Roman Polanski has broken his silence and issued a statement concerning his extradition. It's published in French in a magazine called La Regle du Jeu. The English translation is here. I've uploaded it here.

A hearing will be held Monday on whether to unseal the sworn statement of the former DA on the case, Roger Gunson, now retired. [More...]

It's a beautiful Sunday afternoon here, too nice to stay at the computer. What haven't we written about that you'd like to discuss? Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

The military commission proceedings against Canadian child soldier Omar Khadr continued this week. At issue is the voluntariness of the statements the then 15 year old made after being found in a pile of rubble, shot three times and blinded in one eye.

Was he provided pain medication? Apparently not. (More on that here.) Yet the CIA agent who "interviewed" him (after the military and the FBI got their turn) testified:

CIA agent, Robert Fuller, testified that he treated Khadr very well, brought him water and snacks, and that Khadr "appeared happy - as happy as he could be." Khadr never complained to him of abuse, Fuller says.

The information Khadr provided turned out to be false. And to have grave consequences. Remember Maher Arar, grabbed at JFK airport and shipped to Syria where he was tortured for a year? [More...]

The Denver Post has some great photos of yesterday's rally against Arizona's SB 1070.

The one that says "Stop Ignorance" got me thinking. How do we do that? Usually the answer is education. Can that work with the prejudice against immigrants? It may be too late for adults, but can we reduce their success rate in passing their bigoted views onto the next generation? Should schools include in their curriculum, starting in kindergarten, classes and presentations that extol the contributions immigrants have made to this country and promote diversity? Something has to counter-balance what kids are hearing at the dinner table from ignorant parents.

At Hot Air, Allah Pundit writes:

The more I think about it, the more I’m convinced that Arizona’s law will be a spectacular success even if it never goes into effect. Look at how much it’s accomplished: It’s derailed the Democrats’ amnesty bill; it’s refocused national attention on the disgraceful state of border enforcement; it’s convinced some illegals that Arizona’s not worth the trouble; and it’s baited bottom-feeders in the media into all sorts of dumb, self-discrediting analysis. All that in just a week, before the law’s even taken effect. That’s some mighty efficient legislatin’ right there.

In a post that approvingly provides an Ann Coulter link, the "bottom-feeders" line is particularly amusing.

If becoming an international pariah was Arizona's goal, there is no doubt SB 1070 is a smashing success. Well done, Arizona.

Speaking for me only

Solicitor General Elena Kagan has let the time pass for appealing (seeking Supreme Court review) of a historic $101 million verdict for civil rights violations in a lawsuit against the FBI for framing four men from Boston for a mob slaying. The government will pay up.

Josesph Salvati, now 77, served 29 years in prison. He will get $31 million, plus another $2 million in interest.

DOJ tried to get Kagan to seek review but she refused, siding with the wrongfully convicted men. The verdict was rendered by U.S. District Court Judge Nancy Gertner, following a 22 day bench trial. [More....]

Times Square had a bomb scare this evening, causing police to evacuate the area. A fire started in a parked car, and after breaking through the car windows, an incendiary device was found inside.

All reports indicate the vehicle contained gasoline, propane and possibly gun powder. Incindiary devices are not explosive devices, but are lethal.

Officers proceeded to dismantle the device on the scene.

This does not sound terror-related to me, particularly since it was an incendiary but not explosive device, but the story is developing, so stay tuned.

One evacuated tourist was apparently not concerned. ""We can't get to our show," was her comment.

Update: Police don't suspect terrorism.

This being the first Saturday in May, the Kentucky Derby will be contested at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.

The Run For the Roses. The Most Exciting 2 Minutes in Sports. The Derby is rife with cliches and catch phrases. I have no feeling for today's race, which will be on a sloppy track with no clear favorite. There certainly is no Secretariat in the field. Speaking of Secretariat:

The 1973 Derby had an amazing field. Forego was in the race too.

Open Thread.

Hundreds of teenage ballplayers arrive every year in the United States trying to make a better life. They come from the Dominican Republic and Venezuela and Mexico and elsewhere, all to play the most American of games. Most grew up in poverty. Few know English. The game welcomes them anyway.

In less than two months, the Arizona Rookie League begins its season. Nearly 140 young players born and raised in Spanish-speaking countries will congregate in Phoenix and its suburbs for their first taste of professional baseball. They may do so as the nation’s most controversial law – the one that says some people who look like them are most certainly not welcome – goes into effect in late July.

[. . .] More than 1,000 players, and hundreds more executives, coaches, trainers and business staff, spend about eight weeks of spring training in the Phoenix area. Latin Americans represent 25-plus percent of major league players, and the percentage in the minor leagues is even higher. The sweeping reform, which critics say invites racial profiling, is almost certain to hit baseball if the federal government doesn’t intervene.

Wonk Room finds the smoking gun:

Wonk Room recently obtained an email written by Kris Kobach, a lawyer at the Immigration Reform Law Institute — the group which credits itself with writing the bill — to Arizona state Sen. Russell Pierce (R), urging him to include language that will allow police to use city ordinance violations such as “cars on blocks in the yard” as an excuse to “initiate queries” in light of the “lawful contact” deletion[.]

This law is intended provide legal cover for racial profiling. That is all it is.

Speaking for me only

Via BarbinMD, Arizona has outlawed mogs:

The Arizona state Senate on Thursday passed a bill making it illegal for a person to “intentionally or knowingly creat[e] a human-animal hybrid.”

No more of this:

Arizona . . . Pssst, it was a movie.

Speaking for me only

Willie Clark, convicted of the murder of Denver Bronco Darrent Williams, was sentenced today to life in prison plus 1,152 years.

Clark got an additional 1,152 years in prison for the 16 attempted murder charges and the sentencing enhancements for his habitual criminal history.

"Mr. Clark, I will simply say from where I sit, barring a retrial of this issue, you are spending your life in prison and you too can be a good person and make a change and make a difference with your life however it turns out," Judge Christina M. Habas said.

If there's a point to such a sentence, it escapes me. Colorado law mandates life without parole for first degree murder, that wasn't in doubt. Clark asked to be absent from his sentencing and the judge refused, saying he had to listen to the victims' witness impact statements. Why? According to the Judge: [More..]