Thanksgiving and Vegetarians

I don’t think meat-eaters fully appreciate how many Thanksgiving rituals revolve around the bird. The turkey determines when dinner is served. The turkey occupies the center of the table. The head of the household displays his or her carving excellence…

Are You Hot or Not?, Academic Style

Slate writes about RateMyProfessor.com, one of the several websites designed to capture student word-of-mouth about professors. As the article points out, one dominant theme emerges–students want professors who are hot. Fortunately, I’m not listed (yet) in RateMyProfessor.com, a status I’m…

Turkey Prices and Economic Inefficiency

This kind of stuff drives vegetarians crazy. Wholesale price of turkeys: $0.70/lb or more. Retail price of turkeys during Thanksgiving: $0.39/lb. The reason: grocery stores subsidize turkey sales as a loss leader to increase traffic. I don’t have a problem…

Blogging at ContractsProf

I am going to blog occasionally at the ContractsProf blog. My first post is about teaching Stambovsky v. Ackley, the haunted house case.

Illegal Spyware Use Contributes to Attorney Discipline

In re Petition for Disciplinary Action against Kristine Katherine Trudeau, 2005 WL 3007005 (Minn. Nov. 7, 2005). In matters not involving client representations, Trudeau “pled guilty to gross misdemeanor interference with a 911 call and misdemeanor unauthorized computer access by…

Coase Theorem and Strip Clubs

The Coase Theorem applied to strip clubs: if moralists really object to a strip club but legal tools aren’t available to shut it down, they can just buy the club and then shut it down. (I’ve previously blogged on trademark…

How to Get Started Blogging (Part 3 of a 3 Part Series on Blogs)

This is the third of a three part series about blogging based on my presentation at a Minnesota IP CLE in September. Today’s question: assuming that you want to get into blogging, how should you get started? I have a…

New Family Photos and the Second Child Syndrome

When Jacob was born, I built him a personal website for photos and the occasional video. I lovingly edited the photos to capture the best ones of the bunch and provided my summaries (sometimes with my attempt at wry humor)….

Should I Blog? (Part 2 of a 3 Part Series on Blogs)

This is the second of a three part series about blogging based on my presentation at a Minnesota IP CLE last month. Today’s question: should I blog? The answer is purely based on cost-benefit. What does blogging cost, and what…

eBay Removes Auction for Right to Hunt Deer

eBay Britain removed an auction offering the right to bag a specifically-identified “21 point farmed master stag,” which is probably a “semi-tame” deer. eBay responded to a complaint from an animal rights activist group about the auction, even though print…