You Could Get Tased...

...If you are mentally disabled, deaf, and spend an hour in Dollar General's restroom in Mobile, Alabama. Seems Antonio Love - a 37 year old man who has the mental capacity of a 10 year old - had severe tummy trouble and used up his allotted time in the loo. So the store clerks called Mobile's Finest* who proceeded to bust in the door with a tire iron when they received no answer to their knocks and identifying statements.

Of course, being deaf, Love couldn't hear those knocks and statements. The first he knew of anyone wanting in was when the door bashed him on the head leaving "a knot." Love pushed back on the door thinking "the devil was out there trying to get in to get him." While the door was partially open Mobile's Finest took the opportunity to douse Love with pepper spray. Love rushed to the sink and began using water to wash his face and eyes. Seeing their quarry distracted, and observing that an umbrella was in the room, Mobile's Finest then gave Love a Ride on the Lightning courtesy Mr. Taser.

Then they arrested Love for disorderly conduct - after he showed them a card in his wallet explaining his various disabilities, such as not being able to hear them knocking. Fortunately the magistrate is a person of reason and refused to issue a warrant.

Mobile Police spokesman Christopher Levy said he wishes "the confrontation had never occurred." I bet. Love's family is preparing to sue.

*I have nothing against the fine men and women of the Mobile, Alabama Police Department. As a former Alabama Constable in Mobile County I knew quite a few great people that worked in the department. But, c'mon, guys!

J. Franklin Campbell wins Silver Bertl von Massow Award

#chess . .
From ICCF-US:

July 25, 2009

Press Release -- J Franklin Campbell to Receive Silver Bertl von Massow Award

von Massow Award Winner J. Franklin Campbell

The ICCF-US would like to add our thanks to Franklin for his years of devoted service to correspondence chess. This recognition from the international chess community is richly-deserved.

Click here to read the ICCF-US press release.

Bob Rizzo, ICCF-US Titles Officer

Congrats!

A Picture Suffices

My friend Terry Vibbert posted this pic in a USCF forum discussion...



And it was so to the point I still can't stop laughing...

Pic from http://images.encyclopediadramatica.com/images/f/fd/Picard-no-facepalm.jpg

Good Idea

Taser use forbidden if flammable fuel nearby

Makes sense. You have to wonder who thought it was ok to mix sparks and gasoline... Oh, yeah, that guy. Leave it to the Aussies.

Postal Chess and the Cold War

A deputy director of MI5 and a suspected Frankfurt spy exchanged post cards that are thought to have been coded communications instead of just chess moves way back in the Fifties... Better than fiction.

Starting New ICCF Event

I missed out on USA vs. ROW due to a mail problem with AT&T's switchover to using Yahoo webmail (big mistake, guys). I used to use Yahoo Mail but their lack of spam control and outages always made life tough. It bit me here again, but ICCF-US honcho Corky Schakel says he'll make sure to I get a shot at the next one. IM Schakel was instrumental in saving ICCF-US and American Correspondence Chess players from disaster a couple years back.

In addition to starting my first CCLA event, I received notification that a new ICCF Higher Class event is starting. In WS/H/195 I'll face a couple familiar opponents in Walter Baumann of Switzerland and Vaclav Sladek of Canada. In WS/H/171 I gained a point as Black against Baumann's Dunst opening. I'm currently playing Black against Sladek's Trompowsky in WS/H/187.

I've procrastinated sending my opening moves in both eents as I am still debating what I want to play. Decisions!

First CCLA Event

A few days ago I commented that I had submitted my first entry into a CCLA event. I received notice today that the event has formed. S90201 is a five player double round robin held on the ICCF server as part of their seasonal server series.

Time to get those repertoire questions answered.

IrishSpy will be pleased to see that CCLA has apparently solved their delay problems...

Pithed Off Another One

Pith in the Wind (written by Jeff Woods) didn't like the TFA's "Merchant - Please Don't Post" card (Thanks for the Pithing link, BTW).

The Tennessee Firearms Association produces handy cards to blackmail restauranters.

