otium cum dignitate

The No Fun League?

Among the new NFL rules recently created by the owners, the biggest attention-grabber is the new prohibition of endzone celebrations following touchdowns.  This effectively puts an end to TO's sharpie antics, Steve Smith's wiping the baby, and Joe Horn's cell phone calls. 

Critics accuse the NFL of reinterpreting it's acronym as the "no fun league."  But the league made sure to state that more natural, less contrived celebrations are still allowable, such as spiking the ball, spinning the ball, performing the Lambeau Leap, and even dancing. 

I generally didn't mind the more flagrant celebrations of the aforementioned players.  However, it did sometimes annoy me when one of these guys would catch a game-winning TD and rather than embracing their teamates, they would force them to first watch a self-serving spectacle  that drew all the attention to one player rather than the team.   

For better or for worse, it is clear that the NFL is the most draconian of all professional sports leagues in the United States.  While the NHL continues to endure the anachronism of crowd-pleasing fighting, the NFL refuses to even allow an innocent celebration.  I think I generally agree with the NFL on this point, but I won't be happy if my team gets slapped with that 15-yard penalty.

An Alternative to the Gas Tax

Gas tax advocates have argued feverishly for a strict gas tax as a blunt method to quickly curb America's addiction to oil.  They  see the tax essentially as a disincentive to buy and drive gas-guzzling cars.  But like all sin taxes, the government likewise enjoys the hefty revenue intake when people decide to swallow the costs and maintain their supposedly illicit behavior.  An article in yesterday's Times looked at what might happen when gas taxes accomplish the first goal of minimizing gasoline usage in the country. 

In Oregon, a state with many clean air and "clean car" programs, the expected reduction in gasoline use could take a significant toll on the state's treasury.  As many know, most states already have a gas tax, albeit usually a small toll around 20-30 cents/gallon.  The proceeds go almost exclusively to building and maintaining the ubiquitous highway systems that pervade today's landscape.  Unfortunately, as gasoline usage begins to subside, states are going to find themselves strapped for money to keep up with the inevitable maintenance of all that asphalt. 

As the article explains, Oregon is experimenting with an alternative to the gas tax to address these concerns.  The alternative is essentially a vehicle-mounted GPS system that tracks miles  traveled, where traveled, and during what time of the day.  The idea, in the long-run, is to tax miles driven at different rates depending on the time of the day or location. 

While I am a strong proponent of breaking this country's oil addiction, my hopes for the future extend beyond mere environmental concerns.  More than anything, I still hope that the rise in oil costs will change the direction of future development and land use from a car-oriented strategy to a transit and pedestrian friendly system.  However, the more likely scenario is that new technology such as hybrid or hydrogen-powered vehicles will prevent a reduction of Americans' dependence on cars in the coming years. 

Apparently, Oregon foresees this same possibility.  If our need for roads and highways remains high, but state revenue from gasoline taxes falls, something like a per-mile tax will have to be instituted.  The idea is still in its formative stages, but it is certainly something that could come to fruition fairly soon.

The conclusion of this article introduced a number of privacy concerns that such a system would create.  The lawyers seem to be getting excited about the thought already.  I'm sure such concerns could be addressed, but it might be fun to be in the middle of something like that...

Finally, a New Ballpark

Shortly after finally agreeing to a deal over a new ballpark for the Washington Nationals, Mayor Anthony Williams revealed the plans for the new stadium.

The ballpark looks pretty cool.  The architects decided to move away from the retro-style that has become so popular for new baseball stadiums in the last ten years.  The design is intended to mimic the style of other DC landmarks, such as the Convention Center, MCI (now Verizon) Center, and National Mall monuments.

Supposedly, the upper deck seats are going to include spectacular views of the Capitol dome.  This is a pretty remarkable improvement over the upper-deck seats at RFK stadium now.  You can't even see the whole field up there thanks to a number of ugly obstructions.

