James Madison Once Wrote

"Congress should not establish a religion and enforce the legal observation of it by law, nor compel men to worship God in any manner contary to their conscience, or that one sect might obtain a pre-eminence, or two combined together, and establish a religion to which they would compel others to conform." (from this link, which is full of great Madison lines)

The fear, of course, is that a national religion would foster a situation where the government controls the church, or vice versa. This is part of what makes America the great nation it is - people of all faiths and religious persuasions are able to gather together and appreciate their differences while knowing that they are free to believe as they wish free from the coercive effects of a national religion. Some people do not like this idea.

America is a nation founded by Christians. It is not a Christian nation. This distinction is essential for our nation to maintain what semblance of standard bearing we have left.

Using religion as a sword to attempt to wrest political gain is wrong, and the McCain campaign, who would serve as the Executive of the Government for ALL Americans, needs to not attempt to rule by division. It was not wrong to have an invocation prior to the candiate's stump in Davenport, Iowa. What was wrong was the political nature of the invocation, mixing fear of the opposing candidate and fear of "alien" religions into the fray. The invocation included the following passage: "There are plenty of people around the world who are praying to their god, be they Hindu, Buddah, or Allah, that (McCain’s) opponent wins. I pray that you step forward and honor your own name... And Lord, I pray that you would guard your own reputation, because they're going to think that their god is bigger than you, if that happens. So I pray that you will step forward and honor your own name with all that happens between now and Election Day." from Andrew Sullivan). The prayer ended, "In Jesus' name." The message is clear: "Vote for McCain, because he's the Christian who will *properly* run America."

It still stuns me the weakness of faith in so many fundamental Christians that they feel they need the Government's control over their personal choice.

I am a Christian, and I want to believe as I believe, not as the Government would have me believe. My friend is a Buddhist, and I would like for him to believe as he chooses, not as the government would coerce. I want a President who can accept this.

As Charged

The point is not that she was not found guilty of breaking the law. The point is that Sarah Palin was found to have abused her power while in office. This is not what we want in an executive branch member. Rather, this isn't what we want again.

Further proof that she was not thoroughly vetted, and speaking volumes about Senator McCain's decisionmaking ability.

For more on this - read Andrew Sullivan's post, here.

McCain Tries to Tame Flames He Earlier Fanned

This is what a grown up does. I think he and his staff enabled this line of thought, but I am glad to see McCain saying what needs to be said.

Still won't vote for him, but this is the right thing to do.

Judging Sarah

According to this post by John Cole at Balloon Juice (not my best friend from high school John Cole, a different John Cole), the Alaskan Supreme Court will not intervene in the release of the findings of the investigation into the state trooper firing by Sarah Palin.

John Cole Writes: "Tomorrow should be fun."

Part of me thinks this is all much ado about nothing and perhaps there won't be any disastrous findings.

However, the practical side suggests that if there was nothing to hide, then the campaign would not have gone to such lengths to hide it - after all, as Governor Palin has said, when you run for public office, your life is an open book, and as President Bush's enablers have stated - if you have done nothing wrong, then what are you worried about?

The thing is, I would not put this past the campaign: they put up all the smoke to try to conceal what they know is much ado about nothing, thereby showing, when the report indicates what they maintained all along, that their candidate is, in fact, what she claims to be and that the media and the public were all fools for thinking she might be up to no good up there.

It's a very risky gamble, but McCain is a gambler. The question is, if the latter possibility is the case, will the public be so gullible as to believe what McCain's campaign says, that this shows she was a thoroughly vetted, well-considered choice? Or will they continue to believe their own eyes?

Cast a Blind Vote

I have mentioned before that I cannot vote for Senator McCain. In part it's because of the rashness of his decisions and the inability or unwillingness to own up to them. Perhaps the best example, certainly the one that shut the McCain door for me, is that he chose Sarah Palin for Vice President. He is so certain that she's the best choice, that he doesn't think we need to find out what her positions are, other than what she parrots in stump speeches. What Sarah Palin needs is to give a press conference. She needs to be made to answer questions - answer them, not evade them. And she needs to be made to answer follow-up questions.

This is not "gotcha journalism," this is assisting the public in casting an informed vote.

Senator McCain's Campaign, however, would have caught in a game of "Gotcha Vice-President." The premise of this is that he vetted her completely, and therefore we need to trust him on his decision. I've explained numerous times why I can't do that, but to add to that, let's remember the last time we elected someone who asked us to trust him on issues that affected millions of lives without giving us the complete details. What Senator McCain hopes, I guess, is that we will trust his instinct, and then when he's elected, who cares what skeletons are in her closet, as she will already be in office...

And he worries that we don't know enough about Barack Obama.

"The Fundamentals of Our Economy Are Strong"

In January, 2001, President Bush took office with a Dow Index of nearly 11,000. In 7 years of tax cuts, deficit spending, artificial inflation of stock prices through gimmickry and stealing from the coffers of our children, the Dow closed today at 8579, almost a 40% decline from the artificial high at the beginning of the year.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac did not do this. They didn't help, but they didn't do this. Deregulation, poor planning, deciding to delay the inevitable in hopes that the crash would come to the next person to take office, over 2/3 of a decade spent on war economy and deficit spending, increased spending with decreased income through tax revenue - this is what did this.

For those Dittoheads who wait for Rush to tell you what to think, I'm sure you will find an easy way to blame Barney Frank - we know he's the one behind ALL of this. He's the one who held the Republican held congress hostage and FORCED them to not look into Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But for those who choose to think, it's easy to see that not just one person is responsible for this, but rather a party line and its 8 years' worth of elected enablers that led to this.

Understand that I am not absolving the Democrats in general or Barney Frank specifically, as I do not have the complete set of information. However, rather than finding a solution, we have finger pointing and political posturing on one side, while the other remains silent while weighing what is in store. At least, I hope that's what he's doing. We know the other guy isn't.

Civil Discourse, McCain Style

Country First

Senator McCain, as recently as 3 weeks ago, was chiming in about how the candidates need to put country first. As such, he reported, he was going to suspend his campaign to go to Washington and fix the economic crisis and he wasn't going to leave until there was a deal in place. That was leadership, he said. That was putting the country first.

Of course, as most people know, he didn't suspend his campaign. He continued to air commercials. He met with donors. He lied to David Letterman. (all three above sources from Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish). And of course, he did not keep said "suspension" in place until there was a deal. No, instead, he attended the debate he thought he could posture into postponement.

Senator McCain apparently has decided to stop showing how he would put his country first, and instead decided to put Obama in the crosshairs. Yesterday, the well-vetted, best-possible-choice for vice president in the entire Republican party (From BoingBoing)was out attacking Barack Obama with a well debunked smear. She has also resurrected the spectre of Reverend Wright, (Minneapolis Star Tribune article) apparently not recognizing that this tactic was denounced by Senator McCain (LA Times) just a few months ago. Of course, at that time, Senator McCain was not certain that Senator Obama would be his opponent in the election, so perhaps what is acceptable has changed with the circumstances.

Part of Senator McCain's problem is that he's representing a damaged brand. Fair or not, his party is taking the brunt of the blame for the financial crisis. He's also saddled with being in near lockstep with an historically unpopular incumbent. But it goes beyond that. The first problem is his schizophrenic campaign. First it was experience, then it was change, then it was country first, then it was the "original maverick," and now it's Obama - not fit to lead. It is difficult for people to get behind a leader who can't follow one plan.

This follows Senator McCain's reckless behavior of late. From "We're all Georgians now" to his selection of Sarah Palin to his "suspension" of his campaign, what we see is a man who shoots from the hip without thinking about what to do next, and that's how we damaged our international reputation and got ourselves mired in two wars in the first place.

That's not going to stop the attacks, though. Senator McCain today attacked Senator Obama, (from Time) as well, stating "For a guy who's already written two memoirs, he's not exactly an open book. It's as if somehow the usual rules don't apply, and where other candidates have to explain themselves and their records, Senator Obama seems to think he is above all that." As Andrew Sullivan points out - Senator McCain and Governor Palin are not open books either (also here, from MSN.com), despite their insistence that their opponents be (see the Time article above and this article from The New Republic).

Even Senator McCain's and Governor Palin's attacks don't necessarily make sense, as so many of the topics share common ground with their own foibles. Senator McCain, who has attacked Senator Obama regarding regulation in the current financial crisis (H/T The Gun Toting Liberal - I still read ya daily), was clearly involved as a member of the Keating Five (From Wikidpedia) where he pushed to avoid regulation while an investor and donor fleeced the S&L out of billions of dollars. Sarah Palin has her own wingnut minister (again from Andrew Sullivan - the man knows where to find his stuff) and is on record stating that Iraq is a task from God (From the Moderate Voice). McCain staffer Rick Davis has been on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's retainer list (From Obsidian Wings) for 2 years, doing virtually nothing for the money, this is much more well documented than anything linking Obama to Fannie and Freddie in a nefarious manner. The inability to recognize (or unwillingness to care about) how the attacks reflect problems of his campaign members' past underscores his rash nature and reflects on his ability to lead in a calm, rational manner.

