Rambling Thoughts From A Disheveled Mind

A Reason We Are In Bad Shape

Thu, 15 May 2008 17:14:32 GMT

Congress is many things, but one of them is not being the uber-commissioner of professional sports. Senator Specter wants to look into whether the New England Patriots were filming the practices of opponents. Hey, Senator, football is a private association, governed by a Commissioner. If any crimes were committed, the local District Attorney or United States Attorney will deal with it. You are a Senator, Senator. You need to be doing Senator things like feeding the people, making sure they have care when they are sick, enabling them to exercise their hard won freedom, and protecting us from those attempting to take it away. While I have no love for the New England Patriots, they are none of your business, unless you are a fan, in which case you need to write to them or to the Commissioner of the NFL. If you cannot think of any important things to look into, drop me a line and I'll give you a list.

Letting Farm Subsidies Whither

Tue, 06 May 2008 14:32:21 GMT

You would think that with the high price of food here, and around the world, there would be little use for farm subsidies. Judge Richard Posner of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals agrees with you.

Who Will Protect Us From The Other Creditors?

Sun, 04 May 2008 14:02:49 GMT

In recent days, the Federal Reserve Bank introduced proposed regulations to assert more control over credit card companies. Interestingly, while the Fed is interested in controlling how investment banks borrow and invest, it is less interested in how consumers borrow and invest. In its view, the evil of credit is not that consumers borrow more than they can afford, but that the credit card companies are ruthless in expecting prompt payment, and charging penalties for failure to abide by the agreement. It is true that credit card companies are ravenous when it comes to charging penalty interest, and regulation there would be appropriate so that credit card companies do not have the right to gouge at interest rates surpassing the profit ration of oil companies. Yet, the Fed misses the point, and perhaps highlights the one virtue of penality interest. The high rate of credit should force the consumer to live within means. Seemingly it does not, and that is what takes me to another Thomas Friedman column.

America is living on someone else's dime and as a consequence it is unable to continue adequately the programs and resources that made the country great. Rather, it is those countries from who we borrow that now can take the initiative, and do, to innovate and grow. The thrust of the Friedman column is that we do not have a leader willing to confront the problem, and to make us more aware and responsive to it. Hope should not be of a magic bohemia where we never get sick, we never grow old, and we never die; hope should be the impetus to recognize the shortcomings of our behaviour so that we can realistically address our conduct so that in an efficient and pragmatic fashion we can achieve what we dream.

Dumb As We Wanna Be

Sat, 03 May 2008 13:58:48 GMT

In the Federalist Papers nos. 9 and 10, Hamilton and Madison argued about the benefit of the Republic against the evil of faction. Common wisdom relates that argument as being against special interests. While that seems true, I think it can also refer to the political parties themselves. Thomas Friedman in a recent opinion piece on the proposal to waive the federal gas tax for the summer, demonstrates why the political parties are our worst enemy of our well being.

Drawing The Line

Fri, 04 Apr 2008 16:42:02 GMT

I try to eat healthy, and respect the environment. I get various feeds and email about going green and cooking. One I received today made me realize there are limits. No matter how pretty the picture, whole wheat tollhouse cookies are disgusting.

Ruminations on Nominations

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 20:22:31 GMT

In her blog today, my wife is plotzing over the way the nomination process works here in Texas. Yes, it is convuluted, but no more than Texas politics generally. It is one more way for the party to control what it wants. Kind of like the electoral college, but on steroids. (Of course we'll deny that, but if it works for Roger Clemons, it works for all of us).

I grew up in South Texas where the dead were known to vote, and to vote often. Chicago has nothing on South Texas. Therefore, I'm numb to the zaniness of the process. For me, the Texas nominiation process was fascinating this year because (1) it meant something in the large scheme of things; (2) it brought out how diverse Texas is, and how difficult it is to campaign here (we have more media markets than sense); and (3) the Mavericks haven't been playing that great and not much coverage could be allocated to that.

Now with election day past, we can get on with what is important; whatever that is.

We Have Seen The Enemy, And They Are Us

Sun, 24 Feb 2008 15:05:40 GMT

For years to come, people will be studying and talking about how Hillary Clinton managed to lose, or came close to losing the presidential nomination. In fact that discussion has already started. Unfortunately, for most political commentators and scholars, it will not be something that they can talk about articulately. To fully understand what happened here, we will have to turn to....geeks. That's right, computer nerds. You see, it isn't so much that Mr. Obama will make a better President than Ms. Clinton, or that she represents something he doesn't. Rather, it is the fact that Mr. Obama did what most people do...find a cheap way to stick it to the man. In this case, he needed only to look to Amazon.com.

