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• meglimir shares a story about a Fresno high school history teacher recovering the life of the first black rancher in Fresno County. Possibly the first in the state of CA.
• This article supporting impeachment, from the Seattle PI, is long on verve and short on sober reflection. We need to do it, though. Here's why:

  the White House has invoked a legal defense known as the "state secrets" doctrine - a claim that the president has inherent and unchecked power to shield national security information from disclosure,

  That legal interpretation works for the specific Air Force case that generated it. On the sober reflection of a Federal Judge, I can see other specific cases where it might apply to the Discovery process. However, it should never apply to prosecutorial evidence, which the Bush Administration is trying. Worse, nothing the Executive Branch does should be "inherent and unchecked." That's the whole point of the System of Checks and Balances. In my mind, any assertion on the part of the Executive Branch that they may act in an "inherent and unchecked" manner is prima facie evidence of a High Crime.
• Courtesy of The Volokh Conspiracy, a list of links providing background on the upcoming Supreme Court challenge to Washington, DC's, handgun ban.
• I slept through last night's earthquake. I think. Sometime last night, I woke up to a very brief sound of something wooden rolling over something wooden. I have no idea what it really was. I didn't check the time, so it could have been the quake...
• If you find a high value item, you need to at least try to return it...