Triscribe

Category: Washington, D.C.

  • Welcome to Fall 2010 TV Seasons/Series Premieres!

    Yes, it’s been awhile since my last post and I still haven’t made my comments about “The Last Airbender.”

    Suffice it to say that the more I think about it, the more disappointed I am with “The Last Airbender” for not having a better cast.  I’m not suggesting that M. Night Shyamalan had to cast Asians (okay, maybe I kind of am), but it felt awkward to have seen such very white looking characters living among a tribe of a very Asian looking populace – unless they were among more diverse people, the awkwardness didn’t go away (a light-skinned Aang the Airbender living among the diverse Airbenders was actually fine, in comparison; that didn’t feel so awkward).

    I’d be curious to see how a sequel would work, if only in hopes that it’d somehow show improvement.  The stories are there; the cast needs some bulking up.

    And, well, I guess Hollywood has ways to go to put Asians/Asian Americans on the screen (big or little).  Hence, I’ve gotten more into the Asian American Int’l Film Festival, as noted in my July posts.

    I did get a kick out of “Inception” (pun intended; the “kicks” in the movie were entertaining).  Thought-provoking movie with such original plotting, even if it was a little short on deep emotion.  Plus, there was some diversity (Ken Watanabe as Saito!  Dileep Rao as The Chemist!  Asians on Big Screen!) and I still can’t get over how did Joseph Gordon-Levitt end up being so hot?

    I shall have to have a separate post on the movies watched during the summer of 2010 and what I could look forward to for the rest of 2010.

    And, then there’s “Hawaii Five-O” – Asian Americans (or, in Grace Park’s case, Asian Canadian) playing Asian Americans!

    I mostly liked the cast – Daniel Dae Kim as Chin Ho Kelly and Scott Caan as Danno – cool!  Grace Park as the rookie cop (Kono was once a male role) – was also pretty cool (Park’s turning into the go-to person to play roles that used to be male, isn’t she?).

    I agree with Danno: McGarrett is a pain in the ass.  I couldn’t tell if the writers basically gave McGarrett the worst lines or if Alex O’Loughlin’s acting left much to be desired.  Honestly, Alex O’Loughlin’s no Jack Lord.  O’Loughlin’s Steve McGarrett’s a little on the crazy side (apparently, being ex-Navy Seal/naval intelligence and having his dad killed by the ex-Spike (of “Angel”) James Marsters, made McGarrett wacko).

    Plus, the new Hawaii Five-O team (in their first episode, anyway) seems to be about violating civil rights while being preachy about doing right – ex., while arresting the Chinese smuggler – i.e.,  a snakehead – McGarrett goes into a monologue about threatening to send said Chinese snakehead’s wife, a Rwandan, back to Rwanda with their son.  Seriously?  You have that kind of power?

    And, boy, is Hawaii that diverse?  A Chinese man and a Rwandan woman?  Interesting!  Not actually shown on screen, but the reference is appealing.  Plus, even Hawaii-raised McGarrett gets teased for being white by the APA’s of the islands.  Oh well.

    Jean Smart was kind of cool as Hawaii’s super powered governor – so super powered that she gives McGarrett a carte blanche to wipe out the Bad Guys.  Wow.  (ok, that’s a sort-of sarcastic “wow”)…

    Back to my rant: The show enters such ridiculous old-school 1960’s/1970’s punch-’em bad guys level with the disregard of rights, which is… kind of fun, actually, if I really, really think about it (does it even make sense that I have to think about it?  Uh…).

    Okay, so you don’t have to be all NYPD Blue to show the cops v. bad guys.  And, CBS had to recycle that same lot that they used for original Hawaii Five-O and Magnum P.I. (not to mention that Tom Selleck’s about to be back on the air – we are so recycling the 1970’s and 1980’s!).

    James Marsters – not enough of him on Hawaii Five-O!  He was sufficiently evil, by the way, but, he barely had lines.  And, will he ever act with his real American accent?  Hmm.

    And, after all that preaching and lack of civil rights, where were the lawyers?  Surely the Attorney General of Hawaii wouldn’t like what McGarrett’s doing (that Danno’s by-the-book is pretty nifty; he misses his life in NJ – awww).