You'll probably remember that when Amazon first started, people hooted at the idea of an online book seller. And then when Amazon branched out into tools and other items, it was seen as a desperate attempt to save the entity. While in fact it took a while for Amazon to make a profit, it is now an everyday feature of life. Why? Because Amazon offers something for everyone in a convenient package. The people at Amazon realized that the while they could make some money off of book buyers, that was not where the true money resided. By offering something to everyone, in a convenient form, it is able to bring everyone together in one place at one time, even though each has a different interest. Merely clicking on a link takes that person to where they want to be, without leaving Amazon.

So, while it seems that Mr. Obama isn't saying anything, in fact he is saying everything. "Come into the tent, we'll take care of you." And people have flocked. They have done so because it is easy. They need only go to the internet and they can link into the Obama organization; an organization that studied the early attempts of Howard Dean and ran with it. Mr. Obama isn't the only one. Ron Paul has raised more money in this fashion than anyone would ever have dreamed. So, while it is true that the Internet is a powerful machine for change, you still need a driver; othrewise Mr. Paul would be the leading Republican candidate.

Yes, this election cycle may be one of generational change, but not in the sense that most political pundits mean it. The discussion has started. For me though, the Internet has only afforded the political process a more expedient means of doing what it has always done; be as centrist as possible to appeal to as many people as possible. The real question is whether it will do anything to enable the winner to lead more effectively.

Simple Things

Sat, 23 Feb 2008 13:40:12 GMT

I've started reading The New York Times online during the weekend because as it turns out most of the stories in The Dallas Morning News come from there. A couple of stories caught my eye this morning, and after considering the actual content, I started to consider them in a larger context.

The first story, and mind you this is The New York Times was about the fact that Texas has become the largest producer of wind energy. Not only is it serving as a catalyst for alternative fuels, but as a means of reviving economies across the state. While he has not done much right, either as Governor or President, especially with regard to the environment and alternative energy, it was George Bush who as Governor encouraged the development of wind energy (and it wasn't even something that Dick Cheney at Halliburton could capitalize on).

The second story, actually a blog (Bitten) by Mark Bittman, was on the ease and joy of making real popcorn. I remember making popcorn. I didn't gag on the fumes coming out of the microwave now.

Using the wind and popping corn kernels are not new ideas. But they work and haven't really been improved upon. There are alternatives of course, but each has had dramatic consequences. So it isn't so much that we need new ideas, or a change in philosophy, we need to stop pursuing immediate gratification. We need to figure out what we want, what it costs, and then go after it. The responsibility for it lies with us. The preacher-like chant for change echoes hollow. If any change is needed, it is in ourselves. Everything does not have to be made easier or labor saving. Everything does not have to be laid out before us. With a little hard work, we can put up a wind turbine that will generate electricity, that will power the stove, to allow us to cook our whole grain kernels of corn that hopefully we grew without massive amounts of chemicals that are either leached into the soil or our bodies. We won't destroy the environment. We won't give leverage to sheet wearing oil moguls. We will be eating healthier. It's simple.

Of Men and Sheeeple

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 20:12:40 GMT

Having a degree in Government, indeed, having special honors in government, you'd think I'd be more interested in the election process this year. I don't. I'm apathetic, and annoyed. While I don't know that Hillary Clinton is any great leader, I do agree with her on one thing, and apparently so does Robert Samuelson at Newsweek. Saying something is change doesn't make it so. It's OK to vote for Obama because he's a nice guy, or a great talker, or even because he is black. But it is not a vote for change.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Another Round of Applause Please for Mr. Frank Sinatra and ...

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 15:36:40 GMT

Ok, so it was possible for my week to get worse. Yet somehow, out of that depth of despair, I managed a smile.

My usual routine at work is to turn on either the High Standards channel on xmradio, or my Sinatra station on Pandora. It has a calming effect. This morning, as the sun was coming up I went with Pandora. Now I must tell you that I am not a big fan of the "Duet" concept for aging stars. To me it is the equivalent of the celebrity roast...without the vulgarity. Unfortunately, the Chairman sunk to this level in his later years. However, this morning I found a nugget of gold in what otherwise may be a waste heap.

