Skanky Blogfights Up, Verdicts Down

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:55:07 GMT

Most of our visitors to Legal Pad are professionals in the field of law. Except those of you who arrived at this post by googling the word “skanky.” But the rest of you, totally. And so we strive to bring...

Most of our visitors to Legal Pad are professionals in the field of law. Except those of you who arrived at this post by googling the word “skanky.” But the rest of you, totally.

And so we strive to bring you (and to scour the Internet ourselves in search of) fine-quality legal news that worthy professionals in this august profession can benefit from. Professionally.

And yet … Of the many life lessons to be gleaned from Jack Nicholson in “The Shining,” perhaps the one that resonates most is “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

[Edited to remove preceding sentence typed out 8,000 times]

So, to satisfy our better angels (personified by Scatman Cruthers) and our inner demons (that kid with the redrum voice), we present you two interesting links, and leave it to you to decide which to click:

After the jump, the so-not-skanky-model behind door number one, or the jury verdicts numbers I’m holding in this envelope …

Bloomberg has released its list of the year’s biggest jury verdicts, and once again, none cracked the billion-dollar mark. American Lawyer declares that era deader than Bernie Madoff’s New Year’s party, and also lists which California firm scored the year’s biggest verdict (against another major California litigation shop). News you can use, that is, right here.

Meanwhile, over at TechCrunch: Google is being sued by a New York model whose looks, behavior and legal acumen we are in no way going to criticize here, you betcha, because an anonymous blogger used Google’s Blogger software to post pictures and harsh personal attacks on a site called “SkanksInNYC.”

She wants Google to reveal who has called her a skank, though on the other hand she seems to take it in stride, allegedly saying, “I’m tall, I’m blond, I’ve been modeling for many years, and people get jealous. If I had to deal with everyone who is jealous, I wouldn’t have time to do anything else.” How could anyone not like her?

So there you go. Year-end performance results, or, um, illustrated alleged skankiness … It’s your move, counselors.

— Brian McDonough

Pro Per Gets Hot Porn* Suit Sent to Vegas

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:51:57 GMT

Getting a case transferred can be difficult for even the most skilled lawyers. But Mark LaPerna, founder of a gay porn site, just got a copyright infringement suit from porn producer Titan Media transferred to Las Vegas without a lawyer...

Getting a case transferred can be difficult for even the most skilled lawyers.

But Mark LaPerna, founder of a gay porn site, just got a copyright infringement suit from porn producer Titan Media transferred to Las Vegas without a lawyer and without even filing a motion to transfer. Plus, LaPerna — also a Pee Wee Herman impersonator in Las Vegas — got some digs in on a conference call with a Titan Media lawyer and an alternative dispute administrator that would even make Alex Kozinski blush (or laugh, we’re not sure).

*Yes, we're totally trolling for search hits today. Read on at your own risk …

Gil Sperlein, general counsel at San Francisco’s Titan Media, filed suit (.pdf) against LaPerna in February last year in the Northern District of California. The suit accused the Las Vegas man and others of illegally uploading porn clips and pics to the social networking site called the Big Dick Club that LaPerna built on Ning.com.

LaPerna, who said he doesn’t have enough money to hire a lawyer, sent an impassioned — and very entertaining — letter (.pdf) to the court denying all the allegations. In the same letter, Laperna tugs on the court’s heartstrings, writing how he’s on disability and food stamps and brings in just $800 a month. He can’t make it out to San Jose because of his health: “I am currently looking for a Hospice where I can go die in peace. I don’t have much longer, and the sooner this case is resolved the better my final days will be!”

He also explains that no one would want to post Titan Media’s videos anyway: “Titan Media Videos suck! Nobody likes them.”

The letter prompted Judge Patricia Trumbull to issue an order to show cause about why the case shouldn’t be transferred to Laperna’s hometown Las Vegas. Sperlein argued that because Ning’s servers, where the alleged infringement took place, and Titan Media, the alleged victim, are here, the case should be too. He also took a shot at Laperna’s disability claims:

“Mr. LaPerna claims to be looking for hospice care. However, on line statements indicate that Mr. LaPerna works as a Pee Wee Herman impersonator at the Hard Rock Café in Las Vegas. On his myspace page, he has published pictures of himself traveling and socializing with Paris Hilton,” Sperlein wrote.

