Legal Engineering

No, I don't mean arranging corporations to flow profits around taxes and creditors and send the liabilities to Elbonia, although that sounds like fun.

I've been looking over my notes from the Katrina cases, and it got me thinking. The anti-concurrent cause clause (ACC Clause) in all the insurance policiessays that if you have loses from two causes at the same time (like, oh I don't know, wind and water) then you have no coverage. It's actually worse than that right now, but I suspect the MS Supreme Court is going to take an interlocutory appeal from some of the 5th Cir cases. Current 5ht Cir interpretation seems to say that if it's caused by covered and uncovered causes in sequence it's excluded too. But that's just total nonsense. So, and this is pure speculation, I think the rule will settle around "you get paid for the covered losses which occurred before the losses caused by the excluded causes." To illustrate, if the shingles come off your roof before the storm surge knocks it down, you get their value over your deductible.

And this whole thing got me thinking, what if you designed your structure to fail, not based on any engineering parameters, but legal ones. Say it would take winds 120 mph to push storm surge to your house, so you have the whole thing designed to collapse and disintegrate at 100 mph. All your losses would be covered, since they would be caused by wind. Hell, the storm might do your company a favor if it scoured your lot clean. Obviously this would all be contingent on getting rid of the present 5th Cir interpretation of the ACC clause, which should happen, either by statue or MSSC decision.

You could also avoid this whole nonsense by bundling hurricane and non-hurricane coverages under the same (hopefully mutual) nation homeowners excess carrier. So that the whole fight between wind or water is irrelevant. But that hasn't happened yet. And I doubt it will.

So, provided you're not going to be there, get your structural engineer to design your roof to come off before the flooding gets there.

A friend with an actual job

Yeah, it makes me a bit sad inside when I get messages like this from a great guy and high school friend.
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Music Video - Watch a New Music Video that I Helped Produce...
6:56pm Today

Hey everybody, check out this new music video from "Tapes 'N Tapes" It premiered today on MTV2 and you can check it out here: www.mtv2.com I was the 1st AD on this one...that means I was a part of the producing team :)

Let me know what you think. Hope you all are doing well,
Jonny
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So yeah, I'm still in school, and my friend is an assistant director in Hollywood. Yeah. At least I know a few cool people, even if I'm not one, and probably aren't ever going to be.

Strange pets of Oxford

First in a series

Morning Update

Because I don't want to go wash dishes, blogging looks like a lot more fun. This is the first post in a while from an actual computer. I think I could get into the mobile blogging thing. Just think lucky readers, now I can expand my stream of (vaguely) interesting postings out into the wider world. Maybe this blog will turn into something other than a stream of links. Not likely, but possible. Tune in next week.

So, to kick off our new locally generated original content, a link! This is one of the most clever ads I've seen in a while, I'm very impressed. Hat tip: Zack Dagneau. Also from the Siberian Lights Blog; Every Russian Bond Girl Ever. And I must say, the last one, Olga Kurylenko, who's Ukrainian of all things, is the hottest.

So Double Decker was last weekend, fun, and all, I suppose. Frankly, I think we have to add "Local Festivals" to the list of thing white people like. Particularly when said festival includes a white person safe (tm) reggae band. Emily had a very good time, so that's good. I had a good run, 9th in my age/sex group, 36th overall, 47:21 overall with a 7:39 per mile pace. According to my watch, at least, I ran a reverse split with my last two miles being the fastest. Since the 5-6 mile includes the large hill by Rowan Oak, I was overall fairly pleased with myself.

W e also checked out the Blue Pan Cafe, where our neighbor Grantly is chef. They're located where Petra recently was, and Oxford Steak Company before that. The whole place has been remodeled into a hipish modish type of place, with seperate dining, bar, and "lounge" areas. The drink/dinner menus look tasty, although it looks a bit pricey for my budget. Don't take that as a knock against the place, I'd easily go there before Boure, but I hadn't been planning on doing either.

