brazenandtenured- The New NormalSo is this the New Normal? The question gets asked about lots of things—Washington politics, the economy, terrorism, infrastructure, the financial markets. And the question gets asked anxiously because as a normal—as a baseline—this new normal (whatever it may be) … Continue reading →Pierre Schlag
- Notes in Support of the Liberal Arts Law SchoolHere are a few ideas for how law schools that are not in the top ten (or not in the fifteen that are in the top ten) might respond to the structural forces bearing down on legal education. For those … Continue reading →Sarah Krakoff
- Facts (The)These little items are trouble. Let me state right off that I have not always been on entirely friendly terms with “the facts.” We have had a long and, at times, uneasy relation. Things took a bad turn early. I … Continue reading →Pierre Schlag
- Gun Culture, Part 2The national spotlight is on Colorado, where Governor John Hickenlooper, a moderate democrat, has endorsed the idea of tightening gun control regulations. Hickenlooper and members of the democratically-controlled state legislature have indicated plans to introduce laws that would require universal … Continue reading →Sarah Krakoff
- Mayan End of the World Canceled (A Brazenandtenured Exclusive)Apparently, through some rather incredible and oddly parallel set of mistakes, the ending of the world will not happen on December 21st. Instead, it appears the world has already ended on November 10th. The mistake is a moment of some … Continue reading →Pierre Schlag
- The Great GOP Identity SearchIn the wake of the great Republican defeat (and despite the distraction of the Petraeus Affair) pols and pundits continue to offer advice to the Republican Party as to how it might reform itself in order to…. well, do better … Continue reading →Pierre Schlag
- Sustainability and Equity in a Climate Changed WorldA small group of environmental law professors gathered recently for a two-day workshop on the concept and practice of sustainability. I was asked to lead a discussion about the relationship between sustainability and equity. The group decided to take the … Continue reading →Sarah Krakoff
- Book Review (and subtext)The recent publication of [.......] by Professor X marks a moment in the history of [.......]. It establishes him as one of the leading, if not the leading, authority on the subject of [.......]. Professor X works at Zip Code Law … Continue reading →Pierre Schlag
- We Built It (Part II–Factors of Production)“We built it.” So runs the mantra of the GOP. To which there is only one possible response: Well, actually no you didn’t. And let me explain why since it’s not addressed in my last post on this subject. … Continue reading →Pierre Schlag
- Ryan’s Scariest LieI know sub-three hour marathoners, I am friends with sub-three hour marathoners, and I have run a sub-three hour marathon. Paul Ryan, you are no sub-three hour marathoner. To many, Paul Ryan’s marathon lie is probably the most innocuous one … Continue reading →Sarah Krakoff
- The New Normal
Category Archives: Random Jurisprudence
Book Review (and subtext)
The recent publication of [.......] by Professor X marks a moment in the history of [.......]. It establishes him as one of the leading, if not the leading, authority on the subject of [.......]. Professor X works at Zip Code Law … Continue reading
Posted in BAT Reviews, Experimental, Random Jurisprudence
Tagged decadence, jurisprudence, legal academia, pragmatism
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Italy and The Case Method
Last week I was in Italy for a couple lectures. I love going to Europe for talks. Among other things, it reminds me how cloistered and parochial we are in the American legal academy. It shakes me out of my … Continue reading
Entry Framing (Theory Moves)
Entry Framing: [en-tree frey-ming] Noun Phrase The initial establishment in a text of a perspective, an orientation, a frame from or against which the text proceeds. Examples: An entry framing can establish a voice (“I am a spiteful man. My liver is bad…”) … Continue reading
Posted in Random Jurisprudence, Theory Moves
Tagged aesthetics, jurisprudence, philosophy, Teaching Moment
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The Monty Python Example No. 3 (Analytical Philosophy in Law)
Too much of it arguably reads like this: In The Concept of Law, H.L.A. Hart once said something. This brilliant insight (BI) effectively corrected some fundamentally wrongheaded ways of thinking. Yet upon closer examination, BI encompasses a number of different ideas … Continue reading
Posted in Experimental, Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
Tagged absurd, jurisprudence, legal academia, philosophy
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The American Law School (Tentative Notes for Stages of Evolution)
Pedagogy Stage 1: Socratic Stage 2: Soft Socratic Stage 3: Lecture/Student-oriented Learning Stage 4: Consumer Preference Advancement Societies: Stage 1: Old Boys Club/Old School Tie Stage 2: Political/Intellectual Interest … Continue reading
Individuation (Theory Moves)
in·di·vid·u·a·tion noun \-ˌvi-jə-ˈwā-shən\ The determination of the proper or relevant individual unit for purposes of interpretation, analysis, calculation, etc. Individuation portends both integration into a stable identity and differentiation of that identity from its environment. Antonym: fusion, dedifferentiation Example: A text … Continue reading
Posted in Random Jurisprudence, Theory Moves
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The Monty Python Example No. 2 (With Special Reference to Constitutional Interpretation)
As suggested in a prior post, the British comedy troupe Monty Python is generally under-acknowledged for its jurisprudential insights. Nonetheless, these are occasionally quite sharp. Here, for instance, in the “The Argument Clinic:” we have a demonstration of a basic … Continue reading
Posted in Experimental, Politics, Random Jurisprudence
Tagged constitutional law, interpretation
2 Comments
Got Knowledge?
