Call It A Comeback
Perhaps the Illinois penal system needs a twelve step program. Talk Left reports that Illinois’ State Appellate Defender’s office is organizing to fight every death sentence from the bottom up as they come through the system.
While I am hopeful this will result in decent representation, as I mention in the comments section, I’m concerned it will lead to lower funding levels. Don’t take that as a criticism, but my cynical spidey senses are going off.
CalPundit was turned down for an interview by Lott on his mysterious survey. Given Lott took his marbles and went home before bothering to answer why he is repeating an inferior survey, one has to wonder if the entire schtick isn’t brilliant marketing.
Get some rather dimwitted gun rights advocates to jump on your bandwagon with some half-ass research that they don’t have the technical competency to understand (or a over anxious law prof/blogger) and then cry persecution whenever anyone asks reasonable questions about your methods and evidence. Even better, always move the argument over to a survey for which there is conveniently no way to verify or disprove its existence and avoid discussing the actual methodology of it or of your primary work. Get one peer reviewed article out there, publish a book based on the article and then turn to Regnery to rake in some cash. Good work if you can get it. You can also whine that no one will hire you.
I have little more to say given that no one with any integrity is going to take this clown seriously. For those interested in following it closely, Tim Lambert continues to do a bang up job. By this point, Lott’s sexual identity is being questioned and well, it is sophomoric and kinda funny.
Having little more to say doesn’t mean nothing more to say so expect more as the situation merits.
One thing I do have left is that Lott claimed in one interview that it was reasonable to allow his wife and son to post a fraudulent review under the pseudonym Mary Rosh. He seemed taken aback by the notion that he should have intervened when they posted the Amazon review. In my view, yes he should have intervened. Teaching your children ethical conduct is an important part of being a parent. Misrepresenting oneself as a disinterested observer is far different than say posting anonymously. I can guarantee you I won’t be blogging about any of my work in my non-anonymous life.
D-Squared has taken up my call for a Reader’s Digest version of Den Beste. I’m glad it is someone else unfortunate place to decipher the ramblings for the rest of us with a life.
‘Never write anything down,’" or so says Rich Miller. As I mentioned on Political State Report. No one is surprised the list existed, they are surprised it is in writing.
The Sun-Times has the list up here.
Rich Miller over at the is going apopolectic over the lack of information flowing from the G-Rod administration along with State-Journal Register columnist Bernard Schoenburg. While they are correct that this could turn into a problem, the immediate impact is pretty non-existent. Primarily it is the press wringing their hands over insider baseball and voters don’t care.
Check out The Political State Report in the morning. I have three posts that will be up then:
1) Tollway Authority Reform
2) South Suburb Revolt
3) Daley has to bother with an election?
One of the areas in Illinois government that has long had a bunch of cockroaches hiding in the dark is the Corrections Department. In 1999 that changed a great deal when George Ryan appointed Don Snyder. Snyder put an end to the inmates running the prison system. It was so bad in some facilities that some areas were painted with gang colors. Discipline for inmates and guards were non-existent and peace was largely maintained by buying off gangs with privileges. There is a lot of dirt there for an enterprising reporter to dig up. Snyder put an end to that and reformed the system in pretty damn record time.
For those who wonder how bad it could be remember, Richard Speck, a convicted serial killer, receiving illegal hormones to grow breasts, having a cocaine party with some pals and having a video recorder to tape the whole thing. But that wasn’t the real scandal, the real scandal was how quickly Edgar quashed the investigations into the prison system.
There is nothing dark about his replacement, Ernesto Velasco. It appears he is competent and should maintain a reasonable level of professionalism in the DOC. Snyder deserves praise for his service to the State of Illinois.
Sorry for the unplanned absence, but I needed to update the template, blogroll and busy personal life. Tomorrow I’ll return.
Get your fix of Illinois Politics at the Political State Report. Two posting up today.
And updating the blogroll. Check out the new links while you are here!
ArchPundit