On a cool, clear fall evening two young women entered a house in the quiet village of Chimayo. Chimayo, a rural artist and small farm community laying below juniper covered hills in a willow lined valley, is known for its Sanctuary, probably the most sacred place in New Mexico and a favorite subject of photographers and painters. Chimayo is also known as a major heroin distribution center.
The women entered a home owned by a 63 year old instructor at a local community college. The two women wanted a narcotic fix and were there to steal something of value. When they encountered the man, they bludgeoned him to death with a baseball bat, stabbed him 40 to 50 times and left with his television set.
The women had been brought to the house by the man's middle-aged niece. The man had not trusted his niece and forbade her from entering his house. The women had not known the niece but when they said they needed a fix, the niece told the women they could find something of value at a house she knew and drove them to the location. Along the way she is alleged to have told the women not to leave any witnesses. After the murder, the niece drove the women away.
The two women were apprehended, confessed and implicated the niece. There was other evidence linking the niece to the crime but only the word of the two women about the encouragement she had given them. The niece has been charged with first degree murder.
Today 160 of us were gathered in the jury selection room and filled out a form asking us what we already knew about this case. We were then assigned numbers. I was prospective juror 11, presumably because I had arrived in Santa Fe after the crime and therefore was unlikely to have knowledge about the incident.
Now I don't pay an incredible amount of attention to the local news but it was hard to overlook this one. Sometime in the last year I heard an update about the crime and it was dramatic enough that I Googled and found a couple of news articles. My memory is decent enough that I remembered the basics.
Which was enough to get me dismissed from the case.
I neither wanted to serve on this jury, nor did I want to get out of this service. This is the type of case where a jury is important (unlike the silly civil case a few weeks ago). But I find it upsetting that by paying minimal … and I repeat: minimal … attention, I am disqualified. Is the court saying that someone moderately alert and literate is not a representative citizen?
Who, then, is?
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Sunday, July 20, 2014
ipv6 @ home
I was pretty shocked when I accidentally found that Comcast supported ipv6 here in Santa Fe. I had never even considering trying it. So I tried it.
I was pretty shocked when it worked. I got an address and could use it. But it isn't particularly helpful to get an ipv6 address on my router, so I checked further.
Comcast's documentation was typically unhelpful. After trying their best to get me to pay them another $100 per month to get the same service I get today, I finally found a reference that said they would only support a single ipv6 address at a home. This made no sense, but then it was Comcast and what would you expect?
So I consulted with the Internet and it was at it's usual helpful-mess. I found a variety of sources, many of which came across as quite authoritative. Some said it wasn't possible, some said it was possible but probably wouldn't work, some said they got it to work but their advice was hallucinogenic. The more authoritative looking a source, the less sense it made and, as it turned out, there was a fairly strong negative correlation between “authoritative” and “reliable”.
Comcast uses dhcp for address assignment and ra's for routing info and it was pretty simple to ask for a /64 prefix and less simple to write the scripts needed to apply that to the correct interface and then pretty easy to propagate that to the other internal machines. Pretty much worked as magically as it should, except it took me quite a while to get the scripts working properly. And magically all my linux and android devices are running ipv6 with no additional effort on my part. Now about 25% of our traffic is v6,
I did get one useful hint from the Internet. It seems some random standards committee decided that routers should never have dynamically configured interfaces, so if you tell linux you are a workstation, it picks up the ra's quite nicely. If you tell linux you are a router, then it ignores ra's. But in this sort of home world (where a huge number of routers will live, albeit rather simple routers), you want both. So a linux geek invented a tri-level boolean (yes, it is called a boolean and has three valid values), where 0 and 1 have the meaning intended by the standards group and value 2 is the actually useful value.
The ipv6 support software is changing quickly (but stabilizing) and that can explain part of the expert confusion, but it would help if the experts would date their documents and include version numbers. I did find a helpful rfc (4890) for configuring the firewall rules on the router. In some Comcast forums I found responses from a Mr Senior Engineer @ Comcast who was simultaneously helpful, knowledgeable and clueless. I think Comcast will even give you a /60 (tho I didn't confirm this) and the network people were trying to be useful.
At least they might continue trying until a Senior Marketeer @ Comcast figures out this is another revenue opportunity.
