Dude, Where's My Car?

Miami-Dade County lost almost 300 cars that it bought and never drove.

Almost. Three-Hundred. Cars. Didn't drive them. Lost for 5 years.

But hey, our government is totally going to be able to manage the details of our healthcare system without any problems like this. And remember, if you complain about government incompetence or your tax money being wasted, you're just a crazy tea-partier.

[via Insty]

Weekly Quote for Inspiration

“Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty.” 

                                                         –Thomas Jefferson

Don't be the timid man.

USA Olympic Teams Train With Navy SEALs

Oh, so you Olympic athletes thing you're tough, right? Not so fast my friend.

If told beforehand about the demands of the training, most athletes "probably would have been out, right out of the blocks," one of the SEALs says. 

As it is, only 18 of the 41 athletes who begin the session are still in it at the end, four hours later. 

"What was the hardest part? Getting over being cold," finisher Amanda Clark, a 2008 and 2012 Olympian, says. "When the shivers started to take over and somebody next to you is saying that it's their time to step out, just trying to calm the body back down, know that there's probably a chance you're going back in the water — and that it's going to end when they say it's going to end."

I bet it is a little bit of a shock for Olympic athletes to train with SEALs. Probably for the first time in their training, they're being told that the team is more important than the individual. I think this training is going to pay off big time in the mental toughness of our athletes.

Friday Lawyer Dog

Melvin Ingram's High Five With Goodell

Because the NFL commissioner is that cool. Congrats to Melvin Ingram!

SC Senate Is Considering Raising Employees Wages

Fairness. Hey! We're going to raise your taxes to pay ourselves more.

State workers have not had a pay increase since 2007. Meanwhile, average hourly wages for private-sector workers in South Carolina have increased 9.7 percent since 2007, according to the state Department of Commerce.

“That’s not fair,” said state Sen. Darrell Jackson, D-Richland.

Fairness? I don't recall the public sector workers being laid of in droves during the recession. I also don't think that most of the private-sector folks have a sweet pension. Personally, I think we could fire 25% of the state workers who aren't performing well and give their pay to the 75% who do a good job.

That sounds like "fariness" to me.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2012/04/26/2250994/sc-senate-considers-4-raise-for.html#storylink=cpy

Gritty Images from New York City

In a Shorpy-like genre, the Daily Mail has some great images of New York City from the turn of the century through the 1930's. Here's my favorite:

Babe Ruth at Game One of the 1936 World Series at the Polo Grounds in New York

Pretty cool stuff. If you like old photos, check out Shorpy.
[h/t @gabrielmalor]

Mande Wilkes: Weapons Grade Stupid at FitsNews

I first heard of FitsNews in connection with Governor Haley's candidacy and all of the controversy about her relationships. The blog strikes me as a tabloid that is high on salacious details and full of snark. Unfortunately, it's also low on ideas and thought. I don't go there, but I occasionally see links to it on other blogs that I frequent.

Anyway, I came across an article with a premise so condescending and petty, it has to be written by one of those girls who's gotten by on their looks. Ms. Wilkes must be a little self-conscious about the fact that she's a ditzy airhead, because apparently, she's decided to try and sound "smart" by running down the military.

She kicks off her dung-heap of a column by recounting the military's "scandals" (Burning the Korans; peeing on corpses; the soldier who is accused of mass murder; and the photos of the bodies with smiling troops) in Afghanistan, and she draws this conclusion:

U.S. officials have predictably denounced these acts as “reprehensible”, while at the same time insisting this behavior is “isolated.” Isolated how, exactly? Four scandals in four months is hardly isolated or even sporadic. At this point, it’s almost a pattern. Denying the increasing predictability of these events – blindly insisting these scandals are isolated rather than repeated – pushes aside the more interesting question.

Ok, so she disagrees that these events are isolated, and she says it's "almost a pattern". I think almost a pattern is code for "not a pattern".

