Gated Community Paranoia Leads to Rights Infringment

An interesting event occured recently on Hilton Head Island, SC. While playing a round of golf on a course in Hilton Head Plantation, a gated community, two golfers noticed a pair of teens walk out onto the fairway with what appeared to be an M16 assualt rifle and a handgun. The golfers retreated without contacting the teens and called security. When security arrived they seized the weapons, which turned out to be no more than airsoft guns which had had their orange tips painted black for use in a school movie project. Security also searched the teens' homes and seized additional weapons of the same type valued at about $500 and issued citations for trespassing and illegal use of firearms. Read the whole story here

These types of replica firearms are most often used in a sport known as airsoft. It is a cousin of paintball, only much more realism oriented, hence the extremley accurate nature of most of the weapons. This is why normally these weapons have a federally mandated quarter-inch orange blaze on the tip of the barrel. However, there is an important fact here that is being overlooked. The wapons were to be used in the production of a movie. Under the United States Code (Title 15, Chapter 76, Section 5001), which governs the color coding of air-powered weapons, the teens were well within the bounds of the law. A replica firearm may have its tip colored black if it is being used in the production of a movie, play, etc. While running onto the fairway was not the brightest of ideas, it should be noted that no firearm law was broken by the teens.

So, other than trespassing, these teens have done nothing wrong. That being the case, it would seem that Hilton Head Plantation security is infact guilty of illegal search and seizure of thier property, a much more grave offence. While I empathize with security for wanting to do something about this given the fatal shooting of a teen with such a weapon at school not too long ago, it is no excuse for infringing on people's rights. This has been an on going problem within gated communities. The regimes governing these areas seem to think that they are not subject to the higher-order governmental structures of this nation (i.e. state and federal constitutions) and often infringe upon residents rights and even go so far as to break their own by-laws whenever they see fit in acts of gross favoritism to the rich(er) and connected. I've heard of a Department of Justice probe into such actives by gated communities. Perhaps it is long past time for them to cast in eye on the Hilton Head Island region.


Sections of this article taken from The Island Packet and Chivey8747

Grokster Gets Panned

In a blow to file swappers everywhere, the Supreme Court has ruled that file sharing companies can be held liable for copyright infringments commited with their software. Now this would be entirely logical if it weren't for a couple of points. For starters, the legal online music stores do not yet offer all the music available on peer to peer networks. In addition, these stores often engage in monopolistic actions. For example, the popular store iTunes, run by Apple Computer, distributes files that are only compatable with Apple products. The second problem is the obvious fact that there is a dangerous presedent to be set in allowing a company to be sued over the usage of thier product. What's next? Sueing car companies for hit and runs? However, in the end I say to the recording industry: Let the file swappers be until you are truely capable of providing an identical service to the paying public.

Supreme Madness

This morning the Supreme Court delivered a split decision on public displays of the Ten Commandments. Just as it did on Affirmative Action, the court split hairs. The court ruled that the Ten Commandments could be displayed on government property but said it could not be displayed inside a government building. In both cases the deciding vote was cast by Justice O'Connor. Can I get a resounding "Make up your mind already!" on such important rulings? Now personally, I am a huge supporter of the separation of church and state. I fail to understand why the religious right sees the removal of Christian symbols from public venues as an attack on their faith. How would they feel if it were a statue of the Budda or passages from the Koran that were being displayed on public grounds? Something tells me that they would be outraged. Religion must be entirely absent in government. If not for fairness then for the sake of allowing new ideas to form rather than locking into ancient paradigms. Furthermore, I challenge those that seem to believe that it takes such huge amounts of convincing to get a person to believe in the same faith as them. If it takes this much convincing, have you ever considered that it might be you that is in the wrong? What evangelicals must realize is that whatever spiritual path a person chooses of their own free will is the right one, for them.

Flag Burning

In Congress's endless campaign to waste time, the House of Representatives has passed a proposal to amend the Constitution banning desecration of the United States flag. Why is Congress so obsessed with constitutional amendments lately? It would seem that if this Congress were to have it's way the Constitution would be as complicated as the tax code. And this business with banning the desecration of the flag is all rather pointless because those who would desecrate a flag will continue to do so anyway. Does anyone remember what happened the last time there was a constitutional ban on something? Prohibition and gangsters ring a bell? Here's a creative suggestion: Rather than taking away people's rights, how's about giving the rest of us the right to attack anyone that is desecrating a flag? This would be far more effective than any constitutional ban.

