I love rest days!

Thank God.

Nice work CF Cedar Valley!

5K + turnout gear + SCBA + summer heat = complete badassery

We've done them down here in FLA in turnouts and airpack, but not on air. Kudos.

Of course it was stolen. Come on. Variable standards for what gets disqualified and what gets accepted as a valid ballot. But the basic problem was the vote was too close and Coleman didn't know how to fight this battle. He deserved to lose if he and his group can't handle a recount and get out flanked like that...

I have a question, and I'm hoping that someone can straighten me out. There's been talk recently in the message thread about the nine basic functional movements of CrossFit. I tried searching through the journals; for all I know, maybe I didn't use the right words, but I couldn't find a list of the movements. After hunting around the internet, I came up with this:

1. Squat
2. Deadlift
3. Push Press
4. Power Clean
5. Pull-up
6. Front Squat
7. Sit-up
8. Push-up
9. Stiff-legged Dead Lift

Does this list sound right? This is important to me because when I tell people about the basic movements of CrossFit, I want to make sure that I have my facts straight before I point them in the direction of the "What is CrossFit?" section of the main site.

Thanks!

#5 JT

The 9 movements are:

Squat, Front Squat, Overhead Squat
Press, Push Press, Push Jerk
Deadlift, Sumo Deadlift High Pull, Medicine Ball Clean

They are taught at the Level I Cert in that order.

The hypocrisy of many right wing pundits bothers me. The same group who heralded the wisdom of the court system in the 2004 Presidential Election, now complains when a similar court makes a similar decision, based on precedence even, where the "other" side is victorious? You can't have it both ways. Any election that's been vetted by as many sources as this one has, can hardly be considered stolen. I think Roden hit it on the head...Coleman didn't fight the battle and thus lost the war! I say we make them both complete Eva....low time wins!

#5 JT.

No expert but those all make sense to me except for the last one, straight leg deadlift seems like a pretty isolated movement (though it does hit glutes, hams, lower back).

RE #6:
Paul, thanks for the info. My Level 1 cert took place a little over a year ago, and I do recall going through a bunch of moves in a parking lot during the second day on a sticky afternoon. I don't recall exactly what movements we covered, but I do remember thinking "Why am I soaked in sweat? This is only a plastic pipe!"

RE #8:
Dan, I agree, the straight-legged movement sounds odd, but it can be functional in certain cases, like bending over to pick up something over a fence, or out of a trunk, and such...

JT - the 9 moves were laid out by Paul correctly in post #6. Day 1 of the cert covers all of these nine movements. Day 2 of the cert usually involves a review of the SDHP and med ball cleans, before moving on to a round robin of stations in the afternoon, which expose you to kipping pullups, muscle ups, rowing, snatches/Burgener warmup, and sometimes a few other things like kettlebells, etc.

Hypocritical ax-grinding. The article's points can be applied in spades to Bush/Gore 2000 as I'm sure is obvious to most. This is another right wing infomercial being passed off as journalism.
- M

#7: is it your considered contention that the election was stole from John Kerry?

As I recall, the issue in 2000 was what constituted a binding standard. They couldn't agree on one. What they did agree on, though, is that whatever standard they applied, had to be applied to the WHOLE STATE.

This was not the case with Minnesota. In some counties one standard was applied, and in others another. This disparity, self evidently, was not random. Politico doesn't mention this for the obvious reason that it hurts their case.

Coleman's argument was very simple: this is BS. One State, one standard. That's why he invoked the equal protection clause: because counting some peoples votes and not others is no different than the Jim Crow laws that kept blacks from being adequately represented.

I think he got "outflanked" for the simple reason that he placed excessive trust in people with very clear, very well demonstrated patterns of organized corruption.

It is truly stunning the depths of venality leftists will stoop to in their obsessive effort to ruin this country.

I'd like to give a shout out to my bff Linda from Crossfit Tri Cities who deadlifted 200 lbs tonight.....Some of you may think big deal....here's the catch - she's 66 years old. Awesome. I love her like my mother. I'm so proud!

FRAT

The left and the right in DC is pretty much a farce. They all belong to the show and they all have made it into what I believe equates to a social club these days.

I can think of very few outspoken politicians that I believe could give a crap whether or not our electoral process is representative or not. The fact is they have their careers and their status to think about and the media, the politicians, and the whole lot of 'em spin wheels so that we keep them there and they perpetuate this divisiveness.

As for the people complaining about the "right wingers." I'm not sure there are very many true conservatives in DC nowadays. They all seem to want to shove government down our throats, Republicans and Democrats alike. After all, they know what's best right? And it seems to me that the vast majority of America is just content with that. Doesn't make sense to me.

Just my opinion, no offense is intended.

Just did yesterday's WOD in 96° heat. That sucked.

10k

1:15:03

~Never Quit!

Comment on the article:

In this it is better to look at it like a sporting contest. The winner will always say it was a hard fair fight. The loser will point to some officials bad call.

My dad taught me the lesson on this one when I was 5 years old after a hockey game

My Dad said "you lost because you didn't train hard enough to make it a land slide contest. You left it too close to call. Do better next time and it won't matter what the official says, the score board will show you as the winner. Train Harder"

I must say that this piece of advice affected the rest of my life in a very positive way. More people should have learned this lesson at age 5.

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

Here's the MN Supreme Court's opinion in case anyone is interested: http://www.mncourts.gov/opinions/sc/current/OPA090697-6030.pdf

Alright, I'll ask: what is FRAT? Let's pretend I check the FAQ's, which I'm pretty sure don't cover that.

If it contains profanity, use alternative spellings.

Otherwise, I will agree that both Republican and Democratic policies are destructive. The question is one of scale, not quality.

The Republicans, God bless their pussy souls, have been on the run since FDR. Goldwater--who WAS an honest Conservative--said quite clearly that unless Conservatives could make the case clearly that the FEDERAL government was not the best means for the alleviation of social ills, conservatism was done.

And they haven't made the case. Lincoln at least knew he had Grant in the wings when he watched the Eastern theater go to $hit over and over under poor generals. We don't even have that.

This doesn't mean that the Left has made their case. They have not, because they can't. They are wrong, and anyone who wants to question that claim needs to make a coherent argument here some time. I haven't seen it in three years. Plausible sounding: of course. Defensible in depth: not at all.

That video, including the soundtrack and graphics, and certainly not excluding the serious demonstration of athletic ability, agility, power, coordination, and chest fuzz, was sweet. It will be cool to see Kyle competing at The Games. I hope there's a leap frog component to one of the workouts, and he jumps over Speal or Dutch. Standing.

As for the boys in Washington, it's tough to find evidence of real representation, and I won't expect much until we get real campaign finance reform. How can we ask reps to be there for us if they get there thanks in large part to major corporate donations?

