Why I went to Law School

Many people wonder why I went to law school.  Was it to play around on Sallie Mae's dime for three years, travel the world, and kick back and relax?  Or was it to better myself with the hope that I would one day get a legal job and make enough money to pay back my loans? 

It was the latter.

One of my professors, during my 1L year lauded me for being "one of the few that actually took law school seriously."  He wrote me a letter of recommendation when I landed a spot in the top 18% of my class and transferred to a higher ranked school in New York.  The truth was, I did take law school seriously, and I wanted to be as good as I could be, so I could get a good job, pay back my loans, and provide a good income to support my wife and myself.

Then I came across the scamblogs.  The whiners stated that law school was a fraud, the deans were tricksters and it was all a lie!  I wondered if they were right as I read their whine parade.  I wondered why people would spend their days posting on the internet instead of doing something to better themselves.  Of course, I took offense to this.  I wanted nothing to do with these cretins! 

During law school I did my best to keep my skills sharp.  I was involved in internships and clinics.  I had a mentor.  I kept this blog as a way to tell others that you don't have to be depressed about law school.  However, those who ran the scamblogs were quite angry at me.  They said I should just throw in the towel, drop out, and pretty much whine on the internet all the time.

I did not want to do that.

So what, I took a few trips during law school?  I paid for many of these myself.  Further, my trips were not just for pleasure.  I made a money off of them.  For example, I created a website based on my trip to Puerto Rico which brings me a nice bit of income, and will eventually pay that trip back.  I purchased goods for resale in Egypt and will be selling those at a flea market in the next couple of weeks.  I also sublet my apartment while I was out.  Yet, those who criticize me have no idea how these things work.  "How do I mix pleasure with income production," they ask.  "Is that even possible?!" they lament.  Instead, they sit on an internet forum and tell everyone else that they are better than everyone else.  What a wretched way to live. 

People on the internet act like they know everyone else so well, but they do not.  We all come from vastly different backgrounds.  I came from a poor family.  I had the choice to either do little with my life or strive to make myself as good as I could be.  I may never pay back my debt.  I may have to rely on IBR my whole life.  That is not my main plan, but it is a back up plan.  It is a hell of a lot better than having no back up plan or not paying back my loans.  How many people are in default on their loans and pay nothing?  I will not do that. 

Some mistakenly believe that if you are from a poor background you have no right to go to law school.  These elitist individuals should be avoided at all costs.  Their way of thinking is toxic and destructive.  If you spend your time taking what they have to say in this regard seriously, you will only destroy yourself.  That way of thinking is archaic and disgusting, vile at best.  As a human being, your background does not matter.  You are what matters.  I have always known that I was not my parent, nor was I the person who failed.  I was a different person, with a chance to succeed.  Some people will hate that.  I am sorry if you hate me because you wish you did something different in your life.  One thing I have realized is that those who hate others hate themselves more.  What bothers one about another person is something that they find true about themselves. 

I will continue to strive to make myself better as long as I live.  I hope to one day pay off all my student loans, and I plan to.

And with that being said, I will not explain my reasons for law school or be forced to defend myself on this blog again.  One should NOT have to explain oneself for trying to better oneself or pursuing a degree in law or any other field.

Truckin' my way through law school.

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Breaker Breaker, this is Law Rig, anyone else out there?
10-4 Law Rig, this is Mack Daddy.  What's your 20?
Just finishing up this law school run.

Many people wonder why I am still in law school, given that I don't know that I want to practice law.  It is a question I am asked regularly enough that I thought I would let the world know exactly why I am still truckin' my way through law school.

First, I would like to say that when I entered my first year of law school I was a starry eyed 1L who thought law school was the most amazing thing in the world.  I honestly loved briefing cases, learning the 'black letter law' as they called it, and immersing myself in my studies.  I did very well in my first year of law school, as a result.  However, I did not make law review, which was one thing that upset me, and it was part of the reason I grew somewhat complacent during my first semester of being a 2L.  However, even at that time I had no aspirations of quitting law school.  And I knew I was in deep.



I continued to trudge my way through law school, and in the middle of that same semester, I started making this blog.  At first I thought it would be a fun way in which to express my distaste for certain parts of law school.  Some things had begun to annoy me greatly (as is the case with many things in life).  Further, I started to notice other similar blogs about law school.  Some were from kids with rosy glasses and others were from people like Nando, who I stumbled upon.  I read most of his blog entries about different law schools and began thinking about law school a bit differently.  Further, I noticed that my law grades had plummeted.  I began to ask myself some hard questions such as "do I want to do this?"  Further, I did not find my legal internships as enjoyable as I once imagined.  They were nothing like what I saw in the show "Perry Mason" (although I knew they would be different).  I was merely a slave boy working for free.  It was all rather depressing.  However, I figured I would continue through my second year, as I had a lease on an apartment and to quit law school would mean I would be evicted, and that I would not only have dropped out of school, but have an eviction on my record. 


