Sunday, February 05, 2006

Quote for the Day, 2/5/2006   "I changed the lock on my front door so you can't see me anymore and you can't come inside my house and you can't lie down on my couch.  I changed the number on my phone so you can’t call me up at home and you can't say those things to me that make me fall down on my knees.  I changed the number on my phone.  I changed the kind of car I drive so you can't see me when I go by and you can't chase me up the street and you can't knock me off of my feet.  I changed the kind of car I drive.  I changed the kind of clothes I wear so you can’t find me anywhere and you can't spot me in a crowd and you can't call my name out loud.  I changed the kind of clothes I wear.  I changed the tracks underneath the train so you can't find me again and you can't trace my path and you can't hear my laugh.  I changed the tracks underneath the train.  I changed the name of this town so you can't follow me down and you can't touch me like before and you can't make me want you more.  I changed the lock on my front door, I changed the number on my phone, I changed the kind of car I drive, I changed the kind of clothes I wear, I changed the tracks underneath the train, I changed the name of this town.  I changed the name of this town.  I changed the name of this town."   -Lucinda William, "Changed the Locks"   I like this song so much I'm quoting it in its entirety.  This is one of my five favorite songs.  Unfortunately, if you know this song at all, you probably know the Tom Petty cover, which is fine, but it distracts from the lyrics, whereas Lucinda's earlier version emphasizes the lyrics.  And those lyrics have a simple poetry reminiscent of the greatest Motown tunes.  I mean, I changed the lock on my front door, I changed the number on my phone, I changed the kind of car I drive, I changed the kind of clothes I wear, I changed the tracks underneath the train, I changed the name of this town:  That, my friends, is an indictment. 10:35:45 PM    comment []

Warrantless Searches=Unwarranted Searches   According to reports in the Washington Post, intelligence officials involved in the illegal warrantless eavesdropping program initiated on the President to fight terrorism, or maybe just to fight civil liberties, have estimated that fewer than ten calls a year by American citizens result in a legitimate suspicion of any involvement with terrorists.  (No word on whether so much as a single call that proved "dirty" actually resulted in actionable intelligence.)  At the same time, those officials estimate that 5000 Americans have secretly had their civil rights violated.  Basically, 99.9% of these folks did absolutely nothing wrong, and got wiretapped for their troubles.  (To meet probable cause--a requirement for a legal wiretap--requires that there be at least a 50% chance of accuracy.  If the police investigated every lead with a .1% chance of accuracy, we would all be police.)  Monitoring the foreign phone calls of 5000 Americans must chew up an awful lot of man-hours of our intelligence officials, which is even more damaging to national security if, as one imagines, many of those American citizens are speaking in Arabic.  We don't have that many people in intelligence who are fluent in Arabic, and we're using them on this?  This is an instance where obeying the law--by not wiretapping Americans without a warrant--also coincides with our best national security interests.  The people involved here in violating Americans' civil rights could be involved instead in trying to protect the country.  Given the apparent volume of such officials leaking details of this program to the press, they agree.  But it's more important to the President that he assert that he's above the law than to protect Americans, I guess.  Some of you probably watch 24.  Would you rather Jack Bauer, the hero of that program, try to stop a dirty bomb from detonating, or have him listen to some guy talking to his French girlfriend?  'Cause the President's more worried about the French girlfriend. 8:38:54 AM    comment []

Download This!   Belle and Sebastian-Funny Little Frog  If you know Belle and Sebastian, you know sometimes this band can get a little precious.  If you don't know Belle and Sebastian, well, sometimes they can get a little precious.  And this is one of those times.  Still, it's kind of a fun song, even if the lyrics are a bit silly.  (And no, the song is not about Kermit, or the French...which were my first two guesses when I saw the song title.) 1:25:19 AM    comment []