Wanted: A Legal Mind

More from the WSJ Law Blog (again my comments in italics below):

An unconventional job opportunity, to say the least, one with a fairly big downside and a fairly big upside. The bad: it doesn't pay. The good: it give a law student an opportunity to work fairly closely, it seems, on one of the largest (and most controversial) cases of the day.

Okay, we'll stop being cryptic. Here's the news: Arthur Folsom, the solo practitioner in Denver who's spearheading the defense of accused terrorist mastermind Najibullah Zazi, is hiring an intern. He placed an ad with the University of Denver Law School's career development center last week.

The ad is offering an “intern position for a current law student.” The “main responsibilities will be
conducting research for a federal terrorism case.”

Of course, you've got to be qualified to get the job. According to the ad, “good research skills” are “a must” and “experience on the federal level” is “preferred.” Other qualifications include “criminal defense knowledge.” That Folsom is looking for help isn't all that surprising. We've blogged in each of the last two days on Zazi's somewhat strange decision to pick Folsom to represent him. Folsom, a 37-year-old Denver solo-practitioner, has spent most of his career doing smaller-scale criminal work, like drunk-driving and drug-possession representations. Folsom has enlisted the help of other lawyers, but for now, according to his Web site, he's running a small operation. The office is comprised of just Folsom himself and a researcher.

Wendy Aiello, a spokeswoman for Art Folsom said in a statement: “Folsom Law Offices continues to build their defense team. Art Folsom is an alum and knows that the school will provide a talented intern.”

In other Zazi news: Earlier today he pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiracy in Brooklyn federal court. Zazi was indicted last week on a charge that alleges he conspired with others to use explosive devices against persons or property in the United States. According to the WSJ, prosecutors told federal judge Raymond Dearie during the Tuesday hearing that they believed Zazi is a flight risk who should be placed under close surveillance. Zazi is a legal immigrant from Afghanistan.
The judge ordered Zazi held indefinitely without bail. Repping Zazi in court on Tuesday: J. Michael Dowling, who told a group of reporters after the hearing that prosecutors hadn't shown enough evidence to back the conspiracy against his client. "You can't convict him of the conspiracy charge he's under without someone else," Dowling said. "The government will have to come up with someone else to make it a conspiracy."

What the Folsom Law Office really needs is a clue.

Free Roman Polanski

From the WSJ Law Blog, more on the cause celebre, Roman Polanski (my comments are in the italics below):

We threw out the question on Monday: Is the prosecution of Roman Polanski warranted or best left alone?

LBers' responses were nearly unanimously in favor of bringing the 71-year-old film director back to California to make him pay for his crime. A reader named Steve Myson could have been speaking for most who chose to comment when he said:
He pled guilty and fled the jurisdiction. Why is this even up for debate?
It led us to wonder if there was anyone out there who felt differently, felt that Polanski was being treated unfairly or that the U.S. justice system was marching in too rigid or formalistic a fashion.

We didn't have to look far. Over at the Jezebel blog (subtitled “Celebrity, Sex, Fashion for Women”), Kate Harding points a finger at two groups, each of which is petitioning the move to bring Polanski back to the U.S. Click here for a list of one; here for the other. (Be forewarned, LBers. Jezebel throws out its fair share of four-letter words.)

Most of the signatories to the petition are Hollywood-celeb types or European public-thinkers. Writes, par example, the French writer and thinker Bernard-Henri Levy:
Apprehended like a common terrorist Saturday evening, September 26, as he came to receive a prize for his entire body of work, Roman Polanski now sleeps in prison.
He risks extradition to the United States for an episode that happened years ago and whose principal plaintiff repeatedly and emphatically declares she has put it behind her and abandoned any wish for legal proceedings.

Seventy-six years old, a survivor of Nazism and of Stalinist persecutions in Poland, Roman Polanski risks spending the rest of his life in jail for deeds which would be beyond the statute-of-limitations in Europe.
We ask the Swiss courts to free him immediately and not to turn this ingenious filmmaker into a martyr of a politico-legal imbroglio that is unworthy of two democracies like Switzerland and the United States. Good sense, as well as honor, require it.

