Friday Night News and Open Thread

By Jeralyn, Section Blog Related
Posted on Fri Nov 19, 2010 at 07:44:42 PM EST
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Joe Scarborough gets a 2 day suspension from MSNBC for political contributions. Scarborough says one was to his brother and the other to family friends, so he thought the rule didn't apply.

A judge in Florida has revoked Wesley Snipes bail and ordered him to start serving his 3 year prison sentence for tax evasion immediately. "Snipes' appeal for a new trial and motion to interview the jurors who sealed his fate were denied."

Tom DeLay's defense has rested in his Texas trial. He did not take the stand. Deliberations begin Monday.

Georgia Federal Judge Jack Camp pleaded guilty today to aiding and abetting a felon's possession of cocaine and two misdemeanor counts of possession of cocaine and giving a court computer to his stripper friend. His guidelines: 4 to 10 months. Not charged: possession of a weapon. He resigned from the bench this morning.

Cholera has struck Haiti's main prison in Port-au-Prince. Thirteen inmates are dead and dozens more infected.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

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Friday Night News and Open Thread | 18 comments (18 topical)

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Dr, Wesley Snipes, puhlease. I (none / 0) (#1)
by oculus on Fri Nov 19, 2010 at 11:51:44 PM EST

was present when SUNY Purchase awarded him an honorary doctorate, following the shortest graduation speech in recorded history.

Wesley Snipes (none / 0) (#10)
by Peter G on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 11:13:39 AM EST

is a terrific actor, in comedy, drama, and action pictures alike. SUNY was rightly proud of him as an alum, and right to award him an honorary doctorate on that basis. The jury found him not guilty of all the charged felonies -- that is, all counts requiring proof of intent to defraud the IRS -- and even found him not guilty on three of the six counts (tax years) alleging a willful failure to file tax returns. They convicted him only of three misdemeanors (failure to file annual personal tax returns). Yet the judge imposed an extraordinary three-year prison sentence by running statutory maximum (one-year) terms consecutively. It is very doubtful that the case was properly brought in federal court in Florida, since Snipes lived -- no surprise -- in L.A. and NYC. (Disclosure - I argued Mr. Snipes' appeal in this case.) The time to pursue his appeal on this ground to the Supreme Court has not expired.


Oh, perhaps you can settle the question (none / 0) (#11)
by oculus on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 11:29:57 AM EST

the students and parents were asking at the graduation. Did Dr. Snipes actually graduate from SUNY Purchase?

Good luck on your appeals. Disclosure: I did represent state employees who were sued in a "pure trust" case. Plaintiffs ended up pleading nolo in federal criminal cases and received probation.


He attended, but didn't finish (none / 0) (#17)
by Peter G on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 02:06:27 PM EST

Was a theater major, and speaks highly of what he learned there, but no, he didn't complete his undergraduate education and didn't receive his bachelor's.


: It is a wonderful school. Thanks for (none / 0) (#18)
by oculus on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 02:25:46 PM EST

answering my question--after all these years. My daughter graduated in 1998!

A relaxing weekend. (none / 0) (#3)
by lentinel on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 06:21:40 AM EST

Ah.
StarWars missiles in Europe.
More Drones for Pakistan.
Bombs in Baghdad.

It's a full life.

A Reagan Republican in the (none / 0) (#6)
by observed on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 07:23:22 AM EST

White house, too!


U.S. tanks to Afghanistan. Boots on the (none / 0) (#12)
by oculus on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 11:32:25 AM EST

ground. Much, much later: tanks. Makes sense to me.


: As W.C. FIelds (5.00 / 1) (#16)
by lentinel on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 01:53:58 PM EST

kinda said, "Tanks. Tanks for nothing".

The Judge (none / 0) (#4)
by Ga6thDem on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 07:03:51 AM EST

Camp story has been all the news down here in GA.

Sweetheart deal... (none / 0) (#7)
by kdog on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 10:49:53 AM EST

for the judge...inequality under the law strikes again. I'm shocked:)

Aside from mixing guns and intoxicants being a very bad idea, the only crime I see is the corruption, and the drug war itself of course..for that stuff Mr. Camp is guilty as sin, the rest I couldn't care less, party on dirty old man, just allow all of us the same opportunity to be free.

Love it when the system does my job of mocking it for me..this story would make a great movie.


He lost whatever pension he had (none / 0) (#9)
by Harry Saxon on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 11:02:39 AM EST

as a judge, he is almost certainly no longer a member of the bar, and I'm sure that there are whispers that follow his family around, Southern tradition, you know.

IMHO, the real punishment begins when he's finished, not begun, his jail term.


I'm thinking you may have ghost written (none / 0) (#19)
by oculus on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 02:27:23 PM EST

Glenn Greenwald's soon-to-be published book, given his description today of its themes.


: Corruption is all the fashion these days (none / 0) (#20)
by Harry Saxon on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 03:09:04 PM EST

I have a cousin in North Texas who used to go to local places to play poker, until a new Sheriff was elected, and it then turned out that the places had been paying off the previous Sheriff to overlook their business.
They all got shut down, of course, but I'm sure there are other variations on this theme going on across the country.
<subliminal tag>Bell,CA</subliminal tag>

Why is Wesley Snipes... (none / 0) (#8)
by kdog on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 11:01:54 AM EST

getting 3 years for a little tax trouble and Judge Camp only getting 4-10 months, or maybe as little as 15 days, for offering his lady friend "help" with her record (aka renting his robes), and the rest?

Free Wesley. I don't wanna pay Judge Camp's salary either, do y'all? Or the rocket docket judges. Or Obama's. That's no crime people...let the Blankfeins pay them, they're the ones getting served...not Wesley, and certainly not us. The whole thing is so twisted.

: It's called letting the tax cut for those (none / 0) (#13)
by oculus on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 11:34:12 AM EST

making over $300,000 expire.

Finally some good news (none / 0) (#14)
by waldenpond on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 12:18:51 PM EST

Alternet:

[I doubt you've heard of the Utukok River Upland in northwest Arctic Alaska, or the projection that it contains the largest coal deposit in North America -- an estimated 3.5 trillion tons of bituminous coal, which is nearly 10% of world's known coal reserves. Let's put that number in perspective. The annual coal consumption in the U.S. is about 1 billion ton, which means at the current rate of consumption we could potentially burn the Arctic coal for the next 3,500 years.]

Truly, I did not know we had all this coal available. Oh and equally good news... it's on the surface so it will be cheaper to get at via mountaintop removal.

Spurned cat (none / 0) (#15)
by waldenpond on Sat Nov 20, 2010 at 12:33:25 PM EST

OK, this one made my eyes water, my cat came running to watch and my dog started barking....

Agonist Friday Cat Blogging video