Empire of the Odd

Outgoing New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is considering a pardon for celebrated outlaw Billy the Kid. An informal e-mail poll shows support. But time is running out.

By Mark Guarino, Staff writer / December 29, 2010

Billy the Kid, the mythologized gunslinger whose bloody exploits have been both romanticized and condemned, may receive his pardon from New Mexico’s governor this week – 130 years after historians say it was promised. Bill Richardson, a long-time enthusiast of Old West lore who is leaving office after eight years as governor, polled his constituents via the state website, seeking their thoughts on whether the Kid deserves a posthumous reprieve for court testimony he gave in an 1879 murder.

The governor’s office reported receiving more than 800 e-mails, mostly in favor of the pardon.

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Fruitcake cultist dubs hacktivistas ‘cartoon characters’

By John Leyden • Get more from this author

Posted in Crime, 17th December 2010 12:54 GMT

Scientology head David Miscavige has declared victory over Anonymous in an internal church magazine.

Miscavige described Anonymous as a group of “mask-wearing subversive and anarchistic internet denizens”.

He continues: “Having run into the Church of Scientology, they are no longer laughing out loud or otherwise. Nor are they any longer anonymous”.

Referring to the arrest of Anonymous activists over January 2008 denial of service attacks on the Scientology website, Miscavige stated that these “ringleaders” were not the “trio of dastardly villains they had aspired to be, but more akin to cartoon characters”.

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From The Escapist

These ideas bubble up, but ultimately a small group decides exactly what affiliated site should be attacked and when, according to a Dutch writer on the Anonymous movement, who writes a blog under the name Ernesto Van der Sar. There is a chat room “that is invite only, with a dozen or so people,” he said, that pick the targets and the time of attack.

More from the New York Times

Operation Payback is facing a little payback of its own. First Twitter closed the pro-Wikileaks hacker movement’s account. And now we hear the Feds are shutting down some online discussion of Operation Payback attacks.

Some sites have received federal court orders to cease any further online documentation of the attacks, which targeted Visa, Mastercard and other financial companies who froze Wikileaks accounts, a source close to the situation tells us. Among the sites where content is coming down is Encyclopedia Dramatica, which we’re told received one of the orders. The 4chan-affiliated reference wiki within the past hour had the number three Google hit for a search on “Operation Payback.” It has since deleted its article, though the entry remains accessible via Google cache (NSFW). Here’s what it looks like now (click to enlarge):

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ARBERVILLE, California – It’s a big, hairy ape-like creature that has a distinctive fowl odor say those who claim to have encountered “Bigfoot,” or “Sasquatch,” as its commonly called. The creature is legend around the world, and especially in northern California where’s it’s been sighted on a regular basis for the past 150 plus years. Recent Thanksgiving week new sightings in Garberville and other redwood communities have concerned both residents and the California Department of Fish and Game.

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• "Emma". Owner of the ex Scientology forum is getting fair gamed by Scientology #

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“Emma”. Owner of the ex Scientology forum is getting fair gamed by Scientology

She was three metres tall, had 12 fingers and braided leg hair – and she wanted to make love with him, Meng Zhaoguo said.

So the farmer from Heilong- jiang and the robust extra- terrestrial seductress had intimate moments – while levitating – for about 40 minutes, claims Meng, who is the protagonist of what is perhaps China’s best-known alien abduction report.

Meng says he was working outside in Heilongjiang’s Wuchang in 1994, when he saw a metallic shimmering on a mountainside. He went to investigate, believing it was likely a downed helicopter, when he blacked out.

When he came to, he was confused and unable to communicate with other people. He had also developed an extreme fear of anything made of iron.

Later that night, the female humanoid visited him, he says.

“I didn’t believe in aliens before I actually met them,” he tells China Daily. “Seeing is believing. We cannot explain UFOs and aliens because our technology isn’t advanced enough. But that doesn’t mean such things don’t exist.”

He passed a lie detector test conducted by the police.

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