f/k/a archives . . . real opinions & real haiku

October 24, 2008

a few kukai winners as we hit the road

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu — David Giacalone @ 8:28 am

.. The multi-personality f/k/a Gang is heading “home” to Rochester for a few days, to see Mama G. and my siblings.  Posting and comment moderation may be slow or non-existent, and we hope someone will miss us a little.

The results of the 6th Annual Shiki Poets’ Choice Kukai (haiku contest) were announced last night by Robert Bauer.  You should be able to find all the winners in a day or so at the The Shiki Monthly Kukai website.  Here are three highly-rated poems by two of our Honored Guest Poets:

early spring
all night the pond ice
shifts its weight

…. by tom painting (2nd Place, 2008 6th Annual Shiki Poets’ Choice Kukai)

first firefly
the electrician shuts
his toolbox

a field
of faceless pumpkins…
Autumn begins

…. by ed markowski
“a field” – (3rd Place, 2008 6th Annual Shiki Poets’ Choice Kukai)
“first firefly” – (10th Place, 2008 6th Annual Shiki Poets’ Choice Kukai)

If you’re in the mood for poems with an autumn theme, check out our post from September 25th, which featured that month’s Shiki Kukai results.

p.s. Prof. Yabut got up quite early and is particularly grumpy this morning.  He wants me to ask our Shiki friends to reconsider the way they enumerate and describe contest results. Right now, e.g., if there are four poems tied for 3rd Place (all receiving the same number of points), the next poem is designated 4th Place by Shiki, when it is actually in 7th Place.  Similarly, if two poems are tied for 2nd place, they call the next poem 3rd Place, when it is really 3rd.  It’s sort of like grade-creep. [Lawyers are so picky, aren’t they?]

still blocking
my river view –
a few stubborn red leaves

tank full
and bladders empty —
soon, vice-versa

…….. by dagosan

October 23, 2008

susan savage gets something right: banning DWT

Filed under: Schenectady Synecdoche — David Giacalone @ 6:38 pm

.. We’ve probably spent more than enough time on Wendy Savage today. In contrast to all that good press, there’s another Ms. Savage who’s gotten nothing but bad reviews here at f/k/a the past couple of years (see here, and there): She’s Susan E. Savage, the Chair of the Schenectady County Legislature. But, it had to happen: Chairwoman Savage has proposed a local law that actually makes good sense. Indeed, we supported just such a law for the entire State about 5 weeks ago here at f/k/a.

To wit: If Susan Savage gets her way, “Texting while driving could soon be banned in Schenectady County” (CBS 6 News, October 23, 2008).

update (December 10, 2008): The County Legislature passed the law yesterday, by an 11 – 2 vote.  Only Republicans Joseph Suhrada and Jim Buhrmaster opposed it.  See “Law forbids texting while driving in Schenectady County: Violators could face fine of $150″ (Dec. 10, 2008). According to the Gazette: “Majority Leader Gary Hughes, D-Schenectady, said many state laws, like the helmet law and the cellphone law, began as local measures. ‘We are raising awareness of a particular issue, and until the state acts, we should,’ he said.”

This afternoon, Chairwoman Savage introduced a local law to ban what we call DWT — driving while texting. (Click here to read the full press release as a PDF file; also, “Schenectady County proposing texting ban while driving“, Albany Times Union, October 23, 2008 ) In her press release, Chairwoman Savage had some important things to say:

“This is an important public safety issue. Research has shown the dangers of driver distractions so it is important that we propose legislation that will prevent a deadly accident before it happens.

“I also hope this will raise awareness to this dangerous and deadly behavior. Before the New York State seatbelt law, most drivers knew it was a good idea to wear one, but only 17% of drivers were motivated to change their old habits. Now, 89% of drivers in New York State wear their seatbelts.”

Violators would incur a $150 fine. As the Times Union noted, “The issue took on prominence when five high school girls died in a fiery accident south of Rochester in 2007. Cell phone records showed someone was texting on the driver’s cell phone when the girls’ SUV passed a car and crashed into a tractor trailer.” And,

“By considering this legislation, Schenectady County says it would join Rochester’s Monroe County in proposing a ban. Westchester and Suffolk counties have already passed similar bans. Alaska, New Jersey, Minnesota, and Washington State have also passed state-wide bans.”

As we opined on September 18th, The Schenectady Gazette got it right on banning driving while texting in its editorial “Textbook case of a law that shouldn’t be necessary, but is” (September 15, 2008):

“And [the DWT law] should be enforced more rigorously than the oft-ignored handheld cellphone ban. Perhaps if police had done a better job with that one, motorists wouldn’t be so brazen about engaging in far-more-distracting text messaging.”

The f/k/a Gang hopes the ban on texting while driving passes — but would how to have a statewide ban soon. If we get really lucky, Susan Savage may realize that her arguments about driving distractions apply equally to DWP: driving while phoning. Unfortunately, the State has pre-empted local jurisdictions with ineffective, counterproductive and under-enforced laws that only ban hand-held cellphones, while permitting drivers to use the equally distracting hands-free version. It would be great, threfore, if Ms. Savage got other local leaders across the state to lobby the Legislature and Governor David Paterson to ban all forms of phoning while driving. If, as a busy politician and mother, she currently engages in that reckless behavior behind the wheel, publicly giving it up would make Susan Savage an excellent role model.

update (Oct. 24, 2008): A few of our neighbors at the Rotterdam [NY] internet forum are less than enthusiastic about the texting ban. My quick response:

  • “nannyism” is government making you do something that is good for you, it is not banning activity that is dangerous to other people and their property;
  • if this is a good law, it does not serve the public well to be fretting, as Republican legislator Joe Suhrada does in today’s Gazette, that Susan Savage is engaging in a distracting sideshow to avoid attention on the new “wallet-busting budget.” If our Legislators aren’t capable of reviewing a budget while spending a small amount of time on this issue (and maybe a few others), we need to elect more capable people. And, if politicians can’t time activity to make themselves look good, Joe Suhrada might have to go out of business.
  • as noted above, the hand-held cellphone law has not deterred the practice of DWP because it has not been adequately enforced (with the law flaunted everywhere openly); effective enforcement and high-profile publicity are needed to make this work; the fact that enforcement will raise money is a plus, not a reason to oppose the law;
  • those who argue “we can’t cure stupid” might just as well say “we can’t cure greed or anger” and oppose laws against fraud, robbery, murder, etc. The fact that so many of our younger citizens engage in this dangerous activity is a reason to act against it, not to give up and turn DWT into some kind of birthright.
  • It may be difficult to spot some of the texters, as Sheriff Harry Buffardi mentioned to the Gazette, but much of it is visible and records of usage are available from the service providers if a dispute arises.

.. let’s ban driving while texting! . .

 

. . . and all phoning while driving! . . .

wendy savage wendy savage

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu,lawyer news or ethics,Procrastination Punditry — David Giacalone @ 11:49 am

. . . . Confession: The f/k/a Gang found and quickly read Brian Tracey’s essay “Eat that Frog: Stop Procrastination” this morning, but it didn’t work. Instead of getting down to finishing an important legal ethics essay, we’ve compiled this little fluff piece [which has become the most visited posting in the history of our weblog] for the throngs of Google searchers trying to find the irresistible “Wendy Savage”.

in the middle
of the distraction –
an interruption

…………………. by dagosan

According to f/k/a‘s statistics page, a lot of people across the nation have been looking for “Wendy Savage” over the past several weeks. Today, however, the number of referrals to this weblog from Google searches for Ms. Savage mushroomed (with more than a thousand visitors as of 4 PM, and at least 2500 by midnight), thanks to the Boston Globe article “Calendar is Exhibit A in case for beautiful lawyers” (Oct. 23, 2008). The article includes a photo gallery with 13 pictures from the Beautiful Lawyers Calendar. (And see “Big-Firm Lawyers Posed for Hottie Calendar“, ABAJournal News, Oct. 23, 2008).

The Google searchers have been arriving at our site due to this post and that one about the Beautiful Lawyers Calendar, which contains photos of six men and six women who practice law in the Boston area. One of the calendar models is Wendy Savage, the very lovely in-house counsel for Liberty Mutual in Boston, who graduated from Boston University Law School in 2006. I’m fairly certain Counselor Savage is the person most querists are seeking when they put the name in their Google box. So, I’m going to give you a little more information about her, which I found in the Boston Edition of Exhibit A (“Beautiful Lawyers (Seriously),” October 7, 2008).

