Dean Cook

The New Psychology of Time

2008-08-19T10:02:00.002-05:00

This was an interview of Stanford Professor Philip Zimbardoon on NPR's "Think", which is broadcast in the Dallas area. (The podcast is available at http://www.kera.org/audio/think.php.)

This professor seems to be studying an interesting and important aspect of the human mind, which is the capability for long-range planning and thinking. He seems to take the position that this is a skill that must be developed rather than an automatic function, which I agree with. He noted his work with inner-city youths to teach them how to think long-range, which illustrates that it is a skill that must be learned. Another interesting statement by this professor was when he noted that school students need to be taught how to engage in long-range planning, and that this skill is one of the things that distinguishes (most) adults from children –as well as what distinguishes (most) modern men from primitive man. I also agree with this. He said something to the effect of: schools should teach children how to meditate on taking long-range action, which I took to mean: visualize a goal, then think about what they need to do to achieve that goal, and (presumably) take action to achieve that goal. If only Texas schools spent time teaching children this skill, instead of wasting time on that meaningless minute I’ve spoken of before.

Living Is An Accomplishment

2008-08-04T20:49:00.004-05:00

When I first started this moment of silence case, I found talking to the press rather daunting. In person, I tend to be pretty taciturn (or shy?) around people I don't know very well, and it has taken a deliberate act of will to improve in this area of my life -it's an example of the fact that virtue, by which I mean the act by which one gains the values necessary for living, is not automatic. But, when I gave this interview today, I realized how much better I've gotten at this since I started this case. I was even able to enjoy talking about it with the reporter.

Texas "Open Carry" Petition

2008-07-08T09:56:00.005-05:00

Anybody who has ever spent much time immersed in the gun culture will quickly discover that there are certain debate topics that come up again and again. One of these is the "open carry versus concealed carry" debate. (Do a Google search for online forums if you are interested in learning the pros and cons of “open carry”.) Since "open carry" isn't generally a legal option in Texas, I don't have an opinion one way or the other on it. But, that may change if the creators of this online petition have anything to say about it. I intend to sign it for the simple reason that it increases liberty -which I am always in favor of. Also, here is the Dallas Morning News article where I learned about this.

Going Postal: No Gun Required

2008-07-02T13:13:00.002-05:00

Two stories in the news interest me today. First, a man here in the US went on an, er, "beating-spree", bludgeoning at least eight people to death in Illinois. (Chicago Illinois is well-known for its strict gun control laws.) Meanwhile, in Israel, a man went on an, er, "bulldozing spree", and killed 3 people with a bulldozer before someone in civilian clothing jumped aboard and shot him in the head. A lot of Israelis exercise their right to keep and bear arms, so it would be no surprise if a civilian had a gun with him. This is why restrictions on gun ownership are a waste of time, and can actually cause more damage when people decide to "go Postal".

Texas Pledge Briefs

2008-07-02T09:17:00.003-05:00

My client David Croft has posted some of the briefs in the Texas Pledge case, which is a challenge to the insertion of the language "under god" into the Texas State Pledge on the grounds that it violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. Public school children are required, absent a note from their parents, to recite the Texas State Pledge prior to beginning school. (Yes, Texas has its own pledge of allegiance.)

I wanted to mention this because I am, quite frankly, more proud of my work on the Texas Pledge and Texas Moment of Silence cases than of anything I have ever done. I may never get to see laissez faire capitalism, which I think will require broad societal support in order to elect the right politicians to the legislature, but I will always try to do what I can, as one person, to ensure that America doesn't become more socialist, or, possibly worse, backslide into medieval theocracy.

It Is So Ordered

2008-06-26T11:52:00.001-05:00

I will proably have more to say about this later, but here is the opinion holding that the Second Amendment is an individual right (duh).

Pigeons Terminated

2008-06-25T09:47:00.005-05:00

There is a fundamental fact of reality that distinguishes how one should deal with other human beings versus how one should deal with other entities. This distinction is the human capacity for thought. A human being can be persuaded, and this should be how one should initially try to deal with other human beings. Unlike a human being, a force of nature, such as a hurricane or a meteorite cannot be reasoned with. The only way to deal with non-human entities is with force. This includes the lower animals which do not possess the capacity of reason. Although it is possible that someday we will encounter a non-human with the capacity of reason, or, perhaps, even have sufficient evidence to suggest that some currently-known non-human organism possesses such a capacity (that's doubtful), human beings are the only currently known rational being. This fact means that an animal consciousness is more like a hurricane or other non-volitional entity, and must be dealt with by means of force. Just as a non-rational body of water can be diverted or dammed if it is inconvenient for human beings, so too can an animal be destroyed if it is inconvenient for human beings. It is with this in mind that I read with some amusement about the fretting of "animal rights" activists over the destruction of some pigeons at a tennis tournament in Great Britain. To me, this is like fretting over the damming of a river or, if we possessed the technology, the destruction of a hurricane headed towards one of our major cities.

A Good Example of Why You Never Consent To A Police Search

2008-06-19T09:36:00.004-05:00

I have a blanket policy when it comes to the police: I don't consent to any search. If stopped by a cop, I don't say anything, other than "Am I free to go?", if not, I ask for my lawyer and stop talking. It doesn't matter how innocent I think I am. How do I know for certain that somebody hasn't planted or accidentally dropped contraband in my car or house? How do I know that the cop won't try to plant contraband? Yes, it does happen -remember the fake drugs scandal in Dallas? Anybody who thinks cops are more ethical or moral than the general population is a fool.

