Knox guilty; Italy should be ashamed
Amanda Knox is driven into court at midnight in Perugia, Italy, to hear the verdict in her murder trial. - WKTV.com/AP
I really haven’t kept up with the Kercher murder case that much, but getting the message that Knox was convicted disturbed me. The few details I remember from the case were that Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito supposed had some type of sick and twisted sex murder thing, killing Meredith Kercher then trying to make it look like it had been an attempted robbery. Another guy, Rudy Guede, was also convicted of her murder. He was a known drifter from the Ivory Cost.
What concerns me is where most of the evidence came from. There’s strong evidence to show that Police botched up the sample collection, whether by not wearing gloves or hairnets, allowing evidence to sit for months in the open, even in one case smashing a window. This is obviously not America, since the prosecution’s response to that was that is wasn’t their job to prove the crime scene work was good enough. (Find out more info from CNN)
Since most of the evidence in this case is linked from the botched crime scene work, there isn’t any evidence really to show she did it. It’s all very suspect, and I surprised at how poorly the Italian justice system has handled it thus far, given the amount of international coverage this has received.
Is Knox guilty? I have no freaking clue. Her family has continued to stand by her (unlike my favorite murdering whore, Casey Anthony), and the evidence presented is unreliable, so at its current status, I’d have to say she is not-guilty (note: not-guilty and innocent are two COMPLETELY different things). There is not enough solid evidence to say she was there. The only bits of evidence that appear to be authentic, and they prove absolutely nothing. DNA evidence is harder to use in this case, given the mishandling of the crime scene and body, along with the fact that Knox lived in the same apartment.
At least Italy does have an appeal process, and her attorney has already stated they will be appealing. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like murderers, but I also don’t like people being convicted of murder when dipsh!ts from the police screw up the crime scene and make the evidence unreliable. They also used a old trick of defaming her character. Reminds me of the media sensation Cattle Kate from the Wyoming Ranch Wars. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out
The Return of the Hachi Roku
My 85 AE-86. Sold in 2003 - I miss her dearly
Few cars have ever captured my heart as the original Hachi Roku did. For the clueless, I’m referring to the AE-86 Toyota Corolla GTS, a RWD couple/hatchback from the mid-80’s. A major hit with the drift cult car, ranked around the 240sx/sylvia as one of the best drifters of all time. Lightweight + solid chassis + LSD + 4AGE motor + RWD = a smile you can’t remove for a week.
I owned one for a short time many moons ago. It wasn’t in the greatest condition, but I was planning on getting it nice again and maybe running it in some SCCA races. Unfortunately, parenthood came about and the car was sold as a parts donor. Such a waste.
For many years now, Toyota has moved away from fun, sporty cars, instead going after that “other” part of the market (i.e. what i became). It’s a shame that since the Supra met manufacturer doom, the sportiest ride Toyota has produced may be a tie between the Corolla XRS, Matrix XRS, and Camry SE’s. I take that back, the king may have to be the new Tundra with a 5.7L v8 with the optional TRD Supercharger. The ONLY Toyota in the flock to do sub 5 second 0-60’s (4.4 seconds) and a 13.0 flat 1/4 time. Since when did the trucks become the performance leaders?
An AE-86 replacement considered from the early 2000's
Well, Toyota has been changing their game. First the ISF – I know it’s a Lexus – has shown that the company can mix luxury and performance. Obviously, the LFA supercar is another sign that Toyota wants speed. This car, which will cost more than $350,000, is a beast. But unfortunately, it is far beyond the reach of most buyers.
The current FT-86 Concept. Let's hope Toyota/Subaru builds it
But Toyota does have something for us, something so sweet and sultry my mouth is watering right now thinking about it. Currently dubbed the FT-86, it is a RWD coupe being designed and built in partnership with Subaru (read more and see more at jalopnik.com). Power is expected to be in the 200-250 HP range (definitely above the AE-86’s output). The current show car interior is a bit, unusual, but will probably settle down for final production.
The only sin I see Toyota making is that they are considering calling it a Celica. A celica has never, and should never, be considered this type of car. Naming it the FT-86 means these guys know the roots after it, so give it its proper name: the Corolla GTS. The hachi roku reigns.
A mug like this is screaming to Toyota to build it
Rear 3/4 shot of the FT-86 concept.
Casey Anthony Revisited
Casey Anthony reppin her new colors
It’s been a while since I’ve had the opportunity to read up on the case, but something sparked my interest today, so I went to the Casey Anthony headquarters to find out what’s been going on.
So apparently Roy Kronk, the prosecutions star witness, may be a blessing for Casey. He supposedly has a shady past according to his ex-wife, including abuse and duct-taping. In a video interview, she believes that he murdered Caylee. She has also been unable t0 provide proof thus far that she’s telling the truth instead of attacking her ex-husband. It’s a point to consider, but there needs to be further investigation.
Casey’s attorney, Jose Baez, also says he’s found two searchers who claimed to have searched the place where the body was found, and didn’t find anything. This was prior to the body being discovered. Baez wants EquuSearch – the non-profit group who handled the massive search for Caylee – to turn over all of its records, since the people he found were not on the list EquuSearch gave him. We can see the wheels spinning in Baez’s head, trying to show that Kronk murdered Caylee, then planted the body after the area was searched and then tipped off the police.
Unfortunately for Anthony, that take in the story has Texas-sized loopholes. Just remember that Kronk is supposedly an individual with wild-lashes, not well planned schemes involving hiding a decomposing corpse for over 5 months, just to plant it. The pieces of the puzzle just don’t fit right.
Roy Kronk - the meter man who discovered Caylee's body
Baez has also requested that all video of Anthony at the jail be destroyed, and that further videotaping be disbarred. I’m unsure if those wishes have been granted.
Baez also now believes that Florida’s death penalty procedure is unconstitutional, and that Anthony should be exempted from that possible ruling because of that.
So what does everything boil down to? Take a look at the original story. Casey Anthony filed a missing persons report 31 DAYS (yes, days) after Caylee supposedly went missing. She said she returned home to find her nanny (who never existed) and daughter missing. The body shows up 5 months later in an overgrown lot, discovered by a man who is a possible woman beater. There is compelling forensic evidence in her trunk to show that Caylee’s body had been placed in it, taped and bagged.
Honestly though, you can throw all of the technical evidence out. All that was important was the 31 days she waited to file a missing persons report. Anybody with kids knows what I’m talking about. There is no way I would come home, find my daughter and the nanny missing, and not freak out. We’re looking at more like 31 minutes, not 31 days. Then again, I, like Casey Anthony, do not have a nanny, but at least I don’t blame things on mine.
Even if she personally did not kill her child, she is just as responsible as the person who did. And yes, I do believe in the death penalty in the right cases. And she’s earned her trip to the chair. Unfathomable disregard for your own child’s safety, not to mention life…
Need anymore proof of her guilt. Even her family, the ardent supporters that they are, didn’t even come to visit her on Thanksgiving.
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Times Business & Tech- Mark Hurd: Who Will Hire the Ousted Hewlett-Packard CEO? September 4, 2010
- Lights, Camera, Groceries!: Tesco Supermarket Turns Film Producer September 4, 2010
- Toyota: New Car-Safety Issue Hits Company After Recalls September 4, 2010
- Study: Young, Single, Childless Women Earn More Than Men September 4, 2010
- Seeking Alpha Financial News
- The Cost of Bernanke's Failure-Aversion September 4, 2010
- Hurricane Earl, And Other Threats to Insurers September 3, 2010
- Will the FCIC Report Be a Whitewash? September 3, 2010
- Friday FX Interest Rate Monitor September 3, 2010
