Clarification of reading assignments in America Divided book.  For Week 5, please read through Chapter 7.  For Week 6, please read the remainder of the book.

Revising Response Papers (posted 1/28/04).  Please remember that beginning with the second cycle of response papers you post online (Weeks 4 and 5), we have added a third step: revising your papers and posting them online.  The deadline for doing that is Friday, 12:00 midnight.  Here's a recap of the deadlines:

1) Post your paper on your alternate week by Monday, 1:00 p.m.
2) Post your peer reviews when it is your turn by Wednesday, 1:00 p.m.
3) Post your revised paper, after reading your peers' review, by Friday midnight.

Appointment of Counsel for Winter Term of the Evergreen Supreme Court (posted 1/17/04).  The Court's appointment of counsel for the ten cases that have been granted certiorari for the Winter Term can be seen by clicking here.  The full text of the opinions of the United States Courts of Appeals can be found on the Internet.  One of the most convenient ways to find a case is through Findlaw (http://www.findlaw.com). If you choose that route, look under  the column with the blue heading labeled "Legal Professionals."  Click on "US Laws: Cases & Codes: Federal".  Then scroll down to the section under Case Law, labeled "US Courts of Appeals - Opinions & Web Sites."   Click on the number of the Circuit of your Court of Appeals.  Then use the search engine provided there.  You can use any of the search fields provided.  Since you do not have the actual docket number or date of the case, use the Party Name Search.  If you place too much text in the search box, the search engine will not find your case.  Usually it is enough to use one party's name or an abbreviated version of the case name.

The opinions of the Federal District Courts generally are not readily accessible on the Internet except through a subscription service.  Next week I will show you how to access the District Court opinions.  Since Case 2004-09 (Rebekah, Rachael, Apryl and Natassia) is a Federal District Court opinion, I have placed a link to that opinion (on the docket that you access above). 

Peer Review Groups are now posted (posted 1/11/04).  Go to the STUDENTS page for information about the the peer review groups that you have been assigned to for posting response papers and reviewing the writing of others in your group.  Remember the deadlines: 1:00 p.m. Mondays for posting your response paper in the alternate weeks when you are designated to do so, and 1:00 p.m. Wednesdays for posting your peer reviews in the alternate weeks when you are designated to do so.

Inclement weather, the closing of the college, and our plan fior the remainder of Week 1 (posted 1/6/04).  The closing of the college today, Tuesday, January 6, will not alter our plans for Thursday, January 8 (assuming that the college will be open on Thursday).  In lieu of Law Workshop, From 9:00 to 11:00 a.m., we will still have a hands-on orientation to Web Crossing for students who have never used that software.  It will be in the General Computing Classroom (GCC) in the Computer Center.  We will also be taking digital photos of students who don't have one (required for your participation in our online activity). If you know how to use Web Crossing, you're welcome to come to see how we are going to use it this quarter.  However, we will be posting detailed instructions on our Web Crossing site. 

We will analyze the Schenck, Debs and Abrams cases next Tuesday, along with the Gitlow, Whitney and Brandenburg cases.  All of these cases are related to the issue of illegal advocacy.  Due to the bad weather and resulting dealys, It is unlikely that the supplement of edited cases that Jose is preparing for your purchase at the bookstore will be available by Thursday.  In that case, either you will receive the latter three cases as a handout or we will post them on our website's handout page.

By now you have noticed that our Thursday seminars are scheduled in CAB 110 and Library 1600.  Both seminar groups should report to CAB 110.  Since that room can be divided into two, three or four smaller areas, we may decide to give up Library 1600, which is an open space not ideal for seminars.

Yesterday Jose received three more copies of the  Fighting Faiths book.  One is taken.  The other two (one a hardcover for $15 and the other a softcover for $10) will go to the first two students who request them by e-mail (gomezj@evergreen.edu). 

You need to order the first book for winter quarter.  Now! (posted: 12/13/03). The first book we will use in the winter quarter is out of stock. This means that 50 copies are not available from any one source for our bookstore to order in bulk. However, there are plenty of copies available from various sources online. Prices range from 80 cents to $27. So, you need to order your own copy. You need to do this right away so that you will have it for the first week of class. You can go to your preferred online bookseller, but in order to cut down the amount of time you may need to find a copy of the book, I recommend that you go through www.bookfinder.com. I just looked, and that site has identified 85 copies of the book from various sources. 

The title of the book is Fighting Faiths: The Abrams Case, The Supreme Court, and Free Speech.

The author is Richard Polenberg. 

At this point, don't worry about any particular edition or any particular ISBN. Just get a book. 

If you don't have a credit card and cannot order online, let me know right away so that I can order a copy for you. You can then reimburse me.  --J.G.

More controversy about Dissent, Injustice & the Making of America.  On October 29, 2003, our academic program was cited in testimony before the U.S. Senate's Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. "Is Intellectual Diversity an Endangered Species on America’s College Campuses" was the subject of the full committee hearing.  Professor David Johnson of  Brooklyn College and The Graduate Center of the City University of New York criticized both "Dissent, Injustice and the Making of America" and "Inherently Unequal" (to be taught by Jose in the spring quarter).  To read a news story about the hearing, click here.  To read Johnson's testimony, click here. 

Summer controversy about Evergreen and Dissent, Injustice & the Making of America.  To read a controversial column that appeared in the Seattle Times (June 12, 2003) and on many Internet sites, click here.  To read the many responses to the columnist through letters to the editor, click here. If you are not a registered user of the online Seattle Times, you will need to register.  It is free.