Articles Posted in Commentary and Opinion

The following is a brief excerpt from President-elect Barack Obama’s letter to the people of Illinois announcing his resignation from the U.S. Senate.:

“Today, I am ending one journey to begin another. After serving the people of Illinois in the United States Senate — one of the highest honors and privileges of my life — I am stepping down as senator to prepare for the responsibilities I will assume as our nation’s next president. But I will never forget, and will forever be grateful, to the men and women of this great state who made my life in public service possible.”

Here is the letter.

Notes from Law Technology News Online Update November 17, 2008.

Cell Phones

“If you use a handheld device while driving in California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, or Washington (state or D.C.), you are breaking the law. Utah and New Hampshire have some mention of handheld cell phone use – but mostly as a means of enacting distracted driver laws. Some jurisdictions have bans in certain cities (including Phoenix and Detroit).”

For the Announcement check the press release at http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2008/08-190.html..

Questions have been raised as to how this might impact law cataloging. Here is a response from AAron Wolfe Kuperman at the Law Catagoging Section of the Library of Congress:

The impact on the LAW team is limited. We are renamed the “Law Section”,

October 28 2008

FROM THE INTRODUCTION:

This Mid-Year Financial Plan (the “Mid-Year Financial Plan”) revises the State’s fiscal projections for the 2008-09 through 2011-12 fiscal years that were set forth in the First Quarterly Update to the Financial Plan (the “First Quarterly Update”) dated July 30, 2008. The revised Plan reflects (a) updated estimates of receipts and disbursements based on DOB’s1 revised economic forecasts for the nation and State, operating results through the first six months of fiscal year 2008-09, and a comprehensive review of factors affecting the long-term current-services forecast; (b) the estimated impact of cost-saving measures approved by the Governor and Legislature in August 2008, after the issuance of the First Quarterly Update; and (c) the status of actions to reduce State operations spending that were instituted earlier in the fiscal year.

On Thursday November 6, 2008 the Law Library Association of Greater New York (LLAGNY) presented in conjunction with the Electronic Legal Information Access and Citation Committee of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) a program at the New York County Lawyers Association in New York City regarding how findings of the 2007 authentication report published by AALL and its ELIAC Committee can be adopted in the State of New York.

The program consisted of a panel of representatives of AALL, its Electronic Legal Information Access and Citation (ELIAC), and two agencies of New York state government, the New York State Reporting Bureau and the Office of General Counsel of the New York State Department of State discussing the AALL Authentication Report, published in 2007 and approaches, strategies, and challenges to adopting its findings to authenticating and otherwise validating in accordance with accepted standards New York State primary source legal information published on the web.

The following are links to the opening remarks of the moderator, David Badertscher, Slides frm the presentation of Mary Alice Baish,and a summary of the program kindly provided by Theodore Pollack, Senior Law Librarian at the New York County Public Access Library, who attended the program, and to the program announcement from LLAGNY. Other links will be added if they become available.

2009 LARRY J. HACKMAN RESEARCH RESIDENCY PROGRAM AT THE NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES The New York State Archives and the Archives Partnership Trust announce the availability of awards for qualified applicants to conduct research using historical records at the New York State Archives. The Larry J. Hackman Research Residency Program is intended to support advanced research in New York State history, government, or public policy. The program encourages public dissemination of research products. The Hackman Research Residency Program honors the New York State Archivist who headed the dramatic development of the State Archives between 1981 and 1995.

Applicant/Project Eligibility – Applicants must be engaged in an original research project using historical government records held by the New York State Archives. Preference will be given to projects that: (1) have application to enduring public policy issues, particularly in New York State, (2) rely on holdings that have been little used and are not available on microfilm or electronically, and (3) have a high probability of publication or other public dissemination. Research in records held by other institutions is not eligible for support.

Previous residents have included academic and public historians, graduate students, independent researchers and writers, and primary and secondary school teachers. Projects involving alternative uses of the Archives, such as research for multimedia projects, exhibits, documentary films, and historical novels, are welcomed.

From The 411, November 2008 (The Newsletter of the Webby Awards).

This year, we have seen an even greater reliance on the Web for active involvement in the political process. With this in mind, the Webby Awards has created a special Top 10 list of political Web moments that have influenced this arena. Read about them and get engaged in this year’s election, by voting!

Also, check out Fox News’ coverage of our 10 most influential Web moments in politics.

The following is posted on the November 2008 In Chambers blawg:

A number of years ago when I was prosecuting in Pima County one of the deputies came back from court one day and told us he had made a motion for the trial judge to direct a verdict of guilty. We all laughed at how ridiculous that was; you can’t do that. Then the other day I was browsing through an interesting series of books called American State Trials¦and I came across this:

At the Presidential election of 1872 (A Republican, Rutherford B. Hayes, won it but lasted only one term), Susan B. Anthony, along with 13 women, voted in Rochester, New York. Almost immediately afterward they were arrested and indicted for the offense of knowingly voting without having a lawful right to vote in violation of the Act of Congress of 1870. Only Ms. Anthony went to trial.

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