Legal Commentary

So Tuesday was an exciting day for

Oregon?the MSM actually focused their flickering and fickle attentions on our Democratic primary. Obama?s win was a surprise to no one?but here are some more subtle points that were lost in the general coverage:

1. It?s pronounced Or-i-GUN, not Or-e-gone.* There?s nothing that marks you as a sissified Easterner more than mispronouncing the state name. I?m talking to you, Chris Matthews! 

2. How cool is it that our new Attorney General is a lawprof?! Congratulations to Lewis and Clark?s John Kroger, who won despite televised smear ads muttering about his very recent     admission to the Oregon bar.

3. All of Oregon?s ballots are mail-ins; there are no voting booths or polling places. This may be the way of the future, but it does take a little of the fun away. I miss that satisfying clunk of the lever in old-fashioned voting booths. On the other hand, you don?t have to worry about rain depressing turnout, a real issue in the Pacific Northwest. 

4. This being Oregon, where quirkiness is prized, there are still serious pockets of Ron Paul     supporters. For some reason they feel the best way to support their candidate is to march up and down themain thoroughfare, waving signs and ringing bells. Perhaps they?re trying to collect gold? I wouldn?t be surprised if Ron Paul got a few percentage points in November through a write-in campaign.

5. Finally, it?s only appropriate that Portland, home to a substantial microbrewing culture, has just elected none other than Sam Adams as its new mayor. As a new Portland resident, I?ll drink to that!

*nb:  Another oft-mispronounced word, Willamette (as in the Valley, the wine, and the law school) rhymes with ?dammit.? We?re thinking of making it part of our official motto?.

(cross posted at The Faculty Lounge)