Weekend Kid Blogging: baseball and empanadas

Jr. and I are at Dolphin Stadium in Miami watching the Marlins take on the Braves.

Random observations:

• You know you’re at a ballgame in Miami when the concession stands sell empanadas and black beans with rice. The beans and rice are the best ballpark value anywhere: $5 for a huge plate, accompanied by the hottest, chunkiest salsa in baseball.
• So far, Marlins pitcher Byung-Hyun Kim is outdueling Atlanta’s Tim Hudson, as Florida leads 1-0 in the bottom of the 3rd. But, of course, it’s early …
• Joan Jett is playing a post-game concert. Her ceremonial first pitch was … a valiant effort, if nothing else.
• It must be Libertarian Night at the ballpark. A large contingent holding “Ron Paul ‘08″ signs has taken over Section 129 in the outfield. Wonder if all fans in that group received complimentary Marlins bootstraps?
• The real giveaway was foam hats in the shape of the Marlins logo. I’ll try to get a picture. Let’s just say they’re not suitable for wearing to South Beach.

Stay tuned for pictures late tonight tomorrow. Gotta take some graven images of the Libertarians, at least …

UPDATE (12:28 am 7/1/07): Just got home a few minutes ago. Too tired to post pictures now. Come back tomorrow. Got some cool ones of Joan Jett as well as the Libertarians (who apparently told the Marlins to keep their bats off the balls: final was Atlanta 6, Florida 5).

Judge Larry has some ’splainin’ to do

Remember Judge Larry Seidlin? He’s the Broward County magistrate who emotionally presided over the hearings to determine the disposition of Anna Nicole Smith’s body, and he recently resigned from the bench to “pursue the many opportunities that have been offered to me outside the judicial system” (meaning a teevee show).

The Cryin’ Judge may have a detour on the way to Hollywood, though … as a defendant himself.

The state attorney’s office on Thursday asked Gov. Charlie Crist to appoint an outside agency to investigate Seidlin. The request was prompted by a complaint by Miami-Dade lawyer John B. Thompson about allegations first reported Wednesday in the Broward/Palm Beach New Times.

The article described gifts that Seidlin accepted from Barbara Kasler, 81, who lives in Seidlin’s Fort Lauderdale condominium building. Among them: $35,000 for Seidlin’s 6-year-old daughter’s tuition at The Pine Crest School, a condo sold to him at below market value, and property in Palm Bay deeded to Seidlin’s wife for $100.

Kasler declined to comment, saying it was a personal matter. But Seidlin’s attorney, David Bogenschutz, confirmed that Seidlin has known Kasler for some time. He added that there is nothing criminal in accepting gifts from his friend.

But what raised even more eyebrows were allegations in the story made by defense attorney and former judge Lawrence “Chris” Roberts.

On Friday, Roberts told The Miami Herald that Seidlin asked for kickbacks in exchange for appointing him to his cases.

Roberts said that about four years ago, Seidlin hit him up for a $1,000 handbag that he wanted to give his wife as a birthday gift.

Roberts said the two of them were on the eighth floor of the courthouse in Fort Lauderdale when the judge walked up to him and said, “My baby boy, my baby boy, how are you?”

They shook hands, and Seidlin slipped him a piece of paper. It was a tag for a Louis Vuitton purse at Neiman Marcus that cost more than $1,000, Roberts said.

“What’s this?” Roberts recalled asking Seidlin.

“My wife’s birthday is coming up, and she’d love this,” the judge responded, according to Roberts.

Roberts had his secretary buy the bag. She returned with it wrapped, according to his instructions.

Later, Seidlin asked Roberts to deliver the purse to him on a Saturday in a parking lot at U.S. 1 and State Road 84. Seidlin told him he was on his way to the airport and wanted to give it to his wife on the plane.

“It was basically extortion,” Roberts said. “I was already getting appointments from him, but he was letting me know that if I wanted to continue getting them, I better buy his wife the bag.”

As a recovering attorney, I can tell you that the sorts of things Judge Seidlin allegedly did are, um, generally frowned upon, you know?

Stay tuned … but, for now, probably not to The Judge Larry Show.

Forget Paris

No, I’m not referring to Billy Crystal’s tepid 1995 comedy, but rather to the astounding and heartening discovery of a teevee journalist with integrity. Unfortunately, she’s wasting it by appearing on Joe “Dead Intern” Scarborough’s morning show on MSNBC.

I’m referring, of course, to Mika Brzezinski, who had a commendable and long-overdue response to her producer’s (and Joe’s) request that Paris Hilton’s exploits (pun intended) be the lead story on one of this week’s shows.

You can say what you want about professionalism, but I think Mika showed a ton of class (while her co-hosts, predictably, were boorish assholes). So much of the mess we’re in as a nation today is due to the mainstream media’s fascination with such trivial things … we’ve got a criminal president who thinks nothing of sending kids to die in Iraq for nothing, and the news readers want to focus on Paris Hilton? Despicable.

You go, Mika.