400m run
100 Push Press 75#
400m run
75 Push Press 75#
400m run
50 Push Press 75#
400m run
25 Push Press 75#

M/52/202/5'11-1/2"

Great week! (Always a great week from the perspective of Rest Day, I guess) Double header tonight....yeahhhhh.

yes that 202 is one less than 203 I've been stuck at for a few weeks and down from the 214 I started at after the first of the year ...haven't seen 202 in this old frame since my last east coast interservice powerlift meet at Quantico in 1986.

Wow I know something Barry Cooper doesn't? That's a first. Goat, please note this.
Vive Le FRAT

Jonathan- remember what I asked you to remind me.

22:28

Wow. what an easy question to answer. No.

FRAT WARNING

I'm under the impression that no one in DC gives a real rip about us in the real America. Watching how they spend our (stolen) tax dollars is proof enough of that. Conservative/Liberal. Democrat/Republican...all just divisive labels to keep the country split. The only unifying theme is that they are criminals out to take out hard earned dollars and waste them.

In my opinion, simple as it may be, the only way we are going to see any meaningful change in our country is for individual citizens to stand up and take notice of how we're being on and island of debt. Make changes at the local level, city council, mayor, state reps and governers.

"Sic Semper Evello Mortem Tyrannis"
Mike

Sorry for the spelling errors.
"...marooned on and island of debt."

The funny thing about this situation is that when the recount in 2000 happened, Al Franken was quick to take shots at Bush for asking the whole state be recounted. And you call Republicans hypocrites? Sounds like the pot's calling the kettle black.

While I haven't followed the MN election as closely as some i generally think no, it was not stolen.

As best as I can tell the state of MN has a set of laws about elections. Those laws were followed on the day. When the result was such a percent close a recount was ordered based on the law. When the recount ended Franken was ahead.

Coleman challenged the law - as he is entitled to do - in the courts. When he lost it went to appeals and eventually ended up at the State Supreme Court.

They ruled 5-0 for Franken. So he is the Senator Elect from MN.

If the citizens of MN have a problem with their election system there is a process in the MN State Constitution to amend the constitutional document - and this is what they should do.

If they think there should never be a recount, or there should be multiple recounts, or that the senate seats should be split between a Dem and a Rep, or any other law that should be specific to the entire state and specifically protected in their constitution - that is their prerogative given that the citizens' of MN follow a process to make it so.

These arguments of “Oh it was stolen because Franken started out as a comedian and he makes a supermajority for the Dems and we just don’t like that (a la Fox news)” are complete crap.

Crossfit loves efficiency, right? Max power is about doing most amount of work in smallest amount of time.

Might I suggest that it might be most efficient to handle today’s Rest Day discussions to just go to message boards following election of 2000, copy/paste the debates, then do Find/Replace – swapping Republican for Democrat.

Only half-kidding aside, the beauty of the United States is that there is process. Things in the legal and political systems follows a defined process. Of course, these processes are always able to be improved – or redesigned to shift balance in trade-offs, fro example between efficiency and thoroughness. Blurring the discussion of how to improve the processes because of opinion about a given set of results does a disservice to this important dialogue.

Living in a place where these kinds of processes are far less well-developed, I would say that while the systems in the United States are far from perfect, they remain a model in many instances for a reason.

Happy Rest Day. Just home from doing CFT and im extremely pleased!!
BS - #155 (pr!)
SP- #90
DL #190 (pr!) = 435 (last time it was 405)
It's the tall socks and lip gloss..... i just know it! That and Pony and Cyn in my pocket ;) great working with you Char - you are way stronger than you think!

Natalie Woolfolk has some amazingly fast reflexes. That video does a good job explaining what Coach B means by not letting the bar crash down on you.

Will be doing yesterdays wod, missed it and need the cardio.Only problem I have is that I am doing it with a broken toe ...."ouch.
And about the election"it was all about Acorn.This country gets what it voted in.As a wise man once said" As goes your leaders so goes your country.I suggest everyone hold on" it's going to be a bumpy ride!!!

Great photo!

Cookie- terrific numbers woman! 500 is around the corner. I will hit 600 soon and you'll be right next to me.

Remind me not to read the WSJ. The absentee ballots weren't "ginned up". When all votes had been counted, Coleman lost. End of story.

I say the citizens of Min get who they voted for. If they voted for Franken let them have him. It should not have been that close so sorry Coleman you messed up and lost.

Regarding Bush vs Gore..some people need to read up on the facts. And the same comment goes for Gore. It should not have been that close and you messed up and lost.

#18 Barry Cooper:

I'm with Pony, this is the first time I can remember that I've known something you don't :-)

FRAT is an acronym for "f#ck reading all that". It's typically used at the beginning of a long winded post to warn potential readers that they may want to just scroll on by. However, it has also taken on a delightful (or dreadful depending on your inclination) little life of it's own in the recent past.

Credit goes to The Great and Powerful Jakers for the rise of The FRAT.

#31 Cookie:

Strong work on your CFT, way to go!

Good luck Kyle! Nothing like Sevan putting a little pressure on you by introducing you as the Dark Horse to the entire Crossfit community.

The Games are going to be crazy this year. 99 Affiliate teams going at it for five spots on Sunday. Last years top five men and women taking on a few familiar faces and a whole lot of new up and comers. I can't think of a place on Earth that I'd rather be than The Ranch on July 10, 11 & 12! Plus, I am pretty sure there is going to be a Beer Garden too. WooHoo! Can't wait to see everyone there!

On a side note about alcohol: I am on my two week dry out period leading up to the Affiliate Cup. Having a hell of a time sleeping at night. Anyone got a sure fire deep sleep home remedy that doesn't involve pills or cold and flu medicine? I thought you were suppose to sleep better when you didn't drink. WTF?

Just watched Hannity tonight (not a regular watcher, just happened to flip to it) and saw an interview with Keith Zeier. He was wounded in Iraq and had a major leg injury. He ended up running an ultramarathon (100 miles). Very inspiring story.

I noticed when they showed him on his run, he was wearing a CrossFit t-shirt. pretty awesome.

Freddy--

One thing I try to be mindful of is that I don't train within 5 or 6 hours of bedtime. Keep the engine cool before bed and that should help, also, a nice cup of chamomile tea is great. Top it off with re-reading a Barry Sears book and you'll be sawing logs in no time (unless The Omega Rx Zone gets your fire going)

Anticipation is a killer though. If you're wicked focused on the games than you'll dream about it. Have a nice wind-down time before racking out and get your mind on something peaceful and chill.

Good luck bro.
Mike

Yeah, blah blah politics, liberal/conservative whatever.

HOW HIGH WERE THOSE BOX JUMPS?

I live in MN.... This election was stolen and it blows my mind how Franken can lie to the public. He wanted ballads that had been thrown away before submission because off error to be counted. All of the people whose ballads where thrown away like this got to fill out a new one. So he gave people too stupid to fill out the ballad right the first time 2 votes! So much more I wont get into....

hahah ridiculously high... had to be AT LEAST 36#

thank god the 10k killed me need the rest!

We get the government we deserve. The political system has devolved into sound bytes, lobbyists, and style over substance. The people of MN now have a coke addled has been comedian to speak for them. He joins a distinguished group of mediocrities, malcontents, and morons. (With VERY FEW exceptions.)

