Author Archives: Michael Froomkin

Send it to Five Friends

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Michael Froomkin

Don't vote (or, if you must, do)


Fill in a voter registration form online.

Posted in Politics: US: 2008 Elections | 4 Comments

Taddeo, Garcia, Martinez Wow the Grey Panthers

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Michael Froomkin

Strong account of what must have been a great event by John Hood in the insurgent SunPost, Congressional Candidates Joe Garcia, Raul Martinez and Annette Taddeo Blast It for the Gray Panthers:

… Annette Taddeo, Raul Martinez and Joe Garcia, who are vying to represent what’s surely the majority of our peninsula’s tip: Taddeo and District 18, which stretches from Miami-Dade’s southern suburbs all the way to the Keys; Martinez and District 21, which includes his beloved Hialeah; and Garcia and District 25, which comprises much of Miami-Dade, as well as the entire Everglades.

If they were a band, this three-piece would sell out arenas, so it’s no surprise that on this day the turnout was just about standing room only. Each candidate is running on issues very near and dear to the Gray Panthers’ hearts, as well as their wallets — health care, prescription drug costs, housing — and each came out blasting the incumbents for a reckless disregard of the people and their needs.

Naturally, their opponents weren’t on hand to answer back, despite being repeatedly offered a chance to do so. According to Gray Panthers Miami-Dade Chapter board member and event organizer Jack Topel, today’s proceedings were “originally slated to be a debate, but there were scheduling conflicts, so we decided on forums. The Republicans — for whom we’ve set aside Oct. 18th — still haven’t replied.”

Too bad too, ’cause if they had, they would’ve met a gaggle of good folk consistently committed to cause. Then again, neither Ileana Ros-Lehtinen nor the Diaz-Balart brothers, Lincoln and Mario, has thus far accepted an invitation to debate anyone, unless you count Lincoln’s acceptance of an invitation from CBS, which was never even extended in the first place.

No matter, the Democrats showed and they showed strong. Joltin’ Joe Garcia, the natural who, given a podium, could command a crowd for days, opened the proceedings with a vow to take that which Mario had gerrymandered into being, and turn it into something representing a district, rather than a fiefdom. Taddeo, as determined as she is poised and informed, followed up by lambasting Ros-Lehtinen for, among other things, rubber-stamping Bush’s efforts to end the S-CHIP program. And then Martinez, who in person seems like the kinda man you’d want to take in a ball game with, concluded by warning everyone to be on the lookout for an element of fear to be injected into the coming election, adding a crack about the newfound respect hoisted upon former mayors since a certain someone was given the VP nod, even though he has represented condos with a larger population than the entire city of Wasilla.

Posted in Politics: FL-18, Politics: FL-25/FL-27 | Comments Off on Taddeo, Garcia, Martinez Wow the Grey Panthers

Florida Courts Hearing on the Future in Coral Gables Tomorrow

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Michael Froomkin

I learned from my service on a committee convened by the Florida Supreme Court that our state courts really do try to think ahead, and are serious, innovative and thoughtful when it comes to planning.

It seems they also do outreach, and they're coming to a meeting room near me — tomorrow. The following just plopped into my mailbox:

Florida Supreme Court Committee to Host Nine Public Meetings on Future of Florida Courts

Think of the changes Florida has undergone in the last two decades – and imagine the changes that will take place in the next two decades.

As Florida changes, so too must Florida courts. Sheer population growth will increase the number of cases coming into the courts. Significant changes in demographic and societal trends will alter the kinds of cases that the courts must resolve. Economic changes will impact the resources available to handle cases. Emerging technologies will change the ways people interact with each other and with the courts.

Florida’s judicial branch is working on a long-range strategic plan so that the courts can respond to new challenges and stand firm as a strong cornerstone of a well-functioning society and a healthy economy. And it wants to hear from people around the state as it develops its plan.

The Supreme Court Task Force on Judicial Branch Planning will hold nine meetings around the state, including in Miami. The Task Force is inviting citizens and local officials to share their thoughts on trends and conditions that they believe will impact the ability of the judicial branch to carry out its mission over the next 20 years. The current strategic plan for the Florida judicial branch, which can be found at www.flcourts.org/gen_public/stratplan/index.shtml, includes the mission and vision of the branch.

A public meeting will be held in the Miami-Dade area:

October 2nd, 2008
4 – 7 p.m.
Miami Dade Public Library
Coral Gables Branch
3443 Segovia Street
305-442-8706

Persons with disabilities or those using a TDD through the Florida Relay Service, 711, or who need an accommodation to participate should contact Kat Simpson at (850) 488-6569 as far in advance as possible, preferably at least five working days before the public hearing:

Individuals and organizations are also invited to submit written comments, which will be accepted through Nov. 1. Comments may be sent to:

Task Force on Judicial Branch Planning
Office of the State Courts Administrator
Strategic Planning
Florida Supreme Court
500 South Duval Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1900

# # #

MISSION: The mission of the judicial branch is to protect rights and liberties, uphold and interpret the law, and provide for the peaceful resolution of disputes.

VISION: Justice in Florida will be accessible, fair, effective, responsive and accountable.

For more information contact:
Steve Henley
Senior Court Operations Consultant
Office of the State Courts Administrator
850-488-6569 or henleys@flcourts.org

Could be interesting. Or, judging from some of the slides from a previous meeting, could be a bit odd.

(Other meetings around the state, mostly in the next few days, listed here.)

Posted in Florida | Comments Off on Florida Courts Hearing on the Future in Coral Gables Tomorrow

In the Interests of (Social) Science (Repeat)

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Michael Froomkin

According to a very polite email I got two weeks ago, a research team from the Psychology Department at New York University, headed by Professor Yaacov Trope and supported by the National Science Foundation, is investigating the cognitive causes of voting behavior, political preferences, and candidate evaluations throughout the course of the 2008 U.S. Presidential election.

They're doing a study and in the hope of getting politically aware respondents are asking bloggers to pass on their request to fill out their survey. The study will, they hope, “shed light on the information people use to inform evaluations during the last few weeks before the election”. They “seek respondents of all political leanings from all over the country (and from the rest of the world)” to complete a 15-minute questionnaire, the responses to which they promise will be completely anonymous.

It looks legit.

One interesting aspect of the request is that I turn off comments on this item: “a necessary precaution we have to take in order to avoid the bias that is likely to result when new respondents see comments about the survey before taking it.” That sounds sensible, so I've complied with the request.

Another is that they want time series data:

… we would like to have respondents complete the survey throughout the days leading up to the Election. To this end, if would be ideal if you were willing to have the link appear (i.e., repost it) four times, in equally spaced out intervals (about every two weeks), with the first running asap and the last running several days prior to Election Day. Of course, if you would be willing to post it even once, it would already be a great help to us.

So, what the heck, I've queued it up for science. Excuse the repeats.

Posted in Politics: US | Comments Off on In the Interests of (Social) Science (Repeat)

More on Gitmo Prosecutor Resigns (UPDATED)

Posted on September 30, 2008 by Michael Froomkin

A few days ago I posted ACLU: Gitmo Prosecutor Resigns In Protest. We have more details and further developments now, once again via the ACLU, at Honor Bound.

Not a pretty sight. If there's any honor here, it's with the JAGs.

Update: Read the full, sworn, statement by LTC Darrel J. Vandeveld.

Posted in Guantanamo | Comments Off on More on Gitmo Prosecutor Resigns (UPDATED)

Phone Atone

Posted on September 30, 2008 by Michael Froomkin

New Year's wishes, candidate style, forwarded by my mother.

Phone Atone

Posted in Politics: US: 2008 Elections | 1 Comment