Judge Trumbull obviously didn’t think that impersonating Pee Wee Herman was a game changer, and on Wednesday ordered that the case be transferred (.pdf). Trumbull wrote that Sperlein hadn’t proved that Laperna had “received any revenue from California residents” with his site, or produced any evidence that Laperna profited off of the uploaded clips. Having servers in California just isn’t enough for jurisdiction, she wrote.

Sperlein told Legal Pad he thought the ruling was “erroneous.” LaPerna meanwhile was overjoyed. He sent Sperlein an email with the subject line: “SEE YOU IN VEGAS..... BABY!” with an accompanying photo of that city’s famous “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign.

Laperna and Sperlein haven’t exactly been seeing eye-to-eye throughout the litigation. Sperlein told Legal Pad that it’s difficult to deal with a pro per who doesn’t demonstrate the same civility as a fellow lawyer. “He has cursed at the alternative dispute administrator on the telephone and hung up,” Sperlein said.

LaPerna countered that Sperlein has been harassing him and the members of his site with threatening letters and blackmail. Asked what he said on the call with the administrator, LaPerna told Legal Pad, but we won’t repeat it verbatim. Suffice it to say LaPerna opined that the two men were in need of something large and penetrating.

Well, now the show is now off to Las Vegas — where it most certainly belongs.

— Zusha Elinson

New Study Asserts Laptops in Law Schools increase Student Engagement

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 21:57:26 GMT

The Law School Survey of Student Engagement reports a finding of a high correlation between laptop use by law students in class and student engagement. The National Law Journal has more.

Your Paralegal Has a Better Job than You Do

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 20:41:49 GMT

Sounds strange, but it’s true, according a new comprehensive ranking of jobs by JobsRated.com. Five different criteria were used in the rankings: Stress Work Environment Physical Demands Income Outlook Although lawyers made more money than paralegals, other job factors brought lawyers way down on the list. Debra Cassens Weiss of the ABA Journal explains, Lawyers and stockbrokers, ranked 84th, both did poorly, and the [...]

Sounds strange, but it’s true, according a new comprehensive ranking of jobs by JobsRated.com.

Five different criteria were used in the rankings:

Stress
Work Environment
Physical Demands
Income
Outlook

Although lawyers made more money than paralegals, other job factors brought lawyers way down on the list.

Debra Cassens Weiss of the ABA Journal explains,

Lawyers and stockbrokers, ranked 84th, both did poorly, and the reason is stress, the editors say. “Attorneys and stockbrokers may earn considerably more than bookbinders or telephone repair technicians [ranked 83rd and 81st respectively], but these high-powered careers are hurt by anxiety, as both rank among the 20 most stressful jobs on our list.”

So once you’ve finally paid off your law school debts, you might want to start searching for a new job - as a paralegal.

innovation = a return to the way things were before the Great Depression

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 20:03:29 GMT

[brian lauter] Abolishing the third year of law school is an interesting idea. But, you know what would really save some time and money? Getting rid of the first and second year as well. That’s right, no more law school....

[brian lauter]

Abolishing the third year of law school is an interesting idea. But, you know what would really save some time and money? Getting rid of the first and second year as well.

That’s right, no more law school. Imagine if, instead of going to law school for three years, all you had to do to practice law was hit up the ATM and stop by your local thrift store for a snazzy discount suit.

Who, you might wonder, would propose such a thing? A debt-ridden attorney? A bitter law student? No, this tantalizing idea came out of the recent Leading Legal Innovation conference in San Diego, which you can read all about here.

Conference participant George Shepherd, a professor at Emory University School of Law, argues that before the Great Depression there were no bar exams or law degree requirements. Attorneys simply posted bond, showed up in court and everything ran smoothly.

Further, according to Shepherd and Preston McAfee, an economist from Caltech, ABA requirements and the bar exam serve as artificial barriers to entry into the legal profession that drive up the cost of legal services, hurting attorneys and poor clients.

