tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72260842011-04-21T13:52:11.868-04:00Trailblazer stay ballin' with vengence, my arts is crafty darts while y'all stuck on Laffy Taffy...Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2361100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1154414038408547592006-08-01T01:29:00.000-04:002007-02-15T03:01:25.300-05:00

On this evening's Colbert Report (yeah, that's what I do when Lady C is out of town, watch recently Tivo'd shows at 1:30 in the morning), Colbert asked his viewers to revise entries on African elephants to say that the population of African elephants have grown in the last decade or so and I notice that if you search for "African elephants", all the initial entries are currently under

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1154115784019198082006-07-28T15:33:00.000-04:002006-07-28T15:43:04.816-04:00

Lady Crumpet is away, leaving me here on my own. I've been extremely lax this month with regard to the blog. I haven't even checked in on the CR in a week or so and have left two or three posts languishing after just a few minutes of work. My ADD is deepening, I fear. I'll try to do a bit more core dumping and less dissertating, maybe that will increase my output.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1151614667741630572006-06-29T16:22:00.000-04:002006-06-29T17:00:49.580-04:00

Just spotted this review of the fashion on display in The Devil Wears Prada. As Ruth La Ferla (isn't that the name of a show on Univision?) reports, fashionistas who have seen advance screenings of the movie give it low marks for verisimilitude and understanding of the industry it purports to depict/satirize. Apparently, hold your breath, a Hollywood movie doesn't present the fashion industry in

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1151504349021990082006-06-28T09:18:00.000-04:002006-06-28T10:21:00.520-04:00

New Woody Allen piece in the New Yorker. It's mildly cute, but nothing more. If anything, it inspires you to recall earlier, funnier Woody stuff like the "Fabrizio's" restaurant piece in Side Effects and "The Metterling Lists" from Getting Even. I Tivo'd Love and Death last week and watched most of it over the weekend. I've probably seen it 100 times since I was a kid and it's still pretty funny.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1149701405586948982006-06-07T12:53:00.000-04:002006-06-12T17:47:39.396-04:00

I've been neglecting the blog recently for no good reason, so I won't offer excuses, although I will note that the end of the Supreme Court's current term has produced more whimpers than bangs. The legal cognoscenti have been straining to drum up some sense of moment or outrage at the mostly trivial decisions handed down recently, especially Garcetti v. Ceballos and I'm reluctant to join in.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1148650827516882112006-05-26T09:38:00.000-04:002006-05-31T16:07:08.206-04:00

I was thrown out of my office in downtown Atlanta yesterday afternoon by the sounding of a fire alarm that eventually was revealed to have been prompted by a bomb of some type. Persistent rumor among those milling about on the street held that a device was discovered in the third floor men's restroom. Explosives teams were present along with about 50 different jurisdictions of law enforcement (we

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1148476652074648792006-05-25T13:45:00.000-04:002006-06-07T10:05:22.313-04:00

I wasn't sure what to think while reading this article in the NYT this Sunday about people's relationships with television shows. Although saying that I couldn't even imagine this kind of commitment to a television show could (and possibly should) carry an air of superiority, I genuinely didn't feel superior at the thought. I can't help wondering how nice it would be to have something in your

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1148571415227209982006-05-25T10:20:00.000-04:002006-06-07T09:58:38.523-04:00

Scanning the NYT this morning, I spotted this article from Kelefa Sanneh about the Dixie Chicks' new album and its predictable reception from the country music establishment. Now, I should say up front that (like Sanneh, I've gathered from reading him for some time now) I don't listen to a lot of country music. This is true despite the fact that I grew up with it in a lower middle class suburb of

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1148519837382256602006-05-24T20:53:00.000-04:002006-05-24T21:17:17.470-04:00

So, I saw these reviews of Sofia Coppola's new movie, just screened at Cannes, on the NYT front page. In it, Manohla Dargis describes the film's reception as a theater filled with "lusty boos and smatterings of applause." It was a memorable phrase, so it wasn't hard to spot when I checked out J. Hoberman's Cannes dispatch filed yesterday at the Village Voice. Hoberman describes Richard Kelly's

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147789265002386162006-05-16T09:42:00.000-04:002006-05-18T14:21:22.220-04:00

Following his proposal to enhance security on the border with Mexico by adding up to 6,000 National Guard troops, President Bush announced a plan today to send up to 1,500 Guard members to Florida in response to the recent string of alligator-related deaths in the state. "This is a national of laws, and we must enforce our laws," the President said in a press conference this morning. "Even

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147363082981393292006-05-11T11:55:00.000-04:002006-05-11T11:58:02.983-04:00

Howard Kurtz apparently agrees with me. Kurtz also has a lot more details from the Dallas Business Journal story and responses from several outlets.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147358835717474222006-05-11T10:50:00.000-04:002006-05-11T11:53:06.696-04:00

Speaking of questionable things said in public, another strange controversy is hitting the Bush administration. HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson apparently told attendees at a real estate forum in Dallas that he didn't give a contract to a deserving bidder because the bidder said he didn't like President Bush. His attributed quote: "Why should I reward someone who doesn't like the president, so