I must first digress. I am not a huge Willie Nelson fan. I enjoy him on occassion and appreciate that he is the soul of Austin and makes a fine diesel product. Several years ago he descended to the second path for aging stars....the standards album. In Willie's case, though, I thought it was a remarkable production and it remains one of my favorite CDs. If you can find a copy of Stardust, get it. So back to this morning. Out of the blue comes Mr. Frank Sinatra and Willie Nelson singing a Foggy Day. Odd; incompatable; worthy of a smile. Thanks guys.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Frank Sinatra

Sat, 02 Feb 2008 18:54:17 GMT

It's been a bad week. One of those weeks where if it wasn't for bad news, there'd been no news at all. Yet, the sun came out this morning, and my wife and I went to our nearby Starbucks for coffee (a weekend ritual we've recently developed). Over the music system, a Sinatra CD was playing. My wife thought that it would have been better if it had been a cloudy or rainy day for Sinatra, but for me no way.

Sometime around 1991, when I was in Del Mar, California on a project, I went into a small restaurant one morning for breakfast. Over the tinny sound system they were playing Sinatra. It was a wonderful breakfast. This morning in Starbucks, I was taken back to that; but it was more.

I love all kinds of music (I'd exclude Rap but since I don't consider it music that would be overkill). In junior high school and high school I was in Band and in bands. We played all kinds of things (some of which should never have been arranged for a junior high school band). Usually on weekends I, or one of my brothers would help my parents, who were photographers, at weddings or other social events. Every now and then it would be a big affair...I mean a BIG affair, with big bands brought in for performances. Now my Dad loved big bands. He would have loved to have played drums with one. I play drums, but never got to be in a big band. I loved the sound of the big bands. That was probably the genesis of my true affection for the Chairman of the Board. Having recently taken up the bass, I lament the fact that I will never be able to back up Mr. Frank Sinatra with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra.

So, to cap a really bad week, I came home, opened up the patio doors, and put on my favorite CD. The Reprise compilation of the Chairman, this one entitled Ring a DIng Ding. Ahhhh.

A Microsoft-less World

Sat, 02 Feb 2008 13:09:44 GMT

I have this love-hate relationship with Microsoft products. It is like getting something from Sony. You know there are other products out there that do the exactly the same thing, but you are willing to pay more, sometimes a lot more, because it has the Sony name on it. After a while, so many people are doing it that other suppliers cater mostly, or only to that brand.

Take Outlook, for example. I have had, and loved Outlook for several versions now. Mine has a lot of add-ins that help me get through the day; because I keep and file virtually all email. I would be lost without reminders constantly popping up; and sometimes I need Journal to find out where I have been. But Outlook becomes slow and bloated pretty quick. Especially the 2007 version. I compact and archive often, but still it is a lumbering giant. Over the last couple of days I downloaded Mozilla's Thunderbird again and installed it. While not as feature rich as Outlook, there was something in its simplicity that at least for the moment appeals to me.

It's that same simplicity that sent me back to LiveJournal from Microsoft Spaces. I liked that Spaces was integrated with Live.com so that if I found something I wanted to talk about, I could just click a button and start blogging about it (okay, not so often and not so much, but that isn't the point). LiveJournal had a simpler interface.

So it was interesting when I was reading through the online version of the New York Times this morning when there were 2 articles that caught the essence of what I was feeling. The first article took up the argument that in making a bid for Yahoo, Microsoft was conceding that it had failed in the online business; settling for 2nd place in the internet ad business. The point was that as a bloated monopoly, Microsoft has lost its way and is slow to creativity as a consequence of its obesity.

Almost immediately after reading that article, I came across another, which discussed a new Linux based computer, that does not integrate Microsoft products, but rather is founded on using Goggle products. The user interface takes you to Google Docs, or Calendar or whatever other Google product you fancy. That computer is $200.00......at Wal-Mart (I know, I know......but that is a whole different blog, and I'm sure at some point my wife has written about it - like this one.) So it is possible to exist cheaply in the 21st century without Microsoft.

