The thing about not paying bribes is it's really easy to not pay bribes. You just don't pay bribes.
And it might be worth pointing out there is a difference between a bribe and extortion. Both are bad. You might in theory pay if you're being extorted. But nobody is forced to pay a bribe. (And that includes Americans traveling abroad as well as local residents.)
And New York City has a pretty good DOI (Department of Investigation) you can turn to if you are being extorted or asked for a bribe by a city worker. www1.nyc.gov/site/doi/about…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
A crazy idea, but hear me out: what if better and even more policing really _does_ improve quality-of-life, prevent violence, and save lives? Big, if true.
Imagine if there were some disease and I was like, "More doctors would be good."
And you were like, "But we know doctors don't prevent illness!"
To which I said, "Uh, sure. But doctors still improve health."
You: "I saw this video about a doctor somewhere that killed someone!"
This is fascinating. The NYT changed the news, with no note or correction. On Jan 8 NYT said (which was clearly not true at the time): "Video footage captured a group of police officers moving aside barricades to allow the supports to push ahead." (1/2)
It was the immediate leftie / critical-race-theory line from people who weren't there. It was clear by ~4pm on 1/6 that it wasn't true. But that lie, that cops let protesters in — on 1/6 it was just a mistruth, by 1/8 it was a lie — is now the *right-wing* narrative! Crazy. (2/3)
Now the same NYT story says, "Videos posted on social media *appeared* to capture a group of police officers moving aside barricades to allow the supporters to push ahead to the building, *although details remain unclear*." (3/4) nytimes.com/2021/01/08/us/…
Never Forget: "“Clear the Capitol,” Pence said... At 4:08 p.m. on Jan. 6, as the rioters roamed the Capitol and after they had menacingly called out for Pelosi, D-Calif., and yelled for Pence to be hanged." apnews.com/article/capito…
Might be one of the few times Pence and I were on the same page.
I still think most people underestimate how close we came to losing that day. A lasting occupation/siege of the Capitol? Hostages? Trump flag flying? Trump saying "let's make a deal." Trump still in the White House It could have been fatal to America.
A "San Francisco Police Commissioner" now seems to be blaming cops for taking guns off the street. See, he says, kids need to carry illegal guns for "protection." So I guess that's were we're at now with crime, progressive politics, and gun control.
*sfgov.org/policecommissi…
To be clear: S.F. "Police Commissioners" does not mean police commissioner" as most people understand it. Not running the department. They are, however, authorized to set "policy for the Police Department and to conduct disciplinary hearings on charges of police misconduct..."
What makes me sad is that I knew this would happen. Not just me. Others, too. It was entirely predictable. Slogans and sociological theory don't prevent violence. Policy and policing based on evidence and proven research-based strategies do. washingtonpost.com/national/minne…
If you can't or don't want to click through, some excerpts:
"Minneapolis police have faced a surge of officer departures in the wake of Floyd’s death and the outcry against police."
"In June, a city council majority vowed to defund and dismantle the department and replace it with a new agency focused on a mix of public safety and violence prevention — a move that could go before voters in 2021."
A big legal firm dropping this case is a good sign. But always a warning as to how dirty it is. I finally figured out how Republican are planning to keep Trump in office, no matter the popular vote. [thread] reuters.com/article/us-usa…
I didn't invent this theory. I just didn't understand it till this I heard this podcast last night (which was from _before_ the election). At about ~21 minutes. "Counting Votes" presents a Pennsylvania scenario that is, "in the realm of crazy scenarios." trumpconlaw.com/46-counting-vo…