ATL Idol: Week 3, Head-to-Head Round
We’re down to your last two ATL Idols: FROLIC AND DETOUR and SOPHIST. It’s time for them to face off in the third and final head-to-head round of ATL Idol, the reality-TV-style talent search for Above the Law’s new editor. You know the drill, but if you’re just tuning in, here’s how this round will work:
The head-to-head round is designed to serve as a test of pure writing ability. We’ll publish the contestants’ different takes on the same (assigned) story. The head-to-head round is designed to show how the bloggers write up the same story, to eliminate any advantage from story selection. Story selection is an important skill for bloggers, but it’s one that the contestants have demonstrated in their features and freestyle posts.
Just like the past two weeks, this round will be reviewed by ATL’s panel of celebrity judges: Ann Althouse, Tom Goldstein, and Dahlia Lithwick.
Check out the bloggers’ contributions, after the jump.
Here are the takes of FROLIC AND DETOUR and SOPHIST on the same story, marked with each contestant’s avatar (at the top of each submission). We gave them this link:
Any Interest in the Exxon-Valdez Case? The 9th Circuit Will Decide [WSJ Law Blog]
And a length limit of 400 words. Here’s what they came up with (presentation order determined by coin flip):
Pole Position: Is That a Silent Protest, or Are You Just Happy to See Me?
By FROLIC AND DETOUR
Remember the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill? It’s been keeping lawyers busy for close to twenty years.
30,000+ plaintiffs, including fishermen, local governments, and Alaska natives, have been pursuing a mass tort action since shortly after oil hit the beach. The Supreme Court, which reduced a multibillion-dollar punitive damages award in the matter, has kicked the question of interest on punitives back down to the Ninth Circuit. Class action litigators (myself included, at least for now) will want to keep an eye on this. Scotusblog has covered that angle nicely.
But at ATL, we’re more intrigued by a creative response to the problem of multi-decade litigation. Exxon may be immortal, but old fishermen aren’t. About twenty
The native tribes around Prince William Sound rely on a form of alternative dispute resolution called the shame pole. The purpose of the pole is to force “some
The Exxon shame pole gets around; it has its own MySpace page, and it made it down to DC for the SCOTUS oral argument in February. It’s even shared the stage with the governor of Alaska. So far, Exxon has shown no sign of embarrassment, but for a fair comparison with the federal courts, we should evaluate the pole’s effectiveness after nineteen years.
No word on whether Exxon plans to erect a shame pole decorated with worried shareholders in front of Webber’s house.
THE EXXON-VALDEZ CASE: HAVE YOU EVER TRIED SEPARATING MONEY FROM OIL?
By SOPHIST
Ask Minneapolis-based law firm Faegre & Benson how meaningless jury awards of punitive damages are. 17-plus years after the Exxon-Valdez emptied her cargo into the Prince William Sound, Faegre & Benson is now fighting Exxon over interest payments, and still losing.
On Tuesday, by a vote of 5-3 (Exxon stockholder Justice Alito recused himself), the Supreme Court remanded the question of whether the petitioners are entitled to interest on unpaid punitive damages.
The interest, if awarded by the 9th Circuit, could be as much as $490 million. The award would be crucial to Faegre & Benson, who will need to recoup upwards of $180 million in legal fees generated by representing 2,600 of the 32,000 plaintiffs, mostly Alaskan fishermen, harmed by the oil spill. Faegre & Benson’s clients cannot hope to be so fortunate. Some clients, like Peninsular Aleutians Roe Herring, stand to gain as little as $19 and a flammable penguin, according to Faegre & Benson’s payout calculator.
Even with half a billion dollars up in the air, attorneys at O’Melveny & Myers have certainly earned their fees during their 15 year representation of Exxon. At trial, the jury hit Exxon with an historic $5 billion punitive price tag. That was slashed first to $2.5 billion, and then reduced again in June to $507.5 million. The Court’s June decision brought Exxon’s punitive damages in line with their compensatory liability, drawing upon principles of substantive due process and maritime common law (who said that maritime law was an utterly useless law school class?).