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147358433350205382006-05-11T10:18:00.000-04:002007-02-19T23:06:07.390-05:00

Troi Torain, Star of the Star & Buc Wild Morning Show on 105.1 in New York, was fired yesterday for some stupid shit. The story at the link has the details. I used to listen to Star and Buc Wild on Hot 97 sometimes when I lived in NY, despite the fact that Star said some offensive things and some really stupid things (there was a great deal of overlap). Sometimes, he was really funny, but

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147273504087343122006-05-10T10:55:00.000-04:002006-05-10T11:05:04.106-04:00

Among this week's news briefs on The Onion, I find this story:Senator Fucks Own Wife Out Of Political NecessityWASHINGTON, DC—Seeking reelection in 2008, Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR) will limit himself to sexual activity with his wife, Sharon. "I love my wife and would never do anything that would weaken our sacred bond of marriage, or reduce my constituent's faith in me," said Smith, who faces

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147120348355703702006-05-08T23:23:00.000-04:002006-05-09T15:25:55.716-04:00

As the Summer movie season sorta begins, Sunday's NYT had a Summer movie release schedule section. More coverage of the season can be found at IMDb. Theater attendance has been declining, so it's said, and formerly secure strategies for producing hit movies appear to have become less secure. This weekend's lackluster performance for Mission: Impossible: III (for the sake of accuracy, I note that

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147101587024957282006-05-08T10:53:00.000-04:002006-05-08T11:19:47.096-04:00

I was supposed to finish grading students' exams this weekend in preparation for giving my other exam today, but I found I was far too busy. I did get some grading done, but my time was full with engagements, like a Kentucky Derby party hosted by Andrew and Mary (whose book is coming out later this year!) My wife continued her uncanny winning streak, co-winning the pool (with Scott Strader, who

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1147063850910368752006-05-07T23:58:00.000-04:002006-05-08T10:06:47.410-04:00

Headlines in the mainstream media address vital questions and important issues raised by current events to be sure, but sometimes they neglect stories that fail to conform to their preconceived notions of what is news. Fortunately, the blogosphere is here to draw our attention to the inconvenient truths conventional journalists are afraid to touch. Last week we saw another instance in which a

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1146947397994523762006-05-06T16:21:00.000-04:002006-05-06T16:29:58.020-04:00

If you'd like a trip to Orlando in mid-July, you might want to attend this conference on conferences. Allegedly, "participation in conferences is one of the means of knowledge communication" and you can learn all about it at the International Symposium on Knowledge Communication and Conferences. One cause for skepticism, perhaps, is the following sentence, found on the above site: An increasing

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1146861122328131282006-05-05T17:28:00.000-04:002006-05-05T17:28:09.313-04:00

When I was in 3rd grade, I caused something of a scandal in music class when I chose Hall & Oates' "Kiss on My List" as my favorite song. The music teacher asked, so I told her. As I recall, the modal answer that year (I think it was 1980) was "The Devil Went Down to Georgia". Apparently, a song about the devil was nothing to raise an eyebrow about in my suburban Atlanta elementary school (as I

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1146692451769695632006-05-03T17:08:00.000-04:002006-05-03T17:41:58.533-04:00

I keep thinking of things to post about, then fail to do so or start something and never finish. It's not that I'm lazy (or just that I'm lazy), I also feel genuinely guilty when I'm writing on the blog. I always feel like there's something else I should be doing instead. That's basically true, but after too long without a post I feel guilty about having a blog and never providing any content.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141077997643987982006-04-28T17:05:00.000-04:002006-05-01T12:39:01.156-04:00

Some weeks/months ago (who can remember) I accidentally read a book when I was supposed to be grading exams or something. I'd stopped over at some friends' place to sit down with whatever I was supposed to be working on (had to be grading exams; nothing drives me to distraction like grading) and discovered the book, Lost in the Grooves, a nice little collection that unearths some overlooked

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1146172842041996622006-04-27T16:57:00.000-04:002006-04-27T20:24:49.666-04:00

My wife and I installed Tivo last night. I've been a Tivo resister for awhile, but we're giving it a try now. I buy lots of DVDs and have a Netflix account, so I don't see a lot of use in watching programming that you have to plan for, shown according to someone else's schedule, so you'd think that Tivo would be perfect for me. However, when I do watch TV, I tend to enjoy the search as much as

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1146057549347915622006-04-26T09:03:00.000-04:002006-04-26T17:03:12.930-04:00

The Complete Mr. Arkadin. I'll definitely pick this up really soon, so it won't stay wishlisted for very long. Three discs, three different versions of one of my favorite movies. I'm thinking that I'll write a comparison of the three versions (two of which I've seen before, albeit in poor transfers) here after I've acquired the set.I don't have a lot of Criterion discs, owing mainly to the fact

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1144849039745176312006-04-12T09:19:00.000-04:002006-04-14T20:05:00.250-04:00

I've been preparing for a conference and trying to get some other things done recently, so I've had little time or attention for the CR. However, I will get a few things down here just to keep track of what I'm up to.I started a post last week about the release of Ghostface Killah's new album Fishscale and the show he performed at the Roxy on the 6th. The album is fantastic, "best since Supreme

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1143555809275123482006-03-28T09:17:00.000-05:002006-04-02T00:30:47.263-05:00

Here's a piece from the Times on Lem that treats his work in much better context than most of the things I've seen. It also serves to remind me of The Mind's I, the anthology where I first read Lem (although it's co-editor's name is Daniel C. Dennett, not Bennett.)

