Hundreds or perhaps thousands of Hong Kong citizens who protested for democracy have been banned from China.

Much like the US no-fly list, they don't find this out until they try to cross the border.

As expected, the grand jury decided not to indict the killer of Michael Brown.

This was predictable; hardly ever do killer thugs face justice.

The decision led to predictable riots.

It is wrong to vent this rage by burning down private buildings that have nothing to do with the killing. At the same time, I understand that many in Ferguson feel that rioting is their last recourse after trying everything else. I hope it leads to some good.

Civil rights and justice groups called on Governor Nixon to appoint a special prosecutor, but he didn't. He could still do this, but he would rather provoke riots and repress them. He is directly and personally responsible for giving a killer thug immunity. We should not let him shrug it off.

The old School of the Americas, under a new name, teaches fighting "terrorists" (whatever that means) and the "war on drugs".

It's a different harm but it's still harm. Recall that the dictatorships of South America in the 70s said that the people they disappeared were "terrorists".

Communication and server companies have an interest in letting people think they care about privacy, but not so much in effectively doing so.

I disagree with one point: encryption is not a fraud or a sham. However, it can only protect specific limited aspects of privacy, which are not enough.

Blanket Data Retention Does Not Come in "Good" And "Bad" Forms.