Life As Is

Funny thing

2005-05-12T15:40:00.000-05:00

I actually enjoyed that. Not a lot of sleep last night, but the exam was actually very fun to write. That's true of law school, too.

Final Final

2005-05-11T16:10:00.000-05:00

In a few minutes I will walk out of the law library across the catwalk to the main office of the law school and pick up my 24-hour take-home exam in Con Law. I'm so burned out at this point that I'd rather spend the next day of my life doing damn near anything else. Best of all would be to spend 24 hours watching episode after episode of Keifer Sutherland barking orders in a cell phone. But I'll save that for when I become a member of the Bar.

Con Law, by the way stands for Constipation Law--it's an emerging area. Not a lot of precedent, though. Every once in a while a big decision will come down.

Law-School-Related Tasks (soon-to-be never performed by me again)

2005-04-28T13:15:00.000-05:00

1. Sneak up to faculty library for free coffee during off-hours

2. Program macros on my computer for "ctrl-p" (pi symbol, plaintiff) and "ctrl-d" (delta, defendant)

3. Enter the dark chambers of evil and diseased law-school computer lab

4. Evil eye to [name withheld] for "whispering" in library

5. Look at, listen to, or ever find self remotely in presence of, Lexis Rep

Crumbs on the keyboard

2005-04-17T12:24:00.000-05:00

Nothing like an empty law firm on a sunday morning. Been coming in on the weekends this semester to study here, at my office, because I have finally had it with the law school library. I sensed that my love/hate relationship with thta place was slowly leaning away from love and toward hate. A sure sign that I'm ready to graduate. So now I come to work to study--it's nice, lots of sticky notes for the taking.

First exam is in less than two weeks.

By the way, the crumbs on the keyboard are not mine. I find the Internet to be too tempting so I disconnect the connection in my office when I'm here to study. Which means that right now I'm in John's office. See how that works?

Fafblog on the repeal of the estate tax: here.

Law Revue: Is tonight! (for the uninitiated: the annual law school sketch-comedy show; the one night a year when nothing is sacred). I'm going, of course, to the show and then to the Pub afterward. But it won't be the same without you guys.

Update on Wis. law of punitive damages: (via EB) The WI S.Ct. reinstated the $94 mil punitive damages award that had gone to the estates of the three guys who died in the Miller Park crane collapse, and then was taken away on appeal. Now it's back in their estates, minus a nice big slice payable to one Mr. Habush of H., H., & Rottier. As a law clerk two summers ago I helped work on the case and went to hear oral arguments in Milwaukee. (THose who know my sordid work history will recognize the name of my former employer listed as counsel to one of the insurance companies.) Been thinking about cranes lately for separate reasons--Sawyer is currently OBSESSED with them and they seem to be everywhere in Madison right now. Read the decision here.

House update: We made it through the inspection period. There was some hard bargaining over who would pay for the electrical work. It went like this:

Me: Sorry to tell you, but this 60-amp electrical service constitutes a defect, my friend. One big fat genuine D-E-F-E-C-T.

Seller: What's that there word "d-e-f-e-c-t" mean?

Me: It's defined right here on schedule A-5 of Exhibit 27 of the addendum to the addendum to the addendum. (Pointing to appropriate provision of the air-tight contract that I spent three-thousand (3000) hours drafting and got him to sign).

Seller: What's that there piece of paper in yer hand, mister?

Me: It's the (air-tight) contract that you signed. It's the piece of paper that means you're going to fix the electrical system for me. Pay up, Bucko.

Seller: Well, jeez, what does yer paper say will happen if I say "No"? Jist askin.

Me: You can't say no. You're a party to this contract (pounding fist). If you refuse to remedy a defect--as defined on schedule A-5 of Exhibit 27 of the addendum to the addendum to the addendum--then you'll be in BREACH!!!!! That's B-R-E-...

Seller: Don't start with me.

Me: ...-A-C-H of Contract!!!!!

Seller: Calm down. What does yer piece of paper say will happen if I go into state of b-r-e-a-c-h?

Me: It's our piece of paper. I wrote it, you signed it. And it says that if you breach I can walk away from the deal.

Seller: You mean if I breach then you can walk away?

Me: That's right (smiling).

Seller: And then you won't buy my house?

Me: That's right (still smiling).

Seller: And I would never have to see or hear from you ever again?

Me: That's right (no longer smiling).

Seller: (pause)

Me: Alright screw the electrical system; just don't forget to bring the housekey to the closing.

Seller: I'll bring the key, you bring the checkbook. Oh, and don't forget your C-O-N-T-R-A-C-T.

I should be studying

2005-04-11T20:26:00.000-05:00

I have only one month left in my life to feel that way. Let me shed this skin!!!

The presentation to the faculty last Friday went very well. With Ethan and I each doing a presentation, followed by a q&A period and lively discussion, 1 1/2 hours went by in no time. And I think our ideas created a bit of a buzz--hopefully the faculty members who were there will be inspired to keep the discussion going amongst themselves.

Hey, I figured out my work schedule: I've got one more week until I go on leave to study for finals. Then I'll graduate and take some time off, starting up work again (this time as an asociate attorney) on July 1st. I am so ready to be sworn in.

Life Back How it Was

2005-04-03T10:40:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone who participated in the law-school curriculum discussion. We really traveled a great distance, in my opinion. Ethan and I are meeting this week (in person, not online) to pin down our presentation. If you can make it to the UW Law School, please come and hear the final product on April 8th at noon in the Lubar Commons. Otherwise, I'll let you know how it goes.

In Other News....

Buying a house. Closing on May 25th. (high five next time you see me)

And, finals are coming up. Posting will be LIGHT between now and then, I've got to catch up on weeks and weeks of TnE and Con Law before I even get started on my outlines. Here we go again...

Being Competitive

2005-03-29T12:27:00.000-06:00

Just had lunch in the Atrium with some law-school classmates, and I leaned on them to give me their opinions about the curriculum. (Now that the Badgers are out of the NCAA tourney, we were at a loss for something to talk about)

I was explaining the distinction I draw between the "technical" aspect of what a lawyer does, and the "human" side of lawyering. As Eric has prompted me to explain, what I mean by "technical" is critical thinking and analysis. The human side is... well, hard to explain, but I've talked about what I mean by that phrase in earlier posts. A quote from a discussion in the comments to summarize earlier conclusions about how I think these two "sides" of lawyering shoul dbe attended to in Law School:

...Bear in mind that I do, of course, think that law students need to be schooled in analysis and critical thinking. It's a matter of what should be emphasized--that is, what the foundation should be that the curriculum tries to lay down during the first year. I envision a curriculum, I think, where that foundation consists of a focus on the human side of lawyering. Then, beginning during the second year (and continuing on through on-the-job training and into our careers), the analysis and critical thinking part (or what I would call the "technical part") is then added.

The law students I was with said two things: (1) we agree with you, whole-heartedly, but (2) it's too risky from a competitiveness standpoint, therefore no thanks. They are concerned that without the "traditional" first year under their belt, our second-year law students who want to find summer jobs at law firms will be less competitive.

So, that's the tension. Competitiveness on the job market as 2Ls. If we change the curriculum to lay the "human" side foundation that I'm talking about, it can be better for an attorney in the long run. I can develop into a much better attorney over the arc of my career, I believe, if I start out with something other than the "traditional' first-year foundation. But, in the short term, I am worried about getting summer jobs and competing with students from Michigan, Harvard, etc., so it's too big a risk.

Pause. Ponder. So, the Big Ten is looking pretty tough next season, huh?

How to Think Like a Lawyer

2005-03-27T12:58:00.000-06:00

Spring Break is over, like it or not. I made good use of it this time around--perhaps because it's sinking in that starting a few months from now (and continuing for a looooooong time to come) a week's vacation won't be as easy to come by as it has in the past.

I've been ruminating on a comment from Eric last week:

"[L]aw and" classes: I took them; I liked them. However, they are a bad idea for first-year students. First year should be less about "law and" or even law in action and more about getting students to (here comes the cliche) "think like lawyers." Only once there is an intellectual framework in place can law in action and "law and" classes have any real relevance or usefulness (many debate the true value of "law and" classes anyway).

Do you buy that? I don't. I'd flip it around. The correct framework to get in place first is the law-in-action stuff. Does that cover any class that fall sunder the "Law and" category? Probably not. Depends on how they're taught. But what I am talking about is a focus on the human side of lawyering first--rather than the technical aspects, which should be learned later after the "human" fundamentals are in place.

What does it mean to think like a lawyer? Hard question to answer but I know one thing for certain--that meaning is changing. Law school admissions policies have rapidly evolved in the last few decades (in case you haven't noticed). As new classes of graduates move out into the profession, the profession itself is going to change. And to come full circle the law school curriculum--which has in many ways remained largely unchanged for over 100 years--should evolve as well. THat's what this is all about

The focus of law school, however, will (and should) always remain on teaching students (especially first-years) to think like a lawyer. But how about an update in what that means?

By my reckoning, there are two major aspects to succeeding in the profession: (1) the technical aspects and (2) the human side of the job. I would argue that too heavy a focus on the technical aspects during law school is a mis-allocation of resources, because we have on-the-job training for the technical stuff. I would focus a law-school education, especially during the first year, on the human side of lawyering. The skills will come in time, but that human foundation needs to be in place from the beginning. That's what I think.

Efficient Use of Law-School Resources: A First-Year Seminar Course

2005-03-20T08:12:00.000-06:00

We're on Spring Break this week, which has given me a chance to catch up on work. part of what I want to do is go back and read comments people have left below and respond to those. Also, I'm catching up on e-mail.

Here's an excerpt from a thoughtful message sent by a law student. She starts off with general thoughts, and (after a discussion of resource limitations, which I leave out here) she suggests that the law school would do well to start "play[ing] to our strengths." It's a good introduction to the second theme of our presentation--resource allocation. Here's what she has to say:

First, what does the law school do well? I felt the first semester was a solid introduction. There are plenty of good or decent courses, many good clinical programs, and many devoted faculty members. However, the school appears not to have more than a passing commitment to any sort of overreaching theory of teaching. Law in action, sociology of law, thinking about theory and practice... all of these things [could] provide a solid basis, and we certainly heard about them during orientation, but they don't really come out in the classes in an appreciable way. More on this in a moment.
Second, part of the curriculum's identity crisis seems to stem from the lack of definition in the target audience. The school probably cannot be all things to all students, and we shouldn't try to be. If we're focusing solely on being a state school for in-state students who need basic competency, that's one thing. If we actually want to make an investment in being a good law school, or even a well-regarded, well-ranked (though I don't want to equate rankings with actual degree of excellence, of course), that's another. I do believe in the Wisconsin Idea--there is a special commitment on the part of the law school, as the only public law school in the state, to provide for in-state students by preparing them for practice here.

Well stated. (And, BTW, if anyone needs more convincing on the Wisconsin Idea... my family and I were completely touched by what we heard on the radio this a.m. Adjunct Prof. Meg Gains interviewed on on To the Best of Our Knowledge. If you didn't here it, listen here.) Now, on to the the idea for a first-year seminar course. Back to the e-mailer excerpted above, from a bit later in the e-mail, where she makes a series of suggestions (I'm giving you one) for improving the Law School:

[W]e have plenty of assets as well--and why not play to our strengths? We can't have the same sort of depth in every area that some of the best-funded schools do, but we can choose some areas in which to specialize. In addition, we are still known, in some sense, for law-in-action and the sociology of law issues this school has worked on....So, my proposal[]:
Require a first-year seminar in either law-in-action-related subjects or a "law and" class. Some sort of guiding principle, even one that many of us may reject eventually, is a healthy thing. I came here partially because I wanted theory and practice, "logic and experience." The small group experience is widely varied and doesn't provide what an actual seminar could.

I LIKE this idea. I mean I REALLY LIKE this idea. I want to hear more.

This idea asks us one question: What do we want to spend money on? After all, do the math on the cost of putting every first-semester law student through a seminar course--I'm sure it's a lot. But hopefully I've given you enough context above to demonstrate that the idea is actually motivated out of a desire to use our resources more effectively. The school should focus on doing one thing well. Why? to use its resources effectively. How? By grounding students in an ideology. A "guiding principle" to frame our education and that we ultimately will either accept or reject--but it's good for us either way. Don;t just give us pieces here and there, depending on which profs we draw first year, but give it to all of us in a concerted way--i.e., with a law-in-action seminar--front and center.

Moreover, law in action has theoretical underpinnings that play into the more policy-oriented courses that some students will choose to pursue during later semesters, and it also plays right into a practice-oriented model of a legal education. So, by taking a step further in that direction, the law school could would continue to serve the needs of a broad range of students and the State as a whole.

Finally, injecting a unified focus into the curriculum is one way to respond to the "ambivalence" problem/situation among students that was the theme of last week.

Ambivalent Imbroglio

2005-03-16T18:44:00.000-06:00

You might see some estate-planning jargon accidentally slipping into this post because... I am in class right now. It almost never occurs to me to get out laptop during class. But in this case I can't resist the irony of tuning out lecture in order to come here and get on a soapbox about "student accountability." And while I'm in full confession mode—I skipped class last week for absolutely no reason (other than that I wanted to go drink coffee and read the Isthmus). I blame Ethan; he's filling my head with dangerous ideas. You think I'm kidding.

I want to highlight a comment to yesterday's post that was left by Chardrian. He has a positive memory of his 1L year, which you don't hear too many people admit. But his overall impression of law school—more or less an ambivalent one—is shared by many. I'm paraphrasing: The luster had worn off by the middle of the second year, and things could definitely stand to be improved although I would be hard-pressed to say exactly how. Overall, it was okay, though.

It's a very honest and (like I said) widespread assessment, and one worth looking at. Ironically, I see a certain symmetry between it and the all too familiar experience we have with (not) getting feedback from our professors: You lost me a bit by about the middle of the second question, and your analysis could have been stronger but there were no glaring errors. You get an 85.

