I recently had the pleasure of seeing Hugh Hewitt at an event in San Diego put on by CALA, Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse.
http://www.hughhewitt.com/blog/
Hugh Hewitt was interviewing Philip K. Howard about his new book, “Life Without Lawyers.”
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1874370,00.html
The event itself was fun because it was more than just a quick meet and greet. It was actually an entire day in beautiful San Diego.
Although Hugh Hewitt is a celebrity in political circles, he has no airs about him. He is a genuinely nice person. He has shown much personal kindness to me. He has linked to one of my columns without telling me. It was a nice surprise. He also had me on his radio show once, and will be having me on again at some point. Yet what I like about him most is that when he makes promises, he keeps them. So many people have no interest in helping others make it in this world. I am still a fledgling, and Hugh Hewitt has been willing to help me improve my lot in life.
As for the event itself, after plenty of time to mingle, there was a luncheon. I sat at the table with Hugh over lunch, as he prepared for going on the stage.
While the topic of lawsuit abuse is very serious, Hugh interviewed Philip Howard with an easy style that made for a fun event. This is not surprising given that Hugh is a radio host. Yet what many people do not know is that he has a “real” job during the day. He is not a guy spouting opinions. He knows this topic well.
While Shakespeare is attributed with the quote that we should “kill all the lawyers,” Mr. Howard was not interested in violence. He is not even reflexively anti-lawyer. He is just somebody who has seen California get crushed under litigation, regulation, and other forms of small business strangulation.
With that, I present some snippets from Hugh Hewitt.
“This is just like doing a real talk show, except today I have a tie on.”
“Unlike others in the media, I am the only one that goes to work during the day and then goes to the studio.”
“I am a practicing attorney. My firm focuses on two areas, product liability and defending landowners.”
“Michael Medved does have a law degree, but of all the radio hosts, I am the only one that currently practices law in addition to my radio program.”
“A sad part of America today is that everybody speaks lawyer.”
“For those that have never spent three hours watching C-Span, it is the broadcast equivalent of waterboarding.”
“The economy will never be fixed without tort reform. Lawsuits are an additional tax. They are a job killing cancer.”
“‘Life without Lawyers’ shows that we are at a tipping point.”
“Arnold Schwarzenegger is a failed Governor. I hate to say it, but he is. Texas Governor Rick perry gets it. Perry beats on lawyers. Arnold doesn’t.”
“Between Meg Whitman, Steve Poizner, and Tom Campbell, whoever grabs onto the mantle of legal reform will win the California Governorship.”
“You should all do three things.
First, buy ‘Life without Lawyers.’ Then give it to lawyers you know. Consider it an intervention.
Then, Join associations like CALA.
Lastly, pay attention to the Governor’s race.”
“I am almost in Colorado. California is almost past the point of recovery. I would go to Texas, but it has bad weather. For those staying in California, the next Governor’s race is everything.”
While the luncheon was enjoyable, unlike most events, this day was not concluding. It was just getting started.
After some more socializing after lunch, many of the people went to a carpet store in the greater San Diego area. Hugh was broadcasting his radio show from a makeshift studio in the back of this carpet store. For those who have never spent hours in a carpet store, it is quiet. Outside noise was a non-issue. The owner of the carpet store is your typical American small business owner. Lawsuit abuse is a major issue.
While Hugh normally covers many topics on his radio show, the entire three hours was dedicated to lawsuit abuse. He spoke to Governor Perry by telephone, interviewed Philip K. Howard again, and interviewed other members of CALA. Several lighthearted moments came when he told politicians in other states that he would leave California that day if they could have a state of the art studio built for him by the end of his program. No promises were made.
Even after the broadcast was done, the day still was not done. There was a post broadcast mixer, and then Hugh spoke to the audience along with Assembly candidate Nathan Fletcher. Both Hugh and Nathan took questions.
I was stunned when Hugh, who likes to do nice things with an element of surprise, mentioned me in the audience and mentioned my blog.
(No, I was not in the audience doing jumping jacks to get him to do this. He did it of his own volition.)
My only regret of the entire 7 hours I spent with Hugh is that I did not get to say goodbye or thank him. I had an 8pm speech I was giving to the UCSD College Republicans.
Besides, I know I will run into Hugh again. He has too many important things to say and is too nice a guy for me to not see him again.
He is also the Godfather of blogging, and I have learned a lot from him.
For everything he has done for me, the least I can do for him is mention that if you want to show kindness to Hugh Hewitt while also improving American society, help stop the flood of frivolous lawsuits.
Hugh Hewitt has radio talent and the speaking circuit to fall back on. On a smaller scale, so do I. As for those who don’t, they will get crushed under taxes, regulations, and lawsuits if we do not stand up for them.
To quote James A. Baker III during the 2000 election recount process, “There comes a time, and we are at that time, for all the lawyers to go home.”
Indeed it is. The tipping point is upon us.
eric
CALAs are fake “grassroots” groups who’s sole purpose for being is to limit the right of the people to redress in the courts against large corporations. But this is the “conservative” answer to every problem: take away the rights of the people (and stack the decks for corporations). Everyone hates lawyers until they need one. Everyone hates lawsuits until they have to bring one. It’s easy to bash lawyers and lawsuits. It panders to the lowest intellectual denominator: the person who never happened to need a lawyer or a to bring a suit and lacks the imagination to understand they may well need a lawyer or lawsuit someday. This is also how the conservatives bash healthcare reform. Everyone is fine with their own healthcare until they actually have a health problem. At any given moment, most people are healthy, and so it’s easy to convince them that the status quo is good for them. They lack the imagination to understand that one day their health may not be so good and that when that happens, in all likelyhood, they’ll wish they had better, or at least less expensive, care. Healthcare IS a right, whether it’s in the constitution or not. It is a basic human right. But again, conservatives are against human rights. They want less rights, not more. Take away our right to sue? Sure, that’s fine with them… until they want to sue someone. Then it’s another story. But at any given mooment, most people are not involved in any sort of litigation and they lack the imagination to understand that one day they may need to be. Conservatism plays on that lack of imagination, in fact, conservatism IS lack of imagination.