First of all, it's not "four scandals in four months". Ms. Wilkes must have missed the day in kindergarten where they learn the calendar, but the photos of the troops posing with the dead suicide bombers was from two years ago. For Ms. Wilkes, who is math-challenged, that would be 2010.

Perhaps Ms. Wilkes would be surprised to learn that Alexander the Great conquered Persia. However, just because she heard about it today that doesn't mean Alexander the Great crossed the Hellespont last week.

Calendars: they're hard.

Anyway, Ms. Wilkes wants to dig into the tough questions: Why are are troops so insensitive?

I guess it's not enough for Ms. Wilkes that we have the best fighting force in the entire world. We have people who go halfway around the globe, are subjected to some of the most horrible conditions imaginable,  and the vast majority of them carry out the mission with honor and without complaint. Now, she would like every single person in the United States Military to be well-mannered and from good breeding. Here are her words:

It used to be that everybody who was anybody enlisted in the military. Nowadays, everybody who’s nobody serves – a natural consequence of incentivizing service with signing bonuses, comped education, and plush pensions.

Rather than the symbol of nobility it once was, military service has become almost a scarlet letter of sorts – signifying an individual of lesser resources, breeding, or ambition.

I'm a fair guy, and I'm trying to see her point of view, but I can't get my head that far up my ass.

This is just an asinine statement from someone who considers themselves superior to our armed forces. Everybodies and Nobodies? This is the Army, not a Cotillion.  I guess the "sombodies" decide to get boob jobs and run for Congress? Good luck with that, you idiot.

There are hundreds of reasons that folks join the United States military. Some people decide that they want to go to college (or graduate school), and join the military to pay for it. Does this somehow make them less qualified to serve? Just because your mommy and daddy had a trust fund set up for your college education and your boob job doesn't make the poor kid less qualified to serve in the military. Who paid for your college and law school, Ms. Wilkes?

Ms. Wilkes seems to think that joining the military is an indication of no "ambition". I would argue that it exactly the opposite. You have to be a fairly ambitious person to join the military. It's the ultimate meritocracy. The people who get the job done are recognized and promoted. The military doesn't care whether you're a woman, man, white, black, purple, orange. If you get the job done, you advance. There are also great careers that are available to folks who learn technical skills in the military.

I guess we should re-instate the draft and pull Ms. Wilkes' candy-ass into the Army, so she can give everyone lessons in battlefield manners. But hey, this is America, you can be whatever you want, even if you're an absolute failure. Ms. Wilkes is a shining example of how much you can fail:

Mande Wilkes can't pass the bar exam, so she decided to get a boob job and become an internet troll. I guess God didn't love you enough to make you pretty and smart.

Quick Tips for Fertilizing Your Lawn

Finally, some news you can use.

Boeing Ready to Roll out First Dreamliner

In keeping with our aircraft theme: The Charleston plant that was almost shot down by the NLRB is ready to bring their first aircraft off the line this week.

Here's hoping it is the first of many. Congrats!

SNJ (T-6 Variant) on Display at Owens Field

In addition to the Palmetto Cup, there was a nice display of aircraft at Owens Field this weekend. One of the best looking (and sounding) aircraft was this vintage WWII US Marine Corps SNJ, which is a variant of the very popular T-6.

As good as it looked on the ground, it sounded even better in the air. Just imagine the most classic old buzz of an aircraft that you hear in all the WWII movies. It was exactly like that. With two of them coming overhead at one point, you felt transported back to the 1940s.

Not just an airplane; a time machine.

Nikki Haley's Vogue Photo

What voting block is Governor Haley going for with this photo? Also, is her hair being blown with one of those fans like in a shampoo commercial?

Friday Cocktail Hour: Derby Party

News You Can Use: Essentials for your Kentucky Derby Party. I would substitute the bourbon, though. Go with Blanton's Original Single Barrel.

P.S. Don't drink any bourbon right before you drive a school bus full of kids.

Lexington School-Bus Driver Charged with DUI

Ideally, you don't want to get a DUI. However, if you're going to get a DUI, you probably don't want to do it on the job. Additionally, if you're going to get a DUI on the job, you probably don't want your job to be driving children around.