This article presents another facet of why you shouldn't voluntarily cooperate with law enforcement. In this case, a man was fired from his job and faced prosecution for possession of child pornography, all because his laptop had a virus on it that caused it to download child pornography off the Internet. If you consent to a search of your computer, you may end up in prison and branded as a sexual predator for life, when you are, in fact, 100% innocent.

Perry To Run in 2010: Don't Let It Happen!

2008-06-13T09:21:00.003-05:00

I think Rick Perry is the poster boy for everything that is bad about the conservatives here in Texas. (Bush is the obvious candidate nationally.) Perry believes that non-Christians are going to hell when they die. In my personal life, my basic “litmus test” for a “good Christian” versus a “bad Christian” is whether they believe non-believers are going to hell –I won’t associate with the later type of Christian. This type of “you’re going straight to hell” Christian is essentially saying that only by rejecting man’s life and reason can you be saved when you die. He is setting up a direct contradiction between the requirements of this life and his religion, which I regard as a morally evil position (by the standard of man’s life). Furthermore, politically, Perry seems to care very little about private property rights and freedom of contract, but he vigorously pushes the conservative religious agenda –which is all they really care about.
Now, believing that he hasn't done enough to push Texas towards theocracy, Perry will be running for Governor again in 2010. This article also notes that Kay Bailey Hutchison is considering running against him in their party’s primary. A little Internet research revealed that she has a better record on abortion and stem cell research, which means I’d feel safer with her as Governor. Based on this article, I think my strategy would be to vote for Hutchison in the Republican Party primary, then vote for the Democrat in the general election. The next Governor will most likely be a Republican anyway, and this will help to ensure that anybody but Perry is elected.

Link to Amicus Brief in Moment of Silence Case

2008-06-12T12:22:00.004-05:00

The following is a link to an amicus brief in the Texas Moment of Silence Appeal: http://www.au.org/site/DocServer/Texas_Moment_of_Silence_Brief.pdf?docID=2701. I'll probably add Americans United for Separation of Church and State to my list of single-issue organizations that I donate money to (along with Gun Owners of America and the National Taxpayer's Union). I prefer single-issue groups because I know that all of the money is going exclusively to a cause that I agree with.

Tolling Mockingbird Lane

2008-06-05T11:43:00.002-05:00

Ideally, city services that do not involve police protection or the courts would be completely privatized. Under such a system, tolling city roads would make perfect sense, especially since the technology now exists to do this without toll booths. That is why I like the idea of tolling Mockingbird Lane in Dallas, but I suspect that so long as the road is ultimately owned by the State of Texas, this idea to toll Mockingbird Lane for nonresidents of the city may not be Constitutional due to something known as the "dormant commerce clause", and/or the "privileges and immunities clause". This Wikipedia article says that there is a "market participant" exception to the dormant commerce clause, but I don't know if the courts would say that it applies in this situation. There would still be an issue of the right to travel, which is recognized by Article IV, Section 2, Clause 1 of the Constitution. The only way to avoid all of this would be to toll everyone who uses Mockingbird Lane, regardless of residency.

Does A Culture Have Rights?

2008-05-30T07:25:00.002-05:00

A previously unknown tribe of aboriginal people has been spotted by plane in South America. The photos in the article about this discovery show people wearing loin cloths and shooting bows and arrows at the overflying plane that is photographing them. The article quotes Jose Carlos Meirelles, a member of some, presumably, multiculturalist group, who suggests that unless "something" is done these primitive cultures will soon be extinct. He obviously doesn't mean that these primitive people are going to be murdered, since that is illegal, even in Brazil. In fact, he doesn't mean that these people are going to have their rights to life, liberty, or property violated, since they presumably have equal rights under Brazilian law, just like any other individual. (If they do not have equal and full individual rights under Brazilian law, or whatever nation they are in, then I do not dispute that they should have such equal rights.) Just because these primitive people should have equal, individual rights under the law does not mean that they have a "right to a primitive way of life", when that would violate the individual rights of others. For instance, these primitive people do not have a "right" to murder or enslave people who happen onto their "territory" just because it is part of their "culture" and "way of life".

This applies to primitive people living here in the United States as well, such as the group in West Texas known as the "Fundamentalist Church of Latter-Day Saints". The issues in this case are not entirely clear to me, and I am not certain that the State handled this situation entirely properly. Obviously, consenting adults should be free to marry whomever they want, in whatever numbers, but I am uncertain what the age of consent should be, and when or if it should be disregarded by a court in particular circumstances. I am also uncertain what the minimum age to marry should be, and whether it should matter if the girl's parents consent to the marriage. But, I think that sex with a 12 year old girl, which is alleged to have occurred in this case, is probably always rape, regardless of any alleged consent by her or her parents. Just like the primitive people living in the jungles of Brazil, the mere fact that these people may make the multiculturalist argument that this is their "way of life" does not give them the right to violate individual rights, and it is fairly clear to me that such violations did occur.

Cultures don't have rights. Individuals have rights, and people from a culture that institutionalizes the violation of individual rights have no right to put those ideas into practice.

King Gets Fired

2008-05-29T09:17:00.003-05:00

This is an interesting article about the abolition of the monarchy in the country of Nepal. I put this in the category of "I'm not sure what to think of this." On the one hand, abolishing a monarchy in favor of a Republic is good, but the government is now in the hands of people claiming to be communists. I'd rather live under a limited constitutional monarchy rather than a communist state. A limited constitutional monarchy like 19th century England respects individual rights far more than any 20th century communist state did. But, I don't get the impression that these "Maoists" are really committed communists anymore. (Aside from university professors, are there any real communists even left in the world?) Since I don't know much about that area of the world, I guess I will take a wait and see attitude on this bit of history.