However, we’ve discovered there are a lot of other interesting women named Wendy Savage, and we’re going to tell you a bit about some of them, too.

using his nose
the dog searches
the violets

…. by Kobayashi Issa, translated by David G. Lanoue

Wendy Savage, Esq: It’s just a gut feeling, but I’m betting this photo at the Globe website is what has so many people Googling some variation of /Wendy Savage lawyer/. [WCVB/BostonChannel.com had the photo on September 29, 2008, in a slide show.] The Boston Globe tells us that Wendy Savage will be featured in March 2008 on the Beautiful Lawyers Calendar. The blurb accompanying the photo says:

Wendy, a corporate counsel for Liberty Mutual, lists fashion photography and equestrian sports among her hobbies. One day, she hopes to work as a legal correspondent in the fashion or entertainment industries.

For those who need to know more about the Liberty Mutual lawyer, here’s information (probably culled from the Calendar) presented earlier this month at Exhibit A:

WENDY SAVAGE

Job: In-house lawyer, Liberty Mutual Insurance Co., Boston

Age: 28

Personal status: “My fiancé proposed to me and took me to Paris as a surprise.”

Before she became a lawyer, Wendy Savage dreamed of a career in modeling. But when she was told that, at 5-foot-7, she was too short to make it big, she went to law school instead.

Today, the in-house lawyer at Liberty Mutual plans to develop a specialty in entertainment law.

While Savage has done some modeling on the side over the years, her calendar cover shot is her highest-profile work to date. “It’s a group of diverse lawyers where I don’t think the focus is on physical attractiveness, but rather the person as a whole,” Savage says of her decision to participate in the project.

Prof. Yabut wonders if the young attorney had any idea her participation in the beautiful lawyers calendar would bring so much attention — and whether it’s the kind of attention she anticipated. Maybe she’ll grant an interview soon so we can learn more about “the person as a whole.”

summer dawn —
the curve of your body
under the sheets

… by Lee Gurga –

  • afterwords (Oct. 28, 2008):  Boston’s Wendy Savage, Esq., graciously thanked us today for our coverage of the Calendar, and (in response to our request) sent this link from the Zehra Hyder Summer 08 Collection, and another from the Myre 08 Spring/Summer Fashion Launch Party, with other fashion photos of herself.
  • Also (Oct. 30, 2008), you’ll find two more exclusive and intriguing photos of Wendy Savage if you scroll to the end of our post today.
  • aftershots (Nov. 17, 2008): As we report in “lots more Wendy Savage, Esq.“, the Beautiful Lawyers Calendar has posted a Wendy Gallery, with ten large pictures from her photo shoot.

    • afterthoughts (Oct. 31, 2008): At Mass Lawyers Weekly‘s weblog, The Docket, Julia Reischel writes “15 Minutes of Beautiful Lawyer fame,” where she states a truth that’s plain to see: “Wendy Savage, the in-house insurance lawyer who graces the cover of the calendar, is really the one responsible for turning the product into an Internet phenomenon.”

    — you can use this Tiny URL to share this posting: http://tinyurl.com/fkaWendySavage —

Year-end Update (Dec. 30, 2008): See our post “a sparkingly Savage year,” which discusses the Boston Magazine article “Counsel Requests the Right to Appeal: Smokin’-hot lawyer Wendy Savage defends her buzzy turn as a pinup” (by Alyssa Giacobbe, January 2009), and the issue of professional women posing in sexy pictures.

. . . and now, more Wendy Savages:  

“Wendy Savage” is — we were reminded this morning thanks to Google — the character played by Laura Linney in the 2007 movie “The Savages.” This fictional Savage played a neurotic, aspiring playwright from Manhattan, dealing with the advanced senility of her father. Philip Seymour Hoffman played her brother. The role gained Linney her third Academy Award nomination.

his side of it.
her side of it.
winter silence

… by Lee Gurga –

shaving him
dad says I would have loved
a son like you

…. by Ed Markowski

Another Wendy Savage is an actress ..

She plays Jennifer in the independent short film Computer Guy: the sitcom. Among her many stage roles was that of the Cyclist/Child in “The Wedding on the Eiffel Tower,” at San Diego’s Vantage Theatre. The Computer Guy cast page says:

Wendy Savage has been playing on the stage since she was a kid. After high school, she ventured out to the Big Apple to study acting at NYU. Several years later she found herself in the Pacific Northwest. She had the opportunity to be apart of two amazing collaborative original plays that showcased in the Seattle Fringe Festival. (“Famished” in 1995 and “Water Licked” in 1997). Before leaving Seattle, Wendy was a part of an independent film (“Slaves to the Underground”) that went on to be in The Women’s Film Festival in Seattle. Since moving to San Diego, Wendy’s favorite productions to date have been “The Marriage of Bette and Boo” (Emily), “The Wedding on the Eiffel Tower” (Cyclist/Child), and “Invisible Bob” (Mary) which recently debuted in the Fritz Blitz (2004). Wendy has been focusing on doing more film projects. “Computer Guy: A Sitcom” is her 4th independent short film. Painting is her second passion.

Christmas pageant—
the one who had to get married
plays virgin Mary

… by Lee Gurga

Wendy Savage: photographer: This Wendy is an adjunct faculty member in the Art Department of Meredith College, in Raleigh, NC. “Since 1984, Savage has been employed as a medical photographer and digital designer at NC State College of Veterinary Medicine.”

  • She has a Boston connection, having received her MFA from The Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University
  • Click for her photo studio website

morning twilight . . .
horse asleep in the pasture
covered with frost

bitter morning—
I move the injured puppy
into the sun

…. by Lee Gurga

Syracuse NY’s Wendy Savage is the New Patient Treatment Coordinator in the dental office of Dr. Mark A. Paciorek. At their Celebrating Smiles website, Wendy says:

“I am the New Patient Treatment Coordinator at Dr. Paciorek’s office. I have been working in the Orthodontic field for 21 years and I love it. I am married with four children and the whole family has had orthodontic treatment! My favorite part of my job is meeting our new patients and teaching them all about braces and how orthodontics can improve not only your smile, but your life.”

professional conference—
in the restroom all the dentists
washing their hands

…. by Lee Gurga, D.D.S. – most poems above from Fresh Scent: Selected Haiku of Lee Gurga (1998)

.. .. Physician Wendy Savage .. is the author of “Birth and Power: ‘A Savage Enquiry’ revisited” (Middlesex University Press, 2007). Her Middlesex, however, is located in the United Kingdom, not in the Massachusetts County that lies just northwest of Boston. According to the AHA Foundation:

“Born on April 12th, 1935 in Surrey, Wendy Savage is a distinguished gynaecologist and champion of women’s rights in childbirth and fertility.”

Indeed, she became a cause célèbre, in 1985, when she was suspended from her post at the London Hospital Medical College, accused of incompetence in the management of five obstetric cases. The allegations were not upheld, and Dr. Savage was reinstated in 1986; she retired in 2000. Her book “A Savage Enquiry: Who Controls Childbirth?” described that experience and is included in the 2007 sequel Birth and Power.

Well, that should be enough Wendy Savages to fulfill any Googler’s needs. I’ve got a frog or two to eat and more serious writing to work on today. Below the fold, you’ll find a few rules I still need to internalize from Brian Tracey’s “Eat that Frog: Stop Procrastination“.

(more…)

October 22, 2008

big league battles: guns and baseballs

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu,lawyer news or ethics — Tags: — David Giacalone @ 11:17 am

There are two good diversions available today for folks who would like to give the old Sicilian Chin-flick to either or both of the Presidential Campaigns: 1) The recent attacks from the political and judicial Right on the Supreme Court’s gun control decision in D.C. v. Heller — especially as it focuses on the “judicial activism” of Justice Antonin Scalia; and, for those who would rather avoid all political agita, 2) The opening of the World Series tonight in Tampa Bay, Florida.

October revival
all hands lift
to the foul ball

two outs in the ninth–
the reliever bangs the ball
against his cup

…………………………. by Jim Kacian
“October revival” – Piedmont Lit. Review (Circa 1992); Baseball Haiku (2007)

.. Justice Antonin Scalia.. (photo: Peter Smith/Boston Herald)

Who Are You Calling an Activist? Yesterday’s NYT article “Ruling on Guns Elicits Rebuke from the Right” (New York Times, October 21, 2008) has been getting a lot of attention.  In it, Adam Liptak says:

“Two prominent federal appeals court judges say that Justice Antonin Scalia’s majority opinion in the case, District of Columbia v. Heller, is illegitimate, activist, poorly reasoned and fueled by politics rather than principle. The 5-to-4 decision in Heller struck down parts of a District of Columbia gun control law.”

