It was recently announced that Bob Barker, the oleaginous host of The Price is Right, is retiring. In honor of this American institution, bizarrely beloved by the Québecois and other assorted French-Canadians, I have compiled three of my favorite clips.
The first focuses on a stupid contestant, a perennial favorite subject of mine. But this one has a twist. Watch for Bob’s escalating annoyance and then his utter disbelief at the very end.
Steve Coogan is one of my favorite comedic actors. As an American, I only first became aware of him in the great modern music history of Manchester film 24 Hour Party People. Luckily, I have a British friend who introduced me to the unctuous Alan Partridge, Coogan’s most famous character. To honor my great love of this British legend-in-the-making, I will list five of the best television shows he has appeared in. Subscribe to BBC America or install a gatling-proxy and fire up uTorrent because you will want to check out the following Britcoms.
While researching the RICO statutes, I was astonished to find two disturbing applications of these laws. First, when RICO intersects with mail and wire fraud statutes, it allows the federal government to turn underlying offenses outside the scope of RICO into actual RICO offenses. Second, the federal government can prosecute an offender both under RICO and on the underlying crimes that constitute a RICO violation, creating a scenario equivalent to double jeopardy. After the cut, I will explain what the RICO statute is, how these two applications work, and why this is injust.
I recently wrote a glib, throwaway post on Five Quick Steps for reforming education. While the list was made partially in humor, it has sparked a substantive debate and I would like to wade in with more detailed thoughts.
1. We should not overly federalize education. The federal government, bastion of bloat and incompetence, cannot address education issues as well as the various States. The federal government is crucial for legislating on issues that are national or interstate, such as environmental regulations. That is where they are most useful. Education is primarily a local issue. Therefore, it is more appropriate for the States to control education, since they would be able to craft solutions that address the specific needs of failing schools. While one school district may have crumbling infrastructure that needs to be addressed, another may have a teacher shortage. The federal government does not have the time nor the energy to address such specific issues and their attempts at reform, such as the No Child Left Behind Act, have been deleterious rather than ameliorative.
1. Blow up the Department of Education.
2. Eradicate the teachers’ unions by hiring Pinkertons.
3. Abolish government control over running schools and place most of the governance and day-to-day operations in private hands.
4. Create a comprehensive school choice voucher system funded by the States.
5. More pizza parties.
In civil actions, they are various standards of proof that a prosecutor must meet in order to prove that an element of the tort has been met (as must a defense lawyer if asserting an affirmative defense). Those standards can vary somewhat state by state or tort by tort, but they are generally summed up as a “preponderance of the evidence.” In criminal cases, that standard of proof is raised to the familiar “beyond a reasonable doubt.” But there is one particular situation where an even higher standard of proof is required. Can you identify the situation? For bonus points can you point to where this standard is found and what the standard is? This question is limited to American jurisprudence. Read on for a hint.
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The Showtime hit series Weeds has garnered lots of attention, including right here by our very own JessB, more so than other Showtime series like Huff and Brotherhood. Perhaps it is the central conceit of having a suburban white women sell marijuana, giving twenty-something white kids the pleasure of both the familiar (moms) and the unfamiliar (moms dealing weed). “Weeds Nights,” where, surprise, surprise, mostly white, twenty-somethings get together to watch a new episode when it airs are becoming increasingly common. I can understand if this is just an excuse to get together with friends to get high, but if that were the case, don’t be so literal. Either go with something classic like dropping LSD and renting El Topo or think obliquely and snort coke while watching The Wire. While Weeds is not atrociously bad, it does not deserve the level of praise it is getting from the general public (i.e. my friends). Here are three reasons why it is overrated:
It is a federal crime to provide false statements in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch, with some limited, but important, exceptions.* If one is within jurisdiction and willingly and knowingly makes a false representation, uses a false document, or conceals by trick a material fact, one is subject to 18 U.S.C. § 1001. Violation of Section 1001 can result in up to five years in prison. It is similar to perjury, but one does not need to be under oath, so its application is broader and, in a very specific way, insidious. Read on to find out why.