Phoenix Lander Article

2008-05-28T09:37:00.000-05:00

Phoenix lander article.

Abolish Unauthorized Practice Statutes

2008-05-22T09:48:00.002-05:00

This is an article explaining why unauthorized practice of law statutes should be abolished. I agree 100%. I have encountered lawyers who claimed to be proponents of laissez faire capitalism but refused to recognize that unauthorized practice laws are not consistent with capitalism and freedom of contract. Those lawyers are either hypocritical or ignorant -I am neither.

Good Article on NPR on Myanmar and China Disasters

2008-05-21T09:15:00.002-05:00

This article on NPR reflects what I was thinking when I hear about natural disasters in third world countries like Myanmar. When a hurricane hits the US, maybe a few hundred people will be killed. When a hurricane hits a totalitarian socialist dictatorship like Myanmar, thousands die.

Iron Age Coup D'Etat

2008-05-07T10:56:00.002-05:00

PBS had an interesting episode of NOVA last night about "bog bodies" that date back to Iron Age Ireland and England -which was around 350 B.C. Occasionally, in the bogs of those countries, a mummified body will be found because the plants in the bogs secret a substance that preserves flesh in a similar manner to how leather is tanned. The bog bodies usually show evidence of having been intentionally killed or murdered, such as having their heads bashed in, and having been stabbed fatally. The other interesting thing noted was that the bodies usually show evidence of having been people who would have been of high social standing.

There is some debate as to why these people of high social rank were killed and put into the bogs, but as soon as I learned that they were people of high social standing, I thought "coup d'etat". Later in the show, there was a suggestion that these people may have been tribal chieftains, which strengthens my thinking on this subject. These killings may have been how people in a tribal society, which has no concept of elected government, deposed of a leader. If they had had a concept of elected representatives, then they simply would have voted for a new leader, but since they would have had no concept of that, the only way to get rid of their leader would have been to kill him, probably instigated by the leader's "political rivals". They noted that the killings were usually brutal, which suggested that they weren't just ritualistic, but I think the brutality would make sense. If hard times had fallen on the tribe, and the leader was regarded as responsible, then brutally killing him for tribal resentment that may have built up over many years, would make sense.

Wrongful Prosecution

2008-05-04T10:33:00.002-05:00

This is an interesting article describing a debate over whether to criminalize intentionally withholding evidence of innocence by a prosecutor in Texas. I think any prosecutor that would intentionally withhold evidence of a person's innocence in order to get a conviction can only be described as a morally evil person. It is also appropriate to criminalize such conduct because it is using physical force, in this case jail or execution, to deprive the accused of a value, namely his liberty, or possibly even his life. It doesn't matter that the prosecutor is not the one actually physically incarcerating the innocent person, any more than it would matter if the head of a crime organization ordered one of his henchmen to kill someone. Just as the head of a crime organization would be responsible for the crimes committed on his behalf, so too would a prosecutor be responsible for the unjustified incarceration or execution of an innocent man.

Wesley Snipes: An American Hero

2008-04-25T11:21:00.003-05:00

I am extremely impressed by actor Wesley Snipes, who stood up to the IRS. It turns out that Mr. Snipes doesn't just play heroes; he is a hero. His case reminds me of the trial of Hank Reardon in Atlas Shrugged.

The income tax is a system for punishing people's success, and it needs to be abolished. While a national sales tax is still a coercive tax, and therefore not ideal, by taxing consumption instead of production, it at least doesn't punish people for being productive.

Individual Rights Protection Act Blogger Site

2008-04-13T11:04:00.002-05:00

I have set up a blogger site with my proposed "Individual Rights Protection Act of 200_" on it. It is posted with the hope that a statute similar to this one will someday be enacted.

More Silliness In Texas

2008-04-10T09:31:00.004-05:00

This article describes what may be a good set of facts for testing the constitutionality of the Texas student-teacher-sex statute. The statute makes it a 3rd degree felony, punishable by 2-20 years in prison, plus sex-offender registration, for a teacher to have sex with a student regardless of the age of the student. Sex with a minor was always illegal, and also a felony. What this "improper relationship between educator and student" statute accomplished was to criminalize sex between what would otherwise be sex between consenting adults in Texas.

I can think of at least two constitutional issues to raise. First, is the level of punishment under the statute. I think that a third degree felony would seem excessive to most people. Second is the issue of the so-called "right to privacy", which has typically come up in cases dealing with birth control and abortion. There may also be an issue of equal protection of the law, given the fact that the sex was only illegal in this case because it was between a teacher and a student, since 17 is the age of consent in Texas.

Quacks

2008-04-07T08:34:00.002-05:00

Back in "the 90's", I would go to a coffee shop on Guadalupe, accross the street from campus, in Austin. It's name was Quackenbush's. A couple of years ago, some friends from college told me that it was no longer there. I was sad. But, while visiting Austin this weekend, I discovered that it still exists, sort of. It is now located at 411 East 43rd St. The menu is different -I asked for black beans and rice, and the girl behind the counter didn't know what I was talking about. I think that the location is better, though. You can sit at tables outside and talk about legalizing a market in human organs undisturbed (which we did).

Lunar Cops Part IV

2008-04-03T09:33:00.003-05:00

Linkt to Part I, Link to Part II, Link to Part III

“You sure you want to do this?” Friedman asked Coleman for the fifth time.

