The Morning Roar: McConnell Ad Mistakes Duke for U. of Kentucky, Venice Drum Circles vs. LAPD, and DHS Moves Into an Insane Asylum
Welcome to your Thursday edition of The Morning Roar! Mitch McConnell Ad Mistakes Duke for University of KentuckyA new advertisement for the reelection campaign of Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell features a blunder so obvious that one has to question if this was an intentional jab of some kind. The ad - which has already been pulled - featured a clip of Duke basketball players celebrating their 2010 championship , instead of University of Kentucky players.ESPN Reports:
The mistake comes as the basketball-crazy state of Kentucky prepares for its biggest game of the season. Eighth-seeded Kentucky and fourth-seeded Louisville face off in the Sweet 16 on Friday night in Indianapolis."The ad was intended to highlight Kentucky's basketball dominance and obviously the Web ad vendor has become so accustomed to watching national championship celebrations in the Bluegrass State that they made a mistake with one of the images," said McConnell spokeswoman Allison Moore, a Kentucky graduate. "Obviously we were horrified by the error and quickly changed it."If that weren't bad enough, the replacement ad had issues as well, as it featured an image of University of Kentucky player Julius Randle."Although the use of the student-athlete's image in the advertisement is not permissible, because it was done without the knowledge or permission of the university or the student-athlete, it is not an NCAA violation," the UK athletic department said in a statement Tuesday evening, after consulting with the NCAA about the image."The University of Kentucky has sent a cease and desist letter and will continue to take appropriate measures to ensure improper usage of a student-athlete's name, image or likeness is prevented."The McConnell campaign said the video was taken down as soon as questions were raised about the NCAA images.
The blunders never stop! This is likely just another run-of-the-mill example of political ineptitude, but the cynical observer has to at least take a glance over at Jesse Benton, McConnell's campaign manager, who also ran Ron Paul's 2012 campaign and has been accused by many Paul supporters of sabotaging that very campaign.It's unlikely that Benton would intentionally sabotage the campaign of McConnell. In all likelihood this error had nothing to do with him at all, but it's another interesting chapter in the constant drama surrounding Rand Paul's awkward political situation in Kentucky. Venice, CA Drum Circle Participants Being ArrestedFor the first 7 or so years of my near-decade living in the state of California, I resided in the charming (depending on your perspective) beach area of Venice. One feature of Venice beach are the "drum circles", where people will gather around on the beach with various drums and drum-type objects and generally have a good old time. This has never been a major problem as far as I could see - if you didn't want to hear it you didn't go to the drum circle. No big deal.But recently drum circle participants have drawn the ire of the LAPD. Vice has a story about regarding how a recent noise ordinance has caused conflicts between the drum circles and local police, with clashes becoming violent and arrests taking place.It's certainly reasonable for residents of the area near where the drum circles congregate to want a reduced level of noise if it is bothering them. It's also understandable why people who participate in the drum circles are upset that their drum circle is suddenly an issue after years of having no problem whatsoever with law enforcement.This is another example of the Tragedy of the Commons, which I discussed with Timothy Terrell back in Episode 26 of the Lions of Liberty Podcast. It is a problem that occurs with land deemed "public" property. There are conflicts over use of the land; but because the land is "public" and owned by "everyone" conflicts arise. Usually this is associated with conflicts over a natural resource; in this case it is a conflict over noise.In a free society all property would be privately owned, and in the case of a noise violation any conflicts would be settled by the principles of homesteading and the "first-user". If a resident moved into a region where drum circles were already regularly taking place close by, they would not have much of a legal claim for noise pollution against the drum circle participants. If the drum circle just showed up one day next to a previously quiet neighborhood, they could be liable for damages or be ordered to cease the noise by a court.When the State gets involved and decides certain areas belong to "everyone", conflicts naturally arise between individuals because"everyone" has different preferences on how the land should be used. In this case, some would like it used for drum circles, while others would like it used for less noisy activities.For a more complete breakdown of how these issues would be dealt with in a private property society, check out my interview with Timothy Terrell. Homeland Security is Moving Into an Insane AsylumSometimes these headlines just write themselves. Reason.com reports on a fancy new compound the Department of Homeland Security is building for its new headquarters that includes all sort of amenities such as "rainwater toilets" and "sustainable Brazilian hardwood decking."Government boondoggles like this are nothing new, but this one comes with an appropriate twist: It is being built at the site of a centuries-old insane asylum.
The department, which ranks dead last among large agencies on the Partnership for Public Service's 2013 “Best Places to Work in the Federal Government” list, could use a morale boost. But it would take a pretty goth sensibility to be cheered up by a move to the site of what Congress established in 1855 as “St. Elizabeths Government Hospital for the Insane.”The hospital's former employees include the inventor of the “icepick lobotomy”; among its famous inmates were disgruntled federal job-seeker Charles Guiteau, who assassinated President Garfield, and pioneering recreational chemist Owsley Stanley, who supplied Ken Kesey's “merry pranksters” with high-grade LSD. “One of many historically interesting features of the site,” the redevelopment webpage boasts, “is a cemetery originally established for ... 'friendless patients.' ”
"Friendless patients" could easily be another euphemism for our good friends at the Department of Homeland Security, who increasingly draw the ire of a public that is becoming more and more aware of the police state of which they are a major tentacle.The Lions of Liberty are on Twitter, Facebook & Google+Receive access to ALL of our EXCLUSIVE bonus audio content – including “Conspiracy Corner”, “Degenerate Gamblers” and the “League of Liberty Podcast” by joining the Lions of Liberty Pride and supporting us on Patreon!Read The Morning Roar every weekday Monday-Friday!