    Not a perfect series premiere.  So, I do agree with tv critic Alan Sepinwall: “Hawaii Five-O” is not very deep, but it’ll do.  Entertainment Weekly’s Ken Tucker recalled that original Hawaii Five-O wasn’t exactly deep either, but he appreciates that the new series can capture the spirit of fun.

    Got to love that theme song though.  Classic.

    The other new Monday show, “Lone Star,” on FOX, was a strong series premiere.  I couldn’t resist watching it, since the lead actor, James Wolk, is so good looking – drool-worthy, even – and his picture, with his character’s two wives, have been on all the city buses (yes, I’m superficial).  He acted pretty well as the con man Bob Allen, who’s a little angsty but playing his con game as best he can.

    Who is Bob, really, when he is torn between the two loves of his life and thinking he can try out a semi-honest life for once, after learning the art of the con from his dad since his childhood?  Can Bob get away with it?  I doubt it, but he’s going to darn well try.

    I agree with tv critics Alan Sepinwall and James Poniewozik: I’m not sure how will “Lone Star” will last a season.  It feels like the kind of show that would be fine as a movie or a mini-series on PBS or cable.  It was like a throwback to the old 1970’s style of show (say, Robert Wagner’s “It Takes a Thief,” well before my time), or a cross between a WB show (considering the rather entertaining soundtrack and tense family relationships) with a FOX show (sex, scandal, sex, scandal…; but, Bob is supposed to be a nice guy – right?), and a touch of “Friday Night Lights” (not that I ever watched the show, but apparently, the Texas life was portrayed fairly well on “Lone Star” as it was on “Friday Night Lights” and they apparently share producers or something).

    Bob oozed charm; but can he – will he – be redeemed?  We’ll see.

    I did watch the series premiere of “Outlaw” on NBC.  Jimmy Smits plays US Supreme Court Justice Cyrus Garza, who was a conservative justice selected by the alternate universe George W. Bush.  Losing his father in a fatal car accident, Garza flips to the liberal camp and decides to be a practicing lawyer again, giving up the highest court of the land.  Seriously?

    Garza’s switch wasn’t entirely convincing (not necessarily Smits’ fault; I think the writing was weak); apparently, he was already feeling his (more liberal) father’s disappointment in him and his life as a gambling addict was not doing him any good.  If anything, I thought Garza’s gambling problem was interesting; Lawyers Assistance Program could get on tv, maybe?

    Garza’s law clerks are surprised to be practicing with him in the crusade to save people.  I’d sympathize, but the clerks seemed so bland.  Plus, the idea that one of Garza’s clerks would blurt out her love for him, while believing that he would die of a fatal illness (as opposed to, say, getting his legs broken by unsavory types due to his gambling) — that was a “That’s NOT good tv” moment.

    Jimmy Smits – you deserve better than this.  “Outlaw” is not “West Wing” or “L.A. Law.”  I don’t need 9 out of 10 tv critics to know this.

    Also, if you want to see Supreme Court justices on tv, consider the fact that  the last couple of shows that tried to be the fictitious versions of the Supreme Court didn’t do well (ex’s., “The Court” (with Sally Field as a justice) and “First Monday“(with James Garner as a justice)).

    If you really want to watch a Supreme Court Justice, watch a real one who appeared on Charlie Rose’s show, with a great interview, aired last Friday, Sept. 17, 2010, with Justice Stephen Breyer.

    I liked the season premiere of “How I Met Your Mother” – it finally felt like the show is moving forward.  I stopped watching a good chunk of last season because I hated that they backtracked on the Barney and Robin thing, and for a show that originally felt charming and innovative, it started to feel tiresome.

    While not a perfect season premiere episode, there’s some hope that Ted will move forward, and that Barney and Robin might move forward too. Oh, and Marshall and Lily got a little touch of reality, in the wackiness of trying to conceive a baby.

    I more or less agreed with James Poniewozik on the subject: I like HIMYM, and I want to believe in it again.

    I am looking forward to seeing “The Whole Truth” on ABC, which seems to be sort of “Law and Order” but with Rob Morrow and Maura Tierney.  Alan Sepinwall in his review was not exactly impressed, but I do agree: Rob Morrow and Maura Tierney back on tv!  I’ll take a chance on it.