“It’s the only way we’ll catch up with Lee in time.” Coleman said as he adjusted the controls on his hardsuit. Unlike the one Lee had been using, Coleman’s was military-grade, with a micro-rail cannon on one shoulder and a detachable laser rifle.

“I’m not talking about using the mass-driver.” Friedman said as Coleman glanced over at Lall, who was also being fitted into a similar suit. “I mean: are you sure you want to bring that idiot with you?”

“No, I don’t want to bring him. But, Chief Inspector Simpson has made it clear that Lall is going with me…I think it will be okay, though. Simpson spoke with Lall and made it clear that I’m in charge of the operation.” Coleman changed the subject: “I need you to do something while we are in transit. I want you to get permission to reroute a landsat over our destination site.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to Chief Simpson about getting the permission.” Friedman said.

“Time to get loaded up.” The mass-driver’s loading specialist said to Coleman and Lall. Coleman lumbered in his hardsuit over to his capsule. It was about the size of a mid-sized automobile back on Earth. Normally, the capsules were loaded with raw goods, mostly H-3. After being inserted into Lunar orbit, the material was transferred to a larger cargo ship that would take the H-3 back to Earth, or to one of the orbiting or Martian colonies. The capsules were then sent back to the Lunar surface where they were reconditioned and used again. Coleman crawled inside the capsule, and it was sealed. Once he was inside, he could feel the crane pick him up and load it onto the track of the mass-driver.

“Alright Officers Coleman and Lall.” The loading specialist said over the radio. “You are both loaded into your respective capsules, and ready for takeoff, which should be in about 2 minutes. Good luck to both of you.” Coleman could almost hear what he knew was the loading specialist’s unstated: You’ll need it.

After about a minute and a half, Coleman felt a sudden acceleration that seemed like he had suddenly had a lot of weight put on his shoulders. He was oriented on his back in the capsule, with his head facing towards the direction of travel along the track. His feet felt like they were going to pop, and his arms felt like they were going to be torn out of their socket. His spine felt like it was being crushed. Coleman screamed in pain. Then, just as he thought he couldn’t bear any more, it suddenly stopped as his capsule left the track of the mass-driver. The freefall felt glorious after the launch experience. If he had had any doubts about Lee’s commitment to his cause, after that ordeal, it was gone.

About three quarters of the way to their destination, a buzzer chimed, letting Coleman know that it was time to ditch the capsule. The back of the capsule was blown off by explosive bolts, and Coleman gently nudged himself out of it. Once he was outside, he took a quick glance down below. The Lunar surface was far below him. He could see several mons and craters below him , although he couldn’t recall any of their names. Lunar geography had never been his strong point. He carefully crawled along the side the capsule, and placed his feet on the side of it. Then he deactivated his magnetic boots, and pushed off of the capsule, which was greatly amplified by the hardsuit. Once he was about 100 meters away, the small group of rockets on his suit’s back began to fire in a series of pre-programmed bursts to keep him on target, and to reduce the speed of his fall. He looked over to his right, and could see that Lall was doing the same.

“Looks like Lall made it through.” Friedman said.

Yeah, unfortunate. Coleman thought. Soon the main rocket on Coleman’s suit began a steady burst in opposition to his direction of fall. Even with the rockets slowing him down, he still hit the surface hard. He rolled several times on impact, before finally coming to a stop. Alarms were sounding. He checked his suit diagnostics display. No major damage to the structural integrity of the suit, although it appeared that the rail gun was out of commission. He glanced at the tank level indicators for his rocket pack. They were completely dry. Couldn’t do that twice without a two hour refuel in-between. He thought. Lall came lumbering over in his suit, which had a distinct limp. “That damn stunt nearly killed me.” He declared.

“Yeah.” Coleman said without pitty. “We’ve got to get out of the open before anyone shows up.” They began walking to a group of large boulders. They could easily hide in their shadows and not be seen. Once they had found suitable cover, Coleman contacted Friedman. “Is that landsat almost overhead?”

“Yes, it should be overhead now.” Friedman responded. “What did you want it for.”

“If we miss Lee out here, we will need it to find him.” Coleman said. “Remember those rumors about a secret secessionist city?”

“Yes.”

“I’m fairly certain that those rumors are true.” Coleman explained: “First, we are out here in the middle of nowhere; according to the official maps and records there shouldn’t be any human habitations or other facilities anywhere around. We know that the information Lee stole must be downloaded to a black market clone to be accessible, so that terminal is probably somewhere nearby, in some sort of hidden secessionist facility. Second, Lee is a selenologist. It turns out that a feature of lunar geology that they regularly study are known as lava tubes.”

“Interesting.” Friedman said. “In fact, I think it says somewhere in Lee’s dossier that he was studying lava tubes right around the time he disappeared.”

“What’s a lava tube?” Lall asked. Coleman realized with annoyance that he’d been talking to Friedman over the general channel rather than using his implant, and that Lall was listening in on their conversation.

“It’s the remainder of an ancient river of molten lava, self-crusted over on the top as the exposed surface cools. The empty ‘tube’ is then created as the lava spreads out on the surface as a sheet.” Friedman explained over the general channel. “There are a lot of them hidden away under the surface, all over the moon. Most of them are anywhere from 2-4 billion years old.”

“Right.” Coleman said. “So, most of the lava tubes on the moon have yet to be discovered. What if Lee, a selenologist, discovered an ancient lava tube, and, rather than officially recording that fact, he and his secessionist friends decided it would make a good base of operations for an eventual break with Earth? Furthermore, when you couple that possibility with some other facts, it becomes a certainty that there is a city hidden somewhere near here.”

