Kudos to Palm Beach County Judge Laura Johnson, who recognized what voters in Riviera Beach did not: fashion statements are in fact statements, messages about who we are, definitions of our personal autonomy. And frankly, notwithstanding the desire of 72 percent of Riviera Beach's voters for fashion conformity, it ain't none of their darn business if (presumably younger) city residents want to wear saggy pants.

The judge overturned Riviera Beach's saggy pants ordinance, which had prohibited anyone from wearing pants below the waist exposing skin or underwear. ... Offenders were cited with a $150 fine for the first offense and $300 for the second offense, considered a misdemeanor.

The ordinance was enforced only about 20 times (including the arrest of Julius Hart, whose public defender challenged the ordinance after his client spent the night in jail), which suggests that the police weren't ticketing plumbers. Do we really want to give the police discretion to decide whose below-the-waist skin is offensive? More to the point, do we really want fashion-sensitive voters deciding how we can or can't dress? How would Riviera Beach residents like it if the government banned those ridiculously huge wrap-around sunglasses that seniors love to wear?

If you haven't been watching the Bulls-Celtics game, you have been missing a classic. Now going into double OT.

The Bulls pull it out. Ben Gordon is a modern day Boston Strangler.

This is an Open Thread.

Prosecutors say Donald Schmidt is a psychopath. Maybe he is. They say he has serious difficulty controlling his dangerous behavior. That might be true, although he's been in custody for more than 20 years and has therefore had no opportunity to demonstrate volitional control in an unconfined setting. During that time, according to his public defender, Schmidt has earned a high school diploma, has served as a grief counselor, and has excelled in treatment.

Putting aside the ongoing debate over the wisdom of detaining people in what amounts to a correctional setting out of fear that they might cause harm if given their freedom, Schmidt's continuing detention by the State of California is particularly appalling because, at the age of 37, he is being held in juvenile custody.

[more ...]

NYTimes Editorial:

If they are credible, the stress tests will finally provide the information the government needs to deal forcefully with the banking mess — assuming the White House also has the will to do what is needed. . . . If the capital shortfalls are severe, . . . it is all but certain that private capital will not be forthcoming. The government should act quickly to plug the holes. . . . The administration should . . . recapitalize the banks. And it should take temporary control if that infusion results in a majority stake.

[MORE . . .]

While torture apologists like Stuart Taylor and, sadly, Obama Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair, "know" that torture worked, it turns out the CIA never evaluated the efficacy of its torture techniques:

The CIA used an arsenal of severe interrogation techniques on imprisoned Al Qaeda suspects for nearly seven years without seeking a rigorous assessment of whether the methods were effective or necessary, according to current and former U.S. officials familiar with the matter. The failure to conduct a comprehensive examination occurred despite calls to do so as early as 2003. That year, the agency's inspector general circulated drafts of a report that raised deep concerns about waterboarding and other methods, and recommended a study by outside experts on whether they worked.

[More...]

Can it be five years since the horrendous photos at Abu Ghraib were released? Yes.

The ACLU has been fighting all this time to obtain more photos of the abuse. As a result of their 2004 lawsuit, the Defense Department will release additional photos from Abu Ghraib and other prisons in Iraq and Afghanistan on May 28.

In case all you remember is Lynndie England leading a detainnee around on a leash or a hooded detainee wired and standing on a box, there were many other kinds of physical abuse that took place. Some were quite bloody and left ugly scars.

Here are some photos that were released for the first time in 2006. Scroll through them. [More...]

Stuart Taylor, professional right wing shill masquerading as a "centrist," says:

[T]here is a body of evidence suggesting that brutal interrogation methods may indeed have saved lives, perhaps a great many lives -- and that renouncing those methods may someday end up costing many, many more.

Of course Taylor is lying. And when I say he is lying, I mean he is telling a deliberate falsehood. But he has been doing that for a long time. Here's the trouble - Obama Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair has told the same lie. What do we do about Blair?

Speaking for me only

The Washington Post today quotes a political advisor to Condoleeza Rice on the Bush/CIA torture policies:

"The systematic, calculated infliction of this scale of prolonged torment is immoral, debasing the perpetrators and the captives," said Philip D. Zelikow, a political counselor to then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice who reviewed secret Bush administration reports about the program in 2005. "Second, forfeiting our high ground, the practices also alienate needed allies in the common fight, even allies within our own government. Third, the gains are dubious when the alternatives are searchingly compared. And then, after all, there is still the law."

Also don't miss Frank Rich in the New York Times: He leads with Dave Cullen's new book on Columbine (congrats to Dave) and then moves onto Bush and torture. This week will mark the 5th anniversary of the photos showing the abuse at Abu Ghraib:

Your turn.

This is an Open Thread.

Update (TL): I'm watching The Wrestler. Have any of you seen it? It's out on DVD and On Demand.

Update (TChris): If you share TalkLeft's distaste for Sheriff Joe Arpaio, you'll want to watch Stephen Colbert's masterful interview of "America's Toughest Sheriff."

Predictably, David Broder demonstrates what a foul human being he is:

Obama is being lobbied by politicians and voters who want something more -- the humiliation and/or punishment of those responsible for the policies of the past. They are looking for individual scalps -- or, at least, careers and reputations. Their argument is that without identifying and punishing the perpetrators, there can be no accountability -- and therefore no deterrent lesson for future administrations. It is a plausible-sounding rationale, but it cloaks an unworthy desire for vengeance.

What a mendacious hypocrite Broder is. He urged investigations and attacks on Bill Clinton because "[he] trashed the place" (but torture is a-ok to Broder): [More...]

Protesters clashed with police officers outside World Bank and International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington this morning. As usual, the police got the better of it.

Authorities used batons and pepper spray when activists tried to march onto a prohibited street, and several people were pushed to the ground by police. ... "This was very excessive," said the Rev. Don Thompson, 73, who was observing the protest on behalf of the National Lawyers Guild. "They didn't give us a warning to get off the street."

Police say they were "unexpectedly swarmed" by protesters. Perhaps the officers weren't paying attention to the direction the protesters were walking.

The NFL Draft is today. The Detroit Lions, who have the first overall pick, have already reached a agreement with Matthew Stafford, the Georgia quarterback. Good luck with that Lions. I have my doubts about Stafford. The selection process begins at 4 pm this year.

This is an Open Thread.