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1143482750670809472006-03-27T12:23:00.000-05:002006-03-27T17:24:48.810-05:00

Stanislaw Lem has reportedly died at the age of 84. What few details are available are reported here.I started reading Lem in high school, ultimately reading somewhere between 15 and 20 of his books. He's one of my favorite science fiction writers, but he's also responsible for introducing me (re-introducing is more like it) to Philip K. Dick, who is possibly my favorite sci-fi writer. I'd read

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1143426026673097762006-03-26T20:59:00.000-05:002006-03-27T10:20:20.690-05:00

Early this year, I picked up Season 1 of Twin Peaks on DVD and watched the whole thing (it's only 7 episodes not counting the pilot, which isn't on the First Season set) for the first time in years not long after. Everybody who's worth talking to knows, of course, that Twin Peaks is primarily about the investigation of the murder of troubled golden girl Laura Palmer, although her killer isn't

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1143227999272349712006-03-24T14:00:00.000-05:002006-03-26T22:37:50.276-05:00

from the IMDb news page:Samuel L. Jackson's new mile-high thriller Snakes On A Plane has created such a buzz among internet film fans, movie bosses have called for re-shoots - to give the film a tougher rating. The film, which stars Jackson as an FBI agent trying to keep a federal witness alive onboard a plane full of snakes, wrapped last September - but went back before the cameras earlier this

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1143226795825769592006-03-24T13:50:00.000-05:002007-04-11T07:11:13.140-04:00

Ladies and gentlemen, the Ghostface doll.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1124381181195556242006-03-22T11:49:00.000-05:002006-03-27T10:23:36.413-05:00

I read this article in the NYT this weekend and made a mental note to consider posting about it. Just today, I was looking through old post drafts that never made it onto the blog (I counted about thirty) and spotted one that I could profitably recycle in connection with it (the original post was called "Go ahead, bash the courts"--altered slightly as you can see). So, here goes.There are a

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1142998005888415972006-03-21T22:02:00.000-05:002006-03-22T11:34:47.490-05:00

I got my second dispatch from Bill Shatner's DVD club, a movie called Immortel. It's a European coproduction, but a mostly French film in concept and execution. I watched it, but was multitasking at the time and can't say for certain I knew what was going on. It had something to do with an Egyptian god (Horus) resurrected and doomed to die again who contrives to possess the body of some kind of

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141838797447390602006-03-08T22:01:00.000-05:002006-03-09T15:51:46.416-05:00

ALDaily linked this morning to a Washington Post article about the seemingly random reasons people have for dumping people. I was about to stop reading when, near the end of the Taquito story, the guy mentioned mayonnaise. Specifically, how much he hates mayonnaise, which he describes (accurately) as "the most repulsive thing in the world."I still think the guy may have some kind of issue, what

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141853745779562512006-03-08T10:55:00.000-05:002006-03-08T21:21:32.766-05:00

More links to comments from the blawgs can be found on SCOTUSblog, if you haven't already experienced the diminishing returns of the law professoriate competing to find novel (and in most cases, more tenuous) issues in the 21 page opinion. One thing caught my eye, though.A post on Prawfsblog offers a comment on a post from LawCulture commenting on the opinion. Both posts were made yesterday,

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141765834927188322006-03-07T17:04:00.000-05:002006-04-29T00:36:23.780-04:00

In recognition of George Clooney's Oscar win the other day, I watched Return to Horror High today. I bought it on DVD a few weeks ago at a going out of business sale for a used disc store. The quality of the film itself is indicated by the fact that the DVD menu offers the option to "Strat Movie." Clooney's character, an actor named Oliver, is the lead in a low budget horror movie based on a

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141751448665336932006-03-07T11:48:00.000-05:002006-03-07T18:21:30.113-05:00

Lots of reactions from the blawgosphere (what an ugly word.) SCOTUSblog collects some, (Marty Lederman's posted response has a healthy debate going on in the comments) and ACSBlog has some others. TaxProf Blog has a nice collection of responses. In her comments, Ann Althouse writes "I dread seeing all the opinion pieces that connect this case to 'Brokeback Mountain' not winning the Best Picture

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141671387423142902006-03-06T13:33:00.000-05:002006-04-29T00:35:38.623-04:00

Following up what must be a bitter, albeit symbolic and empty, defeat at the Academy Awards last night, gays were dealt another setback (a real one this time) by a unanimous Supreme Court today with the announcement of Rumsfeld v FAIR. The Court rejected a challenge to the Solomon Amendment, congressional legislation imposing a requirement that colleges and universities extend access to military