    Plus, returning shows that I will look forward to seeing: “Community” (what will be the fallout of Jeff and Annie kissing each other?  Will Senor Chang stop being such an ass?  The latter seems unlikely…) and “Fringe” (how long will Olivia be stuck in the Other Universe?  how much havoc will Alternate Olivia cause in the main universe?).

    I wish I had BBC America so that I could watch “Law and Order: UK” (coming soon to a BBC America cable package to people other than me).  Think about it: Freema Agyeman (ex-Martha of Doctor Who) as a prosecutor!

    Also, considering how much I’ve watched British tv mysteries, it’d be interesting to see a British police procedural L&O style.

    Of late, I’ve been watching Inspector Lewis on Masterpiece Mystery.  Lewis is hitting a groove (heck, he’s gotten a cat and his daughter’s getting him on the Internet; apparently older people really do need their grown kids to still help them).

    PBS’ editing of the episodes made plot holes glaringly obvious, unfortunately.

    Also, Lewis’ sergeant Hathaway has better be careful; he’s going to become Inspector Morse if he doesn’t get a little happier (N.B.: Morse was Lewis’ old partner; Inspector Morse kept making Sergeant Lewis drink orange juice, as the designated driver, while he himself drank beer and tried to solve cases with his brain).

    Hathaway’s angst – it’s so Morse, even if Hathaway’s too young to succumb like that.  Lewis’ affection for the young man like a son is nice, but I do wonder why he keeps company with the depressed.  Lewis used to be such a happy guy (long before the series killed off his wife, off-screen).

    I’m also looking forward to the upcoming new Sherlock Holmes on Masterpiece Mystery!  Taking place in modern day England, some things don’t change: John Watson, M.D., is still an army guy coming back to England from Afghanistan.  Benedict Cumberbatch as Holmes?  Hmm.  Even curiouser – Martin Freeman (who played Arthur on The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy movie) as Watson (who blogs!)?  And, Rupert Graves as a not stupid Inspector Lestrade?  This could be cool.

    J.J. Abrams’ “Undercover” could be interesting for his return to spies on tv.  NY Times’ critic Ginia Bellafante seems to think the series is a little light-weight (blame it on USA Network’s influence, I guess).  I suppose we could all give it credit for having a black couple as the leads (diversity on tv – thumbs up!), but I’ve been exhausted by “Alias” from giving another go with spies on tv.  I might give it a try, just to see if there’s fun in it or not.  I like my shows to have the combination of characters and plots – let’s see if “Undercover” has that.

    Of all things to be mildly entertained by, I’ve actually enjoyed watching “Melissa and Joey” on ABC Family, where Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence do a throwback to the 1980’s type sitcom – in front of a live audience and a la “Who’s the Boss” (sick as it sounds, I practically did watch all the episodes of the Tony-Angela saga of “Who’s the Boss” when I was a kid).

    I feel old though – I grew up with Joey Lawrence (yes, way back on “Gimme a Break” and when he was “Joey” – pre-Joe Lawrence days; even through his “Blossom” days!).

    Last but not least: Time’s Techland has a fun interview with Alex Trebek!

  • July 2010 Continues

    APA’s in the news: I don’t envy the position that US Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, is in; he has a steep learning curve on the oil leak disaster, even if it’s pretty darn good that we do have a Nobel Laureate like him on the matter.

    Speaking of the oil leak disaster, would a Republican President have done any better or worse?  Slate’s Christopher Beam ponders on the subject.  I’m of the view that – considering the complexity and the depth and horror of the situation – it couldn’t be any better or worse under any other Presidency.  But, that’s all very speculative.

    Oh, wow – the return of the Rapping Doctor, Dr. John Clarke (who had his big break last year, with his rap on H1N1 virus), telling us to step over the gap on the subway (yeah, that’s a public service announcement in dire need of reminding, and probably does count as a public health and safety concern). (btw, he’s the rapping doctor who had the video about the H1N1 virus last year; pretty nifty).

    I thought this NY Times article by Randy Kennedy on the restoration of the Thomas Eakins painting, “The Gross Clinic,” fascinating, because it’s about a well-known American painting, by a significant American painter (reminding me of the great American Painting art history course that I had taken back in college); plus the writing on the subject of restoration reminded me of the lectures by an art history professor I had back in college, who really had strong concerns about what it means to “restore” art (granted, Prof. James Beck focused on Italian Renaissance art (see the well-written obit about him in the NY Times awhile back), but the criticism’s sort of transferable and “restoration” can be tricky stuff).