Senator Obama has his problems, as have been shown during his campaign against Senator Clinton and as will be shown in the next 4 weeks. But of the two major candidates, he's the one who has kept a level head during the past several weeks, and he is the one who definitely looks the better man. If I vote for a major candidate (and not third-party), it will not be for Senator McCain.

Saturday Night

Last night, the Princess had a slumber party she went to. She apparently had a lot of fun. The wife's good friend came over to visit, and brought her youngest with her. This was good, because The Boy and the Apple got to play with the guest, while the adults learned how to play Pinochle.

I had never played before, but I had heard from several different sources that it was a great game to play. The rules are complicated to learn by yourself (we took our rules from Wikidpedia, which has 3 handed pinochle rules, which is what we played, as well as the others), but we persevered and have our house version of Pinochle now.

As I understand it, there are any number of variations of Pinochle, not unlike Spades, and that is part of what makes it entertaining.

I lost. But I had fun. And that's good when you're learning a new game.

Now if I can just remember the melds.

Pounding on the Table

There's an old lawyer saying: "When the law is on your side, pound on the law. When the facts are on your side, pound on the facts. When neither is on your side, pound on the table."

Senator McCain's campaign, clearly running out of gimmicks and apparently unable to mount a credible campaign that can legitimately distance itself from the Bush Hindenburg, has decided that it needs to spend the rest of its time until the election in negative campaign mode. The first salvo came from ethics investigatee Sarah Palin (the campaign is now making an emergency appeal to the AK Supreme Court to intervene and delay the "troopergate" investigation reports until after the election). Governor Palin stated that Barack Obama seems to see the United States as being so imperfect that he is "palling around with terrorists who would target their own country." (Source: the AP) The article also notes that Senator Obama served on an advisory board with the subject of this statement and denounced said board member's past activities.

You know, 8 years ago, I had some respect for Senator McCain. I never knew Sarah Palin until 5 weeks ago, so I couldn't have had too much respect for her, other than to respect that she was elected governor of Alaska in her early 40s.

But these are desparate times, and if you can't win with lies and obfuscations, and your one trick pony doesn't change the game, then I guess there's nothing wrong with slinging all the mud you can, not unlike the last two Administrations. But then again, isn't McCain supposed to be a maverick?

This is not leadership. This is pathetic.

Flirting for Votes

The first time I saw Sarah Palin wink during the debate, I thought to myself "Did she really just wink during a debate where she's trying to convince us she's a serious choice for Vice President?" I could not believe someone auditioning for one of the top roles in the country would attempt to flirt with the public in such an obvious manner. It seemed incredible to me.

But, apparently, for some people, it worked. Like for the National Review's Rich Lowry:

I'm sure I'm not the only male in America who, when Palin dropped her first wink, sat up a little straighter on the couch and said, "Hey, I think she just winked at me." And her smile. By the end, when she clearly knew she was doing well, it was so sparkling it was almost mesmerizing. It sent little starbursts through the screen and ricocheting around the living rooms of America.

We don't need a cheerleader in the White House. We need a real leader.

Working For a Living

I went to Massachusetts last week. I had a Deposition in Shrewsbury, which is right near Worcester. It went all right, the opposing counsel and the medical provider's counsel and I were all rather civil together. It sort of reminded me of the old Looney Tunes cartoon with the coyote and dog that are friendly to each other, punch in to work, and then spend the time doing what they need to do, then punch out and are friends again. That's how depositions should go. Listen, you don't need to be an asshole to zealously represent your client. Be civil to the opposing counsel, (but don't let them steamroll you).

Anyway, the deposition, as I mentioned, was in Worcester. I've not been to Worcester before, but I have made a few trips to Boston in the past. I really like the area. Gorgeous scenery, the song "Life in a Northern Town" ran through my head as I drove through Worcester. Old buildings; you can feel the history.

I found out that Worcester is not the nicest city to be in. I didn't realize this. I also didn't really have any problems there, myself. I ate at a restaurant called Northworks, which looked like it was in an old converted factory. Great food. I would go back.

I need to take my family up to Boston for a few days; do the sightseeing thing. And, of course, eat at the Bull and Finch. But that's for another time.

The Cheney Litmus Test

I first read this at Andrew Sullivan's blog here. The question was posed to both VP nominees by Katie Couric, what were the best and worst things done by VP Dick Cheney?

Senator Biden on Cheney's worst:

I think he's done more harm than any other single elected official in memory in terms of shredding the constitution. You know --condoning torture. Pushing torture as a policy. This idea of a unitary executive. Meaning the Congress and the people have no power in a time of war. And the President controls everything. I don't have any animus toward Dick Cheney but I really do think his attitude about the constitution and the prosecution of this war has been absolutely wrong.

Senator Palin on Cheney:

Worst thing I guess that would have been the duck hunting accident--where you know, that was an accident. And I think that was made into a caricature of him. And that was kind of unfortunate. So the best thing though, he's shown support, along with George W. Bush, of our troops. And I've been there when George Bush has spoken to families of those who have suffered greatly, those who are serving in the military. I've been there when President Bush has embraced those families and expressed the concern and the sympathy speaking for all of America in those times. And for Dick Cheney to have supported that effort of George Bush's, I respect that.

The VP nomination is, quite seriously, style vs. substance. We don't need winking and "aw shucks" mentality. This country doesn't need a Vice President (or, for that matter, a President) who is a cheerleader. We need a real leader.

And we definitely don't need someone who admits that one of their goals is to "bleed" executive authority over to the other two (coequal) branches - from ThinkProgress.

Sarah Palin, the Symbol

Understand that I do not dislike Sarah Palin. I don't know enough about her to dislike her. There are things about her behavior since she's been nominated that I don't like, and I don't like the nomination of her. More to the point, her nomination represents a short sighted gimmick that was not well thought out, well planned, or, as it seems, well executed. She was not ready for the spotlight the McCain camp put her under. She might someday, but right now, she's in way over her head and it shows in her "interviews" and it showed in her debate. The fact that the campaign fought so hard to keep "troopergate" from coming out is telling, as is the absolute refusal of the campaign to allow her to take part in any press conferences where she would have to answer follow-up questions.

Her nomination represents the McCain Campaign's impulsive, reckless decision making process. We cannot have another administration that makes decisions before considering the effects of those decisions. It's like jumping into a lake and then realizing you don't know how to swim. Even worse is that he seems to be taking every opportunity to deny the people the chance to learn about Governor Palin to decide for themselves if she's the best choice for Vice President. The audacity of us! He said she was great, that should be good enough for us.

If he's not going to allow us to gauge his decision-making now, when he's applying for the job, then why should we expect anything different when he's in office if we give him the job? We cannot afford this.

This inability to make reasoned, calculated decisions, or to admit when you've made a mistake - this is what Sarah Palin represents. And this is why I cannot support Senator McCain for President.

The Vice-Great Debaters

In my opinion, Senator Biden won tonight. He managed to make a case for Senator Obama and himself and against Senator McCain. He did so without attacking Sarah Palin, that I could see (I did not watch the entire debate, so cannot speak to the entire body). He gave examples, he connected with the audience.

What I saw from Governor Palin did not alter my view of her - not because I dislike her (I don't), but because she did not provide concrete answers to guide me toward why I should vote for her. She would respond to a question with talking points that were at best tangentially related to the question, and seemed to resort to folksiness when she was stuck (god bless ya, there ya go, Joe, etc.). Perhaps the reason why she couldn't give more direct or concrete answers is because she's such a devout Christian, and as we all know, the Devil's in the details.

Governor Palin was clearly overmatched in this debate, and her charm could not carry her through. Even if it had won the moment, it's much like cotton candy - it looks like there's a bunch there, but looking back, you wonder what it all was.

The Great(?) Debaters

I watched parts of the debate last night. I can't handle watching a whole debate, but I came in and out.

My father in law thought McCain won, but conceded that Obama looked rather good. I thought it was a draw on content, but had a couple problems with McCain. First and foremost, someone who has spent time in the military and 26 years in Congress should know the difference between a tactic and a strategy. McCain got that wrong; it wasn't a question of semantics, he was wrong. I didn't like Senator McCain's refusal to look at Senator Obama, it seemed condescending to me. I thought his "You just don't understand" line, which seemed like it was coached, or at least prepped, wore thin. Others thought it interesting that Senator McCain seemed to resort to this statement when his own answers seemed weaker (in their minds), based on what I've read in blog reactions, but I won't opine on that here.

Other opinions? Andrew Sullivan considers it a home run for Senator Obama.

John Cole at Baloon Juice has a nice collection of links supporting his conclusion that Senator Obama came out on top.

Talking Points Memo has poll results showing Obama as the winner according to 51% as opposed to 38% for McCain.

Finally, Angela Winters posted One Down, with a collection of reactions to the debate, on the Moderate Voice.

Day 2

This is my second day with power again and my first full day.

We've got just about everything back; the only missing item is the refrigerator. It's odd, because the freezer works fine, but there is no cooling in the refrigerator portion...

I want to thank all of my friends who offered help to us during the outage and to those who sent the good thoughts vibes our way - they were greatly appreciated.

Today will see us going to the baseball game. Father in law is an ardent Braves fan and they are in town to finish up the regular season. It should be fun.

More later.