2012 South Carolina Football Poster

It's that time of year again! Football posters are out! We've seen that this isn't as simple as standing around and having your picture taken, though. I think we all remember this poster-failure.

In any event, I was going to put the photo of the 2012 South Carolina Football Poster on the blog, but you can see it better here at the link. I know it's tough to make that single left-click, but I'm sure you'll have a power-bar afterwards.

In my opinion, the poster looks great. I like putting Clowney and Taylor on each end...because they're...defensive ends. (I see what you did there, Spurrier.) They're also each about 12 feet tall, so the composition is balanced. Few people know it, but Spurrier actually minored in studio art. He has a real critical eye for composition and form.

After close scrutiny, it appears that Lattimore's knee is 100% good to go. You see that look in his eye? It's saying Yeah, you think I'm going to be slowed down by a little ol' knee injury? Your funeral bro.

In related news, we finally have our QB in the team poster. Sorry #TeamGarcia. Shaw is going to shake and bake this year. Remember, when in doubt, it's never a bad decision to hand the ball to #21.

National High Five Day

It's National High Five Day. This was brought to my attention by @wolverine280. Follow him on twitter for all of your #Bro related stories.

The Highest of Fives. Use sparingly.

The Cost of Gov. Haley's Security

House Minority Leader Harry Ott of St. Matthews plans to introduce a bill on Thursday that bars public officials from using taxpayer-funded security on personal trips. [He means Governor Haley.]

At a certain level, elected officials get security. That's just part and parcel of being an elected official.

I don't think this bill is a good idea. If it passes, then you'll have an argument about what is official and what is personal. What if you stop and go shopping during an official visit somewhere? What if you stop and go see a monument while on an official trip? Do you start breaking trips into percentages? This seems like a political gimmick that causes more problems than it solves, and I don't think it's really going to save any money. You've got to have security anyway.

I think we should trust our elected officials to use good judgment. If they don't - vote 'em out.

Who is the Chief Justice?

If you said "John Roberts", you're in the 28%. This is an amazing chart:

I can certainly believe that 53% of people don't know who the Chief Justice is. I totally buy that. What I cannot fathom is 8% of people who think Thurgood Marshall is the current Chief Justice. He's dead. Has been for awhile. Also, was never the Chief. But hey, you at least named a Justice.

The people who answered with "Harry Reid" should not be allowed to vote. Or we could deport them. Yeah, let's just deport them. They probably wouldn't know the difference.

Baddourah Wins Columbia City Council Seat

Moe.

I'm actually a bit surprised that Moe Baddourah overcame all of the late endorsements for Coble. I think this is a sign that people are looking for some very pro-business ideas to come out of city council. Also, it's hard to overcome being a law student running for City Council. No tears for Coble though. He's got a great legal career in front of him, and I'd bet you a nickel this won't be the last time you see him run for elected office.

Now, if I can only convince him that Columbia isn't built for a gold-plated bus system.

Lawyer Dog Advice

In the first installment of Lawyer Dog, we're going to cover a basic tort. We may get to complex class action defense later, though.

Modern Farmhouse in South Carolina

It's pretty nice, but I really like the old Ford pickup truck in some of the pictures.

Howard Leight Electronic Earmuffs

I don't often review or recommend products, but these electronic earmuffs are so good, I had to.

I do a fair amount of shooting in my spare time - mostly pistol and shotgun. When I first started shooting, used those little disposable orange foam earplugs that you buy in packs. They do an OK job, but they get lost, get old, and aren't really that great.

I wanted to protect my hearing more, so I sprang for a set of regular earmuffs. They did a great job of noise reduction, but I couldn't hear any conversations or range instructions. I almost always go shooting with someone, and it's hard to talk when you're both wearing big muffs that deaden all sound. Also, if you've been to South Carolina, you may have noticed that it's hotter than hell. Nothing will make you sweat faster than wearing a set of big, clunky earmuffs in 100 degree heat.