Meanwhile, there was much gnashing of teeth over at Faegre & Benson. Brian O’Neill, an attorney who has dedicated 12 years and one marriage to this case, said that Exxon’s “history is to jack people around until the last day.”
Whatever the 9th Circuit decides, the interest question will likely be before the Court again. The Court failed to comment on the application of its own Rule 42.1. As Lyle Denniston explains over at SCOTUSblog, “the Rule also says that, if the Court has ‘modified or reversed’ a lower court’s judgment, and ordered the lower court to award ‘a judgment for money,’ the Court would provide ‘instructions with respect to the allowance of interest.’”
The lesson to plaintiff attorneys: settle.
(153) Comments
Comments
FIRST!!!!!!!!!!! HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SO, SO UNBELIEVABLY AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow. Just Wow. Both the posts are god-awful.
Once either of these two comes on board as EIC, ATL is officially doomed.
Lots, of, commas, F, &, D
Um, clear win for Sophist
Um, clear win for Sophist
How is a totem pole relevant to the law? Does F&D know what this blog is about?
I kind of enjoyed the shame pole as interesting. Sophist's was better reporting. I'm leaning toward Sophist though because that post actually got to the crux of the legal issue better, but a fine job by both.
Who are all these people with such shitty comprehension skills? I never do more than skim ATL posts (BTW, these were both awful) and I can tell you that there is no fucking way that ATL Idol is a contest for an editor in chief. I believe they are looking for a leads editor.
I liked all the add information the Sophist provided.
7- I agree. F&D is fine for a personal blog or a news outlet, but Sophist gets the legal angle...
F&D, easily, for working in the shame pole.
F&D loses for having a typo that spell check would have caught (rididule?).
Penguin with blowtorch > Shame pole
f&d strikes me as too earnest for this blog
It's called spell check F&D
Terrible, absolutely terrible. But props for the penguin shot.
Back to the interviewing thread. I got a job in Latham's Fayetville office despite doing my best impression of Deion Sanders' "Must've Been the Money". Top that, nerds.
Enough rididule people!
Lat set these guys up for failure with that topic, and he succeeded. I can't figure out what the hell a "shame pole" has to do with the law. Sophist at least got that there was a legal issue and provided me a couple of smiles, but his article wasn't that good either. Boring subject matter --> boring posts.
2 - truer words have never been written.
This was not a good topic for a head to head contest - doesn't seem like there is much to work with here in terms of humor.
I thought F&D's post was better for including the moderately amusing totem pole angle. Sophist's reads more like just a case note. But I'm not too excited about either one.
F&D = ATL material.
Not.
Well, Sophist will clearly be our next editor.
Love the penguin with the blow torch
F&D -- After Sophist is elected EIC, I foresee you have a short career as a guest ATL blogger with a feature column entitled "Monday Morning Shame Pole."
Terrible topic. At least Sophist wrote about the law.
Penguin shot is the bizomb. The rest? Poopy.
Get a life, Lat.
F&D attacks Exxon and gives us a geography lesson while Sophist tells us about law firms and money. (which one are we interested in??)
Clear winner here, congrats Sophist
F&D is clearly funnier than Sophist here. I can get legal details from 1,000 places. I come to ATL to laugh.
Sophist wrote about the topic and provided extra information related to SUBSTANTIVE issues in the topic. F&D told me about a stupid protest that has had no effect. Look, this isn't really a contest anymore. Sophist is so clearly better than F&D, we should just get on to trying to make sure he gives us what we want when he's editor.
29-- agreed, not much of a contest anymore...
28, ditto
Is it me or is F & D kind of a hack? Sophist isn't Lat, but, at least, he shows promise and snark. Frankly, I'm surprised F & D is still in this contest.
Monday Morning Shame Pole made me laugh.
F & D. You are the weakest link. Goodbye.
Both posts were mind-numbingly horrible.
Hell, Sen is better than both of these 'writers'. Combined.
28- the shame pole isn't funny, its pathetic. and f&d presents it in a really earnst way, like she believes in the protest or something
Kind of hard to judge the writers when they're given such boring material to work with. F&D's may be entertaining, but it has nothing to do with the law. I'd have to give this round to Sophist.
