Today’s Links: December 30, 2011

OPINION

DAVID KRAVETS: “2011: The Year Intellectual Property Trumped Civil Liberties”
“Online civil liberties groups were thrilled in May when Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), the head of the powerful Judiciary Committee, announced legislation requiring the government, for the first time, to get a probable-cause warrant to obtain Americans’ e-mail and other content stored in the cloud. But, despite the backing of a coalition of powerful tech companies, the bill to amend the Electronic Communications Privacy Act was dead on arrival, never even getting a hearing before the committee Leahy heads.”

JENNIFER RUBIN: “Media Mishaps”
“In covering events leading up to the Republican primaries, many in the media missed the boat by paying attention to the wrong things. We’re only at the onset of the real primary season, but already 10 glaring errors in coverage have become apparent. In this regard, for reasons explained below, conservative media outlets were often further off base than mainstream coverage.”

JOSH OZERSKY: “The Case for Eating Horse Meat”
“Congress recently lifted a 2007 ban on funding for the inspection of horse meat, albeit to little applause. It’s not like the country was crazy for the stuff in 2006 and started turning over cars when they found out they couldn’t get it anymore. In a country where Funyuns, bug tacos and cayenne-flavored purgatives are all considered perfectly acceptable, we have never gotten over our national revulsion against horse meat. Maybe we should.”

NEWS

ENERGY – Despite GOP Opposition, Light Bulb Standards Phase in on Jan 1
“New light bulb efficiency standards will begin phasing in on Jan. 1 despite intense opposition from conservatives, who have blasted the rules as a textbook unnecessary federal regulation.”

GUNS – Arizona Legislators Still Wants Guns on College Campuses
“Arizona state legislators have redrafted legislation that would allow guns on college campuses, despite Governor Jan Brewer’s vetoing of a similar bill earlier this year.”

HEALTH – Breast Implant Scandal Shows Regulators in the Dark on Risk
“Long before the latest global breast implant scare, American health officials were toying with the idea of building a registry that would track patients with implants.”