Coffee

Fri, 01 Feb 2008 21:43:20 GMT

When I first started the practice of law, I drank a lot of coffee. I mean a lot; pots full. It came to me naturally. My mother, a New Yorker with Rhode Island roots, put coffee in my bottle, as well as that of my brothers. There was no turning back. People often don't understand my commitment and devotion to coffee. Recently, I came across a blog in the New York Times by Judith Warner that expresses perfectly my sentiment. The blog and the comments to it make me happy because now I have a community.

A postscript since I wrote this entry. I was listening to my favorite Sinatra CD and remembered it had the Coffee Song:

Way down among Brazilians
Coffee beans grow by the billions
So they've got to find those extra cups to fill
They've got an awful lot of coffee in Brazil

You can't get cherry soda
'cause they've got to fill that quota
And the way things are I'll bet they never will
They've got a zillion tons of coffee in Brazil

No tea or tomato juice
You'll see no potato juice
'cause the planters down in Santos all say "No, no, no"

The politician's daughter
Was accused of drinkin' water
And was fined a great big fifty dollar bill
They've got an awful lot of coffee in Brazil

You date a girl and find out later
She smells just like a percolator
Her perfume was made right on the grill
Why, they could percolate the ocean in Brazil

And when their ham and eggs need savor
Coffee ketchup gives 'em flavor
Coffee pickles way outsell the dill
Why, they put coffee in the coffee in Brazil

No tea, no tomato juice
You'll see no potato juice
The planters down in Santos all say "No, no, no"

So you'll add to the local color
Serving coffee with a cruller
Dunkin' doesn't take a lot of skill
They've got an awful lot of coffee
An awful lot of coffee
Man, they got a gang of coffee in Brazil!!

Dispute Resolution v. The Truth

Fri, 07 Sep 2007 18:07:27 GMT

I am in my 28th year of practicing law. I am in my 18th year of being a mediator. Sometimes there is an interesting confrontation between the 2.

We were asked by one of our clients, a life insurance company, to defend it against a claim in South Texas that an agent had misrepresented the policy to the insured. The first interesting fact about the case was that the policy was sold in 1993 and cancelled by the insured in 1994, when it was replaced with a policy with a greater death benefit from another company. The lawsuit against our client was filed in 2005. The second interesting fact was that the Plaintiff was seeking damages of almost $11 million. The life insurance policy the client had sold to him had a death benefit of $350,000. The insured had paid approximately $220 per month for a year; so the insurance company received about $2500, the bulk of which was paid to the agent in commission. The third interesting fact is that the insured was allegedly told by the agent that after 8 years the insured would not have to come out of pocket for premium, but rather the policy would generate sufficient income to pay the premium. Again, the insured cancelled the policy after 1 year, and was never requested by the insurance company to pay anything after that time.

As a mediator, my initial thought was that assuming everything the Plaintiff said was true, which was a big assumption, what could be done for this person? Immediately my thought went to getting the Plaintiff some type of paid up insurance policy as a compromise. This was rejected by the Plaintiff who wanted cash. This struck me as outrageous. The deal with the insurance company was that the named beneficiary of the policy would receive the money when the insured died. Why should the insured get money during his life? Try as I might, I could not reconcile the "just result" of some type of replacement policy with the "expedient result" of handing over money.

As a lawyer, I had the case prepared for trial and was ready to show the flaws in the claims of the Plaintiff. However, the case was pending in a Texas county notorious for outrageous verdicts against insurance companies. While a bad result could be changed at the appeal level, it would only be after spending a lot of time and money. Lawsuits are designed for one purpose, generally. To obtain an order from the Court declaring that one party should pay money to another party.

Recently I was reading a novel by Robin Cook and there was a passage in there that civil lawsuits are not about finding the truth, but rather are about resolving disputes. Mediation is ofter referred to as one of the forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution. Instead of having a judge and a jury hear that evidence which the Court allows to be presented (and which the parties remember to call to the Court's attention) in mediation the parties meet with a neutral facilitator to try to reach a resolution that each will accept. Rarely does mediation in a situation like this involve getting to the truth. Indeed, very quickly the truth and the facts have very little to do with reaching a resolution. Instead, it is merely seeking a number that will be paid and accepted.

For the insurance company, we did find a number that the Plaintiff was willing to accept, which was dramatically lower than the number that had been demanded. Still, it was money that the Plaintiff gets to use right now for whatever he wants; leaving behind his earlier goal of having money go to beneificiaries on his death.

