Little Italy Dinner and Movie

Last night was the last night of the season for the Little Italy movie festival. Movies are shown on the side of a building from a projector in a guy's house. One of those great Baltimore things. J and I went early to get dinner at Amiccis.

Since we were in a hurry, we didn't do the usual cocktails and then order - I just got a Peroni. I had a Ceasar salad (OK, we had a ceasar salad) to start, quite good. I had Penne Amicci, penne with sausage, mushrooms, garlic, and spinach. It was OK, but not fantastic. J had the House Gnocci, which was very good, in an excellent cream sauce with proscuitto, spinach, and roasted red peppers. Large servings, quick friendly service, and a really nice casual atmosphere. If you are looking for a quick bite to eat in Little Italy, and don't want to make reservations or dress for dinner, this is a good choice.

Wine would have been better with dinner. Amiccis does have a very limited wine list, but it befits their menu.

The movie was "Big Night", which was pretty good. We enjoyed ourselves.

(As an aside, the usual end of the season movie is "Cinema Paradiso", in Italian, with subtitles. We went a couple of years ago with my brother and his wife, who speaks Italian and had lived in Italy for a time... it's her favorite movie, and became one of mine, too. I was a little dissapointed that it wasn't shown this year.)

On Beer

Stash over at the Spamwise Chronicles is a bit of a foodie. He posted recently that he's looking for some guidance on beer, and I thought I might as well put a little something up on the subject.

First off, if you are looking for someone to explain the different styles and methods of brewing, this isn't your post. There are lots of fine resources on teh internets for that information... this is more about my opinion of some different styles for a novice beer drinker (or someone who doesn't really have a taste for beer) to try.

On the megabreweries: I'm not a fan of American Megabrewed beer. I really don't like Bud (I think it's due to the rice used in the brewing process), and there are far better choices than Coors and Miller out there. That's not to say I'm a total beer snob when it comes to Big Beer. While the popular Light beers are never in my refrigerator, I've been known to buy a 12 of MGD for those hot Saturday afternoons spent washing the cars. (Mexican and Canadian big brewed beers like Molsen, Moosehead, Corona, etc all fall into this category as well).

My favorate everyday drinkable beer is by far Yuengling Lager. It's priced pretty much the same as the Buds and Coors, but it's far, far better. An excellent example of an American Lager. Drink it cold, have it on it's own, or with typical beer food (burgers, pizza, etc).

For a more interesting beer, move into the ale, and sample any number of IPAs, nut browns, English Ales, etc. For an IPA, give Dogfish Head 60 minute IPA a go. Sam Smith's Nut Brown is pricy, but well worth it. Bass Ale, while mainstream, is a pretty decent example of what an English Ale is going to be. (On Sam Smith's, pretty much everything they make is fantastic)

Want to try something a bit heavier? Go for a Stout or a Porter. I like pretty much any Irish Stout, and there are lots of fantastic microbrewed examples of both stouts and porters. For something different, have a Brooklyn Beer Black Chocolate Stout.

Speaking of different, there are a number of beers out there with fruit flavors brewed in. Lambics aren't for everyone, but they are the 'I don't drink beer' crowd's beer of choice. I also like Magic Hat #9, a fantastic sort of pale ale with an apricot flavor.

Back to Lagerland, I'm going to lump virtually all European Lagers into one batch. There are a host of excellent German, Czech, Polish, French, and Italian Lagers to try, some good, some not. Most have a tendancy to be very 'beer' like, so if you don't really like the 'beer' taste, you probably won't spend much time here. Pilsner Urquell is probably the best known in these parts, and certainly I would give it a try. I love it. Stella Artois is also in this category, and is one of the most overhyped, dissapointing beers I've ever had. It's really just not all that.

Wheat beers: I'm not a fan, just generally not to my liking... however, these, like Lambics, are often the beer choice of people who don't much like beer. Lots of examples out there, some more wheaty, some more citrusy. Give some a try. (I can't really recommend one since I don't like them much.)

Some others of note to try: Spaten Optimator (probably my favorite beer), Blackened Voodoo, Abita Turbo Dog, Sierra Nevada, Anchor Steam, and finally, find the brewery closest to you, and try everything they make.

Beth Vaughan

On August 18, one of my all time favorite people died.

Beth Vaughan was a storyteller. She spent her time devoted to perfecting her craft, entertaining people, and to passing that craft on to yougsters and adults.