And Now, Something on Sarah Palin

I will not subject anyone to the agony that was Sarah Palin's interview with Katie Couric. I had no electricity for two weeks and even I know how badly she bombed.

I will point you to Andrew Sullivan, a Conservative writer for the Atlantic whose Daily Dish has become one of my daily reads. Pithy and poignant, he says in five sentences what I would have difficulty conveying in fifteen minutes.

First and foremost are the Twelve Lies of Sarah Palin (though there is a thirteenth out there as well). I know what you are saying, every politician lies. True, but not every politician lies on matters that are easily discoverable and continues the lies every after demonstrably proven to be lies.

Then there's the post titled "Palin: Kissinger is Naive."

He is also rather upset at the lack of transparency of Palin as a candidate.

That's just a sampling. Palin is a horrible, truly awful selection.

Relighted

So, after 13 days, 11 hours and 30 minutes, we have lights again.

The power came back this afternoon at about 2:30 I was told.

I'm in my air conditioned house listening to two politicians blow a lot of hot air.

I'll be posting on the monumental mistake that was the selection of Sarah Palin here shortly, I'm sure. She's truly a horrific pick.

Twelve Days and Counting

Still no power.

Boiling Point

And not just because it's hotter than a snake's ass in a wagon rut.

I've pretty much reached my saturation point with Ike. We've been without power for 9 days now. We were informed, via the power company's website, that we were scheduled to have power back by Monday (tomorrow). This was welcome news to us. Instead, we find out today via our neighbor, who has a generator and thus power and thus access to the internet for longer than 30 minutes via dialup that our projected power return date has been moved to Thursday.

What's the big deal, some might ask? Well, when you've been without power for over a week and then they inform you that you are going to have to wait up to another 1/3 of the time you've already been out, you get frustrated.

Photog and his wife were quite gracious in offering the use of their laundry facilities for us, and we took them up on it on Wednesday. I declined today, primarily because we were expecting the power back tomorrow and we didn't want to impose any more than necessary. However, since we're running short on clothes, I may be giving them a call after work tomorrow to run a couple loads.

I'm so upset right now that I can hardly see straight. Everything is setting me off. I can't even wash dishes (in the dark) without getting upset about something. Perhaps what is most frustrating is that in our office of well over 30 people, there are approximately 3 who don't have power yet. What makes our neighborhood so damn unimportant?

We have hung in there like champions. We don't complain (until right now), our kids have been phenomenally well-behaved considering they've been upset from their routine like never before. We have kept the house relatively tidy. I didn't even bitch when I had to throw out half the refrigerator, because I figured that was part of the game. Had I known that we'd be camping in a POA for up to 2 weeks, perhaps I would have done things a little differently.

Give us some damn power. We've been good.

A quick update

Day 8 and we're still in the dark. My neighbor is currently cranking up his generator. Fortunately, the fumes don't make it to our house, but it can be noisy. I am not going to be the guy that asks someone else to be less comfortable just to make it that little bit quieter for me (besides, there are at least four houses within football throwing distance of ours that have generators running).

I'm currently running on my battery for my laptop - this is basically the second time I've been on the computer outside of work since the hurricane. I am back at work; had to put in about 5 hours today as well to help make up some of the time we lost this week.

The kids are handling everything pretty well; they seem to enjoy having had the week off of school, though I doubt they're going to enjoy having to make that time up in the spring.

I will be traveling to Boston in October. Two trips for two depositions. It will be nice to get back to that part of the country - I love visiting Boston. It's my favorite east coast city to visit, and neck and neck with San Francisco as my favorite city to visit.

The wife will be staying home on Monday as we still have no electricity and the kids' school is cancelled and there is apparently no daycare yet.

Fortunately, I was able to spend a few hours at Photog's house with the Princess on Wednesday after leaving non-work and got some laundry done, which got us through the week and should cover us (get it?) until Tuesday, when hopefully we will have our own power back.

In other news, I bought myself a wireless router for my computer. I ordered a Linksys 802.11n wireless router that is reverse compatible with my old laptop, and will be good for my next PC. It's refurbished, which means I got it discounted; picked it up for $50 at Fry's. They will be delivering it next week; I wonder which will get here first, it or the power...

In other news, the bloom appears to be off the Palin rose. I'm not sad. I think it was a bad, desperate move on the McCain campaign's part. I'll try to provide some links to good posts that I've seen today commenting on her lies, her distortions, and her lack of intellect on that which she was presented as being one of the top minds in America about...

The Update

I am currently sitting in my office at work. The office is closed, but there is power, which is more than I can say for my home. We have been without power since the hurricane hit; though it sounds like most of my friends have had theirs restored. I'm looking forward to getting the power back, as I am getting tired of hearing the constant running of generators from the neighbors (part of that is jealousy, but part is also genuine annoyance at the noise in the middle of the night).

About the hurricane. We did well. The storm was kind to us and our neighbors; just a few downed branches. The family next door lost one tree, and there were a couple more down on our street, but nothing too major. The people on the street behind us got hit much worse. Trees were down all over that street.

I slept through the storm. My wife did not. She had trouble sleeping that night. The kids were scared, but we let them camp out in the living room (just in case, as I did not want them upstairs during the storm), and they were all right for that.

Except for having no power, we are doing pretty well. We have gas, so our range works and we can cook. We have hot and cold running water, so we can bathe. I have to make daily trips to the grocery store to buy food for the day as we have no refrigerator, but we do have coolers full of ice (now). I am currently charging the battery on my laptop so that maybe I can get some news this evening.

By the end of the week, we're going to have to get some laundry done, but other than that, we are hanging in there all right. Hopefully daycare will have power back next week and we can both get back to work.

I'll have more of an update later.

Why I Cannot Vote For John McCain

I could write my own post on it, but, quite frankly, Andrew Sullivan (a Conservative writer) states my concerns far better than I could put on paper. You can read his post here.

And for Sarah Palin, the issues just keep on coming. Just read John Cole at Balloon Juice's post here. Thoroughly vetted my arse.

School Days

The Princess starts her new first grade class today. The school was overcrowded for first graders, so they had to create another class, and the Princess was selected to go into the new classroom. This is the second year she's been in school, and the second year that she has been moved into a new classroom. This is, however, a new school district.

I think it's unfortunate that they are asking the Princess to move again. I know someone has to do it, but two years in a row? How does that help her?

She's a tough one, though, and it shouldn't really affect her.

My Trip to Bountiful

I'm in Logan Utah tonight. I've reviewed my records on the flight, and I will review them again tonight, probably after dinner. I've got a general idea of what questions I might need to ask tomorrow - what testimony I may need to elicit.

The drive to Logan was nice - you're driving through mountains, seeing the scenery, and one dead deer on the side of the road. I stopped in Bountiful and had a late lunch at Carl's Jr. I've not eaten at this restaurant in 11 years; I missed it.

Interestingly enough, driving to Logan put me on the Road to Wellville (another city in Utah). I did not stop there, but it's still nice.

It took me about an hour and a half to get to the hotel from the airport; if my depo takes longer than about 3 hours, then I'm going to have to really work to get back to the airport in time. I don't anticipate this will be a long depo, but you never know.

Oddest Book Title

Every year, the Diagram Prize is awarded for the book with the oddest title. This year's winner was "If You Want Closure in Your Relationship, Start With Your Legs." However, they also had a vote for the oddest title ever, and the winner there was "Greek Rural Postmen and Their Cancellation Numbers," an upset of the favorite "Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Nude Mice," which was the first ever winner.

Leavin' On a Jet Plane

Tomorrow morning will see me to the airport on my second flight to Utah in a month. I plan on being there for about 24 hours for another deposition for an upcoming trial.

I look forward to the scenery.

She Fit the Suit

I thought that when you were running for public office, you wanted to stump. You wanted to campaign. You wanted to get yourself out there so people can know who you are and why they should vote for you.

Senator McCain selected Sarah Palin as his running mate because she has the experience and tenacity to be the President should anything happen to him... but she can't be seen in public? How am I supposed to believe that she is ready to be VP if she can't even be considered ready to campaign for VP?

Look, I'm all for woodshedding witnesses. But witnesses are not trying to sell you anything, particularly not themselves for a job. And even then, the witnesses must be presented. Sarah Palin is running for the second-highest elected position in the land, and she can't be trusted to speak? Or is it that she has not yet been fully informed of what her positions are?

This could be the king of flip flops. She's ready to be Vice President, but the next day she's not ready to be Vice President... Sounds like a winner to me, and sounds like John McCain's judgment is exactly the kind we need in a President.

Who can follow this story and not believe that Sarah Palin was chosen not because of her merits, but because she fit the suit?

Rather than try to expound on this any more and coming up short on quality, I will refer my readers to Vim and Vinegar's excellent post on this topic.

Maybe it was just me...

But I do not recall seeing an American Flag on Senator McCain's lapel last night. And I can't swear that I saw one on Governor Palin's, either.

I guess, if you're a Republican, you're patriotism is a given...

John McCain is running for President, and he was a POW.

Truthiness

The Republican convention last night made numerous references to Barack Obama's having written 2 memoirs "but no laws."

This is an interesting bit of truthiness, because really, which congressmembers actually do pen their own laws? Who has the time for that while campaigning for re-election? Staff members write proposed laws. But that's not important, because we need to attack Barack Obama as a do-nothing Senator.

