Another hit from the Elena Kagan archive: an article she wrote for the Daily Princetonian a week after Ronald Reagan's victory in the 1980 election. The final graph of that piece contains her hope that the 1984 election will bring in a "more leftist left" than the Carter administration:
Posted by: ed ||
05/10/2010 14:06 ||
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#1
When Bush put up Harriet Meyer I got the impression he was putting her up to draw fire so that when he withdrew the nomination and put up another candidate the second one would go through a lot easier. In effect that's how it worked, so if it was planned ahead of time or not is irrelevant as people can learn from the events either way.
That is what I think Elana Kagan is. Yes Obama would probably like her on the court but he doesn't expect she would make it through. By putting her up he creates three possibilities (1) the Republicans fillibuster her and become the party of "no" (2) the Democrats can shoot her down after a lot of debate and appear non-partisan prior to the 2010 elections and also ease the way for the next candidate (3) she goes through and he looks more powerful than ever.
I suspect (2) as you might guess from my introductory paragraph but the Democrats are set up to win with any of the outcomes if the Republicans aren't careful.
#2
I wrote a few, not a lot, similarly stupid papers at one of Princeton's rivals about the same time Ms. Kagan was opining on Reagan.
I didn't really mean it then, and certainly grew up fairly quickly after graduation. Well see if she has as well.
As for RJ's list, I expect she's confirmed without any hullaballoo, but the GOP will take every chance to embarrass democratic party judicial philosophy (if it can be called as much), but not really go after her personally.
Sen. McConnell is impressively crafty, and I think the GOP may come out of this very well.
If the dems give her the Miers treatment, they only make a mess of themselves. She doesn't seem crazy or defective in any way, and aside from her age (she'll be there forever) she's probably as good as can be expected from this POTUS.
The hilarity factor is that she'll be more conservative than most of Ford and Bush senior's selections.
#5
rj, she's supposed to be a Souter special - not too liberal, no long career of judicial opinions or argument. Since the Obama administration is... well, the usual clatch of incompetent Chicago wannabes, they picked someone with a habit of writing damned stupid things.
It didn't slow them down too much when it was Sotomayor mouthing off about her racist superiority complexes, so who's to say it'll trip them up this time?
To be honest, I don't know whether Kagan's worth the fight. It's going to be a leftist-activist, what with a leftist-activist administration replacing a liberal-activist justice. Unless they have footage of her naked, offering up aborted babies as burnt offerings to Ba'al upon an impromptu altar erected upon on the front steps of Langdell Hall by a chanting coven of lunatics, why is it worth it?
I'm afraid this is just an opportunity for the social conservatives and the liberal wedge-issue weasels to change the subject of debate.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
05/10/2010 21:05 Comments ||
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I guess Spring is indeed here - I just came back from lunch where I saw the first LaRouchies of the year. There were 3 of them (100 W. block of Jackson Boulevard in downtown Chicago) with "Impeach Obama" signs. Something to do with NASA, though it wasn't clear, but what do you expect from LaRouchies? The really interesting part, though, is that 1 of them was black and had a large picture of Obama with a Hitler moustache. I've seen stranger things, but those idiots are always bizarre.
Ay-Pee . . .
President Barack Obama, addressing graduates at historically black Hampton University on Sunday, said that it is the responsibility of all Americans to offer every child the type of education that will make them competitive in an economy in which just a high school diploma is no longer enough. Rest at link.
Accomplishes several goals:
- Keeps people distracted
- Gives people "hope" that an economy will be waiting for them
- Indoctrinates youth in "progressive"/numb thinking
- Gets people to spend money
- Raises taxes for those who do get a job
- Makes him appear visionary
- Makes it seem like it will be your fault if you don't follow his sage advice
- Gets people away from doing jobs progressives pretend that Americans "don't want to do" so they can backfill with even more illegal immigrants that they can give amnesty to the next time they need it
Some people are for college, some aren't. Don't force it on those who aren't. Give them a good place to make a living instead of duking it out with a bunch of low-waged squatters.
#2
President Barack Obama, addressing graduates at historically black Hampton University on Sunday, said that it is the responsibility of all Americans
#3
Human freewill ignoring opportunity. The old 'you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink' concept.