The saddest day in MN history was when Paul Wellstone died. I disagreed with him on almost every issue but, he was a man of integrity who served his consitutents not himself.

Caligula made his horse a senator, MN now has a horse's ass. History does indeed repeat itself.

Thank you. No doubt FRAT should be added to everything I write. If it extends past the end of the page, and you see my name, just add it automatically, as many of you no doubt already do.

I want to reiterate what happened in this election. Votes that were NOT counted the first time--they were thrown out as invalid in the judgement of those responsible for the standards--WERE counted the second time. This was NOT, repeat NOT, a simple recount.

It was a process by means of which election officials, who now KNEW the outcome, went back and ADDED ballots that were rejected the first time.

Minnesota law, which we are told is very clear, appears to simply place the onus of legitimacy on the counties. If the counties want to cheat, then the law makes no provision for it.

A recount, to be clear, is a recount of the ballots that were included the first time. Re--as in again--and count, which is process tallying numbers.

What a recount is NOT, is an opportunity to add votes that were missed the first time.

Franken--who presumably spouts off some sort of rhetoric about integrity and what not--should be ashamed of himself. This is a six year term. Minnesota is stuck with him a long time.

Hopefully they pay attention to the depth of the hole he is going to help dig.

For 2 election cycles most of the country has firmly rejected the right wing BS of the Bush years because it was a corporate-sellout and an abject failure for most americans. Things have trended decidedly democratic Yet, for the fascist righties (Barry) its somehow hard to believe that a democrat won an election. For most of the time the whole recount was a classic stall tactic Coleman's camp knew they would probably lose anyway. Sounds like sour grapes to me....

Thought everyone would like this. I grabbed 350 pounds worth of dumbbells (and a stand for them) on craigslist yesterday. Pair of 10s, 15s, 20s, 25s, 30s, 35s, and 40s for only $140 bucks! Here is the best part, I show up to the guys house and he introduces himself as "Fran". I almost died.

My WOD today:

5 rounds for time:
50 SDHPs with 45lb bar
15 thruster w/ 35lb dumbells
15 pullups

20:42 M/40/5'9"/155
Smoked foreams slowed a brother down!
Pukie was lurking.

AmeriSwede,

Just to be sure, I went back and read my posts. Presumably they look like Greek to you, since they actually state a coherent case using plain English, and avoid violations of Godwin's Law, which was specifically proposed for cretins like you, who are unable to differentiate between DISSENT from your propaganda, and actually anti-democratic sentiment.

Explain to me: how does counting the votes twice using two different standards differ AT ALL from the efforts in the South to exclude "Negro" votes during the abuses of Jim Crow?

Answer the question, or keep your mouth shut.

More generally, I will add that all would be autocrats need Brownshirts. It is of course unclear who Obama really is, but it IS quite clear that he has a candidate right here: ignorant, hateful, and willing to to limit his thoughts to mutable slogans.

The actual reason I came back was to post this link: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=32552

Ann Coulter uses the same sorts of language Ameriswede uses, with the different that she appends facts and logic to it, which of course leftists are UNABLE to do, since they spout views they never took the trouble to reach in the first place. In most cases, they came with the cap and gown.

Net on that piece: Sotomayor is to the Left of EVERYONE currently sitting on the Supreme Court. She is a die-hard and dogmatic supporter of quotas, even when no bias exists.

Explain to me: how does counting the votes twice using two different standards differ at all from the efforts in the South to exclude black votes during the abuses of Jim Crow?

Please answer the question.

The actual reason I came back was to post this link: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=32552

Ann Coulter uses the same sorts of language Ameriswede uses, with the different that she appends facts and logic to it, which of course leftists are UNABLE to do, since they spout views they never took the trouble to reach in the first place. In most cases, they came with the cap and gown.

Net on that piece: Sotomayor is to the Left of EVERYONE currently sitting on the Supreme Court. She is a die-hard and dogmatic supporter of quotas, even when no bias exists.

Anyone elses knees hurt real bad from that 10K? LSD hurts me. OK whining over.

Fun topic. Kinda like a merry-go-round, eh? All of this "stolen election" stuff...

I read the cover article in this week's Newsweek, "The Capitalist Manifesto". I have no idea why I picked up that rag, and there's no earthly reason why such a piece ended up there. All in all it was a very reasonable piece of writing on the political economics that lead to the recent meltdown, but a rather reassuring history lesson about how well the U.S. and the foreign economies have come out of each of the last "worst recession since the Depression" (Krugman has called the apocalypse twice before now--little economist who cries 'wolf').

As it regards today's article the Newsweek piece was worthwhile even if it only held this quote from Churchill on democracy: "It's the absolute worst system there is. Except for all the other ones."

Left or Right, we'll be OK...

Great pic! Keep up the good work brothers!

Chuck
IAFF L0368

Go Blue Hens, how old are your running shoes?

Thank god for the rest day today...I'm paying for the 10K run yesterday that I did. That was brutal!

Sick vertical leap repeated multiple times in quick succession. And I agree with Freddy, Sevan has put a bullseye and spotlight on you Kyle.

As for the no drinking= better sleep...as we all know you will get better rest and sleep without the booze. The problem is actually falling to sleep without the booze! Vicious circle,

Coach, I have a confession. I am new to Crossfit (heck, I'm new to EXERCISE, since I'm being really honest here), but I've been plugging away at the mainsite WODs for about two months now...with a ton of scaling and some extra rest days, when needed. And, Coach, I FREAKING LOVE IT!

However, after completing "Nicole" (pull ups on Gravitron, but with much less assistance than ever before, yea me!) on 090626 I thought to myself, "thanks for making me run Coach, cuz I sure hate it and I wouldn't do it otherwise."

Then there was more running the next day and I thought, "haha, you asked for it."
Then there was Eva.
Then a 10k!

Seriously, Coach, I confess that I cursed your name when I saw that 10k...and myself for ever thinking 'thanks for making me run.'

But, thanks. Thank you for getting me to run. Thank you for getting me to push myself. Thanks for everything you do for us.

Just wanted to comment and say great job fellas on the 5k. Way to set an example and raise money for a great cause.

#39- freddy
try a few things: valerian root or skullcap are 2 herbs to try. I know herbal tea isn't muy macho, they are all available in pill form. Kava kava is out there, but can be mildly addictive, just informing you. Chamomile also works, but if you have allergies like I do, you'll react as if its ragweed. There is also a liquid tincture called Bach's Rescue Remedy, very helpful.

Environmentally, keep your room as dark as possible, on the cool side. Wear a sleep mask. Yes it feels weird and you'll look like Felix Unger, but I swear by mine. Don't watch TV, surf internet, or workout for about 2-3 hours before you plan to go to bed. Avoid caffeine (coffee, tea, soda) 6 hrs before bed. These are all blessed by Robb Wolf BTW :)

Horizontal thrusters are also proven sleep inducers :) Good luck with that!

