The Smiths

Having been rather busy with all sorts of crap, I've been catching up all week on last weekends Sunday Times. I was surprised to find an article about the former lead vocalist and lyricist of my favorite band when I was in high school — The Smiths. It's funny that I still get transported back to 1986 or 1987 whenever I hear one of their songs. Sadly, I was only turned on to The Smiths right before they broke up in 1987 so I never saw them in concert, a great regret of my youth. Still, I eagerly purchased all their CDs (when CDs were first coming out) and listened to them on the radio — WDRE 92.7 FM.

As a side note, WDRE was originally WLIR, which then became WDRE. About 5 years ago, WDRE faded to black and WLIR re-emerged at 92.7 FM. Recently this year, WLIR stopped broadcasting on 92.7 and now can be found on 107.1 FM. Follow this link for a quick history on this vicious circle.

Back to the story, I stayed loyal to Morrissey after he went out on his own and in 1988 was pleased that he was still popular on the radio: Top 100 of 1988. But, I began to miss the collective genius that was The Smiths. Songwriter/guitarist Johnny Marr is a musical genius and I don't mean that lightly. Combined with Morrissey's poetic lyrics all rich with melancholy and pain, all so perfect for my callow teen-aged depression and angst. I was angry and I had to get out. The world of Huntington, N.Y. is awfully small when your 17. As I got older and gained perspective, I emerged a lot less angry. Likely, any morose feelings I had were the result of hormones raging in my blood stream. In any case, my fondness for the band remains and is a nice way to stay in touch with my younger self. I know you can't go home again, but visiting through song, makes a nice little visit.

Indignant Travelers

Ever notice that, from whatever perspective or role that you stand in, everyone else is "the asshole"? When I'm driving in my car, pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers are my nemesis and I deride them all equally as assholes. When, two minutes later after I park, and transform into a pedestrian, every vehicle (i.e. driver) careening through the crosswalk with its blinking "do-not-walk" hand, is the ultimate prick.

Another thing many of us do is get annoyed or angry at our fellow commuters for the very "social infraction" that we ourselves do as well. For example, today I spied two hulking men who stood in the door-way of the GCT/TS Shuttle, forming their own "doors" with their body mass. This frequently happens since the train car is packed to the gills and no one will move all the way to the center of the car. Thus, all the bodies are congregating near the doors like globs of cholesterol. Well, just as the conductor was about to close the real doors, this small woman, muttering obscenities under her breath ("fuckin' people better move outta my way!") plowed though the big guys blocking the door and pushed her way into the car. The two men glowered down at her with the sharpest daggers in their eyes I've seen in a while. The funny thing is that both the little lady and the hulking men thought they were being affronted and that the other person was the asshole. I cannot count the times that I have been either the hulking door man or the angry lady with the same attitude — sometimes even within the same day or hour! I guess this human behavior stems from the psychological notion (I'll call it the "Ptolemy Effect") that people view themselves as the center of the universe and everyone and everything else should revolve around them. Perhaps this is why Miss Manners or Emily Post came along; to remind us that we don't live in this world by ourselves and we should treat others as we ourselves would like to be treated. In the meantime, get the fuck outta my way, schmuck!

"How did our oil get under their sand?"

Driving the final leg of my daily commute, I spotted the above quote from a bumper sticker. It made me laugh because I know that there are those out there that actually believe this question. In terms of framing the issues, I noticed that my local gas station was selling petrol for $2.19 a gallon. When I began to drive again (it had been almost 16 years since I last owned a car having lived in NYC & Washington DC that whole time) I began to become a keen observer of gasoline prices. Back in Nov. '03, when I got the fuel efficient shit-box that I drive, I was buying gas at $1.89 a gallon. It then went up to $1.94 in December '03 and held there until about 6 weeks ago. It them jumped to $1.99 for about two weeks. It then went to $2.04 for a week, then to $2.09 for a week and now it rests at $2.19. To be sure it will climb very soon. Experts anticipate that through the summer the price will rise again. Meanwhile Oil Companies are recording record profits and have been for many months. Perhaps we in the U.S. are still paying too little for oil and petroleum products. We drive gas-guzzling SUVs and use oil with impunity. The Bush administration refuses to establish a comprehensive energy policy that will help the U.S. become energy independent as well as source-diverse. Hell, if we didn't have such a reliance on cheap oil, would we really be in the Middle East at all (notwithstanding the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict)?

