Quick Observation
Or a rant. From my various verbal battles on different political bulletin boards, I've come to the conclusion that self-described moderates are the most politically pretentious people around. Just because they refuse to categorize themselves as either Left or Right, so-called "moderates" have this annoying tendency to anoint themselves as the objective voice of reason in criticizing the positions of self-admitted conservatives and liberals.
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Something About (the Blessed Virgin) Mary
There's a new movie coming out this December called the The Nativity Story which apparently focuses on the impending birth of Christ from the Blessed Mother's perspective.
Curiously enough, this film was written by an Evangelical Protestant, which somwhat contrary to the conclusion of this article about the movie (link via Mirror of Justice) seems to confirm the rising interest (dare we even say devotion?) among Evangelicals in Mary as a perfect role model of Christian faith.
There's a new movie coming out this December called the The Nativity Story which apparently focuses on the impending birth of Christ from the Blessed Mother's perspective.
Curiously enough, this film was written by an Evangelical Protestant, which somwhat contrary to the conclusion of this article about the movie (link via Mirror of Justice) seems to confirm the rising interest (dare we even say devotion?) among Evangelicals in Mary as a perfect role model of Christian faith.
Goldwater: Democrat Hero
That seems to at least be the conclusion some will take away from this upcoming HBO movie on the late U.S. Senator from Arizona. Even though Barry Goldwater is generally viewed as a forefather of political conservatism in this country, his pro-abortion and gays in the military positions frankly made him more libertarian (or, should I say libertine?) in my eyes than anything else. (link via Drudge)
That seems to at least be the conclusion some will take away from this upcoming HBO movie on the late U.S. Senator from Arizona. Even though Barry Goldwater is generally viewed as a forefather of political conservatism in this country, his pro-abortion and gays in the military positions frankly made him more libertarian (or, should I say libertine?) in my eyes than anything else. (link via Drudge)
The "Tolerant" Left's Deranged Obsession with Ann Coulter Continues
The latest example from the San Francisco Chronicle. This Peter Hartlaub guy bears an amazing resemblance to a clueless and unhinged liberal I used to skewer on the discussion forums at Catholic Match. As far as I know, though, the other guy's name is Mike and he's from Ohio.
The latest example from the San Francisco Chronicle. This Peter Hartlaub guy bears an amazing resemblance to a clueless and unhinged liberal I used to skewer on the discussion forums at Catholic Match. As far as I know, though, the other guy's name is Mike and he's from Ohio.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Fres-yes
Long road trip today to and from downtown Fresno for a court appearance that lasted all of about five minutes and resulted in a desired continuance so that I could get a motion for a change of venue (i.e., transfer the case to So. Cal.) on file.
Didn't have much of an opportunity to look around, but Fresno sure did have a small town feel to it. If it wasn't for the hot summer weather, I think I'd consider living there...maybe.
Long road trip today to and from downtown Fresno for a court appearance that lasted all of about five minutes and resulted in a desired continuance so that I could get a motion for a change of venue (i.e., transfer the case to So. Cal.) on file.
Didn't have much of an opportunity to look around, but Fresno sure did have a small town feel to it. If it wasn't for the hot summer weather, I think I'd consider living there...maybe.
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Do As I Say, Not As I Do
Al Gore's glaring hypocrisy: priceless (link via Southern Appeal)
Public records reveal that as Gore lectures Americans on excessive consumption, he and wife Tipper live in two properties: a 10,000-square-foot, 20-room, eight-bathroom home in Nashville, and a 4,000-square-foot home in Arlington, Va. (He also has a third home in Carthage, Tenn.) For someone rallying the planet to pursue a path of extreme personal sacrifice, Gore requires little from himself.
Then there is the troubling matter of his energy use. In the Washington, D.C., area, utility companies offer wind energy as an alternative to traditional energy. In Nashville, similar programs exist. Utility customers must simply pay a few extra pennies per kilowatt hour, and they can continue living their carbon-neutral lifestyles knowing that they are supporting wind energy. Plenty of businesses and institutions have signed up. Even the Bush administration is using green energy for some federal office buildings, as are thousands of area residents. But according to public records, there is no evidence that Gore has signed up to use green energy in either of his large residences. When contacted recently, Gore's office confirmed as much but said the Gores were looking into making the switch at both homes. Talk about inconvenient truths.
Al Gore's glaring hypocrisy: priceless (link via Southern Appeal)
Public records reveal that as Gore lectures Americans on excessive consumption, he and wife Tipper live in two properties: a 10,000-square-foot, 20-room, eight-bathroom home in Nashville, and a 4,000-square-foot home in Arlington, Va. (He also has a third home in Carthage, Tenn.) For someone rallying the planet to pursue a path of extreme personal sacrifice, Gore requires little from himself.
