Author Archives: Michael Froomkin

Great Design

Posted on May 23, 2004 by Michael Froomkin

I love the look of the blogbook, evoking as it does that Book which is the bane of every law students' first year, and of every law journal editor's third year, albeit the guarantor of employment for legions of research assistants. That said, the project itself—finding a standard way for legal authors to cite blogs—produces decidedly mixed emotions of 'makes sense' and 'neutered already?'.

Posted in Blogs | Comments Off on Great Design

Give the Good Guys a Medal–Create One if Necessary

Posted on May 22, 2004 by Michael Froomkin

Only a Few Spoke Up on Abuse as Many Soldiers Stayed Silent—the New York Times reports on Joseph Darby and the small number of other soldiers with the decency and the guts to report abuses.

As we know, neither the right-wing media nor his neighbors have been especially kind to Spec. Darby, the soldier who made one of the important early reports.

One way to begin to restore some of my confidence in the system would be to give Spec. Darby and the other early complainants a medal or two. If there isn't an appropriate medal in the military arsenal, then it is time to create one.

It would be the right thing to do.

Posted in Iraq Atrocities | 2 Comments

Bush Campaign Lies Counter (With References)

Posted on May 22, 2004 by Michael Froomkin

This Diogenes Cynic guy says he has 53 Bush Campaign Lies — that's from the 2004 campaign, doesn't count the ones from 2000. (spotted via Talk Left)

Posted in Politics: US: 2004 Election | 1 Comment

IBM Digests Some Indigestible Customer Feedback

Posted on May 22, 2004 by Michael Froomkin

It's good to be reminded that it's not just academe where the way that things work are capable of driving you bonkers. Dave Farber, who runs a very widely read IP mailing list, had some troubles with his IBM laptop. Contacting customer support produced nothing helpful, so he wrote about his experience. That produced this reply from an anonymous IBM executive:

I thought you might enjoy knowing that the IP thread about IBM support has already climbed two levels up the IBM management chain from me, and then leapt from there into a similarly rarified level in the PC division. Since this is IBM, one of three things will happen: either it will be completely ignored, or we will start an ad campaign about how good our customer support is, or it will be the straw that breaks some particular camel's back, heads will roll, and everything will get better in a year or two.

Sounds like here, only with more layers.

Posted in Readings | 1 Comment

Patrick O’Brian at Half Mast

Posted on May 21, 2004 by Michael Froomkin

I'm a big fan of Patrick O'Brian's seafaring Aubrey-Maturin novels—great stories, great writing. And you might think having devoured the lot I'd want to hurry and read the notes and half-text of the 21st in the series, found in his papers after his death and due to be published soon. But after reading about the manuscript and his condition when he wrote it, I don't think I'm going to rush to do that.

Posted in Readings | 1 Comment

Misleading the Supreme Court

Posted on May 21, 2004 by Michael Froomkin

Eric Muller has further evidence that the Solictor General's office's misleading suggestion to the Supreme Court that torture (and its ilk) could never happen in the hands of our kindly and sensitive executive was NOT an off-the-cuff error in the heat of oral argument, nor a statement born of excusable ignorance (left hand, meet right hand), but rather part of a considered strategy. Whether that's a considered strategy of deception, or a considered strategy of something else, remains to be seen.

When the rot reaches the SG's office, that's a pretty high water mark for rot. As Eric says, “Very, very troubling.”

Posted in Civil Liberties, Guantanamo, Law: Ethics | Comments Off on Misleading the Supreme Court