When we first got to law school we expected to be inspired. Or at least I did. (I suppose that's how a professor feels when she opens one of our blue book to read, too). And we were inspired. Or at least I was. How could I not have been after Whitford's Contracts class first semester? I give him a 92. But for most of us, if we ever even felt that way, it didn't last for too long into the second year. That is the point, I guess, at which we students begin to explore the joyful possibilities of skipping (or blogging during) class! No longer shooting for marks in the 90's--either in our expectations of ourselves or in our expectations of the school.

To get back to curriculum and to instructional-reform issues, Ethan, I'm shocked that you agree with me about the law school flunking more people out. I'm serious in my support of that proposal, interestingly, no one has surfaced yet that is willing to try to talk me out of it. Just curious, what's your opinion on the "sacred institution" of pass/fail classes?(*)

And in turning to what is our point of disagreement, you say that a better solution, at least insofar as changes in curriculum/instruction can help improve (what we'll call) student accountability, would be to (1) make "better use" of class time and (2) give students constructive feedback. If we focus on the first point, no matter how we define it, we're going to run smack dab into a wall of opposition to whatever we try to embrace as a better use. Should we even run the risk of getting derailed like that? And as for feedback--why is it that we've both made an implicit connection between it and student accountability? Can we get away with just assuming that the two are as related as we say they are?
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* For non-UW Law Students: beginning in our second year we are allowed to take one class each semester pass/fail. It rocks.

Accounting for Unaccountability

2005-03-16T00:05:00.000-06:00

Wow. I just had my whole post erased. So this will be a somewhat pithier version of what I just wrote.

I am generally in agreement with Brian on this issue, but I have some thoughts about the perspective we take on this issue. I think "student accountability" is somewhat of a misnomer because students are commonly also interested in helpful feedback/evaluation from faculty, and having their in-class experience be worth their time.

From our focus group and other conversations it seems to me that students do not prepare for class because most classes just cover the reading material in some version of a lecture format* that provides the Cliff Note version of the reading material.** From the notes these students take in class they develop outlines, and that's all they really need to get a decent grade. When a decent grade can be obtained in this way, it tells us two things: 1) the class time is being wasted because it is completely redundant with the reading material (that is, I can read, so don't waste my time telling me what I read), and 2) students are being accountable; they are efficiently getting decent grades, and that is what they think they should be doing in law school.

So, it seems to me that the solution to the misnamed "student accountability" problem is neither to require attendance (though I have no problem with doing that), nor to attempt to punish or shame students into being prepared for class (though I do agree w/ Brian that more students should fail classes and fail out entirely - though I've never heard anyone else suggest this before Brian).

Better solutions are going to focus on providing something useful to students, such as feedback/evaluation in the form of midterms (perhaps the most common student suggestion I've heard) or other writing assignments, etc. with prompt feedback so as to make us better understand what that 86 means, and what we can try to do better. And using class time for something other than telling students what they already read, and instead using class time to practice, drill, present, role-play, test, etc. which not only requires and encourages students to be prepared, but also helps to develop skills that they may use as attorneys when in and out of court, such as being grilled by a judge while making an oral argument, interviewing clients and witnesses, working together in groups, giving testimony in front of a legislative committee, objecting to leading questions, etc.

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* In which I'm including the Socratic Method, once students start "passing" all the time, reducing the Method into a halting lecture.

** I've even had a faculty member tell me that she always read after the class for which the material was assigned because then she had notes that outlined the important issues in the reading and made the reading faster and easier.

Students Teaching Students

2005-03-15T16:25:00.000-06:00

Here's the cold, hard view on law-student motivation: "So many people end up in law school by default" that the problem of unmotivated students will always be with us. "It's best to use it to your advantage" according to this view. "[S]o many students are unmotivated[] that an ounce of motivation gets you very far." (Thanks, to Hatch, sorely-needed and much-appreciated Siskal to our Ebert) (or, in blog terminology, Becker to our Posner)(*).

I will resist the temptation to agree. But not because I'm feigning an interest in the greater good. My desire to see more students become engaged is a selfish one. (Soon to become a moot one, as I'm graduating in two months).

This is my fourth year of law school, and almost everyone in my actual law school "class" has gone and 'lef me all lone. As I wander about the place I miss seeing the familiar faces of the 200-odd students with whom I went head-first through the wringer as a 1L. Even more than the group as a whole, I miss the handful of engaged students with whom I forged an intellectual connection during our three years together. I suspect that at law school we learn just as much if not more from our classmates as from our professors. Not for lack of trying on the professors' part. That's just the way it is--students teach each other.

But I want more more more. So I often wish that we law students would become a bit more engaged in our learning.

And I do think that the Law School, upon realizing that fact, could and should shape the learning environment by making changes to the curriculum in order take advantage of it.
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*Read a number of his other provocative, if cynical, points in the comments here.

The Presentation -- Theme 1: Student Accountability

2005-03-15T09:00:00.000-06:00

The first of three themes from our presentation. Ethan's previous post on the Socratic method serves as a prefect lead in to this topic--student accountability. The notion that we students don't take enough responsibility for our education. Many students will echo this sentiment. And, E, you'll probably agree with me that this is the most common thread that runs through the feedback we have received.

Is this a curricular issue, rather than an admissions issue or a generational issue? Absolutely I think it is about the curriculum. Almost all of the changes that I would make to the law school curriculum would be designed, at least in part, to restructure the learning environment so that the learning becomes more active. So, in other words, I don't see myself as putting the "blame" on students in this post.

Part of the problem is a lack of taking into account different learning styles. (seems obvious but there you have it.) Ultimately a "mix of methods," as pointed out in yesterday's post, has got to be part of the solution.

But there are other less-complicated changes to be made. Simple example (imagine me taking the Faculty by the shoulders and shaking it): Give us midterms! Give us midterms now! That one minor reform would move mountains.

Feedback in any form is welcome and would, I think, go a long way toward improving student accountability. Although far too often students are handed nothing more than a number at the end of the semester: (congratulations: an 86--what am I supposed to do with this?), there are examples out there of professors giving constructive feedback to their students during the semester (some teachers have writing assignments or oral presentations and give feedback, others set up systems of peer review). It would be a challenging but good exercise to put together a list of best practices.

Smaller class size(*) is another way of building in accountability. When professors are more accessible to students and when learning is more individualized, I guarantee that we'll be more engaged.

And hey, coming at it from a different angle--how can we students be motivated to take a greater responsibility for our education? Put the fear of God in us.(**) I'd like to see a nice chunk of students flunk out each semester. Merciless, I know. But that's what I was expecting when I came to law school, and was surprised (and a little disappointed) when I came here and discovered that it wasn't the case.

I would also be in favor of requiring attendance. (I know that's a very controversial view--please be gentle on me. Hey, I'm not in favor of banning laptops.)
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* Let us put off the "efficient allocation of resources" discussion for now.

** Full disclosure: I am big fan of the Socratic method, because it keeps me engaged. But Ethan, your point is well taken (--this from the comments yesterday--) that we should "consider how to best educate everyone when we are thinking about how to improve the curriculum." The Socratic method is not a good way of motivating large numbers of students, I think, because (1) it only works during the first year when students haven't yet realized that they can just say "pass" and (2) it takes an extremely skilled instructor (such as our own professors William Whitford or Neil Komesar) to tap into its potential.

All of the People, All of the Time

2005-03-14T10:39:00.000-06:00

Brian has outlined a debate for the two of us with help from all those who would like to add comments. And I'm on board. But, before he carries us away, I would like to give a little preamble about the comments of the student just quoted by Brian. There is no doubt that the law school curriculum works very well for some people. This cannot be lost in our conversation about reform. As an example, let me share some of the opinions about the Socratic Method that have been shared with me.

Our first-year curriculum is dominated by large lecture classes taught with some version of the Socratic Method*. Generally speaking, this is when a professor asks a student questions to elicit the points that the professor would like to make. This method usually involves some amount of "cold calling" which has the purpose of motivating students to be prepared for class.

This method works for some people because the chance to participate and test one's own knowledge creates an active learning environment, which I believe is key to learning. This is particularly true when there is a real and constant threat of being called on because the student's attention is peaked by the need to be ready to answer questions at any moment. Moreover, this same threat motivates students to be prepared for class.

However, for other students this is a terrifying experience. The constant fear of being called on is somewhat debilitating. The pressure to perform makes it difficult to concentrate on the reading material, even when studying at home. There is social science data that suggests that for these students there is lower knowledge retention and that such student feel very uncomfortable in classes that use the Socratic Method. In short, it is a bad educational experience in any of the normal ways of measuring.**

How does one provide an educational method that deals with these two types of students? I personally think those faculties who use a great variety of methods tend to be most effective. Cold call on students for half an hour, then try breaking up into teams to do a role playing exercise. Then, maybe assign some people to do a demonstration and ask for critique from the rest of the class. Maybe a fieldtrip. The possibilities are great and hardly explored. My point is that it does not have to be an either/or situation (though I'd say that when one uses the Socratic Method, then it should be done with cold calling).

One difficulty is that faculty are supposed to cover a certain amount of material (a certain number of concepts) in a course and some of these alternative methods may make it more difficult to feel confident that this is happening. Apparently, it requires a bit of faith to believe that you can use the problem method instead of the case method, or a role playing exercise rather than the Socratic Method. Again, a mix of methods might be best and maybe not done all by the same professor in a single course.

*I hate the use of this term here because it is at best a perversion of what Socrates actually did, which was, basically, attempt to help people see the internal contradictions in the beliefs people had about important things. The "internal contradictions" part was important because Socratic (or Platonic) epistemological theory is based on the idea that no one can teach you anything - you have to learn it. In today's terms, this would mean (roughly or at least in part) that there is no such thing as "passive learning." If you want to teach somebody something, then you have to find someway to motivate them to learn, because just telling them stuff is relatively ineffective. Socrates' method was to help people see that their beliefs had internal, logical inconsistencies. This realization creates a powerful motive to learn because you are not arguing against someone else, but rather against yourself, and you honestly believe both sides. What Socrates does then is a matter of the greatest philosophical debate with boundaries that extend through most of philosophy, and divide philosophy departments across the world. And, maybe not relevant at all to legal education.

**Responses that some faculty members have taken is to avoid cold calling altogether or to modify their calling method so that it is in some way more predictable. This certainly helps to reduce the anxiety of being called on at any moment, but also largely destroys the active learning benefits associated with that same anxiety.On a related note, some people attempt to defend aggressive methods of cold calling by arguing that students need to face their fears of spontaneous, public, oral argument because, as an attorney, they will be called upon to do this regularly - that the very nature of education is to learn to do things at which you are bad. The obvious response is that there are many - if not most - legal careers that require no spontaneous, public, oral arguing, and that even in court it is very rare that cold calling will be like it is in a Socratic Method class (i.e., judges tend to be much more relaxed than Walter Dickey).

First Year Intensity

2005-03-13T21:24:00.000-06:00

Hung out with G. at a coffee shop this afternoon and he was working on his Trial Level Brief for second-semester Legal Research and Writing. It brought me right back to those intense days of the first year of law school.

Rave Reviews for the Law School

2005-03-11T15:28:00.001-06:00

A 3L writes that she has "nothing but rave reviews for the Law School." She confesses(*) that she's an A-student but doesn't think that is the reason she's giving the Law School such a good grade:

The diploma privilege classes have forced me to gain at least a cursory knowledge of "The Law" from a broad perspective, and the credit requirements have left plenty of room to pick an area of specialization....Clinics provided the opportunity for the development of courtroom and writing skills, along with the chance to communicate with clients facing real-life legal and ethical dilemmas. I've worked as a research assistant, which expanded my network of legal contacts and provided me with mentoring, while further developing writing and research skills.

In short, I feel ready to be a lawyer. Nervous and inexperienced, but ready. That, to me, is what law school should do for all students.

Howd'ya like that? A willing supporter of the status quo and she backs up her claims with reasoning. Not even a negative thought for everyone's favorite punching bag, the writing program! Note that this student took advantage of clinicals (and an opportunity to work as a research assistant) to hone her writing skills.

It's nice to get this perspective out there. Reminds me of a conversation I had recently with a faculty member. He was detailing some improvements that he thinks would strengthen the teaching environment, and he stopped in mid sentence to interject this thought: "—assuming, of course, that students take responsibility for their own educations."
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* my term, not hers

Squaring up to the Matter

2005-03-11T05:47:00.000-06:00

Morning. Got the Scissor Sisters going (soundtrack to my life), tall glass of Recharge--what coul;d be wrong? Oh, yeah, work.

Within the past week you've witnessed something heretofore unseen at *Life As Is* as I have taken it by the horns. Which isn't very as is now is it. Discussion has been focused exclusively on one topic--the law school curriculum (in anticipation of a fast-approaching presentation, on said topic, that Ethan and I will give on April 8th) (for those of you in Madison: at noon in the Law School Lubar Commons). I'm surprised at how many different directions there are to take the conversation in! It's been good.

I'd like to do a week-in-review post to pull out the major threads, but that'll wait for tomorrow. To borrow a phrase from my own story, set in print (here) this past Sunday, let us for now square up to the matter and look it directly in the eye. A question I haven't yet answered: What did you expect from law school, and what did you find when you got there? [Ethan, others, what say you?] Tough question to answer without (a) idealizing the experience, on the on hand, or, on the other (b) overlooking the positives. (positives, what positives?)

Curriculum Rediculum Redux

2005-03-09T14:51:00.007-06:00

The core idea from Ethan's post of yesterday:

[I]t might be better to do one thing well than three things very badly. And the guide to choosing should be the public obligation....Thus, a serious question seems to me to have to be, "what are the interests of the people of the state of Wisconsin in providing legal education, and how is that different (if at all) from what is provided at Marquette or by other law schools?"

I agree. Public obligation is kind of like our old friend the reasonable person standard, though. We could (and in fact, we will) spend the next month debating what it includes. Add it to the list of contested terms such as "niche" areas and "bread-and-butter" courses (from Monday's post).

