The ‘internal affairs’ of ‘RENtOn 911!’

I first saw this story on the Daily Cartoonist, but it’s so strange that by now it’s probably getting wider coverage. In Renton, Washington, somebody has used Xtranormal animation to make parody videos of the police department. It’s apparently the work of an insider, and the chief isn’t amused. TV station KIRO7 broke the story. (Argh! The reporter says, “sign off on this,” an expression that drives me nuts. It should simply be “sign this.”)

[flv:http://www.dograt.com/Video/2011/AUG/CriticizeRentonPolice.flv 512 288]

Today, the police chief defended his use of the courts for what seems to be a personal vendetta. This story has all the ingredients of a real-life Reno 911!

[flv:http://www.dograt.com/Video/2011/AUG/RentonPoliceRespond.flv 512 288]

Battle of the dead economists

The economist Paul Krugman is a Keynesian. He says government stimulus is the way to get the economy moving again, even if it means going deeper in debt. The prevailing policy in England, and now in America, favors Friedrich Hayek, who would recommend cutting back and riding out the downturn until the economy corrects itself. BBC Radio 4 sponsored an interesting debate on the merits and weaknesses of Keynes vs. Hayek

[audio:https://s3.amazonaws.com/dogratcom/Audio/2011/Aug/bbc4.mp3|titles=BBC Radio 4 debate: Keynes vs. Hayek]