Read Write React

The Jewish Clause

 The Illinois Supreme Court is being asked to hear a case involving a will written over twenty years ago. Max Feinberg, once an affluent member of Chicago's Jewish society, stipulated in his will that no money be dispensed to grandchildren or their progeny who marry outside the Jewish faith. The stipulation reads as follows:

“3.5(e) A descendant of mine other than a child of mine who marries outside the Jewish faith (unless the spouse of such descendant has converted or converts within one year of the marriage to the Jewish faith) and his or her descendants shall be deemed to be deceased for all purposes of this instrument as of the date of such marriage.”

From: Chicago Jewish News

The case, formally known as In re Estate of Max Feinberg, pits Michael Feinberg and Leila Taylor, Max Feinberg's children, against their combined total of five grandchildren - two of Feinberg's and three of Taylor's. (Although both Feinberg and Taylor and all five of the grandchildren are named in the lawsuit, not all are active participants in the case, which essentially pits Michael Feinberg against his daughter, Michele Trull. In addition, one of the five, Jon Taylor, is married to a Jewish spouse and therefore would not be subject to the will's stipulation in any case.)

Obesity Fee - I'll Have the Salad

State employees of Alabama currently receive health insurance at no cost. That is unless they smoke cigarettes. Most people I've spoken with seem to think this is a fair policy. A more controversial fee will take effect in 2010 when the policy begins to charge those workers who are overweight  and have not taken steps to improve their health. Those found to have conditions related to obesity will have a year to begin making progress with the problem or to start paying. It has yet to be worked out how much and what kind of progress will be necessary to avoid the fee.

Drop in Drinking Age?

The Associated Press recently reported that presidents from 100 of the top colleges in the United States are looking to push the legal drinking age from 21 to 18. They say that drinking is more likely to be taken to dangerous levels because of its illegality. This seems to imply some sort of ritualism. Mothers Against Drunk Driving disagrees strongly with the proposition though they agree there are huge problems with alcohol on campus. Listed in the article are Duke, Dartmouth, Ohio State, Syracuse and several others.

Obviously, we are talking about some very big name schools.  The presidents have looked into the matter very closely prior to attaching their colleges' names and reputations to it and what they are saying with this proposition, is that a lower drinking age would lessen the severity of the problems on campus, largely by bringing the problem out into the open. They also say that the methods used to illegally obtain the alcohol result in binges, the type of drinking associated with the worst of alcohol's effects.

It's tough to believe that this idea will be put into action anytime soon.  On the off chance its validity is confirmed, every Congressman that were to vote in its favor would be sticking out his neck for the hatchet man.  It is quite possible, however, that the issue will be looked into far more deeply now that these courageous presidents and their schools have spoken up.

Beijing Olympics - My Outlook

There is much room for debate when discussing the policies of China.  There is at least as much when looking into our own policies here in the U.S.  For the sake of this article, it doesn't matter.  During the Olympic games, I like to live in the proverbial bubble, politics being on the outside.  I love the nationalistic pride that comes with watching our guys and gals compete against others from around the world.  It is quite an uplifting feeling  to hear our National Anthem played during the Olympic medal ceremonies.  I've even been known to get choked up watching our competitors  (do you remember 14 year old Nadia Comaneci?)  I hope there will never be a time when I can't remember Dorothy Hamill taking home the gold in 1976 (I was nine) or the United States hockey team beating Russia in 1980 and eventually getting the gold also.  From my perspective, at least back then, it was all about the competition.  Politics were to play second fiddle or not at all.  Of course, I've grown up since then (depending on who you ask) and I've romanticized the memories quite a bit.  To me, the Olympics were meant to be romanticized.

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Ok, back in the real world, politics won't be put on pause during the Olympics.  Let's just see if we can maintain some semblance of separation so that I can keep my bubble going.

*I found the above image on a site called, Chinese Tools.eu.  They have more very nice pictures of the fireworks.  Check it out...

The Electoral College, Put Simply

Recently, I decided to do some reading on the Electoral College system and its reason for being.  Most of what I’ve heard in the past, mainly from critics, was that the system was grossly outdated and in drastic need of repair, if not given to scrap entirely.  From the information that I’ve gathered online, I have to disagree.

Why the Electoral College System

The Electoral College system forces presidential candidates to spend more of their valuable time in a larger number of states.

The college came to be as a result of serious suspicions moving to and fro between the original thirteen states.  Smaller states were afraid of being overwhelmed by the popular vote of much larger states.  With the lack of communication between citizens of different regions, such suspicions were difficult to overcome.  A system needed to be designed that could deal with this very real question and calm skeptics.  Another problem dealt with foreign interests and possible attempts to influence elections.  A common view held that densely populated areas were likely to be targeted for corruption and bribery, possibly from outside sources.

One of a number of solutions devised to overcome these problems was the Electoral College system and here lay the leap away from a straight use of the popular vote.

Chinese Republic of Arabia

 Note of the Day - June 30, 2036 ---- Do you remember the first decade of the twenty first century? Back then, things were surely different. Have you ever heard the word, petroleum? In those earlier years, the world economy revolved around the stuff. The general use of hydrogen based automobiles changed the world as much as the introduction of the automobile itself. Add to that the rapid expansion of plastics and other materials being developed as by-products during coal processing and we’ve come a long way since 2010!

The Chinese Republic of Arabia

I’m sure that you are familiar with the country known as CROA or the Chinese Republic of Arabia. (formerly Saudi Arabia)  They are again in the news (and deservedly so) as the testing ground for the newest of the Chinese satellite based nuclear weaponry. This time it is their advanced orbiting missile which had apparently escaped detection for more than two weeks prior to being noticed earlier today by the anti-orbital missile system (AOMS) of the United States.  Diplomatic talks between the U.S. and China are moving at full speed as of this minute though much is still shrouded in mystery.

A Constitutional Stir

From time to time I'll read through parts of the Constitution just to make sure that I have my head on straight.  Here is a passage from the original work, in Article IV, Section 2.

"No person held to Service or Labour in one State, under the Laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in Consequence of any Law or Regulation therein, be discharged from such Service or Labour, but shall be delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom such Service or Labour may be due."

Of course, this was overturned by the 13th Amendment which had been set in motion by Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

Regardless, it shows a side of our forefathers that I don't like to see.  It seems that slavery was initially legal not due to the lack of a law declaring otherwise but by full proclamation of the Constitution.  I'm a full blown skeptic by nature and the above quote brings it out to the fullest. 

I don't want to dwell on this as I fully believe that the Constitution is an exemplary document and must be lived up to.   This is just a quote that stirs my emotions.  If nothing else, it is proof that the framers were human.