Ernie The Attorney

Be impeccable with your word

I'm reading a great book right now called The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. It's a little book with a simple message: namely, that there are four things you should focus on if you want to change your life in a powerful way.

1. Be impeccable with your word
2. Don't take anything personally  
3. Don't make assumptions
4. Always do your best  

The first Agreement is the hardest. To "be impeccable with your word" means, obviously, you should be honest and straightforward. But it's actually more than that. You should also avoid engaging in pettiness, especially gossip. The author points out that gossiping has become the main form of communication in our society. Speaking ill of people in a casual way is a form of gossip.

I mention this because today I read this blurb about Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's comment about Bush as he departed the inauguration. This kind of statement is completely unnecessary, unless your point is to perpetuate pettiness.  But that seems to be a staple of most of our politicians.

Yesterday I saw a news clip of Joe Biden joking about needing notes when he was swearing and some administration officials, the point of which was to subtly criticize Chief Justice John Roberts' mishap in delivering the presidential oath. Next to Biden was President Obama, who was stone-faced—clearly not interested in joining in Biden's off-the-cuff pettiness.

I don't know if Obama has read The Four Agreements, but he seems to understand very well the principle of 'being impeccable with one's word.'  Unfortunately, many others do not understand this. Those who do, however, have a powerful edge.  One that, in Obama's case, will be very useful in meeting some major political challenges.

Kindle update #2 (a month later)

So it's now been over a month since I got my Amazon Kindle, and I love it more than ever. In fact, the main reason for my low blog output lately is the Kindle. I find that I don't spend as much time surfing the Internet as I did before, which has lowered my inclination to blog. So why, given my low blog output, am I posting yet another set of observations about the Kindle? Well, because the more I use it the more I think that it's a serious 'game changer.'

First, let me say the Kindle is not for everyone. I like it because I have always enjoyed reading, partly to learn about new things and also to acquire new perspectives on things that I think I already know. When I was a kid I got bored with school and as a result did poorly through most of grade school (I somehow pulled myself together in 12th grade). But even as I was skimming near the threshold of grade point acceptability I was reading a lot, usually a couple of books a week. After law school I found it harder to read novels for various reasons, but I did read magazines and short pieces. Then the internet came along and gave me free access to an unimaginable output of commentary. I relished the rise of blogs as a way of getting at 'new perspectives.'

Lately, though, the luster of weblogs has worn off. A lot of what is put forth by bloggers suffers from the rush to get things up before others do. Getting things down in writing is not hard for bloggers. But editing and contemplation apparently are. Up until recently I found it easy to overlook this flaw in the blogosphere (no doubt contributing to it myself). But, no longer.

Now I have discovered the Kindle.

The other day I was watching the Charlie Rose show (pretty much the only program that I ALWAYs find interesting no matter what the subject, or who the guest is) and George Will was on. He has a new book although he didn't spend much time discussing it. Even though his conservative views don't exactly reconcile with my worldview, I find George Will to be a very thoughtful man. His opinions are carefully drawn. So I decided to download a sample chapter of his book onto my Kindle. After reading the sample chapter I ordered the whole book (this is happening a lot with the Kindle). His observation about 'new media' (which obviously includes weblogs and the Internet) is something I totally agree with:

"for all the fascination with new media, I believe that books remain the most important carriers of ideas, and ideas are always the most important news. Hence, books themselves are often news.

And the big news about the Kindle is simply that it makes reading books a lot easier, at least certain kinds of books. Merlin Mann, a new media personality that I regard highly, recently got a Kindle and was highly impressed. And if you have a Kindle (or if you get one) you should read his tips on getting free books onto the device.

A lot of people are starting to figure out that the Kindle is revolutionary. I probably have not done an adequate job of explaining why this is so. Read Andy Ihnatko's blog post for additional perspective. Also, read Paul Krugman's editorial in today's New York Times (which I found ironic, since I came upon it in my Kindle). And lastly, consider this email that I recently received from one of my blog readers:

"I just wanted to thank you for introducing me to my new love, my Kindle. I knew about this electronic book reader, but had a visceral, that isn't for me, reaction. so, cruising your blog a few weeks ago, I was reminded of it and because you raved about it, I took a 2nd look. And then i got it, and now I love it – to death. I love so many things about it, but most of all, I love reading books on it. The thing I thought I would never like. It is almost graceful the way you soundlessly pour through a book. I am completely hooked. I may never buy another regular book. So, Thanks, a lot. never would have looked again but for your post."