“And, those facts are?” Friedman asked.

“ Two facts: First, remember the anomalous nature of the regolith we collected back at the scene of the original theft?” Coleman asked. “It turns out that the regolith you would find inside a 3-4 billion old lava tube that was covered from the solar wind would contain a significantly lower concentration of H-3. The second fact is the falling price of water, despite the fact that official production and supply has not increased significantly. I think there is a significant supply of water-ice inside this lava tube that Lee found, and they have been selling it on the black market to fund the revolution.”

“Where did the water-ice come from?” Friedman asked.

“I suspect that a comet, several billion years ago punched through the top of this lava tube, depositing the ice there. Then, sometime later, a subsequent volcanic eruption caused another lava flow to seal the hole created by the comet.”

“Is that possible?” Friedman asked.

“Yes, I checked with the people at the Lunar Science Ministry.”

“So, you wanted the landsat overhead so that it could use ground-penetrating radar and thermal imaging to find the lava tube, and thereby find the secessionists.” Lall said excitedly, stating the obvious.

“Correct.” Coleman said to Lall. “And, if you will confirm for me what I think Lee stole in the first place…” Coleman’s voice trailed off. His suit’s radar had just picked up a hopper coming in for a landing nearby.

***
The hopper landed within 200 meters of Coleman and Lall. Three figures emerged from it. Coleman used the magnification setting on his suit’s camera to examine the three figures up close. Two of them were robot, likely tele-operated, and were outfitted with various less-than-lethal weapons systems. The third was Lee. “Alright.” Coleman said to Lall. “Their backs are to us, so we can probably close most of the distance between us before they even know we’re there. You take out the two ‘bots and I’ll grab Lee. I want to arrest Lee alive, so you will not do anything to affect that outcome.”

“I will try not to harm him, but if he resists…” Lall began.

Coleman turned to face Lall: “Lee hasn’t used deadly force yet, and those two ‘bots are outfitted with non-lethal devices. If Lee is harmed by you, I will see to it that your career as a Detective comes to an end. Do you understand me?” Coleman said loudly.

“Yeah…I got it.” Lall said. Coleman could swear that he heard disappointment in the man’s voice.

“Alright, on three: one…two…three!” Coleman didn’t wait to see if Lall followed before he jumped out of the group of boulders they had been hiding in and ran at top speed towards Lee. The hardsuit gave him 4-5 times the speed of a normal human being. He didn’t see any weapons on Lee, so his plan was to grab him and subdue him with the superior strength that his hardsuit gave him. When Coleman got within about 15 meters of his target, Lee turned and saw him. The two ‘bots turned with lightning speed to defend, but not before one of them was reduced to a pile of twisted metal by Lall’s rail cannon. The second ‘bot fired a burst from a sticky foam gun, and a few second latter, Coleman heard Lall scream in frustration as the foam encased his hardsuit and hardened, making movement impossible, even for a hardsuit. As he continued to run, Coleman raised his laser and fired several shots at the ‘bot, until it fell over. After the second ‘bot was incapacitated, Lee didn’t bother to run -they both knew that there was nowhere for him to go. Coleman slowed to a trot, and stopped in front of Lee. “Dr. Andrew Lee, under my authority as an Officer of the UN Lunar Patrol, I place you under arrest…” Coleman’s voice trailed off, because he knew that he didn’t believe in what he was saying. “It’s over…” He added, more to convince himself than Lee.

“Have you figured out what I stole from the substation yet?” Lee asked over the general channel, seemingly unconcerned with the fact that he was under arrest.

“You have the control codes for the Lunar Defense Network.” Coleman said.

“Who told you that!” Lall demanded, still unable to move inside his hardsuit.

“I deduced it.” Coleman said, directing his response to Lee. “I knew that you were probably a secessionist, since you wrote as ‘J.L.’ before you disappeared. You have no criminal record, and I doubt that a man like you would commit a crime, unless he didn’t believe what he was doing was really a crime to begin with. I also knew that the only thing keeping the Lunar secession from being a success was the blockade, which is enforced by the Lunar Defense Network. Since you secessionists are clearly well-funded and well-organized, I didn’t think you would have declared Independence without having a plan for disabling the Defense Network, so your actions must be part of that plan.”

“You are correct, Detective Coleman.” Lee said, then added: “You are also right that what I have done is not a criminal act, because I am acting under the authority of the Lunar Congress.”

“It is possible that I’m wrong and that you’re just a plain old criminal motivated by greed…” Coleman mused. “How do I know that you really are working for the Lunar Congress?”

“What difference does it make?” Lall screamed. “That is a terrorist group!”

Coleman and Lee switched to a private channel, and continued their conversation. Lee said: “Send me a message encrypted with the Lunar Congress’ public key, and I will decrypt it.”

“Do it.” Coleman said subvocally to Friedman.

After a few seconds, Friedman said: “Lee’s telling the truth. He has the Lunar Congress’ private key.”

“Now you have a unique opportunity.” Lee said to Coleman. “Apparently, you must make a choice that may determine the fate of every person living on the moon. Do you choose the UN, and what it represents, or do you choose the Lunar Congress, and freedom? I’ve read your files, and I know that you’ve never cared for how things are going under UN rule.”

Coleman knew that Lee was right. But he also knew that he had taken an oath to uphold the law. If he broke that oath, then what would that make him? He knew he should just make the arrest, but he couldn’t force himself to move forward and take Lee into custody. “I…can’t…” Coleman said to Lee. “I made a promise to uphold the law…”

“I understand.” Lee said. “You promised to uphold UN law so long as you remained a cop…”

Suddenly, Coleman saw that Lee was hinting at a way out of his dilemma. He addressed Friedman on a channel that Lee could also hear: “Let Chief Inspector Simpson know that I have resigned, effective immediately.”

