Hollywood, CA —The filmmaking business is getting more democratized every day.   The days of only the most powerful studios and talent agencies   producing films are numbered. Cheaper equipment means   more people than ever can make films.   Alfred Hitchcock was a master of making great films on the cheap.  No special effects, difficult sets or  costumes were used.  Just talented writing and actors made his success. Some filmmakers enjoy the power of mixing art with political propaganda.  They want to influence the masses rather than entertain them.  That’s exactly what was behind the recent financial film disaster of, MISS SLOAN . With an estimated $13 million budget, a terrific leading lady ( Jessica Chastain ) what could possibly go wrong?  The answer is everything! I’m loving the films finally being produced with female protagonists. When I saw the slick previews I thought this would be something I wanted to see....

Los Angeles, CA —The father of broadcast Fake News is Josef Goebbels .   As Adolf Hitler’s Minister of Enlightenment   and Propaganda, he was a pure genius.   Goebbels convinced the entire nation of Germany that what they heard on their newly acquired radios was always absolutely true.   Goebbels success was not lost on our own CIA , back then called, OSS .   The OSS learned of the amazing power of the radio and soon Franklin Roosevelt was broadcasting propaganda “Fireside Chats” that mesmerized our entire nation binding us together against Germany, Italy and Japan.   In the last 150 years we had powerful newspapers and soon followed radio and television.  I don’t give a rat’s ass who the news provider may be, they all have their own secret and vested interests that they are selling to the public as news.   Only the very richest Americans could own newspapers and broadcasting organizations.  We the people were never part of th...

Unlike the other provisions of our Bill of Rights the Supreme Court did not apply it to the states until very recent times in the Heller and McDonald cases. That previously allowed states to wrongfully regulate or restrict our rights to keep and carry weapons.   The failure to incorporate that right was in my opinion a deliberate effort by gun haters on the court to derail our liberty. Thankfully Heller and McDonald rulings finally rectified that problem. Our constitutional rights can't be licensed, taxed or otherwise infringed.  They can be regulated only to the extent of people victimizing innocents. Yelling fire in a crowded theater or using a weapon to injure or kill someone unjustifiably are examples of regulation.  As for weapons the Second amendment was not as some fools want to believe a vehicle for arming the government.  The militia was never the government!  The government already had the power to arm itself.  The idea of the se...

I located the original video and have restored it for your education.  Conflict avoidance is the best way to survive.  Pumping a few shots into someone does not always incapacitate!  

Charlotte, NC- - Rioting thugs beat, rob and strip naked an innocent white man in a parking garage.  When gun rights hating Liberals demand to know why Americans need large capacity magazines for their firearms this is exactly why.  It's unfortunate that some well armed citizen was not there to stop this cold. This was no protest but a racist insurrection by opportunistic and vile thugs. I see this as terrorism and a war crime.

Former KTTV-TV Investigative Reporter Chris Blatchford Los Angeles, CA —He came from the Windy City.   He, Chris Blatchford landed in Los Angeles nearly a quarter century ago and became a mainstay of investigative television news reporting at the Local Fox affiliate, KTTV-TV .   He worked under the leadership of former news director Jose Rios for many years.   In 2011 Rios retired and things began to change but not for the better when Kingsly Smith took over the news director’s job for two somewhat controversial years.   According to Blatchford’s   complaint, Smith attached himself to the stations legal analyst Robin Sax in an affair that apparently brought much more success to Ms. Sax’s career than to the news department.  Within two years Smith was replaced by the recently departed news director, Bill  Mondona . Kingsley Smith Robin Sax Things did not improve for Blatchford and he was placed on the fast track for apparent fo...

Chicago, IL- -Chicago cops are represented by the FOP as their collective bargaining agent.  They have lost more ground in recent years for their membership.  The city’s politicians have stolen, squandered and otherwise mismanaged Chicago’s revenue for decades creating a public safety funding nightmare.   Chicago is the current murder capital of the United states and in the last nine months despite gun bans and draconian restrictions over 3,000 people have been shot here. Nearly a decade ago with bloggers popping up Second City Cop was Born.  The site is hosted allegedly by a cop who has since retired. He or she has remained anonymous avoiding the wrath of angry police bosses and politicians.    Second city has done well in calling out misguided management, biased police related media stories and corruption.  In many cases SCC has criticized the FOP for lack of leadership or courage in their representation of cops.  In Short SCC ha...

Los Angeles, CA —The Internet and today’s video technology has given us the ability to gather and report news with inexpensive equipment and just a little knowhow.   This could be done with modern prosumer video equipment rather than the elitist stuff costing in the tens of thousands.  News video can even be gathered and edited with a modern iPhone. Of course you want the best quality your budget can handle.  You need watchable video and poor audio is inexcusable.  The local stations here are fading fast into the Abyss of low viewership, minimal content and vanishing revenue.  Viewers and print news readers everywhere are abandoning the papers and TV news broadcasts for no-nonsense content on the Internet. Those seeking news can search and find news and information without the overpaid news readers and their mindless and often propagandized chit-chat.  With streaming video a team of video journalists producers with a good assignment desk ma...