In Defense of Cats

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 19:16:54 GMT

A couple of events today prompt the rare circumstance of me posting twice in a day. Generally it is rare that I post twice in a month. My wife, a wonderful woman who loves to blog, posted results from a mini poll at her web site, All About Romance. One particular poll dealt with favorite pets from a book. The results were as follows:

1. Malcolm the cat, How To Marry a Marquis, Julia Quinn
2. Dumfries the dog, Saving Grace, Julie Garwood
3. The wolf in Honor's Splendor, Julie Garwood
4. Stanley the dog, Girls of Summer, Barbara Bretton
5. Fred the dog, Anyone But You, Jennifer Crusie
6. Beezel the weasel, Bewitching, Jill Barnett

As you can see, canines prevail, and the cat received as much attention as a weasel, though in this particular contest the cat seemed to win out. People obviously tend to be dog people. This was reinforced by an email an associate sent me today:

Excerpts from a Dog's Diary

8:00 am      Dog food! My favorite thing!
9:30 am      A car ride! My favorite thing!
9:40 am      A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
10:30 am   Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!
12:00 pm   Lunch! My favorite thing!
1:00 pm     Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
3:00 pm     Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
5:00 pm     Milk bones! My favorite thing!
7:00 pm     Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
8:00 pm     Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
11:00 pm   Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!

Excerpts from a Cat's Diary

Day 983 of my captivity.  My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre
little dangling objects.  They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the
other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets.  Although
I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must
eat something in order to keep up my strength.  The only thing that
keeps me going is my dream of escape.  In an attempt to disgust them, I once
again vomit on the carpet.

Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their
feet.  I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it
clearly demonstrates what I am capable of.  However, they merely made
condescending comments about what a "good little hunter" I am.
Bastards!

There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight.  I was
placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event.  However,
I could hear the noises and smell the food.  I overheard that my
confinement was due to the power of "allergies."  I must learn what this
means, and how to use it to my advantage.

Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my
tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking.  I must try
this again tomorrow -- but at the top of the stairs.

I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches.  The
dog receives special privileges.  He is regularly released - and seems to be more than
willing to return.  He is obviously retarded.  The bird has got to be an
informant.  I observe him communicate with the guards regularly.  I am
certain that he reports my every move.  My captors have arranged
protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe.  For
now...

From this I conclude that dog people are very simple people, easily pleased. Cat people are very complex, cautious thinkers who demand and seek liberty. Chalk me up as a cat person.

On Being the Friend of a Texan

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 17:23:44 GMT

So there I was this morning when my legal assistant approaches and says "I had dinner in your neighborhood last friday." Now my neighborhood is no cultural oasis, and she lives in a suburb. She continued, "yeah, we drove for an hour and a half in the rain." I asked her where in the world she could possibly want to go in a driving rain storm like that. She started to spell the name, and I stopped her in mid spell....."you went to Ozona?" "Yes" she excitedly answered. "It must have been for the Chicken Fried Steak" I remarked knowingly. "Yes, it was rated number 1 in D Magazine" she responded.

Driving an hour and a half in a driving rain storm to eat a Chicken Fried Steak is something only a Texan would do, and only something that another Texan would understand.

On Being a Texan

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 15:28:28 GMT

There is a radio ad running here in Dallas by GEICO, in which the gecko talks about coming to Texas to sell policies. Of course there is a reference to everything being bigger in Texas and that things are different in Texas. Certainly I do not dispute that. However, in recent months I have given more thought to living somewhere else because (a) Rick Perry, the governor, is exceeded only by George Bush in being the stupidest (or is that most stupid) person on the planet; and (b) I have been to Vermont. In talking with my daughter last week, who is in Vermont, she was lamenting the fact that she was not in the South. This was a statement a long time coming as she has always talked of living in a metropolitan area on the East Coast.

There are many fine things about the South. I was reminded of one yesterday when I came home and saw that my wife had purchased the most recent issue of D a publication that focuses on the Dallas area. On the cover was the teaser for the central article, The 25 Best Chicken Fried Steaks, Ok, you just can't go wrong with a title like that. While every place may have a country style steak or some concoction like that, it is in Texas where it rises to an art form, and people breakdown the product into its various components for assessment (leading to the ultimate question: Are you a dumper or a dipper? Meaning do you dump the cream gravy all over your CFS or do you dip each piece). This was reinforced recently when I watched an episode of Giada's Weekend Getaways on the Food Network. She went to the Broken Spoke in Austin and had the Chicken Fried Steak. You gotta love a girl like that. Other than going to Threadgills and getting the CFS and the Fried Chicken Livers it doesn't get any better than that.