After a few seconds, Lee queried: “So I am free to go?”

“I have no authority to hold you.” Coleman said. “I’m not a cop.”

“In that case, I will take my leave.” Lee said. “We have a military satellite network to disable.”

“One question, before you leave.” Coleman said. “What would you have done if I had tried to arrest you?”

“As a military target under the rules of war, you would have been killed by one of the snipers that had been tracking you ever since the two of you touched down in this area. But, I told them I didn’t think it would be necessary if I incapacitated Officer Lall and could have a chance to talk to you.”

Coleman laughed and turned to walk away.

“What now?” Friedman asked.

“Send a hopper out to pick us up.” Coleman said.

***

The Lunar revolution was almost completely bloodless. After the Lunar Congress had control of the Lunar Defense Network, the trade blockade was ended. Most UN Officials on the moon resigned their posts once they saw that the secession was a success. The few that didn’t resign were given safe transport off the moon. Most of the members of the Lunar Patrol also resigned. The ones that refused were rounded up and shipped back to Earth. Coleman heard that Lall was among them. The Lunar Congress passed the Lunar Homestead Act as its first piece of legislation and people began leaving Luna City to settle on their own land.

“Well, what now?” Friedman said from across the chess board at a bar in Luna City. The City now seemed like a ghost town, with so many residents living out on the surface, and only coming in to do business. The bar owner, a friend of Coleman’s, had just finished complaining to them about loss of market share to the bars springing up in nearby independent settlements. Then Coleman had reminded him that after 15 years of residence on the moon, he didn’t have to sleep on a cot in the back of his bar anymore. Embarrassed, the owner had gone to check on other customers.

“I’m about to put you in check…” Coleman responded to Friedman as he began to move his queen.

“Not that.” Friedman said. “What do we do now that we’re both out of the job? People aren’t exactly anxious to hire two former members of the now hated, and very defunct, UN Lunar Patrol.”

“Something will come up…” Coleman said, as he moved his chess piece.

“You’ve been saying that for a week now.” Friedman said. “My savings aren’t going to last forever, and I’ve got a wife and kid to think of…”

“Perhaps I can be of assistance there.” A familiar voice said. Coleman and Friedman looked up to see Andrew Lee, now Prime Executive Lee of the Lunar Republic, standing at their table.

Coleman stood up, and put his arm around Andrew Lee’s shoulder. “Friedman, I’d like to introduce you to the Prime Executive.”

Friedman stood up. He pumped Lee’s outstretched hand with great enthusiasm. “It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Prime Executive.” He then added: “I voted for you!”

Coleman suppressed a smile. He was always surprised at how quickly the legitimacy of the Lunar Republic and its officials was recognized by the average Lunar resident. “The Prime Executive has called in a few favors with the Mayor of Luna City.” Coleman explained to Friedman.

“That’s right.” Lee said. “And I believe he has found a place for both of you on the new Luna City Police Department.”

“What do you say?” Coleman said to Friedman. “Still plenty of real criminals out there for us to catch.”

“Yes!” Friedman exclaimed. “I love catching bad guys!”

Lunar Cops (Part III)

2008-03-28T20:58:00.002-05:00

You will want to read Part I and Part II before reading this.

Coleman watched TV on the hopper as they flew back to Luna City, after getting off the maglev. Lall was sleeping off the effects of being stunned. Colleman wanted to see if their case had hit the news. He didn’t like having his name on the air, but sometimes people with useful information would come forward if a case was covered by the media. After you sifted through the crazies that would invariably call. He thought. All he could find was a business report. It was about the falling price of water. A lot of people were losing a lot of money in the commodities markets. The reporter was explaining how water had continued to decline in price for almost three months now, in spite of the fact that production had not increased significantly.

“That doesn’t make any sense.” Friedman said. “It flies in face of basic economics.”

“Either demand has fallen, or the supply really is increasing, and it’s just not showing up in official inventories of water supplies.” Coleman said.

“You mean there is more water being traded on the black market?” Friedman asked.

“That seems more likely to me than demand suddenly falling off for no reason.” Coleman said.

“But, if that’s true, then where are the black marketers getting the water?” Friedman asked.

“That’s a good question, I suppose…” Coleman’s voice trailed off as he focused his attention back on the TV. A news report had come on about Andrew Lee’s break-in at the UN Government Substation. There wasn’t any mention of anything being stolen, just that it was probably an act of terrorism. The screen jumped to an old picture of Lee. The reporter then transitioned to the next story: “And now a report on a local pooch and his owner who are dog tired after breaking the record for doggie dancing…” Coleman turned off the TV. He pulled up the bio. on Dr. Lee, and began to peruse through it. Before he inexplicably quit about three years ago, Dr. Lee had been a highly respected Lunar geologist –a selenologist, as they preferred to be called- at the UN Lunar Science Ministry. Some people thought he had been kidnapped or murdered. Others said that he had joined the secessionist movement.

“Why do you think someone like Lee is doing this?” Friedman asked, who was reading the same report as Coleman.

