Beyond the Palewall (15)

New Series: Finally, Something Worth Watching
  The new streaming drama is ALL'S FAIR and apparently it is awful - so bad that it falls into the category of things we should look at because of that. This post also provides an opportunity for me to mention, Kim Kardashian, although I don't have a good idea of who they is. But, the real reason for this post is to provides a very funny answer to the question raised by a New Yorker reviewer:

Is the show watchable?
    “At this point I don’t think anyone will be surprised to read that the show is pretty damn bad—it did, after all, début on Rotten Tomatoes with a zero-per-cent rating—but, as I watched, I began thinking that it might belong in the category of being so bad that it is, if not exactly good, at least interesting as high, high, high camp. “The action centers around a bunch of incredibly successful, incredibly sassy female divorce lawyers who peddle secure-the-bag girlboss feminism to their female clients. It also involves a ton of wealth porn, which makes sense for a show that stars Kardashian. The characters are caricatures, the dialogue is absurd, but, once I accepted that the show is simply ridiculous, I kind of started enjoying it. Kate Berlant as a dominatrix named Devin Elisa Samartino? Sarah Paulson as a vindictive divorce attorney who shits on an Edible Arrangement she sends her nemeses? Glenn Close as a grande-dame lawyer who, at one point, randomly quotes Golda Meir and, at another, tells Paulson’s character, ‘Do you ever think how much happier we’d all be if your mother swallowed?’ I might just keep watching.” Naomi Fry, The New Yorker, newsletter, c. Nov.6, 2025.

Olde News Now Breaking
   

You may have missed this story which relates to a bigger one, back in the last century:

 "Oliver North Weds Fawn Hall, His Secretary During Iran-contra Scandal: The two figures in the 1980s controversy tied the knot last month, according to a Virginia marriage license," Roxanne Roberts and Liam Bowman, The Washington Post, Sept. 9, 2025. 

   "In what can only be described as a uniquely Washington love connection, Oliver North and Fawn Hall — two public faces of the Iran-contra scandal in the late 1980s — were married last month. 

   North, 81, was widowed in November when his wife of 56 years, Betsy, died. Hall, 66, was widowed 20 years ago. The couple wed Aug. 27 in Arlington County, Virginia, according to the marriage license obtained by The Washington Post. The couple had reconnected at Betsy’s funeral, according to journalist Michael Isikoff’s SpyTalk, which first reported the story.
   North was the star witness at the Iran-contra hearings that gripped the nation during President Ronald Reagan’s second term....Hall, his young secretary, was the woman behind the boss — shredding documents and even smuggling evidence out of the office under her clothing."

A Golden Tower in Texas
   While many ivory towers are crumbling, one is being established in downtown Austin. This is from,The Wall Street Journal, Nov.6, 2025:

"Billionaire Donates $100M to University"

   The billionaire trader Jeff Yass is donating $100 million to the University of Austin, the fledgling program whose founders include venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale and journalist Bari Weiss, who recently became editor in chief of CBS News.

   Formed in 2021, the university has about 150 students across its inaugural freshman and sophomore classes. It doesn't charge tuition, though students cover costs for housing, meals and books.

   The school, known as UATX, has financial backing from wealthy individuals frustrated by the political polarization and silencing of unpopular ideas they were seeing at elite universities. The Wall Street Journal reported last fall that it had raised $200 million, including $35 million from Yass. Real-estate developer Harlan Crow and investor Len Blavatnik are also among the school's early supporters.

   UATX has a physical space in downtown Austin, Texas, and dedicated student housing. It says it is nonpartisan and describes its mission as "the fearless pursuit of truth." (Let's hope that that is also true for CBS). 
P.S. If "Harlan Crow" sounds familiar, he is the fellow that kindly treated Clarence Thomas to many luxury vacations.

SCOTUS & Silence

Justice Thomas Speaks!

There is rather too much shouting these days so it is nice to be able to turn to the subject of silence. In a recent and very good article on the Supreme Court, Jeffrey Toobin provides the following sentence:

“On February 29th, Clarence Thomas, Scalia’s frequent ideological ally, asked his first question in more than a decade at an oral argument. He then resumed his customary silence for the remainder of the term.” (Jeffrey Toobin, “Annals of Law,”The New Yorker, Oct. 3, 2016. p.29).

Although I was aware that Thomas was rather tight-lipped and had not spoken for years, I was unaware that the string of silence had been broken and thought I should share the news with you.

February 2006 to February 2016 - The Silent Decade

Once again, you may think I make up these stories so I will provide some substantiation below.  Here are some related articles from the last five years presented in chronological order.

“No Argument: Thomas Keeps 5-Year Silence,” Adam Liptak, The New York Times, Feb. 12, 2011.

“If he is true to form, Justice Thomas will spend the arguments as he always does: leaning back in his chair, staring at the ceiling, rubbing his eyes, whispering to Justice Stephen G. Breyer, consulting papers and looking a little irritated and a little bored. He will ask no questions.”

“The Thomas Issue” , The New York Times, Feb. 17, 2011,

“When the Supreme Court hears arguments next week, it will mark the fifth anniversary of Justice Clarence Thomas’s silence during oral argument — unless he chooses to re-enter the give-and-take. We hope he will.”

“Justice Clarence Thomas Breaks His Silence,” Adam Liptak, The New York Times, Jan. 14, 2013.

This was the first time he has spoken since 2006, but it really doesn’t count since he was making a joke and there is some confusion about what he actually said.

“It is not unusual for Justice Thomas to banter with the members of the court who sit next to him, Justices Scalia and Stephen G. Breyer. But those communications are inaudible in the courtroom. This remark seemed meant for public consumption.”

“It’s Been 10 Years. Would Clarence Thomas Like to Add Anything?,” The New York Times, Adam Liptak, Feb. 1, 2016.

“When the Supreme Court returns from its winter break this month, it will hear two minor cases and reach a major anniversary. Unless something very surprising happens during the arguments that day, Justice Clarence Thomas will have gone 10 years without asking a question from the bench.

“Maintaining a decade-long vow of silence takes monkish dedication and a certain stamina, and Justice Thomas has no modern competition.”

“Clarence Thomas Breaks 10 Years of Silence at Supreme Court”, The New York Times, Adam Liptak, Feb. 29, 2016.

“A Decade Later, Clarence Thomas Speaks Again,” Jesse Wegman, The New York Times, Feb. 29, 2016.

“Ten years and one week after it began without warning or explanation, Justice Clarence Thomas’s unofficial vow of silence has ended.

On Feb. 22, 2006, Justice Thomas asked a question in a death-penalty case. He did not ask another until Monday morning, in a case involving a challenge to a federal law that prohibits people convicted of domestic violence from owning a gun.”

“For First Time in 10 Years, Justice Clarence Thomas Asks Questions During an Argument,” Robert Barnes, The Washington Post. Feb. 29, 2016.

In Justice Thomas’s defence I will note that he thinks his colleagues chat too much and that they should let the lawyers’ make their cases without constant interruptions. In support of his argument, I did find this:

“In the 20 years that ended in 2008, the justices asked an average of 133 questions per hour long argument, up from about 100 in the 15 years before that.”

If Joseph Mitchell could show up for work for years at the The New Yorker and not provide a word for that publication, I suppose we should cut the Justice some slack for being silent from the bench for only a decade.