Folsom Street Fair: Pluralism Baby

Last weekend was San Francisco's Folsom Street Fair.  For the uninitiated, Folsom is a celebration of the leather arts.

My wife and I were on our way to the East Bay during the Fair and passed this Auntie buying fruit while some fair-goers waited for the walk signal.  Two guys in assless chaps and leather cod-pieces didn't faze her at all.  I love San Francisco.

Jury Duty Pt. 2: Criminal Court Brings Out the Characters

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Jury duty rolls on (though I think I may be done sooner than anticipated).  Like I said before, no talking about the case.  But the Hall of Justice has some serious characters in its halls.

I've seen this guy several times waiting on one of the benches outside the courtroom.  With hair like this, I can only guess he's a defense attorney.

This guy was shaving in the bathroom one morning.  His friend was telling him about how he'd gotten rid of things when the cops came.

Jury Duty Pt. 1

I am currently a proud member of a California Superior Court jury!  Jury selection actually took three days and, since I was the very first person called, I had the privilege of sitting through every single question asked of every single potential juror.

Portrait of the Artist Over Three Days of Jury Selection

Of course, since I can't discuss the case, I won't be able to post anything about the trial itself.  But I am in the criminal court building all day, so there's plenty of other material to come.

The Guard: Chapter 2

 Chapter One is Here; click to expand . . .

to be continued . . .

Motown Philly

This morning I was listening to some Boyz II Men.  First, I remembered couples skate at the roller rink, trying to make my hands stop sweating while wishing I could look as cool as the older guys who worked there and never laced up their skates.  Then I remembered that I used to try and convince my mom to buy me some of the clothes Boyz II Men and BBD wore in their videos.

I probably would have looked even worse.

Around the same time, I also had a very long conversation/debate with my barber about why he could not or would not give me a high-top fade.  Hector was a wise man. 

The Castro Safeway

Last weekend, I was standing outside the Castro Safeway.  I was wearing a tie for no particular reason.  This guy walks up to me, stares at me for twenty seconds and says: "I lika da tie!"

I thanked him but he just stood there.  "I lika da tie!" he said again.  Then: "But-a maybeh too formal for Satuhrday!  But I lika da tie!  You look good!"  I'm not exaggerating his accent.  He sounded like this.

Then he walked away.

Welcome Back to Fog City

First sign that I was coming home after two weeks of genuine summer weather in the City of Broad Shoulders -- the connecting flight from San Diego to SFO was delayed for an hour because of fog.

Second sign -- and the real confirmation -- was this hipster I passed on my way from BART to my house:

No one told me about the Russel Brand Look-Alike Contest

Hoosier Mama Pies

The very, very cheerful woman who worked the front counter at Chicago's Hoosier Mama Pie Company.

The Dosa Man

My wife's parents threw an amazing party the other night, complete with freshly made dosa.  The man behind the dosa had this great touch where he'd use the little bowl to ladle the batter onto the griddle then smack it a few times and use the flat back of the little bowl to spread the batter, like a crepe paddle.

That was a party.

One of My Neighbors: The Cigarette Man

Travelling in Chicago right now - so no access to my scanner, just photos of sketches.

Another one of my neighbors - he asks everyone for a cigarette.  No matter how many times you've told him you don't smoke, he'll always ask you then just keep walking.

The Tea Party

Sarah Palin

One of My Neighbors: The Paperback Reader

He stands on our street, leans against a parked car and reads a paperback everyday.  As the sun moves across the sky, he relocates to stay in the sunshine.

Bar Exam Highlights

The California Bar exam is three days long, six hours each day.  It brings out some characters . . .

His hair was like a halo around his head, every day.

Some people found it very important to be as comfortable as possible.

Other people did not.  This woman wore stripper heels every single day.

The Guard: Chapter 1

Now for something a little different . . . (click to expand)

to be continued . . .

Superfans - US Soccer Fan Fails Part 1

Believe it or not, his outfit is the least of his problems.

Happy as I am that the US managed a tie against England on Saturday, it makes me a bit worried.  There was a certain type of US soccer fan that was bad enough before.  Now?  I'm getting worried.

It can only get worse from here.  Superfans were bad enough when the US never won anything important.  No matter how tiny and inept the other team was, these guys would celebrate like we won the World Cup itself.  If you didn't get excited that we outscored Guam, they'd accuse you of personally holding back the American soccer program.

The worst was that they'd always get excited that we qualified for the Cup.  We play in CONCACAF, guys.  Mexico is good but the rest?  Not so much.  It's like bragging about how you were first in your class in kindergarten.  Nicely done; everyone else was eating paste.

If the US manages to make it into the next round, it's all over.

California and Arizona's Laws Compared

It was pointed out to me that California has a law on its books similar to Arizona's new immigration statute.  This was pretty surprising, so I looked it up.  Well . . . they're similar, but only in the broadest sense.

Are You an Imperialist?

I got called an agent of capitalist imperialism the other day. This wasn't the first time. It's probably my own fault.

Business Law Journal staff photo.

It begs the question, though: why do I care about corporate law reform in other countries? Am I just acting out a sublimated desire for Anglo-American legal hegemony on the rest of the world?

Just Say No

I'm in the throes of studying for my Anti-Trust final. As I go back over my notes, outline, and the cases in the book, I can't help but be struck by the government's tenacity in enforcing the law. The DOJ can't just smack a company for violating the anti-trust laws. It has to prove the allegations in court and the judicial branch isn't shy about restraining the executive. But the DOJ and FTC just keep coming back for more.

Why didn't I think of that?

This may seem normal to us but it's a hard balance to strike. One of the hardest challenges facing poor countries is how to create institutions that will enforce the law and not just cater to the whims of whoever's in power. When you don't have "robust" institutions, you have a lot of corruption and exploitation. How do you create a group of people who are more-or-less incorruptible when the entire environment is rife with corruption?

Studying

The funny looking diagram on the right is a flow-chart I made studying for my securities regulation exam. I do get to take this into the test itself but keep a couple things in mind:

1. This chart only covers a little under half the material that will be on the exam;
2. I won't really have time to read this during the test, so I memorize it as I make it;
3. This is only a very rough map of the law we're being tested on - it doesn't include many of the cases or the actual text of the codes.

This is my version of an outline. Some people write more traditional looking outlines (I., A., B., etc.) but I'm pretty visual so this works better for me.