A Quick JournalGeek Moment

Okay. I'll be the one to ask:

Who got high and came up with "commc'n" as the abbreviation for "communication" in the 18th Edition of the BlueBook?

This is serious apostrophe abuse. What's next? "appc'n" for "application"? Or "aplc'on"? Or why not just "a$%@df!" ?

Any more of this, and we're switching to ALWD.  Or the Maroon Book. Or the Highlights for Children In-House Style Guide.

Comments

[Oklahoma City School of Law 4L]

WHOA! Let's not go to extremes. I completely understand your frustration with the bastardization of the traditional Blue Book abbreviations . . . but ALWD?? Come on, that's not even funny. Is the purpose of this posting to get on the good side of F. Wayne Scheiss (don't think his name really has an "F." before it, but it sounds like it should, doesn't it)? The mere mention of ALWD will make his day, no doubt.

[Tbag]

Don't you hate it when you get embarrassed for other people?

Forget editing, if journals published all the articles as pictorals starring Doofus and Dweebo (or whatever the "good" kid's name was) I would read a lot more law journals.

[same as above]

Its Goofus and Gallant. Note to self: google prior to posting next time.

[Kevin C]

I definitely think we should be using ALWD.
It's coherently organized, and it's not published by the Harvard Law Review.

Seriously, why are we sending loads of cash their way every year just so they can use it to stay ahead of us in the rankings? If we're not going to create our own uniform system of citation (The BurntOrangeBook), then we ought to refrain from supporting any system put out by a competing law review. We need a neutral, third party uniform system of citation.

I can't believe I just sat here and typed that and actually meant every word of it. I need to get out of this office . . .

Blue Book supports Ivy League law student pedants.
ALWD is supported by legal research and writing profs everywhere.

Can't we have a choice that doesn't validate *any* of these people?

[tommy lawyer]

ALWD: I'm torn. I don't often admit this in public, but our school actually uses it. Our legal writing director is on it or something like that. Who knows. It's a hell of a lot easier to use than Bluebook, but once you actually begin working, everyone just assumes that you don't know how to do citations.

[1L at Texas]

whats a bluebook?

it's just like blueballs, only not as much fun before everything starts hurting.

[Seth Kramer]

Twas Goofus and Gallant

Or you could do like we do here at my law school and make your own shit up, and justify it by calling it *insert school name here* convention

[Ruth]

"The Burnt Orange Book."

Pure. Unadulterated. Brilliance.

And yes, I realise that "pure, unadulterated" is redundant. But it needed to be said twice.

But think about it, you could show your school spirit and simultaneously look up the proper use of supra.

[Bart Motes]

I have to plug my Bluebook review:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0614199433/002-9284871-0784025?v=glance&n=283155&%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance

[TL]

Our school uses ALWD. It is a pretty good manual/handbook/style guide

( . . . for me to poop on. Enjoy redoing stuff in order to send off for publication? Neither do I.)

[clerkmaxwell]

Looked for the Amazon review of the Bluebook. Was it the one titled, "Turgid and obsessive"? Because I, too, am turgid and a little obsessive.

[stacita]

now that's some dirty talk for the journal enthusiasts.

[Citations]

Maroon Book! Come on, it's fun to say! Maroooooon Book. Yes.

We shall have commc'n with the Ivies about the egregious awfulness of the Blue Book. Ye gods, that's a bad one. I feel dirty after using it.