US in talks with Insurgents

Once again the US has bothered wasting time talking to insurgents in Iraq. Beyond peaceful surrenders and informants I can't see the point behind talking to insurgents. All this does is stall our troops and make us miss a chance to apprehend them. No end to the violence can be negotiated because there is no chain of command among terrorists. This is the problem we now face after making a critical mistake during the initial invasion. Our forces swept directly into Bagdad, destroying the center of Iraqi power rather than securing the borders and laying seige to Bagdad. This strategy would have allowed for a treaty of surrender to be negotiated, the chain of command preserved, and the insurgency avoided.
However, to dewell on what should have been done is not productive. We must deal with reality and wish to change the future, not the past. The insurgency cannot be negotiated with and therefore it is best that our soldiers not waste their time talking and continue with the only solution left. Eliminate the insurgents one at a time until either the Iraqis can take over the task or there are no more insurgents to be had.

Iran gets New President

Iran has chosen a new president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the ultra-conservative mayor of Tehran. This is causing much concern for fear of undoing the progress achieved under the previous administration. I find this all very ironic. The Bush administration pushes a conservative agenda and for democracy in the middle east but when they get both in one package they call it "flawed". Why is this? Perhaps they're just upset that they can't take any credit. Still other's complain that Mr. Ahmadinejad will undo progress. This is not taking into account the election's demographics. Ahmadinejad is the candidate of Iran's religious poor that have always supported the statis quo. Those people that Ahmadinejad will be angering are the affluent and resourceful. We must not lose sight of the possibility that these resourceful individuals may choose to instigate a revolution. This election may prove to be beneficial after all.

Notice of Seizure...From Walmart?

Everyone seems to be weighing in on this topic so here goes my version. The Supreme Court now says that the government can take your land and then use it for commercial purposes. Which means that companies with considerable political clout can convince local governments to seize any piece of property that company wants. Now, I'm a supporter of eminent domain in the use of public projects such as roads, schools, and redevelopment. However, this new practice of corporate seizures is a bad omen of what could come. One shocking possibility is chronicled in Max Berry's book Jennifer Government. We must be careful not to let the power of the people succumb to the power of the dollar.

China is tops

The Pew Research Center of the People & the Press has found that in most US 'allies' the eminent domainpublic opinion of eminent domainChina is better than that of the United States. Does this seem backwards to anyone? With China on it's way to becoming a superpower and the eminent domainPentagon rattling the saber in China's face over it's military build-up, shouldn't our allies be on our side? Or is this just more proof that the world has lost it's mind? The people of the world have become so petty that they would disown the country that has saved their rears time and again just because it was tricked into an already inevitable war. And what about China? Just because China's human rights violations aren't in the news doesn't mean they aren't there. Remember that several US internet companies have had to censor words like 'democracy' and 'independence' from their Chinese portals. Obviously, the masses could use some perspective.

Newclear?

Another Bush speech, more to talk about. eminent domainPresident Bush gave a speech today in which he pushed for the creation of new eminent domainnuclear power plants throughout the United States. I probably lost half of you halfway through that sentence at the word 'nuclear'. It is the one word that conjures demons in the minds of all. The average person is thinking: radiation, leukemia, Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, Nagasaki, Hiroshima. Horrible thoughts of death, destruction, and disease.
Such reverence for the immense power of nuclear technology is healthy, but not if this reverence causes paralysis. eminent domainNuclear power, in fact, has the best track record of all large scale energy. The risk of living within 50 miles of a nuclear reactor for 30 years is roughly the same as smoking a single pack of cigarettes. The only problem is that eminent domainnuclear waste is almost impossible to dispose of, a problem to which a solution has been selected. A solution called eminent domainYucca Mountain.
The Yucca Mountain site is shaping up to be the best place in the world to store nuclear waste. The waste can be kept both 1,000 ft above the water table and 1,000ft below the surface at the same time. What's more, Yucca Mountain is one of the most geologically dormant areas on earth. All these credentials have given the site an EPA approval to house waste for the next 10,000 years. However, there is outrage about moving waste from where it is now - low security storage tanks at reactor sites - to the Yucca Mountain site. It is believed that the transport vessels are subject to theft and accidents. This is incorrect. The nuclear transport vessels are the most durable containers ever conceived. They can survive being dropped from 30,000 feet, running into a concrete wall at over 100 mph, and being hit by an F-4 Phantom jet at full speed. Trust me, this is the safe deposit box of your dreams.
Now, I don't believe that nuclear power is the correct total solution. However, it is a step in the process. We must have a dominantly nuclear energy system before we can move on. Nuclear power is the energy technology of the 20th century. We must implement the technology of the last century before we can create the technology of the 21st century. And what is this technology? The much heralded eminent domainhydrogen economy. Zero emission vehicles, fusion power, and portable fuel cells for all. In order to realize this dream of limitless energy, we must increase the energy we have on hand. Just as you must spend money in order to make money, you must use energy to make energy. And if we want everything we're going to have to start with a whole lot of something.