The Upper Nodd Players, a group of kids from the Northern Harford County area, performed improvisational fairy tales for other kids, we rehearsed at her farm, built our own sets, and learned how to tell a story from our perspective, in a way our audience could relate. She also worked with the local schools, she was an advisor for my Senior Play at North Harford High in 1988. The skills I learned from her, from the basics of movement, mime, and the ability to tell a story, I carry to this day. She made me a better person.

Without a doubt, she was one of the most influential people in my youth, and I'm very lucky to have had the opportunity to know her and learn from her. I hope I made her proud.

I'm confused

In Texas, the Republican party is backing a write in candidate in place of Tom Delay, who they could not get off the ballot, instead of a Libertarian who could actually win. In Connecticut, the Republican party is supporting Joe Lieberman's bid as an Independant, against a Republican on the ballot.

The Republicans I know are always telling me why I should vote for their guy, because they are the closest thing to what I think. If that's the case, why are they clearly acting to entrench statists, instead of supporting someone who can win a race who supposedly has similar views to them?

Is it because statists never like Libertarians? In both races, the Republicans may just help a Democrat get elected, and I think they are just fine with that, so long as no third party nutjob tries to rock the boat.

What unbelievable arrogance.

I guess I shouldn't be suprised, but this makes my blood boil. A judge rules the Executive branch can no longer violate the Constitution, the executive branch says... 'no.' Frankly, I think a judge should be able to remove the President from power if he ignores this order, and most certainly he should be impeached.

Where are all of the holier than thou Republicans who thought it terrible Clinton thought he was above the law, and that he thought the ends justified the means.

The President says his illegal actions save lives. How is that NOT the same thing?

Somehow, I doubt Rush is going to point this out today.

Dinner at Helen's Garden

Fantastic meal at Helen's last night with J.

I had the Pepper Cured Tuna Carpaccio as an appetizer, then the Blackened Beef Salad for dinner. Everything was fantastic, I would like to have had more beef on the salad, but for $12, I can't really complain.

Absolut martini with good conversation and the tuna, Estancia Pinot Noir ($9/glass) with the entree. Not a bad pairing, the wine was a bit overpowered by the food. Basic, not too dry, good fruit without too much sweetness, I guess you'd call it balanced. Probably better with a milder beef dish, and I'd bet it would go well with a stroganoff or pork.

But what do I know?

Very good news!

A federal judge rules in favor of Liberty, and against Tyrrany.

I think the 'state secrets' argument is something: We can ignore the Constitution, and as long as it's a secret, you can't stop us.

Too bad it happened on the same day they caught Jonbenet Ramsey's killer... 'cause that's WAY more important.

What if the flood was caused by wind?

I can't believe any lawyer worth anything would take this case this far, but thankfully, the ruling was correct.

Insurance contracts are VERY clear on what's excluded. Flood is excluded. Period.

When I worked for an insurance company, we used to joke that if you thought your house was going to flood, set it on fire.

We know it doesn't help, but we'll do it anyway.

Shocking news. Someone figured out you can't see liquid explosives on an X-Ray, which means the new TSA rule requiring the removal of your shoes to look for said liquid explosives, is, well, stupid.

There are three things mentioned in the linked article I don't get, though. The first is, why is there no mention of perhaps letting the passengers and airlines be responsibile for their safety?

Second, how can the airline industry expect anything but the cost to go up, and that they'll end up paying for it, somehow?

Third, who really thinks the TSA employees manning security checkpoints are anywhere near sophisticated enough to be able to use SPOT?

Just let me walk on the plane with my gun. We'll all be safer.

It's funnier when it's real

Although, I'd swear The Onion could run this story with the headline:

Ebay Power Sellers Cause Terror Alert to be Raised.

Could this be the beginning of the end?

As I'm sure most already know, Senator Joe Lieberman (CT) lost in the Democratic primary yesterday. This shows a couple of things - primarily that Democrats in CT may either be getting back to the real 'differences' between they and Republicans, or more likely, they are just so Anti-Bush that they had to vote for change given the perception that Lieberman agrees with the President on a number of issues.

Of more importance to those of us in 'third' parties, this could be the beginning of an encouraging trend in politics - moving away from the megaparty and actually pointing out and voting for real differences in policy. They still may all be statists, but this shows a powerful incumbent can lose, even if the process is designed to make that virtually impossible.

Now, all we can hope is that he runs as an Independent, and throws a wrench into the whole thing.

