Chicago writer to recreate events of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. He should probably skip making out with Sloane Peterson. Would probably land him on a sex offender list.
This story is about one of my old fraternity brothers. It’s sad, but also pretty uplifting in the way his friends and community have rallied around him and his family. Tony and his wife have been writing about his fight with cancer here.
NY Post reporter tells blogger it’s the newspaper’s policy to never credit blogs or other sources for scoops. This is a journalistic tradition I don’t think I’ll ever quite understand. Why is it so difficult to credit someone for their work?
This made me laugh. (Via Scott Greenfield)
Texas passes country’s most generous compensation plan for the falsely convicted. That’s somewhat surprising, both be because it’s Texas, and because Texas has, and likely will continue to have, more exonerees than any state in the country.
Dog slapped with parking ticket. That’s parking, not barking.
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on Saturday, September 5th, 2009 at 8:47 am by Radley Balko
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TheAgitator.com
Dog slapped with parking ticket. That’s parking, not barking.
In the US they’d have just shot him.
proof once again that a badge lowers the IQ by 50 points
Congrats to Mr. McGowan, both on his release and gettin paid. $1.8 mil is a load of cash but there’s no way I’d trade 23 years in a state prison for it. Also, congrats to the state of Texas for trying to do the right thing.
“He should probably skip making out with Sloane Peterson. Would probably land him on a sex offender list.”
It’s okay. Going by IMDB, she’s 42 now.
the lost wife blog was the funniest thing I’ve read in a while- I had to post it on my facebook thing…
Bill: Hell, a commenter on the thread offered to play Sloane. Her userpic was pretty sweet, I think he should take her up on it.
$80,000 a year? I’ll remind anyone who thinks that is generous that Texas prisoners got to enjoy the weeks of temperatures above 105F in July and August, without the benefit of air conditioning.
I wouldn’t agree to spend a year in a Texas prison for anything less than $2million.
If I’m being taxed to pay for this, I’d much rather the DAs stop putting innocent people away in the first place. Start prosecuting corrupt cops who frame innocent people (and corrupt DAs and Judges who knowingly facilitate).
I’m not going to get too excited about my home state offering such a generous reimbursement to the wrongly convicted. It wouldn’t surprise me if, sometime next year, the legislature passes a bill requiring all inmates – even the wrongly convicted – to be billed for their stay in TDCJ.
If it sounds ridiculous, the UK already does this.
Mia Sara was 19 during filming. Very legal. Go for it.
How exactly do they come after you for failure to pay a ticket taped to your dog?
I would hope that compensation for Texas victims of wrongful prosecution, is taken directly from the paychecks of the prosecutors who put them in prison.
Click the “Gone Potty” link at the dog parking ticket site. Seems “Dutch police had already proudly announced they had found more than 47,000 cannabis plants, with an estimated street value of about $7.6million, concealed in a cornfield in the Flevoland province east of Amsterdam.”
It was a University research field growing hemp that was being bred for fiber strength and as a sustainable source. The police failed to do any checking (nothing new there) and mowed down about half the field when the University stopped them. Oops!!
While I commend Texas for having compensation for the falsely incarcerated, they are still missing a zero in the amount per year.
Since we’re talking about Mia Sarah, I would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone of the hugely important fact that if you watch the movie Timecop, you get to see her boobies.
That is all.
I’m glad to see such a great support network around your friend Tony.
My mother has been undergoing treatment for acute myelogenous leukemia since she was diagnosed last december. Now she has been forced to see a new doctor (thanks to Anthem and Norton breaking up) and he wants to move ahead with a bone marrow transplant while she’s in remission.
I’m afraid she’s going to refuse it because of the cost, but don’t know if I can manage a successful fundraising effort for her.
I’m terrified…
Getting tested yourself to see if you’re a match for you Mom would be a good first step. Painful, but worth it.
I would NOT set up any kind of fundraising via PayPal. They’ve really started gouging users for unnecessary fees, as Radley recently documented.
I would just open a PO Box, give out the address on a few trusted sites (like this one) and let the people who know you and care about you help that way.
And, it never hurts to ask people to pray for you and your mom. I will, if you want me too.
Spellcheck! Cleanup on Aisle 16! ; )
Note that the guys in TX only get their monthly stipend if they keep their act together. So the state now has an incentive to put them back in jail where it’s cheaper to keep them and make them lose their potentially millions of dollars in future revenue. And – all together now – what happens when we incentivize something?
As usual, the comments on the cops-shooting-dogs-and-children story are disgusting.
Thank you, Andrew. I’m not the praying sort, but I do believe that the support, prayers and support of caring people – even strangers – can be very uplifting. So I’d be honored if you would include my mom in your prayers. Her name is Christine.
When she was diagnosed, half a dozen of my online friends, people I’ve never met and who’ve never laid eyes on my mom, made chemo caps for her. She was amazed at people’s generosity.
Once I have a better sense of her timeline and what sort of expenses my parents will be facing, I’ll just stick my neck out and start asking all over my surprisingly large online network. You’re right – can’t let fear stop me, just gotta do it.
And I’ll stay far, far away from PayPal! I’m an ING and RME girl all the way.
I’m going to be tested and placed on the registry, but the haem/onc says I’d be an unlikely match. Sibs are better, but she doesn’t have any.
Redundancy! Cleanup on aisle #20!
Jeez… *shakes head*
There are a few idiots (on other forums) commenting that Texas is too generous. So what is 20+ years of life taken away worth?
Not quite so impressive when you take into account that fact that TX likely also leads the nation in convicting the wrongly convicted.