Unfortunately, that is not the case. You see, this was an issue the Clinton camp raised some months back, but, a very simple look into the Library of Congress's website shows that Barack Obama has sponsored or cosponsored 129 bills and resolutions in his time in the Senate this year. But, we're not supposed to go actually look. We're supposed to trust the Republican Party, who has not misled us in anything over the past 7 years...

How many has John McCain sponsored or cosponsored during the same period? 38. Wow. How can the Republicans attempt to paint this issue and not expect people to follow up on it? The fact is, they don't expect people to follow up - they believe that people are not interested in facts, rather image.

John McCain is running for President and was a POW.

Thanks, but no Thanks

Sarah Palin's speech last night seemed forced to me, the parts I could stand to listen to. The speech was filled with rhetoric and no substance, and condescending attacks on the Democrats for having a convention filled with rhetoric and no substance. I heard misrepresentations of the truth - "I told Congress thanks, but no thanks on the bridge to nowhere," A community organizer (code for black activist) has no responsibilities, that Senator McCain was a maverick, to name a few.

This is not so much an attack on Sarah Palin, as she did not write the speech, President Bush's speechwriters wrote the speech - you know, the speechwriters who gave us "a uniter, not a divider." But, she does have to wear some of the burden, as she accepted the nomination and the duty to be the voice for these speeches.

I find it humorous that the McCain camp has decided to attack the press for digging into Palin's past. How dare they?! She's the Republican VP candidate - we know what we need to know, why do you need to know it, too? Sure, she may be ethically challenged, but we don't know that for certain, and besides, it doesn't matter if she fires people who don't toe her line - that's the Republican way! You know when you are in public office that you serve at the pleasure of the Executive.

The more I look at Palin, the less I like her. She appears to be more of the same, and this country doesn't need that. McCain made a bad choice for VP, and that speaks to what types of decisions he would make if he were to win this fall.

John McCain is running for President and was a POW.

Wow, I'm Tired

Today was a pretty long day. The first day back at school for the kids after the holiday saw me going to work on a day that I was originally intending to be in Boston on a deposition. It's fortunate that I was there, as we had discovery responses due, and I was the one who drafted the responses. After my supervising attorney put his touches on the drafts, I had to transfer the work to the other 56 documents. This took a little longer than I initially thought it would, but it was not too bad.

Discovery can be rather stressful, not necessarily because the responses are tough to get, but rather, trying to find the proper objections for the ridiculous questions that prove to be little more than an exercise in billing from opposing counsel. Still, we got them all done and out the door before 6, so we did all right.

In the meantime, I get to continue my research for another docket that is in depositions, prepare for my own deposition on a third docket, prepare a case summary for that docket, and field inquiries on a fourth docket from angry clients who don't understand that just because a settlement agreement has been reached does not mean that they are automatically entitled to their money on demand.

Experience is Everything.

I read this on the Liberal Journal and just found it to be quite a humorous note: I do not care whether Sarah Palin's daughter is pregnant. I just care that her daughter's fetus has as much foreign policy experience as her.

Reactionist Politics

I'm still not sold on Sarah Palin as a pick. She may be a fine governor. She may someday be a fine governor (if you're going the route of there's not enough experience to get a good grip yet). What I don't like, more than anything else, is the rapidity of the pick - the day after the Democratic Convention ended with record ratings. I don't buy the argument that she was fully vetted, despite the revelations over the weekend that perhaps she wasn't until now (source: Talking Points Memo), or at least, not so deeply as to look into the newspaper of the town where she was mayor (source: the Huffington Post). I don't like that she was for the Bridge to nowhere before she was against it. I don't like that this pick does strip the Republican race of the experience argument, even though they will try to argue that these are apples and oranges.

The more that this drags on, the more it looks like John McCain and company reacted to the Democratic tide rather than acted to choose the best available candidate (who I think was Romney, even though I don't care for him). I think it shows a rash nature, one that is not something the President can afford to have. It shows a counterpunch mentality that works in the right situations, but not when applying for a position that requires tempered decision-making. We don't need four more years of "Bring 'em on!" We need someone who can reason a decision with the mind rather than spewing a decision from the gut.

While I'm not sold on Obama, I think the Palin decision helped him.

There is another possibility from this decision, though. The choice has given MUCH attention to the Republican candidate, who did not need a 14th trip to the Jay Leno show to get some more airtime. Perhaps this is a Harriet Miers pick. Maybe John McCain has his Samuel Alito somewhere - a pick that he otherwise wouldn't have gotten through had it not been for the horrific initial choice.

With Karl Rove involved in the process, I wouldn't put it past them.

Mmmmmmm

That was some good bulgoki.

It's a shame nobody was here to share it with my family.

Yum.

It'll probably be at least another 6 weeks before I make it again. If I make it too often, it ruins the treat.

Hurricane Gustav

While I would prefer that the hurricane not hit Houston, even though we should be far enough inland to not get a big hit from it, I really hope it spares New Orleans.

A city that looks like this


does not need any more devastation.

Labor Day Weekend

I was scheduled to fly to Boston tomorrow for a deposition on Tuesday for one of our plaintiffs. The opposing counsel's wife, however, decided on having her baby yesterday, so we've had to reschedule the depo. That's probably all well and good, considering that we have a hurricane that may be on its way into the area.

So my day is clear for tomorrow. I might make bulgoki, if anyone is interested.

My Very Brief Thoughts on Sarah Palin as VP Candidate

I'm concerned that she has limited executive experience, and appears to have run up a $20 million debt for a town of 9,000 as mayor. I'm concerned about the rumblings of cronyism, but I expect rumblings of that type from just about anyone in power. I'm concerned about the whispers of rumours suggesting that perhaps her youngest child is not hers. (From The Moderate Voice - note, this was not posted as fact on TMV, but rather suggesting that there may potentially be something to look into on this matter) I'm concerned that she was vetted in a week, and not by McCain staff members, but rather by lawyers, which immediately strikes me as a move of desperation. And I'm concerned about how many times I've heard people refer to her having been a beauty queen, or comment on how she's "hot" or a "MILF" in comments. I see absolutely no connection between physical attractiveness and ability to govern, and felt that way when one of my friends said she was voting for Bill Clinton in 1992 because he was "cute."

Much of my concern is from rumor and conjecture, as is the case for many who have concerns regarding Sarah Palin, but that is the price of making a surprise pick of someone who has not been on the national radar. Concerns are going to abound. Consider it like this - the person applying for the position of head coach on your football team must also provide his choice for starting quarterback. He can choose from any quarterback out there, Manning, Brady, Favre, McNabb, Palmer... and he chooses Kevin Kolb. It's a bit of a head scratcher.

And I don't buy into the "inspired choice" line of response. I don't see how any blogger pundit or most media talking heads can say that when she was underneath just about everyone's radar. The responses from the Limbaughs and the Red stater blogs applauding this choice immediately after the choice and repeating the "plus" talking points (vice my "minus" talking points indicating my concern above, because I also know very little about her), strikes me as a lockstep, pavlovian response - "she's the Republican choice, so it must be a good one, just like Alberto Gonzalez and Harriet Miers."

I'm concerned, but I will stop short of calling it a good or bad pick at this time - again, I just don't know enough about her to give an honest assessment.

I'll say this about Barack Obama

He's charismatic. I don't buy him completely, but there's an energy there.

But the Media Hates Conservatives

Which is why they are in such a rush to attack John McCain. Wait, except here, they are saying McCain's gaffe is bad for Obama... (From Think Progress)

Don't Go Clothes Shopping

On the day before the first day of school.

Boy, if it Weren't For That Liberal-Loving Media

It's a good thing the Republicans have been telling me constantly for years that there is a well-documented liberal bias to the media, or I might take all the news I've seen in recent weeks as being slanted in favor of John McCain - you know, since he seems to be covered favorably more often than not, and Obama seems to be the one criticized. But I know the media is favorable for the Democrats, because I saw it in 2000 when they went out of their way to ignore Al Gore and cover the guy you'd rather have a beer with.

Barack Obama chose Senator Biden as his running mate, but that was a bad choice, it was a sign of desperation. They must be afraid of John McCain, the "maverick" who eschewed his alleged independent mind to cuddle up with Karl Rove and company.

I'm just not quite up to commenting too much on this. I'll leave the roundup to my good friend Just Wondering over at Vim and Vinegar. She covers this topic quite well here.

School Starts

I was supposed to be getting ready for a flight to Boston tomorrow for two depositions next week. They were pushed back; this is a good thing. My children start school on Monday, and, since they are going to a new school, I am happy to be able to be there to see them off.

We're excited. The Boy and I are getting haircuts today. We also need to buy some lunch foods.

It's going to be an exciting year. The Boy was unable to get registered into the GT class, but we hope he'll be transferred soon. The Princess we hope will be able to test into GT either this year or next. She's sharp, but not very patient.

Depositions

I've read before that the deposition is the first place where a baby lawyer first really feels like a "lawyer." I did my first deposition yesterday, and I can say that I did feel lawyerly. I was fortunate that it was not a knock-down, drag out deposition, rather it was a minor character in the case and the opposing counsel (though a partner at a major firm) was not mentally or emotionally invested in the case. The deposition went fairly well; I have lots of room for improvement, but a lot of that just has to come with experience.

