directly familiar with the conditions of Manning's detention, ultimately including a Quantico brig official (Lt. Brian Villiard) who confirmed much of what they conveyed, establishes that the accused leaker is subjected to detention conditions likely to create long-term psychological injuries.

Since his arrest in May, Manning has been a model detainee, without any episodes of violence or disciplinary problems.  He nonetheless was declared from the start to be a "Maximum Custody Detainee," the highest and most repressive level of military detention, which then became the basis for the series of inhumane measures imposed on him.

From the beginning of his detention, Manning has been held in intensive solitary confinement.  For 23 out of 24 hours every day -- for seven straight months and counting -- he sits completely alone in his cell.  Even inside his cell, his activities are heavily restricted; he's barred even from exercising and is under constant surveillance to enforce those restrictions.  For reasons that appear completely punitive, he's being denied many of the most basic attributes of civilized imprisonment, including even a pillow or sheets for his bed (he is not and never has been on suicide watch).  For the one hour per day when he is freed from this isolation, he is barred from accessing any news or current events programs.

via salon.com

I understand military life is different from civilian life, but I do wonder what legal basis the Army has for holding Manning in extreme isolation. I don't contest the Army's right to hold Manning: He has been charged with a crime, and a serious one. But why the solitary confinement? That seems like it should be reserved for people who are a physical threat to their guards and other inmates.

The Air Force deprives its officers of important intelligence

WASHINGTON — The Air Force is barring its personnel from using work computers to view the Web sites of The New York Times and more than 25 other news organizations and blogs that have posted secret cables obtained by WikiLeaks, Air Force officials said Tuesday

via nytimes.com

There's an outfit at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas that few people know about that does something called "open-source intelligence." Reputedly this unit predicted the demise of the Soviet Union -- while the CIA and other "secret" intelligence agencies were reporting the regime's strength -- using a very simple technique: Its offers read Russian papers and books. And that's pretty much all they did. They could see the end coming because of the publicly available information.

And, of course, most of the American government learned about nuclear testing in Pakistan and India from ... CNN.

I'm reminded of these stories for some reason in reading about the Air Force's decision to block its officers from reading the New York Times online. It's not just a show of weakness disguised as a show of strength; it is literally a way of keeping intelligence -- and not just the Wikileaks kind -- out of the hands of its officers. That doesn't seem to be the kind of thing a smart military would do.

Philadelphia smarter, poorer

Philadelphia has become more diverse and better educated - but poorer - than it was in 2000, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released yesterday.

The findings aren't based on data from the 2010 Census count, which attempted to tabulate everyone in the country. Instead, they're from five-year American Community Survey estimates, which the Census Bureau released for the first time yesterday.

"In some ways we're doing better, and in some ways we're challenged," said David Bartelt, professor of geography and urban studies at Temple University, adding that the statistics show "the persistent story of Philadelphia."

via philly.com

Unsurprising.

Philly tax reform is dead, long live Philly tax reform

A bill to turn the city's business-tax structure on its head is dead for now, as its Council sponsors agreed Tuesday to instead work with the Nutter administration in the hope of preserving at least some of their ideas.

A critical Council committee hearing scheduled for Wednesday has been postponed indefinitely, and Mayor Nutter has scheduled an afternoon news conference instead.

In a letter to City Council members Bill Green and Maria Quiñones Sánchez Tuesday, Nutter's chief of staff, Clay Armbrister, outlined the areas of agreement that the two camps would collaborate on.

Those include finding a way to exempt the first $100,000 of a company's sales from taxes and close loopholes that allow national corporations and out-of-town companies to avoid paying city business privilege taxes even as they do business in Philadelphia.

via philly.com

I think Council members Bill Green and Maria Quiñones Sanchez are right to pursue an overhall of the city's business tax system. But since this effort appears to have hit a temporary dead-end, they might want to take aim at the other part of Philadelphia culture that new- and small-businesses find so discouraging: the regulatory thicket.