We very much are a product of where we live, and perhaps that makes me, among other things, a Chicken Fried Steak. So whether I wind up in Wales, Vermont or somewhere in between, I will be in search of that place that serves a Chicken Fried Steak to remind me where I've been.

Winter for a Son of Summer

Thu, 15 Mar 2007 21:05:28 GMT

Many years ago my best friend married a woman in East Hampton, New York. It is a remarkable event, a wedding in the Hamptons. This event was made more memorable by the fact that the bride was the niece of Commissioner Bowie Kuhn. Growing up, Commissioner Kuhn was synonymous with baseball. He had just retired as Commissioner and I remember sitting at the bar of the Palm (which was the coffee shop of the hotel the rehearsal dinner was taking place at). We were watching a National League playoff game with the Cubs. I asked him what it was like to be able to root for a team now. He smiled and said it was made all the better by the fact that the Cubs were in the playoffs. Commissioner Kuhn died today. He had his good moments and his bad. For me, he made a memorable event more memorable.

Racist Thoughts From a Legal Mind

Sat, 10 Mar 2007 18:40:15 GMT

I am a lawyer. Apparently I am also a racist. On this particular subject, I am ok with that. In our state Judges are elected. Last November, in virtually every contested judicial race in our County, a Democrat was elected, displacing a Republican who had long held the job. I don't care whether a judge is Democrat or Republican. I am more concerned that the Judge know the law and know what needs to be done in managing the docket.

In yesterdays Dallas Morning News there was an article that a newly elected Judge had set aside a Motion that had been filed by the Plaintiff, Citibank. This is a credit card debt case. A not infrequent type of case. Here, the Defendant, the credit card customer, was in default of his obligation to the tune of about $15,000.00. The Defendant, who claims that he does not speak English, did not have an attorney. He had filed an Answer, in English. The Plaintiff, Citibank, had filed a Motion for Summary Judgment. In this Motion, the movant demonstrates that there is no geniune issue of material fact, and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. In other words, there is no question about the facts and one side or another is entitled to judgment without a trial. The Defendant did not file a response, and the Motion was granted. The Defendant then showed up and said, hey, that's not right, I didn't know that I needed to file a response, and Citibank should have translated the pleadings into Spanish so that I could understand them. The Judge agreed.

This is outrageous for more than one reason. First, putting the Motion into Spanish still wouldn't have told the Defendant what needed to be done. To know what to do, you need to review the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. The Defendant didn't know what to do because (a) he is not a lawyer and (b) he did not undertake the effort to understand the rules, which the law requires if you are going to represent yourself. This had nothing to do with Spanish; it had everything to do with not following the rules. There are lots of people who choose to represent themselves, who speak only English, who don't read the rules and they don't get a special break. So this obviously had nothing to do with not understanding and following the rules. BUT, more importantly, there is no requirement that one party translate documents for another. Rather, under the rules it is the responsibility of the party who uses another language to get an interpreter. This too the Defendant did not do. Finally, there is no requirement in my state that Court proceedings be conducted in a language other than English, nor should there be. I am tired, particularly of the Hispanic community, saying that we need to change the rules for them. I went to school and studied law. I do not want to go to school to study Spanish (which, though my public school instilled in me from grades 3 through 12, with 4 more semesters in College and 2 stints in Berlitz I still cannot speak fluently). My client does not have to incur the expense to learn Spanish or to translate public documents into Spanish because you entered into an agreement to pay a debt, and then breached the agreement. If this country presents opportunities that draw others here, then you need to take the opportunity on the terms on which it is available - including the obligation to speak English. I am not interested in a society fractured by language and culture. We have Iraq for that (or Canada if you like a cooler climate).

People have been coming to American for over 200 years and have been able to maintain their culture while adopting the language for common purposes. We don't need a bilingual court system. If that makes me a racist, I proudly wear that badge.

The Curse of Technology

Fri, 22 Sep 2006 18:28:32 GMT

I am a software junkie. There, I said it. I am always on the lookout for new software (generally business or productivity oriented) or add ins to existing software. It is a perversion that is a cruel mistress. I know that upgrades are buggy and I shouldn't touch them. But I am lured by the siren song of newness and being one step closer to software utopia.