Bulwer-Lytton 2006

My favorite writing contest.
The first to make me chuckle

It was a day, like any other day, in that Linus got up, faced the sunrise, used his inhaler, applied that special cream between his toes, wrote a quick note and put it in a bottle, and wished he'd been stranded on the island with something other than 40 cases each of inhalers, decorative bottles, and special toe cream.

Another

Lisa moved like a cat, not the kind of cat that moves with a slinky grace but more like the kind that always falls off the book shelf when he's washing himself and then gets all mad at you like it's your fault (which it wasn't although it probably was kind of mean to laugh at him like that), although on the bright side, she hardly ever attacked Ricky's toes in his sleep.

The winner of 'Vile Puns'

As Johann looked out across the verdant Iowa River valley, and beyond to the low hills capped by the massive refrigerator manufacturing plant, he reminisced on the history of the great enterprise from its early days, when he and three other young men, all of differing backgrounds, had only their dream of bringing refrigeration to America's heartland to sustain them, to the present day, where they had become the Midwest's foremost group of refrigerator magnates.

Enjoy them all.

Isreal killing civilians?

Human Rights Watch is all upset, according to this Independent piece, because:

Although the Israeli government claims it is taking all possible measures to minimise civilian harm, Human Rights Watch said their detailed investigations revealed "a systematic failure by the Israeli Defence Forces to distinguish between combatants and civilians".

As is the case when someone takes on an organization such as Hezbollah (or Al Quaida, or Hamas), they can't really win. The cowards (who actually do intentionally target civilians), hide among civilians in hopes the Israelis won't come after them, or if they do, they further the cause by killing the innocent.

Frankly, innocent may not really describe the civilians, who might be better off pointing out the criminals in their midst.

Gaps

Sorry for the gaps in posts. I was out of town (in Atlanta on business) this week. Still busy as all get out with work, still working on getting settled in the new house. Closets are the next order of business. We have yet to organize/build our office/guest room, linen/washer dryer, and exercise room closets. We have an approaching deadline, as Columbia Oak is coming to measure the office/guest room to build the workstation and murphy bed set up.

I haven't driven my convertible since I got it back from the shop, what, two weeks ago?

Training is still on the shelf, although I think next week will allow me to get back to a normal schedule. Travel for work should die off now, too. I'm getting back to the Precision Nutrition plan as well. I've been drinking too much and eating too much crap.

On the good news front, there are some good things happening with work, so I feel like I'm starting to get the traction I needed to get. Now I need to spend some time doing some things I've neglected over the past few months to get them caught up.

Quick Update

Been really busy with work - was on the road all week last week. I'm recuperating from that this weekend, then another busy week next week. After that, things should settle down a bit - I think I may take a week off in September.

I'm hopeful that I'll be able to get back on track with training at the end of next week, but the way things have been going, who knows. I do know that I need to do something active, I can almost feel the aging process.

A Gathering

I stayed at the Crowne Plaza in Secaucus, NJ on Thursday night.

Apparently, there was a Lord of the Rings convention starting Friday.

Quite something.

On 'Overkill'

There are 6 raids in Maryland.

Search Results

These 6 results represent
The state of: MD
For the year: All
And the following type of incident: All





David Scheper and Sascha Wagner.

August 18, 2005—MD



On August 18, 2005, police in Baltimore, Maryland force their way into the home of David Scheper and Sascha Wagner. Thinking they are being robbed, Wagner calls 911, telling the operator, "There's someone breaking into my house." Scheper slams the door on the officers, who never announce they are police.

The officers then shatter the glass on the home's front door. Scheper stands just inside, holding his 12-gauge shotgun. He doesn't have ammunition, but he hopes that racking the gun within earshot of the door would scare off what he still believes are intruders. When they don't leave, Scheper retreats to his basement, and grabs the only functioning weapon in his house, a CZ-52 semiautomatic, what he calls a "piece-of-junk Czechoslovakian pistol." As Scheper struggles to load the weapon, it accidentally discharges, sending a round into the floor of his basement.

Police would eventually enter, and seize $1,440 in cash Scheper says he had recently withdrawn to buy a used pickup truck. According to the Baltimore City Paper, police also "...hit a 70-year-old art-deco-style metal desk with an ax. They took 18 of Scheper's guns--mostly inoperable antiques, he says--and some gun-shaped props he had built for movies. 'They threatened to blow up my safe,' Scheper says, so he opened it for them."