Rascal Hatch (in yesterday's comments) takes issue with Ethan's starting point, though. As an out-of-stater, who paid top dollar to come here, why are his interests second to some undefined "public obligation" to Wisconsin?

If Wisconsin recruits and admits students from out of state, and then refuses to grant them residency during their education, you cannot with a straight face make the argument that the law school has a greater obligation to the state than to these students, who will be paying for their education for the next 30 years.

My response to Hatch: What is the risk? That out-of-state students will stop coming here as our school grows more Wisconsin-centered? I doubt it. And what about Ethan's point that focusing on one thing would make us better? Wouldn't all students be better off?

Also, I don't know the specifics, but I have the impression that a large part of the school's effort to recruit out-of-state students is geared at bringing in a diverse class of 1Ls each year. As a result, the law school does a much better job of reflecting the diversity of our state (and nation) than any other school or program on the Madison campus. We all benefit from that. And my impression is that (as part of that effort) the school gives financial and other assistance--paid for by the taxpayers WI--to a fair number of out-of-state students.

Curriculum Ridiculum

2005-03-08T14:27:00.000-06:00

Thanks for sharing your space here, Brian. I'll try to say thing to excite your readers!

I think you have to take it as a given that the law school can't be all things to all people, though it is certainly helpful to be reminded of this from time to time. This view is emphasized by viewing the curriculum as a question of resource allocation, as does Dean Kidwell. And you are right, Brian, to put this in the context of this being a state school. In fact, it is the only state law school in Wisconsin (the only other law school at all is Marquette University). The UW has an obligation to the state even greater than most state schools because of the "Wisconsin Idea"

This obligation suggests (perhaps) that we should look at the obligations of the law school to the state as our primary guide rather than the desires of the students. I think this gets missed when discussing the curriculum because no one is really speaking for the state except for the Wisconsin Supreme Court Rules and law school accreditation associations and UW policy. But these are never seen by the several constituencies as being "players" in the debate, but rather as bureaucratic limitations on change. (In a curriculum meeting I've heard faculty say that because a certain curriculum change would require a Supreme Court Rule change, they'd rather just not do it for fear that the Court would change a bunch of stuff once they got started.) And, of course, I should point out that the interests of the state are not necessarily accurately articulated in any of these sources – and law professors might be the primary experts on where lawyers are needed (though the clearly have no clue how normal human lawyers from a state university are going to earn a living and raise a family while cause-fighting).

All the interests of students and faculty and administrators will still get in when we see that the state has an interest in developing good policy people as well as good attorneys who practice in a variety of areas. And the state has an interest in having good faculty teach law students as well as having a diverse student body, and thus the state will want to satisfy the curricular demands of the faculty and students. But maybe we shouldn't let these interests overrun the evaluation of the state's need for legal education. Or, maybe we should see this as a complex balance of various state interests. Regardless, none of this changes the fact that the law school must periodically ask itself whether it is being effective in teaching whatever it is trying to teach. I mean, whatever it is trying to do, it would be a shame if it failed to do even that.

There are some things that are clearly badly done, and if it is being done badly because it is trying to serve too many constituencies at the same time, then it seems to me that it might be better to do one thing well than three things very badly. And the guide to choosing should be the public obligation. And, for people who are going into public policy work I'd say that the law school has to remember that there is a public policy institute at the UW, not to mention a variety of other graduate departments, which have the primary responsibility for that sort of education. Thus, a serious question seems to me to have to be, "what are the interests of the people of the state of Wisconsin in providing legal education, and how is that different (if at all) from what is provided at Marquette or by other law schools?"

But I don't mean to sound so authoritative because my thinking is still in flux about this, and I'd love to be convinced that there is a better way of thinking about this.

Two Views

2005-03-07T17:09:00.000-06:00

Here's the thing. UW Law school is a state school serving a wide range of constituencies. But it can't be all things to everybody. Two views. I can't figure out how a single law school can satisfy both of these people.

A dual-degree student had this to say by e-mail:

[M]y ideas about reforming law school are probably a bit more radical than what you have in mind. Frankly, I would rework law school entirely to make it more amenable to people who do not work in firms after they graduate.
As far as I am concerned, the entire law school experience is geared towards programming you to go into a firm....The grading system is curved so that firms can say things like "Top 1/3 of the class." You are pushed into things like Moot Court, journals (and there is even a pecking order within the various journals), and clinicals. The services at the career center are almost entirely focused towards getting you a firm job (well, okay, maybe some type of government job). The diploma privilege channels you into typical bread-and-butter law classes. And the price of law school almost guarantees that you will seek out that high-paying firm job right out of school.
In my grad school experience, you basically get at least a B if you make an effort. You get an AB if you try a bit, and an A if you work hard. That's it. No fighting for that extra point to push you to a 90 instead of an 89. To me, grad school has been much more rewarding because I am learning for the sake of learning without the pressure of grades. (Emphasis added.)

A view to the contrary is captured in this comment from Eric, who originally posted it here (in a discussion on alumni contributions). Whereas the student above would let each individual pursue their eclectic interests, he would characterize that as a wasteful diversion of resources into non-job-related areas:

The problem a number of alums have, and I have spoken with some from classes well before mine, is that resources at UW tend to flow to very niche areas with influential faculty. Now that's not all bad, and I suspect neither is it unique, but at UW those niche areas are not the areas that will improve the school's "ranking." The general concern from alums that are in larger firms (out of state) is that money they give will go to these niche areas, in one way or another, without building up teaching areas that would better prepare UW students for job searches that focus on out-of-state private firms. (Emphasis added.)

Eric sums up his opinion this way:

[K]eep in mind that as more UW law students go on to positions of prestige, publicity and power (which does NOT mean they're not also helping people or the world), the more the value of your degree increases.

These are both friends of mine. Sadly, neither of them sound even remotely satisfied will the current state of the UW Law School.

Starting Place—What Does It Mean To Become An Attorney?

2005-03-06T15:30:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned earlier today, I'm throwing out some ideas in an effort to get feedback from people. I want to figure out what changes I should propose for the law school curriculum. Post comments, send me a message (btlarso1 (at) wisc (dot) edu), or pull me aside and tell me what you think. This will be longer than most posts, but it's Sunday and I thought I'd start with a story.

Let us begin at the beginning: what does it mean to become an attorney?

As we meet our young hero (that's me), he's walking down King Street on a Friday evening, near the capitol, wearing a coat and tie, of all things. He's with a few companions, similarly-dressed—attorneys at the law firm where our hero is "summering" as a law clerk. They are taking our young hero to meet the rest of the firm at the Great Dane, where he will sit down with all of his colleagues for the first time.

As the group strolls across Pinckney Street on their way to the Dane, they encounter two young men standing on the corner. The two are in mid-conversation, having just bumped into each other themselves. They have no way of knowing that our hero is approaching. Here are the events that unfolded during the next few minutes, leaving an impression on our young hero that will stay with him and guide his conduct for a long time into the future...

He walked up to the two young men and greeted them warmly, to the surprise of his companions from the law firm, who played it cool. The young men, C. and D., happened to be dear old friends. They had been co-workers of our hero (during undergrad) at the Majestic movie theater (back when it was still open). Between movies, the three of them used to gather around the counter in the lobby, eating popcorn, talking about the places they'd go.

"Lookin sharp, Brian!" one of his old friends called out, eyeing our hero's costume. He smiled in response, and parted ways with them after a brief conversation. He wondered if they were surprised at the way that he was dressed or that he was now working at a law firm. C. and D. were dressed much more casually than he, and they sported scruffy beards that suited them. By contrast, our hero was new to his clothes; his face was clean-shaven, and his puffy cheecks were pinked from razor burn.

Inside the pub, he struggled to make conversation with his colleagues. Our hero had by then grown accustomed to hanging around with attorneys. He knew, for example, that at the office he should just sit and listen, when he could remember to do so. In social settings, he knew he was expected to join in a discussion but that it was best to let them take charge of its direction.

His thoughts turned to his friends outside. What must they have thought when they saw him walking down the street dressed to the nines? He felt as if they—and now everyone else—could see right through him. They could see what was obvious to him, at least in that moment: He was in over his head. It was true that after the interview season at the Law School last fall, he had warmed up to the idea of dressing for success. He felt comfortable in shirtsleeves and a tie. And his wife, Kris, was proud of him. She knew that he clung to an idealized notion of an attorney as a "counselor." She had helped to make his transition from law school to the working world more comfortable by finding a store over at Hilldale Mall where they offered custom fitting. He and Kris liked buying clothes from the elderly salespeople who worked there; they said the outfits made him look dignified. But now, as he looked down at his feet and wondered if his shoes were the right size, he just felt like a phony.

He thought of his girlfriend in high school, who had said she wanted to become a lawyer, and he had tried to talk her out of it. Why?

He thought of what his father had muttered, a few years back, when given the news that his son would be applying to law school. "Does the world really need another lawyer?" had been his father's only response.

Just then, V., the most senior attorney in the room, walked over to him. Our hero pulled himself out of his thoughts and tried to look confident. "Don't slouch," he said to himself. V. was a big, nice man. He had been with the firm for more than forty years, and had recently gone "of counsel" after a distinguished career. Without asking, V. poured beer into our hero's half-emptied glass.

"Congratulations on being hired," he said. Our hero reminded him that he was only there as a law clerk for the summer. It would be some months before the firm would decide whether or not to keep him around on a permanent basis after graduation. V. just winked, as if he knew something that our hero did not. After a long pause, he said, "You're here because you're a fine young man and you've got a knack for the law."

"Is that how you felt when you first started out?" asked our hero. He was fishing for something he wasn't going to get. As an attorney, V. had been so successful that if he had ever felt uncomfortable in the role, the feeling had long since passed. There was little chance that V. would dredge up such memories for the benefit of a young law clerk. But the question was a good one, anyway. It prompted the old, seasoned attorney to let out a number of musings about what it had been like to start in "the profession"—as he called it—back when a gentleman would have been embarrassed to walk down the street without his hat and cane.

"But I can see that you're looking around for someone to come and rescue you from these old stories about attorney pride." said V., good naturedly, after he caught our hero looking around the room.

"Not at all," said our hero. And he meant it. He had glanced over his shoulder, but only to find out who was within earshot. "I sometimes feel like they don't do a good job of teaching us about that at the law school," our hero confided in his boss.

"Son," came the reply "there are two sides to our job." V. raised his eyebrow and paused for effect. "The first side is what they teach you about at law school. The technical part. And from your grades I can tell that you're going to be skilled in those aspects of the profession."

"I'll let you be the judge of that after I finish my first assignment," volunteered our hero, when it was apparent that he should say something. He doubted that V. actually remembered what his law-school grades were, although all of the attorneys at the firm had reviewed his transcript prior to extending him the summer offer. Our hero also doubted whether his grades would prove to be a good measure of his success (or failure) as an attorney. He was intrigued by V.'s intimation that the "second side" to the job, unlike the first, would have little to do with grades or with what he had learned in school.

V. continued. "Now, as for the other half. You're going to be serving at this job for a long time. Serving as a counselor to the people of this city. They will come to you when their lives are falling apart; or when they are giving birth to something." Measuring out his words, he squared up to our young hero and continued speaking. "It is you whom they will choose to visit at those important times. I want you to realize that it is a great responsibility, son. And it is an opportunity. An opportunity to make a difference in their lives."

Our hero smiled. He looked around the room and nodded. He pictured himself and his friends eating popcorn back at the movie theater and dreaming of the future, which had arrived. He hadn't earned his parents' approval, but it didn't seem to weigh on him as heavily as it had before. He looked down at his shoes and his feet felt comfortable in them. Meanwhile, he sensed himself sitting up higher in his stool—a little straighter than before.

Blogging the Law School Curriculum

2005-03-06T14:46:00.000-06:00

I mentioned that I've been collecting views on the law school curriculum. Ethan and I are giving a presentation to the faculty in April. And in part because it's just how we are, and also because we're both graduating and want to leave our mark on the place before we end our careers there (as students), he and I are taking the opportunity very seriously.

Maybe I'll bring Ethan in as a guest blogger? It's a good idea. Rather than e-mailing each other back and forth as we prepare for the talk, we should be speaking in a public forum. You may find it interesting to follow our train(s) of thought between now and April 8th.

Also, I'll put in a plug for comments, which I've recently re-enabled. If you are a student or faculty member at, or an alumnus of, the UW Law School—speak up! Or if you just have some ideas about how the law school curriculum could be made better—let us know! Or, as is the most likely case, let us say you know someone who went to UW Law School and, in speaking to them these days, you wonder what happened to the person you knew, and you fear that perhaps they didn't go to UW Law School at all but were kidnapped by aliens and replaced by an evil lawyer drone!!!! Give us your testimonial!

I'll try to throw out some posts that are worthy of feedback. And we will pursue this alien-lawyer-drone theory, among others.

I've got books all around me... but ain't got you

2005-03-05T19:32:00.000-06:00

Been checked out for a while catching up on my reading. During the early part of the semester I was swept up in the anticipation of baby D's then-impending arrival. (Read swept up to mean "wasn't doing my school work.") And after he came out to meet us on Feb. 7, I was mesmerized by his cuteness and refused to leave the apartment. I ultimately became convinced that all things law-school related were insignificant and dull. True enough. Be that as it may about ten days ago I got a kick to start reading again. Now I'm almost caught up (thank god).

Something to get excited about: On April 8th, Ethan and I are giving a presentation to the law school faculty (and hopefully lots of students) entitled "Student Perspectives on Curricular Reform." Last Thursday we met with a focus group to get the ball rolling and come up with good ideas. We've also been reaching out to alumni and faculty and will continue to do so. Long story short--I've got a lot to post about. Watch this space.

Reflections on my newly-"closed class"

2005-02-21T00:30:00.000-06:00

Sharp tacks everywhere will be quick to identify the term "closed class" as an estate-planning term and remind me that I can't properly use it to refer to my children, because you never know. True. But we're pretty damn sure, anyway, that they're a closed class. More on that.

BUT FIRST... this update: things are heating up around here! Not only have I deviated from my self-imposed restriction on posting (supposed to be down to once-a-week), but in the comments Eric has submitted a feisty response to my alum donations post of Friday.