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141620512684953612006-03-05T23:08:00.000-05:002006-03-06T00:06:05.486-05:00

11:06, Dustin Hoffman's here to ramble through adapted screenplayBrokeback could win due to a sweep, or due to Larry McMurtry's prestige.and it did. If Brokeback does sweep, does this mean we have to put up with another wave of "gay cowboy" jokes and takeoffs? McMurtry takes a moment to recognize booksellers; good for him.Uma Thurman's presenting original screenplay. She looks weird. Appropriate

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141616132030975302006-03-05T21:57:00.000-05:002006-03-05T23:07:59.553-05:00

9:55, Jake Gyllenhall (sp?) in the second or third open plea for people to go to theatersAre people really going to be moved to rush to the theaters by watching a bunch of sweeping, large scale extravaganzas on their TVs at home? There's another three hours to go? Holy christ.Jessica Alba and Eric Bana doing "sound mixing." As if I haven't done enough damage to my credibility by casting doubt on

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141611164797512902006-03-05T21:12:00.000-05:002006-03-06T14:57:09.980-05:00

Second post. Lauren Bacall is stumbling badly through an introduction. I've never liked her, but this isn't her fault. She's doing her best with what must be a difficult to read teleprompter. It's a salute to "noir." Seems to me the "noir" concept is getting out of hand. What was originally used as a concept intended to make a certain group of films more intelligible based on shared stylistic and

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141608195425496482006-03-05T20:09:00.000-05:002006-03-06T10:27:12.910-05:00

It's so tempting to "blog the Oscars," mostly because the whole idea is alien to this blog. Not because it's Hollywood-focused, while I often write about law and courts. Not because it's ostensibly about quality cinema, while I often write about "trash." It's because blogging a live event means writing a lot, providing a generous amount of content, which I don't do. Or at least not recently.So

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141077015595030452006-02-27T16:39:00.000-05:002006-02-27T17:04:18.046-05:00

Baigent and Leigh are suing Dan Brown over the Da Vinci Code. I still haven't read Da Vinci Code, but even a cursory synopsis of the story reveals how dependent it is on the thesis of Baigent and Leigh's book, Holy Blood, Holy Grail (I wonder what Henry Lincoln is up to?) I don't know how strong Baigent and Leigh's legal claim is, since with claims like this it's all in the way ideas are

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1141075996295167542006-02-27T16:11:00.000-05:002006-02-27T16:33:16.366-05:00

First Don Knotts, then Darren McGavin, now Dennis Weaver. I grew up watching Barney Fife and remember McGavin best from The Night Stalker, less from the short-lived series than from the two great TV movies (the original and The Night Strangler) that used to play often on UHF channels when I was a kid. I didn't watch much of Gunsmoke or McCloud, but remember Weaver mostly from Duel and his brief,

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1140491156665712392006-02-24T22:02:00.000-05:002006-02-26T17:38:52.903-05:00

I've been terribly remiss in following up on the exciting, new William Shatner DVD club. I received my introductory 2-disc mailing several weeks ago, but just got around to watching something last weekend.The first entries follow a lycanthropy theme: Ginger Snaps and Wolves of Wall Street. I've seen Ginger Snaps before, even writing about it and its sequel on this page. As I said then, I liked

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1140821264921447352006-02-24T17:47:00.000-05:002006-05-12T15:20:03.016-04:00

A law prof discusses the Netflix class action suit and settlement in this column. Ramasastry says essentially the same things I've been saying about all this stuff. Even though a lot of the complaints people have been making against Netflix is that throttling is "unfair," the only thing that makes it illegal is that it is contrary to the service contract customers make with Netflix when they

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1140629623595627872006-02-22T12:26:00.000-05:002006-02-22T12:34:52.806-05:00

In regard to this whole Dubai Ports thing, I'm trying to imagine President Bush giving the Arthur Jensen speech (audio) to Pete King or Chuck Schumer, and I just can't. Maybe we should elect Ned Beatty president.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1140217138680754782006-02-17T17:56:00.000-05:002006-02-17T17:58:58.756-05:00

I'm on such a roll I figured I should put up a little something on a Friday evening. A friend just sent me this exercise in unnecessary formalization that I thought I'd share. The solution seems reasonable, and since men like John here are undoubtedly used to doing things randomly, playing a mixed strategy shouldn't come with too much difficulty.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1140120678120791252006-02-16T15:02:00.000-05:002006-02-16T15:26:45.953-05:00

SCOTUSblog has this post on Justice Sam Alito's formal investiture ceremony, which took place this afternoon. The ceremony, Lyle Denniston notes, was four minutes long.As Tavares informed us years ago, it only takes a minute to fall in love. This means that becoming a Supreme Court justice requires four times the amount of time that falling in love does, and with the simple assumption that effort

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1140017793965844282006-02-15T10:23:00.000-05:002006-02-15T12:06:11.133-05:00

