Kansas Books

Gerard Macgliocca's book is an important contribution to our understanding of constitutional history. It is a remarkable concise essay that tries to reestablish the importance of the Jacksonians and the Taney Court in our legal history while presenting a theory of the rise and fall of constitutional "generations".
Magliocca sees each constitutional generation as being "formed" by shared collective experiences that cause them to largely share political and legal beliefs. The experiences that Magliocca is talking about can be things like 9-11, the Great Depression, the Civil War, etc. (pp.2-3). Obviously he is talking about a tendency of a majority as opposed to the views of any one individual. These generations are also reflected in the political domination of one party, e.g., the Jacksonians, FDR Democrats, etc.. The great eras of our constitutional history can thus be seen as a period when one generation held sway. At that moment, another generation is always beginning to develope in response to real injustices that are ignored (or condoned) by the dominant generation.
Magliocca throughout his book lists patterns of change that every rising generation follows. This is where my comparison to the I Ching comes in. I am being somewhat tongue-in-cheek in making that comparison but Magliocca invites that sort of response with statements like the following: "Reform leads to resistance, and resistance leads to reform. That is a central theme of the constitutional cycle" (p.112). Fortunately, Magliocca has some very powerful ideas to offer us about some of these patterns of change. For example, he believes that as a rising generation rises to power through Congress and the Presidency, that the older generation still dominant on the Supreme Court begins to escalate their resistance. At this point, the older generation is likely to start to hand down "preemptive opinions". These rulings utilize three tactics:
1. The Justices will decide every issue instead of following the usual practice of avoiding major constitutional issues. They are trying to create landmark rulings.
2. The Court will try to undermine the rising generations thought in the strongest possible way. They want to attack its basic principles and rule them invalid.
3. Since this is usually very difficult to do with established doctrine, the Court will invent some "new theory of equality or fairness" to ground their ruling on. (p.43)
Magliocca believes that both Worcester v. Georgia in 1832 and Dred Scott v. Sanford are examples of such decisions. It is worth the reading of Magliocca's book for his reading of these two cases alone.
The Kuhnian thrust of Magliocca's argument (that I allude to in my review title) is that Magliocca believes that these "generational" conflicts are fought out politically and not through contests of reasoning. His history of the Taney court and of the rise and fall of the Jacksonians provides strong evidence for his belief. Magliocca also makes room for the role of chance events (the death of William Henry Harrison and the subsequent Tyler presidency, the assassination of Lincoln, etc.)
Overall, this is, as stated, a very impressive essay. My problem with Magliocca is hinted at by my use of the word essay. This books needs expansion. As it is, it is only 129 pages long. He should have continued the story through both the rise of the Progressive and the New Deal generation. Magliocca is claiming universal validity for his thesis with its individual patterns of change.
Here is another example:
"Rising movements are filled with a righteous belief that the voters have give them a mandate for constitutional reform. On the other side, the justices generally believe that they represent the true voice of the people as set forth in the text of the Constitution and decades of precedent." (p. 37)
This seems true enough but it needs to be shown to be a truly universal pattern. Show me how it worked in the switch to the Progressives or to the New Deal. Applying his concepts to more historical examples would allow them to be further refined.
This is especially true of his concept of preemptive opinion. I would love to have seen an Appendix with a listing of all the cases that Magliocca suspected could be considered as such. I would love to read what Magliocca would have to say about a case like Buck v. Bell in 1935? It would seem to be a good candidate for preemptive status except for the third tactic. Indeed, Justice Roberts seems to reach back to fairness standards of a generation or two earlier in that one. (See the second chapter of Leuchtenburg's, The Supreme Court Reborn, for a good discussion).
So my complaint is that the current book feels more like a precise for a reasearch program to be completed. Magliocca may be on to an essential way of understanding major changes in our constitutional history. He hasn't convinced me that it is applicable to that larger history as yet. He has provided us, however, with a very fine and subtle reading to the Jacksonian period. I do not want to minimize that. For example, be makes a subtle and important point about how the beliefs of the abolitionist evolved as a result of watching the Jacksonian treatment of the Cherokees. His book is well worth reading for the period history alone.
But I, for one, am waiting for the rest of the history.