I was pretty shocked when it worked. I got an address and could use it. But it isn't particularly helpful to get an ipv6 address on my router, so I checked further.
Comcast's documentation was typically unhelpful. After trying their best to get me to pay them another $100 per month to get the same service I get today, I finally found a reference that said they would only support a single ipv6 address at a home. This made no sense, but then it was Comcast and what would you expect?
So I consulted with the Internet and it was at it's usual helpful-mess. I found a variety of sources, many of which came across as quite authoritative. Some said it wasn't possible, some said it was possible but probably wouldn't work, some said they got it to work but their advice was hallucinogenic. The more authoritative looking a source, the less sense it made and, as it turned out, there was a fairly strong negative correlation between “authoritative” and “reliable”.
Comcast uses dhcp for address assignment and ra's for routing info and it was pretty simple to ask for a /64 prefix and less simple to write the scripts needed to apply that to the correct interface and then pretty easy to propagate that to the other internal machines. Pretty much worked as magically as it should, except it took me quite a while to get the scripts working properly. And magically all my linux and android devices are running ipv6 with no additional effort on my part. Now about 25% of our traffic is v6,
I did get one useful hint from the Internet. It seems some random standards committee decided that routers should never have dynamically configured interfaces, so if you tell linux you are a workstation, it picks up the ra's quite nicely. If you tell linux you are a router, then it ignores ra's. But in this sort of home world (where a huge number of routers will live, albeit rather simple routers), you want both. So a linux geek invented a tri-level boolean (yes, it is called a boolean and has three valid values), where 0 and 1 have the meaning intended by the standards group and value 2 is the actually useful value.
The ipv6 support software is changing quickly (but stabilizing) and that can explain part of the expert confusion, but it would help if the experts would date their documents and include version numbers. I did find a helpful rfc (4890) for configuring the firewall rules on the router. In some Comcast forums I found responses from a Mr Senior Engineer @ Comcast who was simultaneously helpful, knowledgeable and clueless. I think Comcast will even give you a /60 (tho I didn't confirm this) and the network people were trying to be useful.
At least they might continue trying until a Senior Marketeer @ Comcast figures out this is another revenue opportunity.
Sunday, July 13, 2014
Monsoon in the desert
July brings tourists and the monsoon to Santa Fe.
As unlikely as it seems, there is a monsoon here in the desert. At least some of the meteorologists call it a monsoon (as do all the TV weather clowns) but usage of that term is somewhat controversial in the weather world. Lets examine this.
There are two generally accepted definitions of monsoon. One is a seasonal weather pattern found in southeast Asia. This isn't a very useful definition and is generally used only by those living in southeast Asia. A more useful definition is
I have to feel sorry for these storm clouds. They try so hard to rain but they are constipated. They strain, they blow, they rumble but seldom do they rain. Yet every once in a while one succeeds, briefly causing very heavy albeit very localized rain. Overall the monsoon does manage to drop an inch or two per month on us, which is enough to keep junipers growing, put out the spring forest fires, give us a little drinking water, and perfume the air with a delightful freshness and scent of re-hydrated desiccated dog poop. And the thunder is very enjoyable.
As unlikely as it seems, there is a monsoon here in the desert. At least some of the meteorologists call it a monsoon (as do all the TV weather clowns) but usage of that term is somewhat controversial in the weather world. Lets examine this.
There are two generally accepted definitions of monsoon. One is a seasonal weather pattern found in southeast Asia. This isn't a very useful definition and is generally used only by those living in southeast Asia. A more useful definition is
- A seasonal change in wind direction
Yes. For most of the year the winds blow from the northwest but starting in July, the winds blow northward from central Mexico and up the spine of New Mexico and then turn eastward in southern Colorado.
- Bringing moisture from warm oceans
Yes again. The trade winds blow across the Caribbean, picking up lots of moisture. The winds turn northward as they hit Mexico's central mountains.
- With solar heating causing uplift
Yep. The sun gets pretty hot here.
- Creating afternoon thunder storms
Check. Almost every afternoon around 3pm impressive clouds form, especially above the mountains where the uplift is the greatest. There is often a constant rumble of thunder and glimpses of cloud hidden lightening.
- Causing torrential downpours.