Then there is the troubling matter of his energy use. In the Washington, D.C., area, utility companies offer wind energy as an alternative to traditional energy. In Nashville, similar programs exist. Utility customers must simply pay a few extra pennies per kilowatt hour, and they can continue living their carbon-neutral lifestyles knowing that they are supporting wind energy. Plenty of businesses and institutions have signed up. Even the Bush administration is using green energy for some federal office buildings, as are thousands of area residents. But according to public records, there is no evidence that Gore has signed up to use green energy in either of his large residences. When contacted recently, Gore's office confirmed as much but said the Gores were looking into making the switch at both homes. Talk about inconvenient truths.
Monday, August 21, 2006
Staring Down an Idiotic Nutbag
OK, so I'm at a Labor Board Hearing today representing the owner of a small mom & pop bakery in L.A. whose own brother and sister in-law, both of whom were unrepresented, filed a complaint against him for failing to pay them due wages. The brother and sister in-law claimed they were owed about $25,000, while my client was of the position they were owed nothing because they were never employed with him. Although my client had witnesses and documentation to back up his position, my client, upon my strong recommendation, settled the case for less than 10% of what the brother and sister in-law were claiming.
The reason why I encouraged settlement in this matter was because the State Labor Board is notorious for being employee/claimant friendly. Indeed, the experience at my firm has been that even though an employer may have great evidence to present at a Labor Board "trial," Labor Board hearing officers, who aren't even attorneys for crying out loud, will more often times than not award an employee what he is asking for.
When it looked as though there would be no settlement between the parties (all of whom are Mexican and speak little english) the interpreter that we were using left the room to get the hearing officer. In the interim, my client's brother started talking a bunch of smack to my client in Spanish. When I told the brother, in english, to stop speaking to my client, he started getting mad and told me to quit pointing my finger at him. When I "asked" him what he was going to do about it, he "answered" by repeating my question and told me in a hushed aggressive tone to stop pointing my finger at him. At that point, I asked him if he was threatening me. Possibly knowing better not to do that, he again repeated his command for me to stop pointing my finger at him, even though I wasn't. When I then sarcastically asserted that he didn't understand english, he angrily mumbled some gibberish about my not understanding something or other. After that, we just stared each other down for a minute or so until I looked away with a slight smile.
I tell ya, if it wasn't for the total unpredictability of Labor Board hearing officers and the amount of money my client possibly could have been personally liable for, I would have loved to have tried this case. Clearly, I had gotten under the skin of this nutball brother of my client(during settlement discussions, he and his wife were being argumentative when I brought up the evidence I intended to present to prove that my client never employed them). But, alas, the interests of my client came first, and since these two crooks were willing to take the absoulte amount of money my client was willing to give them to just go away, settling was the most prudent thing for him to do.
OK, so I'm at a Labor Board Hearing today representing the owner of a small mom & pop bakery in L.A. whose own brother and sister in-law, both of whom were unrepresented, filed a complaint against him for failing to pay them due wages. The brother and sister in-law claimed they were owed about $25,000, while my client was of the position they were owed nothing because they were never employed with him. Although my client had witnesses and documentation to back up his position, my client, upon my strong recommendation, settled the case for less than 10% of what the brother and sister in-law were claiming.
The reason why I encouraged settlement in this matter was because the State Labor Board is notorious for being employee/claimant friendly. Indeed, the experience at my firm has been that even though an employer may have great evidence to present at a Labor Board "trial," Labor Board hearing officers, who aren't even attorneys for crying out loud, will more often times than not award an employee what he is asking for.
When it looked as though there would be no settlement between the parties (all of whom are Mexican and speak little english) the interpreter that we were using left the room to get the hearing officer. In the interim, my client's brother started talking a bunch of smack to my client in Spanish. When I told the brother, in english, to stop speaking to my client, he started getting mad and told me to quit pointing my finger at him. When I "asked" him what he was going to do about it, he "answered" by repeating my question and told me in a hushed aggressive tone to stop pointing my finger at him. At that point, I asked him if he was threatening me. Possibly knowing better not to do that, he again repeated his command for me to stop pointing my finger at him, even though I wasn't. When I then sarcastically asserted that he didn't understand english, he angrily mumbled some gibberish about my not understanding something or other. After that, we just stared each other down for a minute or so until I looked away with a slight smile.
I tell ya, if it wasn't for the total unpredictability of Labor Board hearing officers and the amount of money my client possibly could have been personally liable for, I would have loved to have tried this case. Clearly, I had gotten under the skin of this nutball brother of my client(during settlement discussions, he and his wife were being argumentative when I brought up the evidence I intended to present to prove that my client never employed them). But, alas, the interests of my client came first, and since these two crooks were willing to take the absoulte amount of money my client was willing to give them to just go away, settling was the most prudent thing for him to do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)