All law students do is surf the internet for three years anyway, so maybe it makes sense to do away with the barriers and open the profession up to normal market forces.

Since no other “innovations” seem to have come out of the conference, it looks like its real purpose was to get a group together to publicly blame the ABA for forcing law schools to produce students who know next to nothing about how to practice law.

For instance, in addition to the anti-ABA arguments above, Northwestern’s Dean David Van Zandt also accused the ABA of “stifling change” and forcing law schools to “build an Acura instead of a Corolla.”

Acuras are nice, but if it means zero law school debt, I’ll take a trip back to the Model T era any day.

You'll Never Download in this Town Again

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 19:01:07 GMT

In a blow to full employment for copyright lawyers, the RIAA has decided to stop suing those who download pirated music. However, in a move likely to prove nearly as painful to hardened copyright infringers, the new policy will be...

navahs

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 18:00:34 GMT

We are all aware that the First Amendment prohibits the government from infringing on the free exercise of religion. But who gets to decide what constitutes a religion that is entitled to the protections of the First Amendment? We all accept certain religions without question: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and probably five or ten more that we could all instantly recognize and list. But what about smaller religions that have more obscure religious practices, such as animal sacrifice or smoking marijuana? Last semester I researched how courts handle the evolution of the terms sex, race and religion in Title VII and similar legislation for a paper I was writing. For example, Scientology was founded in 1952 by L. Ron Hubbard. Does it qualify as a religion? Who gets to decide that?

If the courts or the government are involved in deciding which religions are “real” religions and which aren’t, doesn’t that qualify as establishing some religions over others by granting them the Constitutions protections? During my research I found a case from a Federal District Court in Wyoming about a Reverend in the Church of Marijauana named David Meyers who was accused of trafficking marijuana.You can find this case at 906 F.Supp. 1494. Meyers claimed that as a Reverend in the Church he should be allowed to possess and distribute Marijuana to the Church’s members. This was his free exercise of religion. He did not distribute the drugs to those outside of the Church.

This is not the first case to deal with illegal drugs and religion. For example the ritual use of Peyote has been permitted by Courts (e.g. State v. Whittingham, 19 Ariz.App. 27, (Ariz.Ct.App.1973)) and is now statutorily protected. The Meyers Court faced the challenge of deciding whether the Church of Marijuana qualified as a bona fide religion. The Court lays out a pretty comprehensive history of the definition of religion under the first amendment, beginning with a monotheistic, deity focused view, and evolving to the more atheist friendly view embraced today. The Supreme Court has not gotten very involved in defining religions, but has stated that the perceived truth or validity of the ideas are irrelevant and judges should never rely on “traditional” ideas of what constitutes a religion. See Meyers at 1500.

The Meyers Court came up with a five factor test to determine what makes up a religion: 1. Ultimate ideas; 2. Metaphysical beliefs; 3. Moral or ethical system; 4. Comprehensiveness of beliefs; and 5. Accoutrements of religion, including whether there are important writings, rituals, gathering places, holidays etc. The Church of Marijuana did not qualify as a religion under the Court’s test.

The Church of Marijauan was founded by Meyers and it worships marijuana because it brings happiness to those who use it. The Church relies on a book as its ‘bible’, Hemp & the Marijuana Conspiracy: The Emperor Wears No Clothes-The Authoritative Historical Record of the Cannabis Plant, Marijuana Prohibition, & How Hemp Can Still Save the World (“ Hemp ”). It has a gathering place, more than 800 members, prays to the marijuana plant and ritually passes around joints. The Church’s moral code is “to give a hand up, but not a hand out.”

Ultimately the Court found that the Church lacked ultimate ideas or metaphysical beliefs. It had some moral beliefs, but not a system. Its beliefs lacked comprehensiveness and it had few accoutrements of religion. It therefore, was not a religion protected by the First Amendment.