And then there's Debra Winger (pictured), who, according to Variety on Monday demanded Polanski's release and criticized Swiss authorities for their “philistine collusion” in arresting Polanski as he entered the country.
“This fledgling festival has been unfairly exploited, and whenever this happens the whole art world suffers,” Winger said in a statement on Monday.

Continues Jezebel's Harding:
That's apparently what this is about, in the minds of all these great artistes: Philistinism. A failure to appreciate A) Polanski's genius and B) the sanctity of international film festivals.

No, I am not even kidding about the second part. From the SACD petition:

By their extraterritorial nature, film festivals the world over have always permitted works to be shown and for filmmakers to present them freely and safely, even when certain States opposed this. The arrest of Roman Polanski in a neutral country, where he assumed he could travel without hindrance, undermines this tradition: it opens the way for actions of which no one can know the effects.

Yes I can totally see how arresting a fugitive child rapist is a slippery slope toward censorship. If I were a creative professional, I'd certainly be concerned about the authorities coming after me and my work! Except, I am a creative professional, and I'm not worried, because unlike Roman Polanski, I have neither raped a child nor jumped bail and evaded capture for three decades.


To say that some of these arguments are specious is to put it mildly. For instance, just becuase Pope John Paul II forgave his would-be assassin did not exonerate the individual from his crime. And apparently Philistine collusion and Philistinism are affirmative defenses to a crime. And let us not forget the most hallowed of all legal principes: the sanctity of international film festivals.

America's Top Model/Lawyer

A few years ago, law firms decided not to publish pictures on their websites of their attorneys for fear that the attorneys would become victims of stalkers. Of course, the smart stalker would realize that stalking an attorney is the stupidest thing you could do. But in this battered economy, all the rules seem to have been tossed out. For instance, one law firm now offers not only head shots of lawyers but body shots as well (because it is really vital in picking a lawyer to see what they look like from the waist down). Above are a couple of pictures for one attorney that my colleague, Mary, seems particularly fixated with (and thank you, Mary for alerting me to this new phenomenon). Next thing you know, they will be doing 360 degree tours of an attorney (like the ones they do for houses on realtor web sites). I am sure this bold move by one law firm will be the one thing to spur a recovery in the legal industry.

Reilly: Cowboys players flunk cheerleader test

Reilly: Cowboys players flunk cheerleader test

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Follow up to things that make you go hmmmm. . .

This may shed some light on the Mamas and the Papas scenario.

Ways to Play With A Person's Mind

Yesterday, I was in my local Starbucks. The cashier and customer were maligning the parking meter person/parking ticket issuer in the usual manner. When I arrived at the register, I told the cashier, with an offended look, that my father used to be a parking meter collector. He, with a horrified look, started apologizing profusely to me. I then laughed and said, “just kidding”!!! (My father was actually a doctor). Actually, I should have continued the charade and tried to get a latte out of it.

Things that make you go hmmmm

If John and Mackenzie Phillips had a child, and Mackenize joined “The Mamas & The Papas”, how would that impact the name of the band? Would the band's name have changed to “The Mama, StepMama, Grandpa, and Papa”? And what would happen if said child joined the band?

Good Ad

Elevator Escapades

I want to create a new TV show along the lines of Taxicab Confessions.  It will deal solely with elevators and all that transpires on them.  Of course, that lends itself to many titillating possibilities but the first few episodes will focus solely on mundane stories drawn from real life.  For instance, one story line will focus entirely on people rushing on and off elevators and the situations this sometimes creates.  Like yesterday, around 5:00 pm I was headed back to the 10th floor at ACME when the elevator stopped on the sixth floor.  A man was in such a rush to get home that he ran into the elevator without even checking to see if it was going down.  It, of course, was not.  But he did not want to admit his error even though he knew I knew and I knew he knew I knew.  So he did not push any button.  He just stood there and waited until I got off on 10.  This episode will explore not only the surface humor of such an incident but delve into possible motivations for this guy not admitting his mistake and why people rush onto elevators without looking to see which way it is headed or whether people have fully gotten off (some never even wait for people to get off).

