Human Interest: Sound Wall When?! — Part 1

Posted on March 30, 2012 by Brian Wright

“the quiet enjoyment of one’s property”
by Brian Wright

private nuisance:
n. the interference with an individual’s peaceful enjoyment of one’s property, which can be the basis for a lawsuit both for damages caused by the nuisance and an order (injunction) against continuing the noxious (offensive) activity or condition. Examples: fumes from a factory above the legal limit, loud noises well above the norm, directing rain water onto another person’s property, operating an auto repair business in a neighborhood zoned residential, or numerous barking dogs… [and government-highway noise?]
—courtesy law.com Continue reading →

Movie Review: Dr. Strangelove (1964)

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Brian Wright

Harbinger of 2012 October? ___ 10/10
Review by Brian Wright

Directed by Stanley Kubrick
Written by Stanley Kubrick

The subtitle for Dr. Strangelove is ‘How I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb.’ The form of which I find comes in handy for any number of acts of state excess: e.g. “how I learned to stop worrying and love drone surveillance,” “how I learned to stop worrying and love my RFID biochip,” “how I learned to stop worrying and love my FEMA internment camp”… you get the picture. In the 1950s and 1960s the threat of ‘nukuler war toe to toe with the Rooskies’ was a constant anxiety among all segments of American society, and no doubt other countries in the line of fire. It sure the hell scared the hell out of me. Continue reading →

Guest Column: Whackjobs for War vs. Iran

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Brian Wright

America Gone Stupid Over Iran [1] – An Analysis
by Lawrence Davidson

An excellent column sent my way via Gerhard Fuerst, occasional contributor to these pages. The alert liberals are usually on top of the threats to peace; I only wish more than a handful would come out and admit they were wrong about Obama. Not so much for voting for him in 2008, but for thinking he hasn’t brutally betrayed every shred of support he showed for peace, civil liberties, and even a semblance of economic sanity. Again, due to the urgency of the message, this column is an excerpt without asking for direct approval from the author. He of course retains all rights to the piece.

It is estimated that up to a million people died as a function of George Bush Jr.’s decision to invade Iraq. According to Bush, that decision was made on the basis of “faulty intelligence.” This is the ex-president’s way of passing the blame. The decision was made by Mr. Bush’s insistence that the accurate intelligence he was getting from traditional sources was false, and that the lies he was being told by other parties (for instance, Iraqi con-men such as Rafid al-Janabi) were true. Continue reading →

Brian’s Column: The Freedom Philosophy

Posted on March 24, 2012 by Brian Wright

Reemerging in America at an opportune time
by Brian Wright

Toward the end of February 2012, preceding the Ron Paul primary in Michigan—I say Ron Paul Primary because no one else in the field of Republican (or Democratic) presidential candidates seems to actually be there, you know, like they’re just empty suits signifying nothing—on February 28, I was fortunate to attend a Ron Paul rally at Michigan State University, in the MSU Auditorium, East Lansing. It was quite windy and chilly, but hundreds of students arrived as much as an hour early, fighting the campus’s horrendous parking situation, just to be sure to get a good seat for the free event. Continue reading →

Movie Review: Trial and Error (1997)

Posted on March 23, 2012 by Brian Wright

Daniels and Richards primo comic duo ___ 7/10
Review by Brian Wright

Written by Sara Bernstein
Directed by Jonathan Lynn

Richard Rietti: Maybe he’s the person that he conned the most. I mean we all do that, you know. We all keep a little bit of ourselves hidden. Cuz if we didn’t, well, then we’d have to look at who we are. Who we really are. And if we didn’t like it, well, we’d have nobody to blame but ourselves.

Take a break and return to the late 90s for a unique Hollywood offering that few people were aware of at the time, whether from poor marketing or simple inattention. Trial and Error takes the established screen actor at the time, Jeff Daniels (Gettysburg, Fly Away Home), and combines the kinetic TV presence, Kramer (Michael Richards), from Seinfield to accomplish an extremely funny and worthy satire suggesting the Biblical adage, “What shall it profit a man to win the whole world yet lose his own soul?” Continue reading →

Guest Column: Don’t want to see their faces

Posted on March 19, 2012 by Brian Wright

Don’t want to hear their screams
by Christopher Cooper

Excerpted from Common Dreams column (the article is so good I could not resist the urge to copy and convey under the Coffee Coaster beachhead—though with reference to the full source, but admittedly more than fair use might dictate—a good share of it):

The whole thing is regrettable, really. Shocking, truth to tell. And so sad, I’m sure, for those people, those blanket-wearing, beard-growing, false-god-worshiping, probably-related-to-terrorists, citizens of Afghanistan whose wives and children and babies were gunned down in their beds, shot, murdered, slaughtered, and then burned by one of America’s finest Sunday morning. But hey, what are ya gonna do? These things happen. Continue reading →

Brian’s Column: The Insufferable Acts

Posted on March 18, 2012 by Brian Wright

Vote, educate, nullify, boycott, or sever?
by Brian Wright

Note I did not include ‘flee’ or ‘submit,’ as reasonable options. In either case, whether you leave the country—not really an alternative for most of us—or crouch down to lick the hand that feeds you, the Insufferable Acts[1] do not go away. The question is truly what is the best strategy/tactic for eliminating these violations of human liberty? Okay, enough suspense. My choice, as of this five minutes, of the best single tactic is ‘nullify,’ and I shall tell you why in a moment. Having spilt the beans, let me state, as well, that all of the responses listed are vital implements in the liberty toolbox, and each individual must decide which is the best and most effective for his/her own situation. My personal order of preference now: Continue reading →