The UW Sorority Suit.

The not very attractive Joseph C. O'Mahoney Federal Courthouse in Cheyenne.

This suit's result has hit the news, and because it involves an evolving societal topic regarding fiction and how far we're willing to entertain it in the name of individualism, we're going to make a couple of comments.

Page 1 of the 41 page decision:

1.  As soon as this came out, some commentator on Twitter immediately suggested it must have been decided by a "Casper judge".  

Eh? 

It's not as if Casper is stocked with liberal judges or something.  This is a Federal Court case, moreover, and we only have three Federal judges, two in Cheyenne and one in Casper. This was decided by Judge Johnson in Cheyenne.  He's been on the bench since 1985 and was appointed by that flaming liberal, Ronald Reagan.

Having said that, not all of Regan's "conservative" appointments were impressively conservative.  Take Anthony Kennedy, for example.

Be that as it may, Judge Johnson is universally recognized as a solid judge.  The weird suggestion that it must have been some flaming liberal, and that the flaming liberal must be in Casper, as where else would they be, is weird.

2.  This was decided "without prejudice", which means on technical and procedural grounds. The suit hasn't decided the issues.  It can be brought again.

Whether it will be or not, nobody knows. But this doesn't decide any legal issues.  

Often lawyers don't regard dismissals with prejudice as that big of deal, quite frankly, as it gives them the chance to go back and refine their suit.

This gets at one of the big problems in perception of courts today, however.  A large number of people believe that judges are supposed to rule on existential issues. They are not. This perception, moreover, is made worse by pundits like Robert Reich who continually suggest that activists' courts are deciding these issues on a left/right basis, something made worse by decades of prior conservative yapping that "activist judges" were deciding things for the left, the latter of which was somewhat true.  Most of the time judges are just deciding things on the law, or even procedure, that have nothing to do with the existential issues.  The continual "America is losing faith with its justice system" mantra that the press is chanting right now is because large elements of the press don't grasp that deciding social issues isn't what courts are supposed to do.

3.  I learned in the opinion that the sorority calls itself a fraternity.

How odd. Deficit of understanding of Latin root words?

4.  Judge Johnson did condescend to call Mr. Langford a "sorority sister".  The guy has male DNA and, well, you know.  He's not a girl, and this ongoing societal delusion is really absurd. 

That's what really gets to people.  It's a contest between individualist fantasy, and the degree to which everyone else must tolerate the fantasy, and reality.  We're in an age when dangerous self-delusion must be accepted, a certain segment of society maintains.

This probably isn't over.  So stay tuned.

Pater Noster

PATER NOSTER, 

qui es in caelis, 

sanctificetur nomen tuum. 

Adveniat regnum tuum. 

Fiat voluntas tua, 

sicut in caelo et in terra. 

Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie, 

et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. 

Et ne nos inducas in tentationem, sed libera nos a malo. 

Amen.

Takeaways from Super Bowl LIV

The Akron Pros, the 1920 Champions.

1.  The Roman numerals for 54 are LIV.

When it gets to the big Roman numerals, I always get confused.

2.  I'm older than the Super Bowl, although not by much.

The National Football League completed its 100th Season, which means that the NFL started in 1919.

Except it didn't. The NFL was founded on August 20, 1920.  It hasn't started its 100th Season. This is the second year in a row that they've claimed 1919 as their foundational date, but it isn't.

3.  The halftime show was weird.

And I do mean weird.  I'm not sure what was up with it.  Shakira's singing was lackluster and her dancing was both embarrassing and odd.  Jennifer Lopez was effectively nude. 

The whole thing was much like a cabaret scene out of Godfather II, which is supposed to demonstrate the fallen nature of pre revolution Cuba.

4. Why does a football game require a big halftime show?

I still don't get why this is.  The entire thing was not only weird, but really overblown.

5.  Electric cars are set to replace gasoline engined cards quicker than I supposed.

I had thought it would be a decade.  The full scale electric car advertisements by major automobile manufacturers would strongly suggest that it'll be quicker than that.  More on that tomorrow.

6.  Virtue signalling works better in the abstract.

A few liberal media outlets spent some time hand wringing over the Kansas City Chiefs and their traditions, with the dying New Republic taking time out from advertising its trip to Cuba this year (maybe to see the cabaret?) to really dive off into the shallow end of this pool.

It's probably because my interest in sports is so small that I don't really worry much about this, but at any rate everyone seemed to get over it for the game.

7.  It was the Women's Year in advertising, sort of, if not in the halftime show.

A few companies spent some time really attempting to show that they back women and women's causes, even showing some in football uniforms, even though actual physical size and strength requirements make football solidly a male game.  To watch them, we'd nearly suppose that there was a campaign to require female admittance into the NFL, when in fact women are free to enter the NFL if they can play the game.  Biology generally prevents that, although I'd be surprised if the day doesn't arrive when there's a female kicker (there was, fwiw, a female professional baseball player as early as 1922).  That's not the point.

The point is that its really odd to see the advertisements in the same year that featured a blatantly sexist halftime show.  Perhaps a person isn't supposed to say that, as both performers are Latina performers and much of the performance was in Spanish, but a pole dancing Jennifer Lopez isn't intrinsically different from a pole dancer at a strip club, particularly as Lopez started off wearing less than strippers probably wear when they start their act. 

It's weird how in an era when we're having a trial of Harvey Weinstein for being a creeper we're parading Shakira and Lopez around nearly nude on stage.

Something is wrong with that.

8.  The NFL has no pre war heroes?

Or so it would seem.

Professional football really wasn't a big deal until after World War Two, but you would think that in listing its fifty great players for its pre game celebration of its centennial it'd have found at least a few of them who played the game before 1945.

What about Jim Thorpe, for example?

9.  Mr. Peanut is back.

Thank goodness.

Lauda Sion Salvatorem: St. Thomas Aquinas, 1264

Lauda Sion Salvatorem

Lauda Sion Salvatórem Lauda ducem et pastórem In hymnis et cánticis. Quantum potes, tantum aude: Quia major omni laude, Nec laudáre súfficis. Laudis thema speciális, Panis vivus et vitális, Hódie propónitur. Quem in sacræ mensa cœnæ, Turbæ fratrum duodénæ Datum non ambígitur. Sit laus plena, sit sonóra, Sit jucúnda, sit decóra Mentis jubilátio. Dies enim solémnis ágitur, In qua mensæ prima recólitur Hujus institútio. In hac mensa novi Regis, Novum Pascha novæ legis, Phase vetus términat. Vetustátem nóvitas, Umbram fugat véritas, Noctem lux elíminat. Quod in cœna Christus gessit, Faciéndum hoc expréssit In sui memóriam. Docti sacris institútis, Panem, vinum, in salútis Consecrámus hóstiam. Dogma datur Christiánis, Quod in carnem transit panis, Et vinum in sánguinem. Quod non capis, quod non vides, Animósa firmat fides, Præter rerum ordinem. Sub divérsis speciébus, Signis tantum, et non rebus, Latent res exímiæ. Caro cibus, sanguis potus: Manet tamen Christus totus, Sub utráque spécie. A suménte non concísus, Non confráctus, non divísus: Integer accípitur. Sumit unus, sumunt mille: Quantum isti, tantum ille: Nec sumptus consúmitur. Sumunt boni, sumunt mali: Sorte tamen inæquáli, Vitæ vel intéritus. Mors est malis, vita bonis: Vide paris sumptiónis Quam sit dispar éxitus. Fracto demum Sacraménto, Ne vacílles, sed memento, Tantum esse sub fragménto, Quantum toto tégitur. Nulla rei fit scissúra: Signi tantum fit fractúra: Qua nec status nec statúra Signáti minúitur. Ecce panis Angelórum, Factus cibus viatórum: Vere panis filiórum, Non mitténdus cánibus. In figúris præsignátur, Cum Isaac immolátur: Agnus paschæ deputátur Datur manna pátribus. Bone pastor, panis vere, Jesu, nostri miserére: Tu nos pasce, nos tuére: Tu nos bona fac vidére In terra vivéntium. Tu, qui cuncta scis et vales: Qui nos pascis hic mortáles: Tuos ibi commensáles, Cohærédes et sodáles, Fac sanctórum cívium. Amen. Allelúja.

Sion, lift up thy voice and sing: Praise thy Savior and thy King, Praise with hymns thy shepherd true. All thou canst, do thou endeavour: Yet thy praise can equal never Such as merits thy great King. See today before us laid The living and life-giving Bread, Theme for praise and joy profound. The same which at the sacred board Was, by our incarnate Lord, Giv'n to His Apostles round. Let the praise be loud and high: Sweet and tranquil be the joy Felt today in every breast. On this festival divine Which records the origin Of the glorious Eucharist. On this table of the King, Our new Paschal offering Brings to end the olden rite. Here, for empty shadows fled, Is reality instead, Here, instead of darkness, light. His own act, at supper seated Christ ordain'd to be repeated In His memory divine; Wherefore now, with adoration, We, the host of our salvation, Consecrate from bread and wine. Hear, what holy Church maintaineth, That the bread its substance changeth Into Flesh, the wine to Blood. Doth it pass thy comprehending? Faith, the law of sight transcending Leaps to things not understood. Here beneath these signs are hidden Priceless things, to sense forbidden, Signs, not things, are all we see. Flesh from bread, and Blood from wine, Yet is Christ in either sign, All entire, confessed to be. They, who of Him here partake, Sever not, nor rend, nor break: But, entire, their Lord receive. Whether one or thousands eat: All receive the self-same meat: Nor the less for others leave. Both the wicked and the good Eat of this celestial Food: But with ends how opposite! Here 't is life: and there 't is death: The same, yet issuing to each In a difference infinite. Nor a single doubt retain, When they break the Host in twain, But that in each part remains What was in the whole before. Since the simple sign alone Suffers change in state or form: The signified remaining one And the same for evermore. Behold the Bread of Angels, For us pilgrims food, and token Of the promise by Christ spoken, Children's meat, to dogs denied. Shewn in Isaac's dedication, In the manna's preparation: In the Paschal immolation, In old types pre-signified. Jesu, shepherd of the sheep: Thou thy flock in safety keep, Living bread, thy life supply: Strengthen us, or else we die, Fill us with celestial grace. Thou, who feedest us below: Source of all we have or know: Grant that with Thy Saints above, Sitting at the feast of love, We may see Thee face to face. Amen. Alleluia.