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Maggie Wittlin

@maggiewittlin.bsky.social

Associate Professor at Fordham Law. Evidence, law teaching, crosswords, jokes.

4,732 Followers  |  1,338 Following  |  2,531 Posts  |  Joined: 13.06.2023
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Posts by Maggie Wittlin (@maggiewittlin.bsky.social)

Ah, ok. Missed that episode! Anyway, the Seiko is $475 and the Parmigiani is about $75K, per their websites.

01.03.2026 02:26 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Thereabouts. Or a factor of >150x.

01.03.2026 02:21 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

That is just a very, very pretty watch.

01.03.2026 02:19 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

There is a very big price difference between these two watches.

01.03.2026 02:16 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
A great blue heron (I think?) stands tucked and on one leg on ice covering part of a lake. There are some ducks behind. Late day light comes from the left. The two towers of the San Remo building are reflected in the unfrozen part of the lake.

A great blue heron (I think?) stands tucked and on one leg on ice covering part of a lake. There are some ducks behind. Late day light comes from the left. The two towers of the San Remo building are reflected in the unfrozen part of the lake.

A zoomed in shot of the heron, now on two feet and in cloudy light.

A zoomed in shot of the heron, now on two feet and in cloudy light.

This fellow was in Central Park today.

01.03.2026 00:18 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

What are ambiphians?

28.02.2026 20:01 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

The email is opaque enough that I don’t know if we can infer details. (It could be for immediate use giving feedback, rather than actual grades, for example.) But yeah, it would be good for every school to have a policy prohibiting use of AI in grading.

28.02.2026 19:59 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

Yikes! Glad the car looks like that instead of you!

28.02.2026 01:29 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Yup:

28.02.2026 00:06 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I don’t see how it would work either. But I hadn’t previously heard of the Irish Pale, so when he capitalized it in the expression, the Pale of Settlement was the only thing I could think of, and I thought that was the allusion he was making.

27.02.2026 23:23 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
P.9.1977–a bridge too far (a) A step beyond what is safe, sensible, or desirable; an act regarded as too drastic to take; (b) something that is likely to prove too difficult; a task that is beyond what one is expected or able to achieve.
Popularized by the title of the 1977 film A Bridge too Far (based on the 1974 book of the same name), an account of the 1944 Allied defeat at Arnhem in a battle for a series of strategically important bridges, with allusion to a comment made by Lieutenant-General F. A. M. Browning (see quot. 1944).
[1944I think we might be going a bridge too far.
F. A. M. Browning in R. E. Urquhart & W. Greatorex, Arnhem (1958) 4Citation details for F. A. M. Browning in R. E. Urquhart & W. Greatorex, Arnhem]
1977Brave though he is to attempt it, monetary union in the absolute form Mr Jenkins is suggesting is all too likely to prove a bridge too far.
Economist 24 September 16/2

P.9.1977–a bridge too far (a) A step beyond what is safe, sensible, or desirable; an act regarded as too drastic to take; (b) something that is likely to prove too difficult; a task that is beyond what one is expected or able to achieve. Popularized by the title of the 1977 film A Bridge too Far (based on the 1974 book of the same name), an account of the 1944 Allied defeat at Arnhem in a battle for a series of strategically important bridges, with allusion to a comment made by Lieutenant-General F. A. M. Browning (see quot. 1944). [1944I think we might be going a bridge too far. F. A. M. Browning in R. E. Urquhart & W. Greatorex, Arnhem (1958) 4Citation details for F. A. M. Browning in R. E. Urquhart & W. Greatorex, Arnhem] 1977Brave though he is to attempt it, monetary union in the absolute form Mr Jenkins is suggesting is all too likely to prove a bridge too far. Economist 24 September 16/2

My second OED lookup of a phrase origin this afternoon!

27.02.2026 23:17 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Next time we don’t win trivia…

27.02.2026 22:49 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Yeah, again, it's unclear to me whether it's the origin of this use of the word, since the OED says it's unsupported. Even if they did talk about things "beyond the Pale" in Ireland, it might not be the etymology? But I don't know! (I'm more familiar with the Pale of Settlement, so I went there.)

27.02.2026 20:48 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

Ha, I hadn't even seen the context of what you were quoting! I was gathering that you were suggesting that "beyond the Pale" had, like, antisemitic origins.

27.02.2026 20:41 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
I.5.c. 1720–beyond the pale (of): outside or beyond the bounds (of). beyond the pale: outside the limits of acceptable behaviour; unacceptable or improper. Cf. senses I.4a and I.5a.
The theory that the origin of the phrase relates to any of several specific regions, such as the area of Ireland formerly called the Pale (see sense I.4b) or the Pale of Settlement in Russia (see sense I.4c), is not supported by the early historical evidence and is likely to be a later rationalization.

I.5.c. 1720–beyond the pale (of): outside or beyond the bounds (of). beyond the pale: outside the limits of acceptable behaviour; unacceptable or improper. Cf. senses I.4a and I.5a. The theory that the origin of the phrase relates to any of several specific regions, such as the area of Ireland formerly called the Pale (see sense I.4b) or the Pale of Settlement in Russia (see sense I.4c), is not supported by the early historical evidence and is likely to be a later rationalization.

OED:

27.02.2026 20:41 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1

Wait, really?

27.02.2026 20:38 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 0

What is Watermelon Sugar Snap?

27.02.2026 19:05 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

This is so bad, but it is also so, so funny. Real life version of:

27.02.2026 18:04 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Who is Scott Hamilton?

27.02.2026 18:01 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1

In-flew-encer

27.02.2026 17:04 β€” πŸ‘ 9    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

What is a mater-ialist?

27.02.2026 17:00 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1

I don’t think this is the first time I’ve seen the public catch wind of a specific instance of some common thing in criminal procedure and go ballistic over it…

27.02.2026 03:13 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Every hour: 1 taco, 1 beer, half a mile to jog it off.

27.02.2026 03:07 β€” πŸ‘ 16    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

I’m assuming the 10 miles don’t have to be consecutive.

27.02.2026 03:06 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

How much freedom do I have with choosing the beers?

27.02.2026 03:06 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

What is PerDew Chicken?

27.02.2026 03:03 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

What is Penguin Random Dr. Gregory House?

27.02.2026 00:03 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Opinion: We visited an El Paso ICE detention facility. We don’t recognize our country anymore Volunteer attorneys and law students describe alarming treatment of people transported from across the country to an El Paso ICE detention facility.

The conditions at our immigrant detention centers are a national crisis. @fordhamlawnyc.bsky.social's Feerick Center reports:

- Insufficient, spoiled food
- Insufficient, non-functional toilets
- Calls for medical care unheeded
- Court dates missed
- Guards picking physical fights

More here:

26.02.2026 17:19 β€” πŸ‘ 16    πŸ” 15    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Ah, maybe that’s why they played β€œGot My Mind Set On You” on the radio this morning. Good song.

26.02.2026 00:50 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Students might be reluctant to study, lest they be at the head of the class.

25.02.2026 20:32 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0