The toughest part about depositions, in my opinion, is not knowing when to object; you'll pretty much know the big objection areas. The toughest part is figuring out what you're going to ask on Cross-examination. We did not notice this deposition, so I was on cross. Basically, there are two things you want to cover - you want to get the witness to give you as much of the information you want as he will give you, and you want to rebut the other counsel's points. The first part of that is not too hard, if you have a good outline drawn up. The second part is where the art of deposing comes in, and can really only come with experience. You need to figure out what opposing counsel is trying to get out (you can kind of anticipate this beforehand if you know the matter of the case and how the witness fits in to the picture) and you need to figure out how to rebut what they say. This is something that can seem somewhat obvious when reading depositions, but while you're on the Court Reporter's time, this is a bit more daunting. You have to be able to think on your feet, change approaches when one thing doesn't work the way you'd like, and be able to corner the witness into an answer, if necessary.

I did all right; it was my first deposition. I made mistakes, and I will learn from them. While I don't relish the idea of trial law myself, it's part of the job and I need to do it as best I can.

Posting From Salt Lake City

It's beautiful here.

But the wife doesn't want to live here due to the snow in the winter. Fussy.

Plumb Tuckered Out

The Apple is asleep. He had a busy weekend. Yesterday, we went out for dinner with Photog and the Feisty 'Bama Princess. We had Pizza. It was good; not great pizza. I'd go back. I think for the money, I prefer Donnelly's Pizza, though.

After that, we went to a Mexican Ice Cream Parlor, where we had Mexican Ice Cream. It was good; better than I had in mind when we stopped. I had a strawberry sorbet, which tasted like it was freshly made. The kids had their ice cream and then spent 20 minutes running up and down the sidewalk.

Today, we had Nuje and family come over. It's been about a month since we'd seen them, so it was nice to have them over again. We played Scrabble, which I won, and Progressive Rummy, in which I was destroyed. Much fun was had. We also had steaks and hamburgers; the kids watched movies and played games. Good times with the wife's Matron of Honor and clan.

We missed church today. I like taking the kids to church because it seems to have a positive effect on their behavior during the week; but we were unable to get ready in time today. We'll make it up next week. I'm not completely sold on the church we're going to - it's a little too gospel for me; but that might just be the southern Methodist style, as I've been unable to really find something here that is what I'm familiar with. Still, the family seems to like it, and it's important to provide the exposure to the kids, in my mind, so it's worth it to me.

That's about it for now - I know that didn't sound like much, but we kept moving all weekend. We'll talk more soon.

What's the Difference?

15 years ago, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina both, at separate times, both left Yugoslavia. The United States sent forces over to help these fledgling nations in their quest for independence. In 1998, the United States, against the expressed desire of the United Nations and, with our President violating the War Powers Resolution and NATO Charter, invaded Yugoslavia to defend the Kosovar Albanians who wanted to be separate, but still a part, of Yugoslavia. In 2003, we invaded Iraq, contrary to the desire of the United Nations and with, what turned out to be (and may have been known to those making the decisions) erroneous information, with, at least a long-term goal of securing a Status of Forces Agreement allowing us to keep our forces in the nation/region for long-term - oh yeah, and to free them.

Recently, Russian troops invaded Georgia after the Georgian military attacked South Ossetia, a state that was attempting to assert independence from Georgia. The Russian attack has been derided by John McCain and the Bush Administration and the Conservative talk circuit as attempting to re-create the Cold War, attempting to rebuild the Russian/Soviet empire.

What's the difference? Someone else's sphere of influence. This isn't us invading or attacking; it's someone else, and that means empire building. We free nations; look at Iraq! They have their own government (who some on the Right have been attacking for daring to suggest that a long-term security agreement is not what they might want as a free and independent nation), set up by our nation and supported by our military - you know, the one that would stand down as the Iraqi army stood up. Notice you don't really hear about that anymore... but they're free. Other nations are creating puppet regimes friendly to their ambitions, or just outright conquer the nation, at least, that's what the spin is.

I don't jump to vilify Russia on this matter simply because I view this approach as highly hypocritical given our nation's international endeavors over the past 15 years.

Untitled

I work at a smaller law firm. There are about 20 someodd lawyers in the firm, and several support staff - paralegals, legal secretaries, etc. We all get along well, for the most part. There's one guy who works there, Toby, who was involved in an accident several years ago and had to have the front half of his foot amputated. I've not really pressed him for details about the incident, but I think it has something to do with being drunk and too close to metro rail tracks... Anyway, one day, we're all going out for lunch at a local restaurant, Toby, with his crutches, coming along with us. We decided to try a new bbq place nearby (this being Texas, you can find bbq just about anywhere). We are filing in to the door and the manager stops Toby and tells him that he's not welcome in the restaurant and that he would have to eat somewhere else because of his foot. We pressed the manager to let Toby in, but the guy refused to relent. We all left and went somewhere else. We didn't think it was right to give money to a restaurant that's lactose intolerant.

The Cat Came Back

I'm no fan of cats, particularly ours, which insists on vomiting in my room, on my shoes, my clothes, my books, wherever. But this video, from O'Canada is a bit of an exception.

When is a Crime Not a Crime?

When it's committed by the DOJ, apparently. According to this article on the Huffington Post, Michael Mukasey stated the plan was that justice department staffers would not be prosecuted for alleged illegal hiring practices. The key phrase in his statement? "Not every wrong, or even every violation of the law is a crime."

I wonder what would happen if a defendant attempted to use that as a defense... "Yes, your honor, I know that the law says 'Don't do X,' and I did it, but violating this law is not a crime." Somehow, I don't think the Court would buy it. I know I don't. But I would never suggest that a Bush appointee investigating the acts of other Bush-administration appointees would decline to prosecute a crime merely because they're all on the same side...

I think that perhaps, had he phrased it differently, it would be a more accurate statement. While I disagree with his assertion that not every violation of the law is a crime, I would say that perhaps not every violation of the law warrants criminal prosecution or potential jail time. But if it's not a crime to violate the law, then why have a law in the first place?

Who Wins in Georgia, Internationally?

Could it be Russia? That's what the opinion of this article on ynet thinks.

I hate CSI Miami

I tried to watch it last night, but I couldn't last more than about 15 seconds. The part I saw was where Callie Duquesne found Gunshot Residue (GSR) on El Poseur's Boss's pantleg. Apparently, the GSR transferred there from a collision between Boss Hogg's leg and the car the suspect was in - he unfortunately lurched forward just enough to make contact with the leg before he stopped and this was enough to transfer a significant amount of GSR to Boss Hogg's leg.

This was probably enough to confirm their suspicions and get their bad guy, but let's consider two things - first, Callie stated after seeing the pant leg that she needed to look over the car one more time. She did a poor job the first time and now has to see it again to find what she's looking for - real crackerjack work there. Second - would they have found their man but for this magnificent piece of luck? There are coincidences, and there are scripted acts of sheer luck that don't happen in real life, and certainly don't happen week in and week out.

This show is a pain.

Football season starts soon

Which means, technically, the NFL will be active in Detroit again - it would be nice for the teams that go to Detroit to have an NFL team to play against, though. You know, for a change...

Don't Piss Off Cheney, Russia!

According to this article on Yahoo, Dick Cheney stated that Russian aggression must not go unanswered. Russia attacked Georgia for attacking South Ossetia, and that's pissed off the Bush administration. Some might say it's because Russia shouldn't be getting involved in a hotspot that hasn't cooled down since the fall of the Soviet Union. Others would suggest it's because Georgia's President is a staunch ally of the Bush administration. Personally, I think Cheney just is itching to attack someone. It's been over 5 years already! We need something new. Iraq is boring now; and that damn Bin Laden won't let us find him. Besides, wouldn't it be much more of a challenge to fight Russia? They have more modern weapons than Iraq and Afghanistan! Besides, we've never had problems with any other wars we've started, why not move up a notch in competition? Russia's a pushover; they can't handle any force of substance, as long as it happens during the two weeks that qualify as the Russian summer... All in favor?

It's The Freedom, Stupid!

Senator John McCain is not my first choice for President. Actually, neither is Barack Obama, but I would prefer a Democrat in office this fall than a Republican, if only to balance the Court system. This does not equal an endorsement of either party, as, quite frankly, I'd rather see anyone OTHER than a Republican or Democrat in office, but that ain't gonna happen.

One of the problems with Senator McCain is that, since he's sewed himself into the Bush/Cheney quilt, he's unable to see anything outside of it. John McCain has called timelines for withdrawal suggested by Obama (and agreed to be sensible to others, including other Republicans and the Iraqis) "giving up on Iraq." You see, one of the long-term goals of invading Iraq was to create a friendly nation in the region, a government with a puppet who would give us our SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement), allowing us to remain in the area long-term, so that we can meddle in middle eastern affairs. This would be under the guise of a mutual agreement by their government, their "free" democratically elected government, created in our Christian Nation's image. You know, except for the muslim thing.

