Month: June 2004

Saw Bill Moyers at the Union Square Barnes & Noble. I totally didn’t know that he was going to be there — I had intended to rendevous with P– because she forgot her cell phone. However, he had just read part of his new book, Moyers on America: A Journalist and His Times. We decided to get books signed. I didn’t know initially what to say to him, but then I recalled his Becoming American series, and I knew that I had to thank him for that, and also for the pivotal role he had in the passing of the 1965 Immigration Act. I wouldn’t be here if my parents weren’t able to come to this country, and I’m sure that is true of many others. Moyers retires this year, and this caps off his tour of the Three Estates. Thanks for everything.

Hmm. Got on the D-train tonight, and there were all these people with Yankee jerseys on. I kept thinking, huh? And then it hits me – the D takes people to and fro Yankee Stadium. D’uh – I got aboard a train just after the game ended. At one point, some guys teased (rather harmlessly, thankfully) a pair of Boston Red Sox fans off the train (they were at their stop, apparently). Oh, well. So it goes in this city.

Watched PBS the other night (without cable, it appears to be the only stuff I can watch these days without grumbling about how crummy tv is lately). “History Detectives” season 2 – wherein PBS does a twist on the Antiques Roadshow with History Roadshow; the scholars are presented items and they dig through various resources to see what’s the story behind the item. Cool stuff. I like how they get into what they’re doing and get really interesting stories. The other night, sociologist Tukufu Zuberi, is presented with watercolors of a Japanese-American internment/concentration camp from World War II, painted on the back of reused paper that had been postered notices that sent communities to the camps. He followed up on various resources (even sifting through the microfilm) to track down the artist himself, who didn’t get his apology/reparation from the federal government until 1990. Amazing story. Check out the website for the episode’s transcript on the camp’s story segment and other interesting slide shows and links.

I enjoy the moments where I appreciate that I went to law school; for instance, I can watch the Lehrer newshour talk about the Supreme Court decisions on the enemy combatant cases and actually understand what the talking heads are saying. Ooh.

Anyway, good read on the Supreme Court cases in the continuing dialogue between Lithwick and Dellinger on Slate.com. Their discussion on the enemy combatant cases are links 6, 7, and 8; loved how Lithwick tells Dellinger:

I have loads of questions for you, like what to make of the fact that the court decided Hamdi [the American-born enemy combatant who was caught in Afghanistan when the U.S. armed forces were getting rid of the Taliban] but punted on Padilla [the one who allegedly planned a dirty bomb]? (And does the decision in Hamdi mean that Padilla will necessarily have his day in court, so long as he files his next habeas petition in the right one?) I felt strongly at oral argument that the court was much less sympathetic to Padilla than Hamdi—that at least some of the justices appeared more worried about tying the president’s hands when an alleged “dirty bomber” (or as Breyer said, a “ticking time bomb”) was the bad guy, as opposed to some punk kid who may have been fighting for the Taliban.

Uh hmm. The justices may very well be only human in perceiving the differences between an alleged “punk kid” and an alleged “dirty bomber.” Maybe. 😉

An interesting story on the Statue of Liberty on NY1.com, for this week’s “One on One,” in honor of the upcoming 4th of July holiday.

The Yankees went ahead and used their bats on the Mets yesterday, beating them in both games of the doubleheader. Beaten them soundly. Met fans should at least take comfort that pitcher Al Leiter made it through seven innings and won on Saturday. There’s some hope in Metsville (but, seriously, wasn’t it expected that the interleague series was going to be 2 games to 1 one in the Yanks’ favor?).

Anyway, let’s thank the Supreme Court for making today an interesting day; rule of law prevails. Lady Liberty can continue to hold up her head and her torch real high.