As Prof. Steven Schwinn at Constitutional Law Prof Blog summarizes in “Heller critiqued from the Right“:

“Adam Liptak (NYT) reported today that Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III (4th Circuit) and Judge Richard Posner (7th Circuit) criticized D.C. v. Heller, last term’s gun-rights case, for its methodology.  Particularly, Judge Wilkinson wrote in a Virginia Law Review article, and Judge Posner wrote in The New Republic, that the Court’s methodology had some of the same problems as the Court’s methodology in Roe v. Wade.

“The articles aren’t new, and I suspect many of us have been using them and Heller to illustrate and discuss originalism in our classes.  (Heller, of course, is a wonderful case study, because both majority and dissent claim to adopt a form of originalism, but they come out very differently.)  But Liptak’s article, which clearly and concisely sets out the arguments and explores (even if only briefly) the politics of aligning Heller with Roe, gives us yet another way to share these issues with our students.”

.. At the often-thoughtful, mostly right-leaning Volokh Conspiracy, Prof. David Bernstein disagrees with Judge Wilkinson’s comparison of Roe and Heller, saying “this is a terrible analogy, and one that would get a poor grade from me if made on a constitutional law exam.”  And, although VC‘s Jonathan Adler is not convinced by Judge Wilkinson’s complaints against Heller, he is also not at all surprised, because “Judge Wilkinson has always been uncomfortable invalidating legislative acts on constitutional grounds.”

For more, see “Conservatives against Heller” at Reason.com (Oct. 21, 2008); “Another judge rips Scalia’s Heller opinion,” from Scott Greenfield” at Simple Justice (Oct. 22, 2008); and “Is Heller like Roe v. Wade,” at Feminist Law Profs.

The skeptics here at f/k/a have always felt that Activism is in the Gut of the Beholder (or, as Prof. Yabut put it a few years ago, “it all depends whose Fox is being whored.”) Back in 2004, Dahlia Lithwick got it right in a guest column in the New York Times, headlined “Activist, Schmactivist” (August 15, 2004):

We can disagree about outcomes, but we have, at least as a matter of political language, internalized the fiction that liberal judges “make” law, while conservative judges “interpret” it.

A modest proposal, then: Let’s invent a new term right here, today, for judges or judicial nominees on the right, who claim to be merely “interpreting” the Constitution, even when they are refusing to impose settled law; law they deem unsettled because it was invented by “liberal activist judges.” And while I am open to better suggestions, here’s a tentative offering: “Re-activist judges.”

That’s about all punditry we’re gonna make today (since we have to run out to see our primary medical provider), beyond noting that we’ve been less than impressed over the years with the antics of our paisan Anonin Scalia (see here and there).

.. Phillies vs. Rays: The (so-called) World Series starts tonight, with the Philadelphia Phillies visiting the Tampa Bay Rays. The f/k/a Gang is even more indifferent than usual about the outcome of this year’s Fall Classic.  Nonetheless, the World Series is a great excuse to remind you to check out the f/k/a Baseball Haiku page, our many excerpts from last year’s haiku classic volume Baseball Haiku (W.W. Norton Press, 2007), and our coverage of the Chautauqua Institution’s Baseball Haiku Roundtable this past June.

As we’ve said before, you don’t have to like baseball or haiku to like baseball haiku. Here are a few tiny seasonal poems to get you in the baseball spirit:

first red leaves
i swing late
on a change-up

two crows
settle on the foul pole…
100th loss

“red hots!”
for an instant i’m ten
and
father’s still alive


bases loaded
no one out…..
the pitcher
blows a bubble

. . . . . . . . . . . . by Ed Markowski –

“bases loaded” – Haiku Sun (Issue X, Jan. 2004)

and see our collection from Ed: “American Sports . . . American Haiku” (June 2008; cover)

third strike
the designated hitter
blows on his hands

tied in the ninth
pitcher and batter
cross themselves

…………. by dagosan

p.s. Did you say you really do need your Presidential Politics Fix today?  Head over to the new ABAJournal (American Bar Association, November 2008), where the cover story tells you their best guesses at “The Lawyers Who May Run America” in either a McCain or an Obama Administration.

October 20, 2008

too many men are killing babies

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu,Schenectady Synecdoche,viewpoint — David Giacalone @ 11:06 am

..  . Baby Killers: in Troy, MO, and Troy, NY .  ..

On Tuesday, September 23, 2008, in the shrinking, economically-challenged City of Troy, New York, four-month-old Matthew Thomas died of serious head trauma due to injuries sustained when his 26-year-old, 500-pound father, Adrian Thomas, “threw him down hard” several times while arguing with his wife. (see CapitalNews9)

That same day, almost a thousand miles away in the thriving, rapidly growing little City of Troy, Missouri, 6-week-old Hannah Edwards sustained severe brain damage after being struck in the head and shaken by her mother’s boyfriend, Ronald I. Schupmann, 23, who was not her biological father. (See the St. Louis Post-Dispatch).

Hannah died on Friday, September 26, the same day that little Matthew Thomas was buried and his father (who was recently unemployed and depressed) was indicted for murder, in Troy, NY.

For quite a few months, I’ve been wanting to write about a terrible trend I’ve noticed here in the New York Capital Region the past few years: Although we are a relatively small Metro area, every month or so a grown man is in the news for killing a baby (usually his own or his girlfriend’s).  The men are most often in their early to mid- 20’s.   They shake, punch or throw the child — usually because the baby is crying inconsolably. Their victims are not even toddlers yet, and often just a few months old.

I’m finally writing this post, because the Schenectady Sunday Gazette featured the article “Shaken baby deaths persist: Problem is all too common” (by Jill Bryce, October 19, 2008) on the front page of the local news section.  From the article and additional research, I’ve learn that about 80% of the perpetrators of Shaken Baby Syndrome or Abusive Head Trauma to young children are male.  In addition:

“The abuser is usually the baby’s father or the mother’s boyfriend. Female perpetrators tend to be a caregiver other than the biological mother.”

When Googling /Troy murder infant father/ yesterday, to locate the recent case described above from the nearby city of Troy, NY (find more coverage of it here and here), I discovered the strange coincidence of baby Hannah’s death the same week as Matthew’s in the very-different city of Troy, Missouri.

According to the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome, SBS/AHT (shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma) is a term used to describe the constellation of signs and symptoms resulting from violent shaking or shaking and impacting of the head of an infant or small child.

  • Often, perpetrators shake an infant or child out of frustration or anger. This most often occurs when the baby won’t stop crying. Other triggering events include toilet training difficulties and feeding problems.
  • The Shaken Baby Coalition says: “In America last year, approximately 1,200 – 1,400 children were shaken for whom treatment was sought. Of these tiny victims, 25 -30% died as a result of their injuries. The rest will have lifelong complications.”
  • Perpetrator Profile: Average age of perpetrator 22 years; 75% male; 81% had no history of child abuse; 75% had no history of substance abuse; 50% were natural parents of the victims; 37% biological father; 21% boyfriends of the mother; 17% female child care providers; 12% mothers; 13% other
  • It’s estimated that “Twenty-five (25%) to fifty (50%) percent of Americans do not understand the danger of shaking a baby, nor do they realize the possible long-term consequences.”

We haven’t located more-recent statistics, but a 2003 North Carolina study estimated that about 300 babies died in this country from SBS or non-accidental head trauma in 2002. In 1997, the FBI reported that about 5 babies a week are killed in the USA.  In his 1998 “History of Infanticide,” Dr. Larry S. Milne presents some pretty dismal statistics about infanticide in the United States (emphasis added):

Statistically, the United States ranks high on the list of countries whose inhabitants kill their children. For infants under the age of one year, the American homicide rate is 11th in the world, while for ages one through four it is 1st and for ages five through fourteen it is fourth. From 1968 to 1975, infanticide of all ages accounted for almost 3.2% of all reported homicides in the United States.

The 1980’s followed similar trends. Whereby overall homicide rates were decreasing in the United States, the rate at which parents were killing their children was increasing.

