2009 October archive at Haemet

Archive for October, 2009

Conservative Smorgasbord Featuring McCain Pate

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at October 16, 2009 in Conservatism, Liberal Hypocrisy and Obama Administration. 0 Comments

Yes, it’s another “Roxey is busy” smorgasbord. First up on the menu: Awww! Why men should buy flowers for women. An additional reason for those men who say, “But wait! Flowers may be pretty, but they are totally impractical.” Think of a vacuum cleaner; now think of the opposite of a vacuum cleaner. See the appeal?

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A Louisiana justice of the peace denied a marriage license to an interracial couple, citing concerns over the longevity of the marriage. Now, here at Haemet, we’re all about making sensible marital decisions and staying in it for life, but those concerns are best brought up via a priest, pastor, or rabbi, not through the government or any of its agents.

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An obligatory post on the Meghan McCain debacle: Meghan posted a rather interesting photo of herself; the blogosphere erupted; and Meghan got upset and cried foul. Stacy McCain calls Miss McCain out on playing the victim. Obligatory commentary: Meghan’s picture just isn’t the sort of thing that nice girls post for the world to see, even if they are nice, modern, and sexually forward women; in fact, it bears a startling resemblance to the Pam Anderson picture on Stacy’s site. If you do not wish to be treated like a duck because you don’t quite feel like being made into pate, don’t walk and quack like one.

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Jeff Jacoby has a wonderful piece on the myth of the underpaid government employee. He points out that public-sector employees often make a lot more than their private-sector counterparts, especially once benefits are counted in with salary. Jacoby, remarkable as he is, missed a crucial point: the private sector creates jobs and wealth. Even if government employees were more educated, more talented, and worked longer hours for the same pay, they would not be in a wealth-creating job. It’s not just about who earns what, but about the work that those people perform.

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Finally, Obama told people in New Orleans that he would like to have a blank check to help them, but does not, and that rebuilding the city involves a complex relationship between state and federal government and various agencies. What he did not say, tellingly, is that this all shows us that George Bush and the conservatives are not the horrible, evil people that you would think we are.

Red States in Recovery; Blue States in Recession

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Roxeanne de Luca

at October 15, 2009 in Conservatism and Obama Administration. 1 Comment

MSNBC proudly announced that 79 metro areas are in an economic recovery, although most states are still in a recession. Of the 11 states in recovery, nine went red last election. Iowa went solidly for Obama, but Indiana went for him by a percentage point.

Washington, DC is also in a recovery; MSNBC euphemistically declared that this is due to “stimulus mnoey,” although a more apt description may be that the federal government takes care of its own and will use the force of law to ensure the security of its own jobs. While MSNBC attributes the recovery among the states to oil and gas economies as well as a more stable housing cycle, it ignores the incredibly strong correlation between state-wide politics and economic recovery. Even the less-populous (and often, more conservative) areas are doing better in those states. Conservative and libertarian principles (right-to-work laws, minimal government interference in business, and business-friendly laws) currently correlate very strongly with economic recovery.

It’s Sort of Like Trading Papelbon for a Little League Pitcher

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Roxeanne de Luca

at October 15, 2009 in Academia and Law. 2 Comments

As Massachusetts is one of only six states in the nation to not have a state-run law school, UMass is making a bid for the unaccredited Southern New England School of Law. Part of the deal would be for SNESL to give UMass the campus and its cash for free; the university would then take over operations, gain ABA accreditation (the school is currently accredited only by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges), increase enrollment, and offer a discount to Massachusetts students.

Even with the donation of the buildings, cash, and campus to UMass, this proposal is not setting SNESL to be the next UC Irvine. The latter school offered free tuition to its entire incoming class; as a result, it built a class with an average GPA of 3.61 and an average LSAT of 167. Currently, SNESL charges $22,175 for tuition and fees (exclusive of other expenses, such as living costs and books). If the school is taken over by UMass, in-state students would be charged about $24,000/year. Exclusive of living expenses, then, a student who graduates from the “economically-priced,” newly accredited, and poorly ranked state law school would accumulate about $75,000 in debt before interest, housing expenses, and bar loans.

Moreover, the UMass school could remove an economical option for students in the Commonwealth: reciprocity with UConn. Full-time MA students are charged about $34,000 for their first year and, if they choose to obtain Connecticut residency, $20,000 per year for the next two years (here). The total cost is almost equal to that of UMass’s proposed law school – but UConn is a well-respected, strong second-tier school, not an unaccredited upstart. Should UMass take over SNESL, UConn would likely revoke the privileges of reduced tuition and admissions advantages.

Thus, the argument for a state law school is not that Massachusetts students need an affordable option for law school – under the definition of “affordable” that is advanced by the Commonwealth, that is already available to them via UConn – it is that students who have no hope of getting into a second-tier law school need an option for a JD that will only run them into six figures of education debt after living expenses. Issues of the Commonwealth’s billion-dollar budget deficit aside, it is beyond senseless to trade the UConn option for the unaccredited, almost-unknown SNESL.

Take That, Peter Singer!

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Roxeanne de Luca

at October 14, 2009 in Abortion and Medical Ethics. 0 Comments

CNN’s latest feel-good article is about a young woman who was brain-damaged before birth. A stroke left Mack with limited functionality in the left side of her brain; yet, the right side rewired itself (not at all uncommon in adult stroke victims and Alzheimer’s patients) to take over many of the functions typically performed by the left hemisphere.

Beyond the implications for medical science, this woman’s ability to lead a normal life has profound implications for the pro-life movement. Whether the subject be unborn children who have Down’s Syndrome or a cognitive impairment or adults like Terri Schiavo, the diagnosis of mental deficiency should be thought of as a temporary one. Those who advocate for abortion and euthanasia are not only ignoring the inherent dignity of every human being, but demonstrate a profound ignorance of medical science as well.