Los Angeles-- For those blog visitors that are unaware I'm both a senior citizen and a member of SAG-AFTRA Union. The gracious president of our union has asked us to contact Governor Jerry "Moonbeam" Brown.  Our union president Is the elegant and talented  Gabrielle Carteris  who wants to see a bill passed by dopey members of the California Assembly signed into law!   I certainly understand the motivation for the legislation that would outlaw publishing the ages or dates of birth of actors.  They simply want to combat age discrimination.  Currently the Internet Movie Database or the IMDB lists the ages of every known actor in the world.  Understandably decisions are made by casting directors to include or exclude actors in film parts based on the published information. Publishing the age information is constitutionally protected activity! What these politicians and screen actors representatives seem to have forgotten is that in many nations no film can...

Los Angeles, CA —While Im here visiting the Left Coast I have to make myself a meal or two.   I like making simple Stir-Frys and this is how I do it.   It’s simple, quick, easy and very tasty!   I thought Id show my visitors just how I do it!  

Los Angeles, CA —I heard the buzz about this German entry in the various film festivals.    It sounded very intriguing and something I should see.   When the Second World War ended Germany went about the business of cleansing the nation of the Nazi stains and war criminals. There were two competing German interests, one was the somewhat closeted but still committed Nazis within the government and the other was the mindset that this ugly chapter of history needed final burial. Exacting justice for war criminals by the new Germany was really a half-hearted effort at best so soon after the war.    It was more about letting other nations do what they must to track and put the old Nazis on trial.   The three most hunted war fugitive Nazi criminals were  Martin Bormann ,  Josef Mengele  and  Adolf Eichmann .  This amazing story about Adolf Eichmann’s capture was hidden by the German government for more that a decade. Th...

Los Angeles, CA —I see a lot of films most of which are really forgettable.   I have a policy of only reviewing films that I totally enjoy.   This one certainly meets my criteria!   It’s called, T his Last Lonely Place staring Rhys Coiro, Xander Berkeley and Carly Pope .   The Humphrey Bogart Estat e through Santana Films,  produced this film, both written and directed by Steve Anderson .   It’s a Noir style film of the kind I always enjoy when the story is terrific as this one. Military veteran Sam Taylor ( Rhys Coiro ) is an L.A. taxi cab driver on his last scheduled shift before leaving for Hawaii to hopefully reunite with his ex and two young daughters. He picks up a fare, Frank Devore ( Xander Berkeley ) and the tale begins.  Devore is a troubled investment banker with a lot of questionable cash.  Soon they are joined by Devore’s hot mistress, Faye Gardner  ( Carly Pope )  and this surprising plot thickens. You wi...

Chicago, Il --It's small but deadly. A well placed slash or two and an attacker can bleed out in less than a minute.  Folded it's the size of your driver's license and has a profile that will evade frisks and even X-ray equipment if placed properly in a briefcase or purse.  This is for use in places where politicians have outlawed self defense like the UK and Gun Free Zones.  It was made by Spyderco of Golden, Colorado. The bad news is that they discontinued making this model.  Like my American Express card, I don't leave home without it!

Phoenix, AZ-- A sad story I worked on two decades ago.  My investigation was funded by the Disney owned TV show called,  The Crusaders, Two tender aged twin boys with sadistic monsters for parents were victims of epic abuse and torture. One child vanishes after a severe beating and the other is cruelly beaten until a court takes him away for his own safety in Boise, ID where the parents relocated. The mother was finally arrested and convicted for felony child abuse against the surviving brother of that lad became my client.  The man who prosecuted Charleen showed me the heartbreaking photos of the surviving twins injuries as tears flowed down his cheeks. Today Walter hose is deceased and Charleen Hose is institutionalized for dementia. The boys's remains have never been located. Reporter Donna Rossi from KPHO i n Phoenix revisited this nightmare with Montana private investigator Michael Toth .

N Phoenix, AZ —Most of my blog visitors know I’m a longtime criminal defense investigator and have worked on many high profile cases helping the wrongfully accused.   The defense and prosecution is supposed to have parity and equal treatment in the courts but it’s all just pretend.   There is a huge laundry list of issues that work against the accused before their trial even begins.   One thing that troubles me is seeing the same prosecutors in large jurisdictions working every day before the same judges.   They literally sometimes even sleep together. When a criminal defense attorney comes to their court he or she is an outsider and often treated that way.   The police have enormous powers to gather evidence such as the Grand Jury subpoena.  They can arrest those who obstruct investigations, tamper with witnesses and can most importantly obtain search warrants. Defense investigators should just like cops be able to surreptitiously recor...