Good vetoes

Yesterday, Gov. Crist vetoed two bills that would have reduced the number of nursing home inspections in Florida and relaxed qualifications for teachers of English as a second language.

The nursing home bill (SB 682) would have reduced the frequency of quality of care reviews from quarterly to annually.

“I believe that facilities responsible for providing care to our most vulnerable citizens must remain under strict scrutiny,” Crist wrote in his veto message. “Throughout my career, I have worked to reduce abuse and neglect against seniors, and I do not believe the state should take any steps backwards in these efforts.”

The vetoed education bill (SB 2512) would have cut professional development training from 300 hours to 60 hours for reading teachers who instruct students who speak English as a second language.

Crist wrote that he was worried it would impede the academic, social and cultural progress of such students and noted the Hispanic Legislative Caucus had expressed similar concerns.

“It is imperative that our students learn to read English from the highest-quality instructors,” Crist wrote.

Once again, good for the governor. I continue to be impressed by his evenhandedness and apparent sensibility, especially in light of the wingnut asshat who preceded him in office.

But here’s what I don’t get: why did the Legislature pass those two bills in the first place?

Oh, yeah. Large Republican majorities in both houses. Never mind.

Believe it or not: an honest Republican

John McKay was one of the fired U.S. Attorneys whose ousters led to the current investigations of the Justice Department. McKay was appointed by Drunky McStagger in 2001, and he was canned last year after being added to a hit list in 2005.

McKay spoke yesterday in Portland, Ore. And he’s not pulling any punches:

The action followed a close governor’s election in Washington in 2004, won by Democrat Chris Gregoire, which Republicans had wanted him to investigate. He did not.

“My job wasn’t to serve the Republican Party,” he said.

While McKay denounced what he called a failure of leadership in the Justice Department and White House, he bemoaned questioning the ethics of all the department’s staffers, especially when they investigate corruption by public officials.

“It is a reservoir of trust,” McKay said of the Justice Department. “And so to do damage to that is a travesty.”

McKay said he and the other fired U.S. attorneys decided to speak up about their dismissals after Gonzales testified to Congress that he would not use a provision in the U.S. Patriot Act to appoint replacements without congressional confirmation — something the attorneys viewed as a lie under oath.

“I would have taken personal disappointment and even personal attack,” McKay said. “But I couldn’t be part of a lie.”

He said he was personally hurt by Gonzales’ actions because he had worked closely with him in the past and told lawyer friends it was good news when Gonzales was confirmed as attorney general.

“I said, ‘You’re gonna like this guy — he’s humble, he’s honest, he’s hard-working, and he’s smart,” McKay said. “And he’s proved me wrong.”

Well, it’s obvious why he was fired.

Just ask Goodling, Schlozman, Scooter, Snow, and the rest of the Chimpy Youth. Their job is precisely to serve the Republic Party or, more accurately, the Bush crime syndicate itself, which has transformed the Republic Party from a party advocating less government to a party that thrives on fear-mongering and vile, vituperative rhetoric.

Before, say, 1980, I could perhaps have respected the Republic Party’s positions, albeit not agreeing with them. Since then, however, they deserve only contempt. And frog-marching.

The facts have a liberal bias

Light posting day today, as I’ll be out and about (in the rain) quite a bit.

Hopefully the genius of Lewis Black will hold you over for a while. Here he is on Wednesday’s TDSWJS ranting commenting on the appalling “need” for the Right to provide alternative media sources to counter “liberal” sites like Wikipedia and YouTube and CNN.com.

My to-do list for 2008:

1. Help elect a veto- and cloture-proof majority in Congress.
2. Keep Justice Stevens alive and motivated at least until January 20, 2009.
3. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

We got to pray just to make [money] today

Perhaps you’ve heard the superstition that if you’re having trouble selling your house, bury a statue of St. Joseph in your yard and the house will sell quickly.

Raise your hands if you’re Sure™

Some folks in Destin have decided to skip St. Joe and go right to the top:

More than 300 people with a keen interest in the Emerald Coast’s real estate market gathered Wednesday at Destiny Worship Center to ask for God’s blessing.

The Real Estate Prayer Luncheon was organized in hopes of breathing life and positive thinking into the area’s slumping housing market.

It was the first of what the organizers — co-owner of Crye Leike Coastal Realty Wanda Duke, former Destin City Councilman Mel Ponder and Destiny Worship Center Pastor Steve Vaggalis — hope will become a regular, uplifting event.

“The heartbeat of today’s economic community is on the backs of the real estate community,” Ponder told the crowd.

[...]

The luncheon ended with Vaggalis inviting all Realtors present to come to the front of the church auditorium for a special prayer directed toward them.

“We are helpless people turning to a helpful God,” Vaggalis said. “That’s what this luncheon is all about.”

Well, that’s nice. I mean, it’s not like God doesn’t have enough to do, you know, with a cadre of megalomaniacal criminals running the world’s most powerful country, people getting blown up regularly throughout the Middle East, genocide in Darfur, natural disasters, etc., etc.

But let’s make sure we pray to make some money!! Ah, yes, they’re a group after Pat Robertson’s own shrunken, dessicated heart.