The ballpark is placed a block away from the Anacostia River, a DC area that has been largely ignored for years.  Planners hope that the new stadium will spark new growth, and the stadium's translucent design is intended to keep the baseball diamond viewable from the street.

The ballpark should be built by the beginning of the 2008 season.  I really can't wait.  RFK is just too horrible.  Hopefully, tickets will remain cheap.

Busy Busy Busy

I've got a number of ideas for good posts right now but this week is just too busy.  Without otium, there is no dignitate, but for the next two or three days that's just the way it's going to be.  By Friday, my appellate brief (last assignment of the year!!!) will be done, and i'll be watching Davidson mess up Ohio State.

I'm really looking forward to the NCAA madness of the first two rounds of the tournament.  This weekend is one of the best times of the year for sports fans. 

I spent spring break last week in Turks and Caicos.  It was really incredible.  I've got a few pictures posted here from the trip.  Anyways, I should be back in full-posting mode before too long.  Until then...

GO DAVIDSON

and

GO GW

Davidson in the Dance!

Davidson won the men's Southern Conference basketball tournament today in dominating fashion and received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament in a few weeks.  I watched the game on ESPN 2, and thoroughly enjoyed every second of the 80-55 blowout over UT-Chattanooga. 

Long-time readers of this blog know that things were far less joyous around this time last year.  My friends and I cut our spring break trip short and drove about 9 hours in one day up to Chattanooga to see Davidson compete in the Socon tournament semi-final.  Despite finishing the regular season a perfect 16-0 in conference, Davidson choked and my friends and I tried to assuage the heartbreak by immediately driving the 6 hours back to Davidson that very night.  It was miserable.

Early this season, Davidson was looking good.  The team strung together victories against Missouri, St. Joe's, and UMass and battled hard against Charlotte and Syracuse.  But then things settled back down to earth after a number of ugly losses to bad Socon teams. 

Unlike last year, this team peaked at the only time that matters, in the conference championship.  After narrowly beating The Citadel and Elon, Davidson flat-out destroyed UT-Chattanooga in today's final.  It was far and away the best I have ever seen a Davidson team play.

I'm psyched.  Hopefully, they won't seed us too low.  Right now, the silly bracketologists are putting us as a #15 seed but I wouldn't be surprised if we enter as a #13 or #14 come selection Sunday in a week.  GO DAVIDSON!

The Dreaded 1L

Finally it's MARCH!

I've got to say that I will probably look back at February of my first-year of law school as one of the worst months of my life.  As I've already written, February is a naturally bad month.  It's the transition from football to baseball, the transition from winter to spring.  But compound these things with the overall dreariness of law school, and life gets a bit morose from time to time.

First-year law students across the country are all in a similar plight.  80% of us received a heavy dose of reality when our first-semester grades came in (god-help the other 20% who are only delaying the inevitable disillusionment of all legal careers).  The Socratic method, while exciting and challenging at first, has become especially aggravating and pointless as the first year finally approaches it's end.  And the silly legal memos, appellate briefs, and oral arguments associated with our Legal Research and Writing class almost make Casebooks and classes seem easy.  On top of all this, pile on the stress of trying to find a summer job (non-paying at that) and the daily annoyance of all those over-achieving 1L's who wear suits to classes just so you'll ask why their dressed up and they can tell you they have an interview for this or that job that they ultimately won't get.

Attorneys and law professors like to call the first-year of law school something of a right of passage.  It's generally regarded as a miserable experience.  Personally, I don't think it has been that bad.  What bothers me most is the unhealthy educational environment, and the faux-professional attitude that so many students seem to think necessary.  First, I think stress, uncertainty, competition, and anxiety foster an extremely unhealthy learning environment.  Compared to the idealistic educational environment at Davidson, law school seems backwards.  Second, a majority of law school kids seem to forget that they are still in their early 20's.  It's quite a culture shock coming from the laid back life of college into this hyper-competitive law school process.

Anyways, this post has been therapeutic for me.  Only two more months till 1L is over. I can't wait.