    NY Times’ Linda Greenhouse asks whether Justice Kennedy’s influence – hence a so-called Kennedy Court on the US Supreme Court – is really extant anymore, when it’s becoming clearer that he’s on the right-leaning side of the Court and not exactly that centric after all.

    My Soap Box moment: Bob Herbert, in today’s NY Times’ editorial section, is right – kind of scary to push nuclear power when we kind of suck at trying to get oil, such as it is with the mess in the Gulf of Mexico.   Getting off the Soap Box now.

    A nice Q&A on NPR’s website, with Jesse Tyler Ferguson of the ABC sitcom, “Modern Family” and currently in the city doing the Shakespeare in the Park repertoire of “Merchant of Venice” and “The Winter’s Tale.”  He’s been nominated for an Emmy for “Modern Family” – in which he plays the former child ice skater and now lawyer (sadly funny episode, where he’s trying to land a new job – and there was that episode where he was scared of a pigeon – which I empathize).

    And, let’s end on a positive note: former US Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky on the subject of writing poetry for kids.  Thought this was interesting, since I was – coincidentally – recently reading some Lewis Carroll and Edward Lear work – writings for children, yet darkly funny and weird – not what you’d think as mere kids’ stuff.

  • June Continues

    World Science Festival in the city; some good stuff.

    So, along with wacky service problems on weekends (shuttle bus, anyone?), MTA’s going to be issuing a new map (probably to reflect the end of some subway lines and other things). It’s supposed to look sleeker.  Hmm.  We’ll see how good it’ll be.

    But, it’s a pain in the neck over the weekend, when subway lines aren’t going between Brooklyn and Manhattan and buses all clumped up.

    Coming up, on 6/12/10: Save NYC Libraries.

    Here’s a link to a trailer of the new “Hawaii Five-O,” coming this fall on CBS.  I’m getting more into the new Hawaii Five-O than I expected, based on the trailers alone, which look good. They seem to fit in this era of “Can we please have a more diverse tv cast” and “are we losing Miranda rights?” — plus, Daniel Dae Kim, Grace Park, even Scott Caan! (oh, and Alex O’Loughlin, who is in need of a… show that doesn’t get canceled; but, he’s no Jack Lord though as “Steve McGarrett” (and I never really watched the original Hawaii Five-O).

    I posted the trailer on Facebook, and FC noted that there’s one continuity blooper – at 1:02, one of the cops is holding his badge upside down, and at 1:03 his badge is right side up.  Clearly, they’re still working on the show (well, tv is tv).

    But, I’m not sure what does it mean if I’m not really into much fall tv as it is.  Hmm.

    Via Angry Asian Man blog: by Jeff Yang, on the SF Gate, “The Book of Daniel,” profiling Daniel Dae Kim.  Good stuff to read.

    Apparently, “Heroes” wants one more shot to say goodbye (from Time’s Techland, of the TVGuide.com posting). — seriously, no.  I gave up when they had unceremoniously killed off the Adrian Pasdar character Nathan.  I’m not getting on board just to see more mess and say goodbye.  “Lost” earned a goodbye, because they cared about their characters; “Heroes” did not, because they didn’t care about their characters (or stopped doing so).

    On the other hand, I’ll still give “Heroes” credit for its diverse cast.  Sure.  But, it didn’t do more appropriate stuff with the characters.

    Shakespeare in the City: check it out the list on WNYC and Wall Street Journal’s review on New York Classical Theatre’s scheduled “Richard III” at Central Park (yes, roving Shakespeare).

    Lawyers as writers – Scott Turow was on Charlie Rose a couple  of weeks ago about his  newest book.  John Grisham was on NPR’s All Things Considered, about his own legal thriller for kids (seriously; I’m not entirely sure how it works either, but it sounded intriguing).  I’m impressed that these two pioneers in legal thrillers are still at it.

    Linda Greenhouse on J. Souter’s commencement speech at Harvard and her observation that he hasn’t completely disappeared.  Good for him!

    The passing of John Wooden, UCLA’s legendary men’s basketball coach.

  • Catching Up

    Sorry to have fallen behind; life and other things occurred.