Another episode will focus on the many natural and artificial elements that make it onto an elevator.  For instance, last night when I got on to leave, I saw two q-tips on the floor of the elevator.  I did not check to see if they were used, but I did wonder how q-tips, of all things, would be on the floor of an elevator.  So this episode would be a sort of a CSI-Denver, but the crime technicians would be elevator technicians investigating the appearance of the q-tips and what the q-tips contained.

Check out this kid's hair . . .

Bowl-A-Thon

Team Acme captured the highly competitive first annual Denver Urban Debate League Bowling Tournament held at the Denver Athletic Club. The tournament, designed to raise funds for the Urban Debate League which brings the benefits of competitive debate to city schools, featured 16 teams from a mixture of law firms, companies, and schools. The tournament consisted of two rounds. In the first round, Team Acme had the seventh highest score with 382. The finals featured the top eight teams and Acme vaulted itself to the top thanks to the heroics of team captain Tom Peak Oil, Mary, Tina SuperParaLegal and former summer intern Lee Majors a/k/a The Six Million Dollar Man (Yours Truly bowled in the first round and scored a 79, but most importantly realized that the team would be wise to call in the Six Million Dollar Man from the Bullpen). Their incredible score of 481 propelled them to a win by five points. T. Peak Oil dueled with Mary with their scores being 142 and 150 respectively and T. SPL and $Six Million Man both came in around the century mark. $Six Million Man was bowling after surgery on his torn ACL/MCL (and basically any other CL in his leg) and so he could only amble up to the line and literally bowl with only leverage from his upper body. Their prize, in addition to four Rockies tickets, was a water bottle filled with Jolly Ranchers.

Most importantly, personnel from Acme donated nearly $1200 which made Acme one of the top fundraising teams as well. Overall, over $10,000 was raised for the DUDL.

Bi-coastal Polo

I was checking out pictures The Golden Fox had posted to her Facebook page and I saw one of her at a polo match.  This was such a coincidence as the gang from Gossip Girl were at a polo match on the Monday episode.  Their match was in Greenwich, and I presume GF’s one was in Spokane.  GF was dressed to the nines with a poofy hat to boot.  She was wearing all black which I did not realize was a polo match color, but maybe there was a memorial service for a fallen polo player after the match (or she only had one poofy hat which was black).  The Gossip Girl episode had Serena ride off into the woods with one of the polo ponies and then this guy followed her on another pony and then presumably they hooked up in the forest (while the ponies patiently waited).  I think that is more of an East Coast Gossip Girl thing; I doubt that happens out West.

Sexting in the USA

Last night, on 90210, Annie faced a dilemma.  Admit to sleeping with Naomi’s boyfriend or have a nude picture of her texted around West Beverly by, you guessed it, Naomi (Naomi had to enlist the WB Tech Club to figure out how to send a text anonymously).  Annie decided to admit to the affair that never happened.  I am not sure, however, that the sexting was the worse option (the camera phone has really changed the high school dynamic).  Either way her reputation is shot, but at least with one option, she does not become a liar as well.  It may become a moot point as she looks like she may become the WB Carrie.

The episode was filled with many cautionary tales.  Navid learned never tell your girlfriend not to speak to another guy because it makes you insecure.  And I learned that WB has a surfing team.

Meanwhile, over at Melrose, we learned that the late Sydney really got around and that she may have had a daughter.  And also to never give your fiancee an ultimatum not to talk to another guy.