After looking at about a million types of earmuffs, I decided to spring for the Howard Leight Impact Sport muffs. I wore them for the first time to a sporting clays CLE that had about 80 shooters. These muffs are AMAZING.

The trick is that they actually enhance low-level sounds (like conversations) and they deaden all loud sounds. Don't ask me how it works. All I know is that it works. I could hear my shooting partners putting the shotshells into their guns, and the mechanical "clicking" of each shell going into the shotgun was crystal clear, but the shotgun going off sounded like just a little "pop". Accordingly, I didn't have to constantly take them off and put them on. You just put them on - and you forget about them. They also weren't very hot, because they're slimmer than standard muffs. But here's the really cool part: they have an auxiliary jack for you to plug in your iPod.

That's right. You can listen to your iPod in stereo, while shooting. I'm not sure that you would want to do this, but if you were all alone, it would be pretty sweet to be popping off rounds to some tunes. In any event, these are the best hearing protection that I've come across, and I recommend them wholeheartedly to anyone who does any shooting or hunting. They won't break the bank, and they work.

Howard Leight Electronic Earmuffs

Early General Election Thoughts

As a starting point, Obama's approval is still slightly below 50% (around 47.3% when you average out all the polls). That's not going to be easy to overcome. Over half of the people are not happy with the job he's doing. That's not a good thing for any incumbent.

The real fight in this election is going to be the competition to "define" what kind of economy we are going to have going forward. Obama is going to make the "don't go back to Bush" pitch, and Romney will hammer away at the fact that the last three years has been a huge spending spree with little to show for it.

On the actual issue of who can get to 270, I think Obama has a tough climb this November. Looking at the map that he won in 2008, I'm struck by a couple of things:

1. I don't see Obama taking North Carolina or Virginia in 2012. He rode a huge wave of voters in 2008 and flipped these two states which normally go red. I think both NC and VA go red this time.
2. Same thing with Indiana and Iowa. Obama carried them in 2008, but he won't have them this time. Flip those two states back to red.
3. Assuming that all the other states stay the same as in 2008, the race comes down to the usual suspects of Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. If Florida breaks red, then Obama HAS to take both Ohio and PA.
4. Finally, the real interesting question (for me anyway) is: Can Romney expand the red to the Northeast? He's got a very strong supporter in NJ in Christie, he could possibly pull NH, and there's rumblings that CT could possibly be in play. If Romney starts making Obama play defense in the Northeast, it's going to be a very long election night for Team Obama. Pulling NJ's electoral votes red makes it hard for Obama to get to 270. And if you assume that NJ goes red, you're probably assuming that OH and PA are either red or very close.

Ultimately, I think this is going to be a very close race. I don't see the same type of voter turnout as 2008, when there was a huge anti-Bush wave that came together with the ability to vote for the first black president. Regardless of what happens between now and November, you won't have that same amount of excitement on the Democrat side. Romney has gone through one of the toughest primary fights ever, and he's going to be a disciplined candidate.

The economy isn't going to "turn" between now and November. It is what it is...GDP is just barely limping along, unemployment is still a problem, and there is an ocean of debt. None of that is going to change between now and November. It can't. The economy just can't change that quickly, and the debt is only going to get worse.

And if the Supreme Court strikes down Obamacare, it's going to be a black eye for Obama. Basically, he's done two things in office: (1) The Stimulus - it didn't work as promised. (2) Obamacare - ruled unconstitutional.

I'm not a campaign consultant, but hell...I could make a bumper-sticker for that. "Obama has done two things in office. One didn't work and the other was unconstitutional."

Ouch.

I'm Not Saying Women Are Poor Drivers, but...

According to a government study, accidents in which drivers mistakenly hit the gas instead of the brake tend to involve older female drivers in parking lots, a new government study has found.

We're spending our tax dollars on on this kind of stuff? I could have told you that for free.

Choose Your Weapon

Choose wisely.