    Like… Arizona passing odd laws: like their anti-illegal immigration law (still not sure how the law enforcement goes about stopping to identify who’s illegal without causing a whole host of other problems and not to mention where Arizona’s going to get the money to enforce their law and the litigation involved; granted, there is a whole context as to why Arizonan state gov’t decided to pass the law, there had to be a better way to do it without irritating people) and their law to end ethnic studies (primarily out of fear the ethnic studies is about producing anti-Americans).

    I’m no immigration law expert, but from what I scanned of the Arizona law is that it leaves much to be desired, since it leave room for abuse and then, if law enforcement can’t or won’t enforce it, some civilian can sue the municipality or state for not enforcing the law – more room for abuse.

    As for the ethnic studies issue, speaking as someone who has taken one or two ethnic studies courses back in college:

    (a) Arizona really is freaking crazy about that issue (apologies to Arizonans out there, but seriously!).

    (b) I’d suggest that their governor and legislators take an ethnic studies class and figure out that ethnic studies do not teach people to be anti-American; if anything, it’s about understanding how complex our country is; it’s also not about “segregating” people either (and if anything…, maybe encouraging each other to take classes that aren’t about our own cultures and moving beyond what we think we know might improve race relations – or even a lack thereof – in this country); good grief.

    (c) (insert eye roll here).

    I’ll step off my soap box now.

    The news of Justice John Paul Stevens’ retirement and the selection of his replacement took a lot of attention.

    (a) There was, of course, coverage on who was Stevens and his legacy (see Adam Liptak’s article from the NY Times).

    (b) There were articles about the folks on the short list and even a last minute addition to the short list (I liked this article in the NY Times about Judge Sidney Thomas of Montana, appellate judge of the 9th Circuit; he seemed refreshingly different – empathetic, smart, and not from the usual parts of the country).

    In the end, President Obama has selected US Solicitor General Elena Kagan; we might have a fourth woman on the US Supreme Court – quite something to think about.

    Of course, all the criticism came right away, from all sides.  Frankly, the one argument that I have found most hypocritical is the one on how Kagan’s lack of judicial experience is a lacking.  Let’s not forget that, before 1972, a lot of US Supreme Court justices had no prior judicial experience – and that the last one in that category was the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

    Plus, Kagan’s not exactly comparable to Harriet Miers, President George W. Bush’s original pick to replace Justice O’Connor.  (I’m not exactly saying that a Harvard Law graduate is better than anyone else; it’s just that the former Harvard Law dean might have more thoughts on constitutional law issues than a corporate lawyer like Miers was).

    Strangely, though – with the selection of Kagan, four out of the five boroughs of NYC might be represented on the Supreme Court.  I doubt that this is what most people had in mind as “diversity,” but it is funny to think that NJ has more representation on the Court before Staten Island will (in the form of Alito and even NJ-born Scalia).  See the article by James Barron of the NY Times on this subject.  The Daily News had some article on the subject of Staten Island feeling left out, but I’m not going to make suggestions.

    The sad news that NBC is canceling “Law and Order,” so that now, it only ties “Gunsmoke” as longest running tv drama.  Articles include:

    (a)  Its effect on NYC economy is considered by the NY Times; Daily News also covered how the acting community had built resumes via L&O.

    (b) Some tv criticism: Daily News’ David Hinckley talks about how L&O covered the basics.  NY Times’ Alessandra Stanley just had her own observations.

    Personally, I think NBC has to figure out how to fill the 10pm-11pm time slot and they’re not going to have any good transition without L&O, which – with its current cast – was a lot more entertaining than its still-extant spinoffs L&O: SVU and L&O: Criminal Intent.  NBC couldn’t even plan a cancellation with enough advancement to let L&O have a proper series finale?  Come on!

    Plus, many questions!  Are we really going to lose the most entertaining legal crew in the form of DA McCoy, Exec. ADA Cutter, and ADA Rubirosa?  Will Cutter ever realize he can only go so far with his kooky legal ethics?  Will we ever get a closing argument from Cutter or Rubirosa?  What will we do without McCoy as the DA who wonders what is he getting into with the DA thing?

    And, what about Detective Lupo?  Is he still taking night classes at Triscribe’s alma mater law school?  Is he ever going to graduate?

