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Unemployment claims fall to pandemic low, but many still out of work, with federal aid ending Monday
Initial claims for unemployment fell again last week, hitting a pandemic low in a sign the job market is steadily rebounding.
The number of Americans seeking new jobless benefits dipped by 14,000 to a seasonally adjusted 340,000, the Labor Department said.
But the labor market still hasn't fully recovered from the deep losses suffered last year, and millions still receiving federal pandemic-related unemployment aid are about to lose those benefits Monday.
A group of young people walk past a 'We're hiring!' sign posted at a store in New York City on Aug. 20. (ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
While some argue an end to the benefits might spur out-of-work Americans to redouble their job hunting efforts, new research points to a more complicated picture.
A study published last month by economists at Columbia, Harvard, the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and the University of Toronto looked at the labor effects of some states' early withdrawal from pandemic-related unemployment insurance programs last spring and found they were modest.
In states that kept the federal programs, 21.5% of people receiving benefits at the end of April found work by the end of July. In states that withdrew from the aid, that figure was 25.9%.
Overall, only about one out of every eight people who lost the aid had jobs in the first week of August, the report said.
"Yeah, the economy is slowly getting back up to speed, but folks are still finding it hard to get a job for a host of other reasons that aren't explained by their taking home federally funded unemployment insurance," economist Kyle Coombs, one of the study authors at Columbia University, told the Daily News.
Many people are still fearful of COVID, others are still dealing with child care uncertainty and some are simply switching industries, he said.
"Extrapolating from our results, withdrawing aid doesn't lead to an explosion of growth in employment," he said. "But we do see the cutoff hurts household balance sheets, so people spend less. For the local economy, that means less money flowing around."
Gus Faucher, chief economist at PNC Financial Services in Pittsburgh, agreed that while job growth appears to be both "strong" and "improving," the reduction in benefits likely will dampen consumer spending.
"It's going to be a drag on household income, and that could lead to slower spending growth in the near term," he told The News.
But the good news is employers appear to be hiring and retaining workers, particularly in the fields of health care and hospitality, he said.
"Businesses have been saying they want to hire, but there aren't enough workers," Faucher said. "We're seeing pretty strong demand across industries now. That's why we're seeing firms in a wide variety of industries raising pay."
More data on how specific industries are faring is expected with the August jobs report due Friday, and some analysts expect to see a slowdown in hiring due to the rise of the dreaded delta variant.
Either way, the end of federal unemployment next week is set, and families are bracing for the impact.
"We were a thriving middle-class family 18 months ago,'' said Chenon Hussey of West Bend, Wis."We're going to fall off the map."
Hussey, 42, works part time for a county government. Her husband, a master welder, has been laid off three times during the COVID crisis.
The federal benefits have been keeping the family out of "absolute poverty," she said.
With News Wire Services


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The 2019 Ford GT Heritage Edition Is a Glorious Tribute to American Muscle
The $450,000 beast is inspired by the legendary Ford GT that won Le Mans 50 years ago.
By Dan Carney , Sep 3, 2018
In case you're concerned that your 2019 Ford GT will not be sufficiently unique, Ford is now offering the Heritage Edition painted in blue-and-orange Gulf Oil racing livery in tribute to the 1968 Ford GT40 that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1968 and 1969.
That's not a Ford GT40 won both races; the same GT40 won two years in a row, establishing the Gulf Oil racing colors as a dynasty that was subsequently extended by the Porsche 917s of the early '70s. The Gulf Porsches were immortalized by Steve McQueen's classic racing film, Le Mans.
Ford also won the races in 1966 and '67 with other GT40s, but the '68 car was the first in Gulf colors. This isn't the first time that Ford has offered a tribute GT to enthusiasts; the 2006 GT was also available in Gulf Oil racing colors.
2006 Ford GT in Gulf Oil colors.
"Many view the Gulf Oil paint scheme as the most famous in motorsports," said Joe Hinrichs, Ford president of global operations.
"The 1968 GT40 quickly became a global sensation after beating its European competitors on the track four times in a row, and in honor of the 50th anniversary of its win, we're paying fresh tribute to the original with a new heritage limited edition."
The car wore number 9 in 1968 and number 6 in 1969, so the 2019 car will be available wearing a '9' while the 2020 edition of the car will feature a '6.'
Ford has declined buyers' requests for custom blue and orange paint on their new GTs until now, saving the combination for this Heritage Edition.
But it has been possible to order the car in light blue and apply orange striping to produce the same result, so Ford has some other details to help set the Heritage Edition cars apart.
For example, there are exposed carbon fiber A-pillars and sports unique 20-inch one-piece forged aluminum wheels in high-gloss dark stainless with black lug nuts and orange brake calipers.
Inside, the Heritage Edition boasts ebony Alcantara seat upholstery, instrument panel, pillars, headliner and steering wheel, with contrasting blue and orange stitching on the seats and steering wheel.
But if are lucky enough to be selected by Ford to purchase one of these $450,000 beauties, just don't try to resell it, like John Cena did. Ford doesn't like that.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Great touch-based control scheme. Weapons and equipment all feel unique and change the play experience accordingly. Monsters look appropriately menacing.
Only twelve monsters. Scoring can be a tad confusing. Did we mention there's only twelve monsters?
Alongside their exceptionally successful Beeline brand of casual mobile games (Smurfs' Village, Zombie Cafè), Capcom still churns out the occasional iOS release aimed at a more traditional Capcom audience. With mobile twists on games like Dead Rising and Devil May Cry 4 under their belts, you might have expected them to bring another straight-up port to the platform. And while Monster Hunter Dynamic Hunting may be part of their pre-existing Monster Hunter franchise, this latest portable entry is anything but a port.
Sharing a similar mythos and mentality as previous games in the series, Dynamic Hunting has players slaying giant monsters with big swords and quick moves. Every monster has their own quirks and attacks that players will need to learn, and with strong enough weapons and quick enough timing, you'll be able to take down any beast the game throws at you.
What makes Dynamic Hunting so refreshing is that, rather than trying to cram the series existing controls onto a buttonless device, the game was clearly designed from the ground up with the touch screen in mind. Players will be able to perform different attacks by tapping and swiping in different directions. The same goes for defensive maneuvers, with two fingers bringing up your shield (if you have one equipped) and two sliding fingers causing you to evasively dive in the direction you want to go.
The control scheme is quite reminiscent of Infinity Blade, but it's far from cookie cutter. Monster Hunter gives players a good deal more choice in their actions, allowing them to move around the environment freely, throw items like traps and grenades, and even rotate around their target to choose which side to attack. Depending on your perspective, this added complexity can be a good thing or a bad thing.
As you slay monsters, they'll drop all sorts of items that can be used to craft new equipment. Crafting is the yin to combat's yang in Dynamic Hunting, and provides a great carrot on a stick to keep you coming back for more. The more you play, the more crafting recipes you'll unlock. This in turn will let you use the items you've collected to make new armor and weapons, and with the choice of a big sword, little sword and shield, or dual wielding weapons, there's enough variety to keep you experimenting for awhile.
And then, just as soon as it starts, the game's over.
Monster Hunter Dynamic Hunting only pits you up against twelve monsters. Slay a mere dozen creatures and the credits start to roll. Sure you can go back to previously completed stages and try to improve your scores or unlock new equipment, but for a game that's about hunting in a world of endless monsters, twelve is just… anticlimactic. After only an hour, we had seen every monster you can expect to face. What's worse, many of these twelve are simply slight variations on each other.
And when it comes down to it, going back to previous levels to improve your score can be surprisingly hard to do. Why? Because alongside giving out letter grades for things like speed, remaining life, and monster parts, there's a section called "mission" that has no explanation. No matter what we did, our mission grade was always a D. This in turn brought down our overall score, never rating us any higher on a level than B. And with no clear indication of what this is charting – there's nothing akin to a "mission" in this game – challenging yourself to an improved score is an act in frustration.
The visuals here are on par with what we've seen from previous Capcom releases on the App Store, which is to say impressive, and easily on par with some mid-range PlayStation 2 releases. Overall the presentation is pretty rock solid. Armor and equipment changes are reflected in your character, monsters look menacing, and the soundtrack has that perfect level of B-movie action to it.
We definitely enjoyed what Monster Hunter Dynamic Hunting had to offer – we just wish there were more of it. A dozen monsters was just enough to whet our appetites. Now we're hungry for the main course, and the cook is nowhere to be found. Good mechanics and a simple crafting system have laid a great foundation for Monster Hunter on the iPhone. Here's to hoping the game gets a serious update to add in the variety of monsters it so sorely needs.


There are many unreliable sources on the internet which can be misleading. Below is a website you can trust that is written by real and credible veterinarians. This is a great source of more information on diseases or conditions your pet may be experiencing, but know that the veterinarians at Veterinary Medical Associates always welcome questions you may have concerning your pet.
Click on the website below to find out the latest news on pet food and treat recalls.
Learn more about the "Grey Market" and the dangers of buying your pet products online.
Visit the Pet Health Network and learn great helpful hints about how to medicate your pets and more!


