The University of Chicago Law School Faculty Blog

Sunstein on 5-4, and Posner's Mother

In the New York Times today, Cass Sunstein writes about 5-to-4 decisions from the Supreme Court, arguing that such splits will persist even if the political composition of the Court shifts after President Bush's two appointments. Over at PrawfsBlawg, Ethan Leib expresses skepticism, citing data from an academic paper by Jed Shugerman. 

In a nearby post, meanwhile, Dan Markel highlights the continuing and surprisingly lively debate between Geof Stone and Dick Posner, a debate which this morning has strangely led to a "well, your mother wears Army boots" type exchange between two normally mild-mannered colleagues. No kidding.

The Patriot Act

This week, our colleagues Geof Stone and Dick Posner are debating how and whether to fix the Patriot Act.  The debate will play out in daily installments over at Legal Affairs.  As Jack Balkin would say, this is just more proof that the Internet is destined to become an integral part of how academics develop and disseminate ideas.