Whole lot of linking going on

Digby looks at the Obama administration’s latest effort to crack down on “insider threats“: Arresting people for talking about how to beat polygraph exams. The rationale is that even though such conversations are covered by the First Amendment in theory, lying to federal officials is a crime (it is) so helping people lie is a crime. And it’ll keep spies (who apparently have no-one in their own country to teach them this stuff) from infiltrating so we’re safer!
Of course, as Digby points out, if it’s that easy to beat the machine, maybe it’s not that good an idea to use them (the article she links to includes speculation the government is trying to shut down anti-polygraph activists by these prosecutions).
•A Montana teacher gets 30 days for the statutory rape of a 14-year-old. Echidne critiques a WaPo columnist saying teacher-student statutory rape shouldn’t be a crime (after all the student probably wanted it!) and one by Richard Cohen arguing the Steubenville was no big deal (after all, they only put fingers into the unconscious girl, it’s not like they used a penis!). In this LGM thread, one commenter agrees, arguing that if teens don’t consider raping an unconscious woman to be real rape, then that proves the rape definition has changed, so the teens are right (commenters show quite crushingly why this is not the case).
•In the ongoing debate over attacking Syria, it’s inevitable, I suppose, that people would start to compare not going in to not fighting Hitler. Because as noted at the link, intervening to stop a tyrant barely able to control his country is exactly like trying to stop the conquest of the world. Here’s a more thoughtful analysis of the situation (though I cannot vouch for factual accuracy). Digby looks at the upcoming Congressional debate, the way the arguments play out again and again and glumly concludes that no matter how the debate plays out, we always end up dropping bombs.
•On the same topic, Digby says it’s encouraging that at least Obama is going to Congress for permission, as any restriction on presidential war powers is a step in the right direction. Glenn Greenwald argues that it’s sad we’re at the point where such a small step is considered a plus (and points out a No vote probably wouldn’t constrain Obama much).
•Gary Bauer claims that Martin Luther King would stand with the religious right in opposing Planned Parenthood. In reality King admired PP and its founder Planned Parenthood.
•A conductor claims women shouldn’t be in his line of work because pretty girls distract the orchestra. I’m inclined to agree with Echidne at the link: if a male conductor distracted female musicians with his sex appeal, the claim would be “this proves women shouldn’t be in orchestras!”
•Miley Cyrus dancing leads some right-wingers to freak out. Another conservative freaks out over the Honey Booboo TV show.
•Oppressive, all-seeing government spying is bad for mental health.