This Cheney hunting incident is interesting, mostly for the way in which it's turned all of the American newsmedia into the Daily Show, although it was headed that way regardless. The Howard Kurtz column this morning explains how interested parties and commentators aren't sure whether this is just an unfortunate random (and really funny, unless you're the guy Cheney shot) incident involving the

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1139931130736520692006-02-14T16:46:00.000-05:002006-07-19T22:29:18.743-04:00

No, this doesn't mean that some group called the Robots have hired Rod Argent (damnit.) Robots are taking over the cultural position that was until recently held by zombies. Zombies seemed to be the metaphor of choice for activists or performance artists or whoever it was doing all that shambling last year, now I suspect robots are moving into that position.An article in the NYT today covers the

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1139868219070528552006-02-13T16:55:00.000-05:002006-02-13T17:03:39.130-05:00

Wonkette posted a rumor last week that senior AJ John Paul Stevens was considering retirement, allegedly uttering "I can't put up with this shit anymore!" I find it a little hard to believe that Stevens would be getting upset now about being part of an ineffective liberal minority, since he had such a kick-ass term in 2004-5. She likened the outburst to Howard Beale's, but it seems to me more

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1139495823147179982006-02-09T17:55:00.000-05:002006-02-14T09:54:05.260-05:00

The introduction of a new online journal devoted to "research articles and reports addressing general and specific issues related to plagiarism, fabrication, and falsification" is certainly the occasion for a post about my own long-standing interest in such topics. The journal is Plagiary and is well worth a look, even if you're not in a profession where such deceptions are of central concern (

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1138981933074442642006-02-03T13:20:00.000-05:002006-02-03T13:26:22.416-05:00

The most interesting thing to me in President Bush's latest State of the Union address was his forceful opposition to "the most egregious abuses of medical research: human cloning in all its forms, creating or implanting embryos for experiments, creating human-animal hybrids, and buying, selling, or patenting human embryos." In part, this just goes to show how uninteresting the speech was in

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1138246512821593152006-01-25T22:45:00.000-05:002006-01-25T22:44:08.696-05:00

How in the hell does James Bond know Felix Leiter when he sees him?Between them, American Movie Classics and Spike have been showing a lot of James Bond movies recently. Being my father's son, whenever I notice a Bond movie showing, I'll watch at least fifteen minutes of it.For some reason, the Felix Leiter character is starting to annoy me. It seems like in every movie in which Leiter appears,

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1138047585389831102006-01-23T14:54:00.000-05:002006-01-23T15:20:45.276-05:00

For the first couple weeks of 2006, I kept meaning to post about something (the Alito hearings, my decision to quit Greencine, the Administration's wire tapping orders, the Golden Globes, etc.) Then approaching the end of the third week, I thought it might be more interesting to not post at all in January. Not only would that make a powerful statement about the blogosphere (that millions of

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1135872173189598972005-12-29T10:34:00.000-05:002006-01-01T23:25:01.293-05:00

Since this is the first post in a few weeks, I should start by apologizing and promising more content more regularly in the coming year, but both statements would be lies. The one thing we can really count on as December 31st approaches is a deluge of year-end lists. Fimoculous (some kinda blog) has helpfully collected year-end lists for 2005 (after doing the same thing last year.) Be sure to

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1133449276364819622005-12-08T11:44:00.000-05:002005-12-08T12:32:59.126-05:00

I read two very interesting articles late last week, the first via ALDaily and the second from Cliopatria. Reason has a story by Matt Welch about the failures of mainstream media outlets to report responsibly on conditions during Hurricane Katrina. Others have pointed to failures along these lines before, especially the exaggerated and imagined incidents of violence and lawlessness that allegedly

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1133966392731795802005-12-07T09:37:00.000-05:002005-12-08T00:52:41.266-05:00

For my first post in a few weeks, and to observe the onset of the semester-end grading crunch, I offer an article from the Chronicle of Higher Education on procrastination.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1131733060807882092005-11-11T13:36:00.000-05:002005-11-11T13:17:40.880-05:00

So, following an election in which eight members of the school board who had supported introducing "intelligent design" to their curriculum were voted out of office, Pat Robertson has warned Dover, PA not to be surprised if God withdraws his protection from them. "Just remember," he tells Dover, "you just voted God out of your city."Wait, I'm confused now. I thought intelligent design wasn't

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1131664584393133572005-11-10T18:12:00.000-05:002005-11-10T18:17:50.920-05:00

You know what the funniest bit is? Picturing Harriet Miers as Eddie Levert.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1130367884892924672005-11-09T18:44:00.000-05:002005-11-10T18:08:25.820-05:00

After my Master Thespian reference a couple of weeks ago, I seem to be on an 80s Saturday Night Live nostalgia trip (never thought I'd say that...) Coincidentally, NBC is showing a special on SNL in the 80s this weekend. Not looking forward to the inevitable Fernando's Hideaway segment. I've watched a few White House press briefings recently and can't stop thinking of the Martin Short character

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1131474890810708522005-11-08T13:20:00.000-05:002005-11-08T15:58:58.170-05:00

