My boss did not come into work yesterday...he was off buying a sailboat. I suspect he will be distracted with ocean going fantasies for the rest of the summer.

I have GOT to get off my ass and logged into work earlier in the mornings. It makes a huge difference with what I can done during the day.

An aunt and uncle are coming by tonight and my house is a disaster. I know they will understand, but I hate it. I want to bag work for the rest of the day and put things away. But then I will also want to bag on work tomorrow and so on.

Dear Proposition 8 supporters - You lost because you lied

Folks on your side, such as Maggie Gallagher of the National Organization for Marriage, the Family Research Council, and the rest of the pseudo defenders of morality will probably whine about how you all have been unfairly labeled as “bigots.” And I am sure that they will point out that every time there has been a public vote on marriage equality, the lgbt community has always lost.

But they will conveniently omit how these victories were attained. You won’t hear about how they invoked images of gay boogeymen molesting children in false ads nor will they admit to telling lies about children supposedly being taught about gay sex.

You won’t hear them admit to exploiting people’s unconscious fears and ignorance of the lgbt community in order to spin outrageous scenarios of what could happen should lgbts be allowed to marry.

And don’t be surprised by this. Those like Gallagher will never admit to the depths they stooped to win not only in California but other places like Maine.

But there is a reason why this country has checks and balances. And there is a reason why people can’t arbitrarily vote on the rights of others without having to defend this vote in the logical arena of courts, where you can’t invoke panic by proverbially yelling fire in a crowded theatre.

In the courts, you must defend your position. And in the long run, you couldn’t.

Unfortunately, due to reading Animal Farm at an early age, I feel like pure socialism doesn't really work either, so I don't know what I think is a solution.

Lots of different forms of socialism. Orwell never stopped being a socialist.

It's true - there are a lot of ways that democracy doesn't always work "right", either, but I still want to live in a democracy. I'd rather deal with/fix democracy's problems than live under any other type of government.

Of course, I say that having never lived under any other type of government. Benign dictatorship, I hear, is great.

Snerk. You know, on the one hand I think that's great. On the other hand, I can't help but suspect that many of them got rich by underpaying a lot of people, or laying them off. I'm such a socialist. But goodness knows nonprofits can use the funds.

Well, that's what Carnegie did. I'm glad to have all the stuff, but I also know he was a sonofabitch.

I think Warren Buffet has a pretty good track record, actually. Can't speak for the rest.

My "I'm such a socialist" claim was meant to be flippant, really. I'm a social democrat (but not necessarily a capitalist), or something. idk.

PSA - Threadless reprinted the Apocalypse Velma t-shirt! [link]

You know, I read quite a bit of the decision, and it makes me a little nervous that it seems like the proponants put up a really piss-poor argument. I feel like I could have made a better argument for Prop 8 and I am against it. It makes me nervous that it was some sort of technique.

Friend of mine sent me the link to the actual decision in Perry vs. Schwarzenegger. It's 137 pages long. She says that it is a "Findings of Fact" as well as a "Conclusions of Law" which is good new on appeal because that "Findings of Fact" are rarely overturned.

(I don't really know what those things are but she is an attorney so I'm sure she does. She is geeked out at seeing Constitutional history being made in front of her eyes, so to speak.)

Here's my quick explanation of findings of law v. findings of fact that I use with students:

I am crossing the street and Britney Spears comes racing around the corner and hits me.

I claim she was driving at an excessive rate of speed, I was in the crosswalk and she jumped out of the car and says, "oops, I did it again."

Brit says she was driving the speed limit, and that I was drunk and threw myself in front of the car.

Whether or not she was speeding, and if I was drunk = issues of fact, and generally can not be appealed once the jury (or judge) decides them.

If I wanted to introduce a witness who heard Brit bragging that she'd run me down, Brit's attorney would object claiming that was hearsay and it can't be admitted as evidence. The ruling that the statement is hearsay (or not) is an issue of law, and it can be appealed.