It is inevitable that someone has to decide whatqualifies as a religion. Courts are probably better suited to this task than legislatures because they are isolated from popular opinion and can grant Constitutional protections to unpopular minority religions. But it still seems odd that the government should be so entangled in establishing religions, in deciding which religions truly qualify. I wouldn’t want any court to rule that my religion wasn’t ‘real’, regardless of the factors it used or the leniency of the test. I’m not sure if there is a better way for us as a society to determine who to offer the Constitutions First Amendment protections to.

There is a lot more to write on this issue, but I’ll leave it to you all in the comments.

Hamilton Fish

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:27:49 GMT

Maybe its because I took Admin Law in the fall that I find this announcement exciting. Cass Sunstein, formerly a law professor at UChicago and currently a professor at Harvard, is going to head the Office of Information of Regulatory Affairs in the White House. This seems like a big deal - OIRA takes an increasingly [...]

Maybe its because I took Admin Law in the fall that I find this announcement exciting.

Cass Sunstein, formerly a law professor at UChicago and currently a professor at Harvard, is going to head the Office of Information of Regulatory Affairs in the White House.

This seems like a big deal - OIRA takes an increasingly important role in managing and administering the bureaucratic state. Sunstein is a prolific scholar (any search of WestLaw or Amazon.com will show you that!) and does a lot of work on Constitutional Law and Administrative Law. With the prospect of financial armageddon still hanging over us, a strong hand at the helm of all national regulatory policy seems like a wise move.

The only downside I can see to this is taking an academic who is accustomed to the world of theoretical considerations and placing him in a high-profile government position where practical considerations are the rule might be a problem. Theories work great in the law journals but when we try to apply them in the real world, they don’t always work as planned.

So what say you? Is hiring Sunstein a good move or will it be a bumpy ride?

The Power of a Guilty Plea

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:05:25 GMT

“You mean,” he said, this look of absolute unbelief working across his face, “you mean, if I’m guilty I get out today?” “Right.” “And if I’m innocent I stay locked up?” “You got it, man. So what are you gonna be, guilty or innocent?” James Mills, One Just Man, Simon and Schuster

“You mean,” he said, this look of absolute unbelief working across his face, “you mean, if I’m guilty I get out today?”

“Right.”

“And if I’m innocent I stay locked up?”

“You got it, man. So what are you gonna be, guilty or innocent?”

James Mills, One Just Man, Simon and Schuster

2009, the End of Bushisms

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 04:06:24 GMT

via AP -”I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully.” - September 2000, explaining his energy policies at an event in Michigan. -”Rarely is the question asked, is our children learning?” - January 2000, during a campaign event in South Carolina. -”They misunderestimated the compassion of our country. I think they misunderestimated the will and determination [...]

via AP

-”I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully.” - September 2000, explaining his energy policies at an event in Michigan.

-”Rarely is the question asked, is our children learning?” - January 2000, during a campaign event in South Carolina.

-”They misunderestimated the compassion of our country. I think they misunderestimated the will and determination of the commander-in-chief, too.” - Sept. 26, 2001, in Langley, Va. Bush was referring to the terrorists who carried out the Sept. 11 attacks.

-”There’s no doubt in my mind, not one doubt in my mind, that we will fail.” - Oct. 4, 2001, in Washington. Bush was remarking on a back-to-work plan after the terrorist attacks.

- “It would be a mistake for the United States Senate to allow any kind of human cloning to come out of that chamber.” - April 10, 2002, at the White House, as Bush urged Senate passage of a broad ban on cloning.

- “I want to thank the dozens of welfare-to-work stories, the actual examples of people who made the firm and solemn commitment to work hard to embetter themselves.” - April 18, 2002, at the White House.

-”There’s an old saying in Tennessee - I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee - that says, fool me once, shame on - shame on you. Fool me - you can’t get fooled again.” - Sept. 17, 2002, in Nashville, Tenn.

-”Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.” - Aug. 5, 2004, at the signing ceremony for a defence spending bill.

-”Too many good docs are getting out of business. Too many OB/GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across this country.” - Sept. 6, 2004, at a rally in Poplar Bluff, Mo.

- “Our most abundant energy source is coal. We have enough coal to last for 250 years, yet coal also prevents an environmental challenge.” - April 20, 2005, in Washington.