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Tag: Pinball Fx2
Review Pinball FX2 - Star Wars Rebels (Xbox One)
Strong with this one, the Force is
Earlier this week we reviewed Avengers: Age of Ultron for Pinball FX2, and we regret to say that we were disappointed with it. Because it felt familiar and uninspired, we were a little bit worried that the developer, Zen Studios, might be losing some of that magic it's been injecting into its pinball tables for the...
Fri 8th May 2015
Pinball FX2
Review Pinball FX2 - Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron (Xbox One)
Sequelitis
By now we should all be aware that the people at Zen Studios typically do stellar licensed work. Even when they don't entirely get it right – e.g. the chaos found in South Park Pinball – the fundamentals of pinball are handled well enough to offset the missteps, and it's hard to criticize them on that level. But recently a very steady...
Tue 5th May 2015
Review Pinball FX2 - Iron & Steel Pack (Xbox One)
Catapults and six-shooters aplenty
It feels like ages since Zen Studios created pinball tables that weren't based on comic books or cartoons. Actually, it's been three years. In that three years time, we've watched this talented studio craft fantasy pinball experiences that excel beyond anything we could ever expect to find standing on four legs in...
Mon 2nd Mar 2015
Iron & Steel Pack
Zen Studios
Review Pinball FX2 - South Park (Xbox One)
Salty balls
South Park hasn't had the most luxurious history when it comes to getting the video game treatment. There's been a decent release here or there throughout the years, but for the most part we've been subjected to repetitive first-person shooters and uninspired platformers. That is until earlier this year when South Park: The Stick of...
Guide The Best Pinball FX2 Tables Money Can Buy
Are you ready to have a ball?
Are you interested in buying Pinball FX2 but aren't sure which tables to download first? Well, considering some of us at pX are massive pinball junkies, we've compiled a little guide of sorts to help you get started. These are the tables that we find the most enjoyable to play, and ones we believe would be great...
Tue 16th Sep 2014
Review Pinball FX2 - The Walking Dead (Xbox One)
Get bit.
The critically acclaimed first season of Telltale Games' The Walking Dead (hence forth referenced as Season One) invades the best version of digital pinball currently on the market, Pinball FX2, and the results are quite impressive. This closely-coordinated effort between Telltale and FX2 developer, Zen Studios, comes hot on the heels of...
Thu 4th Sep 2014
Review Pinball FX2 - Guardians of the Galaxy (Xbox One)
Chart topper or flipper flopper?
It's been a big summer for the Guardians of the Galaxy, has it not? Thanks to the critical and commercial success of the motion picture, this ragtag team of superheroes has risen from utter obscurity to a common household name in what seems like the blink of an eye. That means comic books, action figures and other...


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A bronze statue of Sandy Koufax was installed outside Dodger Stadium in 2022. Koufax was a pitcher for both the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966.

References

2022 establishments in California
2022 sculptures
Bronze sculptures in California
Monuments and memorials in Los Angeles
Outdoor sculptures in Greater Los Angeles
Sculptures of men in California
Statues in California

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


This short and inspiring flick from David Goldman over on Nowness was quite nice. It's been out there for a minute, but I felt that it needed to make a reappearance. No words, and just a few simple clips of Finlay Wild flowing through singletrack and over some talus. Really diggin' those shots from the ridge.