And as for the recent population explosion in my family, boy, am I impressed with myself. For almost three decades I made my way in the world as a single, solitary unit. But in the short span of three years I've taken on three fellow passengers. In other words, I've quadrupled in size! After that rapid growth spurt it's time for my family unit to stay where it is at for a while (say, for twenty years or so). So let's take stock of the sitch. Final tally: myself, two boys, one spouse. That makes three guys out of four, which is an ironic twist in Kris's life. She grew up in a house with all ladies and now finds herself surrounded by guys.

How will Kris fare with all these males swarming around doing male-type things night and day? I figure that when you know a person quite well their gender can take a back seat to individual personality, so the real question to be asked about Sawyer, Adrian and myself is whether we're manly men.

I once broke into tears during the climactic scene of A League of Their Own on an American Airlines flight to Seattle. So in other words it's looking good for Kris, but do I get points for having a beer belly? OK, probably not. I do have a macho streak that surfaces occasionally, but nothing can erase what I sometimes refer to as the "League" incident. However, I remain optimistic that my boys won't be subject to the same Penny-Marshall-induced weakness of their father. They are both getting a strong, manly start. For our new baby--Adrian--you've got the name. It's very much a guy's name, don't you think? And neither is there doubt that Sawyer is a rough-and-tumble dude. His favorite Indigo Girl--and this is true beyond question--is Amy Ray. Equally true (and I guess this undercuts my hopes for Sawyer if you believe all that "chip off the block" prattle): mine is Emily.

Lawrence Summers

2005-02-20T15:00:00.000-06:00

He was attempting to convey some very provocative thoughts about a complex topic, for which I applaud him. But his ideas were undeveloped, and he provided scant evidence. Hey, it occurs to me, what Summers needs is a blog!

On the Subject of Alumni Donations to the UW Law School

2005-02-18T14:07:00.000-06:00

UW Law alums you should be receiving your Winter issue of the Gargoyle soon. For the benefit of others (and, I suppose, recent graduates who don't often check their mailbox), I need to explain that the Gargoyle is our alumni magazine. It's named after our mascot, a true-blue gargoyle, made of sandstone, who was perched on the roof of the original 1893 law building. Legend has it that our gargoyle was rescued from the rubble--by the law school dean, no less--when the building was torn down in 1962. The Gargoyle and his mate of almost seventy years can be seen in this photo of the old law building. Said mate was lost in the destruction. Sadly, so was the rest of the old law building.

But their memory lives on in the pages of the alumni magazine... so don't despair!

The impetus for the magazine, of course, is to encourage people to donate. So before you start flipping through it either cursing or trying to decide how big a check to write, I'll give you one more thing to think about. My own faith in the UW Law School recently has been renewed and rejuvenated. Why? Because the faculty hiring committee is doing right by us. My professor in Constitutional Law this semester is a new hire and she's a really good teacher. (Her pic is on page 18.) And lest you think that this post is a shameless attempt to influence my grade in her class (because you're that cynical, and you don't believe that grading is really anonymous, and you love this blog so much that you think all my professors must be reading it) full disclosure: I am taking Con Law pass/fail. In fact that probably partly explains why I enjoy the class, but it's also the teaching, just trust me.

She of course joins the ranks of a faculty that is brimming with good teachers, and several great ones. But the important point is that she matches them, which means the my soon-to-be alma matter isn't slipping. Even more than the mascot, that's what I care about.

Blogging is the new religion

2005-02-16T13:28:00.001-06:00

Sneaking a mid-week post.

I am having trouble restricting myself to one post a week, which was my bargain, at least while I have so much new family stuff going on. I'm feeling the call of the keyboard on a daily basis, though. I decided that I'd rather craft, say, one thoughtful paragraph each morning than seven on Sunday. Why? Because faithful readers deserve a faithful writer. Also, because it's more natural. Life comes at you every day, and so, ideally, would *Life As Is.*

My grandmother, who is religious by the way, gave me a magnet in 1983: Seven days without prayer makes one weak.

Was blogging what she had in mind? Probably not but it's worth asking. In any case I don't think the magnet is as corny or wired as I used to. That's something.

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[UPDATE: blogger.com's spell-check wants me to replace blogging with flogging, a word that may or not have religious connotations. I'll leave it to you.]

Mode Shifting

2005-02-13T23:08:00.000-06:00

Some weeks are more exciting than others. This has been an exciting one.

First off... my new kid is a-do-rable(*) scroll down and look at that picture. Do you see his little hands how they are placed just so? So, yeah. He seems so tiny but everyone that's around babies a lot tells us he's a big boy.

I updated Thursday's post--which served as an informal birth announcement--with the official birth stats. People like to get those. Go check them out.

Now that I've hung out with him for a while I can also tell you some things about his personality. Two words: long and loose. Our first baby was compact and more fragile. This one is limber and strong. He can hold up his head well, and he has extended arms like a basketball player. He doesn't like being swaddled up in a blanket either, more of a lounging fellow. Stretched out with room to move. Kris says that's how he was on the inside, too, only there wasn't much room to move (which explains the bruised ribcage).

The first three days of his life passed by worry-free; sleeping, coo-ing, cah-ing. Major family bonding time. Sawyer hovered around paying much attention to his new little brother.

On Thursday Adrian was admitted to Meriter Hospital. It was a very difficult day. Medically, there wasn't that much wrong with him. He had excess bilirubin (red-blood-cell by-product) in his system, and, because of the bili-backlog, his baby-sized liver couldn't do all the work that was being asked of it. They put him under a bank of low-intensity UV lights for about 24 hours beginning on Thursday afternoon.(**) I had a very hard time with it. Kris and I were there the whole time, but we couldn't pick him up when he wanted to be held. The feeling of helplessness was enough to trigger thoughts of how hard it would be if something ever really went wrong. We kept having to remind ourselves: "There is nothing wrong!" And it was true, there wasn't. But we had no frame of reference... I was just glad to get home.

They gave us a UV blanket(***) to wrap around him, which we did, as he slept peacefully over the weekend.

Since then it has been an around-the-clock teamwork effort. Check out this routine: Every two hours the alarm goes off, Kris nurses him, pumps out whatever is left, and then we force-feed him the milk that was just pumped. That's my job. By the time it's done, there's little time for sleeping before the alarm goes off again. We also have to build in time for changing him, adjusting his UV-blanket-thingy, and pausing to admire his adorable cuteness.

Why in the world, you ask, would we force feed our baby boy (who is not lacking in chub, as you can see in the pictures above)? Short answer: flush out his system so we don't have to go back to the hospital for any more fun in the sun. And, how (apart from very carefully) does one force-feed a long and loose, one-week-old, bouncing baby boy? The main ingredients are milk, a pinky finger, and a syringe. And perserverance. Also, if you want to do it well, read up on Pavlov.

That's the time we've been having. I feel really close to Kris. She and I went through that routine together for 48 hours straight. It was a no-questions-asked, let's-just-do-this kind of thing. The best part is that Adrian is doing exceptionally well. This afternoon, as we were closing the book on the routine and the whole bilirubin episode, one of our nurse-midwives, Mary, came over to our house. She is an expert in all things lactatious and has been working closely with us for the past few days. Today she triumphantly weighed him: 9 lbs 8 oz! He's excelling in his growth!

Good boy. You're not such a rebel after all.

It's been an exciting week.

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*You perfectionists out there, and anyone who enjoys reading aloud, may appreciate knowing the author's intended pronunciation: This kid is ah doh rob lay. Four syllables. Try it again. FYI--these are the kind of tips that will all eventually be compiled in a single volume, the companion guide to *Life As Is.* Take each page as it comes.

** The lights converted the bilirubin into a form that he could process (read: expel) at a rapid rate.

*** Cheesy trademarked name: The Bili-Blanket. There is a private company on Park Street that contracts out with the hospital to supply them as needed. The guy was nice enough but he grew miffed when I made him wait while I read every piece of paper he wanted me to sign. My behavior made more sense to him after I explained that I was a law student.

Beautiful Boy

2005-02-10T01:31:00.000-06:00

Welcome Baby Adrian!

[Update (baby stats):

First name Adrian
Middle name Terrence
Last name Chiles
Came out to meet us on February 7, 2005
At the Madison Birth Center
The time was 8:18 a.m.
He was 9 lbs, 2.5 oz.; 21 inches]

pins and needles

2005-02-06T10:43:00.000-06:00

Time has been suspended. We have sat on the edge of our seats all week waiting for A.'s arrival.

Unlike last time, I don't feel a weight of impending responsibility about nuturing and parenting him. Thanks to my experience of the past two years I know that once we get this guy in the nest, all the other stuff will seem as easy as breathing. (Breathing isn't always easy.)

It's just that first breath... his, I mean. I feel the same nervous anticipation that I remember from last time; I'm concerned about giving him a smooth transition into the world.

Anyway, the baby's imminent arrival has me thinking about life; and paths of lives. Incidentally such thoughts, when I follow them, usually end up returning me to the point of beginning: Trying to take *life as is.*

And a big thank-you to Ocean, in general, and for this post, and the pictures therein, turning around my thinking on the subject of Februaries:

...if you look at the play of sunshine against the trees and snow, you'll understand that there is a magic there and it does not appear in March, or April, or May.

Readers beware of following the link. The blogger spell-check, in its wisdom, suggests to us that ninacamic be replaced with the word "mincingly." What that tells us about Ocean I am not sure, but you've been warned.

And on a final note, I wish to give a word of warning to any WI Law 3Ls who are delaying filling out their diploma-privilege bar applications, like I was until very recently. Get started; it's going to take longer than you think. I'd almost rather just take a bar exam. (I said almost.)

It's the end of the week as we know it (and I feel fine)

2005-01-30T20:08:00.000-06:00

This once-a-week posting... it's a little bit like being in a long-distance relationship. (Immediate red flag: does this guy have an unhealthy attatchment to his readers? you tell me, but I don't think so.) What I mean is, you go about your ordinary life and then at some point later, say for an hour, in the evening, on the phone, you try to summon up a performance recreating everything that's happened since the last time you spoke to your mate. Blech. No thanks. I'd rather spend an hour on the phone, as vague as this sounds, just being present.

So... a week has gone by since my last post, stuffed full of observations, mini-epiphanies, and other blogable events. Try as I might, there would be no way that I could condense it all into a single-post format. I guess I could try making a big list--something along the lines of the REM song, see title above, but I won't because I want to be present as I post.

NO BABY YET, by the way. We both really sensed that he was coming, and then it receded, so now we're back in the holding pattern. Due date is Feb 3rd, for all whom I haven't told.

My eldest has predicted, over at SosySteps, that his younger brother's arrival date is going to be Feb 4th. Astrologers, start calibrating your computers--can we work with that? We've got an Aquarius on our hands for sure, but what's going on in the 12th House on the 4th? How is this kid going to fit in with three fire signs, for goodness sake? (Not to mention one who's a lawyer and another named Sawyer).

Gotta run. Check out this post of more than Marginal Utility. Tom picked up on a snippet I dropped into a post a while back and made something meaningful out of it. That's the way this stuff works.

Also, I bought overshoes yesterday and ordered life insurance today--it was a weekend of big purchases. Guess which one I took longer to mull over (hint: in the "Rubber Footwear" aisle of Farm and Fleet).

the time's a-coming

2005-01-23T23:12:00.000-06:00

All week Kris had been saying--I want Number Two to come soon, but I hope he waits until after our meal at Harvest! (See previous post.) Well, we've had our meal. And now you know what's coming next... time to get ready. I'll post an update next Sunday evening, one week from tonight. (Unless some magic happens.)

A people-filled weekend

2005-01-23T23:05:00.001-06:00

Because it's still too early in the semester to have a book-filled weekend, Kris and I did right by ourselves and socialized this weekend. On Wed I had bumped into an old friend who now lives in Italy; he is visiting Madison for a few weeks. We had him over on Friday for dinner and to play with Sawyer. A rare treat. I stopped short of making a pitch to get him to move back to Madison--but I wish he would!

On Saturday Kris and I went out with a group from work for a phenomenal meal at Harvest. I had pheasant with fois gras emulsion. Every bite was a dream. Also, great company, lively conversation, and lots of wine tasting. We were there for 3 and 1/2 hours--it's the slow food capital of Madison, what else do you expect?

Then, to keep the party going we sat up at home that night and talked with Jen and Carlos, our noble babysitters, for a few hours about various topics (including how cute our kid had been while we were gone and their upcoming nuptials, to name a few).

I want to do it all over again!

Update / alt posting schedule

2005-01-21T22:50:00.000-06:00

Kris and I picked out Number Two's middle name. Yay, we got the job done. Also, my firm is starting a newsletter and I picked out its name. (Well, OK, to be precise, one of my bosses likes the name that I picked... we'll see what happens.) Anyway, that was cool, too. I like naming things.

Other big news, I ordered a rolodex. Everybody send me your business cards. I got an empty rolodex waiting to be filled.

In the third sphere of life (family, work, school) I'm excited to have begun a new semester and, unlike usual, not suffering from fatigue because (1) I had a restful break, and (2) I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now.

Importantly, it appears that of my final crop of profs, all four are going to work out really well. Two practitioners and two academics. Of the practitioners, one is full of anecdotes and practice tips, the other is tax-code-guru guy. Of the academics, one is at the beginning of her career and the other is toward the end of his. All in all a good mix.

I'm so glad they aren't duds. Not that a lot are. I just can't deal with dud professors like I used to be able to. I can't fake it anymore; I've been at this too long now. (It's my ninth year of post-secondary education.) Luckily, UW Law rarely let you down.

And that due date is right around the corner. In anticipation of the craziness to come, I might try to implement a new posting policy along the lines of what Posner and what's-his-name set up on their blog. Initially, they posted just once a week, on Mondays. Not sure if they still do that anymore, because I don't usually read their stuff.(*) But that sounds like a good idea. I like being on a schedule, at least for a while.(**) I will try to post once each weekend, probably Sunday night, for the next month and see how that goes.