You touch me like you know me

What a day for court decisions … but this one affects me directly.

Today’s ruling by a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals will allow patdowns of fans to resume at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa for Buccaneers football games. The court apparently didn’t rule on the constitutionality of the patdowns, which were challenged under the Fourth Amendment prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizures. Rather, the decision rested on the plaintiff’s standing — or lack thereof — to sue.

“[Plaintiff Gordon] Johnston knew that he would be subjected to a patdown search … if he presented himself at an entrance to the stadium to be admitted to a Buccaneers game, ” the opinion said. “That is, he chose to submit voluntarily to the search, stating only a verbal objection.”

Johnston was searched outside three home games before a Hillsborough Circuit Court judge halted the practice in November 2005. The case later moved to federal court.

Johnston, 61, said he was disappointed and surprised by the decision.

“I almost feel like I was hit in the stomach, ” he said. “I feel like, man, I know the Constitution. It just doesn’t make any sense to me.”

Johnston said he wants to weigh his options with his attorneys before deciding how to proceed. He could ask the panel to reconsider its decision. He can also request a review by the entire 11th Circuit, which is made up of 12 judges, or appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

This is going to take a lot of fondling. (Photo by Sinfonian at the last home playoff game, January 7, 2006)

As noted later in the article, this really could lead to a slippery slope, because the ruling basically says that if you consent to certain treatment in violation of the Fourth Amendment, you can’t complain about it later.

The decision reverses and remands an earlier ruling in U.S. District Court in Tampa, and indeed the Eleventh Circuit is the first court to rule against Johnston, who also won at the trial and appellate levels in state court.

Frankly, I’ve never thought that the patdowns achieved much of anything. I’ve had season tickets for Buccaneers games since 1998, and I’ve undergone the searches myself (which I guess makes me ineligible to be a new plaintiff, since according to the 11th Circuit, I consented). The patdowns are quite cursory and the personnel conducting them seem to be in a great hurry — understandably, since a large number of the 65,000 or so fans attending each game are entering within the last 20-30 minutes before kickoff, creating huge lines at each gate that would be longer if the patdowns were thorough.

Ultimately, because I love the Bucs and I love attending the games, I’ll go to RayJay pretty much no matter what. However, I tend to agree with U.S. District Judge James Whittemore, whose ruling against the patdowns was reversed today:

“A generalized fear of terrorism should not diminish the fundamental Fourth Amendment protection envisioned by our Founding Fathers, ” Whittemore wrote in his July order upholding the state court decision barring the searches. “Our Constitution requires more.”

And so the gradual, inexorable erosion of Americans’ constitutional rights continues …

Presenting your liberal media

On Eschaton today, Gilly Gonzylon responded to a troll with a comment that I believe deserves broader play:

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How anyone can question the fact of liberal bias in the MSM is utterly ridiculous.
The Lone Haranguer 06.28.07 – 12:53 pm #

Liberals dominate the media….this has been announced by Rush Limbaugh. And Thomas Sowell. And Ann Coulter. And Rich Lowry. Bill O’Reilly. And Robert Novak. And George Will.

And John Gibson. And Michelle Malkin. And David Brooks. And Tony Snow. And Tony Blankely. And Fred Barnes. And Britt Hume. And Larry Kudlow. And Sean Hannity. And David Horowitz. And William Kristol. And Hugh Hewitt. And William Buckley.

And Oliver North. And Joe Scarborough. And Pat Buchanan. And John McLaughlin. And Cal Thomas. And Joe Klein. And James Kilpatrick. And Tucker Carlson. And Deroy Murdock. And Michael Savage. And Charles Krauthammer. And Stephen Moore. And Alan Keyes.

And Gary Bauer. And Mort Kondracke. And Andrew Sullivan. And Nicholas von Hoffman. And Neil Cavuto. And Matt Drudge. And Mike Rosen. And Dave Kopel. And John Caldara. And Deborah Howell. And Richard Morin. And John Harris. And Gordon Liddy. And laura Ingraham.

And Larry Elder. And Tammy Bruce. And Neal Boortz. And FOX DJ ManPal. And Rusty Humphrey. And Laura Schlessinger.

Gilly Gonzylon

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I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Drinking Liberally comes to south Florida!

Last fall, I lamented the fact that there was no Drinking Liberally group here in America’s Glans™ (as in “the tip of the Wang™”). I considered starting one myself, but I just became too busy and it ended up falling by the wayside.

Well, today I discovered that, thanks to Jacqueline Hope Derby and Dave Pfeffer, there’s a DL group in Coral Springs! They meet on Thursday nights (that’s tonight) from 8:00 to whenever at Java D’Lites, 2528 N. University Dr. I don’t know how long they’ve been meeting, but I’m glad to see it finally happened.

Thanks, Jacqueline and Dave! I think I might just have to swing by tonight …

UPDATE (8:28 pm 6/28/07): I had good intentions, but you know what those are good for …

Since I went out last night and I’m going out tomorrow night, I just needed a break. Plus I’m exhausted. So, maybe next week … hope it went well tonight.