Accomplished scholar Prof. Ralph Rossum has penned a well-crafted book analyzing the legal opinions and writings of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. The result is a solid read about how Justice Scalia views the role of a judge and how he sees himself. At least, Rossum gives his own take on how Justice Scalia sees himself. Obviously, the only person who truly knows how he sees himself is Justice Scalia.

One of the two most interesting chapters is Chapter 2: "Text and Tradition." It summarizes Justice Scalia's textualist approach to statutory and constitutional interpretation. In short, when deciding a given case, the plain meaning of the words contained in statutes or constitution provisions matters. Where the plain text is unclear, a jurist should consult the tradition behind the text to understand what the words mean to those who adopted it. The original understanding of the text rather than any original or even secret intent should be controlling. Justice Scalia's approach is tied to an emphasis upon the democratic decision-making process as the basis for legitimate exercise of governmental authority. Not judicial adventurism and second-guessing of democratic decision-making evidenced by statutes and constitutional provisions.

This book is not lengthy. Nor is it written at a highly technical level. So although Rossum indicates on pg. 37 that Justice Scalia "simply has not developed a well-thought-out understanding of the principles of democracy," Rossum does not elaborate much on the point. One will just have to consult law review articles and the like for more in that regard.

The other chapter making for the most interesting reading is Chapter 3: "Constitutional Structure and Separation of Powers." This portion transitions nicely from the previous chapter and underscores the importance that governmental structure plays in Justice Scalia's views of the constitution. During his SCOTUS confirmation hearings, then-Judge Scalia testified that our division of federal power into three branches with a system of checks and balances has been crucial to the defense of our liberties. Rossum proceeds to analyze important separation of powers opinions written by Justice Scalia, including his infamous, lone-ranger dissent in Morrison v. Olsen (1988) concerning the Ethics in Government Act's provision for an independent counsel. At issue was the constitutionality of vesting the independent counsel of executive power despite its detachment from the President. Also important is Rossum's analysis of Justice Scalia's majority opinion in Printz v. United States (1997). The case is typically known as an anti-commandeering decision, but Rossum highlights the separation of powers rationale that Justice Scalia includes in the opinion.

Later chapters deal with Justice Scalia's approach to substantive individual rights and to individual procedural rights. Justice Scalia's textualist emphasis is to prevent "backsliding" or erosion of important freedoms by judicial re-interpretation of democratically-adopted protections.

Some familiarity with Justice Scalia's opinions or his book, A Matter of Interpretation, makes Rossum's book more worthwhile. But it is not essential. One need not be a lawyer to follow Rossum's overview. Nor need one even agree with Justice Scalia's approach to law or decisions in the cases discussed in the book to benefit from reading this book. The book has a sympathetic tone towards its subject, but it is not an advocacy publication. Rossum even insists while Justice Scalia is remarkably consistent in his jurisprudence that he is nonetheless inconsistent in a few areas of law (e.g., state sovereign immunity.)

Rossum set out to describe the jurisprudence of perhaps the most interesting and discussed jurist on SCOTUS today. The author succeeds and the product is an accessible, informative, and interesting read.

This was the most fun investing book I've read, and it also made a lot of sense to me. It gave me practical advice that I can apply to my own investment strategy and will aid me in building a portfolio. I loved the examples of how to do evaluation. All in all I would highly recommend this book for being both interesting and informative.

I got this book as a gift actually but because it is so awesome, I plan on now buying this book for my friends! It's the only one that I turn to in regards to spiritual warfare. Spiritual warfare is something every Christian needs to deal with. This book is Bible-based so you know it's not a bunch of B.S. It's easy to read and not overly "academic;" I'm just amazed at how much content is stuffed into this book. After reading this book, I feel more equiped as a Christian and because there is so much content in it, I have read it again and again and have always received new insight each time.

A must for Chiefs' fans. An interesting history lesson as well as all the top games in the great Stadium's history. You could swear you were back in the stadium for the Montana-led Chiefs vs. the 49ers game. The hundreds of color pictures alone are worth the price of the book!

Actually purchased for my wife who requested it after having seen examples of the patterns. She is very happy with book and has made several projects from it.