I'll take this one:

Columbia City Council Race

Coble keeps picking up endorsements. If endorsements are the measure of popular support, Moe is in big trouble.

Cubs vs. White Sox (Rivalry)

This is what we did all during law school instead of after studying.

Wednesday in the Woods

You never know who you'll come across...

[h/t oleg]

I'm Worried About Our Culture's Survival

12 Disappointing Facts about Popular Music This one makes me die inside:

Ke$ha's “Tik-Tok” sold more copies than ANY Beatles single

This is Ke$ha. (I'm not sure why she has Conan's sword or blue lips)

This is her concert poster for her "Get Sleazy" tour. Yes, you read that correctly. My first thought is that she looks like a girl who went to a fraternity grain party and passed out, and while she was out, the frat guys "decorated" her arms and gave her blue lips with a sharpie. Also, what's up with her stealing Conan the Barbarian's sword?

 

 People...we need to talk. The Beatles should not be outsold by a second-rate stripper wannabe with blue lips. Forget about our country's impending collapse into debt, this is a crisis of a much greater magnitude.

 

I've never heard any of her music, and I hope I never will. However, I would bet my house that her best song is not as good as this:

NFL Teams and Their NCAA Equivalent

Shamelessly stolen and cherry-picked from EDSBS:

1. Dallas Cowboys: We're really lucky they haven't won a title in decades, because their bandwagon fans are absolutely insufferable. Run by a fat guy in the late '00s, and it was really funny. Most like: University of Notre Dame.
2. Washington Redskins: Great recruiters of talent who struggle with the concept of "winning football games." Offensive mascot. Most like: Clemson University. 
3. Chicago Bears: They won one title in the '80s and never shut up about it. At least you can listen to some decent music when you visit their city. Former coach probably involved in a Ponzi scheme. Most like: University of Georgia.
4. Detroit Lions: Bro QB. Never going to win a title, a fact fans are slowly coming around to. Most like: University of South Carolina.
5. Minnesota Vikings: Has had an entertaining string of high-powered offenses, embarrassing coaches and conference title game losses. Most like: University of Arkansas. 
6. New Orleans Saints: Mentally unstable Cajun fans with a coach who plays by his own rules. Most like: Louisiana State University
7. New England Patriots: Locals were mostly unaware of the team's presence until the mid-'90s and often make questionable sartorial choices. Most like: University of Florida.
8. Pittsburgh Steelers: If you meet one of their fans, you will probably hear about an inflated number of titles. Nobody who roots for the team has ever actually lived in Pittsburgh. Most like: University of Alabama.
9. Baltimore Ravens: The little brother to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Fans have an odd affinity for Zubaz. Nobody would ever want to live in Baltimore. Most like: Auburn University.
10. Cleveland Browns: Decades of grim, depressing incompetence. So bad that Tim Couch was the highlight of the team's existence. Most like: University of Kentucky
11. Indianapolis Colts: Only relevant when a Manning is involved. The fanbase with the highest rate of adult-onset diabetes. Most like: Ole Miss
12. Denver Broncos: Worships Peyton Manning, even though he never won a title for them. Lovers of orange and mountains. Irrelevant since 1998. Players manage to get into trouble in an otherwise dull city. Most like: University of Tennessee.

White Guy Offered Eric Holder's Ballot!

This sounds like racism to me. I'm sure the DOJ is going to be on this case ASAP.

If only there was some way to verify that people are who they say they are. It would be a big undertaking though...something on the magnitude of state issued identification.

I love that the people who are against voter ID laws make the argument that our right to vote is so "sacred" and "enshrined" that we can't have any laws protecting that right from people who would commit fraud. The real truth is they don't consider voting itself worth protecting. They just consider the fraud that happens in their benefit to be worth protecting.

[H/T Insty]

Banning Yardwork on Easter?

A law banning the use of gas-powered yard tools on Easter Sunday so your neighbors can enjoy the day?

It would probably be more popular than Obamacare.