This comment hits at the heart of what makes the Kindle so amazing. It's not much of a tech device, except as to make it easier to read books, and other well edited content.

Bloggers who have panned the Kindle because it lacks the latest 'social networking' capabilities miss the point. The Kindle is not 'ADD-enabled' for a reason; the idea (strange as it may seem to some) is to engage in thoughtful reading—something that has never been a mainstream pursuit. The Kindle will never replace books, or make them entirely obsolete. It will simply take its place alongside books as a tool for inquisitive people to expand their minds in startling ways.

Kindle update (minor problems, amazing realization)

Well, my Kindle had a small problem. The other day it ceased waking up from sleep. The only solution was to flip the little guy over on its back, remove the battery cover, and reset it with a paper clip. I had to do this every time it went into sleep mode.

Not cool, obviously.

I called Amazon support and they walked me through some steps and then concluded the device needed replacing. They sent me another one, which arrived today. After charging it I fired it up, and it took a few minutes to find the wireless connection. Then I registered it to my account. But, it had no books on it, even though I had bought a bunch already.

Turns out it was easy to get the books I had already ordered to 'come back' to my new Kindle: all I had to do was go to the "Content Manager" and select the books I wanted to re-download and, bada bing!, there they were. And the best part? When I opened each book it was exactly where I was when I was reading it before. In other words, the books you download are not only kept on Amazon (in case you need to re-download them) but Amazon also keeps track of where you were in the book the last time you were reading it.

I knew that they kept your bookmarks and highlights backed up, but I didn't realize they kept your place in the book backed up too. That means if your Kindle was ever lost or stolen, you could get a new one and replace all your books (for free) and open each one to the page where you last were. Nice.

I'm really glad my Kindle is back up and running. In the short period I've had it I've come to realize that it's not something I can easily live without. I'm reading a lot more, and more easily. The Kindle is now available for immediate shipment (i.e. no long waits anymore). If you like to read books then you should definitely get a Kindle; you'll be glad you did, especially if you read a lot while traveling.

Fundamentalism & Religious Delusion

Richard Dawkins' excellent bookThe God Delusion is currently #12 on the NY Times best-seller list for paperback non-fiction. Dawkins is a scientist and wants to let people know that it's okay to be an atheist, despite strong resistance to the idea of questioning religious faith. His criticism of religious beliefs is polite and thoughtful, but of course that does not appease the faithful. The 'faithful' might also be called 'fundamentalists.'

What's a fundamentalist? Someone who looks at all new information to see if it matches their beliefs (or principles) and ignores that which doesn't match. The more extreme fundamentalists don't simply ignore the information, they become agitated. And really extreme fundamentalists have been known to attack. So offering new ideas can be harmful to your health. Especially if religion is involved. Just ask Galileo.

And where isn't religion involved? Even today, it's everywhere—even in places that seem implausible. Two hundred years ago our founders created a Constitution demanding the complete separation of church and state, but today practical reality tilts in precisely the opposite direction. Polls show that most Americans will elect only those political leaders who believe in God. Dawkins' is not running for U.S. President, but he has an important message: it's okay, sensible even, to question things that are unsupported by evidence. And he thinks that there isn't any meaningful evidence of God's existence.

Perhaps, though, he misunderstands the essence of religious faith.

The nice thing about a belief in God is that it offers us comfort and security. Who cares if it's provable? If it provides security then it must be a good thing. Non-fundamentalists, such as Dawkins, question even this proposition:

Then there is the security created by man in the idea of God. Many people ask me whether I believe in God, whether there is a God. You cannot discuss it. Most of our conceptions of God, of reality, of truth, are merely speculative imitations. Therefore, they are utterly false, and all our religions are based on such falsitites. A man who has lived all his life in a prison can only speculate about freedom; a man who has never experienced the ecstasy of freedom cannot know freedom. So it is of little avail to discuss God, truth; but if you have the intelligence, the intensity to destroy the barriers around you then you will know for yourself the fulfillment of life. You will no longer be a slave in a social or religious system.

By the way, the above words weren't written by Richard Dawkins, the scientist. They were spoken by J. Krishnamurti, a supremely spiritual man. His message was also that people should examine things for themselves, without preconceptions or conceptualizations. To him, this was the essence of spirituality.