JMJ
“Healthcare IS a right, whether it’s in the constitution or not. It is a basic human right. But again, conservatives are against human rights. ”
I saw a pile of dog crap steaming in the cool morning air that held more truth than that statement.
” Conservatism plays on that lack of imagination, in fact, conservatism IS lack of imagination.”
Conservatism is the practice of doing what is known to work instead of risking a country’s collapse on failed policies of the past dressed up as something new.
The lefts movement of applying idiotic PC terms to everything under the sun to try and change its meaning is one example.
national healthcare, public option, and the newest one from Pelosi “The Consumer Option” are nothing more than disguises for old failed concepts such as socialism. Its socialized medicine and nothing more.
What’s being cloaked with all these semantic idiocies is actually a form of wealth redistribution that has failed many times over.
Stick to what works. That’s conservatism.
The present system with all its faults works way better than any government run healthcare program ever.
They’re all in the red, chock full of corruption and fraud to the tune of 60 billion a year while rejecting twice as many claims as any private insurer.
Save your feigned outrage at those who supposedly lack the imagination to see the need for lawyers or government mandated insurance.
Its the lawyers who are rejecting the GOP proposals that call for TORT reform.
Its those lawyers with their ambulance chasing ads inviting you to sue anyone and everyone because you stubbed your toe that are responsible in good part for today’s healthcare costs skyrocketing out of control.
Its those lawyers that are drooling at the prospect of socialized medicine since it will almost eliminate most precautions doctors are able to use to protect themselves.
Liberalism is the arrogant practice of thinking that because you can imagine the dumbest crap your allowed to spew it as innovation.
The artsy fartsy on the left have also made it an art form to make it appear as anyone having the common sense to stick with what works to be nothing more than rigid missionary position only prohibitionist.
In order to be a good conservative you have to be able to see past the bullsht that calls itself imaginative.
Its like this.
A liberal can take a handful of paint and toss it on a canvas, leaving everything up to chance and then later define to the audience the intention behind the painting when there really was none to begin with.
As is with the present healthcare proposals/bills coming from this administration and congress.
At first they are stated as great works of art. But later after one of them gets passed the real meaning will come out as it goes thru the typical amendments and we dig up all the bullsht buried deep within it.
It will turn out to not be this wonderful sunshiney benefit for the whole country and instead gradually reveal itself for the big stinking pile of infringements on our basic freedoms that it is.
The majority of the country does not trust the government to run healthcare.
The majority of the country wants to keep its present coverage.
The majority of the country can already access government run healthcare if they need it.
The majority of the country knows for a fact that we cant afford it.
The majority of the country knows that to afford it Obama will break his pledge to not raise taxes one dime.
The country does not want to pay for others medicinal marijuana or abortions.
The country does not want to pay for illegal aliens insurance.
And yet we are still being fed this straw man argument that the country is in dire need of healthcare reform when its becoming well known that there’s only about 10 million that really need it, or want it the way its being packaged.
So please, spare us all this crap you’re trying to sell us that conservatives lack imagination or whatever your fake premise is.
Its just that were more mature and that even though he’s got a new wagon and a new horse, have seen that snake oil salesman before.
If you guys had so much imagination then why have you consistently repeated what’s failed so many times before ?
FDR and Johnson tried what Obama is doing with the “New Deal” and “The Great Society”.
They both failed.
There’s absolutely no doubt that you liberals need to learn the difference between “original thought” and “imagination”
Well, Micky, most conservatives, like you, believe that healthcare should not be a right, nor is it one. While it is true that the constitution does not include healthcare as an enumerated right, modern society deems it so. We are the only developed nation on the planet that does not recognize healthcare as a right. Someday that will change. We can’t be backwards forever.
I don’t see how conservatism “works” unless you mean that it “works” at causing recessions, depressions, a police state, and war. Conservatism has been proven a failed ideology over and over again throughout history. Successful societies are progressive, they are liberal, they adapt to change rather than resist it, they encourage change when necessary, and enable it by expanding, not contracting, rights.
JMJ
“modern society deems it so. ”
Keep trying.
Spin it anyway you want.
Were in the biggest recession/depression with the highest unemployment ever since the 30s, no thanks to your “imaginative” policies.
The proof is in the pudding.
You guys failed in record time breaking all previous records of running debts and deficits.
Progressive societies are successful because they know where to progress and where to leave things the hell alone.
And please, stop with your ridiculous claims of contracting rights when you guys want environmental policies that go to controlling everything from what people eat to what kind of house you live in, how many kids you have, who you can hire, what you can do on your own property (smoking bans), what kind of car you can drive, how much you can pay your employees, shoving huge policies like healthcare down the throats of those who dont want it, fairness doctrines etc etc etc…
Drop it
Oh yeah, right on cue.
White House just announced another failure, another broken promise, another broken deadline.
Healthcare will NOT be done by the years end as promised by The One.
You guys suck
And y’all just lost the three top posts in VA, and NJ. Upstate NY ?
Strange, I think today is the one day since Obama was elected that he hasnt been on the tube rambling more campaign rhetoric.
He’ll probably come out tomorrow and say Corzine lost because of the Bush administration policies.