Althouse: 5 for 51.

April 14, 2016

5 for 51.

"A man stopped by Canadian border guards with 51 live turtles hidden in his trousers has been jailed for nearly five years in the US for smuggling. Kai Xu, a Canadian of Chinese origin, had repeatedly visited Michigan to buy and ship thousands of turtles to China, a court heard. He told the judge he had sold the reptiles to help pay university fees. Xu also thanked federal agents for ending 'the darkness of his greed and ignorance'..."

16 comments:

Curious George said...: Not "5 for 51." He admitted smuggling "thousands of turtles."

And you a law professor.; 4/14/16, 6:45 AM
clint said...: Can someone explain why there's a black market for this? (That is, why do we have such steep regulatory hurdles that it's more economical to hire idiots to tape turtles to their legs than to farm them and ship them legally?); 4/14/16, 6:46 AM
traditionalguy said...: It's ChinaTown, Jake, with MichiganTown thrown in.; 4/14/16, 6:53 AM
Robert Cook said...: With regards to John Lennon's song protesting the sentence of 10 years for two joints handed down to John Sinclair, (Detroit cultural and political figure, and manager of killer rock band the MC5), at Woodstock Abby Hoffman jumped on stage during the Who's set and, well...

Listen to the whole thing.

What isn't heard is Townshend forcibly evicting Hoffman from the stage by applying his guitar to Hoffman's person.; 4/14/16, 7:04 AM
MayBee said...: 5 years. He's getting a bigger punishment than Affluenza teen.; 4/14/16, 7:18 AM
Etienne said...: Sinclair: "Pussy Riot. They are the first kick-ass revolutionary group since the MC5. They don't want a record contract, they don't want their own fragrance, they want to overthrow the goddam Russian government. Yes!"

He clenches his fist and raises it in the air, then falls back in to his chair, grinning.

"Those girls don't give a shit," he says. "That's what being a revolutionary is really all about."; 4/14/16, 7:43 AM
JCC said...: "...also thanked federal agents for ending 'the darkness of his greed and ignorance'..."

A variation of the rental-wife-and-small-children ploy for mercy usually seen in court. Instead of 'How will my family survive without me?', it's 'Thanks for busting me and arranging for room and board for the next few years so I can pretend to reflect on my sins, convert to a new religion and maybe write a book, become a TV reality star and go on tour when I get out.'

Suckers.; 4/14/16, 8:08 AM
Fernandinande said...: "Xu was charged with shipping the reptiles overseas without a permit and had faced a maximum 10 year prison sentence."

10 years for not having a permit.; 4/14/16, 9:15 AM
Once written, twice... said...: Althouse, wasn't that Lennon performance in Ann Arbor around the time you were at UofM? Did you make the concert?; 4/14/16, 9:16 AM
mikee said...: Well, in China prisons are more forced labor slave camps, and NOT apologizing for your crimes upon sentencing (or more appropriately, upon arrest, upon charging, upon trial upon sentencing, and upon release again) often results in dying in prison from lack of common sense regarding a totalitarian communist regime.

So don't mistake being scared of death for seeming politeness in this instance.; 4/14/16, 11:21 AM
eLocke said...: Robert Cook said...

"What isn't heard is Townshend forcibly evicting Hoffman from the stage by applying his guitar to Hoffman's person"

Another reminder of the usefulness of the old adage ...

"Remember boys and girls, never buy a used guitar from Pete Townshend."; 4/14/16, 11:35 AM
Steven said...: @mikee

Yeah, his statement is exactly what I'd expect to hear from a convict in a Communist court, to the point of being stereotypical.; 4/14/16, 12:13 PM
Anonymous said...: Hairybuddha votes to let him have ALL the turtles. Hairybuddha isn't using them.; 4/14/16, 1:55 PM
David said...: It's so much better with Yoko's magical musicality on the stage with John.; 4/14/16, 4:46 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "Althouse, wasn't that Lennon performance in Ann Arbor around the time you were at UofM? Did you make the concert?"

Yes and no.

We listened to it on the radio.

Didn't know Lennon was goung to be there and not at all political.; 4/14/16, 7:09 PM
Jaq said...: It was turtles all the way down.; 4/16/16, 6:42 AM