It’s rare that the third Saturday in October still feels like hammock weather here in Schenectady. A sunny weekend with temperatures in the 70’s has dispelled any illusion that the f/k/a Gang might do some heavy-duty punditry any time some. Instead, we’ll just post a few news-and-views Quickies and a stream of semi-conscious one-breath poems.
in the hammock
the undertaker dozes arms crossed
on his chest……………….. by george swede from Almost Unseen (Brooks Books, 2000)
lazy slugs –
one in the hammock
watching one on the ground…………………………………… by dagosan
“New face of vandalism?” (The Brooklyn Paper, Oct. 13, 2007)
As usual, a short stroll over to Walter and Frank’s Overlawyered cafe, turned up a couple interesting subjects for those wanting to wax poetic over a cup of java about the sorry state of the American legal system.
- Read about the “6-year-old girl in Park Slope, Brooklyn, [who] faces $300 fine for drawing pictures with sidewalk chalk ” (Oct. 19 roundup)
I know this wall scribbler’s
name…
autumn dusk……………………. by ISSA, translated by David G. Lanoue
- And, have your suspicions confirmed, with “You mean it’s not the videogames?,” which points to new research suggesting that “It is not the cartoons that make your kids smack playmates or violently grab their toys but, rather, a lack of social skills, according to new research.” See “Taming Baby Rage: Why Are Some Kids So Angry?” (Scientific American, Oct. 16), which quotes Richard Tremblay, a professor of pediatrics, psychiatry and psychology at the University of Montreal, who says: “It’s a natural behavior and it’s surprising that the idea that children and adolescents learn aggression from the media is still relevant,” after spending more than two decades tracking 35,000 Canadian children (from age five months through their 20s) in search of the roots of physical aggression.
chalk dust
in the eraser trough
autumn chill
…………………………………. by Peggy Lyles – To Hear the Rain (Brooks Books, 2002)
twilight shadows
the outline of a child
in sidewalk chalk………………. by Randy Brooks – snapshots haiku magazine #9 (2001)
“a flower,
not a dragonfly” —
she wags a small, chalky finger…………………….. by dagosan
Run Out of Town on a Poll: New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer apparently decided it was about time to do some ‘splainin’ about his plan to grant driver’s licenses to illegal aliens. (see our prior post) He held a press conference yesterday announcing some big-gun support for his plan from Richard A. Clarke, the former White House counterterrorism czar. See “Former U.S. Terror Official Backs Spitzer’s License Plan” (New York Times, Oct. 20, 2007) Clarke didn’t appear at the press conference, but released a statement making a reasonable point:
“From a law enforcement and security perspective, it is far preferable for the state to know who is living in it and driving on its roads, and to have their photograph and their address on file, than to have large numbers of people living in our cities whose identity is totally unknown to the government.”
The NYT article reports that “Spitzer said he was unconcerned about a recent poll that showed that more than 70 percent of voters disapproved of his plan,”
“I don’t base security decisions about the state of New York based on polling numbers,” the governor said. He continued: “When I decide something is important for our security, I’ll do it if it’s right, if it’s constitutional, and it’s legal and it’s necessary. I also feel that those poll questions were structured in a way that was almost designed to get to that answer. I think if people listened to an articulation based on facts and based upon what we intend to do, they will recognize that this is smart security policy and probably support it.”
Meanwhile, “The usually vocal US Senator Charles Schumer Wednesday said he didn’t want to get involved with the state debate over whether illegal immigrants should be issued New York State driver’s licenses without possessing Social Security cards.” See “Schumer steers clear of New York debate over driver’s license policy change” (and see WNED-AM)
update (Oct. 21, 2007): In New York’s Fight Over Driver’s Licenses, a New York Times editorial today says: “What is getting lost in all the fury is that Mr. Spitzer’s plan is actually a practical step to make the state and the streets safer.” . . . “Mr. Spitzer recently announced that New York would join eight other states that do not require licensed drivers to prove that they are in the country legally. Instead, prospective drivers will need to prove exactly who they are, that they can drive safely, that they have car insurance, and that they live in New York State.” . . . “The frustrations of the plan’s critics are understandable, but their quarrel is with Washington, which continues to avoid addressing the immigration problem head-on. Mr. Spitzer’s proposal for making driver’s licenses more broadly available is a calm injection of reason into a subject that has seen too little of it.”
Health Care 2008: The Kaiser Family Foundation has made it a lot easier to understand the health care issues addressed by the presidential candidates, at its comprehensive HealthCare08 website. Besides providing news and analysis, for example, it now allows you to create a Side-by-Side Summary 2008 Presidential Candidate Health Care Proposals. “This online tool allows users to customize side-by-sides by selecting as many as four candidates for comparison that can then be formatted into a printer-friendly pdf. The tool summarizes positions in four overall categories of access to health care coverage, cost containment, improving the quality of care and financing.” (via David Harlow at HealthBlog)
first autumn morning–
a fever-curing
kind of sky…………………… by Kobayashi Issa, translated by David G. Lanoue
Over My Near-Dead Body: You know I’m feeling especially lazy when I can’t get up the energy to write at length about the Tom Collins post this week at More Partner Income, titled “Surveys Show Most Law Firms Are Underpriced” (18 Oct 2007;via What About Clients?) He is unhappy about “Billing attorney downward adjustments prior [to] issuing client bills” and ‘unrequested or non-negotiated’ courtesy discounts.” As suggested here, hourly billing lawyers often have to make those adjustments to keep the automatic multiplication of a fee rate by “actual” hours worked from becoming an unreasonably excessive fee. Suffice it to say that Tom and I differ greatly on this topic and on the relationship between the price and the value of attorney services.
drift-covered hydrant —
the dog puts a halo
on my snow angel…………………….. by dagosan
orig. Just a Year Ago: Western New York was melting its way out of 20 or 30 inches of snow (as memorialed by dagosan in the poems below, and related haiga). As much as I dislike hot and humid weather, my old bones are starting to dislike the excesses of winter even more — especially when they show up in the Fall. So, I’m going to do the only sane thing and head outside right now (well, right after a short nap) for a last shot at our October heatwave. Inside or out, please enjoy your weekend.
a foot of snow
a month too soon
candles for nightlights
. ………………………………. . haiga by Arthur Giacalone (photos) & David Giacalone (poetry); Simply Haiku Journal, Vol. 5 no. 1 (Spring 2007)
pumpkins and snowsuits
on the mudroom floor —
the ides of october
…………………….. by dagosan – click to see a related haiga photo/poem