Scalito

Didn't i tell you that the next Supreme Court nominee was going to be worse than Harriet Miers. The President nominated Sam Alito to be the Justice that replaces Sandra Day O'Connor in the High Court. Alito is such a strict constructionist that he has earned the nickname "Scalito" during his 15 years on the 3rd circuit court of appeals.

Alito faces what would seem to be a tough fight in the Senate. With the what would hopefully be a long filibuster by the Democratic senators. The harsh reality of it is that 8 out of 10 Supreme Court nominees are confirmed by the senate. (Regardless of the pity party that Robert Bork likes to throw himself)

Assuming that Alito is confirmed that leaves a clear 5-4 separation in the court. On top of that, most of those 5 aren't moderate conservative justices. Scalia, Thomas and Alito are all hard core right wingers that interpret the Constitution in a very conservative manner. (Don't let Scalia's rhetoric fool you, what he's doing is every bit as interpretive as what Ruth Ginsburg would do.)

So where does that leave the court? Roe is almost certain to come up where it would most likely be overturned or at least drastically limited. But there are other issues that would come up tha are just as important to the nation. Clarence Thomas has made no secret about his feelings about affirmative action. Scalia has said that he doesn't believe in substantive due process. Alito has favored law enforcement in search and seizure cases.

So in my humble opinion this will be this presidents legacy. Dramatically shifting the balance of power in the high court. Which will in turn hand down opinions that will echo in the halls of time. There aren't term limits in the Court, these guys are going to be there for a while. (I say "guys" because the president has elected not to nominate a woman to replace the retiring O'Connor.)

The weekend that was, and i don't remember

Just thoughts on the weekend.

White people cannot dance. Its like a mathematical impossibility for two white people to look good dancing, if its not a slow song. This stems from being in a bar in Bainbridge and watching two people (probably drunk) try to dance to a live band that was playing 70's Southern Rock. "Play Freebird!!!!" Watching these people dance was like watching someone have a seizure, just without the laundry. There wasn't even a semblance of rhythm.

Got really drunk at a wedding on Saturday. Really drunk. I'd say more but i don't remember anything and my teeth are purple. But this was the last wedding in a month long string of weddings that prevented me from really getting into the college football season. From here on out my ass will be firmly planted in front of the TV from noon until 10 for the next two months.

The Browns suck, they dominated that game and found a way to lose. I really can't bring myself to talk about it. I will say that i don't think changing QB's is the answer.

Scooter Libbey got indicted. Isn't this just another black eye for this administration. What a colossal failure these 8 years have been. That's as in depth as my political commentary is getting on a sunday night.

more football analysis to come after the monday night game. Until then nighty night keep your butthole tight!

not that anyone cares here's my picks for this NFL week

Here's the straight up picks, maybe one week i'll look up the lines on the games and play against the spread. But that day is not today

Arizona at Dallas
Even without Julius Jones being 100% Dallas should roll an Arizona team that can't run the ball (Damn you J.J. Arrington). Lets hope for my sake that Larry Fitzgerald has a good day cause he might be my only fantasy receiver playing this week.

Chicago at Detroit
Bears suck Lions suck, who sucks less? The Bears. Bears have a tough D and should have no problem stopping Jeff Garcia who won't be as pumped up when he's not playing Cleveland.

Cleveland at Houston
If you don't have to watch this game, don't. Browns are two point dogs to a team that doesn't have a win, you think Romeo wasn't telling all of his players that this week. Browns should do enough to get a win, but if they don't this may be Trent Dilifer's last start of the year.

Green Bay at Cincinnati
I hate to let everyone in Cincinnati in on a little secret, but they're still the Bengals and they're still Cincinnati. They had less wins in the 90's than the Browns and the Browns weren't in the league for three years. The Bengals are a good team just not a good enough team to go far in the playoffs. The good news is that Chad Johnson can save money on his car insurance by switching to Geiko and the Packers suck ass. Bengals win this one in a shoot out.

Jacksonville at St. Louis
No Marc Bulger means no win for the Rams. Its like this Rams team hasn't gotten any better in the last four years. The defense still sucks and the offense is getting worse. The Jags play solid D and should have enough offense to win.

Miami at New Orleans
Who knows with this game. Its hard to pick Gus Ferroette on the road, and the Saints have gotten screwed by the refs two weeks in a row. So i'm going with the home team that doesn't have a home. An aside, if Tom Benson moves the Saints out of the N.O. after a devastating hurricane like Katrina he might be worse than Art Modell, MIGHT be worse.

Minnesota at Carolina
I think Carolina pounds the Vikes at home. The Vikings won't be able to score and there defense that was supposed to be better this year is horrible.

Oakland at Tennessee
I think Steve McNair has sack but if he didn't even get on the team plane last week the Titans are in trouble. This one is going to be a shoot out either way so flip a coin. It came up heads so i'm going with the Raiders.

Washington at N.Y. Giants
Giants don't play any D the Skins play a ton. Defense beats offense go with the Skins. But i think that this Skins team isn't as good as their record indicates, some close wins and a blowout of the 49ers does not impress me. In fact i think that the entire NFC East is overrated, except Dallas with a healthy Julius Jones.

Kansas City at San Diego
From what i hear about the Chiefs- Dolphins game from last friday the Chiefs continue to play no defense, lets hope that results in a big rebound from LaDainian Tomlinson. Its scary that the Chargers find ways to lose games, it reminds me of the Browns of the late 80's, just not as traumatic(that Rich Karlis field goal was no good, just ask Andrew Sicilliano). Bolts win

Philly at Denver
The Eagles throw the ball 70% of the time. This can't be good when your QB has a sports hernia. Denver and Jake Plummer have been playing solid ball all year. The trend continues, Broncos win at home, Eagles don't run the ball and TO complains.

Tampa Bay at San Francisco
The 49ers are starting Ken Dorsey at QB. I think that should be enough to ensure a Bucs win. Be careful because Chris Simmis is starting on the road. He couldn't get a win on the road in college it remains to be seen if he can do it in the pros. And what does it say about Simms that the Bucs traded for Tim Rattay, not a whole lot of confidence.

Buffalo at New England
Corey Dillon all day against a porous D-Line of the Bills. Everyone else will slowly figure out the Kelly Holcomb is not a serviceable quarterback.

Baltimore at Pittsburgh
No Ray Lewis and no Ed Reed means that the Ravens offense will have a chance to out score the defense this week. Pittsburgh wins, not really a close game. If there was a way that both teams could lose i hope it happens this week.

Stern 2

Here's a quote from David Stern;
We don't know where the cut-off is, maybe if you earn less than $8 million, you'll get a scholarship from the commissioner." -- David Stern's answer to Marcus Camby's request for a clothes stipend

Couldn't you see him saying this while he was twisting his mustache and laughing maniacally afterwards. Stern is awesome.

Jigga what?

Tonight at a concert in jersey Jay-Z declared war on "beef". This concert was hyped for more than a month now. Everyone talkin bout who is gonna get dissed and what not. It turns out that no one got dissed, at least for the moment. But Jay did bring Nas out to do "Dead Presidents" at the end of the show. If you've been listening to hip hop for the last five years you understand this is like Kennedy doing a show with Castro. Huge night for hip hop, that's who wins in all of this, hip hop.

Harriet, Sweet Har-i-et

The news of the morning is Harriet Mier's withdrawal of her nomination for the Supreme Court. Not knowing Harriet Miers on any level i can't say what her leaning would have been on the Court. But Bush II knew her well, and most likely asked her straight out how she would vote on an abortion case. I'm sure she answered with something that the Pres. Liked or she wouldn't have gotten the nomination in the first place.
So, i'm not sure where all this right wing backlash comes from. I understand Souter was nominated by a Republican president and turned into a liberal judge, but Souter wasn't the President's personal attorney.
Now, i'm not bemoaning the fact that she withdrew her nomination. I felt like she was entirely unqualified for the position in the first place. Head of the Texas Bar Association does not a Justice make. But this sets up the possibility of someone worse being nominated to the High Court. I guess the fear of the unknown is worse than the fear of the known.
To appease the right-wing base, the Pres. Might have to go with a nomination that is worse than both Roberts and Miers. I hope its not but it might very well be.



It's like an orange on a tooth pick.

Mustachioed

Does anyone remember the clips of David Stern from the mid 80's drafts when he had that mustache? I think he should bring back the stache. If only for the reason that announcers can call him the mustachioed David Stern. And yes the whole point of the entry was to type mustachioed. But doesn't a mustache fit Stern's persona, especially after the "if they don't like the dress code, I'll be more than happy to help them find alternative employment" comments? It would be infinitely better if he had the Rollie Fingers handlebar stache, so he could twist it at his desk laughing maniacally at the power he wields of pro basketball as Russ Granik brings him more mustache wax.

These posts have become entirely too sports oriented and i'm not reaching a big segment of my audience. (I know, what audience?) So here's a music take;

Everyone loves lists (which i think is indicative of the mass consuption, more, more, more culture we live in) So here are my top albums of double aught 5. They're all hip hop albums because, despite what you hear on the radio, its the only real American music form left. Its my generation's Jazz. But that's a different post.
1. DangerDoom- The Mouse and the Mask
I don't think that there is anything wrong with this album. Even the skits, which normally i can't stand, are funny and make a contribution to the album. If you don't got this album go get it, NOW.
2. Common- Be
respectable effort from Common, not Resurrection but not crap either. It's a little on the short side for some, but Illmatic only had ten tracks and is the greatest hip-hop album ever. I think this album could have used maybe two more verses and it would have been good to go, especially on Testify.
3. Blackalicious- The Craft
Only given it about three listens but is a banger none the less. Chief Excel has some very nice production on this disc. Rap Reviews game them a 10 so who am i to argue.
4. Kanye West- Late Registration
Not as good as College Dropout or Be, but still worth a listen. Its got replay value but some of the songs skippable(addiction, bring me down). Its good to see that an artist can come out with two above average records to start a career.
5. Public Enemy- New Whirl Odor
Any time PE comes out with a new album it goes on the best of list, no questions asked. Fuck Elvis.

such a hate filled world

Back when hockey was still somewhat relevant, I would have conversations with a friend of mine about the game. It was pointed out to me that I hated almost every player in the league. Which was true, I had serious dislike for at least 85% of the league. Especial dislike for Dominik Hasek, who in my opinion still hasn't won a meaningful game. Great defense makes a good goalie look like a hall of famer.

(As an aside, there is nothing better in sports than playoff hockey. Even though the playoffs last for two years, it is absolutely riveting. I watched a 5OT game between the Penguins and the Flyers and there were very few things in sports that could compare. Lets hope that when the playoffs roll around this year its even better with the new rules.)

So what prompted all of this distaste? Who knows, maybe its living in Cleveland and having to go through the fumble, the drive, the shot, Jose Mesa and a defensive collapse in the 02 playoffs. I guess all of that has built up a sense of bitterness. I always had a sense of pride about the city that there wasn't a public outcry about our bad luck like there was by Red Sox or Cubs fans. But maybe all of this agnst got internalized into bitterness about the success of other cities or other players. By the way there isn't a group of fans that I hate more than Red Sox fans.

There isn't really a point to this post other than I'm going to be very bitter for the forseeable future.

Now for a little bit of love.
Rosa Parks died yesterday. I can't imagine the kind of courage it took for her to not give up her seat. It only takes one person to start a revolution.

three swings for a quarter

Why doesn't baseball have instant replay?
I understand that for the most part umpires do an excellent job, but there isn't a reason that it can't be done better. I don't want to take anything away from the men who are umps because they do an excellent job but instant replay can certainly improve some aspects of the game. There is no reason for baseball not to take advantage of technology that every other major sport uses.
The only argument I've heard is that it will cause a massive increase in the length of games if Umps were to use instant replay. That's fine in theory but if that's all you got then bring on the review booth. Why can't Major League Baseball have a system similar to the NFL, managers get two challenges per game and that's it and they can't challenge balls and strikes. I don't know the numbers but I would bet that NFL games are not significantly longer than they were before replay. Wouldn't this benefit the game greatly? You don't think that Phil Garner wouldn't have thrown the red hankey last night on that HBP?
And if your really concerned about the length of games keep the batter in the batter's box or shorten the length between innings. OH NO NOT THAT, that would cut into MLB's ad revenue. Baseball has this unhealthy attachment to tradition that surpasses even college football. Change always seems like a death knell to these purists. ( as a side note it amazes me that DH rule ever got passed) Change is good fellas, the replay machine isn't going to steal your souls.

and the seasons

So went to the Rock Hall for the first time in the ten years that it has been open. Don't think i'm going back. At least not for 20 bucks. I understand people from out of town wanting to come in and check it out but I don't think they get a lot of repeat customers. Actually i was surprised about how many people were in there, of course most of the people were members of the Anthony Wayne High School Marching Band. Poor kids.

On the Browns game,
How do you lose to the Lions and the Ravens in back to back weeks? I guess the obvious answer is that the Browns suck. But I don't think they are as bad as the Lions and the Ravens. The Lions second receiver was Herman Moore and his construction crew and they still threw all over the Browns. But this wasn't the defenses fault. If you give up 13 points and get a kickoff return for a touchdown you should win. That brings me to Trent Dilfer.

I understand that he's here as a stop-gap, and he's mentoring Charlie Frye. But wasn't he brought in not to make mistakes? He threw three interceptions, one was batted in the air at the line so i'll cut him some slack there. But the other two were horrendous. There wasn't even a Browns' receiver near the play to break it up. If Dilfer's going to out there and throw picks you might as well put Frye in there.

The week that was in other football
Some thoughts on the college and pro game.
How does Alabama keep winning with no talent?Roll Tide i guess.

I hate USC, and i hate people who call them back to back national champs. The first one they shared with LSU, and last year Auburn was undefeated too. At most they've got one and a half.

LT nearly killed my fantasy team, but at least he got his bad game out of his system before the playoffs.

Is there anything worse than regional coverage in college football. Can someone tell me why I had to watch Purdue-Wisconsin instead of Texas- Texas Tech. I didn't go to Wisc. or Purdue i don't live near either, so why not put the better game on? Is there someone i can call at ABC to change the game on my tv?

The White Sox are the beneficiaries of some of the worst umpiring ever. Lucky bastards

jist

Let me lay out the jist of this blog, (if that's not too pertentious) i guess it will mainly be cnetered on the things that i care about,i.e. sports, music, politics and philosophy. But you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men.

Two and a half years of law school has done nothing to change my mind about the fact that most lawyers are pompous jerks. I love the law i just hate lawyers. Everything is so competitive and self serving i'm not sure that there are alot of people there who care about anyone but themselves.

Day 1

Isn't it shocking that the internet will give any random person a forum to publish any meaningless ideas that they have. If this isn't what Holmes meant when he said market place of ideas then nothing was. Except this is kind of a deep discount marketplace. There's not a lot of good steak being sold on the internet.