BC Law Prof. Fitzgibbon Speaks via Email; BC Law Students Spoof via YouTube
It’s too early to take nominations for this year’s law revue contest. But an early contender will surely be a video we received from students at Boston College Law School. It’s a spoof of BC law professor Scott Fitzgibbon’s anti-gay marriage commercial. Here’s the set-up, from the BC Student Bar Review (that’s a social organization, for 1Ls still wondering what happens outside of the library):
Dear all,The next bar review will begin at 8pm this Thursday, October 1 at The Kells…. We can hear some of you already: “but guyssssss, The Kells is full of meatheads in Red Sox hats.” Well, we’ve got a news flash for you, Little Lord Fauntleroy: every bar in Boston is full of meatheads in Red Sox hats, and very few of them have dance floors as spirited or drinks as reasonably priced as The Kells. We find it to be a great place to blow off some steam, get weird on the dance floor, and accost your TA from LLRW and force him to do shots of Jameson with you.
However, as Dean Garvey reminded us in his memo, we must be respectful of those who disagree with us, no matter their beliefs. In the spirit of providing equal time, we have included a brief video message from the opposition:
The Kells is the kind of place that makes you want to bathe yourself in lye when you wake up the next morning afternoon. Here’s what the loyal opposition has to say:
After the jump, would the real Professor Fitzgibbon please stand up?
Professor Fitzgibbon’s legal analysis of gay marriage in Maine has come under attack from legal scholars and politicians. The Eagleonline published a letter from attorney and Maine State Representative Jon Hinck (D-Portland) calling on Fitzgibbon to make himself available for public debate on the issues he discussed in his commercial. The letter was sent to BC law dean John Garvey. It reads, in part:
I do not see how the law as written will give rise to a flood or even a trickle of litigation. Moreover, it is hard for me to see how plaintiffs could prevail in the kinds of cases professor Fitzgibbon’s strings together in his list of horribles. There is also little reason to believe that “homosexual marriage will be taught in school” whatever that means. Of course, in a brief TV spot it is hard to provide much backing for legal conclusions and other bald assertions but it disturbs me that Professor Fitzgibbon did not respond to a request for an interview. Since he has chosen to enter the fray with what appears on its face to be highly dubious assertions of law attributed to unnamed “legal experts” I would think that your institution would prefer to see the professor support his opinion with analysis when asked and not avoid the reporter. The law school at Boston College should expect quality scholarship, which in my experience can always be backed up in a public discussion. I would be interested in your thoughts.
So far, Fitzgibbon has not responded to calls for public debate about the matter. He has also refused to answer questions from the Eagleonline, a publication for Boston College law students.
But Fitzgibbon appears to be willing to discuss his views on gay marriage with laypeople. The professor sent an email to BCHeights, an independent student newspaper for the Boston College community. BCHeights reports:
Fitzgibbon said in an e-mail that he has received a split response to his support for the Maine Marriage Initiative. “I have received about 40 responses by e-mail and phone message to my TV ad, about 18 positive and 22 negative,” he said. Fitzgibbon said that his interest in supporting the initiative comes from the serious legal concerns he perceives stem from the redefinition of the institution of marriage in Maine to allow for homosexual as well as heterosexual couples. “Legal consequences of the legal recognition of same-sex marriage are detailed in a letter to the governor of Maine from four law professors,” he said. “These legal concerns underlie, in part, my opposition to that legalization.” Fitzgibbons chose to communicate solely via e-mail due to the sensitive nature of the matter.
Ftizgibbon is wiling to offer his legal opinion on gay marriage to voters in Maine or college students in Boston. But when lawyers or law students ask him about his legal conclusions, they can’t get a response? That’s like going to The Kells to root for Derek Jeter, and then hiding in the bathroom when all the Red Sox fans show up.
Maine Reacts to Fitzgibbon Scholarship [Eagleonline]
Professor opposes same-sex marriage in ad [BCHeights]
Earlier: Boston College Law Professor In Anti-Gay Marriage Ad
Boston College Defends Anti-Gay Marriage Professor
(53) Comments
Comments
Whoooa-ooooh - fuck the Kells!