“I think he is a secessionist.” Coleman said. “The resources he has at his disposal indicate that he is working for a well-funded organization like that: The memory storage device he used to steal the data is an expensive black market item and taking down the communications satellite over the maglev would have required enormous resources. It also makes sense given what we know about Lee’s political views.” Coleman pointed to a section of Lee’s bio that described how he had been rumored to be a political writer on the Lunarnet known only as “J.L.”. J.L. wrote mostly essays and op-eds on why the moon should break politically with the Earth. J.L.’s writings also suggested that he wanted the break with Earth to be done through peaceful political means, but then he had stopped writing –right around the same time that Andrew Lee disappeared. Coleman wondered if Lee had decided that working through official UN channels to achieve Lunar independence was futile. Coleman noticed that one of the essays written by J.L. was titled “The Squatter Problem”. Without thinking about it, he opened it, and began to read:

…the squatter problem is a problem spawned by UN policy. Homelessness on Earth, by which I mean large numbers of people, who want to have a home, being unable to afford one for long periods of time, is always caused by bad law, such as rent controls creating shortages. Similarly, in this case, UN policy generally flies in the face of man’s nature and the requirements for his survival, and one particular “law” (for can it really be a “law” if it violates natural law?) is responsible for the misery of the squatters. That law has its origins in the 20th Century, and the UN Outer Space Treaty. Under UN law, the right of Lunarians to create, own, and possess the material goods needed for survival is abrogated in the name of the “greater good”. But who’s greater good? It certainly isn’t the greater good of most people living in Luna City, who cannot afford the price of what would be a closet back on Earth. It isn’t the greater good of even most of the people living back on Earth –why would they care where the people of the Moon live, as long as the H-3 continues to flow? No, it is the “greater good” of that undefined and un-definable “social collective”. It is, perhaps, even the “greater good” of the politicians at the UN (although “greater power” might be a more accurate description of their interest)…

Coleman skipped a few pages, and began to read again:

…The solution to the squatter problem is simple: turn the squatters into homesteaders. Establish a system of property acquisition and courts to enforce and define those property boundaries on the moon.

Coleman knew that the UN politicians back on Earth would never willingly allow this to happen. First, it was contrary to the rhetoric of most UN politicians, who spoke of the need to control unchecked growth in order to prevent “sociological displacement” and “ecological damage”. Furthermore, Coleman knew that their power on Earth was based in the rents that the H-3 companies on the moon paid, since that was where it got the majority of its revenue. Giving Lunarians a property interest in lunar real estate would make the Moon seem more like their home, instead of just a place of temporary employment. This, in turn would call into question why the rents that the H-3 corporations paid were necessary. The rents cost the corporations profits, which, in turn hurt wages, and they all went back to Earth, so they were already disliked. If the people of the moon began to think of themselves as homesteaders and colonists of the moon, instead of migrant laborers, here on the moon on a temporary basis, it wouldn’t be long before they moved to curtail or abolish the rents paid to the UN, which would in turn destroy the UN’s power back on Earth.

“Well, whatever he stole, I guess Lee’s going to get away with it.” Friedman said.

“Why do you say that?” Coleman asked.

“They weren’t able to track Lee after he left the train on the hopper because of the downed communications satellite.” Friedman said. “He could be anywhere now.”

“I’m pretty certain we can discover where he has gone once we get back near Luna City.” Coleman said.

“Okay, don’t make me grovel for it.” Friedman joked. “What do you know that I don’t?”

“We’re pretty sure that Lee wasn’t originally planning to go to Luna City.” Coleman began.

“Right, his suit was damaged, and he had to steal a ticket to get on the maglev.” Friedman said.

“So, there are two questions: where was he going, and how was he originally planning to get there?” Coleman asked rhetorically. “I think Lee is a member of the Lunar resistance, and that he was doing work for them associated with their attempted secession.”

“Okay, that seems reasonable, given the fact that he probably is the political essayist known as “J.L.”. What do you think “J.L.” stands for anyway?”

“Let’s not get distracted with unessential questions,” Coleman scolded Friedman before continuing. “I think that, generally speaking, Lee must have been going to someplace where it would be safe to have an illegal cloned UN terminal system, which would allow him to download the information contained on the memory device he stole from the substation. Furthermore, my Dear Watson,” Coleman added playfully, “…we know that however he was originally planning to get to this secret secessionist hideout, it must have involved a transportation device that was close to his initial landing spot when he jumped off the cargo transporter that he hitchhiked on.”

“Maybe somebody was supposed to be waiting there with a hopper, and something happened to them?” Friedman asked.

“Doubtful.” Coleman responded. “The hopper traffic that near Luna City is tracked, and an unscheduled landing and takeoff from that location by a hopper would attract the attention of the authorities, and would also probably be intercepted.”

“Okay…Holmes,” Friedman said sarcastically. “How was he planning on getting away, and how is that going to help us find him now?”

“What did Lee land nearby after he jumped off the cargo transporter and damaged his suit?” Coleman asked.

“Ah…I get it.” Friedman said. “You’re thinking he planned to use the mass driver.”

“Exactly!” Coleman said.

“But, that driver isn’t rated for human transport. Its track is too short, and it would have to accelerate a person beyond the limits of his physiology to put him in orbit…” Friedman’s voice trailed off, and since Coleman could see that he had almost arrived at the correct conclusion, he gave him a second to figure it out, rather than explaining it. “…oh, I get it.” Friedman continued. “Lee wouldn’t have had to reach orbit, since his destination was presumably somewhere on the moon. Therefore, he wouldn’t have needed to be launched at a rate of acceleration too great for his body to withstand.”

“Correct.” Coleman said.

“I’ll tell the pilot to take us to the mass driver, oh god of crime-busting.” Friedman said sincerely, and without a hint of sarcasm.

***

“I don’t understand what we are doing here.” Lall said groggily as they cycled through the airlock at the mass driver’s control station.