Fun at the Masters (Ball Skipping on 16)

This year's Masters Tournament was one of the best finishes ever. However, it isn't all drama all the time. On the practice rounds, the golfers loosen up and have fun. You can't be locked in all the time. One of the ways the guys add levity is to skip balls off the pond on 16. Mrs. PP and I went on Tuesday with another couple, and we spent a good bit of time on 16.

Here's a video I got of three players skipping their balls of the water simultaneously. You can even hear the patrons do a countdown right before they all swing.

Sorry for the rough camera-work.

Friday Fadeaway

It's Friday. Time to sail off into the sunset until Monday.

Enjoy your weekend.

Permanent Press Salutes The Masters

The Masters begins today, and there should be some great story-lines to watch. Will Tiger have a big showing after his long drought? Will Rory McIlroy be able to shake off his terrible collapse last year, and will the female IBM CEO be given an honorary green apron instead of the traditional green jacket?

Every year, we get the same recycled story about how the Augusta National is such a bunch of backwards, sexist, good ol' boys who need to get with the program and start admitting women. Every year, it's a bunch of chattering, and it's always the same.

I like the fact that the Augusta National has decided to take a stand and not admit women. In the face of the relentless criticism and hate, it would have been an easy move for them to admit a few ladies. However, they chose the harder path. They decided that they were going to stand on principle and not give in to the pressure.

Whether you agree with their position or not, you still have to respect their decision to run their private club by their own rules. You won't ever be able to accuse the Members of the Augusta National of being "flip-floppers" or simply catering to the whims of the politically correct folks. For their stand to keep an old tradition alive and maintain their club the way they see fit, Permanent Press raises a golf club in their direction.

No girls allowed: Unless you're going to be in the kitchen making us a pimento cheese sandwich.

Great Minds Think Alike

On Monday, I mentioned that someone should educate our President on judicial review. Interestingly, a Federal Judge noticed the same remarks and came to the same conclusion I did:

In the escalating battle between the administration and the judiciary, a federal appeals court apparently is calling the president's bluff -- ordering the Justice Department to answer by Thursday whether the Obama Administration believes that the courts have the right to strike down a federal law, according to a lawyer who was in the courtroom.

 Great minds think alike. Either that or a Federal Judge is reading my blog.

So, it looks like the President just got assigned a book report on Marbury vs. Madison. You think that he would come out and say "I certainly believe in judicial review, and I hope that the Justices agree with the Solicitor's arguments and uphold the ACA. Next question." That's all he needs to say. It's not hard. But noooooo....he has to double down on stupid. Here's our President's response when asked about judicial review:

Well, first of all, let me be very specific. We have not seen a Court overturn a law that was passed by Congress on a economic issue, like health care, that I think most people would clearly consider commerce — a law like that has not been overturned at least since Lochner. Right? So we’re going back to the ’30s, pre New Deal.

He couldn't just leave it alone. His ego is way too big for that. He's got to prove that he's the smartest guy in the room. So, he finds a widely disliked case (like Lochner, Plesssy, ect.) and basically says that if you decide against the ACA, it's going to be just like Lochner. The Horror!

The problem is, the opinion in Lochner held that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects a robust right to "liberty of contract". It was subsequently overruled. Notice anything about the commerce clause? Neither did I. That's because Lochner isn't a commerce clause case. It isn't applicable to the current discussion.

So if you come across anyone who tries to tell you that holding the ACA to be unconstitutional will be a revival of Lochner, ask them if they can explain the holding. I betcha they can't. Even if they're the President.

Someone needs to tell the President about the first rule of holes.

Why This Blog Will Never Be Big

Here's why I'm not going to make it big on the blogging-world: My last post was about a basketball team running a football play (awesome, by the way), and now I'm going to talk about judicial activism.


All the really successful blogs are little niche-type blogs. You get your sports news here, you get cool military photos there, and you get daily cute puppies here. (Seriously, check out the puppies.) 


