Wednesday shrapnel

It's kind of a mixed bag of bits today, some that make you glad, others that make you want to bang your head against the wall. Typical of recent days...

Good news:

A federal court has ruled that bloggers cannot be held liable for the contents of comments left on their posts -- seems like a no-brainer to me, but it involves defining the two authors as separate "content providers" and working from there...

Bad news:

Not only is the Internet addicting, but it can kill you. eesh...
(via dailyKos)

Worse news:

Trying to get dental care through Medicaid is so difficult, that at least one boy died for lack of a pulled tooth. Note too that his original care would have cost $80, while the surgeries and emergency care after it was too late came closer to $250,000...
(via XOverboard = Some Guy with a Website)

Intriguing:

Just realizing that you're getting exercise can help you lose weight. Score another one for the power of positive thinking...
(via Rebecca's Pocket)

Depressing:

Apparently unsatisfied with indefinite detentions of prisoners in remote facilities, we're now keeping a group of immigrants (many legal) in long-term confinement that, among other things, is leaving their children unschooled and/or without their families, and many families chronically undernourished. What are we becoming?!
(via Medley)

Potentially surprising:

Contrary to what conservative fear-mongers would have you believe, immigrants are statistically more law-abiding than those born here, and their presence actually raises local wages.

More of the same:

In the rush to support Bush's "surge," we're sending troops to Iraq without specialized desert training that was previously considered key to their success. As kos says, another blow to the "support the troops" refrain...