While I have an iPod, which my wife and daughter generously gave me as present, I am not glued to it. After all, it is hardware, not software. However, I recently embarked on the task of moving most of my CDs onto iTunes. One day, while firing up iTunes on my laptop, I got the message that there was a newer version. I happily clicked on upgrade and installed the file. While probably not the rush illegal substances would yield, I was satisfied by the technology high. I quickly realized though, that I had overdosed on upgrades.

Since I was importing CDs into iTunes, I needed it to provide the names for the tracks. It automatically does so by connecting to the CD Database maintained by Gracenote. Yet, often I would get an error message that a connection could not be made. I knew the CDs were in the database (you can check the database independently of iTunes.) After searching through Apple support, I went into the discussion groups (I am shy, so mixing with a group, even a virtual one, is not my first choice). I quickly found posts by the disenchanted with version 7 of the iTunes software. While it took some deleting, uninstalling, renaming, copying and finger crossing, I got rid of the upgrade and put back the older version. Oila...connection re-established.

I tell myself again and again not to immediately get those upgrades and betas....but as I check my mail in the beta of Outlook 2007, I know I am weak and will fail.

An Old Dog Continues to Learn New Tricks

Tue, 18 Apr 2006 19:54:02 GMT

I have long been a fan of Post It Notes, even though they are rumored to be environmentally hazardous. Whether for marking pages, or leaving notes, life simply would not be so easy for me without them. Other than making different shapes, and printing them with different colors and stationery, the Post It Note seemed to have filled its universe. Then came digital cameras. Initially, people with digital cameras left the shots in the camera because it was expensive to take them to a developer, and at home printers were a real crap shoot. Now, the printers are better quality. So, what do we do with all those pictures? We print them on Post It Notes and say goodbye to frames.

If you are like my 14 year old daughter, you spend countless hours trying to figure out how to steal enough tape and tacks to put stuff up on your walls. Now, with Post It Notes containing photographic paper up to 8.5 x 11, there is a whole new world of opportunity to print things out and stick them on your wall.

Take that China and India.

The Real End of an Era

Wed, 05 Apr 2006 14:51:38 GMT

We all love Katie Couric. She is America's sweetheart. Yet, with her move to the anchor seat on the CBS Evening News, for me there is an end to the era of the great reporters bringing us news at night. Fundamentally, I think we have moved now to the era of the news reader. Surely, Katie Couric is able as a journalist, having one awards for her abilities. Yet, she is not a Bob Schieffer, though I am certain he will say all the right things about her.

One of the things I like about Good Morning America is that both Charles Gibson and Diane Sawyer had a journalists' background. I could picture them getting into a story; though the format of morning shows rarely allows that any more. The Today show in its present iteration struck me as just entertainment. Now, I am left with the impression that the evening news is going the same way. Probably it is a reflection of the fact that fewer people rely on the evening news as the source for their information.

Growing up with Walter Cronkite, I have always looked to that chair on the evening news as something greater than a spot for someone to read me the news. It was a place where I felt that someone had dug into the details and was telling me what was going on. It was a crusty old guy that I could count on the get to the bottom of things. It could be a crusty old woman too. Or a crusty young woman (if that's possible and I tend to think it is). I'm not looking for glam or a smile. Looking at the 3 networks now, I see the next generation, yes; but, I don't see that depth of experience that gave me the comfort that I used to have.

So, This is Democracy

Thu, 09 Feb 2006 16:16:34 GMT

My wife was noting to me the other day the brilliance of Fareed Zacariah in his observation of the results of democracy in places America has advocated its development. The thrust of his observation was that just because you have free elections does not mean that you end up with leaders who think like we do. Witness, Hamas. I pointed out to her that I had earlier made the same observation about South America, but my having graduated with High Honors, Special Honors in government and Phi Beta Kappa does not have the cache of a byline in Newsweek (or my own PBS show). That's ok, since she is probably the only person reading this anyway.