Natural Born Killers

The Killers have soared past puberty to the age of maturity.  I saw them at the start of this tour earlier this year and they have grown leaps and bounds since then.  They have discovered what makes bands transcendent and that is to render their songs orchestral in arrangement.  This ensures that what you hear on the album is not always what you hear in concert which is not always what you hear on the next tour.  The songs literally evolve.  Stuart Price provided much elasticity in his production such that Spaceman takes on a whole new dimension this tour.  The Killers are not a jam band but they can jam like they mean it.  Everything is in sync – the lighting, the stage, the multimedia curtain(s) and most importantly the band.  They have to be, coming off a series of festival gigs in the UK and Lollapalooza in the US.  Their set list rarely misses a beat and will only continue to get better.  And Somebody Told Me and Mr. Brightside are songs that I have heard hundreds of times and I have never tired of them.  Their tank is far from empty; they continue to evolve, because even natural born killers need to ply their trade.

09/09/09

09/09/09

Oh, what a night!!!

The new TV season started with a bang with the return of 90210 and the start of Melrose Place 2.0  These shows are not guilty pleasures; they are pure pleasure.  For instance, 90210 has ditched the adults and is focusing 100% on high school drama.  We have Adriana who was a drug addict who slept with pretty much half the school and became pregnant and gave the child up for adoption.  Now she wants to be “No Drama” Adriana and she is asking her current boyfriend to take it slow.  This leads to a great deal of pent-up frustration for the beau who is a virgin.  Meanwhile Silver who almost killed herself and then almost killed half the cast is stable now and sporting a Rihanna ‘do (not the mohawk Rihanna) got back together and then was dumped by her long-standing boyfriend because she was texting another guy who is now in Montana (hope she is on the ACME network).  Star vixen Naomi is dating an older man, at least she was until she found out he is married with three kids.  That led her to pursue the new kid, Teddie, who really is not new as he is Adriana’s “first”.  Finally we have Annie who was falsely accused by Naomi of sleeping with her boyfriend (actually Naomi’s sister slept with the boyfriend).  This false accusation led Annie to call the police and rat out the underage drinking at the party which led to all the kids at the party having to do summer school.  But that is not here or there for Annie as she thinks she may have hit and run a guy when she was drinking and driving and, of course, the guy died.  But it turns out the real perp is Teddie.

Not to be outdone, Melrose begins with a murder of one of the veterans from the old show (who looks like she has not aged a year).  This show features a bisexual publicist, a budding filmmaker, his fiancée, a chef, a poor med student, and a mysterious redhead played by Ashley Simpson Wentz.  I predict good things for this show as long as Pete Wentz never appears on it.

Corrupting our Children

Apparently Pres. Obama wants to tell kids to dream big dreams, respect their teachers, study hard, and learn from failure. What an insidious, socialist message he is spreading particularly given the fact that many parents fail to tell their children to accept personal responsibility. Of course, it is rare for a President to do this, especially when they were academically-challenged like the last one.

Topless women march in Central Park for right to bare breasts

Topless women march in Central Park for right to bare breasts

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Imagine walking in Central Park and running into a mob of topless women (a fantasy for some, I know). But this nudity is not gratuitous; these women want the right to toplessness, i.e., to walk around topless like men can (I am not sure that allowing certain men to walk around without a shirt is that great an idea anyway). Apparently NYC is the only city that grants women such a right. Ah, the quest for liberty and equality never ends.

Star Trek Cologne - buy at Firebox.com

Star Trek Cologne - buy at Firebox.com

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It truly is a reunion (sort of)

The show about nothing which was a show about everything and ended up being the show of our generation is actually having a reunion show.  The cast of Seinfeld, reuniting on Curb Your Enthusiasm, will be playing themselves preparing to do a Seinfeld reunion on Curb.  Thus, it is a reunion show within a reunion show.  This means there will be some scenes from a Seinfeld “reunion” show portrayed on Curb.  Both Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David are adamant that this will be the last “reunion” and that there will be some sense of closure.  It will be interesting to see how they deal with the whole incarceration issue, which it turns out was Larry David’s idea.  So bottom line – if you have been holding out hope for a Seinfeld reunion watch Curb because that may be all you get.