PostBadge tag to show // FeedBurner FeedFlare. // ------------------------- // FeedBurner account and feed required. // Sign up at http://feedburner.com //================================================ class module_feedflare { function init(){ global $gregarious; $gregarious->add_settings ( array ( 'feedburner_url' => '' ) ); $gregarious->add_page ( 'FeedFlare', 'modules/feed-flare/icn_Flare.png', 'page_feedflare();', 'feedFlare' ); } function postbadge_tags(){ return array ( array ( 'tag' => '%FLARE%', 'replacewith' => 'feed_flare("",false)' ), ); } function update_info(){ return 100; } } //------------------------------------------ // TEMPlATE TAGS //------------------------------------------ function feed_flare($settings = '', $echo = true){ global $wp_query; $post = $wp_query->post; $sets = array('postID' => $post->ID, 'before' => '', 'after' => 'Gregarious FeedFlare', 'force' => 0 ); grab_sets($settings, $sets); if ( !$sets['force'] && hideOnID($sets['postID']) ){ return ''; } if( !$path = _get_feedburner_url() ) return ''; if( substr( $path, -1 ) == '/' ){ $path = substr( $path, 0, strlen( $path ) -1 ); } $path = str_replace ( 'feedburner.com/', 'feedburner.com/~s/', $path ); $path .= '?i='.get_permalink($sets['postID']); $result = $sets['before'] . "" . $sets['after']; if($echo) echo $result; else return $result; } function _get_feedburner_url(){ $feedurl = greg_get_option( 'feedburner_url' ); if ( $feedurl ){ return attribute_escape($feedurl); } else { $feedburner_settings = get_option('feedburner_settings'); if( is_array($feedburner_settings) && ($feedurl = $feedburner_settings['feedburner_url']) ) { return attribute_escape($feedurl); } else { return false; } } } //------------------------------------------ // OPTIONS PAGE //------------------------------------------ function page_feedflare(){ $feedurl = _get_feedburner_url(); ?> Tag Archive for ‘Justice’ at spencerb.net

Tag Archive for 'Justice'

How Would You Expect the U.S. To React to Another Attack?

Published on October 25, 2008 in Justice and Politics. 1 Comment

I have been thinking about what I would expect our leaders to do if America was attacked again. I think how you answer this question reflects a lot on how you view policy decisions today.

Think about the state of America after 9/11. We all learned a lot about ourselves. I know that I personally felt angry afterward. A lot of Americans did. We expected the President and Congress to respond swiftly.

If we were attacked again would that sentiment reappear? I think it would. I think the United States’ decision to retaliate would be guided by our current wars. The amount of evidence demanded by the American people would certainly be higher. We would want to know for certain who was responsible and we would fight back again.

Maybe you agree, maybe you don’t, but ask yourself this question: How would you expect the U.S. to react to another attack?

What actions should we take now that our consistent with that future possibility?

Serving or Telling?

Published on October 17, 2008 in Justice, Law, Life, Politics and Uncategorized. 1 Comment

tschwab asks an intersting question: Is your government serving you, or is it telling you what to do and how to do it?

First, I think it is important to realize that this question is asking for positive (as opposed to normative) analysis. In other words, what does the government do, now what should it do. For the sake of full disclosure, I will admit that I believe the government should serve the people. The relationship between the people and the U.S. government is one where the people legitimize the government’s power. This is important to note because it is no a relationship where the government legitimizes the people’s power, something inherent in the idea of ‘telling you what to do and how to do it’.

That said, what do I think the government is doing right now? I think there are two ways to look at this problem. One, on a very superficial level. Two, on a foundational level.

Let’s go backwards. Two. The government is clearly telling us what to do and how to do it. By contributing to a structure for society, the government formulates standards for how we act. This is embodied in the spirit of the law. Have you ever waited at a red light when no traffic is coming? A simple example, yes, but also a telling one. The law literally tells us how to act. We empower it to do so. And in doing so, as a society we employ a balancing test, by sacrificing some autonomy, the government can serve us in a better way than we could acting independently.

One. The more superficial level. I have already hinted at this a little bit. The purpose of laws sanctioned by the people is to sacrifice some of their own autonomy for a greater benefit. Therefore, the government is actively serving us on its function in so much as we agree to the contract we have created with the government by becoming citizens.

There is more room for interpretation on this subject, but I’m ignoring lecture by writing this, so I’ll leave it to everyone else.

Many Stark Contrasts as Simpson Is Convicted – NYTimes.com

Published on October 4, 2008 in Justice, Law and News. 0 Comments

Sunflower Response, Reflection

Published on September 12, 2008 in Justice, Northwestern and School. 0 Comments

I was looking at some statistics for my blog and realized that I had received numerous hits for the paper that I wrote on Simon Wiesenthal’s The Sunflower. The number of people using those search terms in various search engines is in all likelihood a function of the popularity as a book in academic settings, but it got me thinking, nonetheless.

In the book, there is an overarching question of the ability of Wisenthal to come to terms with his own position and in a sense forgive himself. Many times in life it is difficult to reconcile positions that we have taken in the past or are contemplating taking with principles that we hold. Often it is nearly impossible to describe the circumstances that led you to overwhelm a belief that you thought ran through your very core. In The Sunflower, Wiesenthal describes impossible circumstances with literary finesse. The valuable lesson here is that even when you can peer deeply into your mind, your thought process, and the circumstances surround it, it is still nearly impossible to decode the evolution of that decision.

What would life be without the possibility of looking back over time and contemplating our past decisions. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), no one has an impeccable record of actions, when compared to their principles. I say maybe fortunately because people learn from mistakes and no one has a perfect set of principles. So why do we punish ourselves so much when we perceive failure? I am sure this is different for all people, but speaking personally, I consider myself self-critical and error frustrates me (however inevitable). Wiesenthal, returning to the concentration camp, believes that he has let down his fellow Jews for his course of action. It takes him a long time and many different pieces of advice to attempt to reconcile his actions.

Interestingly, I think that this book shows that a microcosm of the most absurd circumstances, a Nazi concentration camp, can reflect the feelings and frustrations of everyday life. Somehow, decisions whether or not to forgive (even if it is a Nazi soldier) humanize us all. These sort of shared human experiences give human beings a common existence. Ultimately, as my initial post on this book attempts to make clear, Wiesenthal’s position was uniquely humanizing in a period of time where he had been continually degraded. Of course, I hope that none of us ever experiences similar circumstances (and not to say that Wiesenthal’s microcosm wasn’t incredibly more painful than any of our lives), but we can use this example to help guide decisions of forgiveness, especially when they pertain to forgiving ourselves.

Police Discretion

Published on February 25, 2008 in Justice and School. 1 Comment

If anyone has any advice on the subject of police discretion, please let me know. Currently, I am working on a paper about that very subject. It is turning out to be one of those papers where I am not sure of the side I am taking while I am writing it. Sort of the ‘your thesis materializes as you go’ paper.

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