In my second semester of the 2L year I did much better than I did in the first semester.  My grades were somewhat respectable.  That made me feel better, even if it was somewhat meaningless.  It at least showed me that it wasn't me as a person who was a dolt.  And although my grades will not land me a job, I realize that they can at least help my self-esteem, which is worth perhaps more than money.

Now I am about to enter my third year.  A "rising 3L".  I could quit now.  However, I would have to find a job immediately, as I am still paying a small fortune for rent here in New York.  Either that or I can finish the game.  One more year.  I will have the JD, the option to take the bar, the option to do something as far as legal work.  Further, my debt right now is very large.  One more year isn't going to be much of a change as far as it being 'manageable'.  As it stands now, I will have to do IBR (Income Based Repayment) whether or not it's $150k or $200k.  On top of that, I don't mind leaving the US after law school.  I have spent some time in Asia and Europe, as well as Central America, and I know that I could be happy in any of those places.  I have planned on retiring outside of the US for a very long time now.  If I had to leave sooner, I would not bemoan the fact.  Further, I have considered leaving to teach English outside of the US after law school.  Although it's not a glamorous job, it's something I would not mind doing.   In fact, the prospect excites me.

Having weighed all the options for myself, I think the best course of action is to finish.  If I was a 1L still I would have probably dropped out and at least did something else.  However, I am too far in for that now.  So, I shall finish the game, down the boss, and maybe get a little bit of loot, even if it's merely a piece of paper.

Law School Attitudes

There are many attitudes regarding the law school system.  They range from the attitudes of the scam bloggers, who tend to be angry at the system which pooped them out with less than they entered with.  Big debt and little job prospects are the issues that the scambloggers seem to take.  Further issues include a total disregard for economic principles by a system known as the ABA.

There are some who love the law school system.  The deans and many of the professors (but not all) seem to really enjoy it.  And why would they not?  It seems like an easy enough job.  Maybe not as easy as some say.  However, to be paid $100-200k a year, and sometimes more, to teach a few classes and correct some essays once a semester doesn't seem like a bad gig.  To be honest, I'd take it. 

Then there are the lethargic students who I come in contact with.  They are very quiet about a lot of things, so I can't really gauge what they are thinking.  Many seem to not know about the real job market, although many are scared.  However, few are at the point as another scamblogger, JDPainterGuy, where they wish they never went to law school in the first place.

Some individuals are very depressed.  They are at the point of suicidal thoughts and thinking that their life will never be the same again.  One individual posted a comment on another law school blog relating to a plumber friend he knew that made an exceptional amount of money. 

Times have changed. I would trade my degrees to be able to have a job where I know things will get better, where I know I will not be replaced by a slave from the third world, and where I know that some political force would intervene on my behalf when things looked bleak. I would do this even if it meant working physically hard.

There are worse things in life than working with your hands, and when I finally decide to blow my brains out to end my mental anguish, I will have been living proof of it.

This is where I do not want to be.  However, at the same time, I understand that it is very hard to not feel down sometimes when you expected life to turn out a lot differently.  Many of the lethargic students at the law school where I attend will probably one day feel this way.  They still have expectations of law being a glamorous and wealth creating profession for anyone who can get a 148 on the LSAT. 



Many of these students have not looked at a 'scamblog' nor have they really got to see the life of a lawyer after law school.  Before I enrolled I had no idea what a lawyer did (other than what I saw from a couple episodes of Perry Mason.  Plus, Captain Picard in Star Trek the Next Generation does a bit of lawyering in a couple of the episodes).  Sadly, the big feeder web forum for law students, Top-Law-Schools, will stop at nothing to block links to scamblogs.  Nando's opus, ThirdTierReality has been redubbed "T14 Paradise".  If anything, it is a tyrannical mockery of the intelligence of a breed of people who has been told over and over that they are some of society's smartest individuals (a point that I seriously question -- many law students I have come in contact with show no more intelligence than many undergrads).  If anything, TLS (the dungheap of the law world) is doing their students an injustice by not allowing them to see alternative facts and make up their own still-developing and often childlike minds. 