The real point for writing this is not to chide my wife, who I love and cherish, but to take the discussion one level higher, and to get back to the thoughts of another columnist, Thomas Friedman, who I don't get to read as often as I used to because the New York Times has started charging for on line access to his work. Friedman's common theme about the Mid-East problem and extremist Islam is that the extremists believe Islam works only in a feudal context. Men must dominate women, and all must be done to serve the will of G-d who will reward the men with countless virgins in paradise. What the virtuous Muslim woman gets in heaven is not quite clear (which I find interesting since the Muslim man is supposed to honor and protect her since she is the source for the strong Muslim man). Within Islam this is a paradox because now women are being used as suicide bombers (perhaps to chastise Muslim men for not stepping forward).

Western ideas are antithetical to a feudal society. Extremists seem to want death to America not for what it is, but for what it represents to Islam - the destruction of the feudal construct. This, in large part, is the reason that so many Islamic governments are fueling the flames over the cartoons in the Danish press about prophet. Sari Hanafi, an associate professor at the American University in Beirut, said that for Arab governments resentful of the Western push for democracy, the protests presented an opportunity to undercut the appeal of the West to Arab citizens. The freedom pushed by the West, they seemed to say, brought with it disrespect for Islam. He said the demonstrations "started as a visceral reaction — of course they were offended — and then you had regimes taking advantage saying, 'Look, this is the democracy they're talking about.' "

While in Judaism and Christianity, we welcome discussion about our beliefs, and they spur the formation of new congregations and thoughts, to the Islamic fundamentalist this is heresy. There can be no challenge to what is written and believed. For a culture that was the sponsor of so much of the development of civilization, it is bewildering that free thought is the evil that is causing so much death and destruction.

The Audacity of Mendacity

Mon, 06 Feb 2006 20:26:07 GMT

A few weeks ago when the executives of the major oil companies were called to Congress to explain their pricing and profits, the Chairman of the Committee, Ted Stevens, refused requests from committee members to have the representatives placed under oath. Since they were not under oath, they cannot face any charges of perjury. Of course almost all of them then lied about their pricing and their interaction with the government.

Today, the Attorney General was called to Congress to explain the President's domestic spying program. Again, the Chairman, Arlen Specter, did not want to have the Attorney General placed under oath. The point was pushed by Sen. Feingold who believes that the Attorney General lied last year when asked a question about surveillance about warrants (to which the Attorney General responded that it was a hypothetical question, knowing full well that was not the case). A vote was called. All the Republicans voted against sworn testimony. All the Democrats voted for sworn testimony. Is telling the truth a partisan issue? Doesn't the party of the Christian Conservative believe in following all of the commandments?

What purpose does it serve for even Republicans to say that the domestic surveillance program is illegal when they allow one of the Architects of the program, Mr. Gonzales (former White House counsel)to give testimony that is not under oath? What should the rule be as to when you have to swear to tell the truth? I have been practicing law over 25 years and I cannot think of a single instance in which a person is allowed to give testimony not under oath. We can hardly expect to engender respect for law, when the law is selectively applied.

A Kaddish for Yiddish

Tue, 10 Jan 2006 22:44:05 GMT

"I'll make you the corned beef on rye"
She sings with a tear in her eye.
And as her dark eyes are glistening
There's someone who's listening
In that highway cafe in the sky.

So sang Kinky Friedman in his legendary self titled release "Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys" in the seventies. To many, Kinky remains an enigma, having returned to Texas from New York where he first found fame at the Lone Star Cafe with his group The Exxon Brothers and then as a mystery novelist, to run for Governor of our proud state (because we won the BCS National Championship, have a lock on the best chicken fried steak, excellent barbecue shacks...but for nothing else).

Yet with Kinky's departure from New York, that place seems to be breaking down at the core of secular judaism. To many, Yiddish is represented by coy one liners by Mel Brooks and a host of other comedians over the last 50 years. However, Yiddish represents its own culture. Down along 2nd Avenue, there were Yiddish theatres and it was the primary language among the inhabitants. Of course, when people get together, they need to eat. That is where the 2nd Street Deli came in. A magnificent temple to jewish obsession with pickled meats. As Jackie Mason recently told Barbara Walters, Heaven is a place where we will be able to eat all the Pastrami sandwiches we want without repurcussion. (Now that is a belief to hold onto). So it was distressing to me last week to read that the 2nd street deli had closed because the landlord had raised the monthly rent by $9,000.00. You would think that having tables of people paying $19 for a sandwich the size of Rhode Island there would be no problem, but that seems not the case. The lights are dark at one more place that carried forward the legacy of prior generations.

If we are what we eat, we are a little less whole today.