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Academic

The Yin Blog

Random thoughts on law, politics, game theory, sports, books, television shows, and movies. - From Tung Yin, Associate Professor of Law at Iowa. \r\n

Post Frequency: 0.9/day

Last Entry: March 31, 2011 at 17:08:59

Waterboarding, foreigners, and Americans abroad

Posted on April 23, 2009
The other morning, I was listening to a discussion on "On Point" on NPR about the release of the formerly classified torture memos, and one of the program guests -- I think it was George Washington law prof Jonathan Turley...

My confession about "The Celebrity Apprentice"

Posted on April 08, 2009
Let me confess that I like "The Celebrity Apprentice." I like it a lot! Nothing will ever match the first season, of course (Omarosa!; the Nick and Amy "romance"!; the Bill and Kwame finale), when it was sparkly and new,...

From Iowa to Oregon . . . not so economically happy?

Posted on April 06, 2009
According to this economic happiness survey, I'm going to be moving from the #2 state (Iowa) to the #50 state (Oregon). Hmm . . . .

Why is it snowing?!?

Posted on March 28, 2009
Come on, it's almost April! Why is it snowing right now?!?

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My 2009 fantasy baseball team

Posted on March 28, 2009
It's springtime, which means it's fantasy baseball season. We had our live draft on Wednesday night, 11 managers including -- for the first time -- another law prof! I had the #9 pick, which was kind of a bummer since...

The sound you really don't want to hear when you're driving a truck full of bio/chemical weapons

Posted on March 24, 2009
. . . is "sssssssssssss."

Did "American Idol" become boring overnight?

Posted on March 18, 2009
Last night, I fired up my TiVo and started watching the "American Idol" performance show. It was country music night, which was not a good thing for me. I'll admit, when it comes to country music, Shania Twain, some of...

Jay Leno, a free show for the unemployed, and MAS*H

Posted on March 18, 2009
NBC's late night talk show host Jay Leno decided to put on a free comedy show for unemployed workers (or those just facing hard times) in Detroit, Michigan. That's pretty admirable; he's actually going out of his way to give...

What would have made "Dollhouse" more interesting

Posted on March 16, 2009
Joss Whedon apparently has something of a cult following based on his past works, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Firefly," which meant that his new show, "Dollhouse," started with a built-in fan base. Personally, I never got into "Buffy" or...

Why "24" is captivating my attention again this season

Posted on March 15, 2009
Last week's episode of "24" (day 7, 8:00-9:00 pm) was a pretty good microcosm of everything that's gone right with this season of the show. To be sure, looking better than the awful mess that was season 6 is not...

Of all of the books to get on Kindle . . . .

Posted on February 03, 2009
. . . "When Technology Fails" would not seem to be one. I mean, if there's an EMP attack, your Kindle or other e-reader is likely to be fried, so you won't have access to all of the good low-tech...

What is with David E. Kelley's shows not being released on DVD?

Posted on January 21, 2009
I'm teaching Professional Responsibility for the first time this semester, and as part of my class preparation, I've been dutifully watching episodes of "The Practice" while using the treadmill, looking for interesting scenes to trigger discussion of ethical issues...

The first elected woman President on TV is a Republican?

Posted on January 15, 2009
Over winter break, I watched the extended version of "24: Redemption," and of course, the 4 hour premiere of season 7 earlier this week.The most striking thing for me is that the new President of the country, Allison Taylor, is...

Baseball and university salaries

Posted on October 23, 2008
My good friend Nick Johnson has an interesting post in which he uses the Tampa Bay Rays as an example of how "you get what you pay for" isn't true in baseball. He then uses that example to spring forward...

Moving to Canada to escape the Republicans?

Posted on October 09, 2008
This is a pretty funny "Canadian commercial" for people who say they're going to leave the United States if a Republican wins the White House.