- “We look forward to hearing your vision, so we can more better do our job.” - Sept. 20, 2005, in Gulfport, Miss.

-”I can’t wait to join you in the joy of welcoming neighbours back into neighbourhoods, and small businesses up and running, and cutting those ribbons that somebody is creating new jobs.” - Sept. 5, 2005, when Bush met with residents of Poplarville, Miss., in the wake of hurricane Katrina.

-”It was not always a given that the United States and America would have a close relationship. After all, 60 years we were at war 60 years ago we were at war.” - June 29, 2006, at the White House, where Bush met with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

-”Make no mistake about it, I understand how tough it is, sir. I talk to families who die.” - Dec. 7, 2006, in a joint appearance with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

- “These are big achievements for this country, and the people of Bulgaria ought to be proud of the achievements that they have achieved.” - June 11, 2007, in Sofia, Bulgaria.

- “Mr. Prime Minister, thank you for your introduction. Thank you for being such a fine host for the OPEC summit.” - September 2007, in Sydney, Australia, where Bush was attending an APEC summit.

-”Thank you, Your Holiness. Awesome speech.” April 16, 2008, at a ceremony welcoming Pope Benedict to the White House.

-”The fact that they purchased the machine meant somebody had to make the machine. And when somebody makes a machine, it means there’s jobs at the machine-making place.” - May 27, 2008, in Mesa, Ariz.

-”And they have no disregard for human life.” - July 15, 2008, at the White House. Bush was referring to enemy fighters in Afghanistan.

- “I remember meeting a mother of a child who was abducted by the North Koreans right here in the Oval Office.” - June 26, 2008, during a Rose Garden news briefing.

-”Throughout our history, the words of the Declaration have inspired immigrants from around the world to set sail to our shores. These immigrants have helped transform 13 small colonies into a great and growing nation of more than 300 people.” - July 4, 2008 in Virginia.

- “This thaw - took a while to thaw, it’s going to take a while to unthaw.” Oct. 20, 2008, in Alexandria, La., as he discussed the economy and frozen credit markets.

h/t Nour El-Kadri of UofO Association of Part-Time Professors Board of Directors

Broad Consensus on Burris -- Among CA Legal Scholars

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 03:53:28 GMT

One time fast around the California legal web:* If Eugene Volokh and Erwin Chemerinsky both agree that Roland Burris can't be blocked from the U.S. Senate, then I'm not going to doubt it. (Election law expert Rick Hasen thinks Burris...

One time fast around the California legal web:

* If Eugene Volokh and Erwin Chemerinsky both agree that Roland Burris can't be blocked from the U.S. Senate, then I'm not going to doubt it. (Election law expert Rick Hasen thinks Burris can't be blocked either, but that his stay may be a short one.)

* Speaking of Burrises, Oakland police misconduct litigator John Burris might as well add another multimillion settlement to his resume right now. After watching this video, could you imagine trying this case?

* It's one thing to sue mega-corporations like Sony or Google. I mean, who hasn't? It's quite another to take on Oprah. We think former Fish & Richardson partner Scott Harris is really asking for trouble this time. (By the way, welcome back from vacation Joe Mullin!)

* The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals is now offering an RSS feed of the court's opinions. (Shameless plug: They don't come with the handy summaries you get with the Cal Law Case Alert.)

* You've got about three weeks left to pay your Bar dues. If you haven't done so yet, you might consider adding a few bucks for the new Justice Gap Fund [.pdf] -- a centralized State Bar fund that supports legal aid programs all over California.

— Scott Graham

yes, i am a dork. but i take comfort in the fact that you probably are, too

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 02:21:11 GMT

[pam smith] So I will admit that I am the kind of dork that would listen to a law school lecture for fun, assuming that a) it's entertaining, b) it doesn't involve an assignment, and c) I don't have to...