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Ethical Grounds
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The Wellness Wednesday Posts
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Five for Friday #129
August 31, 2018 August 31, 2018 Michael 2 Comments
21 years ago today I went to Albany (NY) to visit Todd Sinkins, one of my law school roommates. I remember that I went with Erin, a woman I was dating at the time, but I don't recall why we went.
So, why do I recall it at all?
Because I remember having just exited interstate 87 onto Western Avenue when we heard that Princess Diana had died.
For some odd reason, I'm fascinated by events that are seared into the memories of an entire generation. For example, both of my parents know exactly where they were when they learned that JFK had been assassinated. And each has a clear memory of being at my grandparents' house in Bradford on the day of the first moon landing.
Actually, it's not necessarily the events that fascinate me. It's whatever "it" is that causes an entire generation to remember an event forever. Sadly, tragedy & grief appear to be the tie that binds us all. For example, I'm guessing that most in my grandparents' generation have vivid memories of where they were & what they were doing when they learned that Pearl Harbor had been attacked. And, for people my age, I'm fairly certain that 9/11 is "that" event.
Last night, I wondered whether Diana's death qualifies as well. So, I thought I'd throw the question to my readers – what are the events seared into the memories of your generation or, as I suppose is the case with 9/11, multiple generations?
Feel free to share. The aspect of this Friday column that I like the most – in fact that I love – are the stories you send in response. Last week's stories of memories of fairs, endless summers, and young crushes were amazing. Indeed, the column sparked more stories from my readers than any other, moving ahead of your superstitions and your respective stances in the Beatles v. Stones debate.
Now, a ground rule. I'm not referring to something that just you will always remember. For instance, I've shared my indelible memory of costing the Red Sox the 1986 World Series. Or, I have a reader who will never forget where he was when he learned that Frank Sinatra had died. (I see you Uncle Drew!) For this exercise, neither would count. I'm looking for collective memories.
I look forward to hearing from you. In the meantime, I hope you have a fantastic long weekend, one that includes lots of things that have nothing to do with work.
Oh, and for you persnickety readers who prefer every Friday column to be tied to the week's number, fear not! Diana was born and married in July. Respectively, on the 1st and 29th. So, there you have it: 129.
Onto the quiz!
None. Open book, open search engine, text/phone/email-a-friend.
Exception – but one that is loosely enforced – #5 ("loosely" = "aspirational")
Unless stated otherwise, the Vermont Rules of Professional Conduct apply
Team entries welcome, creative team names even more welcome.
E-mail answers to michael.kennedy@vermont.gov
I'll post the answers & Honor Roll on Monday
Please don't use the "comment" feature to post your answers
Please consider sharing the quiz with friends & colleagues
Please consider sharing the quiz on social media. Hashtag it – #fiveforfriday
Lawyer called me with an inquiry. My response included the following words and phrases: "knowledge," "violation," "substantial question," and "honesty, trustworthiness, fitness."
What did Lawyer call to discuss?
A. Informing a court that a client had testified falsely in a civil matter.
B. Informing a court that a criminal defense client had testified falsely.
C. Reporting another lawyer's misconduct.
D. Whether reciprocal discipline would be imposed in Vermont as a result of Lawyer being sanctioned in another state.
The conflicts rules are NOT relaxed for:
A. Lawyers who transfer from one private firm to another.
B. Lawyers who move from government practice to private practice.
C. Lawyers who provide short-term pro bono services under the auspices of a program sponsored by a nonprofit or court.
D. All of the above.
You're at a CLE. You hear me say: "yes, it's okay as long as (1) your client gives informed consent; (2) there is no interference with the lawyer's independence of professional judgment or with the client-lawyer relationship; and (3) information relating to the representation of your client is protected as required by Rule 1.6."
What did someone ask if it was okay to do?
A. Accept compensation for representing a client from someone other than the client.
B. Request that guardian be appointed for the client.
C. Represent co-defendants in a criminal matter.
D. Talk to the media in a client's case.
Client provides Lawyer with an advance payment of $2,000. Lawyer has yet to do any work for Client.
Which is most accurate?
A. The fee agreement must be confirmed in writing.
B. The fee agreement must be confirmed in a writing that is signed by Client.
C. The $2,000 must go into Lawyer's pooled interest-bearing trust account ("IOLTA").
D. Lawyer may treat the money as Lawyer's own if Lawyer confirms in writing (i) that the fee is not refundable; and (ii) the scope of availability or services that Client will receive.
Speaking of the JFK assassination . . .
. . . Jules Mayer was a lawyer in Dallas. In 1950, Mayer drew up a will for a client. The will named Mayer as the executor the client's estate.
The client died in 1967. A dispute quickly arose, as the client's family contended that the client had changed his will on his deathbed to remove Mayer as executor. Mayer refused to make the change and kept the original will.
In 1991, after a lengthy legal battle, a probate court granted the family's petition to remove Mayer as executor after concluding that he had mismanaged the estate.
Central to the dispute was gun associated with the JFK assassination. Mayer's client bought the gun for $62.50. After winning their legal battle with Mayer, the client's family sold the gun for $220,000. Fortunately for the family, Mayer had safeguarded the gun, holding it in trust for 24 years.
Two-part question:
Who was Mayer's famous client?
Who was the most famous victim of the client's gun?
Social Clients
August 29, 2018 August 30, 2018 Michael 1 Comment
Earlier this month, the ABA Journal posted a blog in its "ethics" section: Celebrity attorneys face challenges, ethical pitfalls. I enjoyed it as much from the pop culture slant as I did from the "it's my job" slant.
However, speaking of the "it's my job" slant, I want to mention three things.
First, over the past year, the news has been filled with lawyers making public statements about their clients and former clients. So much so that several times I've been asked what I think about it.
Regular readers know what I think it. I'm a big believer in two concepts:
Hey Lawyers! STFU!!!
Can't Keep Quiet? Try Harder.
As Thomas Edison said:
"You will have many opportunities
to keep your mouth shut.
You should take advantage
of everyone of them."
(aside: choosing not to blog is probably one of the opportunities of which I should take advantage.)
Second, despite my big belief that silence is a virtue, I was intrigued by two arguments in the ABA Journal's post. Specifically, the arguments that (1) at times, the duties of competence & diligence require a lawyer to speak out in a client's defense; and (2) the rules prohibiting such conduct run afoul of the First Amendment. Alas, I can count on 2 fingers the number of Rule 3.6 complaints we've received in the past 15 years. So, I am not so intrigued to do more than mention my intrigue.
Finally, there's a little nugget in the article that, in my view, is great advice not just for lawyers who represent celebrities, but for lawyers who represent, well, clients.
Referring to lawyers who represent famous people, the article says:
"Client and entourage use of social media can compromise a defense. Ethically, attorneys have to make sure their clients and their team understand ground rules and place limitations on social media use related to the case."
Trust me, I understand that very few of my readers represent the Vinny Chases of the world. Nonetheless, I think the second sentence is critically important even for lawyers whose clients don't have their own versions of E, Turtle, and Johnny Drama.
Because these days, entourage or not, what client isn't on social media??? And that's where the very next paragraph in the ABA Journal post comes in. Quoting Ann Murphy, a professor at Gonzaga University School of Law, the post notes:
" 'Attorneys, as part of their ethical duties, must now counsel their clients on the use of social media,' Murphy says. 'Once it is out there, it is out there. Even if someone deletes a Facebook post—it likely has been saved as a screenshot and is of course subject to discovery,' she adds. 'Personally, I think the best advice is tell the client that any posts about his or her case must be viewed in advance by the attorney.' "
That's a fantastic tip. Professor Murphy – if perchance you find this blog, In Few I Trust. Go Zags! 2019 national champs!
Now, I can hear some of you now – "mike, am I supposed to know what my client puts on social media?"
Well, opposing counsel will. So unless you're comfortable finding out about that damning tweet or post at deposition or in mediation, then my response is:
At the very least – and by "very least" I mean "barest of bare minimums" – I think lawyers have a duty to communicate to their clients the risks associated with posting info to a public forum.
Hmm…I guess this is where I can finally reference Hall & Oates. When it comes to advising clients on the risks of posting too much to social media, it might be this:
Private eyes, they're watching you. They see your every move. And they definitely see what you put out there to be seen.
Anyhow, while the ABA Journal article focuses on the risks associated with representing famous clients, it includes a tidbit that applies to any lawyer who has a client on social media: what happens on social media rarely stays on social media.
Tech competence. It's a thing.
By the way, among my friends, I'm definitely E. My brother is almost definitely Drama. Alas, while we have several candidates for Turtle, not many for Vinny. And at risk of offending my friends, the "many" in that previous sentence? It's pronounced with a silent "m."
Hint: this post doesn't mention Ari Gold. Which means his name might be of utmost importance later in the week.
Cybersecurity for Lawyers: learn from other professions
I've blogged often on tech competence and the duty to safeguard client data. In short, lawyers have a duty to take reasonable precautions against the inadvertent disclosure of or unauthorized access to confidential client information.
So, people often ask "what are reasonable precautions?"
Nobody likes that answer. But it's correct.
For instance, do you mean "what are reasonable precautions when it comes to cloud storage?" Or, are you asking whether a lawyer has a duty to encrypt e-mail? Wait, maybe you're talking about your duties when crossing the border? No, no, I get it now: you're asking if a lawyer has a duty to disable auto-complete. Oh my gosh, no – you're referring to the hallmarks of trust account scams.
No matter the mode of communication, no matter the place that information is stored, a lawyer must safeguard client information. And, as I explained here, it makes perfect sense not to get into the habit of re-evaulating a lawyer's duty with every new technology. Whatever the next new thing is, a lawyer's duty will remain the same: to take reasonable precautions against the inadvertent disclosure of or unauthorized access to client information.
But, as this post in the ABA Journal points out, lawyers and law firms aren't sailing into uncharted waters. There are lessons to be drawn from other professions. Per the post, those lessons include:
Encryption is important. I'd even venture to opine that if it isn't already, we aren't long for the day when the failure to encrypt is tantamount to a failure to take reasonable precautions.
Partners and more senior lawyers have to follow the same rules as everyone else. "I don't do tech" isn't reasonable. It's no different from saying "I don't do 'protecting client information.' "
Employees and 3rd party vendors need to be trained on the importance of data security.
There's a great quote in the article. It's from Michael Mason, chief of security for Verizon Communications: law firms should foster, grow, and " 'develop a culture of security.' "
A culture premised on "we hope it doesn't happen to us" is not a culture of security.