Helping Frickin' Hand

For the record, I have been negligent in my postings since work has ramped up recently. I will try to be more diligent this week (I hope!).

My brother and sister-in-law asked me to help them move out of the City this past weekend, and I, as loving brother, complied. Boy did that suck. Actually, it wasn't too bad, save for the casualty of a sunburnt head and a sore back. It is one of the many unpleasantries of life, moving your crap from point A to point B and being asked to help someone move their crap from point A to point B. I figured the frequency of being asked would decrease proportionately to my (and my friends) getting older each year. But at 33, it's still going strong. Indeed, I'll be moving out of Chelsea and back to my beloved Brooklyn (just like Kotter) this August. The best part is that my move has to be coordinated with the Republican National Committee (RNC). I kid you not. You see, my current abode is a block away from Madison Square Garden and this late August MSG will become the epicenter of "neocon-dom" lunacy for the 2004 Republican National Convention. This entails major street closings, etc. for security. The last thing these guys will allow is a Ryder moving truck to be parked all day near the Garden. So now, as if the RNC doesn't already make my life difficult, I will have to move out sooner than planned to avoid the bullshit. Maybe, Tom Delay will lend me a hand and lift a few boxes for me? You hear that Tommy? Free lunch and beer is included. Whatta you say?

Firing Donald Rumsfeld

Weighing in on the topic, I think that the NY Times is correct in its analysis that Bush's future as a President is intertwined on the success or failure of Don Rumsfeld as SECDEF. (See NYT: President Backs His Defense Chief in Show of Unity) For his arrogance, for his inability to reach out to the troops, for his career-long quest for power, it's time for Rummy to go. The problem is, unless the release of the additional photos from Abu Gharib cause further outcry and fuel the current pressure on the Administration to "clean house," Rummy is here to stay. So, the solution is rather quite simple. Since Bush will not get rid of Donny, the way to do it is fire the boss — vote against Bush this November.

Sleepwalking

I feel as if I am sleepwalking this morning. Usually, I feel this way on Mondays since I am re-adjusting to the regular weekday wake up time. It was funny though because on my morning commute I physically felt as if I was floating through the subway station, onto the train, then off the train, etc. I don't think a sound was uttered from my voice from 6:40 a.m. until about 9:20 a.m. when I arrived at the office. As sure as God makes little green apples, I'll wager that there are millions of people who go through every day like this. Depressing. I need caffine.

Personal Day

Today, I decided that I didn't want to go to work. So, I took a personal day. A friend of mine once said, never waste a sick day on being sick. Very true. So with the entire day to myself, and some errands to do, off I go.

Times Square/GCT Shuttle Sucks

Let us rant a little: This train and the way it operates, blows chunks. It is always over crowded during rush hour and does not operate in a "passenger friendly" mode. There are 4 tracks for this 4-car wonder, yet, at most only three are ever in operation at any one time. Quite often all the trains are in either GCT or TS at the same time. The trains appear to operate on some type of a schedule, which would explain why it sits there waiting even though the cars are teeming with angry and impatient standing-room-only passengers. The MTA should close the doors and go as soon as the train fills up. They would make more trips during rush hours to ease the congestion say from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. In the other hours they could run according to their jackass schedule. This is not rocket science — the shuttle has only two stops and it can't cost that much to operate. In its current state, the shuttle is the worst part of my crappy commute each day from Chelsea to Stamford, CT., and back. Fuck you MTA and fuck you shuttle!

