This time, the lawyers are killing Shakespeare — by twisting the meaning of his famous quote “First thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.” (King Henry VI, Part II, IV, ii ). It’s barbaric! [click here for the rest of this post]
September 13, 2004
the Bar vs. the Bard’s Barb, part ii
Comments Off on the Bar vs. the Bard’s Barb, part ii
fans of autumn
long before daybreak
the local rooster
starts warming up
autumn field–
two sides of the same flock
taking off, landing
by dagosan:
a breeze!
a draft!
the window fan stirs debate
[Sept. 13, 2004]
Tips for avoiding ripoffs at “people hunting” websites. (The Bradenton Herald,
Sept. 12, 2004; via TVC Alert) And try RipOff Report.com.
Just checked my in-box and I’ve won 705, 366.87 Euros!
See Snopes.com for a lottery email reality check.
Parents: Rufus helps you avoid raising a lawyer.
Hey, George, we love red wines in Blue States, too!
Gosh, UCL, you make me feel soooo old.
September 12, 2004
empty cabin
empty cabin
the beached canoe
fills with leaves
pencil shavings
the student’s tongue
curls and uncurls
(Red Moon, 2003) credit: “empty cabin” – Snapshots Haiku Calendar 2002
by dagosan:
september 12
sunshine
and hurricanes
[Sept. 12, 2004]
Bainbridge sees an “imperial consensus.” Sorry: protecting global interests is
very different than having a global empire. [See Hart’s Fourth Power]
How W is Winning Women’s Votes: important NYT op/ed, by Lance Tarrance & Leslie Sanchez).
Comments Off on empty cabin
September 11, 2004
9/11/2004
please: one nation, no politics . . . . . . . . . .
after her deathcomposing rosesinstead of wordsfrom “where the lily was”against the tombstonewith the faded namehomeless man restsfrom Almost Unseen (2000)
missing legsthe double amputeewincesdagosan, Sept. 11 & 26, 2004sept-emberfrom Mariposa 5 (2001)
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September 10, 2004
your hand in my pocket
early spring walk
your hand
in my pocket
twilight
the words of his letter
darker and darker
credits: “twilight: A New Resonance 2: Emerging Voices in English-Language Haiku; Woodnotes #29
“early spring walk” snow on the water (Jim Kacian, Ed., 1998); A Kind Neighbor (HSA Anthology, 1997)
Here’s a good review of the bar admission Character and Fitness Process (Mich. Bar Journal, by John T. Berry, June 2003)
And a sobering fact (cf. prior discussion here and here):
“[T]he most common reason for character and fitness denial is lack of candor to the committee,
either by a false or misleading statement on the affidavit, or during the interview or hearing process,
not some particular bad act. Indeed, the committee is particularly sensitive to the applicant’s ability
to handle and resolve any past problems and candor relating to such problems.”
“The types of conduct that most often result in ultimate denials are lack of candor, neglect of financial responsibilities, conduct during involvement in civil litigation, criminal convictions, and employment terminations.”
Mass. AG Reilly asks bar advocates to “accept cases at the new, higher rates while the commission [studying how to build a more effective public defender system] does its work.” (Boston Globe, Sept 10, 2004)
entrusting it to young folk
I sleep…
cozy wood fire
Comments Off on your hand in my pocket
September 9, 2004
Shakespeare and Lawyers and Google and I
TAKE, O take those el-lips-es away,
. . . that do mislead the morn!
my queries bring again
search’d in vain,
Search’d in vain!
(with apologies to W. Shakespeare)
Dear Mr. Google:
I’m irked. I count on your search engines to help get my message
to the masses. Oft times have I praised the wise placement my words
receive in your search results. However, this time you’ve Goofled
big time, and it’s those damn ellipses that have done me in.
On the one hand, it’s great that the query
places my essay Shakespeare and Lawyers in the fourth spot out of
almost 100,000 results.
On the other hand, your synopsis gives the totally wrong impression
of my theme, which is that lawyers and bar groups have been misinforming
the public about the meaning of Shakespeare’s quote on killing lawyers.
To wit, your blurb says:
f/k/a . . . .: Shakespeare and Lawyers
Shakespeare and Lawyers. … In fact, the famous quote from Shakespeare is
not a criticism of lawyers, but actually is the greatest possible compliment. …
[click here to read the rest of this posting]
fractured poetry inspired by my sylvan friend
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’cause and ’cause
empty baseball field
a dandelion seed floats through
the strike zone
in the empty parking lot
a crow caws and caws
who knows why
by dagosan:
laundry day
more steps
than last week
[Sept. 9, 2004]
should lawyers be held to higher standards than journalists, pols? (or telephone companies?) your editor answers UCL, right here.
speaking of UCL, here’s a bonus haiku from Prof. Swede:
the son who
argues everything
I study his face
in a puddle
September 8, 2004
upon reflection
. . . three haiku from professor-poets:
medical school
a cobweb in the pelvis
of the skeleton
noisy hallway
the signing class
saying goodnight
foggy campus
the student I failed
walks away
by dagosan:
not a dream
the mirror reflects
yesterday’s bad haircut
[Sept. 8, 2004]
why are so many good “haijin”(haiku poets) teachers?
they’ve learned to listen, watch, appreciate the small things
Two interesting pointers from Genie’s TVC Alert:
the Ala. judge who thinks all the law is on the net
Greg Notess on the changing Internet Information Cycle
Machiavelli’s always-offensive litigator visits the Legal Underground
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sleeping all the way to the bank
Sometimes I feel a little guilty about bad-mouthing lawyers — but then I read something like “Lawyer Bills for Missing Tuck-in Time” (Houston Chronicle,Aug. 31, 2004), and my conscience clears up. See Lawyers bill $300/hour for sleeping at Overlawyered.com for an overview of the over-reaching guardians ad litem in South Texas.