There was one hiccup, though. While Obama, McCain, the pundits, the President, and pretty much everyone else with a mouth and a television camera (but apparently no brain) argued over when, if, and how we should remove our forces, nobody decided to invite the Iraqi government and people to the discussion. Turns out, those people have opinions, too. And their opinion is that they are a free country and don't want us there forever.

This, of course, is a problem for the Republican nominee, who has basically hung his Iraq hat on long-term troop commitment.

Personally, I can't get over how selfish the Iraqis are being about this. I mean, we freed them. They didn't even ask for it, and we gave it to them. Where's our thanks? Where's our long-term SOFA? Where's the agreement that our forces are not subject to Iraqi laws? Where's the agreement that we can detain Iraqi civilians as the enemy because they look the part? Don't they know that if they want to be free, they must sacrifice some of their liberties? Look at us - ever since Saddam Hussein launched that attack on September 11, we have had our communications subject to wiretaps without warrants, our phone records taken subject to National Security Letters, people can be detained as providing material support for donating to charities that might be connected somehow to a terrorist organization, we've attempted to deny habeas rights to our detainees, we cannot go to Mexico or Canada without a visa like we used to be able to, we cannot bring nail clippers or lotion on airplanes... and we've never been more free! Our economy is strong, the dollar is top-notch, and our international standing is on a level it's never been before. Personally, I think we should invade that ungrateful nation and overthrow its government - those people want western-style democracy and the stability only our forces can provide.

Learning Lessons

There are several possible justifications for sending someone to prison. Some argue it is for retribution. Others might say deterrent or rehabilitation. A fourth possible reason would be incapacitation. I've written about this in the past, myself.

Whatever the purpose of sending someone to prison, I think most people would hope that the end result is the same - that those convicted do not commit the same crime again. We know that often, that is not the case and the individuals will end up committing crimes again, but at least we can hope.

What do we do with those who refuse to learn their lessons, though? At what point do we say enough is enough? Habitual offenders, people who commit the same crime over and over again. Is it wrong to sentence an individual to a life sentence for DWI? How about a 3rd DWI? How about a 10th? If not 10, then how many times does one have to commit a crime before he's clearly shown he cannot amend his ways and act in a manner consistent with what we expect from our citizens...

RIP, Bernie Mac

I was a bit surprised to hear that Bernie Mac died. He will be missed.

I never caught any of his standup routines. I first learned of him via the Bernie Mac show, which I really enjoyed. Bernie's show captured the clash between old-school parenting and the new generation in a way that was both understandable and entertaining.

"Our Bad"

The FBI director apologized to newspapers for improperly (illegally) obtaining phone records of reporters, according to this article on Yahoo. You see, they were doing it while investigating terrorism. They recovered the records by bypassing grand jury subpoenas using "exigent letters," essentially saying time was an issue and going to the grand jury would not allow them to get what they needed quickly enough, but that they requested the subpoenas when in fact they hadn't.

I know, the shock that a government agency under the Bush administration would lie to get around Constitutional due process. Whodathunkit?

Fortunately, the director apologized, so everything is fixed now. The government says they have safeguards in place to keep this from happening again. Of course, the government also told us that we were fighting terrorists so that our freedoms would not be jeopardized - how ironic that they ask us to continue to trust them...

Random Trivia

Baseballs and softballs weigh the same.

My Two Cents' Worth on Brett Favre

Brett Favre needed to commit himself one way or the other. He needed to say whether he wanted to keep playing or not back at the end of last season. He seems to enjoy the attention waffling gave him the last 3-4 seasons with regard to his retirement.

I think Brett Favre is a great football player. I would list him as one of the top 10 Quarterbacks of all time. I think that status bought him quite a bit of latitude with his decisionmaking process. That said, he was being quite selfish. He's a part of a team, an integral part. This is a team that needed to know which direction it would be going in and it needed to know which parts would be with them. Brett Favre knew that, yet he chose to allow his ego and his thirst for attention control his motions. The question shouldn't have been if he was coming back or not; the question should have been "do I still want to play?" Listen to his "retirement" speech and he says it himself there.

I think the Packers could have handled the situation better. But I don't think they should have been forced to handle the situation.

I've also heard several people state that the Packers should take Favre back as the starting quarterback because he's the best quarterback there. I don't buy that. Brett Favre was the better quarterback last year. He's a year older, he's not been training, and he's not been reading the playbook. Grit and attitude will only get you so far; when you play professional football, preparation means a whole lot, and the one who's been preparing is Aaron Rogers. I'm not going to outright say that Rogers is a better quarterback, because I don't know. I'm just saying what should be obvious - that Brett Favre is not automatically better just because his name is Brett Favre. The problem, of course, is that if he's not the starter, then the moment Rogers does anything wrong or things do not go perfectly, then people will start mumbling that Favre should be out there because he's "the best" and it's "obvious."

What happens, though, if he goes out as the starter and struggles? Do the apologists continue to defend him; say that he gives the team the best chance of winning? How good is that chance if they're losing?

The Packers needed to move in a direction. They got what they thought was an answer when Brett Favre announced his retirement, and they chose a direction. They should not have to switch gears because the person who made the choice that resulted in the path the Packers chose changed his mind. It's selfish, and not something a leader should do. He made his bed; he needed to find a less public way to fix it.

Tropical Dud

So, I wasn't expecting anything huge and terrifying from Tropical Storm Edouard, or however it's spelled, but I was rather disappointed with what we got.

Nary a thunderclap, not one bolt of lightning. No flooding. Power? Not a blink.

I know, I should be thankful that we didn't get hit hard. But that's what is exciting about storms. It's what I wanted to see.

In other news, I found a pretty good will template, so now I have a draft for wills and for POAs. I just need some customers.

Rock You Like a Hurricane

I know, it's trite. It's jejune. It's stupid. But with the Tropical Storm Eduard(o) coming to town, it feels like it's just corny enough.

We'll see how it looks when it gets here, but it shouldn't be too bad - particularly on the north side of the city. However, one of the models has the eye going through Downtown, which could put some of the heavy wind and rain right over us. We're still a ways inland, so we're going to hunker down and not worry too much.

I'm so tired.

Movies

We watched Searching for Bobby Fischer today. It's one of my favorites - not just because it's about chess, but because it is a good story.

The ABA journal recently came out with a new issue that lists the top 25 law movies of all time. I won't do the whole list, because it's 25, but the top five are all movies I have seen or would like to see (or would like to own):

1. To Kill a Mockingbird. This is one of the top ten movies of all time, in my opinion. It's not quite as good as Citizen Kane, which is the best movie ever, though I've never seen it (that was for you, Photog), but it really is a good film. It holds your attention - it held my attention as a 9th grader who wasn't interested in anything.

2. Twelve Angry Men. I watched this one in Junior High, as well and while I didn't pay as much attention to it, I remember bits about it and remember it as one I'd like to pick up someday - a great study.

3. My Cousin Vinny. I probably would not have ranked this one in the top 25 myself, but it's a good film, with perhaps the best opening argument ever: "Everything that guy just said is bullshit."

4. Anatomy of a Murder. I watched this in Criminal Trial Advocacy. While the class setting and the constant pausing of the film for the professor to explain finer points of law wore on me, the movie itself was actually pretty good.

5. Inherit the Wind. This is the story of the Scopes Monkey Trial. This trial is one of the cases that first interested me in the law in the first place. I've not seen this movie; someday I will.

There's Already a Way Around It

As I often do, I was reading Americans United this morning. I found a couple articles that I thought interesting, but one stood out. President Bush has made little secret of his pro-life stance. The jurisprudence of the country has made no exception for health care providers, pharmacists, etc., who refused to provide prophylactics because it conflicted with their position against birth control. Now, it should be no secret that for the majority of people in this situation, this conviction against birth control is religious in nature. This is where the problem comes in.

You see, President Bush wants to pass legislation that would "deny federal funding to any hospital, clinic, health plan or other entity that does not accommodate employees who want to opt out of participating in care that runs counter to their personal convictions." (quote from the link provided). You see, President Bush wants to force these facilities to allow employees to not fill birth control prescriptions. This is unfortunate, that he wants to legislate according to his religious beliefs.

I don't begrudge the President his religious convictions. But I do take issue with him using his position to influence others to comport with his religious convictions. If these individuals have a problem with providing the legal care requested of their patients, then they have an alternative - they can take another job. It's really that simple. You don't need to hold the hospital or pharmacy hostage by denying them money because of a religious principle. There's no call for that at all.

July 2008 Texas Bar Exam is over

What did you think? Hard? Not too bad? Ready to take it again in the spring? Think you nailed it? What sections gave you fits and which ones were not too bad?

We like to know.

Water, Water Everywhere

That's what we were dealing with for quite some time. Until we realized that there was a broken pipe under our driveway.

So, two days without water and $1000 out of pocket (the damage was not within the walls of the house, thus not covered by warranty), and we now have water again.

I will say that the plumber was a good guy - professional, courteous, nice. But it's not fun to shell out $1000 to repair something that you thought was fine a month ago.

Wednesday is Haiku Day

Noises in the house
I want to say it's from ghosts
Does the house have gas?

Things You Would Like to See, But Never Could Have Thought of On Your Own

The sliding rocks of Racetrack Playa.

Ted Stevens Indicted

Senator Ted Stevens, a 40 year Senator from Alaska, has been indicted on seven counts following an FBI investigation on nondisclosure of funds and other charges.

He's innocent and will prove it, he says.

Of course, being a non-corrupt Republican, he's going to step down from office to do so, right? After all, that's what differentiates the Republicans from the Democrats - except of course that the Republicans are never guilty.

Perhaps now we'll find out that the "Bridge to Nowhere" ends up leading to a federal prison...

There's Wrong, and then there's Army Wrong

I've shared my Army recruiting story on this blog before. I know that recruiters will resort to interesting measures in an attempt to get their quotas - and yes, they have quotas.

Three years ago, the army had problems with recruiters threatening and intimidating potential recruits, such as suggesting missing an appointment would result in a warrant for violation of federal law. It looks like the Army has not yet learned its lesson, as the same recruiting station has been taped threatening Delayed Entry soldiers with jail for being AWOL if they change their mind (they are allowed to change their mind). This from KHOU news in Houston, through Yahoo!

Stories like these highlight the difficulty that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan pose to the military - recruiters are desperate to get their numbers up, to keep the flow going in; particularly when attrition could be an issue. What is unfortunate is that the complaints and disciplinary actions seem to be increasig when they shouldn't. These situations reflect poorly on the military, and that in itself can cause an increase in recruiting problems. What we need, though, is a decreased demand on our military capacity - fewer troops overseas; less strain on the infrastructure. Then people will be more willing to sign up.

The Buck Stops Somewhere Down Below Here

I've made comment before to my affinity for Harry S Truman. I believe he was perhaps the greatest president of the past 100 years. One of the things I admire most about his time as President was that he said what he believed and stuck to his principles. He kept us involved in a police action that some may have thought was unnecessary, but which turned out to be key to the region - he responded to an attack and a plea for help; he didn't try to fabricate something to manufacture a legacy. That, of course, is how many view the war in Iraq.

But this post is not about fabricated wars. This post is about another example of how President Bush is dissimilar from Harry Truman. You see, Harry Truman had a sign on his desk that said "The Buck Stops Here." And he held true to that sentiment. Everything he did, he did because he thought it was best for the country, and Constitutional. He was, as much as one can be in polarized government, apolitical.

President Bush is not. Yes, he plays at imitating the Truman legacy, even having evoked the name in speeches during his tenure in office. But, the differences are there. For example, the DOJ recently has admitted that former aides broke the law in allowing the Bush administration politics determine who got hired. Now, I'm sure there's going to be spin coming out, and the apologists are going to start with the talking points, "But the Democrats did it, too," "the Justice Department serves at the pleasure of the President," etc. But the point is still there - that partisan politics has very little business in an oversight position. Justice department officials should be apolitical; and process by which they are hired NEEDS to be apolitical. Otherwise, justice's blindfold gets lifted, but for only one eye. And that's dangerous when there is an agenda.

How is this connected to Harry Truman? Simple - Harry Truman would accept responsibility for this happening - or more to the point - he wouldn't allow this to have happened in the first place. President Bush, however, is not going to take the heat for this, even though it was his attorney general who approved the policy. No - it was the aides that broke the law. It has to stop below the top dogs - lest there be some evidence of high crimes and misdemeanors; as we know where that could lead.

I just hope there isn't a precedent set for the next administration, or those following thereafter.

Attention, July, 2008 Texas Bar Examinees

Take tomorrow off.

You're not going to learn anything new and you're already mentally fried. Go watch a movie, or walk through the woods.

Or, study lightly, as I remember trying to take it off on the day before the bar.

You're going to be fine.

How much do I love my family?

I made bulgoki for dinner tonight.

You don't get any.

Hot fun in the Summertime

The kids are out in the backyard playing in the sprinkler.

I don't need any more reason for buying a house in the suburbs.

Though they do need some practice not messing with the water level.

Just for Laughs

My LOL Name is Snuggles Franknstein.

I found the link from RedHotMamma's blog.

And I clearly need an evening activity - perhaps I should take up bowling again.

And, just for the record,

I do still hate CSI: Miami.

Yet, for the public good, I shall endeavor to recap the new episodes of the upcoming season. No promises, but I'll do my best to choke them down and regurgitate them in a snide manner.

Good Faith

In law, "Good Faith" is kind of a magic phrase. Someone who acts in good faith oftentimes is excused for what they do. Negotiations are presumed to be done in good faith. While there is no real concrete definition of good faith, one could consider it to mean with a pure heart or with absence of malice, honesty of purpose.

Now, considering that, one must then contemplate what the Justice Department meant when they said that interrogators had to believe in good faith that the harsh interrogation techniques they employed would not cause the detainees "prolonged mental harm."

Now, not being one who's been subject to torture, or "harsh interrogation methods," and having never been waterboarded, I can only speculate on what might constitute "prolonged mental harm." However, I do know that my son nearly drowned in the apartment pool where we lived in San Angelo and was terrified of the water for 4 years after that. If that were to happen accidentally (he jumped into the pool before I was ready for him to and had to pull him out) and cause a phobic reaction, then I would submit that knowing someone was intentionally subjecting me to the same sensation would cause a similar response. That being the case, I do not understand how anybody could consider doing this to another person as an act that would not lead to prolonged mental harm and believe that in good faith.

Perhaps the more consternating part of this is that even in light of the FOIA and with the information provided to the ACLU, the documents were still heavily redacted. We still don't have a complete picture. We already know that the person who wrote this, Jay Bybee was the one who informed former AG Alberto Gonzalez that torture was defined by causing a pain similar to that experienced by organ failure or death, which is concerning enough, but combined with his definition of "good faith" interrogation, is quite a disturbing concept, and not something we would expect our nation to try to justify.

Abra Cadabra!

Imagine you got stopped by the police on suspicion of DUI and are taken to the police station to undergo a breathalyzer exam. This could be a fairly embarrassing situation. You may wish you could just vanish. At least, that's what one guy in Omaha wished; so he decided to try a novel plan - White-out. Needless to say, he did not vanish.

Note to self - White-out does not correct all mistakes.

Monkey Butts

I listen to Calvin Murphy on the way home, mostly because I don't care for music on the radio and I like to have something to keep me company on the commute. Generally, I like Calvin as a basketball analyst - he knows the game well. However, his show often will traverse topics that are not necessarily sports related.

Today, Calvin made mention of the basketball players for team USA playing in China - I don't think I can say the quote verbatim due to memory, but the gist of the interchange went like this: someone made mention that the restaurants would not serve blacks or Mongolians, and Mr. Murphy stated if that's the case, then they should bring their monkey butts home. A caller took offense to this, which resulted in a several-minute conversation between the offended caller and Mr. Murphy. Essentially, what the caller was pointing out was that in the context, people could take offense to the phrase "monkey butts" in reference to the basketball players, relating the situation here to the Don Imus situation.

Calvin Murphy in his explanation noted that he's used the phrase monkey butts all the time with reference to people of every race and creed (this is important because with the exception of Jason Kidd, who is of African American descent, all players on Team USA are black) and that he meant nothing by it. Mr. Murphy explained that this was completely different from the Imus situation because there is no way to use the phrase "nappy headed ho" to refer to anyone other than black women (which is a specious argument as you can refer to anyone as nappy-headed theoretically, but his idea is on point). One of the assistant guys noted that Howard Cosell was fired after saying "the little monkey can run," even though he used the phrase little monkey to refer to his own children, not just the black Miami Dolphin Running Back.

I'm not weighing in on the use of the phrase - I'm not familiar with the term "monkey butts." I'm not saying what Mr. Murphy's intentions were with using the phrase - it could be completely benign as he explained. What concerns me - and this is what I see constantly from Mr. Murphy, is the indignant attitude he expressed in explaining it. There's a legitimate concern that this phrase could be misconstrued, particularly given the makeup of the team, and Calvin is aware of that, now. What he should have done is admitted that what he said could be taken in a negative manner and apologized for any misunderstanding after explaining his position. Instead, Calvin decided to attack the person who took offense to his statement, by stating that the caller should not have invoked Don Imus's situation as they were, in Calvin's mind, apples and oranges. Again, that could be the case, but the fact is that someone drew the line and he likely wasn't the only one and for the potential for inflammatory results, Calvin should have apologized. But he didn't.

I think ESPN Radio lost a listener between 5 and 6 because of Calvin's inability to recognize when an apology is warranted for a statement he made.

Last Week's News

The story of the weekend, for those who were living under rocks, was that the word inadvertently leaked out that Al Maliki, hailed by many Americans as President Bush's puppet leader of Iraq, actually stated he preferred Obama's exit strategy. This was followed hours later by a recanting.

Of course, it doesn't matter what people say right now. What matters is what happens in the future. Is it really feasible for us to leave Iraq in 16 months? Is there any way to guarantee right now that in 16 months' time everything will be secure enough for us to leave? Is there any way to guarantee that even if it were, Obama or McCain would actually do it? Would there be a re-entry plan, or would we just let the country fall apart if things didn't stay "positive?"