Occupation

I was thinking about the occupation this morning and it occurred to me that perhaps the only successful occupation (or post-war reconstruction) "project" the United States ever took on was accomplished with the assistance of allies. So let's look at Germany circa 1945�. The U.S. was one of four major allies occupying that nation: France, Britain, and the Soviet Union all had spheres of influence or "sectors" of occupation. Now, I appreciate that this set up did plant the seed corn for the Cold War, East & West Germany, the Berlin War, and the Iron Curtain. However, at least in West Germany, where the "liberal democracies" held sway, a democratic Germany rose from the ashes. By no means did the U.S. accomplish this feat alone. To be sure, we were the major partner in this endeavor (think Berlin Airlift), nevertheless, the U.S. acted in concert with our allies. The occupation of Japan may be harder to prove since I have only begun to delve into this hypothesis. I have always been fascinated with the Pacific Theater of WWII, primarily because of its focus on maritime forces (i.e., Navy and Marine Corps for you non-military types) and because the U.S. went at it against Japan primarily alone. We did have some nominal allies (no disrespect to the Australians, New Zealanders, Chinese, or the British garrison in India (plus let's not forget the unsung resistance movements on the hundreds of Japanese occupied islands). As the war was drawing to a close and Germany surrendered, the Soviets began minor offense action in Manchuria in order to gain a seat at the table. In any case the fact remains that the U.S. never invaded Japan. So the occupation, borne largely by the U.S. alone, was no where near as holistic as what we are witnessing in Iraq today. That said, we still had the overwhelming support of our allies (compare to Afghanistan post-9/11). I am sure some idiots will point to the Banana Wars of the early-20th century or Granada. But the fact remains that without the support of an international force or the United Nations (Korean Peninsula early 1950s), our occupations have had spotty results at best. Something to think about for you unilateralists out there.

Law School Rankings & Brooklyn Law School (Final Part)

From the around the time that I started my legal education in the late summer of 2000 until I graduated almost 1 year ago in 2003, I was constantly aware of student apathy and the abysmal student life on "campus" at Brooklyn Law School. I put "campus" in quotes because except for a shallow courtyard in front of 250 Joralemon, BLS has no campus, per se, since the entire school consists of two buildings. So much could be written about this topic that it's difficult to know where to begin. Let's assume for argument, that student life at BLS sucks. So what has the administration done to address it? With the exception of the (now) annual "class day" celebration (which was actually devised to honor BLS's first class from 1901) where free food, games, and BLS Painter's Caps (Oh boy!) are distributed there's little to speak of, save the hoped cure all — the new dormitory.

So what are the sources of apathy and piss-poor student life. Well, let no one be mistaken: law school is a long, lonely and arduous endeavor. This alone creates stress, anger, and depression. My guess is there are few things other than frequent beer blasts or free counseling services that the Administration could do. BLS's problems, in more than one regard, stem from its second class status in the shadows of the legal titans across the East River: Columbia Law School and NYU Law School. When it comes to job searches, practically only the top 15% of the BLS class will graduate with a job offer in hand. Whereas, even the dregs of NYU & Columbia will likely have a job offer. BLS's career Services Office generally caters to the "lucky 15%." The remaining 85%-ers are on their own. This causes enormous stress among the students at BLS. Most students are not naive enough to think that the career office will simply secure a job offer for the student with no effort. However, the career office fails to effectively cultivate BLS alumni who are located through out the U.S.A. and establish meaningful connections. Generally, these folks are former 85%-ers who are embittered and thus generally want to have nothing to do with the school. Career planning at BLS is too passive and haphazardly done.

The bottom line is that most of the student body is at BLS because the big dogs in Manhattan or elsewhere didn't admit them. BLS's proximity to the NYC legal community is perhaps it's biggest draw. Making students feel that the school is their own and the Administration is there to serve them (and not the other way around) is paramount to lifting BLS out of the doldrums. I received an outstanding legal education at BLS, and even made some good friends. But the real question is, would I want my own children to go though the experience I did? The answer is not likely. I'll make sure they do damn well on their LSATs and enroll where they won't feel like their sitting in the upper deck.