I think good regulations are good for a community and its businesses, protecting consumers and leveling a playing field so that conscientious merchants aren't at a disadvantage against less-scrupulous rivals. I'm not sure that's what we have in Philadelphia right now. Does anybody talk about L&I in glowing terms? I haven't heard it. But I have seen business startups delayed by months as entrepreneurs navigated the regulatory bureaucracy with often-frustrating results. Some smart council person could probably advance their career -- and do Philadelphia a lot of good -- by advancing the cause of regulatory reform in this town.

Tragic

Instead of helping her prepare for a solo singing performance Saturday, a Chester County couple was grieving the loss of their 11-year-old daughter as police investigated her shooting death.

The West Chester Area School District posted memorial service information on its website Tuesday for Katherine "Katie" Jane Kolinger Urban, a sixth grader at G.A. Stetson Middle School who enjoyed soccer and music. She was the daughter of Paul Barry Urban Jr. and Jane Lantz Urban.

Authorities say she was the victim of an apparent accidental shooting by her 14-year-old brother at the family's Westtown Township home in the 500 block of Coventry Lane at 3:26 p.m. Friday.

via philly.com

Scenes from a City Council hearing on Philly Police corruption

According to city officials, there were 725 civilian complaints against police officers between Jan. 1 and Nov. 30. Last year, there were 697 complaints.

Every witness acknowledged that there are plenty of good officers on the city's 6,500-plus police force, who do hard and dangerous work. But several asked for more transparency in police investigations and their disposition, for an end to stop-and-frisk, and for more officers to be reprimanded, fired, and convicted in cases of misconduct.

Since March 2009, 15 officers have been arrested, including two on murder charges stemming from off-duty shootings. One officer was fired this year after admitting that he fabricated a story about being shot; the officer had shoe himself. In September, three police officers were arrested on federal charges of robbing a drug dealer. And Kenneth Crockett, on the force 26 years, was charged with stealing $825 from a Northeast Philadelphia bar.

The department also has faced a string of tragedies, with five officers killed in the line of duty since 2008.

via philly.com

Let me suggest that the number of civilian complaints against the police is probably something of a significant undercount. There are lots of people who probably don't bother to make the complaint because the investigation process is slow and often unsatisfying, and because maybe it's not worth it to draw additional attention from the department.

Commissioner Ramsey seems to be taking the challenges seriously. And one does have to acknowledge that the vast majority of Philly officers are honest. But it's good that City Council is poking around now. It'll be interesting to see what -- if any -- action develops from the inquiry.

Pew: Suburbanites don't want to live in the city

According to a new Pew Charitable Trusts poll, many residents of the Philadelphia suburbs think the city is a nice place to visit, but they don't want to live there.

Aside from that, the survey of 801 people from seven suburban counties - Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester - found mostly positive views of the nation's sixth-largest city.

via philly.com

I suppose that's why they *live in the suburbs.* If you took a poll of (say) Lancaster Country residents, I bet they'd say the suburbs are nice but they'd rather live in Dutch Country. People -- especially the kind of people who might be inclined to respond to a Pew poll -- tend to live in the kinds of places they want to live.

Yes, I once owned Live's 'Throwing Copper'

And all of you can go to hell for judging me. But seriously: The AV Club's series on '90s music has been pretty great. If you lived through the decade and listened to its music, you should check it out.

Maybe Obama's just not a very good president

As of last week, there were 38 judicial nominees approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee and waiting for a floor vote. Twenty-nine of those nominees left Judiciary without opposition, and at least three came with significant bipartisan support. Given the huge number of lower-court vacancies and this level of support, it's ridiculous that Reid is poised to accept a deal that confirms half of the nominees.

Of course, if there's anyone to blame, it's Reid for his inaction and Obama for his unconcern with the judicial nomination process. At any point during the last two years, Reid could have forced a showdown with Republicans over secret holds and their obstruction of judicial confirmations. What's more, Obama could have been much more diligent about making nominations to fill the large and growing number of vacancies on the lower courts.

via prospect.org

Understand, that criticism above is coming from the left. And you've got to wonder *what* the priorities of the Obama White House actually are. Because everybody who pays even a little attention to politics knows that one of the big reasons capturing the White House is so important is because it's a chance to leave a lasting mark on the judiciary -- not just the Supreme Court, where Obama could hardly avoid doing his duty, but the appellate and district courts as well. *Conservative administrations are very eager to fill judicial vacancies.* And well they should be. It was a low-level George W. Bush appointee, after all, who this week put the health care bill into play by declaring the individual mandate unconstitutional. This stuff matters. And certainly, the GOP is being obstructionist. But it doesn't appear that Obama is trying very hard.

