Re: Brian Leiter Buys a Cheeseburger

1

You weren't at UCLA, were you fontana?

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2

Leiter's wry wit comes across as much more abrasive when he puts it into writing. In person he's much friendlier, much more of a good-natured and self-deprecating mensch type than his blog would imply (although I don't know him really well, only as a student). I was a bit surprised once I started reading his blog, I kept thinking "is that the same guy I know?"

I lived in L.A. summer before last and got paid a ridiculous amount to do so, as well as being wined and dined and feted and fawned over to an exhausting degree (I was a summer associate at a big, but nonetheless very nice, law firm). I was in an apartment in Brentwood with two tall thin blonde roommates and there was a hot tub on the roof from which, if it was clear enough, you could just see the ocean. So I was really giving the whole SoCal lifestyle a go . . .

It didn't really suit me. Even though veryone else I met there loved it, and the sun was always shining and the sky (when you could actually see it) was always clear clear blue. I felt guilty for sometimes waking up in a cranky mood, or for not smiling enough, or for wanting to see some rainy weather every once in a while.

Mind you I didn't hate it or anything, I just felt like I was out of my element, like I was being pressured to be happy, like I was the only non-pod person. Weird, I know, complaining about fantastic weather and happy people, but there it is . . .

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3

The real problem with Leiter's encounter is that he went to McDonald's at all, instead of In'n'Out. Talk about your cognitive incompetence.

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4

In'n'out's hidden menu is directly Straussian, unfortunately.

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5

I might have been, baa-- who's asking? If you're some kinda navel-gazing Yale graduate then my lips are sealed.

Mitch, I totally understand what you mean. A few people told me that I'd hate it before I went, and I didn't expect to like it, but I ended up liking it a lot. Partly because it's so weird. And also because I'm a pod person.

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6

That's okay, some of my best friends are pod persons.

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7

Some of my best friends are lawyers, so it's a wash, I think.

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8

Doesn't being so blatantly, even parodically, Straussian indicate a secret program of anti-Straussianism, though?

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9

True. And you do note both new and old testament verses listed on the wrappers. Kings and John. What is implied by the silence?

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10

I just realized something about Leiter's post: it involves a kid, crappy food, feeding crappy food to the kid, and an experience with subpar service workers. While there's no mention of a dog or the Apple store, all other signs point to the fact that Leiter's blog was hacked by Lileks!

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11

Fame!

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