Extra, Extra: 9th Circuit Upholds Spying

• The courts once again sided with the Bush administration in its warrantless spy tapping program. This time, the liberal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to rule against the government in its handling of the war on terror. Somewhere, Abbie Hoffman is crying.
  
• Following an incident at Cal State Fullerton, in which nooses appeared on a clothesline at an anti-hate rally, civil rights leaders are calling for a federal investigation. College officials quickly took them down, but Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable, said "that's not enough."
  
• City workers might have gotten paid to "volunteer" when President Jimmy Carter came through southern California for his Habitat for Humanity program in October. The Daily News reports that 31 city workers were encouraged to offer their time during work hours and, the paper said, might have gotten paid at taxpayer's expense.
  
• Tae Kim, a 28-year-old believed to be a member of the Korean Gangsters gang, is behind bars today after police nabbed the bandit who they think stole 1.8 million Social Security numbers. Police had been looking for Kim since August and Marlon Wayans is amongst the people whose numbers were lifted by the SS gangster. Maybe Kim was just pissed at Norbit.
  
• Ham and Honey? Marscapone and Pumpkin? Bacon and Caramel? No, they're not delectable dishes for a delicious Thanksgiving feast, but the newest Scoops flavors. On second thought, maybe they are the newest additions to Thanksgiving 2008.
  
• The writers strike can sure be festive, what with free concerts, visits from a presidential candidate and celebrities. But, Losanjealous aptly asks, what about other high profile strikes in the city whose causes are just as (or more) important that don't get all that fun coverage?
  
• A Los Angeles jury rendered a $2.5 million decision in finding Dole Foods liable for poisoning five Nicaraguan plantation workers with pesticide in the 1970s and not telling them about it. Dole plans to appeal the decision. "Our people are our greatest asset and their safety and well being our highest priority,” of their lawyers said. I guess that doesn't apply to those five workers.
  
• An historic work of art will be on view at the Getty starting Tuesday. The Rembrandt painting has not been shown in two decades and was once stolen at gunpoint from a Boston museum. Fortunately, guns won't be a problem here, because the only thieves at the Getty are the ones in charge of the museum.
  

Photo by Lush.i.ous via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr