Letters to the Management

speaking of Pemberton Township, New Jersey . . . news about their local GOP

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:41:14 GMT

Yesterday I posted about homeless people in Pemberton Township, New Jersey, who are living in the Pine Barrens, and how the township provides little, if any, municipal services to help the people out (other than siccing the cops on them from time to time). In unrelated but wonderfully coincidental news, a Blue Jersey blogger was checking out the website of that township's GOP today, and he found an image at the bottom of the page with the following text:

"Obama
loves America
like OJ
loved Nicole!"

The image has since been removed, but Blue Jersey got a screen cap of the page ("The Official Website of the Pemberton Township Republicans") and has saved it on flickr.

helping out the homeless who live in the Pine Barrens

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 15:57:57 GMT

Suzanne, 39, sleeps out in the elements without a tent, a sleeping bag her only protection. She said that she's been homeless off and on since she was 15, working construction or in local blueberry fields to compensate for her meager Social Security check.

Suzanne, who didn't want to give her last name, said that it can be dangerous in the woods but that she steers clear of trouble as much as she can.

"It all depends on how you act out there," she said, rubbing her choppy salt-and-pepper hair. "I tend to stay away from drug people. Most of the problems people have in life come from envy, and no one envies the homeless."

Suzanne is one of some 900 people who are homeless in Burlington County, New Jersey. About two dozen of them live in wooded areas in and around Pemberton Township, near Fort Dix and McGuire Air Force Base. The township's residents have a lower median income than those of most other townships in the county, and there are few, if any, township-funded services for the homeless. Instead, a few churches and an organization called the Christian Caring Center offer meals and some shelter to people who have no other option but to camp out in the Pine Barrens (Inky).

getting together with the building neighbors

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 14:13:16 GMT

Last Wednesday the downstairs neighbor hosted a barbecue-cum-condo association meeting. There are three units in the building, and all of the residents are owners, not renters. How refreshing that everybody in the building is normal and polite and reasonable! We're going to try to get together quarterly (as opposed to never meeting at all); we're getting the ball rolling on some maintenance issues (as opposed to never doing any upkeep until something fails spectacularly); and we're getting estimates on replacing the front windows (as opposed to continuing to heat and air condition the outdoors). And can you believe that no one ever put in some kind of access to the roof? That's on our longer-term list of projects.

We also talked about the downstairs burglary. The cops had recommended a few changes, including modifying the privacy fence around the patio down there. Since we have some reserves in the condo association bank account -- see "as opposed to never doing any upkeep," above -- we're going to match what the downstairs neighbor's insurance paid him to fix his door. That way, he can get a better door and window to secure the patio entrance to his apartment, compared to what the insurance payment would have allowed. Doing so will help secure the entire building, since it was only a matter of luck, or the burglars' being pressed for time, that they didn't enter the interior hall and stairway and try to get into the other two apartments.

Then I went upstairs and took the "beware of dog" sign out of Eleanor's window and nailed it to the outside of the privacy fence gate.

Still can't get over how reasonable and ordinary and polite everyone is, after living so long with a young renter downstairs and the now deceased neighbor upstairs, who was challenging to get along with. (And it wasn't just me; there had been some bristly goings-on between him and the new owner downstairs, too.) During the barbecue, it kept coming up that all of us had been a little nervous about getting together, not knowing what to expect after having had such a negative experience before. We were all relieved. It'll be so nice to be able to get stuff accomplished in the building without having to worry about stepping on anyone's toes or rubbing someone the wrong way.

quote of the day: Rush Limbaugh on Bill O'Reilly

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:00:06 GMT

It's an insult to the late, great Ted Knight:

At dinner the night before, Bill O'Reilly's name came up, and Limbaugh expressed his opinion of the Fox cable king. He hadn't been sure at the time that he wanted it on the record. But on second thought, "somebody’s got to say it," he told me. "The man is Ted Baxter."

New York Times Magazine

scalded

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 12:40:18 GMT

I scalded my hand yesterday . . . making iced tea.

neighborly BBQ tonight!

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 18:29:59 GMT

A few months ago I'd mentioned that it would be neat for the three owners in our building to get together once in a while and shoot the breeze. So tonight, after exchanging about a million e-mails on the topic, we're going to meet downstairs and have a little BBQ.

I feel as though I should invite other people. It's going to be a very small party!

Not sure if we have an agenda, other than to get to know one another. I imagine we'll talk about the break-in last month. Oh, and the mouse that the upstairs neighbor found a few days ago -- but WTF? There are as many cats as there are people in the building. Stupid mice!

Dinesh D'Souza on Michelle Obama: "go see a therapist, you stupid ingrate"

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:09:38 GMT

According to Dinesh D'Souza's latest ad hominem attack on Michelle Obama, the Princeton- and Harvard-educated corporate attorney is stupid, underqualified, ungrateful, confused, and psychotic -- and Barack Obama should probably "distance himself" from her as he did Reverend Wright. Bonus: the column is accompanied by a photo catching her at an instant where she's holding her hands up in boxing-stance fists and looking as though she's saying, "Grrr!"

Since when is it OK to berate the wife of a presidential candidate this personally, during the campaign or otherwise? Did Laura Bush get this treatment when it came out that she'd killed someone in a car accident when she ran a stop sign? How about when Barbara Bush called Geraldine Ferraro a bitch? Or Nancy Reagan's famously tempestuous relationships with and multiple estrangements from her own children? I'd go further back, but I don't think Betty Ford's addictions -- which pre-dated Ford's failed presidential bid and must have been known in at least some circles -- were taken out in 1976 and shaken before the press like so much dirty laundry.

news: charges filed against a Gitmo prisoner

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 20:29:19 GMT

~~"If the U.S. suffers another terrorist attack, it'll help McCain's campaign."~~

Oops, didn't work. Sounds just a little bit, oh, anti-American to, you know, rejoice in the death of Americans and the destruction of their property. OK, try again.

"If we charge someone at Gitmo with the U.S.S. Cole bombing, it'll help McCain's campaign."

my relaxing weekend: blood, pancakes, and jam

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 15:37:51 GMT

Was treated to dinner Friday night at Beneluxx, a restaurant that is best described as a Belgian tapas bar. They serve tasting portions of beer, wine, cheese, and chocolate, or you can get a mini pizza or a grilled sandwich. Among other things, I had a cheese called Orval, which is basically Belgian Oka -- like Oka, it's made by Cistercian monks. I wonder if it isn't the same abbey that the Oka monks came from originally. Anyway I want to give myself a blind taste-test one of these days and see if I can tell the difference!

Spent Saturday catching up on schoolwork and housework, especially vacuuming up the mustard seeds that I'd spilled on the carpet while measuring out pickling spices on Wednesday. Steve came over for dinner and brought tomatoes and herbs and romano cheese, so I made sauce for pasta. Ice cream for dessert, and then I put Eleanor to bed and we watched There Will Be Blood.

I'm going to be very unpopular here, but not only am I not a fan of Daniel Day-Lewis -- why director Paul Thomas Anderson sought him out for this very, very American part I'll never understand -- but I also think that Anderson's Punch-Drunk Love was a far superior film. It's certainly a better character study and delves much more thoroughly and disturbingly into exploring where anger and hatred come from. I don't think Blood's screenplay explained Plainview's little talk with Eli at the end nearly well enough. I'm all for challenging films, but the end there, while not completely unexpected, was not prefaced. Punch-Drunk Love, on the other hand, went a lot further in explaining where the protagonist, Barry, was coming from, and it also showed him grappling with his violent tendencies. Where Barry in Punch isn't always particularly successful in overcoming his demons but he seeks to figure out what's going on, Plainview in Blood recognizes that he has his misanthropic nature, but he doesn't go anywhere with it. He doesn't get any better, but he also doesn't get any worse. He ends the film by saying "I'm finished," but the truth is that he was finished two hours (twenty years) earlier. Not that every movie has to be a bildungsroman, of course. But surely the movie was supposed to be more than "ruthless oil man makes millions of dollars, dies alone."

In conclusion, go Jews. I mean, heaven forbid I should assert that Adam Sandler is a better actor or that I should ever criticize a Day-Lewis performance, but Sandler sure did have better material to work with. That Sandler was up to the task of the work in Punch was a pleasant surprise. That Day-Lewis wouldn't adopt a midwestern or at least generically Wild-West accent for Blood was an unpleasant one.

Anyway. Woke up Sunday and made pancakes. I like making pancakes for Eleanor and Steve on Sunday mornings and then going to the farmer's market. In the afternoon, while Eleanor was at a friend's running around a sprinkler, I made raspberry-blueberry jam. We ate the pint of blueberries that were left over for dessert after dinner. And then the weekend was over. Fin.

two-berry . . .

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 19:53:21 GMT

. . . jam.

Ingredients:

- 3 half-pint containers raspberries
- 1 pint blueberries
- juice of half of one lemon
- 1 pkg dry pectin
- 5 cups sugar, separated

Method:

Rinse and pick over berries. Sift together the pectin and 1/2 cup of sugar. In a large pan, combine the berries, sugar, and lemon juice. Let stand for 20 minutes. Bring to a low boil and add remaining sugar. Boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Process half-pints in a boiling-water canner 10 minutes.

Yield: Just under 7 half-pints.

I didn't crush the fruit. The raspberries disintegrated, but the blueberries almost all stayed whole, and now they're kinda suspended in the jam. Can't wait to try this one! Especially since it's been a coupla years since I've done raspberries or blueberries.

ACLU on D.C. v. Heller?

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:22:22 GMT

Has the ACLU made a statement regarding D.C. v. Heller?

It mentions the case in its end-of-term round-up, but I haven't found anything on the ACLU's stance on Second Amendment rights. Now that it's considered an individual right in D.C., I'd like to know (1) the ACLU's views on incorporation (PDF) (that is, whether the ruling applies to the states as opposed to just the District of Columbia and the federal government), and (2) what level of scrutiny the ACLU thinks that courts should apply when evaluating laws restricting gun ownership.

I have the best pro bono gig ever.

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 18:45:16 GMT

I have the best pro bono gig ever.

That is all.

CNN's sexist headline of the day

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 13:09:27 GMT

Article: Chiropractic adjustments can raise your risk of strokes. Other stuff that can raise your risk of stroke include pregnancy, the Pill, the hair-washing sink at the barber shop, and roller coaster rides.

Headline: "Birth control pills, salon haircuts can raise stroke risk"

bread and butter . . .

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:35:36 GMT

. . . pickles.

Ingredients:

- 4 pounds farmers market cucumbers that look like some kind of heirloom kirby
- 1 medium yellow onion
- canning (non-iodized) salt
- 3 cups vinegar
- 2 cups white cane sugar
- 2 tablespoons brown mustard seed
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 2 teaspoons celery seed
~~- 1 teaspoon ginger~~oops, can't find any
- 1 teaspoon peppercorns

Method:

Trim stems and slice the cucumbers into chips. Slice the onion thinly. Layer cucumber and onion in a large mixing bowl with salt. Cover with ice cubes and let stand 1 1/2 hours.

In a large stockpot, heat the vinegar, sugar, and spices. Drain, rinse, drain, rinse, and drain the cucumber and onion. Add to the vinegar and bring to a boil. Pack into pint jars and process 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner.

Yield: 6 pints.

I put large sprigs of tarragon from the window boxes into three of the jars. We'll see if it adds a je ne sais quoi to the pickles.

haircut needed

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 13:07:01 GMT

This morning I dreamed that I was trying to cut my hair, but the shears were too blunt. I was sawing and sawing, but my hair wouldn't cut. So I started using the little scissors on my Leatherman tool, but that wasn't working, either.

straw poll: dumber than a . . .

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:11:14 GMT

- sack of hammers?

- box of dumb rocks?

- box of hair?

- brick?

Today's Latin lesson: Vero possumus

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:26:58 GMT

Yes, Vero possumus means "Yes, we can."

First word: As used here, vero is an adverb meaning "indeed" or "in truth."

Next: Latin verbs have five qualities to them: person, number, tense, mood, and voice. Possumus is first-person, plural, present tense, indicative mood of posse, "to be able." What voice it is (active or passive) may be a trick question, because if I remember correctly, posse is one of the very few exceptional, oddball verbs in Latin. It can't be passive. Which I guess means that it can only be active. glaucon likely remembers better than I do. But in any event, possumus means "we are able."

So, literally, vero possumus (and the o in vero should have a macron over it) means "In truth, we are able." But you don't translate any foreign language literally, because you lose any deeper connotations and emotional meaning to it [1], and thus the end result is not a fluent translation. So you don't stop here with "In truth, we are able." Possumus doesn't need much fiddling. It's not a stretch to go from "we are able" to "we can." But vero can use some help to come all the way from Latin to fluent English. Vero is a very strong, inspiring word. It's less like "yes," and more like "Yesssss!"

So, vero, the phrase means "Yes, we can!"

[1] And, in some cases, it's just nonsense. For example, the French word for "today" is aujourd'hui, which literally translated would be "to the day of today."

busy summer so far: baseball, work, school

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 02:52:53 GMT

Saw two of the three Phillies losses this weekend. Took Adam with me on Friday, with a bunch of local public-interest legal interns, and they came around and took our picture. On Saturday, there was a Drexel Law outing, so I got tickets for me, Eleanor, and Steve. Lousy games but good company both times!

Made pancakes for me, Eleanor, and Steve this morning, then did laundry and went to the farmers market. (Tomorrow: pickles!) Afterward, we went to Home Depot for stuff that we tried to find at the local hardware store but couldn't. Then we went to the Grey Lodge for lunch, where I was accidentally served a chicken sandwich rather than a veggie burger. Which would have been better if I hadn't bitten into it first. Though, I have to say, I've been vegetarian or vegetarian-except-for-fish for almost 15 years now, and this is the first time I've been served an actual piece of critter when I'd ordered something non-critter to eat. I mean, I've found stray pieces of beef in a stir-fry, and I know I've had chicken and probably beef broth from time to time, but this was really unusual in my experience. It tasted really good, though.

Internship proceeds apace. It is very low-key but I'm learning a lot about Pennsylvania state government and building coalitions across very different communities to try to accomplish a goal.

I'm starting a new pro bono project. One afternoon per week, I'll be at Planned Parenthood, helping minors initiate judicial bypass proceedings around Pennsylvania's parental notification law. The paperwork is straightforward, but there are a few tricky areas in the petitions where it's probably better for a near-lawyer, rather than a health provider, to fill it in. I won't be going to court with any patients, though; there's an individual in the Defender Association office who handles all the hearings. There aren't a whole lot. Anyone who can get a car just goes to New Jersey.

Quiz in tax class on Tuesday. I guess it will go OK. Tax class is like doing math word problems. You get a rule, and then you get a little paragraph that explains what transaction took place, and you have to decide how much "gain" was "realized" and then whether or when it should be "recognized." When we were kids, everybody always hated word problems, but I always thought they weren't any harder than the straight simplification tasks. I'm the type of learner who does better with examples and practical applications all the time, anyway. Here, in tax class, it's mostly a matter of vocabulary, I think.

Spring quarter grades are due to be posted any day now. Hrm.

"Yanks Thump Sox": why the world needs copyeditors

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 18:26:47 GMT

A pee-in to copyeditors taking early retirement.

South Street hemorrhaging business

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:35:13 GMT

South Street's getting new sidewalks, street lights, and murals. Looks great, and the trees with chewing gum (which should be a schedule 1 illicit substance, because it is disgusting) stuck to the trunks have been cut down. But businesses are hemorrhaging money because of the construction.

Go to South Street! Spend money there! If the Bean Café and Tattooed Mom's go under, I don't know what I'll do!

answering the phone

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:23:21 GMT

This summer I'm a legal intern at a nonprofit. When I answer the phone, callers are assuming I'm the secretary. (It's not an unreasonable assumption.) I'm getting a lot of the same-old, same-old impatience and thinly disguised contempt I had to deal with before I quit and went to law school. This time it's not just attorneys, though, because we also get calls here from media, state and city government, and other organizations.

I think I'm going to quit answering the phone and let one of the guys take it, unless I see from the caller-ID that it's someone I'm working with.

how to legally quote AP articles

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:34:30 GMT

As your attorney [1], I can tell you that it's perfectly legal to quote small blocks of text from AP articles and put them on your blog. The AP was completely and utterly out of line to threaten legal action against the Drudge Retort. Citizen Media Law Project explains better and more completely than I can; but if you have questions about the cases and doctrines discussed in that article, post here and I'll be happy to answer.

[1] I am not an attorney.

another day, another policy flip-flop: windfall profits tax

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 18:05:52 GMT

In May, John McCain said he was open to the idea of a windfall profits tax levied against Big Oil, because he "[doesn't] like obscene profits being made anywhere" (YouTube). But today? In a widely reported and blogged excerpt of a speech he plans to give tonight in Houston, McCain criticizes the windfall profits tax, characterizing it as a tax-'n'-spend Democratic scheme recycled from the 1970s.

P.S. It's hard to come up with news links while completely avoiding using AP stories.

two family developments

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 13:06:13 GMT

Eleanor needs glasses.

Heather's expecting in December.

McCain's recent changes in policy

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:17:59 GMT

In the past two weeks, McCain has ~~flip-flopped~~evolved on the following issues:

1. Whether to privatize Social Security
2. Whether to raise or cut defense spending
3. When to balance the budget
4. Whether the media treated Hillary Clinton right
5. Whether to cut the estate tax
6. Whether warrantless wiretapping and immunity for telecoms is bad
7. Whether the federal government should help save the Everglades
8. Whether investment in Iran is a good idea
9. Whether the federal government should help people in Michigan and Kentucky get jobs
10. Whether there should be a Katrina commission

Cites and links at Crooks and Liars, with a bonus two items at the end of the post.