(full poster)

The f/k/a Gang can’t offer much direct guidance on this topic.   In a decade representing children at Family Court, your Editor saw many young males (and some females) accused or capable of shaking or assaulting a baby.  Despite the fact that the incidence of SBS/AHT appears higher among the poor and less educated population, it can and does happen throughout our society, affecting every socio-economic and demographic group, across the nation.  We surely need much more vigilance on the part of family members, discretion as to who is left to care for a baby, and education for young parents and their paramours.  Dr. Rudy Nydegger, a clinical psychologist in Schenectady, told the Gazette that the perpetrator often has very little knowledge of how to care for a child.

“It’s terribly important to ensure that people in charge of a child know what to do” when a baby is crying inconsolably.  Caregivers need to ask for help.

Here are links to resources that interested and affected persons and organizations might use to help prevent, understand, and deal with the fatal (or serious, but less severe) effects of non-accidental assaults on “our” babies:

Parents, siblings and other relatives of SBS victims face a special kind of grief.  My heart goes out to them.  They can find some help and comfort from the National Center on SBS, and on the Family Support page of ShakenBaby.org.

In 19th Century Japan, Master Haiku poet Kobayashi Issa saw all four of his children die in the first two years of their lives.  His sorrow and loss, and his love for small children, can be seen in many of his poems.  Here is a sample:

this world
is a dewdrop world
yes… but…

why did the blooming
pink break?
why?

heat shimmers–
missing a child
the parent’s face

.名月や膝を枕の子があらば
meigetsu ya hiza [wo] makura no ko ga araba

harvest moon–
my lap would be a pillow
if my child were here

…….. Translator David G. Lanoue explained the context of this last poem:

“This haiku was written in Seventh Month, 1819. Its biographical context is important, because Issa’s daughter, Sato, born the previous year, died of smallpox in Sixth Month of 1819–just a few weeks before Issa composed this poem. As he sits looking at the harvest moon–one of the most joyful occasions in the calendar for a haiku poet–the happy occasion is marred by a palpable absense. If only Sato were here… This sad poem reminds us of how precious children are to us; how, without them, the wonders of the universe, even the resplendent moon, seem drab and ordinary.”

“Gimme that moon!”
cries the crying
child

………. by Kobayashi Issa, translated by David G. Lanoue

apples picked
and the casket chosen —
lingering sunset

roses on the casket
shaking
at the lowering

… by Michael Dylan Welch –
“roses on the casket” – frogpond (XXIX: 1, Winter 2006)

Burial
mourners and bare trees
blend

……. by George Swede – The Heron’s Nest (June 2005)

October 18, 2008

just another (almost-Halloween, election season) autumn weekend

Filed under: Haiga or Haibun — David Giacalone @ 10:12 am

.. with a new haiga (orig.) .. ..

haunted hayride
the weekend dad
holds on tight

photo: Arthur Giacalone (2000)
poem: David Giacalone

uncle eats all
the trick-or-treat candy
October 18

… dagosan

.. and some new Haibun: To be ghastly frank, the old fuddy-duddies here at f/k/a prefer their haibun — short pieces of narrative prose with a subtly-linked poem — to have customary punctuation and initial caps (and, indeed, actual prose).  Nonetheless, substance is more important than style, and editors and authors wiser than we have selected some rather interesting haibun by a pair of our Honored Guest Poets for the latest issue of Frogpond (Volume 31:3, Fall 2008).  We’ve typed two of them up for you to enjoy on this mid-October weekend:

Food Fair
by w.f. owen

scraping something from my shoe this food varied as the people attending attired in creative colors and fabrics every ethnicity smells of concoctions intermingling wafting through the throng booths offering samples delivered with oversized plastic gloves hairnets never quite covering yet from the mimes to free magnets to cartoon characters to that guy on stilts with the constant smile everything fits.

puppet show she guides her husband into his seat

… by w.f. owen – Frogpond (Volume 31:3, Fall 2008)

Security
by Michael Dylan Welch

The line through security moves slowly, but eventually we empty our pockets and doff our light jackets, place our belongings in plastic containers, and step through the metal detectors.  The Parliament tour is busy, but now we’re inside, just under the Peace Tower, in a waiting area as the tour guide describes the fire that destroyed the original buildings.  Today, we’re among the endless rounds of tourists who will visit the Hall of Honour, the library that survived the fire thanks to two iron doors, and the opulent senate chamber, with carpet and upholstery all in red to symbolize royalty.  As we wait, a video screen repeats views of the rooms where we’ll be walking.

last tour of the day —
the guide’s shoelaces, and mine,
untied

….. by Michael Dylan Welch – Frogpond (Volume 31:3, Fall 2008)

.. And, don’t forget the haibun “Ghostly Figures,” by Ron Moss, which you can find in the Frogpond Sampler for Fall 2008.

Finally, what scares you these days (other than the stock market)?

  • How about a grown man with a law degree (Craig S. MacGlashan) stooping to putting this trash up on the otherwise-contentless Sacramento County Republican Party website (click to enlarge):

The offending images have been taken down from the site, but were captured by Cynthia Foster at The Shark weblog and the Sacramento Bee. (via Ambrogi at Legal Blog Watch)

  • And, speaking of bottom lines, some pampered barrister bottoms might be in for an unaccustomed rough time: It seems at least one large law firm is tightening its belt by buying economy toilet paper. See Above the Law (via Elefant at Legal Blog Watch). Oh my, sounds like rough justice.

October 16, 2008

Maryland Halloween Sign Targets Sex Offenders

Filed under: viewpoint — Tags: , — David Giacalone @ 5:06 pm

. . . for more, see our prior posts: “Halloween tricks: pols vs. sex offenders” (Oct. 30, 2005); “hauntingly familiar” (Oct. 24, 2007); “more scary Halloween laws against sex offenders” (Oct. 9, 2008).  And see, the informative weblog piece by David Hess, The New Urban Myth—The Danger of Registered Sex Offenders at Halloween (October 18, 2010).

…  Md. Sex Offender Halloween Sign

Last week, we told you again about the spread of laws across the nation restricting the conduct of Sex Offenders on Halloween.  One particularly odious and inane rule, from our perspective, is the requirement in states like Missouri and Maryland that sex offenders post a sign at their homes declaring there is no candy at the residence.  The ACLU is challenging Missouri’s law.  After seeing yesterday’s Washington Times, we hope a challenge will be waged in Maryland, too.

Last year, sex offenders in Maryland were given a simple sign to hang on their doors that read: “No Candy.”  That was bad enough, but things have escalated this year.

.. A New Scarlet Letter: The article “Pumpkin symbol marks sex offenders’ homes” (Washington Times, by Tom LoBianco, October 15, 2008), shows the sign that sex offenders must display at their homes in Maryland this Halloween (and we have it at the top of this post).  According to the Times, the bright orange pumpkin is the symbol sex offenders “are required to post on their doors with a warning, in capital letters, to trick-or-treaters: ‘No candy at this residence’.”   In addition to posting the sign, the offenders must stay at home, turn off outside lights and not answer the door.  Some states prohibit sex offenders from decorating the outside of their homes.  But, Maryland is mandating this colorful and “attractive” Halloween decoration.

update (October 31, 2008): Realizing that a sign with a big orange pumpkin on it might actually attract children to a house, Maryland parole agents sent out a pumpkin-less version of the sign this week to sex offenders, merely saying “No Candy at this Residence”.   Strangely, SO’s apparently have the option to use the pumpkin sign.  Parole officials deny they were affected by a Saturday Night Live skit poking fun at their sign (with Seth Myers saying “They are also being required to take down the signs that read, ‘Knock if you can keep a special secret.’”).  See: “Halloween & the Law, Part Deux: Targeting Sexual Offenders“
(Wall Street Journal, October 30, 2008); and “Maryland Sex Offenders Under Close Watch on Halloween”  wamu.org, Oct. 31, 2008)

The signs were mailed out to Maryland sex offenders, with a letter dated October 1st, from the state’s Division of Parole and Probation.  In it, interim director Patrick McGee has this Orwellian message:

“Halloween provides a rare opportunity for you to demonstrate to your neighbors that you are making a sincere effort to change the direction of your life.”