Uh huh. So what do YOU have against us letting merchants know we value our rights to do business with whom we please?

In the same Pithed off item Woods quotes Nikki Goeser in the BBC video we cited yesterday. It seems that Jonny's Sports Bar - the bar where Ben Goeser needlessly lost his life - has posted signs banning guns. But they are being real quiet about it...

Pith called Jonny's and asked to speak to the owner or manager. The guy who came to the phone confirmed Jonny's has banned guns but wouldn't talk about it. He said other media outlets know Jonny's has banned guns but have agreed not to report this news for reasons that escape Pith.

"We put the signs up," he said, "but I don't want to be quoted at all."

Hey, Linoge, another one for your list... As one commenter observed, "Keep listing places that are banning handguns. The gun nuts need to know where not to spend their money." Another commenter asked on Day Two under this law, "Where is the blood in the streets where is the OUTRAGE?!?!?!?! Where are the Dirty Harrys???"

That's the thing about law abiding folk, which Tennessee handgun Permit Holders are by definition... They are law abiding.

In other BREAKING NEWS - courtesy of Pithed commenters - A MAN CARRIED A HANDGUN INTO MULTIPLE FRANKLIN, TENNESSEE RESTAURANTS! No one was harmed or even alarmed, or so we are told...

"My Gun Could Have Saved My Husband"

The title is something that Nikki Goeser should never have had to think, much less say. As the owner of a Tennessee Handgun Permit Goeser was trained and licensed to carry her handgun. But when a stalker decided to kill she didn't have her gun.

And her husband died.

Back then, just a few months ago, Tennessee did not allow permit holders to carry their weapons in restaurants that served beer and alcohol. Now it does.

Too late.

On a BBC special Goeser explains why our Second Amendment rights can't end at the door of a restaurant.

Quote of the Day: Guns in Restaurants! Oh, No!

From Linoge at Walls:

This is a message to all the pants-wetting morons in Tennessee who are claiming they will not patronize a restaurant that does not post a "no guns allowed" sign: you are, of course, aware that law-abiding, handgun-carry-permit-holding citizens like myself have been frequenting McDonalds, Wendy's, Burger Kings, Pizza Huts, Buddy's, Chick-Fil-As, Pop-Eyes, Subways, Taco Bells, Firehouses, Arby's, Kentucky Fried Chickens, Dominos, Blimpies, Quiznos, Sonics, and countless other fast-food restaurants for years, right?

Right?

Yup. Pizza Hut just yesterday, as a matter of fact. That was something I commented to my wife (who was there, too, and was not traumatized or otherwise harmed by the presence of a GUN) while we were in there... When did Pizza Hut stop serving beer?

Apollo 11 Remembered

This is very cool! Check out Wechoosethemoon.org. It is a second by second recreation of the Apollo 11 mission to the moon for the 40th anniversary.

ICCF Rating UP a Few Points

...On the new list. I was at 2020 on the last list and have gained 7 points to 2027. Expect a drop after the last couple events get scored, though. I'm getting my butt kicked. My White repertoire has stunk. If I wasn't WORKING every day of the week I'd have time to post some of the games. Can't use that excuse for playing the games, though. They started when I was having to take furlough days because the corporation that owns our local company made loads of bad money decisions. Now they've laid off so many people that when something happens, as it has, there is no one left to cover things. Except me.

But I have confirmed that at the Higher levels the London System gets picked apart quickly... Eek! Back to the Reti. I may even trot out a couple of my older favorites. Thing is, I don't like the Spanish or the Italian openings. I've been tinkering with a couple English variations and even considered bringing back the Scotch which I haven't played in years. The thing about the Scotch... e4 players only get to play their opening one out of three times as Black will usually (and I plead guilty) take them down a non e5 response instead of 1...e5.

But I do still have all those books and notes on the Scotch...

[UPDATE] And, being a glutton for punishment, I've entered another Higher event at ICCF and my first CCLA event, a Quarterly Server Series. Wheee...