tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5705719339981188195.post1381720812307035943..comments2024-01-04T09:58:13.356-05:00Comments on Persuasive Authorities: The Third Author of the Torture Memo: Some Random ObservationsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5705719339981188195.post-6863792886502574972010-02-24T23:52:16.115-05:002010-02-24T23:52:16.115-05:00Right, Jon. I was going to response but then saw y...Right, Jon. I was going to response but then saw your second comment. Given her role, which wasn't that of co-author, I agree with what you're saying.Adam Shinarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10165846122103746240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5705719339981188195.post-88784640137534472072010-02-24T18:10:22.316-05:002010-02-24T18:10:22.316-05:00Hm, so I've had to do a little bit more readin...Hm, so I've had to do a little bit more reading on this. It seems like Koester wasn't really a true co-author as the TPM story implies, but more like a research assistant, taking on this or that isolated legal task on the file. And where she did actually contributed a part of the memos, it sounds like she was just writing in what Yoo and Philbin wanted. That sounds pretty much like the dynamic of an articling clerk or junior associate working on a file with senior counsel... I'm never one for a witch hunt; so i see your point: is it really worth while going hard after those who offered lower-level contributions, with minimal decision-making authority? I mean, what's the next headline "The Man who Fixed the Printer that Would Ultimately Print Off the Torture Memos: Revealed"Jon Penneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02645655549853010069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5705719339981188195.post-33506425341347250532010-02-24T17:18:07.557-05:002010-02-24T17:18:07.557-05:00These are all tough issues. But first off, I'm...These are all tough issues. But first off, I'm not sure it is insignificant that there is another lawyer who contributed to the memos, even if at the time, that lawyer was a young hire or assistant. <br /><br />I recall having serious debates with friends and law school colleagues about whether certain University of Toronto law students (Canadian law students of a few years back will remember this controversy) that had lied about their marks to obtain law jobs at (high paying) Bay Street corporate law firms, were of sufficient character to be members of the bar. Opinion was pretty split. Some felt these students should probably still get their degrees (and not be expelled) but should probably make a living in another profession. Others had more sympathy, citing the pressures, social and financial, of obtaining work in high powered law firms. <br /><br />But in either case, we all agreed that these "students" were, let's be honest, adults, with enough life experience to make responsible decisions about their careers and the work they were doing. <br /><br />So, how is this relevant? If it might be argued that a few law students who lied about marks to get a job may be seen as unfit for the profession, isn't contributing to these memos, even as a junior, if not worthy of professional sanction, than at least sufficient public scrutiny? I mean, she was a lawyer working for the OLC; it's not like she was a junior officer in the marine corps which abides, for survival, on a strict chain of command. <br /><br />I'm not saying I agree with this-- as i said these are tough issues-- but it certainly is a perspective that's out there, and I'd be interested in what you thought, Adam.Jon Penneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02645655549853010069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5705719339981188195.post-27045374340654789722010-02-24T12:51:55.200-05:002010-02-24T12:51:55.200-05:00I think I'm making both. Obviously this is in ...I think I'm making both. Obviously this is in the context of the OLC, but I suggest that we might want to think about ideological diversity in general. <br />Is the OLC special in the sense that ideological diversity would be a good idea?It is a major body advising the President on legal matters, so it might be a good idea for that body to present differing perspectives, given the malleability of constitutional law and foreign relations law.Adam Shinarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10165846122103746240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5705719339981188195.post-35847035330717041792010-02-24T11:31:33.344-05:002010-02-24T11:31:33.344-05:00Are you making a claim about the importance of dif...Are you making a claim about the importance of different perspectives in general, or is there something in particular about the OLC that invites your view that it is important for the OLC to employ people with different ideological perspectives?Richard Alberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230047824468034053noreply@blogger.com