As we’ve mentioned before, there is no record in the United States (nor in Canada) of any registered sex offender abusing a trick-or-treater on Halloween.  The infamous Fond du Lac Halloween Murderer case took place in 1973, when an unaccompanied 9-year-old girl was attacked by a man who had never been convicted of a prior sex crime. (see our posts “halloween tricks: pols vs. sex offenders” and “hauntingly familiar”).

The Washington Times articles also reports that:

  • “Sex offenders In Maryland who do not post the signs and stay home will be taken to court and charged with a violation of parole. However, the new state initiative is not a law.”
  • Wonda Adams, a supervisor at the Parole and Probation Division and coordinator of the Halloween watch program says, “Our goal is public safety, and in keeping with that we need to make sure that the individuals under our supervision are provided with the enhanced supervision that we’re committed to.”
  • In addition, “The state also this year is distributing pamphlets statewide to warn families and trick-or-treaters to stay away from homes with the pumpkin signs, Mrs. Adams said.”
  • One parole agent — who clearly needs a better understanding of the role of the Division and goals of parole —  “has called the new sign a ‘publicity stunt’ and said it should clearly state that a violent sex offender lives at the house.” update (October 17, 2008):  Last night, Jay Leno joked about the Maryland Halloween sign during his monologue, saying it should state “Sex Offender Lives Here.”  It got a laugh, but I’d like to think Jay would reconsider that position in his real life, if he gave the whole notion a bit of thought.

At the website of the Maryland Department of Public Safety’s Division of Parole and Probation, I could find no mention at all of the Halloween parole restrictions, nor of the pamphlet for families.  It is especially appalling that the Division has acted on its own — with no statutory mandate — to initiate a program that is likely to target sex offender homes, on Halloween and thereafter, for pranks, mischief, and possibly violence.  The rule will make it harder, not easier, for the sex offender to “change the direction” of his or her life, and rejoin society, and will surely make life tougher for any family members who live with the sex offender.

Rather than creating a new Scarlet Letter to focus negative attention on sex offenders trying to straighten out their lives, the good public servants in our parole departments and state legislatures should perhaps consider the Biblical story of the Mark of Cain.  As told in the Bible, Cain was the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, and had slain his brother Abel — a serious crime that deserved serious punishment.  However (per Wikipedia):

When Cain complained that the curse was too strong, and that anyone who found him would kill him, God responded, “Not so; if anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over”, and God “set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him” (Gen. 4:15).

Never soft on crime, the Old Testament God would not diminish Cain’s punishment, but made it clear that revenge or vigilantism by others against Cain was not acceptable.  Here’s how Ray C. Stedman explained the mark that the Bible says God put on Cain:

“[T]he mark of Cain is not a mark of shame, as we usually interpret it. It is not a mark to brand him in the eyes of others as a terrible murderer, to be shunned and treated as a pariah. It is rather, a mark of grace, by which God is saying, ‘This man is still my property. Hands off!’ Thus the heart of God is always ready to show mercy.”

Let’s hope that a bit of mercy and restraint will replace the hypocrisy and hysteria that have fueled Halloween restrictions on sex offenders.  Maybe saner heads will reject the unwise, expensive and often counter-productive rules and laws — including residence restrictions — that have been promoted by politicians and civil servants who should know better.

p.s. If I still lived in Maryland (having resided in Bethesda for a few years prior to moving to Schenectady), I’d be tempted to make lots of copies of the Sex Offender No Candy sign, and to urge others who are not sex offenders to use them, too.

Beary wins the Basho Haiku Challenge, challenges some haijin flaws

Filed under: haijin-haikai news,Haiku or Senryu,viewpoint — David Giacalone @ 1:49 pm

Don Wentworth of the Lilliput Review and the weblog Issa’s Untidy Hut, has announced today (October 16, 2008) that our lawyer-poet friend Roberta Beary is the winner of the 1st Annual Basho Haiku Challenge, with this poem:

on the church steps
a mourning dove
with mother’s eyes

….. by Roberta Beary (1st Place, Basho Haiku Challenge 2008)

Don was so impressed with the quality of poems submitted for the contest that he has decided to make it an annual event, and will be “publishing a chapbook of the best 24 poems received sometime after the 1st of the year.  19 poets will be featured.”  Congratulations to our much-honored friend and Honored Guest Roberta Beary, and to Don, who honors f/k/a with his frequent visits and friendly comments.

Roberta has often touched us with poems involving “mother.”  For example:

mother’s day
a nurse unties
the restraints

mother’s visit
side by side we outline
our lips

from here
to there
mother’s silence

………………… by Roberta Beary
“mother’s day” – The Heron’s Nest VII:2; Big Sky: RMA 2006;  The Unworn Necklace (2007)
“mother’s visit” –  from an untitled haibun, Modern Haiku Vol. 37:1 (Spring 2006); “from here” –  The Unworn Necklace (Snapshot Press, 2007)

.. Ms. Beary is also on the minds of many of us in the haijin community this week, because the Revelations: Unedited section of the latest issue of Frogpond (Vol. 31: 3, Fall 2008; see our prior post) has her four-page op/ed piece “Five Musings on Matters Haiku.”  We can’t type up the entire Revelation for you, but will briefly touch upon each musing:

  • The Usual Suspects: Roberta notes “Of all the haiku conferences and meetings I’ve attended, I can’t think of one where he keynoe speaker was a woman,” and offers conference organizers a “gentle push” to invite haiku poets such as Penny Harter, Anita Virgil, Alexis Rotella, Marlene Mountain, and Alexis Rotella to give a keynote address at a major conference.
  • FOP Book Reviews: Roberta takes on rave book reviews written by Friends of the Poet.  She suggests editors should choose reviewers who are not haiku poets (and refuse to accept unsolicited reviews).  She also mentions similar sentiments voiced as a “sand flea” by George Swede in his Tracks in the Sand column for Simply Haiku journal, Spring 2007.

We checked out that column and found George bemoaning, “A long laudatory review that includes not even minor quibbles.” George suggests: “To foster more balanced, objective appraisals, we need critics who are devoted first to high standards of criticism and scholarship and only second, if at all, to careers as poets.”

  • Civility in Haiku USA:  Roberta notes that constructive criticism was enouraged among haijin in America in the 1990’s.  She believes “things have gotten much less civil lately,” with her email box “full of complaints about the mediocrity of haiku published in today’s journal.”  Roberta recommends, instead, the more “thoughtful approach” of using “a closely reasoned critique in a letter to the editor for publication.”  She also reminds editors that “each haiku submitted to editors should stand on its own, regardless of the name that appears below.”

Editor’s Note: The f/k/a Gang agrees with Roberta Beary that we need to think of constructive criticism as an important and encouraged part of our haiku community’s life and spirit.  It’s possible that Haiku Wars over definitional issues got so ugly in the 1990’s that haijin have sworn off confrontation and criticism.  But the result is whiny private email to our friends instead of public “criticism” in the sense of evaluation and analysis of a work of literature.  When someone [e.g., me] does go public with a serious critique, he or she can feel very lonely and out on a limb, with any support coming only in private messages and not in a public comment.

The self-censorship is such that even the courageous Ms. Beary has not named names.  Thus, in pieces here at f/k/a, yours truly has so far not talked about individual poems, poets or editors in my extensive criticism of the spread of “pysku.”  Once, when I publicly criticized an editor here at f/k/a for not living up to a journal’s published standards, I lost a friend.   On another occasion, at a group website, when I gingerly questioned whether a particular poem constituted either haiku or senryu, I was immediately told to lighten up.

If we are adults and consider haiku to be a “real” literary genre, we must accept, honor, encourage criticism.  Because print publications come out infrequently and have such limited space for criticism, I want to recommend that every publication have a website section — or a weblog (they’re free and easy to use) — with a Critics Corner that is moderated only to assure civility.

  • Serial Presenters: Roberta muses over the soporific benefits of having the same people give virtually the same presentation at more than one conference.
  • Book Blurbs by Dr. Who: Finally, Ms. B. chides folk who use the title “Dr.” to add weight to comment used in publicity blurbs for books.  She also notes that far too many books have only blurbs penned by males, even though “women make up a substantial part” of the book-buying public [not to mention, your editor notes, a substantial part of the most-respected and well-known haiku poets].