[pam smith]

So I will admit that I am the kind of dork that would listen to a law school lecture for fun, assuming that a) it's entertaining, b) it doesn't involve an assignment, and c) I don't have to pay any tuition. If you're that kind of person too -- and I suspect a lot of you are -- I'd highly recommend this one that W. Mark Lanier gave at Harvard Law in November. (HT to Drug and Device Law)

And if you're not already clicking on this link to watch (thank you for showing us the way, HLS), maybe these reasons will pique your interest:

Texas trial lawyer + part-time preacher = one hell of a folksy story teller. He sounds kind of like Garrison Keillor.
Wardrobe. He may look all buttoned-down on his law firm's Web site (photo at left), but his "campus casual" getup is a lot louder.
The man has had Miley Cyrus play his Christmas party. Seriously. Aren't you curious?

Most Popular San Diego Chargers Story of 2008*

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 01:31:54 GMT

Inmate Lerach, who’s in a hard place. *At least, it’s the most popular San Diego Chargers story on CalLaw in 2008. Check out the just-posted list of the 10 most popular stories of 2008 on CalLaw.com (the online counterpart to...

Inmate Lerach, who’s in a hard place.

*At least, it’s the most popular San Diego Chargers story on CalLaw in 2008.

Check out the just-posted list of the 10 most popular stories of 2008 on CalLaw.com (the online counterpart to The Recorder newspaper). Heller Ehrman and Thelen were high up there — no surprise there. But the role that Chargers tickets (allegedly) played in a certain famous lawyer’s prison term might be considered more of a sleeper hit.

For all the big stories, see the CalLaw post.

— Pam Smith

Thelen Employee Suit Refiles for Better Payday

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 01:29:28 GMT

Someone has pressed the restart button on a potential class action against defunct Thelen brought by former employees. Mathias Troup v. Thelen was dismissed, by request, on Dec. 29. On the same day, a similar class action was filed, Todd...

Someone has pressed the restart button on a potential class action against defunct Thelen brought by former employees.

Mathias Troup v. Thelen was dismissed, by request, on Dec. 29. On the same day, a similar class action was filed, Todd Bennett et. al. v. Thelen, with Troup as the second class representative.

It appears the first suit may have been filed too early, because employees can get more money under the California WARN Act if they wait 30 days to sue. Thelen announced on Oct. 28 that it would dissolve. Troup landed in San Francisco Superior Court about two weeks later, on Nov. 12.

Cary Kletter, with San Francisco-based Kletter & Peretz, is representing Bennet, a librarian at Thelen for 29 years, and Troup, a clerical worker for a little over a year. Kletter said they have clarified some claims with the new complaint.

“We believe that as it’s filed now, the plaintiff may have a claim for waiting-time penalties,” Kletter said.

Back in November, we ran a story that noted that attorneys who'd filed a separate class action in federal court had told California employees to wait to join so they could rack up larger claims.

L.A. employment law boutique Blum Collins is representing plaintiffs on a second, federal suit, Bergman v. Thelen, by employees who worked in the firm's New York and Connecticut offices. Attorneys from California were not expected to join that suit until this month, after waiting-period penalties have accrued.

"The problem is, if you file too early, you deprive your clients of 30 days of pay," partner Craig Collins had said at the time.

— Amanda Royal

GOP Suit Over Tax Hikes Fails Fast

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 01:00:19 GMT

That was fast … and probably moot. The Third District Court of Appeal has rejected a Republican lawsuit to block legislation raising California’s sales and gas taxes — legislation that the governor vetoed Tuesday night. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association...

The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and GOP lawmakers argued that Democrats’ passage of such legislation by a simple majority, and not the two-thirds votes required for tax increases under constitutional law, was illegal. And they took the unusual step Tuesday morning of asking the Third District to bar the tax hikes from taking effect, even though the governor had not received the legislation yet and had vowed to veto it anyway. Today, a three-justice panel led by Presiding Justice Arthur Scotland said that that was an important, yet missing, element to the lawsuit.

What the suit needed (not a second pair of pants), after the jump ...

“Absent the Legislature's passage and the governor's signing of such legislation, adjudications of its constitutionality and the other matters raised by the petition are not yet ripe for judicial review,” Scotland wrote.

Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis group, said the plaintiffs were disappointed.

“We thought we had actually asserted a pretty good claim, notwithstanding the governor’s veto,” Coupal said. “We suspect the issue will come up again.”

