I'm in 5-6hrs sleep, go 70mph all day mode. That pace is NOT my forte! But it's all for good reasons…grandchildren!! At 1pm Sunday I get to take a long Winter's nap! YEAH!!!
Naps are good. It is now well past time for me to commence my beauty sleep, but before I wend my way to The Land of Nod, here are some items I have gleaned from the popular (online) press. Sky clear now, maybe we will have fog. --Alan
How ‘Friedrichs’ Could Actually Unleash Unions from Decades of Free Speech Restrictions [Click] By Shaun Richman It took me a couple of reads to start getting my mind around this, but wouldn't it be choice if right-wing justices on the US Supreme Court, having legalized gay marriage, were to legalize public employee strikes? The law of unintended consequences raises its head again...
I wonder if the "CTA" in Friedrichs v. CTA is for "Chicago Transit Authority." If so, it's strange I haven't heard of this case before. But in any instance the analysis assumes as a matter of course that the Court will support Friedrichs' argument, which I find less than probable.
Zephyr Teachout wants public campaign financing, but I'm not clear how that would work. Does every wacko who files in the primary or as an independent candidate get the same amount as serious candidates? And if not, how do we decide who is a wacko?
That's aside from the point that I rather like being able to put my money where my mouth is.
The "CTA" is the California Teachers Association. Long story short, some non-member teachers object to paying agency fees in lieu of dues, claiming that even though the money does not even go to the union (which is legally obliged to represent them), but to a mutually agreeable charity, it constitutes obligatory political speech. Totally nut-case; and the US Supreme Court is so anti-union they are willing to hear it. It would be gratifying to see Alito et al. hoist by their own petard.
It would indeed. And it would be gratifying to see these people who expect to receive all the benefits won for them by the unions and yet scorn the idea of paying in any way for the services of the union forced to eat humble pie.
Alan, I hope that article is right. When I first read about ‘Friedrichs’ it made me sick to my stomach. We can only hope something good will come out of it.
Cat--does the Black Lizard anthology include The Mystery of the Yellow Room, by Gaston Leruoux? I understand that is generally considered the first locked room mystery, and Poe's Murders in the Rue Morgueis considered the first modern detective story, although I can see it included in the anthology.
--Alan
P.S.: We did in fact have some fog this morning, then clear weather, followed by clouds in the afternoon, but no rain. We were able to do some gardening--weeding and pruning fruit trees. I noticed that our newest peach tree, still very small, is actually about to bloom! It is supposed to be an early white peach, and it sure must be. The buds are starting to show some color; it must be several years yet before the tree can produce any fruit.
Alan, "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is in the first section of oft anthologized stories. Though I've come across reference elsewhere to "The Yellow Room," I can't remember if it's in the TOC. It's a massive book, with a reading time in excess of sixty-five hours, and I'm ashamed to say the vast majority of story titles and author names in the TOC were unknown to me, and rather overwhelmed the scant handful I did recognize. I'm plodding through, one or two stories at a time. One that made a great impression on me was "The Two Bottles of Relish" by Lord Dunsiney. Though I'd read his novel The King of Elfland's Daughter, this was the first time I'd come across this very creepy story.
The title of Dunsany's story is intriguing, especially knowing it to be a mystery story. The Yellow Room was published in serial form in 1907, and book form in 1908. I recall only snippets of the story. As memory serves me it was not to modern taste, but as the first of a genre it was interesting. I remember much more of The Riddle of the Sands, which must have been published about the same time. Hmmmm.....searching..... 1903. From Wikipedia:
The Riddle of the Sands: A Record of Secret Service is a 1903 novel by Erskine Childers. The book, which enjoyed immense popularity in the years before World War I, is an early example of the espionage novel and was extremely influential in the genre of spy fiction. It has been made into feature-length films for both cinema and television.
The novel "owes a lot to the wonderful adventure novels of writers like Rider Haggard, that were a staple of Victorian Britain".[1] It was a spy novel that "established a formula that included a mass of verifiable detail, which gave authenticity to the story – the same ploy that would be used so well by John Buchan, Ian Fleming, John le Carré and many others."[1]
One more link, then to knock out a pair of simple invoices, and then to bed. I will leave a little early in the AM to stop by a shop for a couple of electric stove parts that need to be replaced.
Clinton and her folks keep saying the have learned the lessons of 2008, but it seems to me they didn't learn several. What happens to the army that is prepared to fight the war before the previous one? Things have changed. The iPhone went on sale in 2007; the Blackberry was the dominant telephone for business and politics for several years after that. Think what that means for organizing. Situational awareness must be the first priority of any successful undertaking, and theirs seems lacking. And they didn't learn that HRC is simply not a good politician--she is not (IMO) convincing or inspirational. HRC has too much baggage; Bernie has been active in politics for a long time, but rather outside the ken of the general public--so he seems fresh, which Americans like in a candidate. And I think his message resonates. If Dems throw stones at him over gun control and certain other issues, that is likely to make him seem more acceptable to Republicans, I think.
So glad Dean got us together!
ReplyDeleteI'm in 5-6hrs sleep, go 70mph all day mode. That pace is NOT my forte! But it's all for good reasons…grandchildren!! At 1pm Sunday I get to take a long Winter's nap! YEAH!!!