The police had made an error. They also had no search warrant. They were looking for a tenant Scheper had evicted weeks earlier. Nevertheless, police still put Scheper's antique gun collection on display for the local news as part of a "roundup" of illegal weapons they'd found in two local raids.

The only charge to come of the police visit to Scheper's home was one against Scheper for firing the weapon in his basement, which carried a $1,000 fine and a year in prison. Prosecutors eventually dropped that charge, but only after Scheper's lawyer successfully fought to get Wagner's 911 call admitted as evidence, over the objection of prosecutors.

Source:

Edward Ericson, Jr., "Breakin? All the Rules; Prosecutor Drop Case Against Man Who Says Plainclothes Police Tried To Force Way Into His Home Without Warrant," Baltimore City Paper, December 21, 2005.



Cheryl Lynn Noel.

January 21, 2005—MD


Baltimore County, Maryland police descend on a home in the Dundalk neighborhood at around 5 a.m. on a narcotics warrant. They deploy a flashbang grenade, then quickly subdue the first-floor occupants -- a man and two young adults.

When officers enter the second-floor bedroom of Cheryl Llynn Noel, they break open the door to find the middle-aged woman in her bed, frightened, and pointing a handgun at them. One officer fires three times. Noel dies at the scene.

Friends and acquaintances described Noel as "a wonderful person," who ran a Bible study group on her lunch breaks. One man collected 200 signatures from friends, neighbors, and coworkers vouching for her character.

Officers conducted the raid after finding marijuana seeds in the Noels' garbage can.

Sources:

Joseph M. Giordano, "Woman is shot, killed by police in drug raid," Dundalk Eagle, January 27, 2005.

Joseph M. Giordano, "Petition reflects anguish," Dundalk Eagle, March 31, 2005.



Desmond Ray.

December 11, 2002—MD


As police in Prince George's County, Maryland prepare for a SWAT raid on a suspected drug dealer, Desmond Ray--not the target of the raid--steps out of a parked car. Cpl. Charles Ramseur says Ray reached for his waistband upon exiting the car. Ray says he put his hands in the air.

Ramseur fires his weapon at Ray and strikes him in the spine, paralyzing him. Ray is unarmed, and would never be charged with a crime.

In April 2004, an "Executive Review Panel" found that Ramseur had no justification for shooting Ray, and recommended administrative charges against him for using excessive force. The recommendation was overruled when the internal police review board found no wrongdoing. Ramseur was reinstated.

County police later settled a civil suit with Ray for an undisclosed sum of money.

Source:

"Prince George's police corporal cleared in 2002 shooting," Associated Press, July 15, 2005.



The Lewis Cauthorne Raid.

November 19, 2002—MD



On January 7, 2003, prosecutors in Baltimore announce they will not press charges against Lewis S. Cauthorne for firing a .45-caliber handgun at police who broke down his door during a no-knock raid in November 2002.

Cauthorne, at home with his mother, girlfriend, and three year-old daughter at the time of the raid, heard screaming when police broke open the door to his home and began searching for drugs. The raiding officers never identified themselves.

Prosecutors later determined that Cauthorne, who had no arrest record and whose father had been robbed and killed as a cab driver, had reason to believe his life was in danger when he fired and wounded three of the raiding police officers. Police fired back, but no one inside the home was hit.

Police were acting on a tip from a confidential informant, and claim to have found six bags with traces of marijuana, empty vials, a razor with cocaine residue, and two scales in Cauthorne's home. But the ensuing investigation found peculiarities with the evidence that precluded Cauthorne from being charged even with a misdemeanor. For example, there was no record of where exactly in the home the drugs were found, and crime lab technicians were told by police not to photograph the evidence.

The officers who conducted the raid were also unavailable for interviews from investigators until days or weeks after the raid took place. Though never charged, Cauthorne served more than six weeks in jail before the charges against him were dismissed.

Source::

Allison Klein and Del Quentin Wilber, "Prosecutor to drop charges in shooting of four officers," Baltimore Sun, January 7, 2003.



Harry Davis.

February 3, 1992—MD



In 1992, police in Fort Washington, Maryland conduct a no-knock raid on the home of Harry Davis.

According to Washington Post columnist Courtland Milloy, "Fifteen police officers, carrying assault weapons and dressed in black garb that looked like some kind of ninja outfits, stormed in, knocked Davis to the floor and held him there with a shotgun to his head." Police also pulled Davis' girlfriend out of bed in the nude, and performed a body cavity search.