Krishnamurti didn't want any followers, but he wound up having some, and still does. You don't hear much about them because they don't attract attention. They haven't started any wars, or persecuted people whose views they disagree with. Maybe they're deeply examining the world around them, which distracts them from the noble task of foisting views on others.

But back to Dawkins' book. Why is it called The God Delusion? It has to do with what the writer Robert Pirsig once observed: "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion."

Amen to that, Brother Pirsig. Amen.

Kindle - preliminary review

My Kindle arrived safely on Monday, and I've had a chance to start using it so I thought I'd post some preliminary comments.

Initial use
The device is easy to use, but it does require charging on first use. I charged it for about 2 hours and then started playing with it. The Kindle is lightweight and comfortable to hold, although the much-discussed problem of accidentally hitting either the Next Page or Last Page buttons did occur. I'm sure that Amazon will fix this in the next version, but I quickly got used to learning how to handle the device and now I rarely have the problem, which is only a minor inconvenience.

Downloading and reading
Downloading books takes about 30 seconds, max. I started by downloading some sample chapters, which is free. The ability to turn pages with a press of the finger is much better than flipping pages in a book (not something you can easily do with one hand, much less one finger). The text is easy to read, although at first it takes some getting used to. After one day I no longer noticed the 'digital page turn.' I love how easy it is to move from page to page, and the way the text looks. So, at this point I'm completely sold on using the Kindle as a way of reading that is in almost every way superior to ordinary books.

Buying books, magazines and newspapers
The wireless feature of the Kindle makes buying books ridiculously simple. I immediately went on a spree and bought a couple of books. If you've reached the end of one of the free sample chapters you are prompted to purchase if if you want. I downloaded a copy of Stephen King's On Writing after reading the sample chapter, a book I never would have bought if I hadn't gotten drawn into it.

I subscribed to two magazines and a couple of newspapers too, using the 14 day free trial option. Every day at 3 am (so I'm told) the NY Times is wirelessly delivered to the device. When I pick it up at around 7:00 am the paper is there ready to read. I had been reading the NY Times online using my laptop for free. So how is it different on the Kindle? Well, the screen is black & white so there are no fancy photos, in fact no photos at all. But, there are no ads either and reading articles is much less distracting. I find myself reading more articles, more quickly on the Kindle than on my computer. So the next question is would I pay the monthly fee ($14) for the New York Times? I don't know, but I'm tempted. Individual editions can be bought as well, so maybe I'll just buy the Sunday edition every once in awhile. I subscribed to the trial edition of The Atlantic, and since that's only $1.25 per month I may get that magazine.

Miscellaneous observations
I love the ability to bop from book to book (or newspaper or magazine) and return to find myself in the exact same place I was when I left off. I decided to renew my effort to read the Bible from time to time because of this feature. I downloaded a King James version for about $2.50. Sweet.

Because it's easy to store lots of books on the device I can see myself putting reference books on it. I also tested the feature that lets you email yourself a document that you want on the device. I had a book that was in PDF form that I wanted to move over. The Kindle doesn't read PDFs, at least not yet. So I converted the PDF to a Word document and emailed it to my special Kindle email address. About 3 minutes later it showed up in the Kindle and was formatted perfectly. Bing!

The Kindle's battery lasts for 2 days without recharging if you leave the wireless feature turned on. If you leave it unattended it goes to sleep. When the sleep mode kicks in the device generates a screensaver picture (apparently there are many stored in the device). Some of the screensavers are pretty interesting, i.e., pictures of famous artists or architectural wonders.

Traveling with the Kindle will be a joy. No longer will I struggle to decide what books or magazines I want to stuff into my backpack. I can take hundreds of books and magazines, and snag more on a whim from the invisible internet connection.

Conclusions
Overall I'm completely sold on the Kindle. From the time I was a kid I had always read a lot of books, but for some reason it became harder to do after law school. Encountering the Kindle is a lot like when I first tried an iPod. I sense that I'll be reading a lot more books, and enjoying reading a lot more because it's so convenient. I've heard some people criticize the Kindle, but most of the criticism focused on the appearance or the user-interface (which obviously can be improved). I read books for the word contained in them, and when I'm absorbed in reading I don't notice the book itself which is exactly the same experience I get with the Kindle. As more titles become available for the Kindle it will continue to find more happy customers. Since most "Kindle books" are at least 50% less expensive than their paper counterparts I predict that the device will have paid for itself in less than a year.