ReplyDeleteNaps are good. It is now well past time for me to commence my beauty sleep, but before I wend my way to The Land of Nod, here are some items I have gleaned from the popular (online) press. Sky clear now, maybe we will have fog.
ReplyDelete--Alan
Countering ‘Citizens United’ With a Dose of Zephyr Teachout
[Click]
How ‘Friedrichs’ Could Actually Unleash Unions from Decades of Free Speech Restrictions [Click] By Shaun Richman
It took me a couple of reads to start getting my mind around this, but wouldn't it be choice if right-wing justices on the US Supreme Court, having legalized gay marriage, were to legalize public employee strikes? The law of unintended consequences raises its head again...
How Iowa’s Independent Streak Explains Bernie Sanders’ Meteoric Rise [Click]
I wonder if the "CTA" in Friedrichs v. CTA is for "Chicago Transit Authority." If so, it's strange I haven't heard of this case before. But in any instance the analysis assumes as a matter of course that the Court will support Friedrichs' argument, which I find less than probable.
DeleteZephyr Teachout wants public campaign financing, but I'm not clear how that would work. Does every wacko who files in the primary or as an independent candidate get the same amount as serious candidates? And if not, how do we decide who is a wacko?
DeleteThat's aside from the point that I rather like being able to put my money where my mouth is.
The "CTA" is the California Teachers Association. Long story short, some non-member teachers object to paying agency fees in lieu of dues, claiming that even though the money does not even go to the union (which is legally obliged to represent them), but to a mutually agreeable charity, it constitutes obligatory political speech. Totally nut-case; and the US Supreme Court is so anti-union they are willing to hear it. It would be gratifying to see Alito et al. hoist by their own petard.
Delete--Alan
It would indeed. And it would be gratifying to see these people who expect to receive all the benefits won for them by the unions and yet scorn the idea of paying in any way for the services of the union forced to eat humble pie.
DeleteAwh, cute kitties!
ReplyDeleteIndeed, naps are good.
Alan, I hope that article is right. When I first read about ‘Friedrichs’ it made me sick to my stomach. We can only hope something good will come out of it.
Cat--does the Black Lizard anthology include The Mystery of the Yellow Room, by Gaston Leruoux? I understand that is generally considered the first locked room mystery, and Poe's Murders in the Rue Morgueis considered the first modern detective story, although I can see it included in the anthology.
ReplyDelete--Alan
P.S.: We did in fact have some fog this morning, then clear weather, followed by clouds in the afternoon, but no rain. We were able to do some gardening--weeding and pruning fruit trees. I noticed that our newest peach tree, still very small, is actually about to bloom! It is supposed to be an early white peach, and it sure must be. The buds are starting to show some color; it must be several years yet before the tree can produce any fruit.
Alan, "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is in the first section of oft anthologized stories. Though I've come across reference elsewhere to "The Yellow Room," I can't remember if it's in the TOC. It's a massive book, with a reading time in excess of sixty-five hours, and I'm ashamed to say the vast majority of story titles and author names in the TOC were unknown to me, and rather overwhelmed the scant handful I did recognize. I'm plodding through, one or two stories at a time. One that made a great impression on me was "The Two Bottles of Relish" by Lord Dunsiney. Though I'd read his novel The King of Elfland's Daughter, this was the first time I'd come across this very creepy story.
DeleteThe title of Dunsany's story is intriguing, especially knowing it to be a mystery story. The Yellow Room was published in serial form in 1907, and book form in 1908. I recall only snippets of the story. As memory serves me it was not to modern taste, but as the first of a genre it was interesting. I remember much more of The Riddle of the Sands, which must have been published about the same time. Hmmmm.....searching..... 1903. From Wikipedia:
DeleteThe Riddle of the Sands: A Record of Secret Service is a 1903 novel by Erskine Childers. The book, which enjoyed immense popularity in the years before World War I, is an early example of the espionage novel and was extremely influential in the genre of spy fiction. It has been made into feature-length films for both cinema and television.
The novel "owes a lot to the wonderful adventure novels of writers like Rider Haggard, that were a staple of Victorian Britain".[1] It was a spy novel that "established a formula that included a mass of verifiable detail, which gave authenticity to the story – the same ploy that would be used so well by John Buchan, Ian Fleming, John le Carré and many others."[1]
--Alan
One more link, then to knock out a pair of simple invoices, and then to bed. I will leave a little early in the AM to stop by a shop for a couple of electric stove parts that need to be replaced.
ReplyDelete--Alan
What the Mainstream Doesn't GetAbout Bernie Sanders [Click] Could we be seeing a black swan?
Clinton and her folks keep saying the have learned the lessons of 2008, but it seems to me they didn't learn several. What happens to the army that is prepared to fight the war before the previous one? Things have changed. The iPhone went on sale in 2007; the Blackberry was the dominant telephone for business and politics for several years after that. Think what that means for organizing. Situational awareness must be the first priority of any successful undertaking, and theirs seems lacking. And they didn't learn that HRC is simply not a good politician--she is not (IMO) convincing or inspirational. HRC has too much baggage; Bernie has been active in politics for a long time, but rather outside the ken of the general public--so he seems fresh, which Americans like in a candidate. And I think his message resonates. If Dems throw stones at him over gun control and certain other issues, that is likely to make him seem more acceptable to Republicans, I think.