Monday, July 25, 2005
Answers to interview questions
These come from Gwen's blog at www.gwenworld.com:
First off, I cry foul. My questions were harder than every one else’s…
1. If you could, what adjustments, if any, would you make to our government?
Our legum plutocracy seems to be working out pretty well. Except that we are slowly becoming a corpocracy. But that is not so bad since, ultimately, the builders will be the only members of the populace capable of overthrowing the emerging corpocracy. This will usher in the new technocracy and the next age of enlightenment.
OK, that was a silly answer, but what I really think is…
I might de-politicize the Supreme Court. I’m starting to get annoyed by the media frenzy surrounding it. The public and, especially, the press are totally confused about the way the court works and what it does. Either high school government classes are taught wholly wrong or they are too boring and 99.9% of the people sleep through them.
Twenty years (or so) ago J. Scalia was approved by the Senate by something like 92%. Today if a president nominated a justice half as “conservative” (a fairly meaningless label used by the media – see below), a massive senate battle would erupt with everyone and their brother practicing obstructionist politics just to get some media sound bites for their next re-election campaign. It’s disgusting and un-dignified.
Besides, what does John Q. Public from off the street really know about any of these judges? Answer: nothing. Has John Q. read any of these judge’s legal opinions? Answer: not bloody likely. How do you know if a judge is liberal or conservative? Answer: the media said so. The media does not work for us; they are working for themselves – trying to sell papers, magazines, and commercial airtime. Remember that. Besides, the words conservative and liberal don’t mean what people think they do when applied to judges. There are a dozen other labels that could (should) put on a judge that are much more meaningful than “conservative” and “liberal”. Labels such as interpretist/literalist, federalist/non-federalist, etc. But the media never uses these words, do they? I wonder why? Either because they don’t understand it themselves, they’re not capable of making the public understand it, or they don’t really care about the material. Anyway about it, it’s pitiful journalism.
2. What perceptions and misconceptions do people have upon entering law school, and how are they right or wrong? (Ex.: "Getting a law degree will help me get women.")
There are many, but chief among them is, “You go to law school to learn the law.”
Wrong. Law school does not teach students the law. They must learn the law by themselves with great effort. At best, law school teaches one to defend a certain position from Socratic attack. It also teaches people how to deconstruct a principle into basic ideas so that you can start over again with re-inventing the wheel. I’m not sure either of these skills is particularly useful in the real world.
Posner postulated that law school is an “apprenticeship” into the failing legal guild. My view is similar, it is a right of passage into a fraternity.
3. Time stops all over the world for 24 hours, for everyone except you. What do you do for those 24 hours? (I'm asking you, personally, because I'm pretty sure your answer will be something more interesting than "Steal everything not bolted down." (Which is my answer, basically.)) Assume that people are still alive, but asleep/comatose where they stand, like in Sleeping Beauty.
Go and ride al the rides at Astroworld all by myself, over and over, without waiting in line.
4. What is your favorite scotch, beer, vodka, and tequila?
Favorite Scotch
That is like asking what my favorite movie is: sci-fi, drama, or comedy? Or in the case of Scotch: single-malt, pure malt, so called “vatted malt”, or blended. Nothing is ever easy with the Lemur is it?
I have actually devised a method for drinking single malt Scotch. First you start with something light and smooth: Dahlwhinnie. Next, a dram of a nice Speyside; right now I like Glenfarclas 21, but that will change next month. Next, something more robust, and that means Islay, which, for me, means Ardbeg. Finnish this off with Talisker, just for the pepper. Throw in a dram of Highland Park somewhere and I’m set. I know that sounds like a lot, but keep in mind that you’re drinking very small amounts each time. Don’t pour a whole glass at a time, or you will shortly regret it.
Favorite Beer
I can’t drink anymore after all that Scotch. But, if I could, it would be Dogfish Head 90.
Favorite Vodka
I never really drink vodka straight; it mostly just gets mixed with orange juice to form other drinks. No, I really don’t have much of an opinion about vodka other than the elitist side of my brain seems to think that Russian vodka is superior somehow (but I have no data, empirical or otherwise, to support this).
Favorite Tequila
Silver Patron (that was easy).
Favorite Wine
Don’t get me started… you thought the Scotch part was long?
5. Are you capable of murder?
I eat meat, so, yeah, I suppose some people would already consider me a murderer.
Murder of a human, though… First off, what state am I in when the alleged murder occurs? They all define murder a little differently. I don’t think premeditated (intentional, malice aforethought, whatever) murder is in my playbook without some sort of extenuating circumstance (EED, self defense, war, etc.).