Please feel free to respond here to any of the points made by Roberta or myself.  For now, I’ll leave on a lighter Beary note:

first date —
the little pile
of anchovies

family picnic
the new wife’s rump
bigger than mine

ceremony over
the bride unveils
her tattoo

……………… by Roberta Beary
“first date” – 1st Place, HSA Gerald Brady Senryu Award 2006; The Unworn Necklace
“family picnic” – Modern Haiku (favorite senryu award, 2003) The Unworn Necklace
“ceremony over” – Simply Haiku (senryu, Winter 2005)

October 15, 2008

Blog Action Day 2008: today the focus is Poverty

Filed under: q.s. quickies — David Giacalone @ 8:27 am

Yesterday, we posted a day early for Blog Action Day 2008, asking Barack Obama to talk about the poor and poverty in America at the last Presidential Debate.  We’ll find out tonight whether either candidate or the moderator thinks poverty is important enough to be a debate issue.

By the way, if you’re in Chicago, you can join Obama supporters who are holding a “Blog Action Day & Debate Watch Party” this evening.

update (October 15, 2008; 11:30 PM):  Sigh. Not one word on the poor or poverty from Barack Obama in tonight’s debate — even when talking about the inadequacies of our education system.

Over ten thousand weblogs have pledged to participate today, focusing on Poverty.  For example:

For more weblogs participating in Blog Action Day 2008, go to:

afterwords: (October 16, 2008): One of our favorite blawgers, Anne Skove of court-o-rama, posted an insightful piece yesterday on Poverty and Addiction —
“Blog Action Day 2008: Poverty or How Low Can You Go?“.  It features excerpts from an article in the Cincinnati alternative newspaper Street Vibes by poet-storyteller Michael Henson.

Speaking of reprises, check out our story about the death of “Frenchie” Hamilton, and the rising tide of attacks on the homeless (September 8, 2008) by juveniles in the USA.

THE UNMADE BED

bus station hobo—
four plastic seats
and a tabloid pillow

on each dawn-frosted bench—
a full sleeping bag

a young cop rousts
the trestle couple—
cooing pigeons

in my pupils—
the mattress
in the storefront window

snores from the dumpster
at Executive Suites

dreaming of Dickens
on an empty belly—
one more vagabond

– “The Unmade Bed,” a rengay by David Giacalone (#1) & CarrieAnn Thunell (#2), in Lynx XXII:3 (October 2007)

Finally, Issa knew that the poor are often the richest in spirit:

at his house
though he’s dirt-poor…
plum blossoms

the world today!
umbrella-hatted princes and paupers
blossom viewing

… by Kobayashi Issa, translated by David G. Lanoue

October 14, 2008

Frogpond arrives for Fall 2008

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu — David Giacalone @ 7:58 pm

The latest issue of Frogpond, the thrice-yearly, hard-copy Journal of the Haiku Society of America, arrived today.  Naturally, the f/k/a Gang is hopping for joy — even Prof. Yabut, who enjoys both cooing and kvetsching.   As expected, Frogpond 31:3 (Fall 2008) has haiku and senryu, renku, rengay, tan renga and verse sequences, plus reviews, essays, Musings to the Editor (this time from haijin diva Roberta Beary), and more.

update (October 16, 2008):The new Frogpond Web Sampler, compiled by HSA webmaster Randy Brooks, is now available at the HSA website. The “online splashes” Sampler for Vol. 31:3 has a half dozen haiku and senryu you won’t find here at f/k/a. It also has:

  • an essay on  zen in haiku by Walter E. Harris III;
  • the haibun “Ghostly figures” by Ron Moss
  • the rengay “Bones of our Ancestors” by Carolyn Hall and Ebba Story
  • Michael Dylan Welch’s book review of “Wall Street Park: A Concrete Renku,” by Raffael de Gruttola & Carlos Colόn; and
  • a message from the editors, George Swede and Anita Krumins

.. Frogpond 31:3 (Fall 2008) has a new Cover Page Logo in color 

Since the Gang likes the tiny poems best, we’ve only concentrated so far on the haiku and senryu.  Twenty of the 130 poems in that section were written by f/k/a Honored Guest Poets. We’ll soon share selections with you from the other genre, but for now we’re proudly presenting — without commentary — the haiku and senryu penned by f/k/a‘s poet family from Frogpond 31:3 (Fall 2008).

Enjoy:

moonbright night
the sundial reads
half-past my bedtime

crunch of frost
a flurry of chickadees
swings the feeder

….. by Carolyn Hall

scenic stop —
the shadows only a shadow
can touch

… by Gary Hotham

Intermittent birdsong
as maples scintillate —
the work shift changing

As geese arc, the fog
closing behind them . .
the poem’s false start

……. by Rebecca Lilly

pussy willows in a vase
my grandfather’s post-stroke
handshake

… by Andrew Riutta

..  ..

stop sign —
one last look
at my father’s house

Memorial Day
washing dead cells
off my body

… by Yu Chang, New York

Memorial Day
a man from Japan
steals second base

…. by David Giacalone

homesick tracing the stream to its source

distant thunder a crab hangs from the chicken neck

…. by w.f. owen

rambling phonecall
i count the drinks
in her voice

afterglow
aftersex
afternoon

….. by Roberta Beary

Plaza de Tirso de Molina

the hiss of water
going nowhere
stone poet

… by David G. Lanoue

a few bees
left in the clover
afterglow

….. by Peggy Willis Lyles

lunch hour
the wrecking ball
dangles

…… by Barry George

fortieth birthday
I used to think nothing
of taking off my socks

…… by Michael Dylan Welch

rolling thunder
the tension of chain
against sprocket

………… by Tom Painting

I tighten the belt
in my son’s car
Father’s Day

…. by John Stevenson

heat wave —
I catch my sleeve on the nail
where his picture hung

… by Alice Frampton

Did we say without editorial comment?  Well, cranky Prof. Yabut has an opinion on putting both haiku and senryu in the same section in Vol. 31:3, rather than separating the two genre, as has been the Frogpond custom since 1990.  While haiku relate nature to human nature, senryu is similar in structure to haiku, but focus directly on human nature.  Naturally, the two poetic forms can overlap. (go here for more on senryu)

The Frogpond editors (George Swede and Anita Krumins) say the new format allows “readers to decide for themselves which form is which.”  It must be the lawyer in him, but Yabut enjoys the ambiguities in the genre and the analysis and second-guessing that take place when deciding whether a poem fits in one category or the other, and imagining what might have brought the editors to place a particular poem in a particular category.  That is not going to happen very much, if at all, with the two genre lumped together.   Frankly, it seems like a cop out — perhaps a balm for those who are somehow insulted when a poem is called senryu rather than haiku — that blurs the forms and helps to water down the haiku concept. More and more opinion and intellectualizing about human nature will be called haiku (and considered worthy of selection for high-quality journals like Frogpond).  It’s a trend the f/k/a Gang deplores and will surely write about in more detail again soon — taking up Roberta Beary’s advice in her Musing on Civility in Haiku USA that we do more “closely reasoned critique” in the haijin community.

dear Barack: please talk about the poor on Blog Action Day

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu,viewpoint — Tags: , , — David Giacalone @ 10:26 am

. . Oct. 15, 2008 . .

my hut–
the poverty-hiding snow
melts away

in a remote village
they’re used to poverty…
evening cool

… by Kobayashi Issa (circa 1815), translated by David G. Lanoue

update (October 15, 2008; 11:30 PM):  Sigh. Not one word on the poor or poverty from Barack Obama in tonight’s debate — even when talking about the inadequacies of our education system.

follow-up (Jan. 29, 2011):  In his New York Times column today, Charles M. Blow regrets that President Obama “did not include a single mention of poverty or the plight of the poor” in his State of the Union Speech this week. See “Hard-knock (hardly acknowledged) Life” (online Jan. 28, 2011).  A disappointing habit, Mr. President.

Dear Barack Obama:

I‘m writing my Blog Action Day 2008 posting a day early to give you a little time to work Poverty and The Poor into your answers at the Presidential Debate tomorrow.  The last debate focuses on domestic policy and coincidentally takes place on October 15, 2008, the day that 9 thousand weblogs have pledged to discuss poverty.  Because I’m an Obama supporter, I’ve heard from you and your campaign staff a couple times a day over the last few months, so I hope you won’t mind a little frank talk back at you.  To be honest, I’ve been disappointed that:

  • none of your email Campaign missives has mentioned your Poverty Plan or your continued commitment to fight poverty
  • even worse, you have not mentioned the poor or poverty in either of the first two Presidential Debates, instead repeating over and over a middle class mantra; and
  • unfortunately, the four-part economic rescue plan you unveiled Monday deals only with the Middle Class [see the New York Times article (Oct. 14, 2008); and the PBS ReportersBlog, Oct. 13, 2008]

Of course, I am well aware of your need to pamper, flatter and woo the Middle Class to win this election.  And, I know that the poorest Americans are not likely to vote for John McCain, and probably had no savings or stocks at risk in the current big fiscal crisis.  Nonetheless, the rapid rise of the price for food, gasoline and other necessities has made the constant crisis of poverty more intense than ever for America’s poor and near-poor, and they have no assets to dig into and no ability to obtain credit to tide them over.