With "it" being a breach, the dreaded "it" has happened not just to lawyers and law firms, but to many other professions. As the ABA Journal suggests, lawyers would be wise to take heed of the lessons learned by those other professions.
Monday Morning Answers #128
August 27, 2018 August 27, 2018 Michael
It makes her think of me.
Friday's reflection on fairs gone by is here. The answers follow today's honor roll.
But first, I spent some time in the NEK this weekend, running both around Island Pond and along Lake Willoughby. I've been up there often, but have never come over Bald Mountain from Island Pond to Willoughby. The views from Sentinel Rock State Park are phenomenal! I imagine the area is prime leaf peeping territory.
Sadly, don't wait too long! The northern side of the mountain already has several patches of red . . .in AUGUST! I assume the early color is due to the dry summer. Alas, Willoughby itself was warm and as crystal clear as ever. If you get a chance, it'd be a great spot to beat the heat the week!
Karen Allen, Esq.
Evan Barquist, Montroll, Backus & Oettinger
Penny Benelli, Dakin & Benelli
Alberto Bernabe, Professor, John Marshall Law School
William V. Cristman, Jr.
Robert Grundstein
Keith Kasper, McCormick, Fitzpatrick, Kasper & Burchard
Pam Loginsky, Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys
Andrew Manitsky, Lynn Lynn Blackman & Manitsky
Jeff Messina, Bergeron Paradis Fitzpatrick
Hal Miller, First American
Herb Ogden
Kane Smart, ANR, Office of General Counsel, Enforcement & Litigation
Jay Spitzen
Robyn Sweet, CORE Registered Paralegal, Cleary Shahi & Aicher
Thomas Wilkinson, Jr., Cozen O'Connor
Which belongs somewhere else than with the others?
A lawyer shall:
A. keep the client reasonably informed about the status of the matter.
B. explain the matter to the extent reasonably necessary to permit the client to make informed decisions.
C. in an ex parte proceeding, inform the court of all material facts known to the lawyer which will enable the court to make an informed decision
D. Trick question. All 3 are in separate rules.
C is in Rule 3.3(d), and is an aspect of the larger duty of candor to a court. A & B are parts of Rule 1.4 and the duty to communicate with a client.
True or false.
There's a rule that specifically requires a lawyer to make reasonable efforts to expedite litigation, consistent with the interests of the client.
TRUE – Rule 3.2
By rule, a lawyer shall not act as an advocate in a trial in which:
A. the lawyer is likely to be a "necessary witness"
B. another lawyer in the lawyer's firm is a party
C. another lawyer in the lawyer's firm is a witness
This is the language from Rule 3.7 and disqualifies the lawyer who is likely to be a necessary witness from acting as an advocate at trial. The situations in B & C are not absolute bans, but only DQ the lawyer if the relationships otherwise create a conflict.
A client's failure to abide by the terms of a fee agreement:
A. is not grounds for a lawyer to move to withdraw
B. mandates that the lawyer move to withdraw
C. permits the lawyer to move to withdraw. Rule 1.16(b)(5); See also Comment [8]
D. is not covered by the rules of professional conduct
Inspired by a recent text from one of the first people ever to follow this blog.
Bob Loblaw is the Bluth family lawyer on Arrested Development. His advertising slogan is "You don't need double talk, you need Bob Loblaw!" Also, as do all great lawyers, he blogs. His blog is the "Bob Loblaw Law Blog." The Bluth family hired Bob to replace the incompetent Barry Zuckerkorn.
In real life, the actors who play Loblaw and Zuckerkorn also played characters in a sitcom that debuted 30 years before Arrested Development.
Name the sitcom.
First, if you didn't pick up on the joke, Bob Loblaw is named as such in order to sound like "blah blah blah." His blog is "blah, blah, blah, blah, blah."
Scott Baio plays Loblaw and Henry Winkler plays Zuckerkorn. An eternity ago, the two played Chachi & Arthur Fonzarelli (Fonzie) in Happy Days.
She kept the hotel key.
Welcome to #128! Vermont Route 128 is, of course, how I get to the Steeple Market, which is the official market of this blog. And, of course, Route 128 ends in Essex, home of the Champlain Valley Fair. Where, tonight, the gang and I are going to the Old Dominion concert.
I love the fair. ALways have. I'm not positive, but I think my parents used it as a baby-sitting tool when I was a kid.
Michael, take your brother to the fair."
"Mom, it's like 7AM."
"Now! And stay all day."
"That's what we did yesterday."
"Michael!!!"
Latchkey kids are the best. But, I digress.
Oddly, for liking the fair so much, I do not like rides. Not one single bit. Mainly because I'm a big ole chicken. I have vivid memories of paralyzing fear gripping me – – as I stood in line for a ride! The ride itself? Awful. Like, on a scale of 1-10, it was infinity level of awful. I'd close my eyes and pray for the entire ride. I think my stomach might clutch tonight if I even happen to glance at the Pirate Ship.
No, for me, it's the food. And the people watching. But mostly the food. Fried dough. Al's French Frys. The magical building where every single food item is maple. I mean, seriously, how awesome is that? EVERY SINGLE THING HAS MAPLE! Maple! Nature's best condiment! (well, after peanut butter).
But the best of them all? Mr. Sausage.
Back in the day, I worked at a gas station on Shelburne Road. My buddy Skip's dad owned it. Skip knew Stan Gumieny, aka Mr. Sausage, and we both knew Stan's daughters, Julie & Jill. For 2 summers, I took a week off from working at the gas station so I could work for Stan, grilling sausages at the Fair.
Sweet Italian sausage. Hot and spicy sausage. Grilled peppers & onions, the greasier the better. So much mustard that the health department might arrest you on the spot.
I don't remember many details. I remember it was hard work. Hot, and busy. And I was kind of lazy – Stan often had to yell at me not to serve sausages that were only half-cooked. Health regulations or something silly like that. But I had a crush on Jill, so I was more than willing to work double shifts.
And the smell. I always loved the smell of the food at the Fair. I know you all know what I mean. Drop me in blindfolded and tell me to guess where I am, it'd take a millisecond. And, to this very day, even though I rarely eat it, I love the smell of sausage being grilled.
Mostly, I recall it as being fun. Hanging out with my friends, acting like we were real restraunteurs, cranking the tunes & drinking beers as we cleaned the grills each night after closing. Endless, in our minds. Looking back, it's one of those things that you do, having no idea how good you have it at the time.
It was the best summer job I ever had.
Alas, as it does, life intervened. Summers end.
I haven't seen Skip, Jill, or Julie in forever. I don't even know where they are. But, I know this: tonight, whether or not he still works the grill, Stan's Mr. Sausage stand will be at the fair, serving up fully cooked, fantastically tasty sausages.
And I'm going to have one.
Exception: if you must, open book for Question 5 . But, we try to play that one straight.
C. permits the lawyer to move to withdraw
A Competent Cease & Desist Letter. (And Beer!)
Regular readers know that I preach the duty of competence. They also know that I'm a big believer in lawyer wellness. In my view, competence includes being well enough to practice, and wellness includes maintaining a sense of humor whenever possible. It's also my view that lawyers can use levity & humor without necessarily sacrificing competence.
Case in point: this story in the ABA Journal about the cease & desist letter that In-N-Out Burger sent to Seven Stills Brewery & Distillery.
The story speaks for itself. But let me back up.
Local readers might not know it, but In-N-Out Burger is FANTASTIC! I'd never been to one until 2016. That February, I went to San Diego for the mid-year meeting of the National Organization of Bar Counsel. One of my best friends, Pat Camp, lives in Temecula, a town about 50 miles from San Diego. Once the conference ended, I spent a night with Pat and his wife.
The next day, Pat drove me from Temecula to Huntington Beach for a marathon I'd entered. On the way, he took me to an In-N-Out Burger, telling me that I HAD to try it. I kind of rolled my eyes. (sorry Patrick). But, he was absolutely right. IMHO, In-N-Out is the best fast food burger joint in the land. #animalstyle
Anyhow, back to our story.
Seven Stills recently announced a new product: In-N-Out Stout. Per the ABA Journal post, it's a self-described "Neapolitan milkshake stout." The brewery promoted the stout on Instagram and tagged In-N-Out Burger. The promotion didn't go unnoticed. In-N-Out's general counsel responded with this cease & desist letter.
I think the letter is funny. The use of "ales" reminds me of my UVM days. And, I think the letter is proof that humor isn't inconsistent with an attorney's duty of competence.
The only thing that would have made it better? Well, given the brewery's name, I think it'd have been awesome if the cease & desist letter had opened with "Seven Stills: For What It's Worth, Stop!"
By the way, Neapolitan Milkshake Stout? No thank you. I'm not opposed to becoming more efficient. In the abtract, then, I understand the merit of combining dessert and a post-dinner drink into a single step. Sounds like something Kramer would've conceived. But a dessert flavored beer? I'll pass. However, as huge fan of session IPA's, you can sign me up for Son of Hop 8 days a week!
Of Counsel: Conflicts
I'll cut to the chase: as I see it, when an attorney is "of counsel" to a firm, conflicts are imputed between the attorney and lawyers in the firm. Here's why I see it that way.
As we know from my intro to "of counsel," a lawyer so designated must have a "close, regular, and personal relationship" with the firm. Mutual referrals do not an "of counsel" relationship make. Nor does being brought in for a single case or the occasional consultation.
Next, from this post, we know that given the "close, regular and personal" nature of the "of counsel" relationship, the "of counsel" lawyer will be considered part of the firm for compensation purposes. In other words, the fee sharing rule doesn't apply.
A final reason that I see it as I see is that others smarter than I have stated that that's how they see it. That is, the ABA's Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility and the Illinois State Bar Association have opined that if lawyers are considered to be in the same firm for fee sharing purposes, then the same goes for conflicts. The ABA opinion is here, while the Illinois opinion is here. As the ISBA stated:
" If the lawyers are considered to be in the same law firm for purposes of
the division of legal fees, it follows that the lawyers should be viewed as being in the same law firm for the purposes of any conflicts of interest, particularly given the close, personal nature of the 'of counsel' relationship. Accordingly, the disqualification of one from representation due to a conflict of interest must be imputed to the other." (emphasis added).
The last sentence makes a critically important point.
Vermont imputes most conflicts to all other lawyers in the firm. That is, but for a few exceptions, we do not recognize "the wall." It's Rule 1.10, and here's what it says:
"While lawyers are associated in a firm, none of them shall knowingly represent a client when any one of them practicing alone would be prohibited from doing so by Rule 1.7 or 1.9, unless the prohibition is based on a personal interest of the prohibited lawyer and does not present a significant risk of materially limiting the representation of the client by the remaining lawyers in the firm."
Or, in language I use when I want to be understood:
"The rule is this: if one lawyer can't take the case because of a conflict with a current or former client, none of the other lawyers in the firm can take it either."
An aside:, don't get hung up on the "while lawyers are associated in a firm" bit. The ABA & Illinois opinions says that "of counsel" counts.
So, the upshot: Lawyer is "of counsel" to Firm. Firm wants to represent Client. However, the conflicts rules would prohibit Lawyer from representing Client, and the conflict isn't a "personal" conflict. Lawyer's conflict is imputed to all lawyers in Firm.
I hear you now: "but Mike, that isn't fair. She's only 'of counsel', we never even really hear from her or see her. We'll wall her off."
Be careful what you let me hear.
First of all, if you never even really hear from her or see her, then it's likely misleading to call her "of counsel." Second, fair or not, Vermont doesn't recognize the wall in this scenario. The conflict is imputed to all other lawyers in the firm.