It would be great if CrossFit stayed out of politics. I just don't think it belongs here. Everything about CrossFit is positive--and politics--regardless of what side of the aisle you are on--just seems to bring out the negative.

Made up Eva yesterday. 2nd time with this one. Holy crap! I felt completely destroyed last night, and woke up nauseous, still dehydrated, and sore this morning. I LOVE IT! Anyway:

Eva as Rx'd:

39:48 - previous time
38:53 - NEW PR!

Thank God for Lone Survivor. All I could do was picture the Navy SEALs going through Hell Week, and that pushed me through.

? What's the weight used for the thrusters in "Fran" for guys? Is it 95 or 135 or something different?

Mr. Pink,

95# for guys

#25 Ruiner SSGT USAF,

You nailed it. Two parties, one agenda. They keep us bickering about left and right, meanwhile they conspire and laugh as our liberties and hard earned money fly out the window.

- FRAT - Haven't checked in with you guys and gals in a while, Hi there!

Funny how that article fails to mention that the canvassing board was bipartisan and most every decision was made unanimously. The five members included the Democratic Secretary of State, two Republican state Supreme Court Justices, one Independent Judge, and a fourth County judge from a non-partisan election.

Coleman lost after all the votes were counted according to the tri-partisan canvassing board and the State Supreme Court agreed. All the rest is just sour grapes.

Ran the 5k yesterday in 48:31 outside in Charleston, SC. Funny part is the running track at my apartment complex is visible from the pool. For some mysterious reason, after I finished up my 10k and jumped in the pool, people started leaving LOL!

Thanks to CrossFit for posting the picture and the links. It was a great fundraiser for Cystic Fibrosis and great for our communities. Our time was 38:30 and we finished right around 226th out of 619 people running in the 5k.

It's amazing to have CrossFit in a world where gyms are doing "Say No to Cankles" Month...

Thanks again for everything.

Sam Hess
Local 66
Waterloo, Iowa

#29, Jacko, writes,

"Elections are only stolen when the Supreme Court of the United States usurps jurisdiction from the State Supreme Court and practices judicial activism to put the candidate their politics favor in charge."

Is it your position that decisions of states highest courts should not be subject to review by the US Supreme Court; and that each of the fifty states should be entitled to their own interpretation of the US Constitution?

"Bush v Gore will go down in history as the most activist Supreme Court decision since Marbury v Madison."

Do you think Marbury was wrongly decided?

Whoops meant 10k haha

#55 Nichevo: My shoes are about a year old. Is that it? I was thinking about getting a pair of five fingers or vivo barefoots, does anybody run distance in those here?

Freddy C.

I have found the following Bible verses to be true. When I am walking right with God, my sleep is good. When I let "the job" get to me, and it affects my behavior in ways that are not pleasing to God, my sleep tends to be poor; and often its the little things that effect this the most. I also notice my sleep tends to be poor if my focus in life is making more money, as apposed to trusting God, and being more grateful for what I already have. Not saying this is your case, but when it is mine, these two scripture verse come to mind.

Hope this helps, see in July!

Greg

---------------------------------------------
Proverbs 3:21-24:
My son, let them not depart from your eyes — Keep sound wisdom and discretion; so they will be life to your soul and grace to your neck. Then you will walk safely in your way, and your foot will not stumble. When you lie down, you will not be afraid; yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.

Ecclesiastes 5:12:
The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eats little or much; but the abundance of the rich will not permit him to sleep.

They are both a couple of unprincipled losers, doesn't matter who is there. You are either going to get 30% of your money effectively stolen through taxes or 35%.

Freddy, three items on the sleep / beer thing

First try, getting intimate with your mate before you go to sleep, that should help right there.

Next, if the above method doesn't work, try one beer before bed to relax you and then retry the first method, that should do it.

Third, why are you changing any of your habits before the games? The habits that you developed over the last five years got you to the games, why do you want to change them now, F-that. If you want to quit drinking, cool, but do that after the games brotha man.

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

Crucial findings of the Court in Coleman v. Franken (summarized by a stunningly venal leftist, indifferent to facts and obsessed with ruining your country).

Substantive Due Process
1. The Appellate Court (AC) held that the Trial Court (TC) did not violate Coleman’s right to substantive due process by finding that only those absentee ballots that complied strictly with the statutory requirements for absentee voting could be counted.

a. The AC found that the TC had been correct to hold that any reasonable regulations as to the conduct of the voter herself are “mandatory”, and a vote is properly rejected if the voter fails to comply with the requirements of the reasonable regulation. The AC reviewed precedents and stated that this had always been the law in Minn.. The result was that voters must be held to STRICT compliance with the regulation. The AC commented that voting by absentee ballot was a privilege afforded to voters by the state legislature and not a right guaranteed by the Constitution, so that the state legislature could mandate the conditions and procedures for such voting (Barry, Matt S, and Jacko, if you want to develop a comparison of this case with Bush v. Gore this might be something you want to consider).

b. However, if a voter complies with the law, her vote should not be rejected because of “irregularities, ignorance, inadvertence, or mistake, or even intentional wrong ON THE PART OF THE ELECTION OFFICERS.”

(the court found that any error or failures were of the type [a] and not [b], and therefore, did not ground a claim on the basis of substantive due process)

Equal Protection (14th Amendment)
2. The AC found that the fact that similarly situated absentee ballots were treated differently depending on the jurisdiction in which they were cast did not violate Coleman’s right to equal protection of the laws (14th Amendment).

a. The AC held (based on numerous precedents) that an erroneous or mistaken performance of a statutory duty may constitute a violation of the statute but will not without more constitute a denial of equal protection [under the 14th Amendment]. For a person’s right to equal protection to be violated by a person performing a statutory duty, there must be some intentional or purposeful discrimination on the part of the person performing the statutory duty.

b. The AC found that local election officials had different resources, personnel, procedures and technology available to them, and that these differences affected the way absentee ballots were actually counted. However, the Court found no evidence (remarking that Coleman had provided none) that any discrepancies in the manner of counting ballots were the results of intentional or purposeful discrimination.

It seems to me that given the law respecting absentee ballots in the state of Minn., and the lack of evidence provided by Coleman, the Court’s result was the right one.

Barry,

Read the MN Supreme Court's decision posted above. Particularly, items 1 and 2 of the syllabus (though not part of the decision, they summarize the relevant holdings well):
1. Appellants did not establish that, by requiring proof that statutory absentee voting standards were satisfied before counting a rejected absentee ballot, the trial court's decision constituted a post-election change in standards that violates substantive due process.
N: In other words, the trial court required strict compliance with absentee voting provisions; Coleman wanted a "substantial compliance" standard. MN law and court precedent called for strict compliance, which means that voters weren't misled. "Indeed, Coleman's counsel acknowledged during oral argument that Coleman cannot claim that any voters changed their behavior based on the alleged substantial compliance standard." There was no violation of due process.
2. Appellants did not prove that either the trial court or local election officials violated the constitutional guarantee of equal protection.
N: Here's what seems to be the heart of your complaint. However, the court pointed out that "[t]he United States Supreme Court has held that 'an erroneous or mistaken performance of [a] statutory duty, although a violation of the statute, is not without more a denial of the equal protection of the laws.' Snowden v. Hughes (alteration in original)...
"Coleman was required to prove either that local jurisdictions' differences in application or the trial court's application of the requirements for absentee voting was the product of intentional discrimination. Coleman neither claims nor produced any evidence that the differing treatment of absentee ballots among jurisdictions during the election was the result of intentional or purposeful discrimination against individuals or classes."
Coleman had a burden to show that any disparate treatment was intentional.