I think that there is some importance to the power of positive thinking.  I think that telling yourself day after day that your life is worthless is not the right path to take.  Just because you did not do well in the legal field after believing you would does not make you a bad person.  There is still much that a person can do to better themselves and live a great life.  Although you may not make $160,000 a year in law, nor do you have any connections, you can still contribute something to the world.  I am saddened when I see a person state that they want to off themselves because of law school.  While three years and $200-300k is a lot of money, a life is worth much more.  I would propose taking some time out of your day and forgetting about law school and asking yourself what you want to do with the remainder of your life.  It is hard with student loans and debt, but nobody can take your life from you.  Why would you take it away from yourself?

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By the way, for some reason this blog was not allowing comments.  It now allows comments from anyone (anonymous included), so if you want to say something, feel free. 

Banned From Top-Law-Schools

LOL I was banned from TLS, reason: "Stop spamming sh***y websites".  Seems that they don't like to know the truth.  Sadly, those kid$ think that they will be rolling in money once graduation comes, and nobody can say otherwise. 

Is it wrong to mislead a person?

TLS is no different than the deans and the schools.  They keep the false hopes of these unattainable dreams alive for many.

Why should my TTTT be thought of in a negative light?

Because, someone on TLS might have their feelings hurt.  Instead, these kids should be spending upwards of $50,000 tuition alone to attend a school that later on they may wish they would have not went to.  Further, if they had the full information, these kids would have probably done something else with their lives. 

How many law students wish they majored in something else?

A lot, probably.  In fact, I do.  I wish I would have known the truth about the numbers and the rankings and all that other crap.  However, truth is, I never learned about it.  Some of these people will only find out when it's too late, as sites like Third Tier Reality and others are marked as SPAM on the site, hiding the links, hiding the information. 

What is the point of Top-Law-Schools?

It's the number one site on the internet to stroke your own ego.  People love to post topics such as "in at Harvard" or "top 5% at Georgetown".   Also, while some recognize that the job market is bad, they will act like they are golden and everyone else is doomed.

In conclusion, Top-Law-Schools is trash.  It's no better than the law schools or the deans as far as I am concerned.  The admins are power hungry lemmings who refuse to allow any contrary information to flow.  Hiding information from the people is no better than tyranny.  Top-Law-Schools is a tyrannical website that should not be used in conjunction with one's "law school experience".  The truth is, I see a bunch of kids that are going to have a miserable life ahead of them, or some that are already so miserable with themselves as human beings that they treat others like garbage, including the naysayers who have an important message.  Any website that REFUSES to show contrary information should not be consulted for lifelong advice on anything that could cause a person to go $100-200,000 in debt.  Top-Law-Schools is TRASH. 

A new forum has been created for this site, feel free to begin posting.   You can post as a guest and do not need to register to enjoy it.  http://lawschool.myfreeforum.org/index.php

A+ in Law and Economics: and I don't care anymore.

This morning, for about half a second, I felt good that I got an A+ in my law and economics course, but then I realized: I do not care anymore.  This semester has gone by better than last, although I got a lackluster C+ in my Corporate Finance.  I was lucky to score a B+ in EU Law, which was kind of a fluke.  Hell, it all was.

LISTEN CHILDREN:  Law school grades are mostly random.  You can get a C+ in a class you put way more effort in than a class you got an A-.  I worked my butt off in my Corporate Finance and missed most of my law and economics course.  I am not smart.  An A+ does not mean you are smart.  Even if you end up getting an award, you are probably at least half lucky.

If you think you are lucky enough to 'score' your way through law school, you might want to take out maximum loans on law school and play the lottery, because you probably have a better chance of winning the lottery than doing so good in law school that you end up with an amazing job.  And if you don't believe me, why not take a look at a few of the other blogs that are featured to the right?

One more year of this madness (not going to bother doing internships this summer -- in fact, I had two phone interviews the other day for internships -- and I didn't bother even answering.  Just wasn't in the mood).  I figure that the odds of me practicing law (and actually liking it) are about as slim as me making love to a pack of blue wolves with wings in the Himalayas next Thursday.

IT.  WILL.  NOT.  EVER.  HAPPEN.

A Trip to the Psychiatrist: Session I

It's so expensive these days to afford a psychiatrist or counselor, especially when riding over $100,000 of student loan debt. So I thought I would be my own counselor, as it's not too hard to figure out what they would ask you, and the answers are all up to me anyway.   So I am going to write about my feelings and thoughts here, as if I was talking to a real psychiatrist.
 
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Psychiatrist: How are you today?