To sum up my posts on the "of counsel" relationship:
All the rules apply.
If the relationship isn't "close, personal, and regular" it's likely misleading to call the lawyer "of counsel."
For the purposes of fee division and conflicts, "of counsel" will be considered part of the firm.
I'm not sure this is a burning issue in Vermont. Still, a lesson to be drawn might be this: carefully consider these issues before doling out the "of counsel" designation. It's not a title to be bestowed willy nilly.
Of Counsel: Compensation & Fees
Week before last, I started a 3-part series on ethics issues related to lawyers who work "of counsel" to a firm. The first part is here. To summarize: "of counsel" and its variants are misleading if the lawyer does not have:
"a close, regular and personal relationship that is more than a mere forwarder or receive of legal business, more than an occasional consultant relationship, and more than a relationship for the purposes of one case."
I promised two more posts. One on conflicts, another on the relationship between the fee rules and "of counsel" attorneys. I'm finally getting around to it. (Let's be honest – it's not the most thrilling of topics and, anyway, the weather has been fantastic the past few weeks. Summer is short in this neck of the woods!)
Anyhow, let's pretend we're at one of my seminars. I'll throw the question to the audience – what's the ethics issue that comes up when it comes to fees & the manner in which a firm compensates a lawyer who is "of counsel?"
Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
Wait, did someone say "fee sharing??" We have a winner!
Remember – Vermont does not allow straight referral fees. I've blogged on that issue here, here, and here. Rather, whenever lawyers not in the same firm want to share a fee, Rule 1.5(e) allows the division only if:
it's in proportion to work performed, or, each attorney assumes joint responsibility for the representation; and,
the client agrees to the arrangement and the arrangement is confirmed in writing; and,
the total fee is reasonable.
Scenario 1: A former partner in a law firm is "of counsel" to the firm. The attorney has scaled back her practice, but will continue to practice through the firm. The attorney will not practice law at any other firm. Former partner works on a client matter for firm. Firm wants to pay former partner. Does Rule 1.5(e) apply?
This one is clear: no, Rule 1.5(e) does not apply. Here, though now "of counsel," the rules treat former partner as being part of the same firm as, well, firm.
Scenario 2: Firm focuses on commercial litigation. Firm's clients often have related tax law issues. Lawyer focuses on tax law. Firm wants to take on Lawyer as "of counsel." Firm lawyers will consult with Lawyer on all client matters involving tax issues. Firm will disclose the relationship to clients and Lawyer's rate will be set forth in engagement letters. Lawyer will also maintain a personal injury practice that is separate and independent from firm. Does Rule 1.5(e) apply when Firm pays Lawyer?
The Illinois State Bar Association addressed this issue in Opinion 16-04: The ISBA concluded that the answer is "no," stating:
"The question then becomes how the 'of counsel' lawyer can be compensated for his or her services. We have never addressed whether an 'of counsel' lawyer is in the same firm or in a separate firm for the purposes of fee division, but conclude that given the close nature of the 'of counsel' relationship, the lawyers should be viewed as being in the same firm. Accordingly, while the lawyers may choose to disclose the nature of the fee distribution between the attorneys withthe client, the lawyers should not be subject to the restrictions set forth in Rule 1.5(e). However, fee agreements with 'of counsel' attorneys must always meet the general requirements of Rule 1.5 that a lawyer may not charge or collect an illegal fee or an unreasonable fee."
The Illinois opinion cites to opinions from several other states that reached the same conclusion.
Scenario 3: Change the last one a bit. Firm focuses on commercial litigation and its clients often have related tax law issues. Lawyer's practice areas include tax and personal injury law. Lawyer is "of counsel" to firm for tax law issues, but maintains a separate personal injury practice. Firm does not handle personal injury cases. A Firm client, however, was injured in accident. Firm referred the client to Lawyer. Does Rule 1.5(e) if Lawyer wants to share the fee with Firm?
In this situation, I'd argue "yes," because Firm and Lawyer are not part of the same firm. Rather, Firm referred the client to Lawyer's separate and independent personal injury practice. As such, if Lawyer chooses to divide the fee with Firm, Rule 1.5(e) applies and the division may only be made:
in proportion to work performed, or, if Firm and Lawyer assume joint responsibility for the representation; and,
if PI client agrees to the arrangement and the arrangement is confirmed in writing; and,
if the total fee is reasonable.
In sum, it strikes me that the compensation issue will be governed by whether "of counsel" is working on the very matter for which client retained firm, or, whether firm referred to the "of counsel" lawyer a matter in which firm was not retained by the client.
Others might disagree.
Monday Morning Answers: #127
August 13, 2018 Michael
Welcome to Monday. It's August 13th.
Friday's Sinatra-themed questions are here. The answers follow today's honor roll.
Andrew Delaney, Martin & Associates
Bob Grundstein, Esq.
Anthony Iarrapino, Wilschek & Iarrapino
Jeanne Kennedy, JB Kennedy Associates, My Mom
Tom Little, Little & Cicchetti
Kevin Lumpkin, Sheehey Furlong & Behm
Lon McClintock, McClintock Law Offices
Jody Racht, Assistant Attorney General
Jay Spitzen, Esq.
Rule 1.2 makes it clear that the client controls the objectives of a representation, with the means by which those objectives are pursued left to the lawyer in consultation with the client. In addition, I often remind lawyers to set & manage client expectations, especially with clients who have unreasonably High Hopes.
With these thoughts in mind, I've used Sinatra to caution lawyers against taking the client who:
A. Instructs the lawyer "thanks, but we'll do it my way."
B. Calls, emails, or texts every day saying "call me!"
C. Has a long list of ex-lawyers
D. Can't get no satisfaction
I warn about each of the 4. But the key word in the question was "Sinatra." As he sang, "I did it my way." B is the Blondie client, C is the Taylor Swift client (Blank Space), and D is the Rolling Stones client.
Love and Marriage.
The rules specifically prohibit an attorney from representing a client in a matter in which a person whose interests are adverse to the client's is represented by the attorney's spouse.
False. But, see Comment 11 to Rule 1.7. "When lawyers representing different clients in the same matter or in substantially related matters are closely related by blood, marriage, or civil union, there may be a significant risk that client confidences will be revealed and that the lawyer's family relationship will interfere with boy loyalty and independent judgment. As a result each client is entitled to know of the existence and implications of the relationship between the lawyers before the lawyer agrees to undertake the representation. Thus, a lawyer related to another lawyer, e.g. as a parent, child, sibling, spouse or civil union partner, ordinarily may not represent a client in a matter where that lawyer is representing another party unless each client gives informed consent."
Lawyer represents Organization. Organization is governed by a board.
Do the rules allow Lawyer to represent Chairman of the Board individually in a matter in which Lawyer also represents Organization?
A. No.
B. Yes.
C. Yes, subject to the normal conflicts rules. See, Rule 1.13(g).
D. Trick question. By representing Organization, Lawyer automatically has an attorney-client relationship with the Chairman of the Board in his individual capacity.
Lawyer meets with Client. Client isn't focused on the subject matter of the representation and, instead, repeatedly tells Lawyer things like "Come Fly With Me," and "Fly Me to the Moon!" Lawyer suspects that Client might suffer from a diminished capacity.
Under the rules, Lawyer's initial duty is to:
A. Withdraw
B. Withdraw, unless Client agrees to a voluntary guardianship
C. File for an involuntary guardianship
D. As far as reasonably possible, maintain a normal client-lawyer relationship with client. See, Rule 1.14(a).
Sinatra won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for a movie that was released in 1953. He played a soldier who befriended a former boxer. The former boxer resisted a superior's efforts to get him to join the regiment's boxing team.
According to Hollywood legend, the manner in which Sinatra obtained the role wouldn't exactly comply with Rules 3.4 (fairness to opposing party & counsel) and 4.4 (respect for the rights of third persons). Indeed, legend has it that the famed "horse head in the bed" scene in The Godfatherrefers to the methods by which Sinatra obtained the role.
Name the movie, released in 1953, for which Sinatra won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
Welcome to #127!
So, every Thursday during the summer, Maple Tree Place has a concert on the green. Last night's band was I'll Be Frank. It's a Frank Sinatra cover band. I took my mom.
As an aside, shouldn't they stop giving me the Son of the Year Award? It's like a lot in row now. Maybe just name it after me and let other people win? Jus' sayin'.
Anyhow, the concert was much more entertaining than I expected. The setting is great. The green is big enough for everyone to be comfortable, but small enough to see and hear the band. Not only that, McGillicudy's is but a stone's throw from the stage, which enabled me to enjoy a frosty one as I waited at the bar for the Maple Barbecue wings that I ordered and brought back to my mom at our lawn chairs. Finally, despite Sinatra being older than my mother's mother, I actually recognized a bunch of the songs.
The show was great. And…speaking of my mother's mother, so were some of the folks dancing in the audience. I spotted more than one bobby soxer who likely went to a few Tommy Dorsey shows back in the day, but who could still cut a rug!
All in all, a great summer evening.
What's this got to do with 127? Sinatra had 127 Top 20 singles on the Billboard charts.
127!!
Ethical Grounds favorite Taylor Swift has only had 129 songs . . . total!
(If you're interested, Rolling Stone ranked them here. Funny, I was just thinking the other day that Delicate might be her best. Per RS, it's #3.)
127 top 20 singles. I'd say Ol' Blue Eyes complied with the musical equivalent of the duty of competence!
C. Yes, subject to the normal conflicts rules
D. As far as reasonably possible, maintain a normal client-lawyer relationship with client.
According to Hollywood legend, the manner in which Sinatra obtained the role wouldn't exactly comply with Rules 3.4 (fairness to opposing party & counsel) and 4.4 (respect for the rights of third persons). Indeed, legend has it that the famed "horse head in the bed" scene in The Godfather refers to the methods by which Sinatra obtained the role.
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Monday Morning Honors #269
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There are days, as a working artist, when you end up feeling the weight of your chosen life baring down on your shoulders. In order to survive, you have to sell, in order to sell, you have to provide something the world wants, and sometimes what the world wants, and what you want, and love, to create do not mesh.
Creating what you love, in my case, photographing what I love, what moves me, lends a genuine emotion to the work, one that can be both seen and felt. Allowing the down times to question that motivation, to push you in a direction you wouldn't otherwise go, endangers that.
I have come to accept that the dark days, while difficult, are there for a reason. The lotus flower blooms from muck and mud and the harder it has to work to bloom, the more beautiful the flower. As artists, as humans, we are no different. If all we ever experienced was sun and light, with no contrast, if it was always easy, we would never be pushed to grow, to reevaluate, and perhaps shift direction.
So embrace the dark days, just as you relish in the bright ones, and use that darkness to push yourself ever farther towards greatness, to be a better artist today than you were yesterday. Does it make the dark days any less difficult? No. It does, however make them worth something.