    Good read in the NY Times:

    Really good stuff from Michael Kimmelman on who “owns” art? Of the fight for art is for nationalist or political purposes, does the art really matter for the “owner”?  ex., the dispute between Greece and Great Britain over the Elgin Marble (or, to Greece, simply the Parthenon marble, more or less stolen from Greece).  Isn’t it about giving people the opportunity to see the art?  I especially liked how Kimmelman closed the article: “We’re all custodians of global culture for posterity…. Neither today’s Greeks nor Britons own the Parthenon marbles, really.”

    Recent museum visiting:

    at the Morgan Museum and Library; saw the Magna Carta, the basis of the concepts of rule of law and basic rights like right to trials and juries. (The Magna Carta is staying in town due to delays in shipping it back to England because of the Icelandic volcano ash cloud).

    Recent play viewing:

    Watched the roving Shakespeare at Columbia University: King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe did “Measure for Measure.”  Cool stuff; the college kids were so talented.  Plus, the play’s about how a bad law can cause serious problems.

    Recent television viewing:

    “Hamlet” on “Great Performances” on PBS – David Tennant (the 10th Doctor of “Doctor Who”) as Hamlet and Patrick Stewart (Capt. Jean-Luc Picard of “Star Trek: The Next Generation”) as Claudius.  “Great Performances” website has the capability of letting the viewer watching the movie on-line temporarily; check it out while you can!

    “Lost” — the road to the series finale is paved with much confusion.  I can live with some mysteries left as mysteries, but that last episode – where the back story of Jacob and the Man in Black is somewhat revealed – was strange and left wanting.

    Plus, finally got to watch an episode of “Justified” on FX.  Entertaining.  Very Leonard Elmore.  Much violence.  But, strong acting and writing.  And, the lead actor, Timothy Olyphant – it doesn’t hurt that he’s easy on the eyes.

    APA Heritage Month continues:

    Tammy Duckworth, on Washington Post’s website, on leadership.  (hat tip to Angry Asian Man blog).  I liked this quote from Duckworth, currently US Assistant Secretary of  Veterans Affairs and an Iraq War veteran (link to transcript):

    Being a leader is identifying who you are, bringing your strengths, but also identifying the strengths of the people that you’re working with and really building on that and pulling together a team. And just forgetting about what other people are saying about how you should be and how you’re supposed to be, just bring your own strengths to it.

    Another hat tip to Angry Asian Man blog: Virginia Tech’s Ed Wang has been drafted by the Buffalo Bills, making him the NFL’s first Chinese American.

    Last, but not least, another hat tip to Angry Asian Man blog (but I’ll also say that I got an e-mail from NAPABA about this too): NAPABA wanted people to reach out to the Senate about the confirmation proceedings on Goodwin Liu’s appointment to the 9th Circuit appellate court.

    As with Kagan, the opposition’s trying to argue that Liu’s lack of judicial experience is some kind of concern and how his academic writings somehow are problematic of how he’d be as a judge.  I don’t think either argument works, and hope that we’ll have a second Asian American at the appellate level soon, without the politics driving people batty.

  • February 2010!

    I can’t believe it’s really February already.

    I’m becoming addicted to the chips from Food Should Taste Good (interesting review of the chips).

    Hat tip from Angry Asian Man: a cool profile on Grant Imahara from “Mythbusters” on Discovery Channel.

    Another hat tip from Angry Asian Man (and here too): Yet another one of those “What is it with Congress?”  – when the ABA unanimously approved a nominee for federal district court, and the judiciary committee approved, apparently the Senate Republicans opposed U.S. Magistrate Judge Edward Chen’s nomination for an Article III Federal District Court judgeship for Northern District of California, only to get his name back for renomination. Can they please get this done already?

    Is this some kind of joke? Dante’s Inferno – as an EA video game? (nope, it’s for real).  Dante, the knight, who returns from the Crusades to find that Lucifer killed the beloved Beatrice and then goes on a rampage of vengeance? I’ve read “Inferno” three times and wouldn’t have expected Dante to be an action hero in this way; talk about dr…amatic license. Plus, what’s Virgil’s role? Is he the video game’s Gandalf or something? They’re even comparing it to “Dungeons and Dragons.” What?!