Looking over my DirecTV listings, I noticed that C-Span was scheduled to be showing "The Harriet Miers Confirmation Hearings" yesterday evening. Her work picking Sam Alito for the job she's not qualified for over, I imagine it made her cringe as she sat at home watching that scroll by.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1131125015691304922005-11-04T12:21:00.000-05:002005-11-04T12:23:35.706-05:00

We could be on the verge of having the funniest Supreme Court in history. Hey, that sounds like a book title. I should write it.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1130799193631271222005-10-31T13:20:00.000-05:002005-10-31T17:57:12.483-05:00

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1130799390637276352005-10-31T09:05:00.000-05:002005-10-31T17:56:30.636-05:00

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1130535900438773452005-10-28T17:43:00.000-04:002005-10-28T17:49:04.560-04:00

"Harriet, we hardly knew ye." So says Gary Trudeau, introducing a week's worth of strips on Miers' confirmation prep that won't be used now.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1130430287358333532005-10-27T12:22:00.000-04:002005-10-27T12:24:59.453-04:00

From The Onion's American Voices:After 18 years of service, Alan Greenspan is retiring as chairman of the Federal Reserve at the age of 79. What do you think?"He's irreplaceable. This Bernanke guy may be an anti-inflation fiscal conservative, but you just can't run the Fed if you've never screwed Ayn Rand." --Francis Englund, Programmer

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1130428784543886872005-10-27T11:51:00.000-04:002005-10-27T11:59:44.566-04:00

And that, it turns out, was the problem. Or so the official explanation of Harriet Miers' withdrawal of her nomination this morning. SCOTUSblog has reproduced the letter and, weirdly enough, her revised answers to the Senate questionnaire, submitted "very late last night" to the Judiciary Committee.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1130354790080066822005-10-26T18:35:00.000-04:002005-10-26T18:31:55.696-04:00

The blog's been quiet for a few weeks, but honestly there hasn't been anything important to write about since Kate Winslet's birthday. Seriously, I've been trying to keep busy with productive work and enjoy the onset of Fall, my favorite time of the year. Not only is the decline in temperature very congenial, but I love Halloween. I guess that surprises nobody. Anyway, I've got months-old posts

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1128524432778642792005-10-05T10:57:00.000-04:002005-10-05T11:14:30.256-04:00

Happy 30th Birthday! (via DiscoverKate.com)

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1128518647142447582005-10-05T09:21:00.000-04:002005-10-05T09:24:07.146-04:00

Harriett Miers' blog has appeared. This is pretty mean-spirited, but that didn't prevent me from finding bits of it funny.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1128348742424994992005-10-03T09:40:00.000-04:002005-10-03T15:19:10.376-04:00

Bush has nominated Harriet Miers to replace O'Connor, announced this morning about 8 o'clock. For those whose immediate response is "who?" here's a profile in the Washington Post and the NYT has republished this profile from last year.I remember reading this story last week touching on the possibility of a Miers nomination, particularly since she was heading the White House search for a nominee,

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1128095425827401332005-09-30T11:47:00.000-04:002005-09-30T11:50:25.863-04:00

The Smoking Gun has pictures of packs of cocaine seized by Customs agents adorned with the image of the Teletubbies. This reminds me of Super Troopers, in which bricks of marijuana are found near the Canadian border featuring an Afghani cartoon chimp character named Johnny Chimpo ("It's Afghanistanimation!")

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1128090068720427142005-09-30T10:20:00.000-04:002005-09-30T10:21:08.773-04:00

Two posts this month, not counting this one. It certainly wasn't from lack of subject matter; I just wasn't feeling the blog for the past few weeks.I listened to the Roberts confirmation hearings in the Judiciary committee and the floor deliberation leading up to the vote. For an interesting analysis of the Roberts vote (as well as the Bork Senate vote and other votes of interest on judicial

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1126880378056577692005-09-16T10:20:00.000-04:002005-09-21T16:55:02.756-04:00

Today (Sept 16) marks the first observance of Constitution Day, per Public Law 108-447, signed by President Bush on 12/8/04. Today is devoted to the consideration of our Constitution and efforts to educate young people about its qualities and virtues, including the First Amendment to that document, ratified in 1791 along with the 9 other Amendments comprising the Bill of Rights.The text of the

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1126291736740439862005-09-09T15:40:00.000-04:002005-09-09T15:24:32.710-04:00

I haven't posted anything since CJ Rehnquist died, but it's hard to concentrate on the upcoming Supreme Court term with the Gulf Coast devastated and New Orleans under water. There are several sources online for those looking to offer or looking for help, but the Katrina Help Wiki collects many of them (mirror). A few other links of interest:A somewhat politically-interested timeline of Katrina

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1125426108719559652005-08-30T18:17:00.000-04:002005-08-30T17:47:27.250-04:00

Or not. It does appear, however, that zombies have entered the sphere of social commentary, as a modest horde (15 is a pretty modest horde) stormed American Idol tryouts recently to protest the rotting influence of television and a group of Canadian zombies wandered around Montreal early last month. It was unclear what statement they were making. I expect a throng of zombies to assail Bush's