Which, speaking of future plans, allows me to awkwardly transition into next weekend. It's Derby Weekend, and as it happens the Greyhound park in West Memphis has simulcast and remote betting. I think you see where I'm going with this. With $3.50 regular I can't make the trip myself, and considering my finals I shouldn't at all, but I really want to go this year. Anyone interested? Emily will be hooded (graduate school, no burning crosses) at 11:00, so if we headed out shortly afterwards we'd have plenty of time. Graduation is next week, dufus. Updates should be forthcoming, but please comment/e-mail if you're interested.

Well, I guess I've stalled enough, better go get started on washing dishes. And you know, for all I hate having to do this, I don't have to mow my lawn, and that almost makes it worth it.

"are you ready to rock?"

I wouldn't have believed w/o hearing it, but the head of Ole Miss Economics dept is bringing the rock tonight at the rib cage. Ashamed to say I don't even know the bands name, but they're awesome.

Been waiting for Alton Brown to sign books. I really really wish I'd bought a copy this afternoon. My trip to the gym has left me very hungry. They just called for #100, we're 119. Soon...

If only we'd put Duke in as Maximum Proconsol in Baghdad...

"What works with genocide? Something bluesy?"

My respect for Mr. Putin, increasing

My favorite line so far, the girls resume; "a former champion of artistic gymnastics and now a Deputy to the Russian Parliament, the Duma."

This ones for you Zack.

It's nice to see professionals at work

"Well, even if it wasn't as explosive as expected, the trial yielded up a few new juicy details. Like the fact that one of Palfrey's escorts was a former professor and university department chair. Or the fact that Palfrey's prostitution service was patronized by several well-pedigreed lawyers (including Yale law grad Christopher Sorrow, who is presumably pretty sorrowful about being involved in this mess). Or the fact that Palfrey employed "testers," like trial witness Paul Huang, to evaluate the suitability of aspiring escorts (think "Consume-Ho Reports")."

Via Above the Law.

Consume-Ho reports, classic.

This is a test of the mobile blogging system.

Do not be alarmed.

I like what they're thinking

A local building project (1100 Jefferson). We can only hope they carry the look forward for the whole project.

BMW monofuel

BMW is showing off a 7 series designed solely to run on hydrogen. The cool part, it burns it in a real engine, just like gasoline, except without the nasty bits.

No word on the cost (although it is a 7 series, so that shouldn't be as huge an issue) but this thing actually might work. It has none of the problems of batteries; recharging, or fuel cells; you might be able to make the engines affordable before the end of time.

As to how you make the hydrogen, utility solar looks like a pretty good, and actually existing, start.

This is just too good

So you're running for President, Pennsylvania is important, at least a little bit. So you decide to diss rural voters.

And you decide to do it at GORDON GETTY'S MANSION. This story just keeps getting better, mock and insult poor white people, the absolutely hardest demographic for you to reach, at a $2300 a plate dinner for rich white people.

In other news;

BoxStar makes some pretty good box wine. I'd stay away from the Cab, but the Shiraz and the (yes, I'm actually saying this) Merlot well worth the (quite low) price of admission.

I've been listening to a lot of Steely Dan lately. Maybe it's because it goes so well with a buzz, but Aja has turned into my favorite record we have. It really is hard to turn the smooth up too high, isn't it?

Emily is telling me right now that Karl Rove is on TV, talking about Obama "bitter people" (which, as I type it, would make a great Randy Newman song) gaff. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear he's wearing a black cape. He is, after all, a certified Evil Genius, and therefore entitled to his badge of office.

Is there proper etiquette for asking people to read your (or in my case, my) new blog? I realize, you'll have already been bald faced asked to read, but I know you'll well enough to do that. What about others? Is a mass mailing bad form? Drop it into conversation at every opportunity? Banner ads on Facebook promising naked ladies (or dudes, depending on the target market)?

Anyway, must blog off, Emily's beef stew smells really good. See her for the recipe.

Weirdly compelling

Cars and People from wvs on Vimeo.

Found on Jalopnik.

New bands

So, I'm looking for some new tunes. Anyone with recommendations, please post in the comments.

Here are a couple of groups I've found so far on my search. While I would never encourage you to pirate anything, I've included .torrent files. These are, of course, strictly for use by those who need to format shift, or some other legal purpose.