text:
Artist News Breaking News Industry News
American Head Charge Singer Arrested For Stolen Guitars
Posted on 15 April, 2018, 09:25 am EDT April 15, 2018 by Joe Reinartz Contact Me
COSTA MESA, Calif. (CelebrityAccess) Cameran Heacock, lead singer of metal band American Head Charge, was arrested April 11 in Southern California after police found more than a dozen stolen guitars in his possession.
Heacok was pulled over in Orange County after driving an allegedly stolen van, police told the Associated Press. The van was filled with stolen gear and more was found in a storage unit, according to police. Nine of the 13 guitars recovered had been stolen from a Guitar Center, according to Costa Mesa police.
Heacock, who co-founded American Head Charge in Minnesota in the 1990s, remained in jail at press time; the band. The band has earned two nominations at the Kerrang! Awards. It has been active 1997-2009 and 2011 to present day. However, it has not toured since 2016.
Twenty One Pilots Expand BanditøTour With New U.S. Dates


text:
Hero of the Month: M. Zuhdi Jasser
by Grégoire Canlorbe
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/17128/m-zuhdi-jasser-interview
The Obama Administration handed hundreds of billions of dollars to the theocrats as well as an insurance of security, as well as a future with a nuclear bomb. These, along with thousands of troops and the empowerment of the terror group Hizballah, gave Iran's leaders a green light to spread terror into Syria.
Some may appropriately say that no real democracies evolved quickly [in the "Arab Spring"] after centuries of tyranny. In fact, there may be a need for multiple revolutions before democracy can take hold. Perhaps, though, there can be a more methodical transition towards modernity with steady benchmarks of reform and liberalization, as we have seen done so successfully with the 2020 Middle East agreements.
The challenge, as always, will be in keeping it from being too slow to the point of fiction—which has been "Plan A" for the tyrants across the Middle East since World War II. They lie to the West about reforms in order to placate each new administration with a five- or ten-year plan while transitions in power in the West along with our short-term, societal "attention deficit disorder" give them a pass.
Regardless of whether a state's approach is top-down or bottom-up, if its raison d'être is based in Islam and the primacy of Islamic law rather than on individual rights and the protection of minorities, as in secular liberal democracies, it will always be anti-freedom and illiberal.
We will have to watch very closely if there will be new interpretations from the pulpits of the grand mosque in Mecca, or mosques in Medina and across the country. The fact that we heard this coming from the pulpits in the Emirates and Bahrain is what made the Abraham Accords a reality to believe rather than doubt.
As for Biden's foreign policy, he is already signaling that the Pentagon will focus on diplomacy first and the military second. So, the Pentagon is a branch of the State Department? If that is not "leading from behind 3.0", I don't know what is. Sources say he wants to "de-emphasize the military" and lift up diplomacy. If that vision is by openly weakening our defense programming, that will signal a green light actually to usher in more war, not less. Peace through weakness doesn't work against thugs like Khamenei and Assad across the planet. We are thus likely to see a re-emergence of Islamist belligerence and a testing of the waters as they try to make gains against Biden's apparent appeasement strategy.
It is my hope and prayer that our work will contribute not to what the Islamists want—a revivalism of the old—but rather a genuine reform towards a Western model of Islam based in infinite diversity of thought and protection of individual inquiry and their universal human rights, rather than the oppressive collective and the proverbial Islamic state.
Dr. M. Zuhdi Jasser. (Image source: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons)
Canlorbe: Dear Dr. Jasser, thank you for joining me. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib are the first two Muslim women to serve in American Congress. Do you think they representative of the mentality of the majority of Muslims in America?
Jasser: Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) are simply byproducts of the Islamist teams that recruited them and trained them in the art of ideology and dissimulation. Those teams include the alphabet soup of Islamist organizations—"Muslim Brotherhood legacy groups"—that exist in the United States. These include, for instance, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the Muslim American Society (MAS), and the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC). Future politicians, media pundits, or the many demagogic imams, they all rise up from within the Islamist populist movement in the West by telling insular Islamist communities what they want to hear while claiming to speak for all Muslims.
Omar and Tlaib rose up in Democratic politics because they represent decades of cooperation between the Islamist movements here in the West, and the far left's progressivism. Since 2011, other Muslim reform leaders and I were asked by Congress to testify many times on the Hill on the compromising influence of Islamist organizations and ideologies, both global and domestic, to our national security.
The American Islamist groups worked in a coordinated fashion to attack me, the organization I represent, the American Islamic Forum for Democracy (AIFD) and the other Muslims in our Muslim Reform Movement. Each time we testified to Congress, their attempts at takfirism (declaring us not to be "real" Muslims) were often less than subtle and typically defamatory. They repeatedly attempted to smear us on social media and never addressed the issues or ideas that we represented in our testimony. It is always revealing how fearful Islamists are of actually addressing the connection between their non-violent 'political Islam' (Islamism) and violent political Islam.
This is the classic method of many Islamists: they tag onto "identity movements" and transform the belief in the ideology of a faith, Islam, into an identity racial group—which it is not. This distortion stifles any real diversity of ideas and promotes a culture where the community is perceived to be a racial monolith. Thus, anyone who speaks out becomes an "Uncle Tom" and supposedly against the whole tribe.
In 2020, we saw Islamist identity politics fit right into the Black Lives Matter Movement and its racialization of every issue. It is quite a cooperation to behold, even though ultimately the Islamists actually agree with very little of the ideas of the far left—for example when it comes to implementing extremist Muslims' draconian interpretations of 'shariah law,' such as child marriage, slavery, unequal legal rights for men and women, death for homosexuals, female genital mutilation, or beating women, to name a few.
The bottom line is that there is one alliance, progressive, that exists between AOC and her progressive extremists, and another different, alliance, Islamic fundamentalist, that exists between, say, AOC and her following and the Islamist members of Congress and their following.
Those two members of Congress represent the current leading edge, in identity politics, of political Islam in the West and its emphasis on group rights rather than individual rights. Both women, however, represent the trend to stifle dissent and dissidents. They also both represent the effort to empower domestic and global Islamist supremacists and their Islamic nation-state ideologies over the exceptionalism of secular liberal American democracy. They would most likely deny this, and certainly there are some clear differences between Omar and Tlaib. For example, Omar's foreign policy has clearly proven that she formulates her positions by looking first for the interests of the global political Islamist populist movement, and then all else follows. She spins it to her benefit in a deceptively American context, yet you can see—in her unwavering support of Turkey's Erdogan, Qatar, various permutations of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, and even Iran—that her affinity for Islamists is paramount. As a naval officer, there is nothing I found more offensive than her fabricated statements, right before she was elected, that somehow Americans killed thousands in Somalia, more than the terrorists we were fighting, and implying that those of us who served in "Operation Restore Hope" were terrorists.
Canlorbe: You make no mystery of your Syrian origins. How do you assess Bashar al-Assad's policy? Do you believe that former President Donald J. Trump had the right attitude towards Bashar when, in April 2017, he decided on a missile strike in response to the use of chemical attack?
Jasser: Bashar Assad's policies are in line with the Syrian Ba'ath party fascism of more than 50 years. The Syrian revolution, which began in 2011, needs to be understood in the context of the methods with which the ruling party wields its power. The Syrian Ba'ath Party is an Arab nationalist socialist party (akin to an Arab Nazism), which seized power by military coup in 1963. The Alawite—a Shi'ite offshoot—faction of Ba'ath Party loyalists then took power in another bloody coup in February 1966. After that Alawite coup, the fascist Ba'ath transformed its predominantly supremacist political platform to incorporate a preference for the Alawite Shi'ite sect. Members of Sunni Muslim leadership were purged from the military. The entire leadership became comprised of Alawite Ba'athist faithful. The influence of Sunnis, Christians, Druze and Ismailis was all but eliminated. Non-Alawite officers who were ousted reported that in the late 1960s and early '70s, Syria was on the verge of a civil war among all their sects. This condition was often difficult to ascertain for blind analysts since, like many Arab tyrants, Hafez Assad ruled in a predominantly secular fashion rather than theocratic. Now this began to shift as his son, Bashar, moved Syria into the orbit of Iran and essentially became a client-state of Iran as well as Russia.
In 1970, however, Hafez al-Assad took the reins from his fellow Alawites in still another coup. In line with the totalitarian doctrine of the Ba'athist Party, Assad, ruled Syria with an iron fist for 30 years. He ended the Ba'ath-Alawite in-fighting and his regime cleansed any non-Alawites in its midst, and obliterated any Sunni protestations. To quell the religious unrest of other sects, Assad placed a few party loyalists who were Sunni, Christian, and Druze in mid-level, and a few higher levels, of political leadership—but not military. Most people knew they were window dressing and sympathizers. The Syria of Hafez Assad was much like the Iraq of Ba'athist Saddam Hussein, described by one expatriate, who used a pseudonym, as "A Republic of Fear": "a regime of totalitarian rule, institutionalized violence, universal fear, and unchecked personal dictatorship." Many of our Syrian families, after suffering for years in and out of prison, and muzzled in every form of expression, left for American freedom after realizing that a revolution to topple one of the world's most ruthless military tyrannies would likely never materialize in their lifetimes.
The Assad regime, using incalculably cruel methods, paralyzed the humanity of 22 million Syrians for two generations. Brothers, sisters, families reported on one another to Syrian intelligence (Mukhabarat). Many vanished, never to be seen again, and anyone who dared to dissent from the ruling party was systematically tortured and made an example of by frequent collective punishment. By the twenty-first century, there were more Syrians living outside Syria than inside, and some analyses claim that one in nine expatriates living abroad provided steady information to the Assad regime on expatriate Syrian activities in order to spare the family. The Syrian Human Rights Committee has chronicled many of the atrocities committed in the past 45 years by the Assad regime: the Hama massacres of 1963, 1982, and again in 2011, Tadmur, and the countless prisoners of conscience were systematically snuffed out by the regime.
It is upon this background that the Syrian revolution commenced in March 2011 as part of the greater regional Arab awakening. The Assad regime calculated that it would be able to slow-walk a genocidal cleansing operation against the Syrian people who were part of the revolution. While the first year of the revolution showed significant diversity—with Sunnis, Alawites, Druze, Christians and others marching in the streets—Assad did as his party always did. He drove internal divisions among the sects to rip his country apart, while leaving his regime alone. He was sustained with heavy foreign help, from Russia and Iran, in military, financial, and human assets. The Sunni population was eventually radicalized, with ISIS arising in 2013 in Syria and Iraq. It was due to a perfect storm of Assad's radicalizing Sunnis—combined with their ideological influence from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey—at the same time as Iraq's descent into anarchy. The growth of ISIS provided the Assad regime a convenient cover for continued military genocidal operations and the use of chemical weapons against the majority of the population who were unarmed and who had naively thought that if the world saw it on YouTube, the public would put enough pressure on Assad to bring it to an end. Sadly, Russia and Iran were likely the primary reason Assad survived and the civil war did not evolve organically. Russia and Iran consolidated Assad's grip on Syria's humanity and systematically exterminated more than 600,000 people and displaced 10,000,000 people out of Syria's 22,000,000. The UN remained feckless.
This is not to say that the West or anyone should have intervened in any way close to what happened in Iraq. What use is the UN, however, if ruthless tyrants can use chemical weapons and eradicate swaths of their own population with no repercussions? A Bosnian type of response, akin to President William Jefferson Clinton's and the UN's response to Serbia's crimes in 1995 might have helped. President Barack Obama, however, did not just avoid military intervention; his administration actively supported the Assad regime at the altar of their "nuclear deal" with the Islamic Republic of Iran and the empowerment of The Iranian Republican Guard Corps and its Masters in Tehran. The Obama Administration handed hundreds of billions of dollars to the theocrats as well as an insurance of security, as well as a future with a nuclear bomb. These, along with thousands of troops and the empowerment of the terror group Hizballah, gave Iran's leaders a green light to spread terror into Syria.
President Donald Trump's Administration's response to the Assad's repeated use of chemical weapons in April 2018, while minimal in the scheme of what had happened in Syria to that point, did send a message that reverberated within the Assad regime, not to mention Russia and Iran, that red lines do mean something for that administration. It did have some deterrent effect, as limited as it was.
Canlorbe: At Trump's request, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Sudan and Bahrain signed the Abraham Accords, promising to make peace with Israel. They also promised to stop financing and hosting terrorist organizations. Do you believe those regimes can be trusted? How will they behave under a Biden presidency?
Jasser: In President Ronald Reagan's words, "trust but verify". But first, it is important to reflect on the failed "Arab Awakening". While it was not a Spring—except for Tunisia where a culture of democracy and some liberalism is actually beginning to take hold—a complete reset in the Arab world against tyranny was certainly very appealing to those of us from families that have been fighting against these dictators, autocratic monarchs, and otherwise Islamist theocrats for more than two generations. After a decade of failed revolutions—between the 20th century's tyrannies and the chaos after 2011—was there a better path forward?
Some may appropriately say that no real democracies evolved quickly in the "Arab Awakening," after centuries of tyranny. In fact, there may be a need for multiple revolutions before democracy can take hold. Perhaps, though, there can be a more methodical transition towards modernity with steady benchmarks of reform and liberalization, as we have seen done so successfully with the 2020 Middle East agreements?
The challenge, as always, will be in keeping it from being too slow to the point of fiction—which has been "Plan A" for the tyrants across the Middle East since World War II. They lie to the West about reforms in order to placate each new administration with a five- or ten-year plan while transitions in power in the West along with our short-term, societal "attention deficit disorder" give them a pass. Remember, the changes in 2011 created vacuums facilitating the re-emergence of tyranny and radical Islamists, but sometimes, like treating cancer, the patient has first to get more ill before returning to health.
Essentially, a model of reform that I see possible—perhaps remotely, but possible—for liberalism and freedom, may be an evolution towards constitutional monarchies (much as I disagree with "genetic supremacism"). Some of them have been building civil society institutions that begin to modernize Islamic thought, end the concept of an Islamic state and its jihad, and instead are looking at their state and citizens through the prism of universal human rights. What we have been seeing in the UAE gives hope, as do Bahrain, Sudan, with, one hopes, more to come. So far, I have less optimism for Saudi Arabia relinquishing the dominance of the ideas of salafi-jihadism and its draconian interpretation of Islam even as the Saudis openly condemn and declare war on 'political Islam'. Their track record is just so abysmal. But as we see them outlaw child marriage and make other changes, the principle of "trust but verify" may be appropriate to push them forward?
