Monthly Archives: June 2005

Rep. Harris Wants to be a Senator

Posted on June 7, 2005 by Michael Froomkin

Can the GOP find a would-be Senate candidate who would be even worse if elected than the hapless Sen. Martinez? Oh yes it can: Harris to challenge Nelson for Senate seat.

Posted in Florida | 3 Comments

Good Advice for Democrats

Posted on June 7, 2005 by Michael Froomkin

Via TaxProf Blog some good advice for Democrats from Prof. Deborah Geier:

Democrats should focus on the following statement: The distribution of the tax burden worsens inequality because there is less income inequality before annual tax bills are paid than after they are paid. That's the key point that should be stressed, over and over again, like a broken record (in the days of yore before CDs): The government imposes taxes in such a way that the distribution of income is more unequal than if the government imposed no taxes at all. Congressional Budget Office data discussed below shows that the gap (which is increasing) in pretax income between the very wealthy and the rest is smaller than the gap in after-tax income. Thus, the distribution of the tax burden itself is increasing inequality. I need to stress here that I am not talking about using the tax system to reduce income inequality, which is a use of the tax system that is utterly anathema to conservatives and libertarians alike. What I am saying here is that the tax system should be structured so that the distribution of the aggregate tax burden itself does not actually worsen income inequality. In other words, the government should not be intervening through the tax system to make the gap between the very rich and everyone else actually greater than it otherwise is (in the absence of tax). I think most Americans, whether Democrat or Republican (or Rockefeller Republican), would agree with that statement.

Amen to that.

Posted in Politics: US | 1 Comment

The Modern Captivity Narrative

Posted on June 7, 2005 by Michael Froomkin

Orin Kerr muses,

I am often amazed at how brazen the MSM can be in selecting what types of missing persons reports it selects as leading stories, especially on websites and TV. The missing person is almost always young; always a woman; always white; and always attractive. … I can't stress enough that I am not saying this story isn't newsworthy. Every missing persons report is potentially newsworthy. Still, a person who followed the MSM uncritically might think that the only missing people in America are young attractive white women.

Whatever the causes of this — frighten and distract the masses anyone? — it sure seems to be the modern equivalent of the colonial captivity narrative (the most famous of which may be Mary Rowlandson's “The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson”).

And, like the “captives” of the 18th century captivity narratives, at least some of whom found better lives with the Native American tribes than the ones they left behind, today's female missing persons are sometimes victims, but sometimes runaways…a situation which may, in some cases, be more threatening to segments of the established order than when women are victims.

(None of which is intended to denigrate the seriousness of kidnaps, rapes or murder all of which deserve our attention and concern.)

Posted in The Media | 4 Comments

Wickard Lives!

Posted on June 6, 2005 by Michael Froomkin

Federal Authorities May Prosecute Medical Use of Marijuana.

Forced to choose between its anti-federalism jurisprudence and the War On (Some) Drugs™, the Supreme Court has chosen to re-affirm Wickard v. Filburn's expansive view of federal regulatory power over the national economy. As a result, less of what I taught students in Con Law I ten years ago is obsolete than I might have guessed.

Full text of decisions in Ashcroft v. Raich.

Much as I'm not wild about the specific outcome as social policy, I think this decision is fully consistent with Chief Justice Marshall's view of the evolving Constitution. But it's flatly inconsistent with the modern Federalist Society view. Academic fireworks will now ensue.

Posted in Law: Constitutional Law | 6 Comments

Blogs United to Prod the Traditional Media

Posted on June 6, 2005 by Michael Froomkin

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The Big Brass Alliance was formed in May 2005 as a collective of progressive bloggers who support After Downing Street, a coalition of veterans' groups, peace groups, and political activist groups formed to urge that the U.S. Congress launch a formal investigation into whether President Bush has committed impeachable offenses in connection with the Iraq war. The campaign focuses on evidence that recently emerged in a British memo containing minutes of a secret July 2002 meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his top national security officials.

Posted in The Media | Comments Off on Blogs United to Prod the Traditional Media

Does Firefox Forgive?

Posted on June 6, 2005 by Michael Froomkin

I am not one who frequently blegs here. But.

Suppose that, like me, you are an astoundingly bad typist. And suppose that, like me, from time to time, despite nice tools like the autofill plugin, sometimes you mis-enter something into a web form. Like, say, your email address without the final “u”.

And suppose that Firefox remembers this for all time and puts it in alphabetical order above your real address. And suppose further that the little bitty box into which you are suppose to enter an email address is too short to see that the final letter is missing, so you have to remember. And suppose further that you often don't.

In such a case, you would dearly like to edit firefox's list of recalled dropdown entries…without deleting them all and starting over.

Where do they live? Can this be done?

Posted in Software | 4 Comments