That was the lamest thing Ive ever seen.
Where's the poster who says "I supposed I should know this...but is this an accredited law school?" Have not seen him for a while
Serious question. How do you pronounce Fitzgibbon? Is the second b silent?
That video is AWESOME.
3 - first, why are you you encouraging him? second, it must have gotten pretty boring typing the same crap about accreditation every day (I am looking at you too, the Bush "how do you like me" guy).
that was so dumb.
I understand the concept, but nothing about that was funny.
That was the dumbest thing I have ever seen. What does it take to get posted on this site nowadays?
The Kells fucking sucks though. Go to Cask 'n Flagon where at least you can rape a chick in the bathroom without anyone finding out
When I was an undergrad at BC a girl once asked my on the dance floor at the Kells why I was dancing with my eyes closed... I never really had a good answer until now (so I didn't have to look at all the douche bag law students).
When I was an undergrad at BC a girl once asked my on the dance floor at the Kells why I was dancing with my eyes closed... I never really had a good answer until now (so I didn't have to look at all the douche bag law students).
When I was an undergrad at BC a girl once asked me on the dance floor at the Kells why I was dancing with my eyes closed... I never really had a good answer until now (so I didn't have to look at all the douche bag law students).
Apparently the concept of "thou dost protest too much" is lost on these BC clowns.
Call me crazy - but i thought something that is "funny" is supposed to induce laughter of some sort. Instead, all I feel is anger for having wasted the last 2 minutes of my life watching that video (and writing this corresponding post).
-Tbone
too dumb for words... how embarrassing for bosTTTon coTTTege
The only funny thing about this post is 9's comment.
this is effing hilarious - will be attending the Kells next weekend.
I would rather be forcefully sodomized by the entire Hofstra student body.
first to say.... BC SUCKS!
-BU 2008/2009 NCAA Mens Hockey Champions
18 - I think you mean "forcibly." Then again, maybe you do mean "forcefully." In either case, you are a better man than I.
You know what the biggest problem with this site is? Elie's sense of humor. See, he wrote and developed this post because he honestly believed it was funny. He was, of course, horribly mistaken. If this was an isolated incident, ATL may still be ok. After the garbage this site has wasted my time with over the last year or so, I can honestly say: Enough, Elie. Your lack of any conception of humor, importance, civility, or wit has just lost the site another reader.
21 = Secret Crush On Elie.
Why don't you debate him Elie. Seriously. Why does he have to debate anyone. Because you believe his position is fundamentally wrong you think that he owes you an explanation? People like you assume already that he is a biggot and you don't tolerate any dissent on this topic. Why would he want to engage in a debate with you on the subject.
23 - It's spelled "bigot." You probably spelled it with two "g"s because you were thinking of "faggot," which in turn actually makes you a bigot - and possibly a faggot. Voila.
I love the spell check Nazzzi's on this site. Any argument is undermined by a misspelling. What a rhetorical device. It is ingenious.
23/25 - I agree with you in substance. Just fucking with you man.
- 24
It was pretty funny.
"BU 2008/2009 NCAA Mens Hockey Champions"
Seriously? That is important?
Why is it that when a professor espouses a viewpoint that the majority of Americans agree with, he is immediately expected to devote time debating the issue? Whether one agrees or disagrees with his viewpoint, he is in the majority. Why is he ridiculed and called out when people on the other side of the debate are not? When people complain about the media being liberal, this is what they are talking about. Given the current state of the law it seems more correct to expect explanations from same sex marriage activists every time they share their views. For the record, I could really care less whether or not same sex unions are allowed. What bothers me is incivility in a far from settled debate.
Needs more keyboard cat
Elie Mystal and the ACLU, defenders of free speech when it benefits their own political interests.
I watched the video but don't get it. I know there's an anti-gay marriage law professor but the rest of the post was too long to read. So, I'm like...yeah there's some geeky student talking about a bar called The Kells and I'm like...ummmmm?
The Kells is awful. There are always fights between meatheads, there are always hot, trashy college students, and there's always a pizza/wings cart in the hallway leading to the bathroom. Wait a sec, the Kells is actually awesome.
Wow. That wasn't funny. At all.
Hanging out at The Kells is like shoving a straw up your nose to drink
- Li-ann Thio, while sharting
BC looks like a sweet school
29, circa 1966: Why is it that when a professor espouses a viewpoint [miscegenation is bad and should be banned] that the majority of Americans agree with, he is immediately expected to devote time debating the issue? Whether one agrees or disagrees with his viewpoint [that miscegenation should be illegal], he is in the majority. Why is he ridiculed and called out [for his view that miscegenation should be illegal and will lead to horrible results] when people on the other side of the debate are not? When people complain about the media being liberal, this is what they are talking about. Given the current state of the law [no Constitutional prohibitions on state outlawing miscegenation] it seems more correct to expect explanations from [miscegenation] marriage activists every time they share their views. For the record, I could really care less whether or not [miscegenation] is allowed. What bothers me is incivility in a far from settled debate [on miscegenation].
Regardless of all the hand-wringing here, there is little doubt that the voters of Maine will ban gay marriage if given a chance; there isn't a single state in the Union where it has been put to the people and the referendum/initiative against gay marriage has not succeeded. This is all a waste of time.
I am married and I can't figure out why people are fighting for the right to be married. And on that same note, 50% of the people who get married then go and fight for the right to no longer be married. Let's recast this issue as a humanitarian effort to help another class of individuals avoid this fatally flawed institution.
29-- you say that he's espousing a viewpoint that a majority of Americans agree with. Actually, that's not quite true. The recent polls I've seen suggest that an ever-shrinking plurality, not a majority, believe that gays and lesbians should be prohibited from equal access to civil marriage.
In any event, no polls show that a majority of Americans believe that same-sex marriage will be taught in school. For that to happen, Fitzy will need to have his message replayed on TV stations across America. Then, eventually people might start believeing that lie (as the Prop 8 campaign did in CA).
38 - there is little doubt that if, in 1964 each state had the option to vote on the Civil Rights Act, few would have passed it. Simply because most of the dipshits in Maine (or any other state that has even wasted time and tax dollars to vote on this issue) would vote against it, doesn't mean that marriage equality wasn't passed soundly in Maine through a process that Mainers have accepted for a very long time. Not everything has to be put to a referendum to be legitimate. I suppose miscegenation laws should still be around because everyone didn't get to vote on them.
Get a damned clue.
Oh and Massachusetts voters were given the option to have a referendum on this issue and what do you know, five years later - gay marriage is still around.
Every state that has thus far received gay marriage is still around. People haven't burned down churches or been forced to have gay sex against their will. The system hasn't fallen apart in MA, VT, NH, IA or CT. Divorce rates haven't skyrocketed because now heterosexual marriages are "threatened."
19: University of Georgia Women's Gymnastics NCAA National Champions 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009! Suck on that!
1. The Kells sucks.
2. The Kells has about 3 TVs, why on earth would Red Sox fans go there to watch the game?
3. If you consider The Kells "cheap" you need to leave Chestnut Hill more often.
Hey I'm a meathead from Boston who wears Red Sox hats AND I go to BC
44 = fail
This is why Boston will never be a preeminant peer city.
46 -
What does Emeirtus mean? I couldn't find it in the dictionary.
46 -
What does preeminant mean? I couldn't find it in the dictionary.
P.S. What do you mean when you say "This"? Sorry, I probably don't understand because I live in Boston and I don't speak ugly white trash.
- 47
This post is addressed to commenter Nos. 46/47:
Your problem is undoubtedly caused by your use of a non-preeminent, non-peer dictionary.
Your failure to understand the problems of the city of your domicile do not suprise me. Yuck.
the astounding amount of douchebaggery on this board makes me incredibly happy that i am no longer in the legal profession.
the astounding amount of douchebaggery on this board makes me incredibly happy that i am no longer in the legal profession.
Since when is it "marriage equality"? If we are going to call it that, shouldn't bigamy and incest be legal?
Call it what it is, gay marriage. Stop the spin.
The Kells is full of BC undergrads