He may be right. The governor told reporters again today that he’s more concerned about Democrats easing business regulations in their budget plan than the legality of their majority-vote passage scheme.

Coupal said the plaintiffs may re-file in federal court or submit a revamped claim in state court.

“If the Democrats try this again, to use the governor’s own verbiage, we’ll be back,” he said. “This is a matter that needs to be adjudicated.”

— Cheryl Miller

Rediscovering Absinthe: Removing The Green Fairy From The Banned List

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 21:12:37 GMT

If there is any alcoholic drink in the global market that has been in for a lot of bad rep, then that would be the absinthe, or the green fairy as it is called. For decades this clear, green liquid has been condemned as a vile and vicious drink that can drive a sane man into distraction, and an unbalanced one into violence. It has been long labeled as a dangerous, hallucination-generating drink that should only be taken by the incredibly brave or the perpetually crazy. As part of the smear campaign against this drink, absinthe has been blamed for all sorts of fetal disorders, mental disorders and even the break down of social consciousness.

However, these last few years, people (particularly absinthe distillers, manufacturers and enthusiasts for the drink) have been adamant about clearing absinthe’s undeserved repute. It turns out that with modern technology and a more open-minded approach to this problem, people are slowly seeing that absinthe isn’t the killer drink everyone labeled it to be. In fact, it probably has the same general negative effects as any other alcoholic drink out there.

Perhaps one of the most credible advocates for absinthe in this time and age is chemist, microbiologist and absinthe manufacturer Ted Breaux. He reversed engineered absinthe’s most standard recipes and found that most blends did not contain the dangerously high doses of the chemical thujone that absinthe opponents claimed. It is said that thujone is the culprit behind the psychedelic effects brought by imbibing the drink, (which is, by the way, present in high doses in one stick of marijuana.) Ted Breaux’s treatise, published in Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, negates that claim, stating that most absinthe-based liquor being produced now contains the chemical in a 5:1,000,000 ratio. That’s 5 parts thujone to a million parts of absinthe.

Due to this study, most countries who had earlier placed absinthe under the banned list are now, so to speak, releasing their hold on the green fairy. Being a type of contraband, absinthe’s marketability and demand in the black market increased which lead to amazing prices in certain parts of the world. Importation and exportation processes, as well as manufacturing and distilling processes can now come out openly, and this will help bring down its prices to a more consumer-friendly level. The world’s governments can also benefit from such ban-lifting since now it would also be legal to put taxes on the liquor.

However, this does not mean that absinthe is the next health drink. Like all alcoholic drinks, it may be highly regulated by both international and national laws. Only absinthe liquors with thujone-free labels (or less than 10:1,000,000/10ppm thujone.) are allowed to be put up for public sale. Additionally, there are medical warnings against the over-consumption of liquor.

So where did the bad reputation come from? Historical evidence suggests that in the earliest production days of absinthe, many bootleg brands and home made brews did not undergo rigorous distillation or even sanitary processing. Impurities in the drink may have contaminated the drink, and may have led certain people into dangerous forms of hallucinations. Also, the earliest “researches” done with absinthe were faulty, and no one corrected the findings until now. However, the general presumption is: too many people simply had too much to drink. Present day studies show that alcoholism in general can lead to fetal defects, brain damage, liver damage and susceptibility to violence - it all boils down to moderation and being smart about what you put into your body.

No related posts.

Feed Woes Update

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 17:59:17 GMT

It pays to be a programmer sometimes. I just finished writing a script to migrate our database so the podcasts, which previously pointed to the Podango feed, now point to a valid source location. You can now listen to our podcasts through the website or you can subscribe to the various classes at our feedpage — [...]

It pays to be a programmer sometimes.

I just finished writing a script to migrate our database so the podcasts, which previously pointed to the Podango feed, now point to a valid source location. You can now listen to our podcasts through the website or you can subscribe to the various classes at our feedpage — you can click the iTunes Subscribe button and it will add that feed to the list of your podcasts using iTunes as your podcatcher. You can find our feed list here: http://www.lifeofalawstudent.com/podcast-feeds/

NOTE: Subscribing through the iTunes Store will still be problematic as we have to speak with iTunes support to make that change for us and those types of requests usually take some time to process. So, we’d greatly appreciate it if you could pass along the word about the update.