So I swallowed my distaste, and read the Ann Coulter piece to which you posted a link. It's ridiculous. She's mischaracterizing legal process. Since she graduated with a J.D. from Michigan, a top law school, either she never paid attention in class, or she's doing this intentionally. Which of those is worse?
You appear to take her at face value, which is never a wise idea regarding the rants of pundits. I also particularly liked when she called "multiple choice LSATs" "written tests". Who knew that filling in ovals counts as writing?
Ann Coulter is the real-world equivalent of an internet troll, trying only to be ever more inflammatory in an attempt to be talked about. The sad thing is that she and her ilk, on both sides of the aisle, are dragging American discourse along with them.

The election in Iran was stolen. The election in MN was contested and fought for but not stolen. Whomever one the other side would have stooped to the same rhetoric. Its shameful when terms like "stolen" get thrown around for political persuasivness. But that's politics isn't?

"whomever won" is what I thought I wrote. "Whomever one" is just stupid. Sorry.

Dang it, Prole! You beat me to it. And likely explained it better.

Nick,

Every second counts!

anyone up for another 10k today? its about 10 degrees cooler than yesterday here in NC.

Thoroughly enjoying rest day. Didn't expect my hip flexors to be this sore.

actually i think a long bike ride and some disc golf sounds good...

Taking these reports at face value, 1,350 absentee votes not previously counted and taken from Franken-leaning counties produced a swing from down 725 votes (maybe the figure is 215) to up 312. According to the MN Supreme Court this was done within the law. This surely demonstrates we are a nation of laws, not justice. Those here who defend the result as not being theft are saying the government can’t steal, by definition.

The analogy with Bush v. Gore is powerful. The Democrats tried to do a manual recount in Gore-leaning counties, approved by the Florida Supreme Court. From there, things were different. Florida law had a statutory procedure for recounting, one that was not followed in the recount. But neither the Florida Supreme Court, nor, to its disgrace and to the best of my recollection, the US Supreme Court relied on the Florida Statutes! FRAT, they said. That didn’t make the US Supreme Court result unjust, just political. By the way, I understand that even after post-election recounting, Bush won.

What we see here is the same thing that brought the Iranians to the verge of revolution—a stolen election under the color of law. If you are of the school holding that courts always decide the law, and correctly, (as some here do), perhaps what brings people to revolution should be called tyranny under the color of justice. Where is that threshold for injustice?

This legally stolen election is another straw on the Democrats back as they pass massive spending laws, reshaping the US government into a dictatorship, measures that no one is given time to read—three quarter trillion dollars for spending stimuli (that have the opposite effect) and trillions of dollars for a carbon tax. “FRAT: sign here.” So much for the five days promised in the new openness, eh? At what point will the American public get fed up?

Obama won’t support the people of Iraq against its Muslim dictatorship because that dictatorship might say (keep on saying) he is intervening in their internal affairs. At the same time, he joins dictators Hugo Chavez and the Castro brothers to intervene against the Honduras Supreme Court orders to oust its dictator wannabe Zelaya. FRAT. Dictator Solidarity!

As for justice, Obama has no intention of prosecuting the crooks who caused the present crash — the agencies who sold fraudulent ratings and the politicians who took kick backs. FRAT; it’s too hard. And instead of fixing the regulations that started the mess, the anti-Redlining law, he is going to compound them with new regulations for everything from autos to thermostat settings.

Symmetry is not a hallmark of left logic. Its motto ought to be emblazoned on its collective forehead: FRAT.

The US is heading for real trouble under Democratic rule. Obama’s spending, borrowing, and taxing will deepen what is now the deepest recession in a century, turning it into a full-fledged Depression 2.0. The unemployment figure is creeping up as expected, and look for it to reach dangerous proportions – around 15% -- by the end of the year. Several states already can’t pay their unemployment insurance obligations. How high is the public’s threshold before it will throw the bums out?

What is needed to fix the economic problem is a large tax reduction, and an end to new borrowing, leading to a reduction in market interest rates. And by the way, the carbon tax does not cause just an increase in energy costs. An increase in energy costs increases the costs of all goods and services. Coupled with the inevitable, instantaneous, real inflation from borrowing, we have a formula for national bankruptcy. The carbon tax is not inflation, because inflation by definition is an increase in the supply of money that causes a general increase in prices — some day. And F…R…A…T… about carbon not causing warming at all.

And by the way, the CPI does not measure inflation when the velocity of money is low (in recessions). Nor does the price of long-term treasuries account for inflation when the fed gives price support by buying up debt. The Fed is doing that again now, and that is exactly what killed the Carter administration and with it, the S&Ls and the banks, and almost drove a stake through the heart of the American left. That hammering on the inflation speedometer carried the day for Reagan, and brought on more than a decade of Republican rule. But FRAT that, too, eh?

Let the pain begin. What is needed is a regime change. We're just probing for the threshold.

Prole #80: "Every second counts". Very nice!

Jeff,

Minnesota law required that all counties identify any wrongly-rejected absentee ballots. The WSJ piece is deceptive (intentionally in my opinion) on this point). 1,350 wrongly-rejected absentee ballots were discovered and counted in process overseen by lawyers from both candidates.

As for the rest of your post, FRAT.

Dear God this Kyle guy is an animal. That box jump alone puts him into an elite category. HQ, Tony B, whoever, keep posting videos like this to the main site- I could watch them all day.

I see CrossFit changing and it's exciting for the sport to emerge. With guys like Kyle, I predict 12 months before Sports Illustrated calls for a CrossFit cover shoot.

Sorry to leave the political discussion but a comment on the firefighters.

Love to see them in their body armor working hard for a good cause. And let's hear a nice word for their chief who is paying the cost of refilling all those air tanks. Back when I was a volunteer, the cost of air refills meant we very seldom got to actually use the tanks during drills.

#85, Jeff Glassman, writes,

"Taking these reports at face value, 1,350 absentee votes not previously counted and taken from Franken-leaning counties produced a swing from down 725 votes (maybe the figure is 215) to up 312. According to the MN Supreme Court this was done within the law. This surely demonstrates we are a nation of laws, not justice. Those here who defend the result as not being theft are saying the government can’t steal, by definition."

Did Coleman claim that there were Coleman-leaning counties that did not have their absentee votes similarly counted? If so, then I am certainly inclined to agree with your conclusion. (This is what Gore tried to do by demanding recounts only in four Gore-leaning counties). But if not--if this is a result of the same rules being applied in all counties--then might this be exactly the sort of thing that a recount is intended to catch (errors, that in a less close election might not matter, but in a close election do)?