In “The Meditations,” Descartes revealed his desire to make a “solid and lasting contribution to knowledge,” His problem, as he saw it, is that he had accumulated a large number of false opinions and thereon erected a flimsy structure. He … Continue reading
Posted in Experimental, Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
2 Comments
Coase and “The Problem of Social Cost” (Again)
I don’t know if other academics experience this, but I find that, in scholarship, I am drawn to certain texts or problems over and over again for reasons that remain elusive. And so here I am again, writing yet … Continue reading
Posted in Politics, Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
Tagged academia, economics, jurisprudence
1 Comment
Law School Hiring (The Faculty Meeting–Appointments)
“O.K. Let’s begin…. We have two agenda items: the promotion of Professor X which we will deal with first and the appointments matter–Frank Wright and Mary Prescott–which we will deal with second. Tony?” “I would just like to say, in … Continue reading
Posted in Experimental, Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
Tagged aals, absurd, academic appointments, law school hiring
11 Comments
The Critique of Normativity
OK—this one is deep inside the academy (and destined for the most inaccessible corners of the Bat Cave). A while back, I wrote “The Critique of Normativity.” It had thee parts (all three of which are on my law school … Continue reading
Posted in Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
Tagged law school hiring, legal academia, Teaching Moment
1 Comment
Tips for Legal Commentators: How to Talk to the Press
Sometimes, legal commentators (law professors and whatnot) are ambushed by the press asking for commentary on a case just handed down. What to say? Sometimes one just doesn’t know. Here then, by way of suggestion, is a list of plausible … Continue reading
Theoretical Unspecifiables (Theory Moves)
Theoretical Unspecifiable: [thee-uh-ret-i-kuhl un-spes-uh-fahy-uh-buhl] Noun Phrase In a theory or a mode of thought, an unspecified (and unspecifiable) term used to resolve gaps, contradictions, incommensurabilities and paradoxes. A theoretical unspecifiable is conceptually nearly vacant (and inaccessible to theorization) but at the same … Continue reading
Posted in Politics, Random Jurisprudence, Theory Moves
Tagged aesthetics, jurisprudence, Teaching Moment
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Narcissistic Interpretation (Theory Moves)
Narcissistic Interpretation: [nahr-suh-sis-tik in-tur-pri-tey-shuhn] Noun Phrase A tendency to systematically misread the work of others in a way that confirms one’s world view or satisfies one’s psychological, political or professional needs. Antonym: charity in interpretation See also: déformation professionelle; taking … Continue reading
Posted in Nature/Culture, Random Jurisprudence, Theory Moves
Tagged cognition, interpretation, Teaching Moment, theory moves
2 Comments
Remembering Derrick Bell
Derrick Bell died last week at the age of 80. Though his passing was overshadowed by the death of Steve Jobs, Bell’s achievements were recounted in the New York Times and elsewhere: First African American law professor to be tenured … Continue reading
Posted in Politics, Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
Tagged jurisprudence, legal academia, politics, race
1 Comment
Middleness, Moderation, Compromise, and Other Inflexible Positions
Some Democratic politicians and commentators are wistfully wondering whether Occupy Wall Street and its national counterparts might not be a progressive equivalent of the right’s Tea Party Movement. A bit late–dontcha think? And ironic as well. Because it signifies a … Continue reading
Posted in Politics, Random Jurisprudence, Uncategorized
Tagged law, moderation, politics, pragmatism
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Legal Formalism (A Refresher on Form)
O.K. for you law people, this will all be pretty familiar. For you non-law people, this is an acid challenge—a test of your tolerance for excruciatingly picayune legal exegesis. One bit of solace I can offer you is that, conveniently, … Continue reading
My Dinner at Langdell’s
It was one of those cold wet April Cambridge mornings. Too wet for fog, but too indifferent for rain. My head ached. My lips were dry and my tongue felt bloated. The fever had surely come back. Worse–the laudanum was … Continue reading
Posted in Experimental, Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
Tagged absurd, jurisprudence
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Kandinsky or Hart? Aesthetics. No. 1
Kandinsky or Hart? Pierre Schlag Beta Version 1.0 In 1927, Heisenberg introduced his uncertainty principle. By 1934, Wittgenstein was breaking with his early work. In 1923, Kandinsky was putting the finishing touches on Composition VIII: And in 1958, H.L.A. Hart, … Continue reading
Posted in Experimental, Random Jurisprudence, The BAT Cave
Tagged aesthetics, jurisprudence
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The Monty Python Example No. 1
The British Troupe, Monty Python’s Flying Circus, is justly known for its biting and irreverent humor. But Monty Python’s send-ups have other virtues as well. By way of illustration consider a scene from the movie Life of Brian which shows the Brian … Continue reading