And then, perhaps more importantly, what aboubt the Iraqis? What about what they want? Shouldn't that matter, inasmuch as it's their nation? If they want us out, then, shouldn't we leave? I thought that was the point of our invading - that they would be free to make their own decisions, free from the yoke of Hussein's tyranny. Is it somehow less tyrannical if they are told they don't get what they want (if they want what is contrary to what the President of the US wants) simply because we are a Democracy? We made the bed, but it's up to them to decide when they want to lie in it - that's the essence of freedom.

But that doesn't matter to Americans, at least, not to the Press or the Candidates. What matters is "who's right?" or, more to the point, "who is selling better?" Because people won't remember a year and a half from now what the candidates said. Just like people don't remember McCain's walk through Baghdad last year, or the Keating Five, or Governor Bush's attacks against the Senator in 1999-2000.

For all the rhetoric by those who want to lead the greatest country in the free world, there seems to be little concern for what those to whom we are attempting to sell freedom want. And that's unfortunate.

Long Week

Last week was a long one.

One thing I'm not comfortable with is talking with people I don't know. I need to know you before I can be comfortable talking with you, particularly on the phone. Seriously. This is a true source of anxiety for me, and unfortunately, it's a big part of my job right now.

Last Monday, one of my friends from high school was in town, so we had lunch together. It was really a nice thing; I'd not seen this friend in about 14 years and it was really nice to catch up.

Then, to make the day even better, my best friend called me that evening to wish me a happy birthday (it wasn't my birthday, but why carp?). We chewed the fat a little, reminisced a bit, and just had a nice talk.

The rest of the week was very busy with phone calls from irate clients (see anxiety, above). My in-laws and father left last week, as well, so we had a little post-move separation anxiety mixed in with the work anxiety. Additionally, I think I'm starting to feel my version of buyer's remorse - which is anxiety that I won't be able to continue to afford my purchase.

Eventually, I'm going to try to find a 9-5er somewhere closer to the house. It's important to have a family member within 30 miles of the children for emergencies. That, and I don't know how much I really enjoy doing what I do. It's an important job, and being the low man on the totem pole, I get to do the less savory tasks, but I don't know how much longer I'll be able to take the alternating anxiety about the calls and the anxiety about near total lack of job security.

I cut the grass today. In the back yard. It took an hour, or so. Filled 3 1/2 trash bags with grass clippings. But the yard looks good, the lawn mower and edger work well.

The kids should be going to sleep right now. They're playing hide-and-seek upstairs. I'm letting them because to stop them would require my going upstairs, and I don't wanna.

Jamie - you're going to be fine on the bar. To this day Photog and I can both tell you that the breaking and entering into the dwelling house of another with the intent to commit a felony therein is Burglary. If you find yourself panicking, think about a rule of law that you know and start from there. You'll calm down and it will come to you.

Anecdote

So we had the family in last week. My pa, the Apple, and I went to the store to buy some steaks to cook on my new grill (birthday present from pa). The Apple went because he "knows" that whenever we go to the store together, he gets hot Cheetos. So we indulge him. We're walking down the chip aisle, trying to find the Cheetos, Apple and Pa walking together, myself about 30 feet ahead. I come up on the Cheeto section and grab a bag of the hot ones. I holler to my pa and toss them. He catches them and hands them to the Apple. The Apple, so excited holds them up and shouts "I found the hot Cheetos!"

Of course he did.

Frustration

We bought a futon for the game room, so that the kids could have a place to sit and watch movies and the family would have a nice place to sleep when they visit. It wasn't the greatest futon - it was microfiber, but it worked. At least, until the kids got ahold of it. We've had it for about 10 days, and it's broken. The kids, thinking they found the coolest game on the planet, would run and jump on the back of the futon/sofa and pull it onto the floor. They would then pick it up and do it again. This ultimately resulted in the wood frame cracking and tearing the Naugahyde cover.

I'm very frustrated. It wasn't the most glamorous piece of furniture, but it should have lasted more than a week.

Suburban Life

Technically, we moved from the city to the suburbs. We were within Houston City Limits, and now we're not. It's nice to be far enough away from the smog and pollution to not have it in our lungs constantly, though I'm sure a good bit of it makes its way up here.

We've started settling down in the new house. The inlaws and Pa left on Monday, and we're working our way into a routine. The kids are in a new daycare; I'm going to be starting the park and ride pretty soon, and all things will assume a normalcy.

I haven't been hit with that strong bout of buyer's remorse yet. Though I do feel a good deal of stress with being a new homeowner again. We've got a lot we've got to do with this place to keep it up as we're in a pretty nice Master Planned Community.

My birthday recently came and went. I basically did nothing different on my birthday - I went to work, answered angry phone calls, answered more angry phone calls, ate lunch and answered more angry phone calls, then went home; turned around and went out to buy dinner for the family, and then the Men (and the Boy) drove down to Freeport for some deep sea fishing. Fishing went well, though the Boy got seasick and Father in Law may have broken his coccyx.

I've not really had much time to just sit and relax yet. Someday.

It Burns Us

We've moved. We are no longer in the apartment complex of broken dreams, and have upgraded to a home in a Master Planned Community.

We're pleased with the purchase - it has everything we need and then some. The kids love having their own rooms, though I think the Apple is having some separation anxiety (this is the first time he's had his own room since he was 1).

The Boy, myself, Father in Law and Pa all went fishing yesterday. It was a rough trip out, though we managed to get a decent haul out of it. The Boy hit the rail; he was the only one to get sick, though I think we all felt queasy for a bit. The Boy also managed to bring in the first catch. He was the first to drop his line and on the way down he snagged a sand shark - about 2-2 1/2 feet long. He also brought in the first Snapper of the day, though it was about an inch or two too short to keep. That said, he hauled in about 6-7 fish and even provided us with two keepers.

We were exhausted by the end of the trip, but fun was had by all. We can't wait until next year.

Ringing Endorsement

One thing that many companies do in order to increase sales of their product is hire a celebrity spokesperson. That person gets paid to endorse a product. Sometimes, it can be simple and overt, while others are much more subtle. However, normally, the endorser will say something definitive about the product.

I've been intrigued by Rosetta Stone software - I have heard it referred to as the best language training software available. But I was less than impressed with their celebrity endorsement by Michael Phelps.

Let me be clear. I have no issue with Rosetta Stone. Nor do I have any issue with Michael Phelps, or his decision to endorse Rosetta Stone. I have nothing negative to say about the product or the endorser. The message though, is what concerns me. I've heard the commercial a few times, Michael Phelps, discussing his trip to the Olympics, decides he wants to take up Chinese. He selects Rosetta Stone. "They say it's the fastest way to learn a new language."

Well, yeah, that's what the makers say. But, who does Michael refer to when he says "they?" It seems to me that he could be referring to anyone, but quite likely could just be the makers of Rosetta Stone. It does not sell the product as the best choice out there; rather it echoes what Rosetta Stone has been saying the whole time.

I think the message would have been more clear if Phelps gave it a stronger endorsement - "It's the best program available," or "I could not have been more pleased with my results." Instead, it comes across as him echoing the company tag line, which seems superfluous, to me.

Again, I am not criticizing either the company or the spokesman, rather, I'm criticizing this particular message. I intend to take up a third language someday, and when I do, I likely will choose Rosetta Stone; it just won't be because of this ad.

Fire!

The House has a gaslog fireplace. This is great for me. I love fire, to the point that I think my parents considered me mildly pyromaniacal. Anyway, it's probably a good thing that the house has a gaslog fireplace as opposed to a traditional fireplace.

When I was in high school, we rented a house that had a traditional fireplace. Every so often, we'd have a fire. Sometimes, when it rained, we'd close the flue, to keep the rain out. One time, though, we decided to start a fire after a few months of not having touched the fireplace, forgetting that the flue had been closed (we didn't close it often, just once in a while). Fortunately, we were all home, my mom, my sister, my best friend, and myself. Unfortunately, our brains weren't.

We needed kindling to start the fire. Usually, this consisted of newspaper, though I think in this instance, we may have used an old Pizza box. We had a couple smaller pieces of wood to catch fire after that, which, in turn, would start the firelogs. Everything went according to plan, except, well, that darn flue was open. We first determined something was amiss when we noticed the flames got much higher than normal. The second clue was when they started burning outside the fireplace. This was when the group lightbulb went off, and we all realized the flue was shut. Now, the stooges spring into action.

First things first - Mom starts trying to beckon the Lord to intervene, standing there repeating "Oh my God." Sister, in the meantime, determines that what you need to do is call 911, which she does, "There's a fire in our fireplace!" I, on the other hand, take decisive action and run immediately to - the smoke detector. I know that we are aware there's a fire that needs to be controlled, and what we don't need is an annoying beep reminding us. Then, because I know how to extinguish fires, I determine what we need next. Water. So I run into the kitchen and grab a glass of water. This I dart into the living room with and throw onto the flames, which laugh at my offering. My friend, though, catches on to my brilliant plan, and follows suit, though, being the competitive type, outdoes me by bringing in a bowl of water. We continue to run back and forth like Abbot and Costello, ultimately bringing the inferno under control, eventually with the help of Mom, who has figured out that a steady stream of water might be somewhat more effective, and has brought in the hose.

We survived the threat of a burning doom, thanks to the quick thinking - well, perhaps in spite of the thinking of four very calm and collected individuals.