There are a lot of Family Circus detournements* on the Internet. I chalk it up to two factors: 1. The strip is annoyingly, cloyingly terrible. 2. It has decent art and lots of characters. The former provides the impetus, while the latter increases the interesting options. Proof: Ziggy is equally, if not more, terrible,** yet it only ever really features Ziggy, so manipulation possibilities are less dynamic and therefore less interesting.
My favorite Family Circus mash-up is The Nietzsche Family Circus, which combines random Family Circus panels with random qoutes from that powerfully impotent philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche. The combinations often seem surprisingly deliberate and relevant, but that could just be the pattern matching module in my brain creating meaning out of nothingness.
*This is a fancy way of saying “fucking around.”
**I once thought of a really great Ziggy cartoon: Ziggy is standing on a slightly bowed horizon while a crudely drawn smiling sun sets (or is it rising?). Ziggy is looking directly at the reader and the word balloon says, in shaky, trembling lettering, “Everytime I think I am in a groove, it turns out I am just in a rut.” I am truly an ubermensch.
I have absolutely no problem with Rep. Foley’s actions, specifically IMing and corresponding with 16- and 17-year-old boys in a sexual manner. I would have no problem if he induced them to send naked pictures of themselves to him. I would have no problem if he convinced them to meet him and have anal sex. The issue is his moral hypocrasy, not his actions. And to condemn his actions may betray one as a rank homophobe.
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Of all the works of the Bible, Ecclesiastes stands out as the most profound, probably because it is unlike any other chapter in either the Old or the New Testament. Written post-Exile, likely composed by a single writer, it is the greatest of all wisdom literature. It distills the essence of a deeply Hebraic worldview, which is why I prefer to refer to it by its Hebrew name, Koheleth, which means roughly “speaker to an assembly.” What sets it apart from everything else in the Bible is its focus on mortality and the struggle of the here and now, rather than the otherworldly paradise to come. It preaches what are essentially pagan concepts, having more in common with the Stoics in many parts than with the early Jews or nascent Christians, although it is at its core a Jewish work. The writing is evocative and sonorous in the King James translation; a worthy rendering of what are universal truths orated by an idiosyncratic personality. I want to gesture at why Koheleth is one of the most important pieces of writing ever set down and why it remains a personal touchstone for my own life.
The attorney general of most states has quite a bit of power over nonprofits. He is generally charged with the responsibility of supervision and oversight of charitable trusts and corporations and can bring actions against nonprofits to protect the public interest. The following are some of the specific powers attorney generals wield over nonprofits registered in their state: the power to investigate, subpoena witnesses, require the production of books and records, annul corporate existence (corporate death sentence), corporate dissolvement (ultra vires), restrain unauthorized activities, remove directors and trustees, enforce member rights, supervise indemnification awards, investigate transactions and relationships between directors, bring quo warranto actions to assure that absolute gifts are applied according to their terms, etc. The attorney general is a necessary party to litigation against nonprofits, he must receive notice when a suit is initiated by others, and nonprofits must register and file annual reports with his office. Judging by this cursory listing of attorney general powers, it would seem as if nonprofits are comprehensively overseen by the government. Yet, despite the existence of such powers, attorney general oversight remains more theoretical than deterrent. Here is why and here is the solution.
NOTE: I just want to sketch out some potentially abhorrent ideas I had. I am quite aware of the gaping logical holes that follow. Consider this fodder for discussion rather than an attempt to create a cohesive argument.
There are three basic justifications or rationalizations for state punishment: incapacitation, rehabilitation, and deterrence. They are all generally considered to be acceptable to some degree depending on your philosophical disposition. There is a fourth justification that underlies the other three and is the most convincing for the atheist.
Jason pointed out the potential for embarassment that could be caused when you confuse words that have two or more meanings. Sometimes two words will be different but very similar and one might accidently use the one when they mean the other. This also causes great shame. A common example, which every schoolchild knows, concerns the words Phar Lap and Pharlapsicus.
All My Children recently featured a long discussion about the muscian Mike Patton. “WTF?” is as overused as standing ovations, but sometimes it fits. WTF?! It reminded me of when Ryan Starr from American Idol did a Sun0))) song.
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