I will make an exception to the new posting regime under certain extraordinary circumstances... birth announcements, new Suzanne Vega albums, my tax grade comes online, etc.

By the way, once we have a baby around here keeping us up at night and the no-sleep schedule kicks in, I'll have more time on my hands. That should allow me to begin posting more often again. It'll be a running document of my deteriorating state as the long-term sleep deprivation takes hold.

Life, As Is, an adventure.

------------
* But it's not bad, check this out (it's what's-his-name, not Posner):

"Compensatory" damages are supposed to compensate individuals for their losses from medical malpractice, and other careless or reckless behavior. In practice, they commonly refer to the loss of earnings due to injury or death from such actions. Yet the correct measure of compensatory damages should equal what individuals are willing to pay to avoid death or the injuries in question. The value placed on loss of life, or on substantial disabilities, are usually many times greater than the loss in earnings.

That's interesting, no? His point sounds obvious when you read it. But he is, of course, in the course of these four sentences, turning conventional wisdom on its head. Humph.

** Because I'm doing footnotes: did you know that awhile means "for a while"? So if you write for awhile you're actually writing "for for a while." You can do it if you want, I'm not stopping you.

Loosey Goosey

2005-01-17T20:34:00.000-06:00

Today I went back to the office for the first time since the summer. The place fit like a glove; I really like my job. Everyone in the office was exactly as I had remembered them. Most importantly, though, my special jet-black heavy-duty staple-remover was in its hiding spot where I had left it. It's a very important staple-remover. The one staple-remover. The one staple-remover to rule them all. I know what you're thinking, but if that thing fell into the wrong hands it would be our downfall. Carrying it is my burden. Mine.

You'll have to excuse me, I had some wine with dinner. And it is a really nice staple-remover.

Loosey Goosey, by the way, is a phrase that only one person in the world actually uses in casual conversation. I work with him. He said it to me within the first half-hour that I was back. Funny how I had been missing that phrase.

Hello

2005-01-14T15:15:00.000-06:00

Bought my books yesterday; it's time to come in from the cold. Vacation was relaxing and filled with laughter. I did get the flu for five days, but even that was probably necessary—I needed the sleep.

Fountains of kudos to Robert Shumaker for not only being a good Civ Pro II teacher, but for giving me a grade that I'm happy with. None of my other law-school grades are in yet, which is probably for the best.

New picture of Sawyer (and our friend baby Adlie) at SosySteps. I haven't posted over there for a while either. So many wonderful things have happened that there is no sense in trying to capture it all. But if you see Kris or I, ask us about him. The look on our faces will tell you more than I ever could.

We are getting VERY close to Number Two's due date. Kris is amazing. Pregnancy is amazing (-ly draining). Yes, Number Two has a name. No, you can't hear it yet! :-)

I took a stroll through everybody's blogs for the first time in at least two weeks. I'm truly excited to get caught up. Hi all.

On Hold for a While

2005-01-01T13:11:00.000-06:00

There comes a time in life to put on your coat and go outside... and the first of the year seems as fitting a time as any. I haven't gone away permanently. Check back here for new posts in mid-Jan (and if you have a blog of your own I will get caught up on yours then, too). Blessings.

"Post Already" (or, what has Brian been up to since finals ended?)

2004-12-29T13:55:00.000-06:00

Two words: slow food. I've always been the world's slowest chef, and when I found out that there was an actual movement, that was all the encouragement I needed. Kris has been very understanding. For the past several days I've insisted on making elaborate breakfasts that usually involve lots of chopping and prep work and a strict adherence to temperature control, with a strong emphasis on presentation. Despite my description of these meals as breakfasts, they are seldom ready before noon. Dinner prep starts at five, and we usually get around to eating around 7:30 or 8.

Reject TV culture, mates! Spend your time chatting the hours away with a knife in your hand, that's what I say.

Another essential ingredient is the music. I'm already famous around here for trying to put a theme song to everything. (Example: running around the apartment late, as in seven-minutes-to-catch-the-bus late, and taking the time to stop and put on a CD because I've become convinced that "Talk About the Passion" by REM is the perfect song for packing your bag). But now with the slow food thing, I've got music for every cooking maneuver: slicing and dicing (Bob Mould) waiting for the pan to heat up (Suzanne Vega), browning the tortilla (Pavement), and on and on my friends.

Sawyer loves the slow food thing. We've got a tall stool next to the stove that he can peer down from to look at whatever's sizzling. And he sometimes gets to take samples right from the pan, just like his old man does. (It's better than a grocery store on a Sunday afternoon.) And of course, he hops down and follows me over to the radio every time I change the CD.

I was supposed to work this week, by the way. Ha! There is a big closing on Friday and I offered to help with the paperwork. I learned I don't have to go in until the actual date of the closing. Excellent.

Life is slow.

Faith, Hope and Inspiration from Counting Crows (of all Sources)

2004-12-25T13:00:00.000-06:00

True story. Sawyer and I, heading for home last night, just after sunset. We'd had fun playing around at Hilldale, but the car was cold. Traffic was tight on University Ave, testing our patience.

I was restless; couldn't settle on any of the preset stations. I was looking for some music to inspire me, or at least something that didn't sound ugly, like everything seemed to. I switched to FM2—a rare move because those are the stations from the commercial end of the dial. A random button (preset #5), and out soared this low vowely voice:

It's been a long December,
And there's reason to believe
That maybe this year will be better than the last.

I reached out and snapped the radio off. All it had offered me were those few lines, but that was enough. I was bound to be disappointed if I kept asking for more.

Home to a Christmas dinner (ham and sweet potatoes). Maybe 2005 will be better than the last.

Update

2004-12-19T11:07:00.000-06:00

I'm past the Real Estate exam. Whether or not I passed the Real Estate exam is another matter. The test was absurdly long—literally impossible to finish (with real answers, I mean) in the three hours provided. The poor proctor felt so bad making us stop! And at least half of the class stayed afterwards to mull around in the hallway and grumble amongst ourselves.

The thing is curved, so it should be no big deal. But I don't like the fact that we were tested on something other than our in-depth knowledge of the material. It became a test where you did well simply by sprinting through as many questions as possible, leaving behind a trail of half-assed answers.(*) I'm not sure if that's my strong suit or not.

Incidentally, if you want to go the extra mile as a reader, you need to pronounce the word "assed" in your head as a two-syllable word—like "acid." That's for emphasis. Just saying.

The only thing I have left is a take-home due on the 22nd. My answer is already all thought out, which is nice, giving me three full days to execute it. There's lots more to say, here and elsewhere. And I've got to go out and get caught up on all my blog reading. But that'll have to wait a few more days. Peace and merriment to all readers of Life As Is. I'll catch up with you shortly.

-----------------
*Qualification. I acknowledge that one can only spout half-ass-ed answers, quickly, with an in-depth knowledge to draw from; surface-level knowledge would probably only reap quarter-ass-ed answers. So it's not that the test was unfair but my god was it frustrating. If I can just resume the diatribe for a few more seconds: I literally felt like I was committing malpractice a few times by giving the issues such scant analysis before moving on (e.g., answering a series of questions about a mortgage without actually reading the sample mortgage that our answers were supposed to be based on!)

I can breathe again

2004-12-17T09:42:00.000-06:00

Still not finished—I've got my Real Estate exam on Sat—but I'm definitely through the worst of it. Sawyer put barrettes in my hair while I was sleeping this a.m., and it started me on a laughing fit. I could tell that the stressful part of finals had passed. Felt good. Can't wait for x-mas break. No traveling, just hanging out at the apartment getting to know my family again (and choosing a name for number two, due in seven weeks!).

The Weight

2004-12-11T21:50:00.000-06:00

Last week I passed through the leisurely-pursuit-of-ideas part of studying of for finals; and a few days ago I passed through the awe-inspiring-a-ha-moment-I-see-the-big-picture-now stage of studying for finals; and earlier today I passed through the Brian-you're-freaking-out-don't-panic-just-breathe stage of studying for finals. That's a lot of passing through.

I knew that I had hit this third and crucial stage when I asked Jerry if he would bring me a cup of coffee on his way back from dinner, and he secretly brought me decaf for my own good (I didn't find that out until much later). And when he handed it to me he just sort of set it down near me and then moved away quickly—like I might bite.

I'm feeling a little bit better now. Grrrrrrrrrr.

Chalk Talk

2004-12-09T14:06:00.000-06:00

Last night Erik and I wheeled out the chalkboard (which is in rough shape by they way) from the mock-trial courtroom into room 3261 (affection[ately] known in the law school as the "judge's chambers"). It is the room where Salty Dog and I used to study during finals of yesteryear. Erik did an adequate job of filling Salty's shoes—I think I'll keep him. We spent an entire hour mapping out the provisions that form the "heart" of the internal revenue code: Sections 61, 62, 63, 67, 68, and 151. (Or the engine, if you want to think of the code as a revenue-generating machine). When we finally got them mapped out in all their glorious detail we just sat back and looked in awe.

I could almost hear the sound of it humming along like a well-oiled machine. Well, OK, an oiled machine. Must be the way that scientists and doctors feel when they look at the human body.

SosySteps update: Forgot to mention this earlier. New picture of the little man up here. He's dressed to the nines.

Fate Buying Me a Cup of Coffee

2004-12-08T23:34:00.000-06:00

Congratulations to Michael (as in Valerie and) for getting through his pre-lims today! For those who haven't heard me tell the story--Michael caught the flu a few days ago just in time for the big event. Michael, I'm sure the cold medicine made you even more lucid than normal.

Quick story. I'm in the computer lab. No, not the evil and diseased Law School lab, the Memorial Library lab (three words: flat screens flat screens flat screens). yeah right, that was six. I need sleep. Where was I? They have flat screens here, and the computers work, and nobody talks. It's just the clicking of fingers and the sound of light bulbs going on and off in people's minds. People studying normal subjects like anthropology and Portuguese.

I sat down at my computer about an hour ago, and on the floor were two shiny quarters. I have no money. I need coffee. But they weren't mine and it appeared as though they had fallen out of the pocket of the anonymous computer-user to my left. She was up walking around, so I picked the quarters up and placed them at her computer station in front of her keyboard. Back to my finger clicking.

She sat down a few moments later and lifted the two coins into her palm. She's curious. She wonders how they got there. She doesn't say anything. She goes back to her clicking.

Time passes, and the main library closes. Foot traffic ceases in the corridor outside the lab. The crowd at the computer lab thins out, too, until I'm the only one left in my row. I'm having trouble staying awake, lean back to stretch. My chair swivels to the left and I let it take me. I'm glad to give my eyes a break from looking at the screen.

Then I saw them sitting right where I had left them an hour earlier. In front of the keyboard of the computer to my left were two quarters--coveted briefly and then abandoned by me. I took the coins into my palm, just as the woman I'd given them to had done. Took a minute to think about the way that objects take on meaning, and then I went across the street to trade them for caffeine.

Two Weeks Remaining in the Semester

2004-12-07T23:58:00.000-06:00

I'm 14 steps from home.

Question of the Hour

2004-12-05T21:49:00.001-06:00

It has been said that FB gets by because he remembers everything, and EO charms his way through life. For my part, I've never won anything outright because my strategy is just wait everyone out. Even as we scramble to defend ourselves against these baseless charges, it must be said—everyone's got their methods.

Have you ever really been put to the test?

[Update: Eric has given me a thoroughly unsatisfying answer to my question--see comments. There's nothing wrong with a little introspection, E, it's not a bad way to respond to stress. You crack me up. Anyway, try again. Or don't. The rule around here is that when something comes out, sometimes you just gotta leave it *as is.*]

[record straightening: I was very tidy whenever I slept in the Law Review office, thanks much. It's only good practice when you're staying someplace rent-free!]

"I Guess That's What They Mean By 'An Ownership Society'"

2004-12-03T12:20:00.000-06:00

That was his final quip. It made for a nice ending: the lecture hall was filled with laughter, and as we realized that those were his parting words the laughter slowly transitioned into applause. I was the first one who got out of my seat to go and shake his hand.

So... the semester ends. Hats off to my Tax prof, the man himself, presenting a lifetime's worth of wisdom in the course of one semester—at no extra charge.

The Semester's Yield

2004-12-01T14:24:00.000-06:00

Today I started my outlines. The first of the month, appropriately enough. Here's a snapshot I took this morning of my Civ Pro II outline:

I had stopped at supplemental jurisdiction because I wanted to go look at my notes on joinder and impleader. This afternoon I finished that section, and I am now working on the dreaded Erie.

My arbitrary deadline for wrapping up my grad school coursework (papers, presentations, and other projects) was Nov. 30th—somehow I made it. Now I can start focusing on my three law school exams: outlining, staying up late in Word Perfect's warm embrace, creating beauty such as that which you see above.

Come a little bit closer,
hear what I have to say...

Most people try to do their outlines during the semester, but I usually wait until December and it has always worked out fine. Outlining too early would be extraordinarily frustrating and not a good use of time. During the semester, if I'm not in class, I spend my hours: (1) reading, (2) re-reading (3) thinking, and (4) talking to people. The goal is simply to gain as much understanding of the material as possible. And whether you're a 1L or a 4L, like me, you can always get more out of the material if you push yourself further. I soak up everything I can until the stacks of notes and doctrines and ideas pile up like towers. Until... as they are just about to come crashing down, I get to swoop in and save the day. Staying up late, waaaaaaay into the night, bulding a foundation, putting my thoughts together.

Because I'm still in love with you
I wanna see you dance again,
because I'm still in love with you
On this Harvest Moon

The big time. It's fun. And if I've done my job correctly during the previous fourteen weeks, the outline will just fall into place, and there's nothing like rolling into an exam with everything in place. There's just nothing like it.

Which Way is Up?

2004-11-30T20:41:00.000-06:00

Don't know what to make of that last post? You're not alone. Such a somber, delicate sentiment and it's stomped on by those asterisks.