Not so much. By the time the winds have reached New Mexico they have lost most of their moisture. In addition, it is so dry here that the rain often evaporates before it hits the ground, which is known as virga rain. Virga rain is kind of fun. The evaporation cools the surrounding air and this denser air then falls unimpeded to the ground where it has no choice but to blow radially outwards, often causing sudden strong gusts, knocking over baseball players and blowing vendor tents all over town. The cool air also helps to keep temperatures down, making July and August more comfortable than June.
I have to feel sorry for these storm clouds. They try so hard to rain but they are constipated. They strain, they blow, they rumble but seldom do they rain. Yet every once in a while one succeeds, briefly causing very heavy albeit very localized rain. Overall the monsoon does manage to drop an inch or two per month on us, which is enough to keep junipers growing, put out the spring forest fires, give us a little drinking water, and perfume the air with a delightful freshness and scent of re-hydrated desiccated dog poop. And the thunder is very enjoyable.
 |
| Virga rain over Santa Fe. In the center of the picture, I've indicated our house with a tiny little circle. Picture taken from the Sangre de Cristos, looking westward across Santa Fe and towards the Rio Grande. In the far distance the Jemez mountains are dimly visible thru the virga rain. |
Wednesday, July 02, 2014
Selection Rejection
I arrived early and sat outside on a low wall drinking my iced coffee, enjoying the pleasant morning and watching people. A thin middle-aged man in a suit accompanied by an older woman in a simple plain dress caught my attention. As they walked up the steps I thought “Attorney and client. I wonder …”.
A few minutes later I entered the courthouse. I wanted to be on time as I was assured jury selection would begin promptly at 8:30. All the prospective jurors were conscientious and by 8:30 we were scattered throughout the room, reading and watching the clock. And promptly an hour and fifteen minutes later a clerk introduced herself, told us we couldn’t chew gum or leave the room and that we were to sit and remain in the seats she was about to assign us.
There were 82 of us and after the first 79 had been seated, I was seated, followed by the only two black members of the pool. This clearly is not random seating and I know I will watch and enjoy but not participate.
After promptly waiting another 15 minutes the judge arrived, introduced himself, the plaintiff and defendant teams. The two I had seen earlier were in fact the plaintiff (now leaning on a cane) and one of her two attorneys. The judge also said this was a civil case and that the defendant was a county sheriff and while responding to an emergency call, the sheriff had struck the plaintiff’s car, allegedly causing the plaintiff bodily injury and subsequent suffering. Ambulance chasing. Should be amusing.
The judge asked the standard qualification questions: do you know any of the parties? Have you ever been struck by an emergency vehicle while it was on a call? Have you ever sued a civil servant? Have you ever been part of a suit? Do you know anything about this case?
Responses were all volunteered and ranged from mundane to irrelevant and from there into crazy.
Now it was the plaintiff’s chance to question us and the second plaintiff attorney, a very thin younger man, introduced himself in a self-deprecating manner while wearing a large, forced smile. Seemingly he was a juror selection specialist and he was very well prepared, already knowing all the prospect’s names and remembering all the details of the answers given so far. As his question went on and his grin grew more rictus, I began to understand what he was looking for: people who were easily swayed and who would vocally and vigorously advocate for the ideas planted in their heads. It was easy pickings.
I was watching lambs going to their slaughter. Those of us in the back row generally had the sense to stay silent but many of the rest were more than ready to blurt out anything just because there was like two seconds of silence. The plaintiff had an hour and used all of it. My neighbor summed up his performance: Slick. And I wouldn’t buy a used car from him.
The defense attorney also started with self-deprecation (well, general lawyer deprecation) and then told us he wouldn’t use his entire hour, he would be quick. We liked him already. He then said in spite of his grey hair, he wasn’t the most senior person in his practice and then spent a moment reminiscing about when he was starting his career, like the “young Mr Plaintiff’s attorney here”. He pointed out that he was representing a person here, that this was about two people. The defendant had no big insurance company, just had a family and bills like all of us.
The defendant was a woman about 35 and looked typically like a female cop. A bit heavy, fit, attractive without being pretty, sort of a bar fight pretty. She wore her hair down, done up in loose curls around her face, wore some makeup that emphasized her eyes and wore a nice peach dress appropriate for attending a cousin’s wedding. A very feminine cop.
