10 minutes, 2 ideas, 1 man, and a whole lot of political change

With my academic background, I am quite familiar with the writings of Lawrence Lessig, a law professor at Stanford and the author of such books as “Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace,” “The Future of Ideas” and “Free Culture.” He writes about what I’m most interested in: how technology (ie, the Internet) impacts society (in his case, through a legal lens).

So I was quite surprised (and somewhat intrigued) to read the other day that Lessig is considering a run to replace recently deceased Congressman Tom Lantos of California. Lessig may not have much of a political background, but the man is damn smart and has some great ideas about what is wrong with DC. It might be refreshing to have someone like him stirring the pot in Washington.

Lessig has launched a website devoted to his campaign consideration and his “Change Congress” movement. He’s also posted a 10-minute video (seen below) which summarizes his beliefs on the inherent problems of the current system and why he’s considering this run for Congress.

Chuck Norris for President

To be honest, I don’t really give a crap about Campaign 2008 at this point. After all, the election is nearly a year away, and no matter who wins, we’re still stuck with G’Dub until Jan. 2009.

However, with that said, I do love Chuck Norris. I am a sucker for Chuck Norris jokes, so I had a good laugh when I was sent the following video. On the other hand, it saddens me to see Chuck supporting a Republican. I guess you can’t win them all.