    Very cool stuff: a NY Times article on the capabilities of learning languages on-line, including how BBC’s website offers a way to learn foreign languages online for free.  I don’t see them offering Cantonese Chinese, but the French section seems pretty nifty and maybe I’ll try it to learn Spanish in a very rough way.

    Check out the NPR coverage on this great stuff from Baroness P.D. James – I doubt that I can write like her or comment on crime and justice, etc., with grim characters, but I really want to read her new book about the subject of detective fiction.  Sounds so good.

    Slate’s Daniel Gross with an interesting article about how the investment banks ought to make a choice; don’t go crying about how the gov’t’s so mean to you, when they’re bailing you out; and if you don’t want their help, then go bail yourself out.  He concludes:

    The public—as aggrieved owners, taxpayers, and savers—has every right to question the banks’ methods and practices. If they don’t want us poking around their businesses, they can shrink their balance sheets, replace government-subsidized debt with market-rate debt, stop relying on the Federal Reserve for funding, and get out of our index funds. As film mogul Samuel Goldwyn once said: “Include me out!”

    Slate’s Dahlia Lithwick with a solid point, as she compares the experiences of US Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, in his Citizen United dissent, and Justice Albie Sachs of South Africa’s Constitutional Court, in his memoirs: “Side by side, Sachs and Stevens reveal that this is an odd constitutional moment indeed in America, in which corporations are treated like living persons by judges who aspire to be machines.”

    The video of President Obama’s taking on the Republican representatives’ questions (which I accessed via the Time blog “Swampland”) was an hour of listening/watching; probably worth it, just to see the President in a roomful of Republican congressmen. I read somewhere that a commentator compared this to marital counseling; perhaps forcing the Dems and Republicans into a room to actually talk to each other and answer each other’s questions in …a civil manner might help (granted, this isn’t a Parliamentary system, but it can’t hurt).  Can we get things going to do stuff, as noted above about the judgeship confirmation?

  • Midweek of the Last Week of January 2010

    But there was no mistaking [Justice John Paul Stevens’] basic message.  “The rule announced today — that Congress must treat corporations exactly like human speakers in the political realm — represents a radical change in the law,” he said from the bench.  “The court’s decision is at war with the views of generations of… Americans.” – Adam Liptak.

    Fascinating article by Liptak (link above) about J. Stevens, in light of the recent Citizens Union case (I’m not necessarily going to read the 100+ pps. decision anytime soon, but the CLE that I attended at the New York State Bar Association’s Annual Meeting covered it in a pretty serious way – the impact of the decision will have on campaign financing reform remains to be seen).  (plus, this year, the Annual Meeting is at the Hilton, not the Marriot Marquis; less Times Square, more Avenue of the Americas).

    Fascinatingly cool item: Slate Poetry Editor/former US Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky with a poem by Michelangelo about how hard it was to paint the Sistine Chapel.

    Is it Friday yet?  Seriously, this week is already feeling too long.

  • Thanksgiving Continues

    A former lawyer who has a pretzel shop; lawyers are everywhere.

    Well, there’s also Joan Biskupic’s upcoming book on Justice Scalia, as reviewed by Emily Bazelon of Slate. Apparently, Scalia’s just not that pleasant or keen on being persuasive, but he’s very very smart. Not new information, but it sounds like a reasonably interesting book.

    NY Times’ Mark “The Minimalist” Bittman with a turkey and spinach curry dish (check on the webpage for the video link – the dish looked tasty, even though I’m not a curry person), as an option for day 2 of turkey leftovers. An Asian-American fusion – plus, just in time for that Obama State dinner with the Indian Prime Minister Singh.

    NY Times’ Gail Collins has a pretty sharp column this Thanksgiving, closing with:

    When [President Obama]’s not making his way through Thanksgiving photo-ops, he’s adding up the numbers over and over in his mind, and sending mental daggers at the Republicans who are yelling at him about deficits that they created.

    Although what else could he expect in a Washington that thinks you can pardon your turkey and eat it, too?

    Time’s James Poniewozik with his own on point Thanksgiving post on the Tuned In blog, embedding a very appropriate Simpsons clip:

    So, for the record, Homer’s right: be grateful for the occasional moments of peace and love (although, unlike Homer, I tend not to think that solar power is NOT a pipe dream, since the sun’s going to be around a billion more years).

    For your viewing pleasure, in between eating and being thankful.: