Britain Has a New Crown Jewel

Posted on September 4, 2008, 5:56pm | Mike Riggs

Finally—or, So soon?—Sherry Jones has found a publisher for her lusty Islamic love story (and it has its own heavily-sourced and lengthy Wikipedia entry!):

[British] Publisher Martin Rynja (of British publishing house Gibson Square), describing himself as "completely bowled over by the novel and the moving love story it portrays," called Jones's book "an important barometer of our time":

"In an open society there has to be open access to literary works, regardless of fear," Rynja said in a press release. "As an independent publishing company, we feel strongly that we should not be afraid of the consequences of debate. If a novel of quality and skill that casts light on a beautiful subject we know too little of in the West, but have a genuine interest in, cannot be published here, it would truly mean that the clock has been turned back to the dark ages."

Leave it to the Brits, with their libel-happy laws and their magazine police, to go where Americans dare not read. There's a first time for everything, I suppose.

Michael C. Moynihan on Jones here. Yours truly on Jones here and here. Ron Bailey here on the type of readers Random House didn't want to risk offending.

Just When I Wonder If I'm Too Hard on Treehuggers

Posted on September 4, 2008, 5:46pm | Katherine Mangu-Ward

...they pull something like this.

Emotional Hippies - Crying Over Dead Trees - Watch more free videos

I love trees, too. But my goodness.

I was very skeptical of the authenticity of this video, and remain mildly so. But Syndee L'ome Grace is real. She's been around the movement for a long time, doing things—like leading "rap sessions" at the 1996 World Vegetarian Conference on "Loving and Coping with Our Meat Eating Friends and Family," getting thanked in The Vegan Sourcebook—which make sitting in the forest mourning dead trees a plausible followup activity.

This cry-in seems to have been sponsored by Earth First! (or some faction thereof), a group known for taking things too far—like car-bombs-and-puke-ins too far. A little wailing in the woods is nothing to these guys.

Via The Chilling Effect

More Adventures of the Keystone KGB

Posted on September 4, 2008, 4:50pm | Michael C. Moynihan

While some of my media comrades are busy addressing the supposedly ineffable (Whose the mommy?), and awaiting the predictable (tonight's speeches), I'll take this moment to catch up on the goings-on in Putin's Russia. We'll start with opposition journalist Magomed Yevloyev, who ran afoul of local leaders in Ingushetia and was "accidently" shot in the head by the Russian police. As The Economist noted, "even by Russia's recent bloody standards, it was a brazen killing." The BBC has details:

According to a lawyer close to the website, Mr Yevloyev was detained by police after landing at Nazran airport late on Sunday. They took him away in a car, Reuters reports. "As they drove he was shot in the temple... They threw him out of the car near the hospital," Kaloi Akhilgov said.

Then there is the case of itinerant English teacher Michael White, who stands accused of fomenting war between Russia and Georgia. According to Kremlin officials, White's passport was captured on the battlefield by Russian forces. Nonsense, White says. From the WSJ:

The passport the Russians showed off last week does appear to have been Mr. White's. He says it looks to be the one he accidentally left in the seat pocket of a Moscow-New York flight in October 2005. "It seems probable that some Russian person on the flight picked it up," says Mr. White.

The U.S. State Department confirms Mr. White reported the passport missing in 2005 and that it was canceled. Mr. White was issued a new U.S. passport that year, and another in 2008, both of which he showed a reporter.

[...]

Milton Bearden, a highly decorated former CIA operative, dismissed the notion that an intelligence agent with any intelligence would carry his passport with him in the field, much less lose it. He characterized the Russian claims as "slapstick," saying that if a passport is going to be held up as evidence of U.S. meddling, "it shouldn't belong to some guy teaching English in China."

Alexei Kondaurov, a KGB veteran and critic of the Kremlin, said that "using a 'found' passport to expose the Americans seems really small-time," adding that "the Soviet Union's secret services never stooped that low."

From The Guardian's Russia correspondent Luke Harding comes this fascinating piece, in which he writes that "In South Ossetia, I witnessed the worst ethnic cleansing since the war in the Balkans." For those unfamiliar with The Guardian's politics, it should be mentioned that they have been predictably hostile to Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili, their editorial page editor writing that the Georgia conflict was some sort of neoconservative setup. A snippet from Harding:

Refugees from Karaleti and nearby villages gave the same account: South Ossetian militias had swept in on August 12, killing, burning, stealing and kidnapping. Sasha, our Kremlin minder, however, had a different explanation. "Georgian special commandos burned the houses," he told us. I demurred, pointing out that it was unlikely Georgian special commandos would have burned down Georgian villages north of Tskhinvali, deep inside rebel-held South Ossetia. Sasha's face grew dark; he wasn't used to contradiction. "Those houses suffered from a gas or electricity leak," he answered majestically.

Full story.

New at Reason: Tim Cavanaugh on the new face of identity politics

Posted on September 4, 2008, 4:25pm

White identity politics have been around for a while, in the form of cracker culture humor, Gretchen Wilson records, and the war on arugula, writes Tim Cavanaugh. But in last night's convention speech, Sarah Palin offered a new brand of identity politics.

Read all about it here.

New at Reason: Matt Welch on Republican Economics

Posted on September 4, 2008, 3:00pm

"Reform" night didn't really mention any of John McCain reforms, writes Matt Welch, but it did celebrate the economic incoherence of the Republican Party.

Read all about it here.