Hey--I presented my final paper in Advanced Public Mgmt. class today. A most excellent presentation. I was very sparing in my use of power point. And, people liked my idea.

I came home and made Kris and Sawyer sit on the couch so I could give my presentation again. I used to do that in 9th-grade speech class. Never really rehearsed the speeches beforehand, but then afterward wandered around looking for kind or unwitting people to be my audience so I could do the speech another time. Always looking for one last curtain call.

November in Review

2004-11-30T13:41:00.000-06:00

Four weeks ago I was hanging on every word of cutting-edge commentary uttered by Tom Ashbrook's guests (*) or the ol boys on MacNeil Lehrer (**), whereas now I'm more likely to tune in to Ira Glass or Chapter a Day. Or to talk to the person next to me, or sit in silence.

-----------------------
*And by that I mean whatever words they manage to get out before he cuts them off—in that Tom Asbrook way of his, that I admire so—to restate their idea for them and reduce it to just the right-sized piece for my discerning-yet-distracted-NPR-listening ear.
**Yes, I know the name has changed. I can't get over it. I still refer to the "Vintage Lounge," or whatever it is, as Gaidens. Are the U.S. and Canada WTO Members? No they're not, they're Contracting Parties to the GATT. You see where I'm going with this.

Things I Would Forget If I Did Not Write Them Down

2004-11-29T13:41:00.000-06:00

I've often thought that Prof. Komesar, in coining the phrase "majoritarian bias," could just as easily have said "majority bias." Turns out I'm wrong. It's similar to the difference between taxation and tax.

An ugly giant killer is three words strung together with an ambiguous meaning. An ugly giant-killer is a killer of giants who can't get a date. An ugly, giant killer is a killer who is very tall and can't get a date. And ugly-giant killer is a killer of giants, but not just any giants, the ugly ones .

There is no rule that says haiku has to be 17 syllables a pop. That is a myth and it's an evil one because it stifles poetry.

Mystery Guest Arrives—Eats, Gabs, Blabs

2004-11-27T17:57:00.000-06:00

This strange, but strangely attractive, man showed up on Thursday demanding turkey. We had no choice but to give it to him.

Volokh Commentary on the Commerce-Clause-Dope-Smoking Conundrum — here.

A new colorful SosySteps post — here!

Re-imagining / Five by Five

2004-11-25T13:10:00.000-06:00

To go along with the series of posts at Eric's blog on re-imagining the law school curriculum (here, here, and here) see the series over at The Non-Billable Hour entitled "Five by FiveLaw Student Edition." Five law-student bloggers each list five things that they would change sboput legal education. Two of the five posts are up, contributed by Mr. Poon and Buffalo Wings & Vodka (BWV over on my blogroll).

As far as the actual presentations on Re-imagining the Curriculum that will happen at UW Law School next semester, it appears as if there will be eight total, including one by fellow-law-student Ethan and myself giving "Student Perspectives on Curricular Reform." The rough ideas are coming together but I'll wait to describe it in detail until I've heard more of what ya'll think should be in there.

The other seven presentations will all be from law-school faculty or staff. Here is the list. The descriptions provided below are my own, and based on sketchy info at that, because I haven't been to all the meetings. In any case, you can get an idea of what they'll be about.

1. A presentation one of the faculty members based on her paper that will be published in the 2004 symposium issue of the Wis. L. Rev. Generally speaking it's about the role that social science can play in legal education.

2. A comparison of our first-year curriculum to that of some other law schools.

3. What do people mean when they refer to the "legal method?" This one, I assume is going to be about teaching methods (like maybe the case method, the Socratic method, etc.) but I actually don't know. It could be about "legal method" as a curricular outcome, as in the way that graduates should approach their jobs or something.

4. A look at the two-track approach to legal education used at some other schools. One track for those who will be practitioners, a second track for students who will use their degree for academics, policy work, etc.

5. A presentation on Case Western Law School's innovative "Case Arc" program, which integrates skills and writing throughout the curriculum (hopefully from someone on the faculty at Case Western).

6. Creative approaches to clinical experiences.

7. Institutional resources and barriers to innovations in teaching and the curriculum. I'm thinking that it should come near the end because it'll help take the ideas from above and focus them on what's possible.

All of the Important Information in this Post is Contained in the First Sentence [UPDATE: and in the Comments]

2004-11-24T19:39:00.000-06:00

This is why I love Mixtape Marathon. It was the first thing I read after finishing my paper (a 30-pager) a few minutes ago. Now I'm off to begin another (a 15ner).

After being in grad school for a while the tendency to write about really technical topics that build on research from past semesters is way too tempting to pass up. (1) You don't have to start from scratch on the research. Who has time for that? Not me, I'm too busy googling Palindromes. (2) The more technical it is, the more sections and sub-sections and sub-subsection you get to have, and I like those. (Really--outlining is my favorite part, always has been).

So, the paper that I just finished was on non-violation complaints for intellectual-property rights under the U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement. If you know about WTO stuff, this won't read like alphabet soup: Chile never should have left the FTA open to (what are essentially) GATT 23:1(b) claims for IPRs, which are not allowed under TRIPS as long as the Art. 64 moratorium remains in effect.

Yep, that's what the paper was about. I mean, that was the heart of it, at least. There was a lot of packaging. Anybody want to read it?

Now, for my next trick--the 15 pager--I'm going to go back to the basics. The impact of fed tax policy on state and local tax policy. Fed-state (mis)coordination issues are the friend of the Public Affairs student. I'm looking at partnerships and LLCs who participate in Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) districts but don't get the benefit of sec. 118 the way they would if they were an S Corp. I'm thinking that if they form a partnership with the city they can use sec. 721 to get the same effect, and that state TIF laws should help them do that. That's an untested theory at this point. I'll let you know what I find.

I'm writing it for my State & Local Taxation class, which I would recommend to PA and law students alike. It's a good class to take when you're not a home-owner, though, because the answer to every policy conundrum is always "more property taxes."

Now, stop reading this and go read Mixtape Marathon.

Now That All I Can Think About Are Palindromes

2004-11-24T15:46:00.000-06:00

For John Q's sake I thought to draft new titles for all my courses so that they would be palindromes, but my research assistant if off for the day. I did do a search and found some courses that might work. Only the last three are classes that I might actually consider taking:

Fencing – Evade me, Dave.

Cooking – Evil olive; A tip: save Eva's pita; Wontons? Not Now; (and my favorite) Go hang a salami, I'm a lasagna hog.

History of Religion – Deified; A dog! A panic in a pagoda!; Stop! Murder us not o' tonsured rumpots!

Womens' Studies – Sex-aware era waxes; women understand men, few men understand women (word-unit palindrome).

Seminar: U.S.-Panamanian Relations – Age, irony, Noriega.

Agricultural Econ of WI – Dairy myriad.

Lawyering skills – Some men interpret nine memos.

Legal Writing – Mix a maxim

Blogging 101 – Sis, ask Costner to not rent socks "as is"!

It just Hit Me—My Class Schedule Next Semester is a Palindrome

2004-11-24T13:32:00.000-06:00

My Major Contribution To The Blog Today Is The New Stylish Blogroll

2004-11-23T20:26:00.000-06:00

It's got curves. Oooh ahhhh. While I'm at it I might as well come out of the closet about three blogs I read that are of the cutting-edge variety. Fafblog is unlike any blog you've ever read. If you like to take in the full spectrum it may be for you. Crooked Timber didn't seem at first like any great shakes, but then I realized it is. Club Whirled is a window into an amazing culture and all about the human experience on the one hand, and on the other hand it's nothing but a soap opera. But a well-written one.

Add'l Announcements

2004-11-22T16:07:00.000-06:00

While I'm making public proclamations:

To My Tax Study Group:You rock. Guys, sorry about missing what was to be our marathon study session this past weekend. I've been in full crisis mode for the last few days. But I'll be there on Friday (2pm-8pm) and Sunday (2pm-8pm). (Just as a side note to other readers: my tax study group is the bomb this semester. We've experienced a mind-meld a la george Bush and Condi Rice--only we talk about more important issues.)

To My First-Year-Property Study Group: Don't worry. Tax shot up to number two like a rocket, but you're still at number one on the all-time list.

Ole Thanks for buying me dinner last week (at Curry N' Hurry--that name is ripe for lots of joke-making but I'll leave it alone). I'm still going to pay you back, but hopefully we can negotiate a discount from the full price of $7.76, paid in U.S.-dollars on money earned in Denmark. The dollar has been slipping against the Kroner lately, you know.

Finally, To All The Public Affairs Students In My Masters Program: You guys are awesome. As often happens, one of you said in class today "Well, I'm just playing the devil's advocate here, but..." Let me just say again--I love that. The environment in a Public Affairs classroom is so grounded and healthy. It's all about trying to figure out what you stand for, and if you're arguing the other side for a second it's appropriate to call attention to the fact that you're just being a devil's advocate. At the law school NOBODY does that; the words aren't tethered to anything.

Earth-Shattering News

2004-11-22T15:57:00.001-06:00

A big public congrats to Sol, Eric, and Hatch for passing the Cal bar exam. As we all know, it's a fraking hard test to pass. Passage was less than 50-percent. But let us look into this a bit. Only people who aren't afraid of earthquakes would move to California... hmmmm... me thinks that the population of test-takers may have been skewed toward the non-thinking classes. (The unintelligensia, as it were.) With that competition I would hope that my boys would all make it into the top 1/2.

Alright, I just inadvertently slammed the all the people from Wisconsin who took the exam and didn't pass--of which there were quite a few. Didn't mean it. Take it back. The earthquake theory doesn't have a solid foundation anyway.

(I should be British, I really should.)

...For all we know the earthquake factor works in exactly the opposite way--only people who are inordinantly confident take the California bar exam, or people who are so smart that they're going to make lots of money very quickly and retire at age 35 to a low-tax state.

Bottom line, we can't measure whatever San-Andreas-fault effect there might be. And in any case, it's a hard test.

[UPDATE: I may have hit a raw nerve with this post. Check out the comments, where Eric posted a whole truckload of information from the California State Bar website, presumably so that readers won't get their information about the exam from me alone. I think his point is that the numbers look different when broken down into first-time and repeat test-takers, and then further based on schooling.]

There is exactly one month remaining in the semester

2004-11-20T15:51:00.000-06:00

That means I'm 30 steps from home.

Actions Speak Louder than Words

2004-11-20T15:28:00.000-06:00

Rather than give you my usual late-November lament about how the blue skies of autumn have given way to the gray skies of winter and--even worse--about how the semester is charging through that gray wall that divides the regular class period from the exam period, I was inspired to change my settings.

Practical tips for people like me who don't know jack about html but who like to charge ahead blindly fiddling with their blog's source page. One, hit "ctrl a, ctrl c" every ten seconds. Disaster can strike at any moment, and you need to be ready for it when it happens. Two, rather than starting off with the blogger template that is closest to what you want, you're better starting off with a clean canvas. Pick with the simplest one you can find and work from there.

Haven't Been Thinking About The State Of The Greater World Much Lately

2004-11-18T19:07:00.000-06:00

Madison residents (and meatfood lovers everywhere) will observe that Bob Mould's banner today features our own unmistakable Oscar Mayer Wiener.

The text reads "win me for the day." Hmmmmmmmm, wonder what Bob is thinking here?

For a taste of Bob's more serious side, here's one of his post-election posts. I'll give you a quote:

I sense we are entering a period in our history where the alleged majority will, as a way to divide the masses and advance an extreme religious agenda, demonize the "gay lifestyle"; I hope they are ready to watch the teen suicide rates increase over the next few years.

Sobering thought. He's absolutely right. (By the way, if you follow the link, it's interesting to see where he goes with it. )

Lately thoughts like that have hit me harder than they used to. These two kids we're raising (OK, one raising, one rising), they're lucky, I know that already, because they've got K and me. But this world of ours.... Not what I ordered. Wrong time to be writing discrimination into the constitution--right as I am getting psyched up to raise a family. I'm going to make some serious noise if I have to.

Of course, the "serious noise" thing doesn't exactly feel right, either. Brings me back to the banner above: "A quiet and uninteresting life." I've been following Bob Mould a long time, tracing his trajectory all the way from his 80's band Husker Du to his "quiet and uninteresting life" today. His life is far from boring--peace of mind is what he's talking about. That sounds nice.

To The Guy Sitting Next To Me In The Computer Lab

2004-11-17T22:36:00.000-06:00

What's happened? It has been almost a full 30 seconds since you last coughed, and I'm beginning to-- Oh, there you go.

That Fine Line Between Information and Advice

2004-11-17T19:16:00.000-06:00

I was talking with someone today (someone with no connection to the law school) about what I know of the tax consequences of selling a secondary residence. If it were a more difficult legal question I would not have ventured into the conversation, but I know this, so I was very tempted to spill my guts. DON'T WORRY, I didn't. I stayed well clear of giving out legal advice, and instead provided some very general information. Some readers may not understand why I had to hold back, but the fact of the matter is I'm not graduated, I can't practice law.

(Dear reader: test your knowledge. Why would a taxpayer prefer to sell a primary residence instead of a secondary residence, and what characteristics distinguish the latter from the former?)

I also included the standard disclaimer. Plus, because I'm a belt-and-suspenders kind of guy, during the our interaction I also sent up a few "I don't know" flags when in fact, I had a pretty good idea (J.--if you're reading this, I'm sorry!) and added: You'll have to be sure to ask your attorney about that part.

That, combined with the fact that the person with whom I was speaking knows darn well that I'm only a student and not an atty, was enough to cover me. Thank goodness I'm not an atty; if I was I wouldn't have time to post this because I'd be too busy scrambling to write the person a follow-up letter to clarify the fact that I haven't been retained as a result of our conversation.

What a mess. I am only half joking, now, in invoking the famous words that Uncle Ben uttered to Peter Parker (a.k.a. Spidey): "With great power comes great responsibility."

MWAHAHAHA

2004-11-16T13:26:00.000-06:00

That's how you make evil laughter, I just learned from Sol. When you do it under your breath, it's the sound of fate biting you back as you pretend to laugh at yourself.