Did yesterdays 10k in 69:54.My worst time ever but have a broken toe and it's "Hot here, just the way I like it :)

Jeff, well written.

#90 MN law required all counties to look for wrongly-rejected absentee ballots. This was done, the linked article is deceptive in that it talks about Franken-leaning counties while ignoring the fact that all counties went through the same process.

Believe the problem in the re-count was that there was no conistency in regard to counting votes that were previously rejected.

It should not have been that close an election for an Coleman. Coleman ran a bad campaign and deserves the outcome.

Any advice on taking a NO2 supplement with Crossfit?

The claim of inconsistencies after the fact belies the fact that both candidates had lawyers present along side the tri-partisan canvassing board and had the right to challenge the recount as each ballot was reviewed. To be clear, the board had five members. One Democrat, Two Republicans, an Independent, and one judge elected in a non-partisan election. Coleman was unable to produce any proof that it was unfair and the State Supreme Court explicitly stated this in their unanimous decision.

looking for a good wod to do thats quick?

30/20/10
burpees
30 lb weighted walking lunge.

oh my god.

my left leg is all jacked up! Oh no! I hope it gets better by 2mrw or we get an all upper body day. Its literally unbearable 2 walk on at work doing restock. my leg gets numb and when i walk on it, the outside of the leg by the knee feels like snapping and my hip flexors r sore!

kyle vid is amazing...

but anyone notice he was doing a 2 pood KB "SNATH?"

heh. snath. sounds like a cartoon character.

#39 Freddy C

All of the comments I have seen so far are great for achieving a better nights sleep. One supplement I have started taking lately is ZMA (Zinc Magnesium Aspartate). ZMA is just the two minerals zinc and magnesium combined with vitamin B6 which help you reach deaper sleep. It is a completely safe product and helps you reach REM sleep. You take it on an empty stomach right before bed. Hope this helps

I love rest days sometimes.
I can't wait for tomorrow, though!

Tabata row, 8 rounds, 2 under 1:30/500 avg, rest at 1:33/500. Power cleans, heavy singles 185-195-205-215(PR+10)-220(f)-220(f); DL 3's, 315-335-355-365; SP 5's, 95-115-125(3); PP 3's, 115-115-115; PJ 3's 115-115-115. One World 20-rep Challenge Session 3, back squat 165#, 20 reps; BP 130#, 16 reps(fail). Sets of 6 GHD between all weight exercises.

2.5 mile bike ride to the disc golf course. front 9. 2.5 mile ride home. nice relax day.

going to go buy a couple kettlebells and a set of rings today.

CFWUx2

could not just do "nothing" today. Got this from CF Santa Cruz.

"Christine"
3 rounds of row 500m, 12 body weight deadlifts, 20" box jumps-21 reps.

scaled up to 135# deads and need to get my box jumps faster.

TIME: 13:02

HAPPY 4TH WEEKEND EVERYONE!

Jeff,

"But FRAT that, too, eh?"

Are you learning to speak Canadian? It's aboooot time!

Hari #90, grp #93,

In Coleman v. Franken, the trial court established a nice objective, 10-prong standard for accepting absentee ballots. It was upheld in the Federal District Court, and the count or recount affirmed. Coleman appealed, claiming that the standard was not uniformly enforced across the counties. The Minnesota Supreme Court affirmed, but (contradicting grp’s contention) added the following:

>>Although we affirm the trial court’s conclusion that any differences in the application of the statutory standard by the trial court and by election officials on election day and during the manual recount are not of constitutional magnitude, we do not suggest that any such differences are inconsequential and need not be addressed. … To the extent that this case has brought to light inconsistencies in the administration of absentee voting standards, we are confident that the appropriate officials in the other branches of government understand that efforts should be made to reduce those inconsistencies, even though they were not proven to be of constitutional magnitude.

It would have been better for the Supremes to say, “we do not SAY that any such differences are inconsequential and need not be addressed.” What the Court SUGGESTS is that the differences were consequential and need to be addressed—in the future. The Court suggests that the recount smelled of bias. The Minnesota Supreme Court did not see fit to apply the Constitution to rationalize some kind of closure.

This reminds me of Sandra Day O’Connor’s decision that we could put up with affirmative action for another 25 years even though it was unconstitutional.

I hope the public feels better knowing that the election was not Constitutionally stolen. I know I do.

Thanks for all the great tips guys and gals. I think I will try some of the herbal remedies and increase my water intake during the day.

Unfortunately, due to being such a busy body, I am not at liberty to not workout or be on the laptop so many hours before I attempt sleep. It is what it is.

Billy- I stopped drinking 3 days before the Qualifier and did much better than I expected so I figure if I don't drink two weeks before the Affiliate Cup I should be rocking it! Haha!

Greg #73- Thanks for the advice bro, but you are way off base about me. Anyone who knows me can tell you I never stress about anything, especially the job and/or money.

Thanks again everyone. I'm gonna stop by the store and hit up some valerian and chamomile tea on the way home tonite.

To those firefighters in Cedar Falls, my hats off to you. Thank you for your service and for helping out a great cause. I know I appreciate it and my wife who has Cystic Fibrosis appreciates it greatly. Keep up the great work.

Hey guys just wanted to share a short term success story.

Forever I have done a "card workout," which consists of using a full deck of playing cards and laying down 3 cards at a time. The first card is the number of pushups, the second is sit-ups, and the third is bodyweight squats. When a card is laid down, one must do that many of the particular exercise-so each card value is the number of repetitions and a jack is 11, queen is 12, king is 13, and ace is 14. I also use one joker, which is 15. I go through the whole deck of cards, which usually means doing about 125-160 repetitions of each (pushup, sit-up, squat).

My previous record was 20 minutes, but today I did it in 14:28. I have only been doing crossfit for 2 weeks but have been running a lot on the side also. I owe this to crossfit though, as I have ran my whole life.

P.S. it's a really good workout to sub in if you aren't able to do the normal crossfit workout.

#107, Jeff Glassman, writes,

"The Minnesota Supreme Court did not see fit to apply the Constitution to rationalize some kind of closure."

In your opinion, what specific action should the Minnesota Supreme Court have ordered?

Hi! I’m Chris from Massachusetts and I started Crossfit today...(on a rest day)

But decided to test myself against Eva...(Modified to my fitness level)

Five rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters
1 pood Kettlebell swing, 30 reps
30 Pull-ups (w/ feet on 24' box)

50:03

I loved the workout, and am looking forward to tomorrow. The community atmosphere here is great, and I'm glad to be a part of this fitness revolution.

Legs were mush yesterday, esp in the heat. Ran for about 22 min (just under 3 mi), then wimped out and instead went to bike for about 6 miles (another 21:30).

Brutal past 3 days, esp since i just started in mid-May.

we just did "Eva"

M/32/82kg:
scaled to 22kg dumbell for swings:
4 rounds: 37:58
felt a little sick after

F/27/52kg:
scaled to 9kg dumbell and assisted pu's:
5 rounds: 38:48
next time 1 pood!