Inside the Supreme Court - A Great Book

I just finished Jeffrey Toobin's book about the Supreme Court, called The Nine. Wow! What an unexpected treat. If you're a lawyer you have to read this book, and if you're not a lawyer but just interested in government then you should read the book too. But, for now let me speak to the lawyers in the audience.

The book follows the shift of the court from the Reagan era forward, showing how it is now on the verge of completing a shift to ultra-conservatism. But the presentation is made interesting by its discussion of key cases that were decided in the past decade—e.g Bush v. Gore and other important constitutional cases. Toobin weaves in, at appropriate points, detailed profiles of each of the Justices. And his examination of the Justices is very personal and touching, or at least for most part. He explains how Sandra Day O'Connor became more centrist than conservative, and how Anthony Kennedy developed an interest in international law (and how that influenced his judicial outlook). David Souter is a quiet man who eschews all use of technology (doesn't use computers or TVs, and doesn't have a cellphone) and yet he was the author of the Grokster opinion on file-sharing.

Reading this book is like taking a CLE course in Constitutional Law, except that it's presented in a highly engaging way. Toobin went to Harvard Law School, so it's no surprise that he's adept at explaining the nuances of the law. If you want to see an interview he did recently at Google check this out.

Here comes my Kindle

I just got word from Amazon that my Kindle is being shipped and will arrive next Monday. I'm very excited. I would have ordered this e-book reader long before now but, for some reason, I was put off by poor reviews that some bloggers offered. I keep forgetting that most product reviews are formulaic (e.g. point out the most obvious flaws in order to appear knowledgeable, when in fact the reviewer is just lazy). Blogger reviews are often no better. The exception are reviews by folks who've actually used the product for a fair amount of time, preferably a blogger who isn't an attention hound.

So called micro-celebrity Robert Scoble lambasted the Kindle because, among other things, it didn't have any social networking features. He also said the user-interface 'sucked.' As I've mentioned before, I think that Scoble's reviews are built for speed, not thoughtfulness. I don't care what the device looks like (yes, it's ugly) and don't want to use it to expand the reach of my online reputation. I just want to read text like I do when I open a book. I don't need the device to be revolutionary, just functional. Still, the Kindle represents a major shift in e-books.

Here's what's revolutionary about the Kindle: It has built-in EVDO, which is a high speed cellphone network wireless system. This means you can download books pretty much anywhere that you can get Sprint cellphone access. And why is this important? Well, if you are riding the subway and decide you wan to read a book that you just saw on the NY Times best seller list you can download it in about 30 seconds. Or let's say you want to subscribe to the New York Times paper every day. The Kindle will automatically get download it at 3 am so that when you wake up it's already on the device. No matter where you are (e.g. at home or in a hotel room). And while one would normally pay a stiff per monthly charge for EVDO access, Amazon builds that charge into the price of the Kindle.

Nice.

The device has internal storage that allows you to store about 200 books. And it remembers where you are in each book, so if you are reading more than one book at a time (which I often do) it's easy to switch back and forth. Or at least I'm assuming it's easy. Perhaps it won't, but Scoble's review didn't cover that so I don't know for sure.

If you want to store more than 200 books, you can add external memory. And if for some reason you delete a book from the device you can re-download it from Amazon. They keep track of what you buy and you can always access it again from them in the future. Apple iTunes doesn't let you do that with the .99 cent songs you buy, so I give Amazon credit for doing this.

And the books that you purchase for download are typically only $9.99. Granted the selection of Kindle books is not as vast as the ordinary selection from Amazon, but that will change over time. Can you imagine being able to carry hundreds of books on a device that only weighs 10 ounces? I can and I can't wait to experience the reality of it. I would love to pare down my library to just a few really treasured books (e.g. reference books and certain keepsake volumes). I'd love to be able to take a trip and have all my reading material on one small portable reading unit, and it would be even better if I could have travel guides loaded onto it.

No, I'm pretty sure that I'm going to like the Kindle. True, if the user-interface is cumbersome that will be disappointing. But as long as it works reasonably well then the benefits will outweigh the detriments. The only thing that would be a deal killer is if the thing was completely unreliable—like Windows Vista, for example. Otherwise, I expect to be very pleased.

Either way, I'll post my observations after I've used it for a fair amount of time.