Black 47, Elvis Murphy's Green Suede Shoes. It's Irish rock, they've written a song against the Iraq war which is actually good (Downtown Baghdad Blues). Found via NPR Studio 360.

The Waco Brothers. They're lead singer is Welsh, they used to play punk rock, then they got into country. Sounds crazy, but it works. They're new album (which is live, so the fact that I'm recommending it should really tell you something) includes another great song about a subject which is usually a graveyard for writers who aren't Woody Guthrie; unionism. Can't find the newest album online, but here are links to To the Last Dead Cowboy (1995) and Cowboy in Flames (1997). Found via Fresh Air.

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(01:36:16 PM) nicholas.greene@gmail.com/Home: prices up or down, you think?
(01:37:04 PM) Zack Dagneau: ?
(01:37:33 PM) nicholas.greene@gmail.com/Home: for the houses in the "enterprise"
(01:38:13 PM) Zack Dagneau: ah...no they're down as a result of the subprime directive

And now for something completely different

I just bought these plans for building my own Murphy bed (the kind you hang on the wall). There have been so many holes (and cracks) put in our apartment walls over the years I'm not worried about a few more. Plus, this one uses Ikea parts, and claims to only require a drill.

I'm, needless to say, excited. Can't find a good pic, so hit the above link.

M3 Ad

I know, I know, it's an ad.



But it's just such a good ad, and for such a good car. Seriously in terms of price/performance/realworldliness it might be the best new car in the world right now. I mean, not better than the 911 Turbo, but still very very very good.

The Mortgage "Crisis" and Efficient Breach

First, the vast vast majority of mortgages are being paid on time. This "crisis" is media created, and for ANY other class of assets, this would be simply entertaining business news. If the price of oil did something like this, well, we'd have complaining from producers, but still.

But I'm more concerned with the people who aren't paying right now. They're supposed to be a rapidly increasing number of people being foreclosed upon. "Jinglemail" is a new term, for people who mail their keys to the bank and take a hike. "Marketplace: Money" is normally a fairly interesting NPR personal finance show. Last weeks show was ONLY about the mortgage mess. Repeatedly, while interviewing people who were about to be foreclosed, or had lost their houses, asked questions like, "how can do this, this is your most important debt, you voluntarily agreed to pay, you promised to pay this money you owe them, etc."

I'm all in favor of people not committing fraud, but ALL a contract is a promise to perform the terms OR pay damages. That's IT. It' s not immoral to breach, it's not wrong to breach, it's a decision you should chose whenever it makes sense.

And consider this, mortgages are contracts of adhesion. All the terms were written by the lenders, within an environment where lender lobbyists have a strong advantage over other parties. So, fundamentally, the banks wrote the rules. If they screwed up, and created a situation where it makes more sense for their customers to walk than to pay, that was their bad. They should take their medicine, and do better next time. Can anyone honestly argue that if the positions were reversed, and the banks stood to significantly benefit from walking out on their contracts that they wouldn't? We know they would, someone would sue them for breach of fiduciary duty to their shareholders if they didn't.

In general, breach isn't wrong. It's not bad. We all stand to benefit, in the sense that the larger economy benefits from the most efficient allocation of capital, when people and institutions practice efficient breach. So, everyone out there who's thinking about walking away from your house, don't take any crap from anyone over it. Take your credit hit and don't let anyone make you feel bad about it. You're the efficient one.

Yeah, I was right, the half pint bottle of Jack was enough

Emily: "that looks vaguely phallic"
Nicholas: "it's a carrot emily"
Emily: "it looks like those beer bottles, the................"
Nicholas: "bowling pins"
Emily: "yeah, like it's been circumcised."

Yeah, and that came after,

Emily: "Natalie was totally wrong about this movie [Bridget Jones II] she wasn't drunk, or dating a law student"

Even in these tough economic times

(which I don't happen to believe are all that bad) we can all agree that the right to dance erotically must be protected.

Ha, I got my second mention on a national blog

I'll grant you, it was on the Labor Law Prof Blog, but still, it can't hurt.