First off, I cry foul. My questions were harder than every one else’s…
1. If you could, what adjustments, if any, would you make to our government?
Our legum plutocracy seems to be working out pretty well. Except that we are slowly becoming a corpocracy. But that is not so bad since, ultimately, the builders will be the only members of the populace capable of overthrowing the emerging corpocracy. This will usher in the new technocracy and the next age of enlightenment.
OK, that was a silly answer, but what I really think is…
I might de-politicize the Supreme Court. I’m starting to get annoyed by the media frenzy surrounding it. The public and, especially, the press are totally confused about the way the court works and what it does. Either high school government classes are taught wholly wrong or they are too boring and 99.9% of the people sleep through them.
Twenty years (or so) ago J. Scalia was approved by the Senate by something like 92%. Today if a president nominated a justice half as “conservative” (a fairly meaningless label used by the media – see below), a massive senate battle would erupt with everyone and their brother practicing obstructionist politics just to get some media sound bites for their next re-election campaign. It’s disgusting and un-dignified.
Besides, what does John Q. Public from off the street really know about any of these judges? Answer: nothing. Has John Q. read any of these judge’s legal opinions? Answer: not bloody likely. How do you know if a judge is liberal or conservative? Answer: the media said so. The media does not work for us; they are working for themselves – trying to sell papers, magazines, and commercial airtime. Remember that. Besides, the words conservative and liberal don’t mean what people think they do when applied to judges. There are a dozen other labels that could (should) put on a judge that are much more meaningful than “conservative” and “liberal”. Labels such as interpretist/literalist, federalist/non-federalist, etc. But the media never uses these words, do they? I wonder why? Either because they don’t understand it themselves, they’re not capable of making the public understand it, or they don’t really care about the material. Anyway about it, it’s pitiful journalism.
2. What perceptions and misconceptions do people have upon entering law school, and how are they right or wrong? (Ex.: "Getting a law degree will help me get women.")
There are many, but chief among them is, “You go to law school to learn the law.”
Wrong. Law school does not teach students the law. They must learn the law by themselves with great effort. At best, law school teaches one to defend a certain position from Socratic attack. It also teaches people how to deconstruct a principle into basic ideas so that you can start over again with re-inventing the wheel. I’m not sure either of these skills is particularly useful in the real world.
Posner postulated that law school is an “apprenticeship” into the failing legal guild. My view is similar, it is a right of passage into a fraternity.
3. Time stops all over the world for 24 hours, for everyone except you. What do you do for those 24 hours? (I'm asking you, personally, because I'm pretty sure your answer will be something more interesting than "Steal everything not bolted down." (Which is my answer, basically.)) Assume that people are still alive, but asleep/comatose where they stand, like in Sleeping Beauty.
Go and ride al the rides at Astroworld all by myself, over and over, without waiting in line.
4. What is your favorite scotch, beer, vodka, and tequila?
Favorite Scotch
That is like asking what my favorite movie is: sci-fi, drama, or comedy? Or in the case of Scotch: single-malt, pure malt, so called “vatted malt”, or blended. Nothing is ever easy with the Lemur is it?
I have actually devised a method for drinking single malt Scotch. First you start with something light and smooth: Dahlwhinnie. Next, a dram of a nice Speyside; right now I like Glenfarclas 21, but that will change next month. Next, something more robust, and that means Islay, which, for me, means Ardbeg. Finnish this off with Talisker, just for the pepper. Throw in a dram of Highland Park somewhere and I’m set. I know that sounds like a lot, but keep in mind that you’re drinking very small amounts each time. Don’t pour a whole glass at a time, or you will shortly regret it.
Favorite Beer
I can’t drink anymore after all that Scotch. But, if I could, it would be Dogfish Head 90.
Favorite Vodka
I never really drink vodka straight; it mostly just gets mixed with orange juice to form other drinks. No, I really don’t have much of an opinion about vodka other than the elitist side of my brain seems to think that Russian vodka is superior somehow (but I have no data, empirical or otherwise, to support this).
Favorite Tequila
Silver Patron (that was easy).
Favorite Wine
Don’t get me started… you thought the Scotch part was long?
5. Are you capable of murder?
I eat meat, so, yeah, I suppose some people would already consider me a murderer.
Murder of a human, though… First off, what state am I in when the alleged murder occurs? They all define murder a little differently. I don’t think premeditated (intentional, malice aforethought, whatever) murder is in my playbook without some sort of extenuating circumstance (EED, self defense, war, etc.).