A Video Poem from the Last Days of the Republic (Ron Paul Flyover Edition)

Posted on September 4, 2008, 1:57pm | Nick Gillespie

Watch, weep, laugh:

Over the skies of St. Paul, Minnesota/
There flew the banner of freedom/
High above where freedom was being destroyed/
By a Republican Party that cares more about/
Fascism/
Than it does about the rights of individual citizens/
To buy their marijuana with gold coins

Cato to Host Forum on No-Knock Raids With reason's Radley Balko; Berwyn Heights, Maryland Mayor Cheye Calvo, and LEAP co-founder Peter Christ

Posted on September 4, 2008, 12:01pm | Radley Balko

Here are the details, from Cato's website:

Should No-Knock Police Raids be Rare-or Routine?

POLICY FORUM
Thursday, September 11, 2008
4:00 PM (Reception To Follow)

Featuring Cheye Calvo, Mayor, Berwyn Heights, Maryland, Radley Balko, Senior Writer, Reason and author of Overkill: The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America, Peter Christ, Co-founder, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. Moderated by Tim Lynch, Director, Project on Criminal Justice, Cato Institute.

The Cato Institute
1000 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001

The Prince George’s County police department is under fire for a recent drug raid on the home of Berwyn Heights mayor Cheye Calvo. Unbeknownst to Calvo, a box containing marijuana was delivered to his home. Shortly thereafter, police officers kicked in the front door and shot both of Calvo’s pet Labrador retrievers. The police have subsequently cleared Calvo of any wrongdoing but are unapologetic about their raid tactics. Are no-knock, paramilitary raids an appropriate tactic for drug investigations? Or do sudden, unannounced entries bring unnecessary violence to police investigations? Join us for a discussion of the Prince George’s incident and, more broadly, the militarization of police work in America.

Cato events, unless otherwise noted, are free of charge. To register for this event, please fill out the form below and click submit or email events@cato.org, fax (202) 371-0841, or call (202) 789-5229 by 4:00 PM, Wednesday, September 10, 2008. Please arrive early. Seating is limited and not guaranteed. News media inquiries only (no registrations), please call (202) 789-5200.

If you can't make it to the Cato Institute, watch this forum live online.

Now Playing at Reason.tv: Tucker Carlson on Campaign 2008, Libertarians, and the Future of the Freedom Movement

Posted on September 4, 2008, 11:56am

Journalist and MSNBC commentator Tucker Carlson emceed Ron Paul's Rally for the Republic (and reportedly walked out in disgust after former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura's bizarre questioning of Osama Bin Laden's role in the 9/11 attacks). reason.tv caught up with Carlson at the rally and talked to him about Campaign 2008, libertarians, and where the freedom movement goes from here. (Approximately nine minutes.)

Now Playing at Reason.tv: Scenes from the Ron Paul Rally for the Republic

Posted on September 4, 2008, 10:05am | Nick Gillespie

reason.tv's Dan Hayes went backstage at the Ron Paul Rally for Liberty to talk with attendees about what motivates them to follow the Texas congressman. (Hint: It's not Jesse Ventura's 9/11 theories.)

Palin +1

Posted on September 4, 2008, 9:51am | Radley Balko

Sarah Palin is one of only three governors to sign a proclamation for "Jury Rights Day," an event sponsored by the pro-nullification Fully Informed Jury Association.

Via Volokh.

Register Now for Reason Goes Hollywood, November 14-15!

Posted on September 4, 2008, 9:47am

Lights! Camera! Action!

Reason Goes Hollywood!

Nothing captures the American imagination like Hollywood—and now, lovers of liberty will gather on the Walk of Fame to explore the ways in which film and freedom converge. Come find out more about the future of American cinema-and join in the party of the year as we celebrate Reason's 40th anniversary!

When: Friday, November 14 and Saturday, November 15.

40 Years of Reason Gala Dinner: Friday, November 14

Where: Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Hollywood, California

Confirmed speakers include Bjorn Lomborg, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Reason all-stars. 

Registration for Reason Goes Hollywood is open to all, but space is limited. Sponsorship opportunities are available. If you would like to sponsor the event or have any questions, please contact Jennifer Kambara at jennifer.kambara@reason.org, or (310) 391-2245.

Ohio Eminent Domain Case Ends

Posted on September 4, 2008, 9:40am | Nick Gillespie

Here's the close to a precedent-setting eminent domain case from Ohio:

The owner of the lone house standing in the middle of the 11-acre site that was the focus of a landmark eminent-domain case has sold his property to Rookwood Partners for $1.25 million.

Joe Horney's sale of his vacant rental house ends a long legal battle that drew national attention, and clears the way for development of the site, located on prime real estate at Edwards and Edmondson roads.

Horney, who bought the house for $63,900 in 1991, was the last of the 71 property owners on the site to sell to Rookwood Partners. The developer spent more than $20 million for the other properties and tore down all the buildings, leaving only Horney's boarded-up home and detached garage....

The [Ohio] high court ruled that it was illegal for Norwood to use eminent domain for private economic development.

As a result, Ohio approved a law last year that places more restrictions on the use of eminent domain.

The court decision also influenced other court rulings and legislation throughout the nation....

The $1.25 million is almost twice what Rookwood Partners paid for the property of Sanae Ichikawa-Burton and Matthew Burton, the second-to-last holdouts to sell.

More here.

reason on the Norwood case. On eminent domain abuse more broadly.

New at Reason: Steve Chapman on McCain and Palin

Posted on September 4, 2008, 7:00am

In his latest column, Steve Chapman explains why a true maverick would never have selected an underqualified running mate primarily because of her sex.

Read all about it here.

New at Reason: Michael C. Moynihan on Sarah Palin and the Media's Need "To Ask Questions, No Matter How Batty"

Posted on September 3, 2008, 8:38pm

Hours before the Republican vice presidential candidate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Paulin, makes the most important speech of her life, reason's Michael C. Moynihan looks at the strange rumors surrounding her and asks whether bloggers such as The Atlantic's Andrew Sullivan are doing due diligence or partisan attacks.

Read all about it here.