Tim Russert, RIP

Posted on June 13, 2008
I never watched "Meet the Press," but I've been impressed with Tim Russert's appearances on MSNBC during the primary coverage. I was heading out to fill the car's gas tank (heh, "only" $3.89/gallon) when I heard about Russert's death by...

Iowa trouble

Posted on June 13, 2008
For those of you who've been reading about the massive flooding here in Iowa in general and Iowa City in specific, yes, it is really bad. The 380 freeway, which connects Iowa City to the airport and Cedar Rapids to...

"In Plain Sight" -- out of sight for me

Posted on June 03, 2008
In recent years, summer has been a good time for television shows. CBS's "Survivor" and Fox's "American Idol" actually started as summer offerings and did so well they got moved into the "regular" schedule. My favorite reality TV show these...

HRC's "assassination" comment

Posted on May 25, 2008
Olbermann pretty much says it all: You have to wonder, at some point, does she violate enough core values of Democrats that they'll break free of party loyalty and actually consider whether they'd "win" if she took the White House?

Go away, winter, it's almost May!

Posted on April 28, 2008
Today, while looking out my office window, I saw something that suspiciously like snow drifting down from the sky. I mean, it's almost May! What is up with this winter?!?

Who's the real "4 more years of George Bush"?

Posted on April 24, 2008
I hear the constant refrain from the Clinton and Obama campaigns that John McCain can't be allowed to win, because that will be just 4 more years of the Bush Administration. It's not an implausible argument, given that McCain has...

Howard Dean to me: The Democrats are doing the Republicans' job

Posted on April 15, 2008
Well, that's not exactly what he said: We can't let John McCain get away with it.A recent report by the Associated Press has revealed that the Republican National Committee is pulling together a joint fund with John McCain called the...

Neal Stephenson & Iowa City

Posted on April 14, 2008
Neal Stephenson, who's one of the few American sci-fi authors that I can think of who can stand up to a recent wave of British space opera/cyber-punk writers (Richard K. Morgan, Alastair Reynolds, Peter F. Hamilton, and Neal Asher), turns...

Yes, men are that shallow, apparently

Posted on April 10, 2008
This explains a lot: Women seeking a lifelong mate might do well to choose the guy a notch below them in the looks category. New research reveals couples in which the wife is better looking than her husband are more...

Experience to be President

Posted on March 26, 2008
If Hillary Clinton's main claim to the Democratic nomination over Barack Obama is her greater "experience" (in what?), then can we safely assume that she also believes that the country made a mistake in electing her husband in 1992? After...

Why Eliot Spitzer's conduct matters

Posted on March 10, 2008
As you've no doubt read by now, the bombshell news is that New York Governor (and former New York Attorney General) Eliot Spitzer was identified as a client of a prostitution ring through a federal wiretap. Does it matter? I...

The Democratic Party's cheap shot at McCain

Posted on February 27, 2008
For some reason, I get spammed by the Democratic Party on nearly a daily basis, often DNC Chairman Howard Dean. Yesterday I received a seemingly personal e-mail -- it opens "Tung --" as if the sender were truly on a...

Jack Bauer and me

Posted on February 14, 2008
My colleagues have been teasing me about being "famous," because the local newspaper (Iowa City Press-Citizen) ran a front-page (below the fold) story in which I was interviewed about the Fox TV show "24" and national security; the subject was...

Re-enacting the Pentagon Papers argument

Posted on February 12, 2008
A couple of weeks ago, in connection with the play "The Battle for the Pentagon Papers," which was being performed at Hancher Auditorium, the law school presented a re-enactment of the Supreme Court oral argument in New York Times Co....

Oops, a constitutional law error in "Prison Break" season 2

Posted on February 10, 2008
I've been rewatching season 2 of "Prison Break" on DVD while using the treadmill, and I realized that the show contains a serious constitutional error. (Shocking, I know!) Specifically, part of the continuing plotline involves then-Vice President Carolyn Reynolds' offering...

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