Sloth (deadly sin)
Gradually, the focus came to be on the consequences of acedia, rather than the cause, and so, by the 17th century, the exact deadly sin referred to was believed to be the failure to utilize one's talents and gifts. In practice, it came to be closer to sloth (Latin, Socordia) than acedia. Even in Dante's time there were signs of this change; in his Purgatorio he had portrayed the penance for acedia as running continuously at top speed.
The modern view goes further, regarding laziness and indifference as the sin at the heart of the matter. Since this contrasts with a more willful failure to, for example, love God and his works, sloth is often seen as being considerably less serious than the other sins, more a sin of omission than of commission.
We've known what the real issue is. We just don't have the 'will' to allow the consequences take hold. All the education opportunity in the world is useless unless the individual motivates him/herself to take advantage of it. As a society we've provided the means, but have absolved the individual of the responsibility to employ it.
#4
Just thought I should say , there has never been so many degree qualified people on the dole in the UK . I suspect a few actually wish they hadnt done it and are now stuck with a mountain of debt. You cant be competitive in an economy if there isnt an economy.
That being said , some of the degrees on offer nowadays is ludicrous.
Posted by: Oscar ||
05/10/2010 9:36 Comments ||
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#5
Every day I'm happier and happier I never received a collage degree. Hard work and showing initiative have brought my salary up past what my friends make and they all have 4-6 year degrees.
#6
That being said , some of the degrees on offer nowadays is ludicrous.
Except to the 'institutes of higher learning' who've become paper mills with routines and rituals to generate money. It's a business today. They exist to make money. Helped in large measure by ineffective, lazy, and hidebound business and government personnel departments that just want to 'see the paper'.
#9
Besoeker : well he gave yet another speech on CNN about an hour ago so probably nver. Is it usual custom for a president too give a speech every morning on TV?
Posted by: chris ||
05/10/2010 11:28 Comments ||
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#10
Yes, it's normal, and the TV show is called "Allo Presidente."
#11
Some degrees are worth something. Some aren't.
Hard sciences (biology, chemistry, physics, math) generally are worth something, because you learn things that let you do a job that you likely couldn't have done before.
Ditto for hard applied sciences (engineering) and hard-core business (accounting).
Certain other degrees are useful if you're diligent, apply yourself and then do something with it. A degree in psychology, if you then go on and use it to help people. A degree in education if you actually become an effective teacher.
There are the degrees that one does for one's own sake, because they just aren't very useful. Literature -- sure, nice to be able to read French romance literature critically, but I sure hope you aren't planning to do something with it other than teach literature. Art -- if you have the talent perhaps you don't need the degree. Ditto music -- maybe useful, but you might be better off in a conservatory, or a blues bar. A history or philosophy degree is great, but you ought to have a plan for what you're going to do afterwards, because there aren't too many jobs as historians and philosophers.
Finally there are the degrees that are pretty much worthless, because they leave you dependent, indeed parasitic, on others. Gender studies. Chicano studies. Black studies. Critical theory. False premises, false theory, false teaching, and no point in the end.
Question: a man who gets a worthless college degree can still drive a taxi. What does a woman with a worthless college degree do?
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/10/2010 13:31 Comments ||
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#12
Steve,
she keeps her job as a waitress. My sister has degrees in sign language and construction management. She doesn't know the difference between a hammer and a hand saw, but she could run a job of deaf tradesmen if the occasion ever came up.
#13
A degree in education if you actually become an effective teacher.
Those are mutually exclusive conditions. Teachers should have degrees in the subject they're teaching. In elementary grades, degrees are unnecessary except that those without them are even less qualified than those with education degrees. But that says more about the value of a high school diploma.
#15
What does a woman with a worthless college degree do?
Back in the day, when a girl had reached marriageable age, she entered Society, and spent the Season in a round of gaiety during which she hopefully caught the eye of a suitable man. Those without money or connections joined their parents' social circle as adults, making the acquaintance of suitable prospects at family gatherings.