I'd love for Obama to bring about a liberal utopia. Short of that, I'd settle -- after the Bush Administration -- for simple, quiet, competent nuts-and-bolts governance. We're apparently not getting either. Where *is* the president's head?

Philly cop convicted on sex charges

A Philadelphia Common Pleas Court jury this afternoon convicted a retired, 23-year Philadelphia police officer guilty of multiple sex charges for carrying on a sexual relationship with a woman that began when she was 12 and continued into adulthood.

The jury returned about 2:30 p.m. after finding Tyrone Wiggins, 51, guilty of four sexual assault charges including corrupting the morals of a minor. The jury, however, acquitted Wiggins of rape.

via philly.com

The Atlantic Wire quotes my betrayal of the Kansas City Royals

• Why Must I Root for A Small-Market Team! laments Joel at Cup O' Joel. A Kansas City Royals fan living in Philadelphia, Joel explains that it's "way more fun to root for a team whose objective is 'let's try to win the World Series next year' instead of 'maybe we'll be ready for above-.500 baseball in 2012 if everything pans out juuuuuuust right.'" His loyalty crumbling a bit, Joel adds,  "I might even buy my son a Phillies baseball cap."

via theatlanticwire.com

Me @Macworld: CNN debuts on iPad

On Tuesday morning, CNN launched its iPad app, a multimedia offering featuring text, photos, live video, and hourly two-minute updates from the news network's radio service.

via macworld.com

Afghanistan quagmire watch

If you've been reading Rajiv Chandrasekaran's meticulously reported pieces from Afghanistan documenting on-the-ground efforts by the U.S. military to implement its counterinsurgency strategy you get to a point where they start to sound very familiar. Not because the reporting isn't fantastic, but because the larger elements of the story, no matter how much the individual characters change, remain static: Pakistan's approach to the militants on its side of the border remains selective, and the Afghan government is a flawed partner at best. Counterinsurgency requires a legitimate government to protect and the United States doesn't have one now any more than it did when the strategy was announced. If a car doesn't have a working engine, you can put as many fancy sets of rims on it as you want, but it's not going to move unless you push it yourself. Right now, it looks to me like that's all the United States is doing.

via prospect.org

The atheism ad campaign: What would Jesus do?

In New York City, a large billboard promoting atheism at the entrance of the Lincoln Tunnel, which a local affiliate of American Atheists paid for, has generated controversy. (The message: “You know it’s a myth. This season, celebrate reason!)

The Fort Worth group is affiliated with the United Coalition of Reason, whose local chapters have bought bus ads in Detroit, northwest Arkansas, Philadelphia and Washington, as well as billboards in more than a dozen cities, among them Chicago, Houston, New Orleans, Seattle and St. Louis. Most show a blue sky with variations on this message: “Don’t believe in God? You are not alone.”

The ads have incited anger in some places. Vandals destroyed two bus ads in Detroit, ruined a billboard in Tampa, Fla., and defaced 10 billboards in Sacramento. One billboard in Cincinnati was taken down after the landlord received threats.

via nytimes.com

Luke Chapter 9: "He said to the apostles, "When you travel, don't take a walking stick. Also, don't carry a bag, food, or money. Take for your trip only the clothes you are wearing. When you go into a house, stay there until it is time to leave. If the people in the town will not welcome you, go outside the town and shake their dust off of your feet. "

It's interesting to me. The only time the Jesus of the Gospels committed anything approaching violence was *actually against his co-religionists who were defiling the temple.* As for people who were indifferent or antagonistic to his message, his advice was to move on -- not to commit vandalism. Ah well.