While asking us questions, the defense attorney told us the plaintiff had a business selling yoga mats but gave it up due to the mental anguish from the accident. He then asked if anyone received full body massages or aromatherapy. Sure enough, one guy shoots his hand up and says those are too expensive here in the US but he and his wife were often indulged while they were in Mexico. He agreed with the attorney that this was part of the vacation experience. The attorney then let it slip that the plaintiff’s treatments included weekly massages and aromatherapy. Got it, yoga, massage and aromatherapy vs a hard working honest cop.
Early on we were asked “Do you think our jury system is a good, fair way to resolve these kinds of disputes?”
No, I don’t.
A few minutes later I entered the courthouse. I wanted to be on time as I was assured jury selection would begin promptly at 8:30. All the prospective jurors were conscientious and by 8:30 we were scattered throughout the room, reading and watching the clock. And promptly an hour and fifteen minutes later a clerk introduced herself, told us we couldn’t chew gum or leave the room and that we were to sit and remain in the seats she was about to assign us.
There were 82 of us and after the first 79 had been seated, I was seated, followed by the only two black members of the pool. This clearly is not random seating and I know I will watch and enjoy but not participate.
After promptly waiting another 15 minutes the judge arrived, introduced himself, the plaintiff and defendant teams. The two I had seen earlier were in fact the plaintiff (now leaning on a cane) and one of her two attorneys. The judge also said this was a civil case and that the defendant was a county sheriff and while responding to an emergency call, the sheriff had struck the plaintiff’s car, allegedly causing the plaintiff bodily injury and subsequent suffering. Ambulance chasing. Should be amusing.
The judge asked the standard qualification questions: do you know any of the parties? Have you ever been struck by an emergency vehicle while it was on a call? Have you ever sued a civil servant? Have you ever been part of a suit? Do you know anything about this case?
Responses were all volunteered and ranged from mundane to irrelevant and from there into crazy.
- Some of my step children are some the step children of the defense attorney.
- Oh, I remember reading about this. My brain works like that. It remembers things.
- Your honor, I should tell you that I am psychic. I get flashes and I have learned to follow those flashes.
- I am in manufacturing and so I know the legal system is totally broken.
- I once saw an accident and the cops were there.
- I was kicked in the head by a horse but I didn’t sue. It was my wife’s horse and I forgave her.
Now it was the plaintiff’s chance to question us and the second plaintiff attorney, a very thin younger man, introduced himself in a self-deprecating manner while wearing a large, forced smile. Seemingly he was a juror selection specialist and he was very well prepared, already knowing all the prospect’s names and remembering all the details of the answers given so far. As his question went on and his grin grew more rictus, I began to understand what he was looking for: people who were easily swayed and who would vocally and vigorously advocate for the ideas planted in their heads. It was easy pickings.
I was watching lambs going to their slaughter. Those of us in the back row generally had the sense to stay silent but many of the rest were more than ready to blurt out anything just because there was like two seconds of silence. The plaintiff had an hour and used all of it. My neighbor summed up his performance: Slick. And I wouldn’t buy a used car from him.
The defense attorney also started with self-deprecation (well, general lawyer deprecation) and then told us he wouldn’t use his entire hour, he would be quick. We liked him already. He then said in spite of his grey hair, he wasn’t the most senior person in his practice and then spent a moment reminiscing about when he was starting his career, like the “young Mr Plaintiff’s attorney here”. He pointed out that he was representing a person here, that this was about two people. The defendant had no big insurance company, just had a family and bills like all of us.
The defendant was a woman about 35 and looked typically like a female cop. A bit heavy, fit, attractive without being pretty, sort of a bar fight pretty. She wore her hair down, done up in loose curls around her face, wore some makeup that emphasized her eyes and wore a nice peach dress appropriate for attending a cousin’s wedding. A very feminine cop.
While asking us questions, the defense attorney told us the plaintiff had a business selling yoga mats but gave it up due to the mental anguish from the accident. He then asked if anyone received full body massages or aromatherapy. Sure enough, one guy shoots his hand up and says those are too expensive here in the US but he and his wife were often indulged while they were in Mexico. He agreed with the attorney that this was part of the vacation experience. The attorney then let it slip that the plaintiff’s treatments included weekly massages and aromatherapy. Got it, yoga, massage and aromatherapy vs a hard working honest cop.
Early on we were asked “Do you think our jury system is a good, fair way to resolve these kinds of disputes?”
No, I don’t.
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