Jeff, you quote a footnote but not the main body of that section. The opinion states that:

"The trial court found that election judges applied the election laws in a consistent
and uniform manner. The court found that election jurisdictions adopted policies they
deemed necessary to ensure that absentee voting procedures would be available to their
residents, in accordance with statutory requirements, given the resources available to
them. The court also found that differences in available resources, personnel, procedures,
and technology necessarily affected the procedures used by local election officials
reviewing absentee ballots. But the court found that Coleman did not prove that these differences were calculated to discriminate among absentee voters. Our review of the record convinces us that the trial court's findings are supported by the evidence and are not clearly erroneous. As a result, we conclude that Coleman did not prove his equal protection claim."

#112 Chris from Mass:

Glad to have you aboard dude, your life will never be the same.

Freddy,

Man, my vice is red wine, love the stuff. I would be stuck for answers too if I stopped drinking wine and did much better than expected. So, I just made a mental note to myself, keep drinking. :-)

kick @ss for us old guys at the qualifier!

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

Hari #111, grp #115,

grp, we know what the MN Supreme Court decided. That was the whole issue, and didn't need restating. The Court rendered a narrow legal opinion to rationalize letting stand the injustice of election fraud it acknowledged. At least the Court had the integrity to admit it found an injustice in a footnote!

But injustice should not be a footnote. When the law works an injustice, it should be changed, and the supreme court is just the institution to do that. Instead, it punted to the other branches of state government that created the loophole in the first place, bodies which have neither much of a sense of nor duty to justice. There was no courage in this decision, it smells of politics, and it could prove quite inflammatory.

In view of that footnote, I think the Supreme Court should have ruled that votes were not counted in a systematic way to distort the results, albeit in accordance with the letter of the law. They could have ruled just as easily, and just as arbitrarily, that this DID rise to the level of a Constitutional issue, order uniformity in applying the trial court's standard, and reverse. Almost all of the 6/30/09 opinion would have remained intact.

#54 Bingo:

Article by newsweek = Worthless
I can sum it up in one sentence.
Capitalism is great, we just need more regulation and people need to be more responsible.

The writer has a fundamental misunderstanding of how capitalism works.

#85 Jeff:

I think another year and about 20% unemployment will awaken the sheeple.

About the article:

Im glad Franken won.This will increase the velosity of the forthcoming trainwreck and there will be no doubt who is in control of this one.

Brace for impact.

Jeff Glassman,

I have to say I agree with most of what you say in your post at 118. Of course the court would say it wasn't shown evidence of 'fraud' but only of different standards for counting votes. I agree this is very problematic, and though it might be "legal" according to state law, it might also be unfair or "unjust" depending on the effects of the differing standards.

I don't think judges and courts are comfortable deciding election results even though they may have the legal authority to do so. They are more comfortable deciding narrow issues (individual rights, i.e., habeus corpus) that may eliminate a single (or few) policy option(s) (i.e., for military tribunals), than they are at deciding issues that determine exactly what the policy outcome will be. When a court rules a law or action unconstitutional, the remedy it orders is often that the government has to go back to the drawing board and figure out how to make that law or action constitutional - the court doesn't (usually) dictate the end policy result. In Franken v. Coleman, the court couldn't order a new election; in essence, it was asked to decide the winner. Faced with that decision it played it safe (conservative you might say) and avoided anything one might call judicial activism (is the difference between "judicial activism" and "justice" the difference between the winners and loses?).

I imagine the court, even if it didn't emphasize it, took great comfort in the fact that that the recount took place under the watchful eyes of representatives of both sides.

Still, I agree with you. If the ballot unambiguously indicates a person's intention then it seems to me that intention should recognized and count as a vote. In this age of easy standardization and instant communication, there is no excuse for having different standards at different polling stations.

I wonder how many absentee votes there were in Minn.'s first senatorial elections - I would bet the legislators never saw this happening.

Hari,

If the court had found a 14th Amendment violation, what do you think the remedy should have been?

#112-WELCOME!

Can't wait to hear how much you "love" Eva after you nail it with that 2 pood KB and kipping pull ups. "EVA" is one of the most brutal in my opinion.

look forward to reading your posts.

Happy 4th!

Jeff and Barry

You might like this:

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2009/07/01/cbs_helen_thomas_challenge_gibbs_on_controlled_town_hall_meeting.html

I think Billy @#16 hit it on the head with his hockey analogy.

The law, in itself, is a forest, with millions of leaves making up the trees forming the broader view. Much like Beckett in his writings (grant me this literary reference, and please appreciate it if you've read "Murphy"), legal experts are masterful practicioners of grinding any legal process to a near-halting pace by focusing attention on each individual leaf, either (seldomly) impartially, to stall action to nothing, or (more often) directionally, to direct focus on a certain color of leaf and thus alter one's view of the forest's color.

There is nothing technically wrong with doing this; it is what lawyers are paid to do. As noted far more eloquently than I can by other posters, it should be a point of pride that America has such a judicial system that this practice is a professional one.

But the ugly juxtaposition of techni-legal practices, which go to the microscopic, and the political process, which should weigh broad policy debates, is revealing when it occurs.

To wit, how can it be that an entire (state) population is so evenly divided between two such opposing arguments as Franken/Coleman or Gore/Bush that an ultimate decision has to come down to hanging chads or missing/overcounted absentee ballots? If each side is so exceedingly good, or evil, according to the partisans, how can the populace not see which side is so clearly wrong?

In my experience, there've been two opposing answers to these questions that will never reconcile. One argues that the forest really SHOULD be a particular color, regardless of how few leaves of that color actually exist. Focus enough attention on those of that color, and emphasize their existence enough, and the voting populace will, indeed, miss the forest for the trees, and the end is served by whatever means necessary.

The other argues that, over time, the simple fact of the preponderance of the natural color of the leaves will become self-evident. Thus the small stuff should not be sweated.

Battles are often won by the former practice. Wars are won, though, by the latter. Bush was re-elected (including Florida) in a landslide, presidential-electionally speaking. How will Franken fare in six years?

Play your best hockey. It's a long season.

ran from state to bank and home

Chas #122

Beautifully written. I will return a couple of times, as I do with poetry, because there is much more contained herein than the number of words would suggest.

We can mine that post for an awfully long time. Thank you.

"But the court found that Coleman did not PROVE that these differences were CALCULATED to discriminate among absentee voters. Our review of the record convinces us that the trial court's findings are supported by the evidence and are not CLEARLY erroneous. As a result, we conclude that Coleman did not PROVE his EQUAL PROTECTION [i.e. Constitutional, 14th Amendment] claim."

This seems pretty clear to me. Basically, they reviewed the evidence, and based on the principle that defendants are innocent until proven guilty, decided they didn't want to stick their necks out.

For those, though, who want to claim malfeasance, there appears to be plenty of evidence; just not enough for this particular body of judges.

