Russian human rights activist kidnapped, killed

Well just when you think your country may not be that cool anymore, at least Human Rights Activists in this country aren't killed for their beliefs. Well at least none publicly. This poor woman was taken by force outside of her home, and later found dead in a neighboring country according to CNN.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/07/15/russia.estmirova.killing/index.html
Every time I see stories like this I am reminded how nice it is to be able to speak one's mind here in the USA. Sure nobody may listen for a long time, but as long as you aren't pissing off the wrong people you will not be shot, or kidnapped. This excludes big oil, I think they would do anything to keep alternative fuels out of the mix.
Check out this guy who made an electrolysis generator for his Dune Buggy.
http://www.waterpoweredcar.com/stanmeyer.html
He was found dead under suspicious circumstances. I guess speaking your mind is the ultimate right, but be careful because no matter how stable a country is, "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely."

Free Speech in the Modern Arena

I know I haven't directed anyone to this new blog yet, but I wanted to talk about free speech. There are two stories that I have seen lately that exibit good arguments for it, but where does that limit lie? The first is Nikki Costuras(sp?). She had a brain tumor and got treated for it with Chemo when she was a young child. Doctor's said that because she was so young it could impair her judgment later on in life. So fast forward she is now 16, and has taken to using cocaine. Now she takes her dad's porsche keys (a car she was not allowed to drive) and slams into a concrete toll booth at 100mph. The scene is a gory one. From the pictures I don't believe she was wearing her seatbelt. It looks like she somehow hit her head on the barrier while still in the car before the car crashed and came to rest. The police officers took pictures of this and sent them to friends and family warning of the consequences of speeding. Now the family of Nikki is suing for 20M dollars because they say the pictures should have never been leaked onto the net. What do you think? Where does privacy start and stop?
The next case is not so much cut and dry. The current Ms. California is in some hot water because of her stance on same sex marriage. Someone people say she should have more fairly represented California, but others say that she has the right to whatever opinion she wants. I really wish Perez Hilton would have asked all the finalists that question, because that would have been the most fair. What do you think about this? Let me know in the comments.