Kash!
Wow, F & D is way better. If I want to read about the law, I'll read it somewhere with someone who has some real credentials (no offense Sophist). If I want a light take on stories, I come here. F & D gets it.
F&D, a piece of advice -- Less Shame Poles, more stripper poles.
32, where does Sophist show snark? The Sophist post seems quite boring to me.
I'm thoroughly disappointed with both of these entries and may follow the suggestion of that commenter the other day who suggested that we abstain from voting in protest. I'm not sure it really matters which one of these finalists gets the job.
But I can certainly be persuaded if the fans of one or the other can make the case that their candidate would be a good EIC.
.
A goofy, off topic post is not humor, it's just goofy and off topic. Not a lot of humor here and Sophist made the right choice not to force it (and found a penguin with a blow torch--classic). F&D just doesn't get it. I was a little leery of Sophist, but I am growing more comfortable with him. With Lat's help (and Lat's sources,) this might turn out okay.
40, I meant in other posts. This was more straight news reporting, but most of his stuff as been pretty damn funny particularly last week and this week's feature. I just think he has all the clubs in his bag and he is showing us each of them rather than trying to be jokey as much as possible. Just my two cents. If this is how we are going to decide this (was this really a good idea, Lat?) then I want to make sure we get the best of what our choices are. I think there is a chance Sophist can handle it and I think F & D is a disaster.
-32
F&D was more interesting and more entertaining and more funny. That spells "win" to me.
Plus, the "shame pole" is law-related (as a form of ADR, which F&D says).
Lat -- Shame on you for selecting Marin and F&D for this competition.
||||||||
^^^^^
[+][+]
( o )
~~~
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you
suck
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I hope this public rididule hurts.
Shame pole is law related? Are you fcking kidding me? Okay, you have to be a partisan, 43, or F&D herself. What a joke. That's like saying rock, paper, scissors is law related. So, F&D doesn't get it and her supporters don't get it (or know they can't be truthful).
Both F&D and Sophist are nuggets when it comes to blogging. There's more hope for Sophist, so he wins this round of sudden death (I wish). Sophist earns the edge by his link to MinnPost.com, which was much more interesting and rich with fun facts (i.e., digging a grave with pick axes...).
F&D's post was interesting, but Sophist's is better suited for this venue.
44 -- That is truly awesome. Shame pole for Lat, indeed!
both posts really really suck.
they are entirely too long and contain excessive links.
f&d's was a bit more entertaining while sophist hit the legal angle.
i may just abstain from voting as well.
i hope this contest was a practical joke on Lat's part to increase traffic/participation or something. hopefully, he has an awesome EIC stashed away somewhere and he just wants us to be able appreciate he/she...
It's clear that Sophist is the Choice of the Federalist Society ("how dare you mock a corporation, you pinko!)--i.e., a shoe-in at ATL.
Sophist, how do I apply to be a guest contributor?
F&D, I need a new dog walker. Are you available from 2-4 on weekdays? Of course you are.
good point 46. the MinnPost article was more interesting than both of these ridiculous posts.
32, point taken. I remember thinking some of Sophist's prior posts were pretty good (by the admittedly low standards of this contest). I also remember being generally less impressed with F&D in the earlier rounds.
My recollection is honestly quite fuzzy and I really wish Lat would put up a comprehensive post linking everything each of them has done, from their introduction and bio through to the present, so we could compare. We should not be voting just on the most recent posts and vague memories about the prior ones. If I see it all together, I might well agree with you that Sophist is a better choice.
-40
These posts S.U.C.K.
F&D is much better. I don't understand why everyone likes Sophist. I don't like any of his posts - and too opinionated.
40/53,
If you go to "Archives," scroll down and click on "ATL Idol" you'll get all the Idol posts and only them. Not perfect, but better.
-32
I just want to hear Ann Althouse's opinion. Boy, she's great.
NOT
F & D found an interesting twist to a relatively boring, sad legal topic. She gets points in my book.
Oh, shut up, 55. People can differ in their opinions, but that's just silly or a lie. And, yeah, what we don't want here are opinions, points of view or insight. That was sarcasm, 55, in case you didn't get it like everything else.
55 = F & D's mom.
Maybe F&D and Marin can start their own blog together! www.wedontgetit.com
The only good thing I can say about F&D's is that at least she didn't put a lame caption on the picture for once.
Sophist wins.
Sophist's post is too long. I don't want to read it.
Thanks 32. I had tried clicking on the individual posters' names, but that does not bring up all of their posts. The archives works, but of course its over-inclusive. I still think they should put a simple link that brings up all the prior ATL Idol posts, but only for those two contestants, and feature it somewhere prominent.
But then, as an ATL commenter, it is my job here to whine. Laaaaaaaaat, help us......
-40
Yeah. No in-picture caption. She's growing! Or maybe just lazy this time around...
44: I suggest you learn to spell before "rididul[ing]" Lat.
THIS ENTIRE CONTEST SUCKED!
65 -- you are an idiot. "rididule" was a typo from F&D's post. which makes 44's post funny, see.
- not 44
65 for Idiot-in-Chief!
68 - President Bush already holds that title, I'm afraid.
I prefer F&D's pithy and unique angle here. Sorry, Sophist, I'm just not interested in a rehash of the procedural history of this case.
By definition nothing is unique when linking to a story. And, when two people are heads-up, each view is unique. We will explain fewer and less tomorrow, 70.
My vote is for Sophist.
"By definition nothing is unique when linking to a story."
Okay, this is just stupid.
Something tells me that Exxon is unclear on the whole "shame pole" concept.
BTW F &D, brilliant way to clarify that you are not THAT F &D…..
Me thinks that F & d deserves a 2nd look, especially if Harvard-Harvard does not get his A+ game on.
Sophist, if you want this job, I recommend you call in sick to your firm for the duration, then write, edit, rewrite, edit.
From here on out, its all about who wants it the most.
74, not which F&D?
To those of you looking to review the previous posts of each contestant, just click on the "ATL Idol" link at the bottom of any of these posts. It will take to just the posts in the contest. There are only 3 pages of them, so you can easily skim through all of Sophist's and F&D's posts.
Here is the link if you can't find it above:
http://abovethelaw.com/atl_idol/
"[N]othing is unique.... [but]...when two people are heads-up, each view is unique." Huh?
Dear 70, I think you are unclear on the whole "shame pole" concept as well.....
Both sucked because the topic sucked. I can't believe Lat is selling out to be a suit.
Maybe I miss something. . . how do we know Sophist is a guy?
74, what were you talking about? I didn't understand.
I hate this contest and am disappointed every time I take a break from work to check this waste-product of a website only to find something about American Idol Lawyers?
Who gives a shi*? The site panders to retards.
I hate this contest and am disappointed every time I take a break from work to check this waste-product of a website only to find something about American Idol Lawyers?
Who gives a shi*? The site panders to retards.
I have to admit I've hated the whole head-to-head post thing throughout the competition. I'm much more persuaded by what the candidates came up with on their own and how they executed those ideas.
and yea, i'm a retard, too for posting twice...
SHOO SHOO RETARDED FLU!
Sophist!
79 - we read his bio
I am so tired of this contest crap. I can't wait for ATL to go back to business as usual.
Dear 82:
In case you did not get the memo, "retard' is on the PC prohibited list along with "shyster".
No wait, this just in, "shyster" is not longer considered disparaging to any particular group--except lawyers.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shyster
(Unimpeachable, immutable source that wikipedia is.)
F&D, shame pole was an interesting angle. But I agree, the topic was pretty weak to start with.
Holy 80's nostalgia, Batman.
The shame pole is a cute angle, but this is a blog about the law, not environmentalism or CSR or whatnot.
F&D has opened with a blurb about the law and then made a segueway into an article about the totem pole; it should have been the other way around.
Thrill-a-minute topic, though. I mean, who can keep track of all the fast action in this case??
Dear 80:
Some here have suggested that F & D is a FORMER MN lawyer turned author who used to publish a blog by the same name.
By indicating that THIS F & D is currently a PRACTICING lawyer, F & D has deftly brushed off of her shoulders a potential basis to prejudicially ding her based on past blog performance, viz the dreaded Marin.
That is what I meant.
74-- no its about who will be a better eic for ATL, and that question was answered a week ago and the answer isn't f&d
74/91 sounds pretty defensive. anyone else think this might be F&D herself?
#92-diehard Marin supporter who again wandered off the Narnia reservation.
Nothing has been decided!
Boring story twice is terrible. Holy flaming penguin Batman, this needs to be over.
94- no just a biglaw associate who has READ what f&d has written and knows she'd be a terrible eic
All I am saying is, Harvard-Harvard, it would be a mistake to slack off or underestimate F & D, or forget that on ATL your are only as good as your last post.
In this case, the post immediately before the votes are cast.
Tut Tut, 96.
It's not over until its over.
FU ATL IDOL!!!
Creighton 2L
It looks like F&D's friends are aiming to be the new Marinheads.
74/91- how do you know that F&D "deftly brushed off" anything? I think you just tried to argue that for her.
94/98-- you have got to be kidding me, f&d has posted terrible article after terrible article and we are supposed to vote for her now? Bish, please.
and its not like a touchy feely article about a shame poll has her suddenly in the lead.... lets not forget who would've been gone if Lat had kept hispromise and let us vote off 2 contestant week one (instead of letting Arnie) slink off by himself.
Unless I'm missing something, this contest is absolutely NOT only about the last post. Perhaps F&D and her minions would like that to be the case, given the quality of her posts up to this point. But don't think that we will forget them.
Flaming pengiun... haha!
91 splitting hairs methinks. It's the same person.
In this business, you are only as good as your last post.
So, Sophist, get your A+ game on--that is ALL I am saying.
PS: to 101: "Touchy feely article about a pole"....Hmmmmm.
88 -- Best post of the day. I liked the Lat shame pole (the "you suck" in the middle really does bring the public rididule), but updating wikipedia to refute commenters from yesterday is just awesome.
105 -- yeah, we heard you when you said that at 74 & 97. If you are going to try to post as different people and not out yourself as an F&Dhead, you need to learn new catch phrases.
Still, a valiant attempt to distract everyone from the fact that F&D's posts have sucked up to this point.
So, your point 97 (a clear partisan) is that Sophist has clearly better, so you are arguing that it should all come down to the last post in some desperate attempt to win without actually doing better? If you put more time into your posts instead of trying to come up with a way you should win, F&D, you'd have a better chance. Not much better, but a better chance.
Nobody wants to read anybody's B- game.
But, any sensible and sincere evaluation of this competition will inevitably involve going back and re-reading the preceding stinkers and seeing who has sucked the least.
Nobody has been comparing Sophist to Lat, but he's been showing the best sustained performance of the field. In fact, last week, the only thing that appeared to be a given, was that Sophist would be in the #1 position after the votes were tallied.
F&D has a lot of ground to make up regardless of what Sophist does.
OK, now yo have reallllly done it!!!!
You have forced me to come out of retirement and assume my super-ego identity post retirement.
ALL I am saying is that harvard-harvard should stay frosty, get his game on, and take NOTHING for granted.
Second, credit where credit is due.
F & D found a subtle way to deny that she is THAT F & D.
That is all.
#88 A/K/A, the person formerly known as AnyoneButMarin
Don't get your panties in a bunch.
Neither blogger has the requisite verbal dexterity to fill Lat's shoes. Plain and simple. The typos, less-than-stellar handle on the Chicago Manual of Style, and the lack of comedic rhythm make neither candidate worthy of the job.
Wow. Inadvertant proof that the "AnyoneButMarin" campaign was all a campaign by F&D supporters. One that worked. Wow. How rigged is this? F&D, you should be ashamed.
112- i totally agree. shameless. we should have used alex to get rid of marin and f&d. but none of this changes the fact that even f&d's supporters have admitted that sophist is better for the job in cooking up their scheme.
Oh, for fuck sake 112--how cold anyone be so fricking obtuse.