The modern version of entering Society is going to college. Basically, that college experience is a combination of career preparation and mating game -- as parents we hope the cost will pay out both ways, but for those whose degrees don't pay off tangibly, it's functionally a dowry (or bride price, should the new spouse end up shouldering that burden). Even those who studied at art school or a conservatory are likely to end up in that class, as few will be able to earn more than pin money with their skills.
It should be remembered, though, that more than half of college students are female, statistically about half of them take a pragmatic approach to education, and likewise 1/3 to 1/2 of the males acquire degrees which will in the end not pay out. Which means that of the current crop of graduates there will be a great many househusbands in addition to housewives, bringing added value to their children's education, not to mention the PTA and soccer teams... and perhaps driving taxis on the side.
#16
They used to be called MRS degrees. But what sane man would want to live with a marxist-lesbian-race grievance-sexism-dialectical materialism-onanism studies major?
Posted by: ed ||
05/10/2010 14:33 Comments ||
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#17
#5, you're comments cracked me up in light of your name. I mean few are willing to slaughter all the other Jedi to advance but whatever works. (c;
#18
Well rjschwarz, the jedi were lazy lay-abouts that leached off hard working citizens of the Republic. That was the least of their crimes too. Add to that kidnapping, extortion, brainwashing, sedition and treason.
#20
Darth, i don't' disagree. The Jedi clearly can't count if they felt that restoring the balance to the force was going to in any way be to their advantage when they had a thousand to two numbers advantage. What morons. Or the fact that they felt the kid was the one in Prophesy but were willing to either (a) kill him (b) give him the best training and guidance and get his mother out of slavery since she was the source of his fear.
#21
But back to the topic at hand. We've been flattening our curriculums for years to remove college prep classes so nobody feels better or worse than others. This is insane.
As a society we should do what others do and create an alternate path into a trade school so that the folks with no interest in collage can get the training they want/need rather than clotting up the system while they wait for the alternate route to open up.
While I was in high school I know a bunch of folks that wanted to be mechanics. I can imagine others might opt for a Cisco certification these days.
#22
I suspect a few actually wish they hadnt done it and are now stuck with a mountain of debt.
The mountain of college debt is a relatively new phenomena.
In a really bad economy few degrees are worth much.
In an economy where the government is fiddling with health care, even degrees in medicine begin to be questioned to whether the hassle is worth the effort.
Sports stars and celebrities seem to command a great deal of money without having to know much.
In a bad economy, people still need to get their hair cut/styled, get their plumbing fixed, need electricians, roof replacement, need tree work, and need repairs. Disabled people need help. Children need to be taught. People need to eat.
[Quqnoos] Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the US House of Representatives, met with President Karzai Saturday evening in Kabul
US Ambassador Karl Eikenberry and General Stanley McChrystal, who commands US and NATO troops in Afghanistan, briefed Pelosi and her congressional delegation, the speaker's office said in a statement.
The group then met with Karzai "to discuss the political and security situation in Afghanistan," it added.
Pelosi's delegation included Representative Susan Davis, head of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel, Representative Donna Edwards of the House Science and Technology Committee and two members of the House Armed Services Committee.
The visit came on the eve of Karzai's departure for talks in Washington with US President Barack Obama, the first since the Afghan leader infuriated the White House with a string of outspoken allegations that foreign nations orchestrated fraud in last year's elections.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/10/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
So, we now have two State Departments? This is not the Speaker's job. Wonder what Hillary thinks about this. Another snub from The Once?
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
05/10/2010 9:42 Comments ||
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#5
Pelosi's delegation included Representative Susan Davis, head of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel, Representative Donna Edwards of the House Science and Technology Committee
girls day out, bound to fail, Afghanistan not frikkin Kentucky ... Anyway WTF has that horrible woman got to do with Afghanistan apRt from her usual vitriol hatred of everything non dem party
#6
The US Ambassador to Afghanistan is an ass. His constant antagonizing of Karzai and his sabotaging Gen McChrystal's attempts at building a relationship with Karzai make it likely that Pelosi could do no worse, and may actually do better than State Department.
Posted by: No I am the other Beldar ||
05/10/2010 11:31 Comments ||
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#7
Why is the Speaker negotiating with other countries? Isn't that State's job?
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