Month: September 2020

 “They challenged my manhood, challenged my role as a father. They were really just questioning my morals. It was very personal, and at that time I was really starting to grow into my faith. My wife was really instrumental in me going to the game.”

John Scott, about his election to the 2016 NHL All-Star Game and the NHL’s efforts to derail it

There’s a great story at Relevant Radio about 6’8″ defenceman/winger John Scott. A radio program launched a successful campaign to vote him captain of the Pacific Division. The NHL balked and ruthlessly tried to foil it. Scott persisted, played in the game, scored two improbable goals (he only scored five in his entire career), and was named MVP.

There is now a movie being made about it.

Debate

I could only watch for an hour. Biden stumbled out of the gate, showing an inability to keep a chain of thought . . . and Trump let him off the hook by interrupting him repeatedly. I think Trump missed a golden opportunity, and Biden came off favorably. Victory to Biden, based on those first 60 minutes.

Critical Race Theory

There’s a pretty good summary contained in this story: Trump Order Dealing Unprecedented Blow to Critical Race Theory:

The theories are based on the Marxist concept of “struggle,” pitting races and sexes against each other by labeling them “oppressors” and the “oppressed.” It then reinterprets society and history as being rooted in this “struggle.”

Something New Under the Sun

Changes are coming to The Daily Eudemon. You’ve probably been noticing them over the past few weeks. … Read the rest

Barrett, Prison Rape Bonanza, Lions

I gotta admit: I’m proud to be an alumnus of Notre Dame Law School. I was in my third year of law school when Mrs. Barrett was a freshman in the undergrad so our paths would’ve never crossed, but I’m professionally, personally, politically pleased with the nomination.

“Professionally personally politically pleased.” Man, that’s some serious alliteration.

Every inmate’s dream come true: “Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law on Saturday requiring California to house transgender inmates in prisons based on their gender identity.”

Lots of convicts suddenly feel like they’ve always had breasts–soft, supple, breasts even–but were compelled by the patriarchal language matrix to express them in terms of violence.

But I tell you what: I’d like to see the look on the sadistic female prison guard who sexually accosts one of them.

Now, in Newsom’s defense, the law says the state doesn’t have to do it if it has “management or security concerns.” How do you put men in a woman’s prison without safety concerns? That’s like Hitler putting Jews in Auschwitz but only if their Kosher laws can be respected. The entire point of the policy (putting men and women together . . . Auschwitz) conflicts with the thing to be avoided (rape . . . respecting Kosher laws).

We can’t even put college men and women together on college campuses without sexual assaults. How are we going to house convicts and women together?

But hey, on the bright side, this oughtta lighten the workload of the prison sissies.

Lions win! They beat the 2-0 Cardinals in Arizona. I was strictly watching them for comic relief at … Read the rest

Bachelor Party

Drinking weekend. Alpena, on the shores of Lake Huron, eldest son Alex’s bachelor party.

I stocked the car last night with cornhole, frisbees, Can Jam, Spike Ball, dice, cards, and beer. Now I just need to make room for two passengers and our underwear.

I’ve cleansed my system: I haven’t had an ounce of alcohol or red meat for two weeks. Plenty of both start shortly.

I bought a few cases of beer in Indiana. Indiana doesn’t have a returnable law and I thought it was cheaper. Not so. The beer is shockingly expensive. A case of Pabst is $20, compared to $16 in Michigan. I have no idea why.

Oh well, by the time we throw away a lot of cans because no one wants to deal with them, or the Governor slaps another Executive Order that prohibits returns (thereby effectively unconstitutionally levying a tax), it’ll be cheaper.

Have a nice weekend, everyone. This might be the last warm weekend in the northern states for awhile. … Read the rest

The Shortage

Where did all the people go?

In our community, we have a lawyer shortage, a computer technician shortage, a construction contractor shortage, a doctor shortage, a substitute teacher shortage. And those are just ones I can think of without trying.

Everyone is crazy busy; nobody has time to do other people’s work.

And it’s not just all COVID backlog. That’s some of it, and no doubt plays large in things like construction projects, but in my law practice? That’s only a slice of the problem. There are a lot of other factors at play. I think the $5 trillion of COVID relief has something to do with it, but I don’t know.

Something’s gotta break. Things are moving fast; people are tired and frayed. It’s not good.

Speaking of which, I need to get back to my desk. (Smile.)… Read the rest

Marshall McLuhan’s Ten Most Potent Extensions

Toward the end of his life, Marshall McLuhan provided a list of the ten things that have changed us the most

After my mom died last year, I had to clean out my childhood home. In the process, I stumbled upon one of my favorite quirky reference books: The Book of Lists.

This 1970s sensation sold nearly ten million copies. It was, well, a book of lists. That’s it. A lot of the lists were factual (“12 Drinks Named After People”), but some of the lists were mere opinions by celebrities or experts in a particular field. For example, “Johnny Cash’s Ten Greatest Country Songs of All Time” (aside: he put “I Walk the Line” at number one).

While reminiscing with it, I came across this opinion list by an expert in his field:

Marshall McLuhan’s Ten Most Potent Extensions of Man
1. Fire
2. Clothing
3. The wheel
4. The lever
5. Phonetic alphabet
6. The sword
7. Print
8. Electric telegraph
9. Electric light
10. Radio and TV

Over the past 20 years, I’ve developed a serious interest in McLuhan, but I had never seen this list (I don’t remember whether I saw it when I was 12). McLuhan provided it in 1977, just three years before his death.

I break down each of these “potent” extensions below.

Read all of the essay at Medium

or

Read all of the essay at TDE… Read the rest