To reiterate, too, what I understand as having happened, is that the individual counties tallied their votes, then sent them to Minneapolis or wherever for the recount. This is where the 5 member, bipartisan committee was. However, the discrepancy in standards had by that point already occurred.

As I understand it, ballots that were initially rejected in the first count--they were rejected, not overlooked--were counted in the second ballot, after the results were already known. Why?

As I understand it, then, the predominantly Democratic counties made a decision to relax their standards, and the Republican ones decided to do an actual recount. The ones they counted the first time, they counted the second time. The ones they didn't count the first time, they didn't count the second time.

After the Democrats relaxed standards the Republicans did not relax, they were ahead. As I understand it, the people who screwed up their ballots the first time, were allowed to redo them. This meant that by the time they hit Minneapolis, they were acceptable.

Now, perhaps the Republican counties should have done the same thing. My best guess is it simply didn't occur to them, since ballot standards exist for a reason.

The Left has worked hard to paint the Republicans as corrupt--for example by using Alinskyan demonization of Karl Rove--but the simple historical fact of the matter is that if you want to talk Big City Machine politics, you are--historically speaking--talking Democrats: Tammany Hall, Tom Pendergast, Teamsters, Chicago, Detroit.

This Stimulus is a Patronage Machine. It's virtually impossible to keep track of all that money, and there can be no question that some--perhaps most--of it is being used to buy political support and favors. Roads? Please.

Prole,

The difference between justice and judicial activism is in the former you apply the law as it is written evenly to all individuals, regardless of your personal biases and preferences. In judicial activism, you use the law as a jumping off point for the IMPLEMENTATION of your personal biases and prejudices.

There can be no question--none--that the right to an abortion is nowhere to be found in the Bill of Rights. I understand the casuistrical trail of precedent leading to the Roe v. Wade decision. I simply fail to see it as anything other than a clear and unambiguous abrogation of the powers vested to the Court by the Constitution, both in principle, and in the actual document.

Judges who make laws are dangerous. They are unelected, cannot be removed easily, and are thus utterly immune to the will of the People the left claims to care so much about.

I have proposed in the past the elimination of the 14th Amendment as a check on judicial legislation. Since this Amendment does also serve some good--this case was filed under it, although without avail here--this is perhaps too extreme.

Another idea that occurred to me would be to enact a Constitutional Amendment whereby a 2/3 vote of Congress could overturn ANY Supreme Court judgment. The Supreme Court is not currently balanced by either the Executive or the Legislative branches. This is a defect in the system, which was apparently unforeseen by our Founders. When they wrote the Constitution, they did not yet have Marbury v. Madison, so perhaps they did not see a need for such a check.

Until the mid-50's, the Court behaved itself. Since then, though, they collectively possess more power, in some ways, than the Executive and Legislative branches combined. They can pass laws that cannot be vetoed, or voted out of existence.

Jeff, Barry,

Your arguments assume that Franken preferred (and got) a loose standard for counting absentee ballots and that Coleman preferred (put did not get) a strict standard for counting absentee ballots. But as I read the decision (link below) the opposite appears to be true. The Minnesota district court required a strict (10-point) compliance standard for counting absentee ballots. Coleman, in his appeal, argued that the strict standard defined by the district court violated substantive due process, and that only “substantial” compliance should have been applied.

However, to Jeff’s point, it appears that the counties were not uniform in their application of the district court’s standards. The underlying assumption is that the Democratic-leaning counties were less strict than the Republican-leaning counties.

The data would seem to support that conclusion. All things being equal, we would assume that absentee voters would be split in roughly the same way as regular voters. That is, if candidate received 49.9% of the regular vote, it would be surprising is he received a significantly higher or lower percentage of the absentee vote.

Initially, the vote was:

Coleman 1,211,565 (50.004%)
Franken 1,211,359 (49.996%)

After the final count:

Franken 1,212,629 (50.006%)
Coleman 1,212,317 (49.994%)

Net Change:

Coleman: -752 (-37.191% of the net 2022 additional votes)
Franken: + 1270 (+62.8% of the net 2022 additional votes)

For those who listened to Coach’s recent video in which he related the story of his childhood attempt at fudging the measurement results of 1000 nails, and Jeff’s quick look at and rejection of the falsified data, it should be obvious why Jeff’s sense is that the recount was less than honest; and why the Minnesota Supreme Court’s explanation that the discrepancy in the data is constitutionally acceptable is on its face intellectually dishonest and worse.

Of course, one possible explanation is that it was in fact the Republican-leaning counties that were overly generous in the way they initially counted the absentee ballots and that this initially favored Coleman; and that after the District Court defined a strict standard that standard worked against Coleman. This explanation would be consistent with the data and with Coleman’s argument against applying a strict standard. In other words, it is possible that the election was ultimately “un stolen.”

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/7977745/Cullen-v-Franken

Barry,

You make some good points.

The more “casuistrical” the better. Casuistry usually means baby-steps. America is a common-law nation, and its laws will evolve, that is a given. It seems to me a usurpation of legislative function is more likely to result where a Court take a big leap rather than a casuistrical shoe-horning, tip-toeing step.

Sometimes big leaps are necessary however. Sometimes justice demands big leaps. When? Tell you when I see it…. would have been nice if SCOTUS had invalidated laws denying any citizen the right to vote because of that citizen's sechs, in say, oh, 1790 so that women would not have to wait until Congress ratified the 19th Amendment in 1920 to have their right to vote protected.

Nice work fellas, love the pic and the heart behind the effort!!! You have all done the profession proud!!!!

#127: We agree on that now, but it was far from obvious then. My point is that that problem was remedied by LEGISLATIVE activism, which is the very point and purpose of electing representatives.

School segregation, likewise, should have been dealt with by Congress. The issue--and here is where Conservatives are consistently misunderstood by leftists--should have been resolved by elected representatives of the people, not the Supreme Court.

Conservatism is not about not caring. It is about being very careful not to create two problems for every one we fix. As such, it is about preserving what works, being skeptical towards what has no track record, and opposing things--like Socialism--which have very clearly been proven to be anti-liberty, economically damaging, and manifestly unjust on almost any rational reading.

Politically correct is to count as many votes as can possibly be counted. There is a trend to go the extra mile in giving the benifit of the doubt. This is probably especially true in MN. A policy like this IMHO favors Democrats, since the have a larger portion of less educated.

These ballots were closely scrutinized (likely). It was a close race that needed to be declared. Let's get on with the peoples' work.

Without seeing the actual ballots, how can we say? I may be naive but our democratic process is based on trust in those who serve.

Sub'd:

Shoulder Press 5 x 5 (135, 155, 165, 175, 185 [guessing but don't remember])
Deadlift 5 x 3 [don't remember weights]

Modified (for time purposes) "Something like Annie"
20-15-10 rep rounds; not for time

Double-unders (alternative to double unders: Knee tucks)
Sit-ups

5x
bench to failure 6 to 12 reps: 60lb barbell, 70, 65, 60, 60
30 situps
30 back extensions