This is likely confusing to many non-Muslims, if we try to say, that the Saudis are now anti-Islamist despite decades of supporting Muslim Brotherhood groups across the planet? Please understand, though, that the concept of an Islamic Republic, with an Islamic flag and an Islamic jurisprudence (sharia) in which the Qur'an is the source, not just a source of law, is in fact certainly still a form of political Islam, just more of a top-down, corporate, theocracy no matter which way you cut it. However, even the Islamist populist movements, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, are not much better. They are simply bottom-up, grass roots theocracies founded in sharia ideologies. Regardless of whether a state's approach is top-down or bottom-up one, if its raison d'être is based in Islam and the primacy of Islamic law rather than on individual rights and the protection of minorities, as in secular liberal democracies, it will always be anti-freedom and illiberal.
For the first time I do also see peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia as not only a short-term possibility but even a long-term one. The combination of the populist Islamist movement threat to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its radical offshoots of ISIS and al Qaeda combined with the threat of Shia Islamism of Khomeinism has shaken the foundations of the Saudi state establishment and forced them to reckon with monsters they helped create—such as the Muslim Brotherhood and their mosques—while also pushing them to forge more meaningful acknowledgement of the state of Israel and the West. Let us not also underestimate the role of the Trump administration and the Pompeo State Department in making this happen. This early reform however will only be real when it is met with a genuine reinterpretation of the antisemitic translations and interpretations of the Qur'an and Hadith (the Prophet's deeds and sayings) that the government of Saudi Arabia pushes. Not until their imams begin to marginalize the anti-Semitic bigotry of so many of those interpretations and begin to present new interpretations will that change be in fact durable.
As for Qatar, we should begin closing our base there and finding other options for our regional security. Their state propaganda arm of Al Jazeera—in addition to their relationship with Iran, Turkey and global Islamist movements of the Muslim Brotherhood—has rendered them no longer an ally, let alone even a "frenemy". This should not surprise anyone. The Al-Thani family went all in the Muslim Brotherhood since 1961 when they gave safe haven to the spiritual guide of the Ikhwani movement—Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi. He has since been a close partner of the royal family aligned ideologically and strategically with a global reach of at least tens of millions of Islamists. We have long followed and dissected Qaradawi's English and Arabic work and there is little doubt that he and his followers are the central cancer of the Sunni Islamist global movement against the west and our way of life. The Qatari government's fealty for Islamists has brought them economically and ideologically closer to Iran's Khomeinists in addition to the Taliban. My position has always been that Qatar sees itself as the global center for Islamists, meaning "The Caliphate". Their extreme wealth makes for a toxic global brew for most of our Islamist enemies.
I see no inkling of reform or change on the programming of Al Jazeera or any of their imams or clerics. In fact, only months ago we saw systematic Holocaust denial on the programming of Al Jazeera as they attempted quickly to erase history of that. They are too deeply embedded at heart and economically with Iran, Turkey and other Islamist supremacists across the planet to have any hope at reform unless their regime falls. We can only pray.
There is little doubt that the Biden administration will simply be Obama 3.0. It may even be worse than the Obama administration because it is going to trip over itself in such an exaggerated fashion trying to undo the progress against the Islamists—domestically and abroad—that we have made since 2016, that the pendulum will swing back further than even the Obama administration in defense of Islamists.
We are already seeing this in the Islamist that was selected to be a senior White House staffer for legislative affairs—Reema Dodin. She is notably not only historically an operative with Muslim Brotherhood legacy groups such as CAIR in DC but she also stated as a student at UC-Berkley, "Palestinian suicide bombings are the last resort of a desperate people". With her likes running interference with the Hill for the White House, we may see an even more radicalized policy in favor of not only Iranian appeasement but overt support of Islamist interests domestically and abroad. What is certain—based on how Dodin while at Senator Durbin's office with her allies at Muslim Advocates beat the drum of Muslim American victimization against our testimony on the Hill—it will only get worse.
As for Biden's foreign policy, he is already signaling that the Pentagon will focus on diplomacy first and the military second. So, the Pentagon is a branch of the State Department? If that is not "leading from behind 3.0", I don't know what is. Sources say he wants to "de-emphasize the military" and lift up diplomacy. If that vision is by openly weakening our defense programming, that will signal a green light actually to usher in more war, not less. Peace through weakness doesn't work against thugs like Khamenei and Assad across the planet. We are thus likely to see a re-emergence of Islamist belligerence and a testing of the waters as they try to make gains against Biden's apparent appeasement strategy. Now more than ever, our private work needs to push for anti-Islamist reformers against the likely ascendant Islamist threats.
Canlorbe: Putin is an ally of the mullahs and sits at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. In Russia, Muslims represent 10% of the total population, and Islam is the second most widely professed religion. Is the Russian regime a trustworthy ally in promoting enlightened Islam and fighting against terrorist, political Islam?
Jasser: Domestically, as Michael Weiss pointed out in 2017, the Russians have long played a double game with radical Islamist terror, in fact helping fuel ISIS with recruits from Chechnya to give Assad cover and allow Russia to ship out the jihadists it creates. Regionally, Putin's regime has empowered our greatest enemies—Iran's terror regime from its Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) to Hizballah, and Assad. Its state propaganda—RT is finally listed under FARA and is an unwavering part of the Assad/Khameinist media arm state-sponsored media. They have worked with our nominal ally, Turkey (selling them missiles) and giving them the green light against our Kurdish allies in Syria. Part of their longtime interest in Syria is their only Mediterranean port and base at Tartus. Chechnya's tyrant, Ramzan Kadyrov, portrays himself as a devout Muslim but he is a two-bit radical tyrant and Putin tool who has systematically radicalized his population while violating the human rights of every minority group from the gay community to dissidents.
In my book, A Battle for the Soul of Islam: An American Patriots' fight to Save his Faith, I recount how my father told me that our family's deep seeded anti-communism and anti-Islamism is what drove them to become enamored of West and learn about the exceptionalism of secular democracy and especially about Americanism. Russia's Putin and its kleptocrats would never promote an enlightened anything, let alone defeat a theocracy. They still have a state-sponsored church; the other faiths, whether within Christianity or outside, have lesser to no rights. There is a reason their entire economy is oil, and produce no products of any kind competing in the free markets. The Putin regime is against individual creativity and battles of ideology. In order for reformists to emerge, we need a public platform of critical thinking and modern civil institutions that protect universal human rights.
Canlorbe: Both Maimonides and Averroes endeavored to conciliate religion and philosophy. How do you assess the legacy of Averroes in Islam and that of Maimonides in Judaism?
Jasser: As a physician dedicated to treating the ill, your question resonates with me more than you would ever know. My chosen profession is as a doctor and it was the inspiration of clear broad-minded thinkers and doctors like Maimonides and Averroes who influenced so much of my idealism about medicine and medical ethics. Their confidence in weighing in on philosophy, theology, legalisms, and politics are an example of what I have always aspired to be and do in my own life even if their ideas are from almost 1000 years ago. It was not necessarily the specifics of their ideas, but the courage of their inquiry. Scholars have often pointed out the strong resemblance between Maimonides' "understanding of God's manifestness in the order of nature" and Averroes' "conception of God and providence which focuses heavily on God's essential preservation of all species, and his role as the cause of being and unity in all hylomorphic substances." Averroes, for example, saw God in every element of nature's diversity. Averroes's gift or legacy to Islamic thought was much like that of Maimonides; he took human feelings and sensations, like 'heat', 'intellect', 'mind', 'wisdom', and 'creativity' and used them to broaden our human understanding of God. To most Salafists, even the suggestion of imparting human-like attributes to God is blasphemy whether or not it is intended just to understand and relate better to our understanding of God. Giving philosophical descriptions of God using human metaphors and nature provided Averroes, like Maimonides, a flexibility of thought about God which in the right era of boundless human creativity and inquiry can become the foundation of real enlightenment and liberalism.
Similar to Maimonides, Averroes sought to bring to Islamic thought a "blending of God as pure unity and God as intellect" a very Hellenic thought process seen throughout Arabic discourse, as seen in, for example, the Theology of Aristotle.
Contrary to essentially every extremist or literalist movement in Islam today, Averroes' legacy was about taking God's unity (tawhid) and giving Muslims a way of looking at that unity, consistency, and omnipresence in a way that does not conflict and actually explains the infinite diversity of the human condition, our nature, and our laws. This is actually also the essence of our Muslim Reform Movement—an attempt to bring back such a deep understanding of diversity of thought and interpretations of Islamic law (shariah) in a way that allows us to live in harmony with modernity and secular liberal democracy through a separation of "history and religion"—or more allegory and less literalism. Averroes may not have explicitly gone so far as real liberalism. But then again there were no liberal democracies upon which to reflect for these thinkers at the time. But the foundations of his thought, similar to what Maimonides was to Judaism, gave metaphysical nuggets of what God is and what God is not, along with the infinite possibilities for human nature brought about by God. Averroes, like Maimonides, looked at scripture, the Qur'an for Averroes, as allegory. This courage to go beyond literalism is part of his legacy and similarities to Maimonides.
Sadly, while both Maimonides and Averroes did their amazingly open-minded and deep work during the 12th century, both in Muslim majority nation states, Averroes' legacy has so far been very difficult to find in the "Islamic world" if not lost to hundreds and hundreds of years of intellectual and philosophical stagnation and reactionary movements that ultimately dominated and decimated most free Islamic academic and civil institutions since his life.
M. Zuhdi Jasser is the President of the American Islamic forum for Democracy. He is a former U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander. He is a former Vice-Chair and commissioner on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) appointed by Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) from 2012-2016. He is also a physician in private practice specializing in internal medicine, primary care, and medical ethics in Phoenix, Arizona. You can find him on Twitter @DrZuhdiJasser
Recent Articles by Grégoire Canlorbe
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Robert W. Boatwright • Mar 8, 2021 at 07:42
Dr. Jasser is straightforward, honest and expert in his analysis. The government should be more open to his advice and expertise.
Rachel • Mar 7, 2021 at 15:50
I very much like and respect Dr. Jasser. He is a patriotic American and a pro-reform Muslim who wants his religion reformed and evolved out of the ways and barbaric practices of centuries ago, into modern times. I agree that it is easy to dream of secular Islam, and very difficult to achieve. But it has been done before. A modern, Western, passionately secular and reformist leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk of Turkey, did create a modern Republic of Turkey on the ashes of the collapsed Ottoman Empire after WWI. He created a parliamentary and secular republic with equal rights to citizenry, separation of state and mosque, modern/Western attire, latin alphabet, and education standards. He ended polygamy, granted equal rights to all women to vote and be elected (before even Swiss women had voting rights). He closed all madrassas, modernized schools and universities where education became based on science. He brought opera, Western music and all forms of art into Turkey's culture where 99% of the population is Muslim.
Yes it was done before, by this patriotic soldier and statesman. However now, 100 years later Turkey's characteristics are not guaranteed to survive the influence of Islamism. It's being tested for almost two decades now, since the ascent to power of AK Party and its authoritarian leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, first as Prime Minister who then became President with absolute and unchecked power. He is affiliated with Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwan), sympathizes, defends, and protects its terrorist offshoots (such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood members) sheltered in Turkey, while he oppresses and imprisons dissidents, journalists, academicians.
Unfortunately, the same Western powers (such as the current administration in the U.S.) who always choose to support Islamists rather than the modern, secular, reform Muslims (like Dr. Jasser and his friends), play an important role in bringing such Islamists to power. They did it first in Turkey by transforming that country, and tried again to do the same thing to other countries during the so-called Arab "Spring". They helped organize the Islamists, started civil wars and hoped to bring Muslim Brotherhood to rule in all the Middle Eastern countries. West caused so much bloodshed in the region, all in the name of bringing to them "democracy"! They failed of course! Who can claim that the tragedy in Libya, in Iraq,in Egypt, in Syria is "democracy"? Turkey was definitely more democratic than it is now under the Islamists of their choice!
To me Dr. Jasser is like a good Ataturkist, possibly even more liberal and democratic given the times and circumstances in which those two men lived. I know that a major reform can be accomplished in Islamic countries. The question is" "Can they keep it?"
Tami • Mar 7, 2021 at 09:49
"... child marriage, slavery, unequal legal rights for men and women, death for homosexuals, female genital mutilation, or beating women" are fundamental to the word of Allah as shown in the Koran.
They are not an afterthought of an unrepresentative group of Muslims.
Why does nobody take the Koran seriously, except when it says nice things to Muslims?
Peter Smith • Mar 7, 2021 at 01:19
Zuhdi Jasser is a good guy in my view but he doesn't represent Islam and never will. He has invented his own religion - democratic and peaceful with Allah in the frame. It just ain't Islam. A danger is that he might convince people that Islam could look like his religion if only it reformed. That is simply not possible. For a start church and state are one in Islam. The tenets of Islam demand that it subdues other religions. It can't be true to itself and coexist peacefully.
Robert Peter Smith • Mar 9, 2021 at 11:17
Spoken from one that is not a Muslim, but it is your opinion and not an expert analysis.
I believe Dr. Jasser has forgotten more about Islam and knows more about radical Islam than you will ever know.
Bull Herman • Mar 6, 2021 at 21:18
A dream that Islamists will back away from violence, treating women like disposable trash, and respecting anybody and anything outside Islam, is just that. A dream. Not a dream in the likes of a MLK speech; which encourages the good and equality in all of us. This is a dream of wishful thinking.
The only way this comes to pass is if the Muslim world suffers a huge military loss, or a God-given disaster that kills so many the rest want nothing to do with the old system. Don't hold your breath...
Bonnie • Mar 6, 2021 at 19:53
Interesting and instructive interview.
jbsilver • Mar 6, 2021 at 18:59
Impressive person and a fine article.
Can someone get him in to see Joe Biden? Or better yet, Kamala?
Since she's really calling the shots.
Om Prakash Sharma • Mar 6, 2021 at 14:27
Never believe an Islamist whatever he/she may say!
Ernst • Mar 6, 2021 at 06:28
Anyone who imagines that the Mullahs and Imams will voluntarily give up their near absolute power is living in a dangerous dream world. It will require violent revolution to have this happen (like the Christian Reformation), and even then there will be pockets of violent religious fervor.
Martin Luther incited the Reformation in the Mid Sixteenth Century AD. Islam has over a hundred years to gain this age.
Gabor Ujvari • Mar 6, 2021 at 05:35
Barack Obama selected Joe Biden for his running mate because supposedly Joe Biden had great experience in foreign policy. It was a huge mistake, especially when Joe Biden was one of the architects of the clandestine deals with Iran. Now Joe Biden is ready to cave in to Iran second time as a president. Unfortunately Joe Biden does not realise that diplomacy is the responsibility of the State Department. When diplomacy fails, the Pentagon is responsible for a military option.
It is a positive surprise that many journalists see through the Biden administration's incompetence and the questionable behaviour of some of the Democrats.
FREE ALEXEI NAVALNY!
Alexei Navalny, a critic of Russia's President Vladimir Putin, has been imprisoned for nine years after a Russian 'sham' trial.