(Incidentally, when you order the Kindle they say it may take 6 weeks. If mine arrives on Monday that will be a delay of less than 4 weeks. And they didn't charge my credit card until it shipped).

Rethinking libraries

Sudden and monumental change serves a purpose, or at least it should. In the aftermath of such change we shouldn't unthinkingly rebuild things back the way they were. We should pause to consider what unique advantages have surfaced. We should consider if certain foundational assumptions need to be abandoned altogether in order to create a more lasting foundation.

Last Saturday I drove my son out to St. Bernard where he and 1,000 other college kids were spending their spring break rebuilding houses at the Habitat Camp Hope project. The drive was bleak. There were a few spots of commerce, improbable little strip malls amidst miles of forsaken houses. My eyes brightened when I saw a small white trailer with a sign that proclaimed the presence of a public library. And yet it was a simple little trailer. What kind of library could be housed in such a structure?

As I drove closer I saw a large sign outside of the library: "FREE WIRELESS INTERNET". For the past few days I've been thinking about the strange implications of this simple little sign.

St. Bernard was completely inundated by floodwaters from Katrina. And the people of St. Bernard are not folks who spend a lot of money on technology. You won't see any Starbucks out there, that's for sure. Home Depot has a store the size of the Pentagon, and beyond that it's just little mom and pop stuff. The most exotic business I saw was a Planet Beach tanning salon. I guess that's why I was intrigued by the library Wi-Fi sign. It seems like if you live in St. Bernard and want to use some free wifi you have to go to the library (well Camp Hope, where my son stayed with the 1,000 college students, has free wifi too).

Today, the Times Picayune has an article about a new $650 million 'Library Master Plan' for the city. The story doesn't say anything about wireless internet. Perhaps that is an oversight by the author. Then again maybe there is a larger oversight. Maybe wireless internet isn't part of the new master plan at all. Of course, the libraries of the future aren't all about wireless internet access.

So what should they be about?

Here's how a progressive Northwest city envisioned this question:

"Seattle's public library...was designed to be a downtown hangout, with something for everyone, as if you crossed Starbucks with a mega bookstore." FN1

In other words, the idea was to use the library as a community gathering place. Wow! What a great idea. Needless to say, an idea like that isn't borne by thinking of libraries in a traditional way. It was borne by asking fundamental questions:

Why do so many people hang out in large bookstores like Borders or Barnes & Noble? Why do people go to Starbucks to hangout? What kind of architecture is conducive to hanging out in public places?

The folks who are rebuilding New Orleans' public libraries are about to spend a lot of money. I hope that they have asked these questions, and that their vision includes some novel thinking. If they haven't then I suggest they start by reading Mutating Libraries by Jenny Levine, a forward-thinking librarian who references a Slate slideshow entitled: Borrowed Time: How do you build a public library in the age of Google? Ms. Levine takes some issue with a statement by Ross Dawson that libraries will extinct by 2019, but she agrees that " libraries are about a lot more than just books or study carrels," which is why she believes that "there’s room for things like gaming in today’s library."

I wish that Jenny Levine had been in charge of our library project because then I wouldn't have to wonder whether we were acting with the proper vision. Somehow I fear we are not.

FN1: Quote is from the 7th slide in the Borrowed Time slideshow.

Michael Lewis & The Great Gazoo

A few weeks ago I finished reading Michael Lewis’ The Blind Side, a book that starts quickly with a rapid-fire account of the 4.5 second play that ended Joe Theismann’s NFL career.  Theismann, you may or may not recall, was brutally smacked from behind by defensive end Lawrence Taylor.  Most people remember only the gruesome image of Theismann’s leg bone being snapped.   Football is a strange sport, Lewis observes, in that none of the players ever sees more than a narrow slice of action.  In football, as in other pursuits, what you can’t see can truly hurt you.   Few of us ever get a wide-angle view of circumstances, and only someone like Lewis can connect the dots to create a bunch of fascinating social observations. 

Wanna be an Internet Media Mogul?

Steve Martin's early bit on how to be a millionaire and not pay taxes was goofy, but simple: "First, get a million dollars.  Then when the IRS comes and asks why you didn't pay taxes, repeat these two words: 'I forgot.'"  Nowadays, everyone is trying to figure out how to make money off the Internet.  YouTube got paid 1.6 Billion by Google.  How does this make sense?  Or, even if it doesn't: how can I do the same thing?