Oh, and Happy New Year folks.

Sedentary Law Students

LawIngenue@gmail.com (Law Ingenue) — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 17:25:14 GMT

I was fairly sedentary before law school, but law school has made it worse. As law student, we lead a pretty sedentary life. For non-trads like me, it's even more so. As a law student, I spend a lot of time either sitting in class, sitting to do...

Daphna Golan on Israeli Students, Academics

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 16:24:38 GMT

Dr. Daphna Golan, Professor of Law at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, explains in Haaeretz today why the academic establishment in Israel should oppose the Gazan assault, The students’ fight against the tuition increase, the lecturers’ struggle over their salaries, and the battle of the institutions of higher education over budgets - all were good reasons for [...]

Dr. Daphna Golan, Professor of Law at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, explains in Haaeretz today why the academic establishment in Israel should oppose the Gazan assault,

The students’ fight against the tuition increase, the lecturers’ struggle over their salaries, and the battle of the institutions of higher education over budgets - all were good reasons for repeated strikes over the past two years. But now, when - over a few days of an unnecessary and cruel war - hundreds of people have been killed and a fortune has been wasted that could certainly compete with the annual higher education budget, no one is talking about a strike…

We should actually have gone on strike many years ago - in the days of the first intifada, when the Israel Defense Forces closed the schools and universities in the territories for months on end. They told us then not to bring politics onto campus, and that the army knew what it was doing; they told us we couldn’t let the Palestinians throw stones, and so we kept teaching…

Now too, we are continuing as usual, as the same leaders who failed and repeatedly chose force over dialogue are bombing and killing, just like Hamas. It’s not too late to call for dialogue, with Hamas and with any Arab leader prepared to talk with us.

Would Sid Ryan ban this legal academic too?

Hamilton Fish

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 16:14:01 GMT

Thank you metro-rider who sings and dances in the train car. You always brighten my day. The last time we met, you were lost in your own little world. You danced and sang aloud your favorite songs, without a care in the world for the others on the train who stared at you. At every stop, [...]

Thank you metro-rider who sings and dances in the train car. You always brighten my day.

The last time we met, you were lost in your own little world. You danced and sang aloud your favorite songs, without a care in the world for the others on the train who stared at you. At every stop, you stepped off the train to make room for the others to board, but you never missed a beat to your song. It was quite impressive. I have to admit, at times, I wished I had your dancing skills, your social confidence, and your ability to know every word to a song. Yes, at times Metro Singer, I envied you. For you see, you represented hope that the metro car could one day become a place of social gathering. Commuting could be fun if everyone was just willing to sing a little song and do a little dance. Years from now, when tourists would come to town and see how DC residents behaved in the metro, they would learn that it was all because of you. You could have been the start of something big.

After the last time I saw you, I thought it was the end - that there would be no more dancing or singing in the car. And I was relieved. The more I thought about it, the more I realized how ridiculous you looked. Seriously? Dancing and singing in the metro? Where do you think you are, New York City? New York has a monopoly on subway entertainment - and you best not try to fight the system and bring it here. It doesn’t belong. If you want to sing and dance, go to a club, try out for American Idol, or stand in front of your mirror. Don’t show me or anyone else on the subway the way you groove to a tune. We don’t want to know.

Today, when I saw you again, I felt bad. I don’t think you realize how ridiculous you look. Or how hard people stare at you. Or how riders cast glances at each other and say, without speaking a word, “Get a load of this guy! Doesn’t he know he is in a public place?” I wanted to get your attention and yell at you, ” Don’t you get it!? Don’t you see? What will it take to save yourself and act the way everyone else does? “

The last time we met, you brightened my day because you gave me a fleeting glimpse of a different world - a world where dancing in the train was ok - the world where you come from. Today, when we met, you brightened my day because as I listened to music on the metro and watched you dance, you reminded me that no matter how strong the impulse, I never want to become, The Metro Singer.

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