not what they expected...

I'm taking a Constitutional Law class this quarter and I'm learning things I never knew as a blue-tassled-business-major. The original framers of the Constitution envisioned a weak federal government, strong state government and President whose powers were a fraction of what they are now.
So what happened? (I'm not 100% complete or accurate, but I'm reasonably close.) The Great Depression happened. Prior to this, the federal government (mostly congress) was limited to what was expressly provided in Article 8, Section 1 of the Constitution. However, the Great Depression and FDR brought the New Deal philosophy. The New Deal set up federal social programs to deal with nation-wide problems such as unemployment, social security and labor laws.

The Supreme Court Justices during that time were against the New Deal and found many of the new federal statutes and powers unconsititutional. FDR, frustrated and unable to implement his plans tried to load the benches with Justices with his philosophy. Since Justices are appointed for life, he could either wait for them to retire or supplement the existing bench with his own appointments. In the end, having served almost four terms in office, FDR was able to appoint all but one of the Justices on the bench. These New Deal Justices interpretation of the federal government's Constitutional power was much broader and as federal power grew, state power shrank.

Ironically, the New Deal didn't save the country, the attack on Pearl Harbor and the increased wartime production saved the economy. However, the New Deal philosophy remained after the war.

Perhaps the Constitutional power that expanded the federal government's power most was the Commerce Clause. This clause gave Congress the absolute power over interstate trade. The New Deal Justices interpreted this power over interstate trade to include anything that might impact interstate trade. This gave Congress the power to regulate all labor because any unfair practices in any state would affect interstate trade. Farm production quotas were now constitutional. Congress could regulate both interstate and intrastate railways, because commerce passing through a state would be affected by intrastate rail rates. The Commerce Clause was even the underlying power that gave Congress the right to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Supreme Court reasoned that discrimination had a negative effect on tourism and travel, therefore the Civil Right Act was a Constitutional right of Congress to protect interstate commerce.

Just a little nugget of knowledge.

just a thought

two reasons why i will have a heart attack sooner than later

1. Making sandwiches is just an excuse to lick mayonnaise off the butter knife.

2. The George Foreman Grill fat removal system? I've renamed it the Gravy Maker.

It tastes like burning

My stomach is in agony. Last night we went to Szechuan Bean Flower, a restaurant off aurora, aross from oaktree cinemas. I've had Szechuan food before, but I've never had such spicy food. The service was interesting, the waiter would come by and with malicious glee and ask us if the food was too spicy. As if the sweat dripping down my forehead and the way I was downing ice water like I was crossing the Sahara made his question necessary. We had fish with bean curd, chicken with small peppers, house chow fun and some sort of beef dish. It was great tasting, but so spicy that I woke up last night because my spicy burps were burning my throat. It's a good thing I didn't have to sing on Saturday Night Live. *rim shot*

Step by Step

The new kids on the block really sucked. Seriously. I was listening to a few songs and they had some horrible vocals. For instance, listen to where they "break it down" in Step by Step when they actually name the step. It's around 2:41 on the track.
Step 1-1-1
We can have lots of fun.
Step 2-2-2
There's so much we can do.
Step 3-3-3
It's just you and me.
Step 4-4-4
I can give you more.
Step 5-5-5
Don't you know that the time is right.
HOOAH-hooah-hooah!

I'm not sure who was step 1 and step 3, but ouch... how did that ever make out of the recording studio?
Good stuff.

the winner is you!

I've been a little discouraged because I can't find anyone to hire me over the Summer. I need to get some lawyering under my belt and positions are highly competitive. Nobody wants me.

I did have a moment of validation. I won an award for the best oral negotiation scores at the winter moot court competition.

I also have white friends. how about that.

the prince of dorkness...

I made this a few weeks ago. It's oil on canvas.

GAH!!!

I just wrote a post that was deleted by hitting the backspace button. *shakes fist*
Here's the short verison.
1. Happy New Year!
2. I'm Americanized
3. I think Chinese New Years has something to do with harvesting.
4. Hot pot is a relatively new experience for me.
5. I overcook everything.
6. Even though I'm Americanized, I'll still eat anything on my plate

giant worms make me want to puke

I almost threw up watching king kong during the extended scene with the giant worms... Class starts again in tomorrow. I don't feel too prepared. The last two weeks have made my brain atrophy.