good on you, Ms. Kagan

[lagilman]

Via Michael J. Walsh: On asking questions, always know the answer ahead of time, otherwise you might look like a doofus, from the Elena Kagan hearings for her Supreme Court nomination:

GRAHAM: No, I just asked you where you were at on Christmas.
KAGAN: You know, like all Jews, I was probably at a Chinese restaurant.

Comments

[mtlawson.livejournal.com]

Heh.

[rosefox]

Elena. Not Ellen.

[lagilman]

Fixed (I was cut-and-pasting, my bad)

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

A woman of wit. Seems like a good sign to me.

I am put in mind of the time Jerry Seinfeld appeared on the Today Show and Matt Lauer, whose father was Jewish, asked Seinfeld what his daughter would be getting for Christmas. Seinfeld said, "Nothing. She's Jewish." The expression on Lauer's face was priceless.

[ex-fashioni.livejournal.com]

*SNORT*

That was awesome.

[kriz1818.livejournal.com]

But why was he asking that? She needed an alibi for something?

[lagilman]

The full dialogue was in question of the Christmas Bomber, and related judicial inquiry.

[saladinahmed.livejournal.com]

What a doofus (Graham, not Kagan). Jeez, what was next? "And what MOVIE did you see, Ms. Kagan!?"

[nick-kaufmann.livejournal.com]

That cracked me up too!

[sorek.livejournal.com]

actually that might have been the point of asking the question: "Ms. Kagan, you've not married, don't have any kids, and are of a minority religion. You're WEIRD. Why should I confirm you?"

Which would make him an asshole. But not necessarily an idiot. Or at least not an uninformed idiot.

My problems with her are professional in nature. Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach.

[lagilman]

Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach.

Speaking as and on behalf of all teachers... oh really?

[ex-fashioni.livejournal.com]

I always hated that statement. I think of it more as "Those who can, do. Those who can do more, teach."

Because seriously, teaching someone how to do something, especially a specialized task, requires a skill set that many lack. My mother was a brilliant seamstress and production pattern maker. No matter how hard she tried, she could not teach me how to sew or draw an acceptable pattern because she simply lacks the skill set required to translate ability to understandable instruction.

[sorek.livejournal.com]

Ok Ok. There's a difference between doing something (e.g. writing) for a living *and then becoming a teacher* and someone who studies to be a lawyer and then never actually uses her skills. And I'm not dissing grade school or high school teachers, the whole point is they teach skills everyone uses every day. They are "doing". It's the professors who all teach calculus the same goddamn incomprehensible way I can't stand. It's the cliche of those MBA's who've never worked a day in IT but think they can redesign departments while ignoring all feedback from the worker bees.

I'm more likely to listen to someone like a Bill Gates or Michael Dell who started and built their own companies, instead of a professor of economics who never ran a business.

I'm more likely to listen to published authors (cough *you* cough) on tips on writing than some random English Teaching Assistant. (Can you tell I didn't enjoy many classes in college?)

Similarly, I'd rather have as a Supreme Court Justice someone who was a judge or at least a practicing lawyer between 1991 and 2009.

[lagilman]

I'm sorry that you had such crappy experiences.

My sister and cousins are teachers.

I'm walking away from this conversation now.

[sorek.livejournal.com]

"I'm sorry that you had such crappy experiences."

Thanks.

"My sister and cousins are teachers."

My best friend's mother is a teacher. My mom actually has a teaching certificate although her life took her in other directions. A coworker of mine, who I consider a good friend, coached high school Track. I have a lot of respect for people who work with kids.

"I'm walking away from this conversation now.

Heh. I was planning to do the same thing. Suri's Law #1 and all that.

[fakefrenchie.livejournal.com]

Bullshit!

[threeoutside.livejournal.com]

Good God, I can't believe you said that. Here.

[out-totheblack.livejournal.com]

Priceless.

cool...

[chicating.livejournal.com]

Jeff Sessions is such an idiot.
She could have been in the movie theater...seems like that's another thing my friends do.

good on you, Ms. Kagan

[logrusboy.livejournal.com]

Heh! Pity that the "esteemed" Senator gets a vote but I don't.

[icedrake.livejournal.com]

She only gets away with not answering the question with a question because it was a congressional hearing.