more on blagojevich: can the DOJ spin it any harder?

Earlier I wrote about how the Blagojevich indictment wasn’t getting much journalistic play as compared to the Madoff Ponzi scheme.  Well, it wasn’t for a lack of trying from the Department of Justice.  U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald is hyping this indictment so hard it’s like he has Nancy Grace on staff, furiously inventing new ways to express shock and outrage.

merry christmas!

why the blagojevich indictment is way more important than the madoff ponzi scheme

Watching news coverage of the Madoff Ponzi scheme, you would think Madoff trolled Florida for old Jewish grandmothers to rob, flipping them over and shaking them until $50 billion spilled out onto the sidewalk.  Meanwhile, the Blagojevich indictment has taken a backseat — there haven’t really been any articles on the huge consequences of Blagojevich’s corruption.  The lack of coverage is not because the Ponzi scheme is more important — it isn’t.  The real reason is because the Ponzi scheme created victims that make for great TV, while the victims of the Blagojevich corruption — citizens, Governors, and the US government in general — don’t.

Halfway to graduation!

Mudpie and I are pleased to announce that today marks the halfway-to-graduation point in Ryan’s illustrious law school career.  Before we know it, he will be saying goodbye to Athens and hello to Mexico!  We’ll celebrate with tacos, margaritas, and visas for everyone!  (That was a joke- I’m just checking the vigilance of diplomatic security).

I am having a brief flash of nostalgia about my own law school graduation, which feels like just yesterday instead of 7 months ago.  I would totally wear that fancy velvet/polyester robe as frequently as possible (Halloween, future child’s kindergarten graduation, etc.) if it didn’t cost over $700, compelling me to rent instead.   I can’t find a picture where I’m wearing the awesome hat, but here’s one with the robe, my favorite ever Prof. Banks, and my 1L roommate Emily.  Hark upon the gale!  Go Tribe!

In other news, we are also all extremely pumped that I got three tickets for the Inauguration.  Except that Ryan thinks it’ll be cold here in January, and we’ll get a better view on t.v.  What an American patriot!  It will surely be cold (unlike the bizarre 67 degrees it was yesterday), but the excitement will warm our hearts, and we can go to CVS and buy those weird chemical-reaction hand warmer packets.  Later we’ll get those dorky personal neck ventilators to stay cool in Mexico.

facebook wins again

When you’re suing someone, you gotta let them know you’re suing them.  How you let them know varies with the circumstances.  If you know where they live, send them a registered letter.  They don’t answer the door?  Staple it right on there.  Don’t know where they live?  Publish it in a newspaper.  Any method that’s reasonably calculated to convey the required information and give those interested in making an appearance enough time to show up is fine by the courts.

Well, those crazy Aussies have done it again: Australia’s Supreme Court ruled today that you can serve a default judgment on someone through Facebook.  How cool is that?  A default judgment is when you sue someone and the other guy doesn’t show up, so you win by default.  But you still have to let them know you’ve won — otherwise, how will you collect your damages.  It makes sense that you’ll probably have to go to some extreme measures to find whomever you’re suing, seeing how he or she didn’t show up in the first place.

I wonder if Facebook’ll add a new SuperPoke — You’ve been DEFAULT LIEN’d!!!!!!!

Sydney Morning Herald has the details.

Nichols sentenced to life in prison

Brian Nichols’s jury deadlocked today, meaning that the maximum sentence he can receive is life in prison rather than death.  Nichols escaped from the Fulton county courthouse in 2005, killing a judge, court reporter, and Sheriff’s Deputy in the process.  He executed a Federal agent in north Atlanta before taking Ashley Smith hostage in her apartment in Duluth.  She gave him methaphetamine and read The Purpose-Driven Life to him and eventually was able to call the police.  Twenty-six hours after he escaped, Nichols surrendered.  Wikipedia explains exactly how he escaped and his subsequent flight in horrifying detail.