You have the right to remain silent, and film the proceedings — Karen Selick

Canadian Constitution Foundation litigation director Karen Selick, writing in the National Post:

That’s “Ur-Papparazo”, Ron Galella, in the football helmet, stalking his celebrity prey. Marlon Brando (left) had previously punched him in the face during a prior encounter. Galella was the subject of the recent documentary “Smash his Camera”. Photo copyright Ron Galella.

What have cops got against cameras these days? Increasingly, people are getting arrested, charged or even assaulted by police officers, merely for attempting to take photos or videos of officers at work. Often, police simply command people to stop photographing. Scared into thinking they must be breaking some law, citizens comply.

When Polish visitor Robert Dziekanski died after being tasered at the Vancouver airport in 2007, police seized the now famous video made by witness Paul Pritchard, who had to hire a lawyer and threaten court proceedings to get it back.

The mutant butterflies of Fukushima

From Fox News via DProgram:

(AJC) – One legacy of the Fukushima nuclear disaster last year has already become apparent through a study of butterflies in Japan: Their rate of genetic mutations and deformities has increased with succeeding generations.

“Nature in the Fukushima area has been damaged,” said Joji Otaki, a professor at the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa, who is the senior author of the new study.