Every good blog fits into a nice little category. However, since I do this for me - I'm going to switch gears just a tiny bit. A little. I actually was going to get off the political/legal issues for awhile. However, when I hear the President say this, I want to throw something at my television:

"For years what we've heard is the biggest problem on the bench was judicial activism or a lack of judicial restraint - that an unelected group of people would somehow overturn a duly constituted and passed law," Obama said. "Well, this is a good example," he said. "And I'm pretty confident that this Court will recognize that and not take that step."

This is weapons-grade stupid on several levels, so it actually pains me that everyone things our President is so smart. Maybe since he's so smart, he should have done the oral arguments.

First,  the term "judicial activism" is whatever you don't like the Court doing. It's different for everyone. It's just a cop-out argument. People on all sides of issues use the word. If you don't like the Court's opinion, you call it "judicial activism". It's just a label, and it's almost meaningless, because it's been used to mean so many different things. All you have to know is that when you hear it, the person saying it means decision of the court = bad. So congratulations Mr. President, you have a buzzword. Kudos to you.

Second, what the hell does "duly constituted and passed law" mean? Really. Put the teleprompter down, slowly back away, and tell me what it means. I'll wait.

Think about this: "duly constituted" as opposed to what? A random guy snuck into the Capitol and put the bill into desk drawer? A guy from your bowling league gave it to you over a plate of nachos? All it means is that some Congressmen talked about it in a meeting. Which brings us to: "and passed law". It passed because Congress took a vote. Congratulations kids, you took a vote! Well that is the end of the analysis under super-duper smart President. They voted on it. End of analysis. Okey-dokey.

Congress wrote something down and then took a vote = duly constituted and passed law.

This isn't the legal standard. It can't be the legal standard. It's not even close to the legal standard. You know why? Because every law that the Supreme Court has found unconstitutional on substantive grounds  was a duly constituted and passed law. Here are two other laws that were duly constituted and passed:

The Judiciary Act of 1789 (Marbury vs. Madison)

Jim Crow Laws (culminating in Brown vs. Board of Education)

Whoa! You mean the Supreme Court doesn't just defer to laws that were duly constituted and passed! That's so crazy! Taking a vote in Congress isn't the end of the test?

If we did what our President is advocating, we don't even need a Judiciary. We can send them all home. If a legislature duly constitutes and passes a law...that's all we need under our President's theory. However, the way the Constitution is set up is that the branches of government have this relationship - checks and balances. You may have heard of it, it's kind of a big deal around here.

Someone get our President a copy of Marbury vs. Madison. Oh and highlight this part for him, in case he's not as smart as everyone says he is.

Certainly all those who have framed written Constitutions contemplate them as forming the fundamental and paramount law of the nation, and consequently the theory of every such government must be that an act of the Legislature repugnant to the Constitution is void.

FYI, it's not judicial activism if the theory of striking down a law is that it is repugnant to the Constitution.

The Supreme Court: Taking Congress out behind the woodshed since 1803.

Wheel Route Perfection

CJ Spiller used to run a really devastating wheel route for Clemson. I think Marcus Lattimore has had a few catches running the same route, but CJ Spiller really did this well. Here's the basic play:

Wheel Route

It's a very good play when you set it up correctly over the course of a game, because the defense isn't expecting the RB to go deep downfield. Again, Clemson used to run this play with devastating success. However, if you want to see the perfect wheel route, behold:

Do you miss football yet?

The Carolina Cup

Since I'm old, my big priority this weekend was taming the wilds of my yard and the surrounding flower beds. Despite having to battle with my lawn mower, I was able to win anyway. [H/T Gamecock Baseball]. The Carolina Cup is my unofficial reminder that the yard needs maintenance. Summer time the hot and rainy season is officially upon us.

For all of the young beautiful people, the big hoopla of the Carolina Cup was in full swing this weekend, and I heard some first-hand reporting that it was not slowed down by the early morning rain we had. If you have any first-hand photos, let me know. Girls in sundresses get top priority. Until then, you're stuck with this: