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Gobbledygook?
Chief Justice Roberts, of course, doesn't see it that way. During oral arguments last week, he dismissed the evidence Lander and other mathematical analysts have submitted as proof Wisconsin's legislative elections are rigged as "sociological gobbledygook."
In another exchange with the plaintiffs' attorneys, the chief justice appeared to concede that the evidence he disparaged might be persuasive after all, once you took the time to digest it, but hinted that few voters had the patience or smarts to do so.
"The intelligent man on the street is going to say that's a bunch of baloney," Roberts insisted. If justices blow the whistle on Republican cheating, he believes, the public will inevitably conclude that they're simply shilling for Democrats — "And that is going to cause very serious harm to the status and the integrity of the decisions of this Court in the eyes of the country."
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Roberts' argument amounts to a rejection of rational inquiry itself: If the evidence that Wisconsin has violated its citizens' constitutional rights is too sophisticated for laymen to grasp at first glance, he says, the court would be better off to ignore it.
This is the same cynically anti-intellectual rationale cheerleaders for the fossil fuel industry have marshaled to discredit the evidence of climate change. Until "the intelligent man on the street" has a keener understanding of the role greenhouse gases play in global warming, why should elected officials kowtow to experts who do?
Of course, the same logic could be marshaled to discount the warnings of hurricane forecasters or military strategists trying to anticipate the likely consequences of a military confrontation in the Middle East or on the Korean peninsula. If we don't understand their calculations, why should we pay any attention to them?
The answer, of course, is that democratic government, like many other aspects of daily life, requires a reasonable deference to those with superior expertise: the surgeon who does hundreds of bypass operations a year, the repair technician who diagnoses malfunctioning furnaces for a living, or the pilot with 10,000 hours of in-flight service under her belt.
Roberts is right to be worried about the credibility of the judiciary, and its capacity to command the confidence of citizens across the political spectrum. But he should be at least as concerned about the credibility of representative democracy itself.
As Paul Smith, who represents the plaintiffs challenging Wisconsin's legislative map argues, the stakes in Gill v. Whitford are larger than the public's perception of Justice Roberts and his colleagues.
"If you let this go, if you say … we're not going to have a judicial remedy for this problem, in 2020 you're going to have a festival of copycat gerrymandering the likes of which this country has never seen," Smith warned Roberts near the end of Tuesday's oral arguments. "Voters everywhere are going to be like voters in Wisconsin, and (say): No, it really doesn't matter whether I vote."
Brian Dickerson is a columnist for The Detroit Free Press, where this piece first appeared.
You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @USATOpinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To respond to a column, submit a comment to [email protected].
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This man is serious about these Tiffanys!
Are you a professional sneaker camper? If so, then this job is perfect for you! You may proceed to apply for this job, as long as you meet this guy's requirements:
Experienced camper ie: One who has previously camped out for electronics, sneakers, ect. I will provide 1 Tent
1 Lawn Chair
1 Book of Choice
1 24 pack of Deer Park 16.7 oz waters. **Please note, you probably will miss out on the super bowl this Sunday.
And if for any reason you lose your spot in line, this terminates your duty as a camper.
Please bring toiletry, and warm clothing.
Yes folks, this is a real craigslist ad. It is not uncommon to see girlfriends, bestfriends, and relatives camping for someone during a sneaker release, but we have seen it all now. This person who posted this ad is located in Merrifield, Virgina. Cant knock a man's hustle, clearly he is thirsty for a pair of the Nike Dunk High SB Tiffany. Here is the Craigslist Ad if you're curious.
Compensation on the bottom of the ad reads, "Pay will be $2.08 an hour which equals $50 per day. If you begin today you will."
Would you take him up on the offer? Comment below.
Hundreds gather at De la Guerra Plaze to cheer on alternative choice to Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump
“For the first time in my life, I have someone I can stand behind as a presidential candidate,” Texas resident Diane Boyd, 69, said at a Santa Barbara rally for Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein.
With 31 days left until the Nov. 8 election, Stein brought her campaign to De la Guerra Plaza on Saturday morning, speaking in front of more than 200 supporters.
During the rally, she promoted “the push for peace, justice and democracy.”
“The biggest wasted vote is the one that is thrown away voting for the political parties that have thrown us under the bus,” Stein said. “The best use of our vote is an investment in the future and a real declaration of the power we have.”
Key issues in Stein’s platform are college debt and making public higher education free, she said.
The Harvard University graduate and physician said the 43 million people in student loan debt “have one place to put their vote.”
“Most people are struggling and they aren’t recovering,” Stein said. “There’s only one candidate who will cancel that student debt and who will bail out the students like we bailed out Wall Street — the crooks who crashed the economy.”
Referring to that 43 million people, Stein said the bloc “is enough to win a three-way presidential race and the numbers it takes to turn the election on its head.”
Stein also discussed the need for a “Green New Deal,” the idea to create millions of jobs by making the transition to 100 percent clean renewable energy by 2030.
She said there’s a need to create 20 million livable wage jobs with clean renewable energy that will help restore ecosystems.
“In doing this, we not only revive the economy, we turn the tide on climate change,” she said.
Enthusiastic fans applauded in support after her statements.
Addressing her supporters at the rally, Stein advocated “health care as a human right, for everyone, through a health care-for-all system.”
Throughout her remarks, Stein referenced Republican candidate Donald Trump’s position on immigration.
“We don’t need your frigging wall, we just need to stop invading other countries,” she said. “We call for a welcoming path toward citizenship for the immigrants who have always been at the front of our economy and community.”
She also addressed the Black Lives Matter movement.
“We need to put an end to the abuse and should not let one more die in the arms of police,” Stein said.
Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton will face off at 6 p.m. Pacific time Sunday in St. Louis for a 90-minute town hall at Washington University.
Stein said she will join a live debate response via her social media platforms to coincide with the second debate, which has been preceded by extraordinary chaos in the wake of a tape of Trump describing his pursuit of women in lurid and demeaning terms.
“The political establishment wants us to believe we are powerless and the problems are way too complicated to solve them,” Stein said.
“In fact, in this election, it’s not just about what kind of a world we want but, but whether we will have a world or not going forward.”
National polls put Stein at 2 percent, behind even Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson at 7 percent, according to a CNN/ORC poll of 1,501 adult Americans interviewed by telephone between Sept. 28 and Oct. 2.
Stein was also the Green Party’s 2012 candidate for president.
Green Party Ventura County member Michael Cervantes joined the Santa Barbara rally in hopes of getting Stein to the White House.
“We are here to listen to a true progressive voice,” he said. “The people still seem to need to hear that. Much of what she is talking about is similar to what Bernie Sanders talked about.”
Joining Stein at the rally was rapper Kor Element, who said he started supporting her after Sanders lost the Democratic Party nomination to Clinton.
He’s been campaigning with Stein across Southern California and said he supports her progressive ideas.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) . Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
Officials doubted someone could have walked away from the crash The wreckage of a plane found near the town of Mammoth Lakes in California does belong to missing US adventurer Steve Fossett, officials say. A number plate confirmed the plane as the Bellanca Super Decathlon piloted by the 63-year-old millionaire. Body parts are reported to have been found inside. The search began after a hiker found items thought to belong to Mr Fossett. He vanished in September last year on a solo flight that took off 90 miles (145km) away in neighbouring Nevada. Click here to see a map of the area A wide-ranging search operation conducted since then had failed to find any trace of Mr Fossett or his plane and he was officially declared dead in February. Fuselage shattered Madera County Sheriff John Anderson said the wreckage had been spotted late on Wednesday during an aerial search of a stretch of the Sierra Nevada mountains near Mammoth Lakes. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Advertisement A ground team later confirmed the identity of the plane, which seemed to have struck the mountain head-on, Mr Anderson said. "The crash looked so severe I doubt if someone would have walked away from it," he said. Most of the fuselage had disintegrated, with engine parts scattered several hundred feet away. Mr Anderson initially said no human remains had been found at the crash site. "It's quite often if you don't find remains within a few days, because of animals, you'll find nothing at all," he said. SOME OF FOSSETT'S RECORDS 1998/2002: Long-distance for solo ballooning 2001/2002: Duration for solo ballooning 2002: First solo round-the-world balloon flight First balloon crossings of Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, South Atlantic, South Pacific, Indian Oceans Seven fastest speed sailing titles 13 World Sailing Speed Record Council titles 2001: Fastest transatlantic sailing 2004: Fastest round-the-world sailing Round-the-world titles for medium airplanes US transcontinental titles for non-military aircraft
In pictures: Steve Fossett Profile: Steve Fossett But reports later said that some remains had been found in the aircraft and would be sent for DNA analysis. Fifty people and five dog teams would carry out an extensive search of the site for Mr Fossett's remains, he added. On Thursday British entrepreneur Richard Branson paid tribute to his friend and fellow adventurer. "The most important thing is that the family know what's happened," he said. "He led an extraordinary, absolutely remarkable life, and now we can remember him for what he was and move on." The National Transportation Safety Board will be responsible for examining the wreckage. But a local official said snow was expected over the weekend, potentially hampering the investigation. The wreckage was located two days after identity documents bearing Mr Fossett's name - including a pilot's licence - as well as cash and a sweatshirt were found by hiker Preston Morrow. Mr Morrow had been returning from a mountain walk when he spotted the items in dirt and pine needles west of Mammoth Lakes. An employee at a sporting goods store, Mr Morrow said he handed them over to police after unsuccessful attempts to contact the Fossett family. The BBC's Rajesh Mirchandani, in Los Angeles, says the items were found outside the vast area searched after Mr Fossett went missing - and also in a different direction to that in which he was thought to have flown. Mr Fossett took off from the ranch of hotel magnate Barron Hilton, south of Yerington, Nevada, on 3 September 2007 on a flight that was expected to last three hours. In 2002, he became the first person to circle the globe solo in a balloon and had about 100 other world records to his name.
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What makes a great leader? Knowledge, smarts and vision, to be sure. To that, Daniel Goleman, author of “Leadership: The Power of Emotional Intelligence,” would add the ability to identify and monitor emotions — your own and others’ — and to manage relationships. Qualities associated with such “emotional intelligence” distinguish the best leaders in the corporate world, according to Mr. Goleman, a former New York Times science reporter, a psychologist and co-director of a consortium at Rutgers University to foster research on the role emotional intelligence plays in excellence. He shares his short list of the competencies.
1. SELF-AWARENESS
Realistic self-confidence: You understand your own strengths and limitations; you operate from competence and know when to rely on someone else on the team.
Emotional insight: You understand your feelings. Being aware of what makes you angry, for instance, can help you manage that anger.
2. SELF-MANAGEMENT
Resilience: You stay calm under pressure and recover quickly from upsets. You don’t brood or panic. In a crisis, people look to the leader for reassurance; if the leader is calm, they can be, too.
Things break down, whether due to accidents, negligence, or just plain wear and tear. Instead of shelling out for an expensive repair or replacement, though, you can often fix the problem yourself for much less. Here are 10 repairs you should never pay for.
Image from Refat/Shutterstock
10. Bicycles
Bicycles are quick to break down, especially if you don't treat them properly, but that doesn't mean you need to take it in for repairs every few months. Most of the fixes you can easily do yourself at home. Check out The Bicycle Tutor for instructions on how to perform pretty much any fix you could ever need, and if you need a repair stand, you can always make one of those for yourself too.
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9. Headphones
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It always seems inevitable that your headphone cords are going to start fraying, the 'buds will detach themselves, and you'll be stuck buying another pair. Instead of buying new 'phones, though, you can easily fix those stripped wires with a bit of Plasti Dip. Alternatively, if it's the actual connector that's causing problems, you can replace that yourself in a jiffy as well. And, in the future, make sure you wrap your headphones correctly instead of just waiting for the inevitable—we've featured a ton of different ways to do this, so there's no excuse to just let them get ruined!
8. Plumbing
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There are certainly times where you want a licensed plumber on the job, but you don't need to call them for every little clog and leak you get. We've shown you how to unclog almost any drain, from the sink to the shower to the toilet. If you're feeling in the mood for a MacGyver trick, we've also mentioned how to fix your toilet with aluminum foil, use food coloring to diagnose a leak, use a stethoscope to locate a leak, and how to make your own homemade Drano without the harsh chemicals.
How to Unclog a Drain There are few more annoying home repairs that demand your immediate attention like clogged drains.… Read more Read
7. Clothing
Finding the perfect tailor is great for your nice suits and pants, but when it comes to the minor sewing projects, you shouldn't have to bother them—just fix them yourself at home. Learn the basics of sewing and you'll be ready to take on all sorts of DIY clothing projects—from sewing a button back on to fixing size issues in your new favorite button-down shirt.
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6. Laptop Power Cords
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You may keep your laptop in perfect condition, but that power cord probably still takes a lot of abuse—from the constant coiling and packing to people tripping over it in the coffee shop. Once the ends start to fray, many people would head off to the store to buy a new one, but not you. If it's of the Apple variety, you know you can just open it up and add a new cable, and then learn how to wrap it properly in the future. However, for an easier fix, you can patch up just about any power cord with a bit of Sugru—heck, you could even throw the Sugru on before it frays to give it some extra protection.
5. Phones and Other Mobile Gadgets
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No matter how careful you handle your phone, accidents happen, but you can save some cash by fixing it yourself. Repairing an iPhone screen is rather easy (heck, even a 10 year old can do it), and so is replacing its dead battery. If your iPod isn't booting, you might be able to fix it with just a business card, and even older non-smartphones are fairly easy to fix. No matter what gadget you have, you can head over to repair site iFixit to see a full teardown guide. You might have to buy a replacement screen, battery, or other part online, but it'll be a lot cheaper than buying a new one. Photo by Lars Plougmann.
4. LCD Monitors and TVs
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There's nothing worse than turning on your computer only to see a dead pixel right in the middle of the screen, ready to eat away at you until you go crazy and buy a new monitor. Luckily, these pixels are often just stuck, not dead, and you can fix them with computer programs, by massaging it away, or, if it really is dead, you can bring it back to life with a damp cloth. If you've burned an image into your LCD instead, you can fix that too with a white screen saver. If it does come time to replace it, do what you have to do—but if it's a laptop monitor, you might want to try replacing the screen yourself instead of sending it in for repairs (or buying a whole new laptop). Photo by whyohwhyohwhyoh.
3. Cars
While you aren't equipped to fix more complicated automobile problems, you can easily pull off lots of the low-level maintenance stuff yourself, without taking a costly trip to the dealership. Learn how to change a tire yourself, and check out VehicleFixer for videos on how to change the oil, replace your brake pads, and more. If you have a small dent in your car, you may even be able to fix that with a can of compressed air and a hairdryer. Note that while these are all things you can do yourself, minor jobs are also useful for testing out new mechanics—so don't be afraid to hand that brake job over once in a while if you're trying out someone new.
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2. Your House
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The walls and floor of your house are subject to wear and tear just like everything else, but much of it you can fix right on the spot. Repairing wall damage is easy, and you can always fill in floor holes with a melted crayon, fix stripped screw holes with a golf tee, and even fix cracks in your furniture with mayonnaise. If you want to get a few DIY skills for the future, we can't recommend volunteering enough—working on a site with someone like Habitat for Humanity is a great way to learn more about home repair while doing something good in the process. Of course, when the problem is serious enough that you need to call a contractor, make sure you don't get hosed in the process. Photo by Sharon Pruitt.