the thief
is just as he is…
hazy moon
by Kobayashi Issa,,
translated by David G. Lanoue
September 7, 2004
vacation over
. . . three haiku from three teachers . . . . . .
first day of term
her new school uniform
bright in the mist
credit: Snapshots Haiku Calendar 2001
vacation over
hearing the sea
in the traffic’s roar
back to school
tiny ants swarm
a wad of gum
by dagosan:
first day of school
bus stop horseplay
wakes the empty-nester
[Sept. 7, 2004]
Hey, kids, a lesson for the first day of school: Like ghost-written weblogs and our cheating culture in general, your Editor agrees with the 3rd Circuit court, in Bright v. Westmoreland County — judges can’t adopt “virtually verbatim” the proposed opinion of a party’s lawyer. (See New York Lawyer, “Appeals Court Rules Against Ghostwritten Opinions,” Sept. 3, 2004).
A small, important book on America’s role in the world [Republic or. Empire?]: The Fourth Power: A Grand Strategy for the United States in the Twenty-First Century by Gary Hart: {our principles are our Fourth Power and must guide the use of our military, economic and political powers).
And, speaking about thoughtful analysis, my Technorati page today lists a link from John Mudd to this weblog, for a post from Jan. ’04 that I had literally forgotten — Lean Don’t Lie. The gist: it’s fine to have partisan or ideological leanings, but unethical to distort facts or to mislead by ignoring material facts.
Thanks to Prof. Grace for pointing to our post on “ATLA, Lincoln and Tort Reform”, which went up over the holiday weekend. Check out the Comments.
Comments Off on vacation over
September 6, 2004
au revoir, summer
encore summer favorites for an almost laborless day
lift bridge
the broken flow
of touristsTom Painting , from A New Resonance 2: Emerging Voices; Frogpond XXI:3
watering the grass–
a smile from the man
who passes byAlice Frampton, from New Resonance 3: Emerging Voices
credit: Frogpond XXV:1
after all these years
ankle deep
in the other ocean
Pamela Miller Ness, from A New Resonance 2: Emerging Voices
(2001) Credit: frogpond. XXI:2.
long summer day
a hawk holds its place
between the clouds
by DeVar Dahl, from New Resonance 3: Emerging Voices in English-
Language Haiku (2003) credit: Presence 15
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by dagosan:
mottled gray sky
impatiens
grow brighter
Sommer, auf Wiedersehen!
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Ted Frank at Overlawyered.com describes a set of “faux reform measures” put forward by Nevada trial lawyers that he alleges are meant to stymie tort reform. Click here for your Editor’s brief comments.
Comments Off on au revoir, summer
September 5, 2004
the haiku president
Steve Minor of SW Va Law Blog salvaged a far-too-serious Saturday night for me, with an email concerning our 43rd President’s love of haiku. [Read Pres. Bush’s actual remarks in 2001 and our reaction, here]
the great lord
forced off his horse…
cherry blossoms
the great lord’s wood fire
rises
first
by Kobayashi Issa,
translated by David G. Lanoue
Why don’t more partners do pro bono work? D.C. Bar President asks “Where Have all the Partners gone?” (Washington Lawyer, Sept-Oct. 2004; should be online any day now)
Also, Plagiarism & the Law (Washington Lawyer, Sept-Oct. 2004)
Springfield Mass. newspaper calls on boycotting assigned counsel to start taking cases, and Legislature to find a solution, including higher pay. (Springfield Sentinel, Sept. 5, 2004).
“We agree that these lawyers should be paid more for their work, but their decision to simply refuse cases is only making a bad situation worse.”
Comments Off on the haiku president
September 4, 2004
belabor day
long deposition
—
the lawyer’s
“at the risk of repeating myself”by Barry George
custody hearing
seeing his arms cross
i uncross mine
by Roberta Beary
A New Resonance 2: and pocket change(both Red Moon Press, 2001)
by dagosan:
filing nails
folding briefs
retired lawyer
[Sept. 4, 2004]
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August Vacation? After a whole month, there’s still no reply from the Obama campaign
on his tort reform position. However, Jeff Berkowitz interviewed Obama’s former
opponent, Jack Ryan, in May and has the transcript comparing their tort reform
positions here.
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David Feige has a thoughtful column at Slate: “Public Offenders:
Why criminals in Massachusetts are getting out of jail free.” He says only
a comprehensive public defender system, not one relying so heavily on
assigned counsel will provide adequate service. We agree (via Talk Left – hot comments!).
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Quips for Kerry? I think supporter(s) of John Kerry (such as the New Dems) should open a
Comment section on a website, where other supporters can leave one-liners, slogans,
capsule arguments, etc., that Kerry might use in this election campaign.
E.g., “Mr. Bush, tell the Russian middle school victims that nuance is just
for girlie men;” or “Shoot Now, Think Later is Not a Foreign Policy or a War Plan, Mr. President.”
September 3, 2004
backyard skeeter blues
backyard moon
mosquitos rush the poem
by David G. Lanoue. from: Haiku Guy: a novel
one mosquito
perfectly quiet…
and relentless!
by Kobayashi Issa,
translated by David G. Lanoue
by dagosan:
hand-in-hand until
the mosquito
mugging
[Sept. 3, 2004]
Get out the aspirin and Imitrex: 60 days ’til Election2004! (but see Bush/Kerry Wildwords Game)
Evan Schaeffer uncovers a lawyer’s heinous crime: lack of an imagination.
Did Apple tempt Sony with iTunes conspiracy? (PC World, Sept. 3, 2004)
Seriously: more must-read posting by Christopher Lydon: in post called The Issue Is Empire. Find a representative excerpt here.
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