“Friedman will call you and explain it to you.” Coleman said over his suit radio, then sub-vocally, to Friedman: “Get this jack-off up to speed, please.” Coleman took another look at the mass driver’s employee roster. Before they had arrived, Coleman had had Friedman do a criminal background check on all of the driver’s personnel, then he had cross-checked the ones with records against those employees who had access to the mass driver’s velocity control computers. A mass driver worked by accelerating a metal container, filled with whatever you wanted to put into orbit, with magnetic coils on a long, strait track until the container had sufficient velocity to reach orbit. The velocity control computer controlled the final speed of the container, and therefore controlled how far the container would travel. If the velocity was lower than that required to reach orbit, then the container would eventually fall back to the surface of the moon. Coleman was guessing that Lee and his associates had simply bribed someone with access to the control computer at the mass driver facility, since its systems weren’t connected to the Lunarnet, making a hacker attack difficult.

“How can I help?” The mass driver’s manager said once they had cycled through the airlock, and shown him their badges.

“We need to speak with one of your employees –a Richie Tran.” Coleman said, naming the only employee at the mass driver who had both a criminal record and access to its control computer.

“Just a minute.” The manager said as he stepped to a terminal. “Tran, someone here to see you.”

“Who is it?” A voice on the terminal queried back.

“Don’t tell him it’s the cops…” Coleman whispered from behind the manager. “Tell him it’s a girl looking for him.”

“Er…” The manager said, fumbling his words. “It’s…a girl, looking for you…she said you’d know who.”

“Oh, okay. Tell Betty I’ll be there in a second.”

A few minutes later Richie Tran walked into the room, saw Coleman and Lall, and turned to run back out. Lall tackled him before he could make it out the door. “What the hell is going on?” Tran asked loudly. “I haven’t done anything!”

“Is there someplace we can talk with him in private?” Coleman asked the manager.

“Yeah, first left out this door is a conference room.”

Coleman let Lall manhandle Tran into the conference room and into a chair. Coleman then sat down across the table from Tran. “You’ve got yourself a little bit of a record, there, Richie.” Coleman said with mock amusement in his voice.

“Yeah, well, I had a bad childhood.” Tran said sarcastically. “But, I’m on the strait-and-narrow now –and I owe it all to Jesus.”

“Yeah, you’re just the type to take the ‘good book’ to heart aren’t you?” Coleman said dismissively. “Do you know an Andrew Lee?”

“Never heard of him.” Tran said.

“Richie, Richie, Richie…” Coleman said with feigned sadness. “Do you know what the penalty is for aiding terrorists?”

“Terrorists?” Tran said, with surprise, and growing fear that now seemed genuine. “I don’t know nothing about no terrorists.” Coleman suspected that Lee and his secessionist associates hadn’t told Tran what they were doing when they bribed him, and he had probably assumed it was for smuggling. In fact, Coleman knew from his rap sheet that Richie Tran was a minor criminal. He had done a little time for smuggling and a few other misdemeanors. Coleman knew that the possibility of a charge like aiding terrorists, a major felony, probably scared a little fish like Richie Tran.

“You’d better get out in front of this, Richie, or that is what you’re looking at.” Coleman said, faking a concern in his voice for Richie Tran that he didn’t actually feel.

“Look, I don’t know anything about any terrorists…” Tran began to say, with a quiver in his voice.

“You’re lying!” Lall said, slapping the desk in front of Tran. Coleman was slightly annoyed by Lall getting involved in his interrogation, but he knew that Lall was entitled to be there, so he ignored it.

“I’m not lying.” Tran said, almost pleadingly. “I don’t know what you’re talking…”

“Oh, okay.” Coleman said. “I guess we’ve got the wrong guy here. So, when I go and look at the logs for the driver’s control computers, I’m not going to see that you reduced the velocity of one of the containers, and if I go and get a warrant, I’m not going to see that you recently made a deposit of a sizable sum to your bank account.” Coleman stood up, as if to leave. “Come on.” He said to Lall. “I guess Mr. Tran doesn’t want to help himself out of this jam.”

“Okay! Okay!” Tran said, standing up, and holding up his hands in surrender. “Somebody did pay me to reprogram a launch trajectory so that the container wouldn’t make lunar orbit insertion. He paid good money, and I just thought he was smuggling something, I didn’t know anything about any terrorist plot.”

“Who paid you?” Coleman said.

“Simons –John Simons.” Tran said. “He works here at the driver facility, prepping containers for launch. Is Simons really a terrorist?”

Coleman began to walk out of the room.

“Hey, what’s going to happen to me?” Tran asked. “I cooperated, right?”

“Yeah.” Coleman said with sarcasm. “You’re a model citizen. After we check your story, you’re free to go, but I bet you’ll need to find yourself a new job.” He walked out of the room. The manager was waiting in the hallway. “Do you have a John Simons working for you?”

“We did until today.” The manager answered. “He tendered his resignation and walked off the job about an hour before you guys showed up.”

“I’ll put out an APB for him.” Friedman said.

“I doubt he’ll be found.” Coleman said to Friedman as he turned away from the manager. “But it doesn’t matter at this point anyway. We know how Lee was originally planning to get away after he jumped from the cargo transport, so we also know where he was going.”

Doctors Remove 6 Organs to Get at Tumor

2008-03-26T09:45:00.002-05:00

I was so impressed by this story last night on the news that I thought I'd mention it here. The doctors removed 6 organs from a woman's abdomen, removed a tumor, and then put the organs back in. Incredible. Only in America.