Me:  I’m having a more ‘positive’ day.  There was no law school classes today, spring break is around the corner, and afterward it’s all downhill on the way towards summer.  Well, I still have to find a summer job, and I am going back home for the first time since starting law school, and frankly, I’m a bit nervous about that.

Psychiatrist:  I see.  What makes you nervous about going back home?

Me:  Well, my parents think I am going to be a rich lawyer, but not all lawyers are wealthy.  Many are actually deep in, as a fellow scamblogger would say, NON-DISCHARGEABLE student loan debt.  They seem to have watched a butt ton of Perry Mason and similar shows and have based reality around television.

Psychiatrist:  That sounds like psychiatrists.  I am very lucky to have this job. 

Me: Well, you only have a job inside of my mind.  Furthermore, what really irks me about it is that my parents are divorced and live in opposite sides of the state, so when I go back I have to explain the law thing twice and they may think I don’t know what I’m talking about.

Psychiatrist:  How does that make you feel?

Me:  Not too good.  I try to not think about it, as I won’t be going back until May, so I have time to get myself prepared for it.  And finals.  And find a summer job.  And figure out what to do after graduating.

Psychiatrist:  Do all law students feel this way?

Me:  No, not at all.  Some are excited to be there.  In 1L law students are like children, playing with color highlighters and trying to appear smarter than their peers.  They are all fighting for the top grades and play a game of seeing who can talk the most in class.  In 2L the students realize that they are in deep now and the color highlighters are not as appealing.  In fact, by that time they are sick of carrying the books and say ‘screw the highlighters’, highlighting instead in pen or not reading much at all.  I don’t know much about 3L, but I would imagine it has something to do with those suicide cards I keep seeing around my law school.

Psychiatrist:  Whoa, back up.  Suicide cards?  

Me:  Yeah, there’s these little cards around in envelopes about the signs of suicide.  I have not heard of anyone in my class doing it, but it’s obviously a concern.  I think I put one of those cards in my wallet actually.  You know, to have a jump on 3L.

Psychiatrist:  Earlier you said you were having a more ‘positive’ day today.  Tell me, what is a more ‘negative’ day like?

Me:  Well, I skip class, figuring ‘what’s the point?’  Then a few hours later, when I realize class was going, I feel like an idiot.  I wonder what I am missing, if something I missed will be on the test.  I think of how much I am paying per class, it’s a few hundred dollars probably.  I mean, if I paid for a plane ticket to Cancun, which is about what a day of law school costs, would I just skip it?  I think not.  

Psychiatrist:  I can see why you would be upset.  Anything else?

Me:  Well, on those days I find myself looking at the job sites, wondering if I could find a job outside of the law.  I sometimes send a few e-mails out and maybe a resume or two, but then I ask myself if I would skip class to go to an interview, and what would I say?  Would I say I am in law school?  Would I say I am dropping out or plan on dropping out?  What would I say I did for the last couple years if I didn’t say I was in law school?  I then feel like I really should have went to class.  

Psychiatrist:  When was the last time you missed a class?

Me:  Over a week ago.  

Psychiatrist:  How does that make you feel?

Me:  A bit better.  In a way.  I still wonder what the point is, sometimes.   I just sit there in some of my classes and wonder what the point to all this stuff is.  I mean, sometimes I read the books and there is this long case.  I read it and try to understand it.  I try to go through it slow, taking in the law like a man takes in a good looking woman.  I mingle the thoughts around in my mind, feeling real good because I am learning stuff and I feel I can use this information on the next exam.  Then I write all that stuff down in my notebook, all the rules and stuff.  Then, I read on and at the end of the case, in the notes, it says the case was overturned.  I wonder why the hell I had to read that long case if it was just overturned in the end. Furthermore, the book doesn’t say why exactly the case was overturned, so I am thinking ‘what the hell is the point of all this stupid theory?’  I want to learn how to file a lawsuit, and I don’t mean civil procedure cases.  I want to learn how to physically do a case.    

Psychiatrist:  I can imagine so.  Maybe one day the law schools will learn that they need to teach you all more hands on.  Kind of like how a dentist learns dentistry or a brain surgeon learns surgery. 
 
Me:  That would be nice.  But then I wonder, why not now?  What am I paying for?

Psychiatrist:  Well, maybe you could be a professor and teach that same kind of theory.  Maybe you learn the good stuff when you go for an LLM?

Me:  That’s just another big scam.  It’s another two years of the same theory.  If you want to learn the real law you have to get a job, but those are scarce. 


Psychiatrist:  You are in a world of hurt.  Why did you go to law school again?

Me:  I figured it would supplement my degree nicely and make me a powerhouse in the working world.