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1124838265506624962005-08-23T19:01:00.000-04:002005-08-23T19:04:25.510-04:00

I noticed over the past couple of days that people are making some high-profile bets on their predictions, first in global warming, now in oil prices. Maybe this will make some headway toward imposing some market discipline in the punditry industry.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1124383918854355462005-08-23T18:47:00.000-04:002005-08-25T16:28:58.463-04:00

As I mentioned before, I saw Bruce Campbell and his new movie, Man with the Screaming Brain, last week. Apart from that, I attended the APWBWGTTD meetup last week, the Braves/Padres game on Friday and Saturday I went to see MF Doom at the Loft, joined by local supervillain Scott S of Messages from the Ether. Campbell's new movie, his directorial feature debut, is about what you'd expect from the

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1124395640538733032005-08-18T16:02:00.000-04:002005-08-18T16:07:20.543-04:00

A story in the NYT yesterday says that less than one in four high school graduates taking the ACT this year were prepared in reading comprehension, English, math and science. I can't say I'm surprised, given some of the students who take my upper division courses.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1124377809157733782005-08-18T11:01:00.000-04:002005-08-23T17:22:26.800-04:00

With the ABA Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary rating John Roberts "well-qualified" I think it's not inappropriate to start considering what kind of justice Roberts will be. This notwithstanding the repeated calls from Democrats for more documents from the White House relating to Roberts' past work for various presidents. We've seen plenty of materials from his tenure in the OLC under

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1123886423436042222005-08-12T18:44:00.000-04:002005-08-12T19:03:00.793-04:00

I've noticed that David Brooks' latest column, All Cultures are Not Equal, has remained at or near the top of the NYT's most emailed articles and is making the rounds of notable links pages. I can only assume people are anxious to share the latest weak, ridiculous irrelevancy with which Brooks has favored us. After his last column attempting to identify a relationship between two trends he

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1123861130170151132005-08-12T11:33:00.000-04:002005-08-12T11:40:30.356-04:00

The posts at Greencine Daily are often long, but yesterday's was really huge. That or I just noticed it today. Taking in this list of recommended reading, listening and viewing is sort of like gazing out at the unruly ocean, knowing that you haven't the leisure or stamina to do more than wade up to your shoulders (or hips, more likely). I've already blown about an hour just sampling a few things

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1123714895157934302005-08-10T18:55:00.000-04:002005-08-11T19:11:14.370-04:00

I stumbled upon a summary of an article from The Lancet dating from 1998 entitled "Optimum body-mass index and maximum sexual attractiveness" (you can download the article itself in pdf here). The research purports to demonstrate that the Body Mass Index is of greater importance to the sexual attractiveness of the female body than the waist to hip ratio. At first I was incredulous that someone

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1123598550517051272005-08-09T17:32:00.000-04:002005-11-15T09:27:10.616-05:00

The Economist has an interesting but brief article on humor research explaining two of the prominent explanations of why some things are funny. It's especially interesting to me, I guess, because I wrote my undergrad senior thesis on the place of humor in Habermas' theory of communicative action (I didn't think there was one) and in the process reviewed a lot of the theory and research on humor.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1123257764860970112005-08-05T13:28:00.000-04:002005-08-08T09:52:52.160-04:00

I thought I was out of touch for a moment this morning when I read Douglas Kmiec's commentary on Findlaw. Discussing the public outcry over the Supreme Court's decision in Kelo v New London (which I have discussed here, here, and here), Kmiec writes that despite several other stories competing for the attention of the public, "the nation's attention remains transfixed upon the injustice of

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1123075473389939872005-08-03T11:15:00.000-04:002005-08-03T11:15:03.170-04:00

"How does Richard A. Posner do it?" I read this Sunday in the Up Front material of the NYT Book Review section. They're referring to his prolificacy, of course, something I've remarked upon before. As a legal scholar with economist training, Posner takes to heart the maxim that "anything worth doing is worth doing poorly," and that "better than nothing" guideline has served him well. How else do

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1123024969492354762005-08-02T19:12:00.000-04:002005-08-02T19:22:49.496-04:00

I've spotted several passing references to President Bush coming out in favor of teaching intelligent design in schools. My initial impression was one of alarm, but fortunately a post on the Improbable Research blog set me straight on what Bush must have meant. Now I'm positively happy about the President's position. It's much better than endorsing the teaching of stupid design in schools.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1122573783556756592005-07-28T14:03:00.000-04:002005-07-28T14:03:03.563-04:00

In an earlier post, I linked to a Washington Post story on John Roberts' Reagan-era OLC memos. I think they are potentially more informative about his sincere legal attitudes than his circuit court opinions, despite being dated, and was preparing a post about one of them in particular. Luckily, now I don't have to put that one up, because a recent post on the SC Nomination Blog provides an

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1122496141685444702005-07-27T19:03:00.000-04:002005-07-27T19:02:02.646-04:00