I think Sophist is the better candidate. I just don't want him to think he has a cake walk and blow it in the last round.
Clear enough for your addled brain?
Yes, F & D was the unintended beneficiary of the campaign, but that does not mean he/she has to give up and not do her best either.
Jesus H. Christ.
Dumb move, 112. Do you think that there's now any chance that F&D will hold onto the votes that you convinced Sophist voters to lend her?
Methinks AnyoneButMarin might need some anger management classes...
112, 113, it's not proof, not even indirectly, not even close. I can think of a number of explanations other than the one you just offered.
Just one of them, on the paranoid tip, is that bitter Marionettes are back to vindictively 86 Sophist.
Just forget the play by play and read the freaking posts. It's not like the decision is so hard, anyway.
Me: Not "More Intrigued" By Pole.
116: Sorry, my bad.
If that was your blue Beemer that my cast iron Swingline stapler hit when I flung it out the window, I apologize....
113: Could not have used Alex, he was way behind when the strategic voting began to make the whole thing work.
Good lord, some of you are soooo dense.....
You think staplers are made of cast iron?
Both of these posts were good, and even Kash-worthy. Well done, F&D and Sophist.
Swingline 747® Business Stapler
"Reengineered for increased strength and streamlined for productivity - the industry standard just got even better. An updated design brings superior reliability and a contemporary touch to your desktop. DIE-CAST ALL-IRON CONSTRUCTION - time-tested, with enhanced durability. Smooth new form and finish. Workhorse 747 architecture and features."
(Caps added for emphasis.)
God, I cannot Believe I felt compelled to rebut your ignorance about Swingline staplers, 120.
I feel so dirty....
when will this gay ass shit end. the fucking contest takes up more room and space than a busload of obese whales. WHO FUCKKING CARES. NOT ME. GET REAL. Get a woody. get something. but ditch this fucking contest.
Thanks. PS. GO FUCK YOURSELF
First "poles" now "woddies"; gay indeed, Mr. 123.
"Let he who is without gayness cast the first stone."
--John 8:7 (Above the Law translation)
A disgruntled Skadden associate has set its Greensboro office on fire. News at 11.
I heard Shia LeBouf is closing its Wichita office. Can anybody confirm?
123:
Whales aren't obese, moron. They are (usually) the weight they are supposed to be. You think you are being clever by recycling the metaphor of the whale-as-fat-person, but you are not.
Also, outside of Jersey, where you are obviously from, the adjectival phrase "gay-ass" has fallen out of favor as a negative descriptor.
In sum, you are not smart. You should not be reading and/or commenting on this blog.
-Disgruntled Gay
Oh Yippee!
I can't *wait* for Ann Althouse to come on here and grace us with her inartfully written (and thus highly ironic) critique of these posts.
Shia LeBouf is merging with Munger Choad and indeed closing its Wichita office.
Every single one of Sophist's jokes is totally obvious. Has any humor/law blogger written about the Exxon case without some stupid joke about the utility of maritime law? Egad.
I go F&D all the way; at least s/he told me something I didn't already know.
Dear 131:
How are you with Lewis & Clark LS (class of '97).
Do credentials matter here?
That said, may the best man/woman/TGLG win!
F & D by a mile on this one - unlike Sophist, she seems to have realized that no one reads ATL for actual legal news. If there isn't something seriously mockable, absurd or salacious in a post (and the topic isn't salaries or layoffs), it shouldn't be on ATL
F & D by a mile on this one - unlike Sophist, she seems to have realized that no one reads ATL for actual legal news. If there isn't something seriously mockable, absurd or salacious in a post, it shouldn't be on ATL (unless the topic is salaries or layoffs).
f&d clearly. sophist was better on the law, but that's not the point. We don't come to atl for the law.
Interesting take.
I always suspected that F&D might come from behind and snatch victory from the jaws of the Harvard mascot.
http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~devere/images/JohnHarvard_by_MichaelVanDevere_2007.jpg
She was, after all, the editor (until March ’08) of a commercially produced, well known, and well read blog i.e. Sophist is up against an actual blogging professional.
So it boils down to Harvard degree vs. experience and blogging skill.
Hmmm, good grammar or good taste....pedigree or merit…so hard to chose…..
F&D's supporters need to coordinate their attacks. First we are told that she is not THAT F&D, and now we're told that she is. Not that it matters, really, because F&D's posts have been inferior to Sophist's throughout this competition.
Sophist will carry the final voting this week by at least 2:1. It won't be close at all.
I thought crazy cat lady was a perfectly fine gimmick from Sophist. But he also seems to be stronger on the analytical side than the others.
127 --I agree with you that whales aren't always fat. But 123 specified "obese whales" and obviously obese whales are fat.
136:
Like, F & D has "supporters" that act as a monolithic block?
Actually, F & D does, but the tactics are discussed in top secrecy elsewhere.
Seriously, there is some support for the theory that F&D is in fact Linda Holmes blogger-freelance writer (who is not currently practicing law).
Mainly, the prior use of the Frolic&Detour moniker as the name one of Linda's prior blogs.
However, this quote from F&D's most recent post casts some doubt on that theory:
"Class action litigators (MYSELF INCLUDED, at least for now) will want to keep an eye on this."
If OUR F&D is at present a class action litigator, or a practicing attorney of any kind, then she is not THAT F&D--who graduated from Lewis & Clark SOL (North Western), practiced “Compensation” law for the Minnesota Department Of Employment and Economic Development for 3 years, was for a time a “Legislative Analyst at Minnesota House of Representatives”, then moved to NYC and for the last 7 years has been a freelance writer and occasional paid bog editor. (Most recently of Television Without Pity at Bravo).
Also, F&D’s profile statement “It took me years in a clerkship, a big firm, and a small firm to realize that what the legal world needs is more snickering and fewer motions to compel” tends to exclude her as Linda Holmes.
Cleaver ploy to throw us off the track or mistaken identity, you be the judge.
Obviously, I am not part of the F&D club or I would know the answer to that Q. Rather, I just like to stir the pot.
127 --I agree with you that whales aren't always fat. But 123 specified "obese whales" and obviously obese whales are fat.
127 --I agree with you that whales aren't always fat. But 123 specified "obese whales" and obviously obese whales are fat.
Seriously? Snore. Both god awful. I've pretty much stopped checking ATL since this nonsense started. Ugh. Painful. Both of these people just try too hard - and it comes out forced and uncomfortable and unfunny.
F&D = not legal tabloid info, not even really related to law.
Random semi-cute trivia about the news = Failure.
You might want to make some (non-virtual) friends, 140. You're just a little to in to this.
For those of you who intend to vote for Sophist based on his HLS degree—and I suspect most have been influenced by credentials—shouldn’t you find out where F & D attended LS before you make up your minds?
News flash: F & D is also a Harvard Law grad.
So let’s see what the last round of posts is like before we rush to judgment.
--Sophist leaner.
Roger that, 146: F&D is secretly elite. Am immediately changing mind based on that.
Seriously though, Sophist's material has been the best so far. That is the reason he has been winning the vote. Sometimes cigar = cigar.
oooh f&d has got herself a block of ardent and idiotic supporters.... seems like another failed contestant I know...
The "whimsy" or whatever F&D is going for has just consistently failed to hit the mark. Sophist is clearly the better writer, has better range and has at least occasionally had pitch perfect lines. Professional blogger, HLS grad, water-walker-on or whatever, F&D's sensibility is out of whack with this site.
FU ATL IDOL!!!
Former Creighton 1L
#9 here. I have no problem if the majority sees it #149's way. I am leaning that way myself but have not made up my mind.
However, it seems to me that many were/are influenced by Sophist's Harvard pedigree.
Therefore, I wrote F & D and asked her where she graduated. Her response:
"Funnily enough, I'm double Harvard, just like Sophist."
Feel free to email her at the address she provided in one of her posts and ask him/her yourself.
frolicndetour.atl.idol@gmail.com
Two double Harvard finalists. What are the odds?
Write in winner for the annoying contest: #44
i laughed at F&D's...making it most worth my time