Buffalo Wings and Toasted Ravioli

I’m on my traditional December vacation, this time in Prague. My photos are here.

I had some half-baked plans to do some podcast recording here, but I don’t know if that’s going to work out. I always intend to record some interviews with the locals on my travels, somehow thinking that I will overcome years of practice at keeping to myself and not knowing how to strike up conversations with strangers. Some people have that gift; I don’t.
DSC00693.JPG

Originally uploaded by jmilles.

Michael Rebbmann writes at North Buffalo Journal and Review:

In today’s Buffalo News, we learn that former Buffalo Police Officer, Gregg O’Shei, was spared a jail sentence for using his position to gain sexual favors.

A former Buffalo police officer who forced at least two women to have sex with him or face being arrested was spared a jail term Thursday.

Gregg O’Shei, 43, told City Judge Craig D. Hannah he wanted to apologize to everyone he has embarrassed by his actions, including his victims. He declined to comment as he left court.

I am troubled by the contradiction in the account of this crime.  The two women had a choice of having sex with O’Shei or being arrested.  How can someone having a choice claim to have been forced to have sex?  They could have chosen to be arrested and not had sex with the Police Officer.  Since they chose to have sex, I don’t think they should be able to claim they were forced.

I’ve read that blog enough to suspect this is not a Jon Swiftian satire.  It was funny when Jack Benny did something like this (”Your money or your life.”  Extended pause.  “I’m thinking!”), but not here.  Is it an attempt to turn “choice” against itself?  Or is it libertarianism taken to the extreme?  Help me out here.

It’s not:

According to new federal rules that went into effect Dec. 1, schools, businesses, and other organizations are required to keep tabs on all eMail, instant messages (IM), and other digital communications produced by their employees.

The rules, first approved by the U.S. Supreme Court in April, have been widely reported as important for businesses and other for-profit enterprises. But, according to legal experts familiar with the case, the High Court’s ruling also applies to public schools and other nonprofit organizations.

The ruling–which states that any entity involved in litigation must be able to produce “electronically stored information” during the discovery process–the process in which opposing sides of a legal dispute must share evidence before trial–could have significant implications for school technology departments, especially in places where technicians routinely copy over backup discs and other information housed on school servers….

“We have a policy that employees need to sign indicating they have no right to consider anything that they do on our network–including our [voice-over-IP system]–as confidential,” wrote Marc Liebman, superintendent of the Berryessa Union School District in San Jose, Calif.

But even that isn’t enough, explained Lindsay–not anymore….

For schools and other entities that often require the assistance of legal counsel, the rules also could translate into higher costs, experts say. Not only will organizations need to find a method of cataloging and searching through eMail and IM in the event of a lawsuit; they also might consider investing in technology that helps them filter through digital photos stored on employees’ phones and information tucked away on removable memory sticks, among other portable devices….

Complete List of Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
http://www.prestongates.com/westlaw/Rules%20with%20Notes.pdf

Letter from Committee of Rules and Practice of Procedure outlining the new rules
http://www.uscourts.gov/rules/supct1105/Summary_Proposed_Amendments.pdf

(Hat tip to Adri at Library Stories.)