CNET has posted a list of the Top Ten Web fads. The list might cause you to smile or cringe--regardless, you get the point.Some of my "favorites" are on here, like the Mahir page and All Your Base as well as a few I was indifferent to (Ellen Fleiss, Hampsterdance) or disliked from the beginning (Dancing Baby, Hot or Not). One or two of my favorites didn't make the cut, like the Peep Research fad

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1122496850419099872005-07-27T18:31:00.000-04:002005-07-27T18:34:00.350-04:00

So it appears there are no signs of trouble so far for the Space Shuttle Discovery. This despite two incidents of material flying off the craft as it took off yesterday and hitting a bird. Admittedly two of those incidents involved the external tank, but I wouldn't be relieved by these developments if I were an astronaut. That stray piece of tile must have been some of the extra stuff they

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1122491878235278352005-07-27T17:41:00.000-04:002006-02-07T15:21:24.306-05:00

I've been posting a lot in the last month and a half and almost all of it about the judiciary. That wasn't a plan, it was just a reaction to the end of the SC term and other current events. Another consistency in many of my recent posts is the tone. I've been a little pissed at everything recently and it's come out as an endless gripe session about all this courts and politics stuff. That wasn't

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1122312784734874882005-07-25T18:45:00.000-04:002005-07-25T19:08:33.500-04:00

Many people have made note of Justice O'Connor's retirement letter, indicating that her retirement is effective upon the nomination and confirmation of her successor. I've told friends that this precluded a recess appointment to replace her, as no vacancy (necessary for recess appointments) will exist to fill unless the Senate confirms somebody, and that if that doesn't happen she'll take her

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121900319232585082005-07-22T17:01:00.000-04:002005-07-22T17:07:57.353-04:00

I've had nothing to post about the Roberts nomination, which I find a little boring. Bush picked a white guy, which is a bit interesting I guess, but not all that surprising. The most amusing aspect of the Roberts nomination is probably his resemblance to J.R. Ewing. Henry Fonda he's not.As Roberts approaches Senate hearings and seemingly inevitable confirmation he's going to be showered with a

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121351623357975682005-07-15T15:25:00.000-04:002005-07-15T15:08:04.893-04:00

David Brooks' column yesterday makes a modest request for O'Connor's replacement: "Mr. Bush, Pick a Genius". He disparages calls for a "diversity" selection and other criteria like personal loyalty or political convenience and champions Michael McConnell, a favorite of the soft-spoken brainy conservative clique and law professoriate.As so many times before, I wonder how Brooks keeps his job given

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121375468846753612005-07-14T16:57:00.000-04:002005-07-15T14:13:13.433-04:00

Van Orden v Perry and McCreary County v ACLU were among the more high-profile of the decisions announced this term, but the cases produce much more heat than light. Rehnquist wrote the majority in the Texas case and Souter in the Kentucky case, but Breyer's split votes (in favor of the Ten Commandments display in one and against it in the other) mean that his concurrence in the former is the most

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121286886089074752005-07-13T16:29:00.000-04:002005-07-13T16:34:46.093-04:00

Via How Appealing, here's Rehny Watch, a blog devoted entirely to jokes about whether the CJ has retired or not. That means I can stop doing this myself.

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121206063875782082005-07-12T19:41:00.000-04:002005-07-20T18:36:38.883-04:00

So, it seems that my speculations yesterday about Rehnquist delaying his retirement to forestall an Alberto Gonzalez appointment, or to distract from the Plame leak investigation, have become conventional wisdom. I wish I could say it was my doing, but it was just in the air, I think.I also made reference yesterday to the conservative responses to the possibility of Alberto Gonzalez being

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121208810073329922005-07-12T18:40:00.000-04:002005-07-12T18:53:30.110-04:00

Via the Legal Theory blog, here's the Harvard list of suggested reading materials for prospective law students. It's got some really good choices, especially Freund, Friedman, Horwitz, Dworkin, Hart, Pound, and Llewellyn. Titles I'd add: Edward Levi (Introduction to Legal Reasoning), Mason's bio of Harlan Stone, the Brother's Karamzov, and The Firm, the Market and the Law by Ronald Coase. The

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121123118398162472005-07-12T16:32:00.000-04:002005-07-12T16:35:26.426-04:00

I just noticed that the Onion A/V Club interviewed Mark Hosler and Don Joyce of Negativland last week. I've been a fan of Negativland for about 15 years, discovering them shortly before the infamous U2 incident. I've continued to follow Negativland's releases despite the fixation on copyright issues that has settled in since their run-in with Island Records. That fixation has led their work to be

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7226084.post-1121121343751316242005-07-11T17:59:00.000-04:002005-07-11T18:37:24.963-04:00

Checking back at the Confirm Them post, I see that SpectatorGirl speculated this afternoon that Rehnquist was delaying his retirement "in order to prevent an activist extremist like Gonzales (in favour of partial-birth abortion and of quotas and protections for illegals) being nominated."While I appreciate S-Girl's contemplation of Rehnquist's strategic considerations, I have to chuckle at the

Mr. Arkadinnoreply@blogger.com0