At your website, you have an inspiring and practical Plan to Fight Poverty and Create a Bridge to the Middle Class — but it has been 14 months since your Speech on Urban Poverty, when you spoke about Bobby Kennedy, and 15 months since you uttered these words in Spartanburg, South Carolina (06/15/07):

”At the dawn of the 21st century we also have a collective responsibility to recommit ourselves to the dream; to strengthen that safety net, put the rungs back on that ladder to the middle-class, and give every family the chance that so many of our parents and grandparents had.  This responsibility is one that’s been missing from Washington for far too long – a responsibility I intend to take very seriously as president.”

Since the general election campaign started, that “bridge to the Middle Class” seems like another bridge to nowhere for the poor.  Therefore, besides talking again about our national responsibility to fight poverty, I urge you to have the courage to make the at least these two points taken from your Poverty Plan at the Debate tomorrow night:

Poverty Rising: There are over 37 million poor Americans [I bet there are even more today]. Most Americans living in poverty work, but still cannot afford to make ends meet.

Minimum Wage is Not Enough: Even when a parent works full-time earning minimum wage and EITC and food stamps are factored into their income, families are still $1,550 below the federal poverty line because of the flat-lined minimum wage.

It would also be nice to hear some specifics about raising the minimum wage and helping the working poor — perhaps a bit about Transitional Jobs, Career Pathways, Digital Inclusion, Transportation Access, and Connecting Youths to Growing Sectors.  Of course, I understand how little can be squeezed into 90 minutes, but I’ll be expecting to hear a pledge to talk more about poverty in America over the few days remaining in your campaign.  I know you can find the rhetoric to tie the fate of the poor to that of the middle class and the rejuvenation of our nation.

A Very Personal Note: Please, Barak, don’t think of me as merely another affluent Harvard Law liberal with a guilty conscience over the plight of America’s poor.  During the two decades that I practiced law (working primarily for consumers and children), I was comfortably middle class and happy to pay taxes to improve the prospects of the poor in America.

Due to a chronic health problem, however, I have been “prematurely retired” from my law and mediation practice for almost a dozen years — and have lived at the poverty level (income and assets) the entire time.  So, I know how hard it is to fill a tank or a cupboard these days, and how poverty limits options and can crush spirits.  I also know how difficult it seems to be for my middle class friends to relate to the daily travails and limited horizons of the poor.  We need a President — and a presidential candidate — who understands the predicament of the poor and includes them as full members of the American family.

So, Barack, I hope my Obama Finger Puppet isn’t the only Obama talking about poverty and the poor during the Presidential Debate on October 15.  I wish you courage and good luck as the election campaign comes to a close.

s/ David Giacalone at f/k/a

update (October 15, 2008): More Blog Action Day coverage by us, here.

There was no internet when Master Issa walked the roads of 19th Century Japan as an impoverished haiku poet.  If Issa had known about Blog Action Day 2008, and had a weblog, I bet he would have posted some of these poems, which have been translated by our Honored Guest Poet Prof. David Lanoue:

my poor dinner
in the palm of my hand…
falling sleet

for the poor
there’s not a spring
without blossoms!

autumn’s first geese
come first
to the poor town

this poor-soiled province
ain’t so bad…
fireflies

all according to plan, yet
I’m cold!
poor!

my poor dinner
puffing steam…
first winter rain

oh great peony
don’t disdain
this poor neighborhood!

even the poor
workhorses of Edo sleep…
in mosquito nets!

back alley–
a poor sake bottle
for the God of Wealth

frosty night–
seven poor men
in a huddle

just for fun
chanting “Alms for the poor!”
clear fall weather

… by Kobayashi Issa (1763 – 1827), translated by David G. Lanoue

October 13, 2008

a melancholy spoof of Frank Duci’s will

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu,Schenectady Synecdoche — David Giacalone @ 3:03 pm

(source: Schenectady Gazette)

Frank Duci was the Republican mayor of Schenectady when I moved here 20 years ago and for 16 of the two dozen years spanning 1972 through 1996.  Often contentious and controversial, Duci was exactly the kind of politician that a plucky columnist like the Gazette‘s Carl Strock loves to cover.  When Strock heard that the 87-year-old Duci has lung cancer, he visited his old professional antagonist this week, and they were both at their mischievous best.

You see, Strock brought with him the above Last Will of Frank J. Duci, written on a Shopping List notepad, with “Carl Strock” as the sole beneficiary and sole witness.  And, Duci duly put his shaky “X” on the proffered will.  Carl (who often gets in trouble for his comments about religion, see e.g. here) left shortly after getting the “Will” signed, saying:

“Good Lord (if any), please let me keep my faculties as long as Your servant Frank has kept his.  I ask nothing more — except that the last will and testament I have in my pocket hold up in court.”

As Carl explained yesterday at his Strock Freestyle weblog in “Duci’s will,” and in the offline Sunday column “Frank Duci still fighting for ‘the people'” (Sunday Gazette, October. 12, 2008), the Will was “closely patterned after a will that [Duci] himself wrote for a friend a few years ago when that friend was just hours away from death.”

“[W]hen I learned about the lung cancer I figured I should waste no time, so I took it with me and asked him to put his X on it, just as he had gotten his friend to do (and let me say as a tribute to him that he was a perfectly good sport about it and made a shaky X, even though he well understood he was being lampooned).

. . . “I have tried over the years to dislike Frank Duci, but I have never succeeded, and this is a good example of the kind of hurdles I have faced.”

When the story of the original Deathbed Shopping List Will was reported a few years ago, I just shook my head, thinking “there Duci goes again.”  Until Carl Strock reminded me of it this weekend, I had not realized that Frank Duci had indeed inherited $450,000 on the basis of the will.  Here’s how Genealogue.com covered the story in 2006:

Saturday, April 29, 2006
Will a Shopping List Do?

A former mayor of Schenectady, New York, is embroiled in a legal dispute with an 86-year-old woman over the $680,970 estate of the woman’s late uncle.

Frank Duci says a will was dictated to him by Walter Sengenberger shortly before his death in 2003. It’s hard to understand why the authenticity of the document was ever doubted.

The attorney general’s office has raised questions about the validity of the will, which Duci wrote on a blank shopping list taken from his wife’s purse and then had Sengenberger sign with an “X” because the 84-year-old General Electric retiree was too weak to write his own name. [broken link to the Albany Times Union]

On August 9, 2006, based on a story from the Albany Times Union, Lawyers and Settlements.com reported that Katherine Louise Schoeffler Hansen and Frank Duci had reached a court settlement that “awarded Duci $450,000 and gave Hansen $200,000 of her uncle’s fortune.”  I’m somewhat relieved that the disposition is based on a settlement between the parties, and that no court found the Shopping List Will, witnessed only by the sole beneficiary and signed with an X, to be valid.  But, I’m also pleased that this tale has resurfaced in such a lighthearted manner.

estate auction–
can’t get my hand back out
of the cookie jar

… by Randy Brooks, from School’s Out (Press Here, 1999)

Of course, the context of Frank Duci’s illness puts a large touch of melancholy on the story.  Carl notes that Frank attributes the lung cancer to “secondhand smoke” (from his first and second wives) and exposure to asbestos at the GE plant where he worked for many years as a metallurgical technician.  Duci’s doctors have suspended radiation and chemotherapy for the inoperable cancer, which as Strock notes:

“indicates to me the imminence of the unmentionable, but if that bothers him, he doesn’t shout it.  He is far more concerned about houses in Schenectady being taxed for new siding than he is aabout his own mortality.”