Identity crises plague both Claudine St. James and Robert Lester, though for entirely different reasons. Claudie comes from a broken home and a life of prostitution. Bo was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and a father who never deigned to notice him. As they struggle to connect the pieces of their past into a meaningful present, both Claudie and Bo must learn self-acceptance and forgiveness.

Claudie's been of the streets for seven months, starting a halfway house for prostitutes and using her experience to help others. But she can't forget the family she left behind, especially the youngest sister she practically raised. Fearing that at seventeen her sister may become her stepfather next victim, Claudie heads to Kansas to confront her past.

Bo follows Claudie, realizing the danger in her quest. Even as Claudie believes she can't share her used and damaged body with this remarkable man, he's equally determined to love her and give her a future. Claudie's skittishness and fears are portrayed compassionately and realistically, making her an extraordinarily sympathetic character without undermining her strength. Bo's own issues with her father prevent him from becoming "too perfect," and giving him sufficient flaws to be perfectly human. Indeed, Bo's both wonderfully tender and self honest, making him perfect for Claudie.

Debra Salonen's daring choice of a heroine brings gritty realism and compassion to BACK IN KANSAS. Salonen writes with a deep understanding of how good girls go wrong, and how a few can still make their lives right. BACK IN KANSAS also presents a flawed hero, providing the novel with dynamic characters guaranteed to win the reader's heart. Very highly recommended.

Gerald R. Butters, Jr. (Associate Professor of History at Aurora University) presents Banned in Kansas: Motion Picture Censorship 1915-1966. In 1915, Kansas was one of a handful of states that established its own film censorship board. From limiting depictions of sexuality to censoring violence in the 1932 classic "Scarface", the Kansas board controlled what the state's population saw on the silver screen for over fifty years. Banned in Kansas explores the political, social, and economic factors that led to the policy of movie censorship in Kansas, the attitudes of ordinary Kansas citizens toward the censorship, and why censorship continued for so many decades. Banned in Kansas also scrutinizes the daily operations of the film censorship board, and the complexities it encountered with regard to shifting definitions of cultural morality, as well as vagaries of political and legal systems. Black-and-white stills from censored movies illustrate this informed and informative contribution to American cinema history.

My husband and I had the great opportunity to attend a slide presentation by the author of this book, Robert Marsh. He certainly was well qualified and very interested in doing this work. Barns in Kansas and all around the world are falling everyday to people who are either not interested or cannot afford their upkeep. This is a wonderful tribute to those fantastic structures in our state. Hats off to Marshall who, along with his wife, drove 11,000 miles all over the state to gather interviews, pictures and priceless history from a bygone time. Great reading. Well researched. Wonderful pictures.

James Howley has done us a great service in writing about these unusual architectural sites in Ireland. We are surrounded by built things, but so many of them built with the severity of practical needs: domestic boxes, repetitive, hard-angled offices. His book reminds us that not all buildings were made so.

He educates us in these matters by maintaining scholarly momentum without sacrificing readability. Indeed, reading this book involves a curious deception -- you feel as though you have been tramping through the bushes all day and examining fascinating old buildings, then sitting tired but satisfied with a cup of tea, going over drawings and notes. Yet what has happened is that you have absorbed an array of both historical and social lessons.

Although the book is of course aimed at a specific area (Ireland) and specific topic (idiosyncratic buildings called 'follies'), the information is transferable into our daily lives. After having read the book, I found myself sensitized to the unusual in architecture in New England, where I live.

Qualifier: What we may think is unusual is not always a "folly" -- in glancing into the lifeways of our predecessors, we are looking with mystery into that which others saw as perfectly ordinary (a medieval castle privy may be to us a mysterious or amusing construction, although 800 years ago it was just a smelly crapper). In such cases, we need to educate ourselves in the definition of "unusual" and what it means for us and for the people of other ages.

Yet sometimes we find a truly unusual construction from whatever historical and local point of view you want to take. I drove by a yard in Shutesbury Massachusetts in which the owner had used his farm tractor to stack a series of huge flat stones on top of boulders to form a beautiful front-yard pyramid several feet high. My mind flashed instantly to the interesting people and odd places mentioned in Howley's book, and in this union of time and place and human dynamics, we see the ultimate practicality of this book. -- Wade Tarzia