Personnel Changes

2004-11-16T08:36:00.000-06:00

Dear Readers,

As you know, my blog is now entering its second term. There will be the inevitable reshuffling of cabinet positions as I turn my attention away from building up readership (which I don't have to worry about for another four years) toward the subject that will become my new focus: foreign policy, I'm thinking, or maybe faith-based initiatives.

Here are some new changes that will take effect on Jan. 25:

My new secretary of state will be Colin Powell. It's true that he fails to meet two key prerequisites for the position: (1) extremely scary looking, and (2) former-competitive figure skater. But he's got good computer skills, and I'm willing to overlook his shortcomings.

Also, except on Sundays, when he will continue to pen his "On Language" column, William Safire will be retiring from the position of as NYT-Columnist-Who-Constantly-Bugs-The-Crap-Out-Of-Me. Undoubtedly, the post will be filled by Thomas Friedman.

Finally, I myself will be going on mental sabbatical for at least the next six weeks. Not to worry, I should be able to keep the blog from drifting too far off course by recycling old posts. (Note: this is a departure my current policy of recycling old themes, which has been in place for over a year.) Once that starts to grow stale I will try to bring in a guest blogger or two, but I can't talk about that right now because I'm in middle of contract negotiations.

Keeping you informed about life *as is,*

B.

Free Wireless + Laptop + caffeine = Procrastination

2004-11-13T13:06:00.000-06:00

It's always too bad when you're at a coffee shop and the people sitting next to you who were speaking a cool foreign language get up and leave.

I'm at a chain-type establishment that shall remain nameless. The place is playing Ray Charles's music (exclusively) and prominently displaying his CDs, obviously in return for some huge pay-out from whoever is marketing the Ray Charles movie that just came out. Commerce gone amuck, I don't like it when it gets so sneaky and manipulative.

Check out the boy-shamen.

And Now For Something Completely Different (From What I Should Have Been Doing)

2004-11-12T17:45:00.000-06:00

I just spent the better part of two days on a major diversion. May just have been a flight of fancy, or it may end up being time well-spent. I leaned on some people for help, too, and bless their souls they came through, surpassing expectations. Thank-you, my good friends.

We shall see... but now it's back to reali-tay. Tonight at home, help Kris get her stuff done and both of us can get some sleep. Then camp out at the library w/ G-man, getting caught up.

Blog As Therapy

2004-11-11T10:34:00.004-06:00

Eric writes:

"I don't really care about my spelling and grammar on the blog, since posting is therapy. Most posts take me less than a minute to type, I don't re-read them, and I never look at them again."

I always like to get the views of Eric (a fellow neurotic workaholic) to check them against my own. He's my own personal pundit. So let's test this hypothesis: posting is therapy.

First off, I definitely do care about spelling and grammar. My goal is to become progressively more articulate in English over the course of my life. It's up there with learning an instrument and building my dream tree house--all major components of my plan to avoid "the plateau" effect (a.k.a. mid-life crisis).

But onto the substantive point. I have another friend whose ideas incessantly rattle around in his head. He was given the advice at one point to "put them in a box" so he can leave the thoughts behind and focus on other things. Seems like posting could serve that (somewhat therapeutic) purpose for people. Dunno. It's interesting to me that someone would NEVER read their old posts. I might have to start a third blog and give it a try. Look for this future URL: www.BlackBox.blogspot.com. Three blogs? Definitely a candidate for therapy.

Maybe. For now, what I appreciate about this endeavor is the open book aspect to it. Posting forces me to take ownership of my thoughts and deal with consequences of what I say and think. In tax terms, posting is a REALIZATION EVENT.

And when I'm posting I think about language a lot (language is what attracted me to law in the first place). My old posts form the foundation of future ventures. I revisit them, draw connections between them, look for evolutions (devolutions!) in thinking, etc. Therapeutic? Yeah sure. It may be therapeutic for me in a different way than it is for him, but as usual, Eric is right again.

I, Brian, Seated In A Lateral-Support-Lacking, Ergonomically Evil, Law-School-Computer-Lab Chair, Have Risked Lower-Back Pain To Bring You This Post

2004-11-09T15:53:00.000-06:00

Alright alright. I do it for me, that's why I post. I've no one to blame but myself. (But chairs like these are a menace to bloggers everywhere.)

Family Front. I've added new photos to SosySteps. Someone asked me if Sosy is the name of our second baby, with Sawyer being the first. No, both names belong to the same little one-and-a-half-year-old munchkin. Sosy (pronounced "so-see") is the nickname, Sawyer is the real name. Number Two has not made his debut in this world... yet.

Re-Imagining Curriculum.Today was the day I got to sit in on a law-school-faculty working group charged with the task of "Re-Imagining the Curriculum." Committees can be unwieldy beasts, and I was generally impressed with the seriousness with which this group approached its task. And the people were realistic about what could be accomplished and how. Many good ideas came up and it was agreed that eight different presentations will be made next semester, with the hope that one or two of the ideas could gain some traction within the law school and form the impetus for change.

Yours truly, together with the one other student present at today's meeting, will be in charge of putting one of the presentations together. Developing story... details to follow.

Home Buyer's Class. Tonight is the second night of the two-part "First Time Home Buyer's Class" that K and I are enrolled in. The first class, you'll recall, was on election night and the woman teaching it let slip her not so favorable opinion about a certain president of the United States who shall remain nameless (a.k.a. the housing-authority-in-chief). She mentioned to some of us at break that federal money for her program has been drying up ever since, oh, I dunno, Jan. 2001. It'll be interesting, and kindof sad, to check in with her now a week later.

If You're Going To Sleep In The Devil's Bed, You Might As Well Drink His Wine

2004-11-08T20:47:00.000-06:00

So nice to relax with a glass of red wine after an arduous Civil Procedure class. I'm drinking Concha y Toro and appreciating words. Arduous--from Latin arduus, high, steep. Michael Ignatieff describes the marriage ceremony as "that moment when falling in love is replaced by the arduous drama of staying in love."

Concha y Toro is the winemaker. The wine is Casillero del Diablo. It's complex, which is a nice quality in a wine. That's true about it being complex (my dad will back me up on that) but it is difficult for me to take myself seriously when I am describing a wine.

Here's the thing. I was once a waiter at a froo-froo restaurant; didn't last long. The place served waaaaaaaay too many wines to keep track of and yours truly--enterprising young man that I was--quickly mastered the art of bullshitting wine descriptions. I notice some similarity between that and speaking in court, actually:

"Your honor, may it please the court, my client is fruity, smoky, well-balanced, round, and medium-bodied with firm tannins. I rest my case."

Anyway, about this C. del Diablo. I'm having the Cab Sauv right now but I've heard the Carménère is even better.

Link For Sore Losers II. (Election-Results-Map Fascination Combined With Post-Election-Anger Humor)

2004-11-06T09:40:00.000-06:00

Link. (tks JFW.)

Link for sore losers. Indulge in a little post-election-anger humor.

2004-11-05T15:37:00.004-06:00

link. (tks Ocean.)

Someone at work has now officially visited this blog

2004-11-05T13:32:00.000-06:00

I've got irrefutable evidence (in the form of an e-mail exchange) that someone at work has read, or at least has visited, this blog. Everyone keep a close eye on me and watch out for signs that I'm wilting under the (conflicting) pressures, inherent in most workplaces, to come across as witty and uncontroversial. Will this change the way that I post, the things I say? I dropped an f-bomb a while back--a little edgy, I agree. Was it copacetic?

BTW, I'll have you know that I just checked the spelling of copacetic by googling "Run-DMC lyrics perfection." There now, that was both lacking in wit and lame, if not exactly controversial. I think I'm safe for now.

tax headache--but in this case that's a good thing

2004-11-05T13:17:00.000-06:00

I've got too much tax crammed into my brain right now. Just learned all about the Alternative Minimum Tax (s. 55 et seq.) and it happened before I had the old system down (before I knew there was an alternative!). I am fine with it, though. The reason I like my tax class so much is that my prof, the man himself, finds ways to give us a structure to hang it all on: the story behind the code. (Don;t you know there's always a story?) Compare alt. min. tax as a policing mechanism, pre-1986, with alt. min. tax as a revenue generating mechanism, present-day. When you've got a structure provided for you, it becomes easier to parse through the code, and a bunch of disparate sections start forming into patterns before your very eyes. Sometimes the pattern is ugly, as the law often is, but it's cool to get a look at it.

I'm still waiting for that Russell Crowe moment in "A Beautiful Mind" where the lights go dim and I start seeing patterns in numbers, cue the Ron Howard signature musical score. Keep in mind though that while mathematics may be beautiful, this is the law we're talking about. The law has all these odd growths and deformities that math doesn't have. If you look at the subject matter, a law degree is more analogous to a degree in linguists than mathematicians. Which is all just to say, the Russell Crowe moment I'm, imagining would have to be called "An Ugly Mind" moment. I doubt it would do well at the box office.

The Big NYT map

2004-11-04T20:44:00.000-06:00

Win or lose, I LOVE looking at the big NYT map showing the election results in minute blue-red variations county-by-county. Maybe it's because I study property law and I just like counties. But I've always liked it even before my law school days. I appreciate the patchwork aspect. Those election-night maps are just ugly monolithic swathes of blue and red. (mostly red).

By the way, I don't think NYT.com has it available online. It's a special treat for the one-half-of-one percent of us who subscribe to the paper edition. I'll try to scan it and post it later.

Thanks to people for their comments about yesterday's picture. In person comments, I mean, which are the more popular form among my readers. Sol posted his comment online, but he represents the hip "youth" contingency. I try accommodate everyone.

UPDATE: check out this map that a friend just sent. A variation on shades of gray--in this case shades of purple.

Taking life as is means staying engaged in it no matter what happens. Listen to music, eat good food, share your love with others.

2004-11-03T20:00:00.000-06:00

Oh Fuck

2004-11-03T01:49:00.000-06:00

Fuck fuck a god-damned duck. Bush has a second term.

I wish I could pile up in advance all the things I don't want to have to read about happening. Save the time and lives wasted trying to reverse or undo it all. It's just so bad and such a waste. I don't know who to be mad at or what to focus on.

I can't spend time on computers and with tvs or NPR for a while. I need to be with people for otherwise I'll hit a wall. I need my son, Kristen, my family, sleep, good music, and the passage of time.

Here are my official election night endorsements--see you on the other side

2004-11-01T17:11:00.000-06:00

Talking head of choice: Rather. He's got the best hair. But Brokaw comes in clearer, and Lehrer gets a better reception (at least in my neighborhood).

Essential snack combo:

Sometimes it's nice to turn down the TV and look at the computer. Here's the best website for tracking the electoral map: Electoral-vote.com

And let's not forget music: The Replacements (of course).

Be safe, everyone. Call me if you need to commiserate, celebrate, etc.

The Packers Do Their Part

2004-10-31T16:19:00.000-06:00

It is big news here in Wisconsin (and elsewhere) that in every election year since 1936, the Washington Redskins have picked the winner of the election. If they win, the incumbet wins. If they lose, the race goes to the challenger. OK then, way to go Pack.

This was especially fun for me because it finally gave me that bond with my fellow Wisconsin citizens that I've been lacking since 1992, when I first moved here. Namely, giving a rip about how the Packers game comes out.

(On a related note, The Pack may have done its party to help Kerry, but he sure hurt himself recently by referring to Lambeau field as "Lambert" Field. Ouch. Yellow flag on the play. Ten Yards for that one, hot shot.)

"[O]ur confidence in him has been shattered."

2004-10-30T16:59:00.000-05:00

The Economist magazine has rebuked George Bush, unfurling a lengthy and reasoned indictment of his presidency. Read it here. I should add--they also work in an endorsement of John Kerry (much like the NYT Kerry endorsement, it is more a "no" vote for Bush than a "yes" for Kerry).

This is THE ECONOMIST we're talking about. Pro-war, pro-business, pro-Bush (until now). Ha!!! Who will be next, the Wall St. Journal? The Weekly Standard?

UPDATE: The Economist endorsement made someone else's day, too. The link is to "Ocean," Nina Camic's blog. She is a prof blogger here at the law school. I've never taken a class from her, but I almost don't want to--I like knowing her this way. Kindred spirit.)

UPDATE2: Thomas Friedman, who usually drives me batty, has found a way around the rule preventing NYT columnists from backing individual candidates. Read his clever endorsement of Kerry here.)

UPDATE3: Mixtape Marathon has endorsed Kerry. I love Mixtape Marathon, by the way. (This is becoming my "shout out" post).

UPDATE LAST ONE, I PROMISE: Discussion in the comments about the strength of said endorsements because most are primarily a condemnation of Bush--it's not as persuasive an endorsement, etc. My response to that is that it's a fine reason. Noteworthy, but no less persuasive. As K said in the car yesterday morning, the prospect that we as a nation might endorse the recklessness of the past four years (by giving Bush a second term) is unpalatable. I'm voting for Kerry because I want a clean taste in my mouth.

Order your post-election-depression CD early

2004-10-29T16:31:00.000-05:00

Mutual Admiration Society. The most subdued CD ever recorded. And it's good. Glen Phillips together with Nickel Creek. The Nickel Creek kids are in full ballad mode, and Glen reaches all the way back to the "Pale" days of his tenure in Toad the Wet Sprocket.

Harsh

2004-10-28T11:07:00.001-05:00

Law students all around me are frantically gathering their books and heading off to their 11 o'clock class. Some are attempting to scan the last few pages of the reading assignment, hoping that important words will jump out at them. Others have either finished or given up. Two or three of these people are about to be called on. If they're not prepared they'll be skewered.

I am reminded of my first year here. The weight of all the reading had a devastating effect on me. The only way I can describe it (and unfortunately it makes me sound like a big drama queen, which I guess I am) is that it was like getting beat up. A gang of thugs pummeling me, on a daily basis. And then they dragged my body through the streets.

I don't think about it too much anymore. There isn't too much to do except put it behind you, and hope that you haven't changed much.

