Blog Heap of Links for the day 1 November 2012

Police are allowed in some circumstances to install hidden surveillance cameras on private property without obtaining a search warrant, a federal judge said yesterday. … U.S. District Judge William Griesbach ruled that it was reasonable for Drug Enforcement Administration agents to enter rural property without permission -- and without a warrant -- to install multiple "covert digital surveillance cameras" in hopes of uncovering evidence that 30 to 40 marijuana plants were being grown. [Sure, that old Constitutionally-mandated warrant stuff, it's so old dead Euro male.]

Fisker released the following statement: “It was reported today that several Fisker Karmas were damaged by fire at the Port of Newark after being submerged in sea water during Superstorm Sandy. We can report that there were no injuries and none of the cars were being charged at the time…. [Yes, that's warmly comforting, isn't it!]

An Air Force Academy tradition of throwing cadet first sergeants into the season's first snowfall ended in a brawl that left 27 cadets in need of medical treatment for everything from concussions, bitemarks, and cuts, according to an internal academy email obtained by the Air Force Times.

today, in Nevada, the life of an 11-week-old unborn baby and the future of his or her 32-year-old mother hang in the balance as a judge considers whether or not to order the woman to undergo an abortion and sterilization against her will. … [woman] suffers from severe mental and physical disabilities attributed to fetal alcohol syndrome, is currently in the final weeks of her first trimester…. has epilepsy and is said to have the mental and social capacity of a 6-year-old. The circumstances surrounding her pregnancy are unknown…. family suspects she may have been raped, but it’s possible the sexual encounter that led to her pregnancy was consensual. On several occasions, [she] has left her group home for hours or days at a time to engage in sexual activity with men at a local truck stop…. wants to carry out her pregnancy [although] she knows she will be unable to care for the child. [Adoptive parents] support her decision, are following all the prenatal protocol for high-risk pregnancies, and have already lined up six qualified couples who are eager to adopt [her] child once he or she is born. However, when Washoe County Social Services became aware of Elisa’s pregnancy, the department issued an informal report requesting that the Court set a status hearing to address the potential health effects Elisa’s pregnancy could have on her and her unborn child, and possibly override the mutual decision made between Elisa and her parents to have her baby. [Emphasis added. It's like that old 1950s TV sitcom, Government Knows Best, right?]

…tried to use ramps to drive an SUV over a 14-foot-tall border fence had to abandon their plan when the Jeep became stuck on top of the barrier…. Agents patrolling the U.S.-Mexico border near the Imperial Sand Dunes in California's southeast corner spotted the Jeep Cherokee teetering atop the fence early Tuesday…. Two smugglers on the Mexican side of the border were trying to free the Jeep when the agents approached, Tippets said. They ran further into Mexico and escaped.

Weird Uncle Joe Biden showed up to campaign for Barack Obama in Florida today, and man, was he on top of his weird uncle game. … “And after it's all over, when your insurance rates go down, then you’ll vote for me in 2016.” … "As they say in my business," he told a rally, "I'm going to give you the whole load today." … Biden turned to the group of guys, then… asked one of them, “Are you Indian?” “American!” the man responded. … today in Florida… referencing the Cleveland Plain Dealer, he calls it "one of the major newspapers in this state."