text:
La Vive Flamme d'amour (en espagnol : La Llama de Amor viva) est un livre rédigé par Jean de la Croix vers l'année 1584. Après avoir composé le poème La Vive Flamme d'amour, une de ses filles spirituelles (Ana de Peñalosa) lui demande l'interprétation des vers de ce poème. Jean de la Croix rédige alors un petit traité ayant le même titre que le poème : La Vive Flamme d'amour. Ce petit traité explique les différents métaphores et images symboliques du poème. De son auteur même, ce poème décrit l'expérience d'union de l'âme avec Dieu. Le poète y décrit ce qu'il considère comme .

Cet ouvrage, originellement destiné à Ana de Peñalosa, est traduit et diffusé avec l'œuvre mystique de Jean de la Croix. De nombreuses traductions et éditions ont eu lieu, après sa mort et jusqu'à aujourd'hui.

Historique de l'œuvre

Jean de la Croix compose entre 1582 et 1584 (ou entre 1584 et 1585 suivant les sources) un poème : La Vive Flamme d'amour (en espagnol : La Llama de Amor viva) à la demande d'Ana de Peñalosa, une de ses filles spirituelles.
Quelque temps après avoir reçu ce poème, Ana de Peñalosa demande à Jean de la Croix une interprétation de son poème.
Jean de la Croix commente alors le poème dans un petit ouvrage qui porte le même titre : La Vive Flamme d'amour. Ce livre est son dernier grand traité de théologie avant la mort. Dans ce traité, Jean de la Croix décrit ce qu'il considère comme .

Contenu de l'ouvrage
La traduction de l'œuvre rédigée par Jean de la Croix (vers 1584) a été réalisée par le père Grégoire de Saint Joseph.

La publication débute par une courte présentation de l'édition faite par Jean-Pie Lapierre. Suit le prologue, rédigé par Jean de la Croix et le poème La Vive Flamme d'amour de 4 strophes de 6 vers.

Le livre se découpe ensuite en 4 chapitres de longueurs inégales analysant chaque strophe l'une après l'autre.
Pour chaque strophe, nous retrouvons en début de chapitre :
 une reprise complète de la strophe du poème
 une première explication globale de la strophe (en moins de 2 pages)
 une reprise successive de chaque vers de la strophe avec une longue explication du vers.

Les deux premières strophes voient une étude de longueur comparable (environ 30 pages pour les strophes 1 et 2).
La  est la plus détaillée (environ 50 pages), la dernière strophe est la plus courte (seulement 11 pages).
L'auteur ne semble pas vouloir s'étendre sur ces derniers vers qui chantent l'union de l'âme à Dieu. Au moment d'aborder les trois derniers vers, il prévient déjà son lecteur : , puis après quelques lignes de commentaire sur ces ultimes vers, il termine l'œuvre en déclarant :.

Bibliographie
Cette œuvre a été diffusée et publiée à de nombreuses reprises lors de différentes éditions des œuvres de saint Jean de la Croix. Voici quelques dates de publications :
 1622 : publié dans la première traduction française ().
 1630 : publication intégrale de l'œuvre de Jean de la Croix en espagnol.
 1641 : Traduction en français des Œuvres spirituelles de Jean de la Croix par Cyprien de la Nativité de la Vierge. Plusieurs  rééditions sont réalisées au cours du  (1645,  1652,  1675...). Cette version est rééditée au .
 1695 : traduction par Jean Maillart (jésuite). Cette version est retenue au  dans la Patrologie de Migne.
 . Réédité en 1945, 1997, et en 2015 en version kindle.
 .

Notes et références

Annexes

Articles liés

 La Vive Flamme d'amour (le poème lié à l'œuvre).
 Jean de la Croix
 Oraison silencieuse
 Ordre du Carmel

Liens externes

 La Vive Flamme d'amour, le livre (et le poème) traduits par le père Jean Maillard, jésuite, en 1695.
 La Vive Flamme de l'Amour, version de 1695 scannée sur google books.

Christianisme en Espagne
Ouvrage de Jean de la Croix
Livre paru au XVIe siècle
Ouvrage théologique chrétien