Police then tore out the walls to Davis' apartment, smashed family photos in their frames, and confiscated his car.

A confidential informant had told police that Davis was laundering more than $100 million in drug money from his home. Davis' face was splashed all over the news as the mastermind of an elaborate East Coast cocaine cartel. Yet police found no drugs or weapons in his apartment, and later confirmed that they'd found no evidence of money laundering.

The assistant U.S. attorney in charge of the case later conceded, "The evidence did not have him in any actual drug transaction." Davis lost his car leasing business, and lost possession of his car, which police seized, then returned to the bank when Davis was unable to keep up on his payments. Davis found temporary work as a car salesman after his arrest, but was later fired after a customer recognized him as the man the TV news identified as a drug kingpin.

A year later, prosecutors dropped all charges against Davis. Davis said in court, "You break into my home, humiliate my friend, destroy my business, and after investigating me for a year, just drop the charges. What can you say to me?"

The judge replied, "You're free. Next case."

According to Milloy, Davis was never compensated, even for the damage to his home.

Source:

Courtland Milloy, "For Ex-Defendant, P Street Case Still a Nightmare," Washington Post, February 7, 1993, p. B1.



Sgt. Mark Murphy.

August 31, 1988—MD



On August 31, 1988, police in Prince George's County, Maryland conduct a no-knock raid on the home of Dion Smith, suspected of cocaine distribution.

As Sergeant Mark Murphy attempts to pry open the door to the second-floor garden apartment with a hydraulic pump, the officers around him hear what they believe to be a gunshot. Two officers behind Murphy open fire. Murphy is struck in the head by a round fired by one of his fellow officers, and dies six months later.

One police official would later say of the raid, "Unfortunately, there is no room for error in these kinds of situations."

Sources:

"NW Man Pleads Guilty in Drug Case," Washington Post, January 21, 1989, p. B4.

Craig W. Floyd, "Deadly Drug Raids," National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, October 6, 2003.

Hopefully this paper will get some attention, and maybe these six will be the last.

Required Reading

Radley Balko's paper on the overuse of paramilitary (SWAT) teams in raids.

Overkill.

Good title.

He makes a nice point here on his blog in response to critics:

If you're going to argue that there isn't a problem here because "only" 40 or so innocent people have been killed in paramilitary police raids since 1985, I wonder, what is a good number? At what point do you begin to get concerned? Seems like an odd sort of consequentialism. If we could keep the drug supply down (not that these raids are actually doing that -- which is another matter, also addressed in the paper) by having the government randomly execute one innocent person every six months, and randomly terrorize an innocent family once every ten days or so, would that be okay?

Well? Would it?

Frustration

I simply can not get any traction... on anything. I can't get to the gym, I can't get control of some things at work, and I can't get the house done.

And it's all a vicious cycle - if I could get to the gym, work wouldn't frustrate me so much. If I could get work under control, I could get to the gym.

Today was just one more day like this. Got in early, with the goal of getting a bunch of work done, get out mid afternoon, head to the gym, get home, cook some food, clean up a little, and still have some time to relax. Then the day goes to hell at about 2:30, and while I got out of the office at a reasonable time (3:30), I ended up on the phone the whole ride home, then had to log back in when I got home, and was on the phone and using e-mail until almost 7.

I really have to get a handle on things.

Tomorrow is another day. My brother and his wife are having baby #2, so it will be a good day for sure. I'm going to try to hit the gym after going to see them.

Lowes

I'm a Home Depot guy. Always have preferred shopping there, plus the big company I work for has ties to them.

But I have to give Lowes some big credit, and suggest anyone who is considering a large purchase look there.

I purchased 5 Coleman storage units for my garage - two 3 drawer units, two jumbo tall units, one tall unit. (They can be seen here.) Had them delivered.

The drawer units went together without too much trouble. When you buy these things, you know what you are getting - self assembly, particle board construction.. these are not high end cabinets. I started to put together the first jumbo unit, and when I got the doors out of the box, one of them was heavily damaged. I freaked out - I had visions of having to take everything back, or waiting two weeks to have another one delivered. Or worse yet, sending all of it back and getting something else, losing all the time I spent putting the units together.

I called the store, prepared for the worst. Within five minutes, they had set up a delivery for the next day (today, a Sunday) to come out and get the damaged unit and bring me a replacement. Buy 10 AM, they've been here and gone.

Well done.

My garage is still a mess.