And sometimes I slip into the mind set that everyone more or less adopts: I DID IT, YOU CAN TOO, GET TO CLASS. But when I remember what it was like, I don't feel that way. I know that some of the people I see here (and their families at home) are really struggling. And I hope they are ok.

surprise stories

2004-10-27T16:06:00.000-05:00

From NYT:

A few days earlier, some soldiers from the division thought they had discovered a cache of chemical weapons that turned out to be pesticides. Several of them came down with rashes, and they had to go through a decontamination procedure. Colonel Anderson said he wanted to avoid a repeat of those problems, and because he had already seen stockpiles of weapons in two dozen places, did not care to poke through the stores at Al Qaqaa.

"I had given instructions, 'Don't mess around with those. It looks like they are bunkers; we're not messing around with those things. That's not what we're here for,'" he said.

Today's installment in the late-October serial blockbuster: Enchanted Bunker of Al Qaqaa, in which no one can tell whether the 380 tons of explosives were still in their bunker on April 9, 2003, because no one looked!

I'm not sure if the lost explosives story adequately qualifies as an October surprise, because I doubt that it is has penetrated through all the ad saturation, fear tactics, voter disgust, and apathy. However, I live for election fodder. And I love how what normally be a little blip on the radar screen suddenly becomes a blockbuster story just because it might turn the election.

That goes for the flu shots stuff, too. I like to read about that one on the BBC, because the Brits call them "flu jabs," which I think is funny.

New Sosysteps Post

2004-10-27T13:04:00.000-05:00

Here. I tried to put together a list of Sawyer's all time favorite words.

Family front update: Still no name for Paco. I decided last night that I like Jacques, but it has the same problem that Paco does of not passing the ethnic-plausibility test. Maybe that would be properly called the ethnically-plausible test, I'm not sure. Anyway, Jacques doesn't pass. And in any case I can't say for sure whether I would go with that name if I could. It is only after a name passes all the other tests that it can be honestly subjected to the ultimate test: the do-I-really-want-to-name-my-kid-this test.

We've made arrangements to watch the election results at Valarie and Michael's place, which means we won't have to steal anyone's TV that night. We won't be able to go over there until about 9pm because K and I are taking a "home purchasing for dummies" class from the Dane County Housing Authority. Well, OK, I'm not a dummy. This semester I'm taking Real Estate Transactions, and I'd like to think I'm learning something useful in there. But the class kind of shoots too far, if you know what I mean. How to make an offer-to-purchase conditioned on a dual-use easement running through the NW 1/4 of the SW 1/4 of the blah-blah, etc., etc. That's probably not going to come up. Let's hope it doesn't. I need something much more practical: "How to get a kick-ass mortgage," for instance.

Morning so far...

2004-10-26T04:42:00.000-05:00

Grr! Second day in a row up before the paper arrives.

Grumble... Think I left my slippers in the bedroom.

Mmmmmmmmm! Leftover Wah Kee for breakfast.

Quiet Day

2004-10-25T20:38:00.000-05:00

Spent much of today holed up in the library,

reading books that look like this.

I'm not complaining. There are far worse ways to spend your time. It was one of the last nice fall days, however, so I made myself get out and walk around some. I tried to capture the feeling of fall so that it will be there when I need it in January.

Before I go--hopefully many have already seen this, but if not here you go: The NYT released a very important two-part series yesterday and today. The series is entitled, TOUGH JUSTICE, and the author is Tim Golden. Here are the two articles:

"New Code, New Power: After Terror, a Secret Rewriting of Military Law," NY Times, Oct. 24, 2004.

"A Policy Unravels: Administration Officials Split Over Stalled Military Tribunals," NY Times, Oct. 25, 2004.

I've made the titles clickable so that they will lead to the articles on NYT.com... BUT those links only stay good for two weeks, so follow them now and print them out even if no time to read them now.

That series provides what I think is the first comprehensive account of the changes made to the military justice system in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Historically, the federal courts have tended not to interfere with "wartime measures." In perhaps the most famous example, Korematsu v. United States, 323 U.S. 214 (1944), the Supreme Court declined intervene when the government interned over 100,000 Japanese-Americans solely because of their race.

But surely the judiciary will monitor the executive more closely in the present day and age. This war on terrorism is wholly different from its predecessors in many respects--not least because it is projected to last for so long. There must be a legitimate way for the civilian courts to assert themselves on this issue!!!

There is no easy answer.

Still undecided?

2004-10-24T08:27:00.000-05:00

trip to the dentist

2004-10-23T15:58:00.000-05:00

If you are in Madison, Wisconsin, now or at any point in the (foreseeable) future, you can get your daily dose of 70's rock by tuning your radio to 92.1 FM--"The Lake"--our local classic rock station. (You can. I'm not saying you should.)

This is not normally a piece of information that I have at my fingertips. But yesterday I had a dentist appointment and instead of the easy listening station that is usually piped throughout the office, they were playing The Lake. It is, I learned, my dentist office's unique version of "casual Fridays." At my dentist, rather than "dressing down" one-day-a-week, they change the radio station to 70's rock. During my visit I heard "Yesterday" by the Beatles, and "Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown" by Jim Croce. But the best song of all came on while I was having my teeth cleaned... you guessed it, "Freebird."

The Red Sox are in the Series. And see here--look!!!! Russ is up by 23.

2004-10-21T19:30:00.000-05:00

In the non-election-related realm

2004-10-20T15:52:00.000-05:00

As is evident from my previous post, my earlier prediction that I would stop paying attention to the election after the last debate has not panned out.

I have been doing other things though. There's always lots of stuff happening on the home front for one thing. And--always the life of the party--I've actually begun to carry around Chirelstein's tax treatise with me literally everywhere I go. Needless to say, I'm waaaaaaaay into my tax course. It would not be out of the ordinary for me to try and rehash Chirelstein's views--say, on the significance of Section 1031--as if that were normal dinner-table conversation. K has been very patient with me.

And--today I had a meeting with an old professor of mine from my undergrad days who is advising me on how to approach the "re-imagining the curriculum" project. I'm getting ready to pitch my idea for how the law school curriculum should be changed around. Your comments are welcome, by the way. (But if you dis tax I'll not listen).

Blog admin note: I just realized that my "comments" feature was set to only allow comments from registered users (people with a Blogger account). I changed it so all you people with scathing words or undeserved praise can add your comments under the name "Anonymous."

new numbers

2004-10-20T15:36:00.000-05:00

The results are in... Wisconsin is STILL tied, so it looks like we will continue to be showered with inordinate attention for the next two weeks. Here are the results of today's poll, which appeared on the front page of the Wisconsin State Journal, successfully scanned, and somewhat-less-successfully photoshopped, by yours truly. The numbers look better for kerry than they do for Bush, but take note of the margin of error!!!. I am not used to seeing a margin of error that big--5 points--so I can't tell you whether that's because this local poll was done on the cheap, compared to the national polls, or whether the pollsters here in 'Sconny are just more honest. :-)

So... it pretty much just comes down to how those 5% of "not sure" and 1% of "refuse to answer" voters break on election day. Maybe they'll wake up with a cough that morning and the fad-non-issue of the week, flu shots, really will determine the outcome of this election.

NOTE ALSO THE NADER FACTOR: He's polling at 2% here, which is the same number of people who support an "other" third-party candidate. Those "others" are usually conservative, so even if we had instant run-off voting, the reapportionment of third-party votes would probably be a wash. That is, it looks like Nader is NOT spoiling the race for Kerry.

A huge caveat to the last bit is that, if you believe the margin of error, nader could actually be polling at negative 2%. The negative number represents people who voted for Nader in 2000 but had their fingers crossed--I'm not exactly sure how that works but, hey, politics is complicated.

(MAJOR UPDATE!!!!! The numbers don't add up to one-hundred. Look again. I'm sure there's some kindof statistical explanation involving the Hypergeometric Distribution of percentiles. Somebody friggin get me Geoffry Wallace and a TI-86, pronto.)

The left end of the dial

2004-10-19T14:47:00.000-05:00

I listened to Air America radio (commercial left-wing talk radio) last night--what in the hell is going on with that?!? The level of discourse was soooooo base. Demeaning and insulting, Ranting and raving, inciting hate.

My sensitive ears could not bear it! After about a half-hour I had to turn the guy off (his name was mike malloy). Now, I've never really heard right-wing commercial talk radio either, but I'm sure it's just as bad if not worse. I never listen to any commercial radio, actually. And I don't have a TV, either. I've been living in a protected bubble I know, I know. Boy in the bubble, that's me. But even if you're not me, and you're a lefty and you're proud, do NOT listen to air America on the radio--it sucks.

I do read blogs, though. Even some wacko conservative ones.

Here's a new one. Jason Enlge, a La Follette (School of Public Affairs) classmate, has started keeping a blog: What's up on Winnebago. I'm psyched about it. Whenever I've been around him, he's had something cool to say. Plus, his mere presence on my blog roll (under "Bob Types" for Bob La Follette) adds some much-needed balance. I think I understand why there are so many bloggers at the law school and only a few (that I know of) in my masters program. One group likes to, -ehm, talk, the other likes to listen. But I know how much good stuff public affairs types have to say, so I'll be seeing What's up on Winnebago from now on. (Today's post: why he's ambivalent about the Nader factor.) (Also on that topic, see this from Letters of Marque.)

damn ip rules

2004-10-18T01:43:00.000-05:00

Here's proof that i'm NOT still sitting around thinking about the NYT editorial and that i'm NOT going to mope around worried about the election for the next two weeks, hopefully.

A human interest story--for lawyers (and other people):

Retropod is--well, ok, was--a website that sold homemade ipod cases made out of "retro" sony walkmans. Then came the letter from Sony's attys: "Sony recently learned that you are selling a case for carrying an iPod personal stereo that is made from a WALKMAN tape player. The product is being offered at your website at www.retropod.com.
***
Your use of casings for such a purpose is a clear infringement of the SONY and WALKMAN marks because it is deceptive. Consumers likely will be misled and deceived into believing that Sony is somehow connected with the iPod personal stereo when in fact it is not. Moreover, they will be misled into thinking that Sony is backward in its design of products and is going away from miniaturization, as the size of the tape player housing is quite large by today's standards."

...Ahhhh, the old miniaturization-confusion argument. Sony's right, it would be mass chaos. We have to put a stop to this. So did this letter--known in the trade as a "cease and desist"--do the trick? The guy who runs the site reports that he thought about it "for about 10 seconds" before issuing refunds and closing the shop down.

(via Boing Boing.)

Sunday Times Endorsement

2004-10-17T19:31:00.000-05:00

The NYT editorial page on the S.Ct.:

We have specific fears about what would happen in a second Bush term, particularly regarding the Supreme Court. The record so far gives us plenty of cause for worry. Thanks to Mr. Bush, Jay Bybee, the author of an infamous Justice Department memo justifying the use of torture as an interrogation technique, is now a federal appeals court judge. Another Bush selection, J. Leon Holmes, a federal judge in Arkansas, has written that wives must be subordinate to their husbands and compared abortion rights activists to Nazis.

Not at all unexpected that the NYT should endorse Kerry, but I was certainly surprised by the eloquence of writing. The majority of the paragraphs are devoted not to the candidate himself, John Kerry, but to raising concerns such as the above and to retracing the arc of George Bush's disastrous presidency:

We look back on the past four years with hearts nearly breaking, both for the lives unnecessarily lost and for the opportunities so casually wasted.

If I were to dwell too heavily on these words I could easily lose the next two weeks of my life.

A-HA!

2004-10-16T13:14:00.000-05:00

Yes, you're still at the right place. And no, SosySteps didn't go anywhere (link was down awhile but it's back, on the top left side). I messed around with the templete settings a little bit. I like the old-fashioned paper look. But the rest of the template is just "temprary," as they say. The bricks are there becasue I was learning how to tile images. If you excuse the proportiones, it almost looks like a scroll pasted onto the side of a building.

OK, now, on a much more important subject, everybody together, let us shed a tear for Tim Michels!

I don't mean to laugh, but ha-ha-ha ha-ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-huh! You're going to lose!

morning

2004-10-14T10:20:00.000-05:00

I walked in to school today from Eagle Heights, now that the Lakeshore path is finished. At a brisk pace I got to the law building in just under an hour. And I was pleasantly surprised to see that the new boat house down by the lakeshore dorms that is being built for the UW crew team is NOT a monstrosity. It's actually going to be a classy building.

Well, I am all about the debates, and now they're over, so expect my interest in the election to wane until November 2nd, when we finally get to vote. I mananged to see all four of the debates, despite not owning a television. K and I did what we do each year for the Oscars--concocted some kind of scheme that allows us to "borrow" the TV of a certain generous parent who shall remain nameless. With the four debates so close together, I felt like the guy from Requiem For A Dream who keeps stealing his mom's TV to pay for his drug habit.

And speaking of TV, I finally saw some of the slimy campaign commercials that people are complaining about. I did like the Feingold ad I saw, but that's just me.

Yesterday the University of Wisconsin Advertising Project released a study showing that the election battleground has narrowed to Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, as evidenced by the concentration of TV advertising in those 10 states. Florida and Ohio are the two most important. Missouri (now part of Bush Country), is surprising absent. Colorado (no longer in Bush Country), is a surprising addition.

"The next thing to pay attention to is the advertising buys after the last debate. This is the time when campaigns will make their final decisions on the nature of the race and make the calculations about which states are truly still in play. More than snap polls and punditry, those decisions will tell us who won the debates and what effect they had on each candidates chances of victory."

That's Ken Goldstein, director of the project, a.k.a. the guy-from-Wisconsin-who-always-gets-a-lot-of-press-every-four-years-because-he-studies-campaign-commercials guy.

Kerry's best attack(s)

2004-10-13T17:07:00.000-05:00

Jobs. The economy. Education. The environment. Health care.

Bush's best attack

2004-10-13T17:06:00.000-05:00

Liberal.

Kerry's best chance

2004-10-13T17:04:00.000-05:00

Look presidential. Sound presidential. Don't say anything new.