Our hat goes off to the feisty old pol from Schenectady.  Like Carl, we “admire him for his energy and for his lack of self-pity.”  And, we can all only hope to “keep our faculties” and our zest for the political fight as long as Frank Duci has.

afterwords (October 16, 2008): Thanks to Overlawyered.com‘s Walter Olson for linking to this post from his Twitter page; (a first for f/k/a and my own first visit to Twitter); and to wills and estate lawyer Patti Spencer, for pointing to us from her Pennsylvania Fiduciary Litigation weblog.

update (Nov. 23, 2008): For more on Frank Duci, scroll to the second story in this post, which discusses the TU article “An Electric City original still burns brightly: Frank J. Duci may lack official standing, but he’ll always be a mayor” (Albany Times Union, Nov. 20, 2008) and more.

update (October 17, 2009): Yesterday was declared Frank Duci Day in Schenectady, and Frank Duci Plaza was dedicated around the Avenue A home of the now 88-year-old former mayor.  See “After a long road, ex-mayor gets a street” (Albany Times Union, October 16, 2009).

his quiet funeral—
a man who did
most of the talking

……….. by barry george – frogpond XXVIII: 1

her estate
dividing
the children

…. by W.F. Owen – The Loose Thread; Modern Haiku XXXII:1

p.s.  My Favorite Frank Duci Story: Shortly after I moved here, then-Mayor Duci appointed his stepson to run the Schenectady Municipal Parking Authority.  As the guy was an unemployed apprentice tile-layer, folks asked why he was qualified for the position.  Duci responded something like “He likes people, and he has a 200 bowling average.  You can’t bowl that well without having good concentration.”  From then on, I confessed to whoever would listen that “I’ll never be able to get a job working for the City of Schenectady.  My IQ is too high and my bowling average too low.”  I sure wish I had a weblog back then (circa 1989), ’cause it would have been fun writing about our Il Duce.

a lovely day whatever it’s called: an Indian Summer haiku collection

Filed under: Haiku or Senryu,q.s. quickies — David Giacalone @ 10:31 am

Indian summer 
his name comes to me
then is gone again

… by w. f. owen – flower of another country (HSA Anthology 2007)

  • No matter if this spate of sunny, dry, moderate weather is really Indian Summer

the f/k/a Gang hopes you have as lovely an October 13th as we’re having here in Schenectady (where we are at the peak of Leaf Peeper Season).

Columbus Day drive
red and yellow crayons
turn into stubs

………… by dagosan

If it’s a holiday for you, and you have some spare time, we suggest you read about the meaning and possible sources of the term Indian Summer.  “JUST WHAT IS INDIAN SUMMER AND DID INDIANS REALLY HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT?” (National Weather Service, by William R. Deedler, Fall, 1996)

Or, peruse one or more our earlier posts discussing the mysteries and controversies surrounding the man erroneously called Christopher Columbus. “who do you want Columbus to be?” (Oct. 12, 2004 ); “Columbus, Colombo, Colón: what’s in a name? (Octo. 6, 2007); “it’s hard to discover Columbus” (Oct. 10, 2005)

Columbus Day rain –
first cozy evening
since Spring

………… by dagosan

Before you do, why not bask in our collection of tributes to Indian Summer by f/k/a‘s Honored Guest Poets, led by Dr. Bill Owen, who is clearly becoming the haijin dean of Indian Summer.

Indian summer
a spent salmon
washes ashore

Indian summer
a fish slips through
the gill net

Indian summer
honey flows
into the tea

Indian summer
the cat
pregnant again

… w. f. owen – from echoes 1 (Red Moon Press, 2007)
“Indian summer/salmon” – HSA Henderson Haiku Contest 2004, 1st Place
“Indian summer/gill” & “pregnat cat” – haiku notebook  Lulu.com, 2007)
“Indian summer/honey” – from frogpond XXVII: 1

Indian summer
chocolate kisses
on my cheek

………. by Yu Chang – from Upstate Dim Sum (Vol. 2008/1)

white jerseys
spread across the hockey field
Indian summer

… by Barry George – The Heron’s Nest (Winter 2005)

Indian summer   
algae floats
downstream

… Hilary Tann – Upstate Dim Sum 2007/II

she leaves
the gate open
Indian Summer

… by Alice Frampton – The Heron’s Nest (December 2007)

her kiss
on the cool side of tepid …
indian summer

… by ed markowski from Haiku Harvest (Fall/Winter 2005)

See a new spread on Ed at Norb Blei’s Poetry Dispatch, “Ed Markowski: a poem and a note (Dispatch 255, October 11, 2008)

Indian summer
the watercolorist paints
a leaf on the lake

… by Tom Painting from his chapbook “piano practice“

Indian summer
fire ants swarming
over a rotted squash

… by Rebecca Lilly –  A New Resonance 2; Modern Haiku XXXI:1

Indian summer~
two tortoises stretch
toward shore

. . . by Pamela Miller Ness – Nisqually Delta Review (editor’s choice, winter/spring 2006)

indian summer
the sound of conker
on conker

indian summer
a dance class practice to
“I want to break free”

.. by Matt Morden
“indian summer/conker” – Morden Haiku (October 14, 2006)
“indian summer/dance” – Morden Haiku (October 6, 2007)

Indian summer
rust on our hands
from the swing

… by w.f. owen – from haiku notebook (2007)

Indian Summer –
a squirrel tips over
the bag of rock salt

… by David Giacalone – The Heron’s Nest VIII:I, March 2006

We all wish you several Indian Summers this Autumn of 2008. If your weather is not picture perfect for Columbus Day, we hope it isn’t at all like this October scene from a couple years ago near Buffalo, NY, which inspired a poem and a haiga:

a foot of snow
a month too soon
candles for nightlights

. . . photo haiga by Arthur Giacalone (photo) & David Giacalone (poem);
Simply Haiku Journal, Vol. 5 no. 1 (Spring 2007)

p.s. If you’re in search of some fine recent commentary from law-related weblogs, or you want to learn more about Conflict Resolution Day (the 3d Thursday of October), see Diane Levin’s presentation of Blawg Review #181, at her Mediation Channel weblog.

October 11, 2008

a haiku giant dies: William J. “Bill” Higginson

Filed under: haijin-haikai news — David Giacalone @ 10:00 pm

William J. “Bill” Higginson (1938 – 2008)

Bill Higginson, a man who helped bring haiku and linked-form Japanese poetry to the English-language world, and who was an admired friend and mentor to scores of “haijin”, died today. Bill was a Poet, Translator, Author, Workshop Leader, Editor, and Teacher, and a charter member and past president of the Haiku Society of America, but the sum of the person and his work was much more than the parts.  I was not fortunate enough to know Bill personally, but the affection and respect with which he is held by many of my haiku friends tells me how deeply he will be missed.

Holding the water,
held by it __
the dark mud

writing again
the tea water
boiled dry

from the sandy beach
I stumble into
path firefly

… by William J. Higginson
“Holding the water” — Haiku West 3/2; The Haiku Anthology (3rd Ed)
“writing again” – The Haiku Anthology (2nd, 3rd Eds.)
“from the sandy beach” – HIA

As Curtis Dunlap noted at his Tobacco Road weblog this evening, just about every serious haiku poet has a copy of The Haiku Handbook: How to Write, Share, and Teach Haiku (1985), which Bill wrote with his wife and collaborator, Penny Harter. It was my first introduction to the history and aesthetics of haiku.  Bill’s love of renku and his many contributions to the genre can be seen at his Renku Home website. You will find a brief literary and academic bio, here, and much more at Bill’s 2HWeb “gateway” site.

Those who know Bill well will surely have much more to say about the haiku legend, the friend and teacher.  His loving wife Penny sent a message to Curtis Dunlap today about Bill’s last day and plans for memorial services, which you can find at Tobacco Road.

Any of Bill’s friends, students, or admirers who would like to leave a message or a poem celebrating his life or mourning his death, is welcome to do so in our Comment section. [Because Comments are moderated, there may be a delay before yours is posted.] My most sincere condolences go out to Penny and the rest of Bill’s family, and to all of his friends.

— You can share this post with this Tiny URL: http://tinyurl.com/fkaBillHigginson —

clouds encircle
an almost-full moon —
we follow his footsteps

…. by dagosan (in mem., Bill Higginson, October 11, 2008)

. . . . . . .

— sunset over the Mohawk River, Schenectady, NY, October 11, 2008; by dag —

afterwords: See Don Wentworth’s and Greg Schwartz’s tributes to Bill Higginson (Oct. 12, 2008); and tribute poems for Bill H. at The Australian Haiku Society (via Curtis);

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