2008 New Year's Resolution!

The New Year is upon us. Newspapers, television, the internet, and the local water cooler are abuzz with talk about New Year's resolutions and thoughts on how to keep them. Despite a significant failure rate, every year millions of people vow to change or do something different than the year before. I guess I am no different.

The thought occurred to me before the holidays that my postings for this blog were behind. I had hoped that during the holidays I would have time to catch up with some of the recent cases. Unfortunately, with three kids under six, the holidays offered anything and everything, but free time to devote to my "hobby." The fact that the court of appeals is publishing more cases than ever each Friday, doesn't help.

My News Year resolution, in additional to losing weight (how original), is to do a better job giving you the information you need to keep up to date on Kentucky's legal issues. The enormous amount of tort and insurance law cases issued each week make it almost impossible to digest every case I find interesting or which may impact current law. You may have noticed that my more recent posts dealt only with published opinions. I will continue to digest only published cases. I simply do not have the time or resources to digest them all. However, I hope to at least provide links to those published cases, which do not get digested. That way my readers can view the opinions and make their own decision on how much time to devote to reading each. As always, I welcome your suggestions on how to improve this blog.

That being said, I was confronted with an even harsher fact after the holidays. That being that many of my colleagues and their blogs have for the most part ceased to exist. While the links are still active and the pages there, the postings are outdated. This is unfortunate given these blogs provided a unique insight and information into each specific area of the law it covered. Fortunately, many do still exist and their editors, my friends and colleagues, continue to offer this invaluable service. I wish them continued longevity and luck in the coming year.

I am reminded of a case I read in law school in the late 90's, involving the American Bantam Car Company. My professor couldn't help but point out that the American Bantam Car Company was no longer in business and that of the hundreds of car manufacturers originally started in the United States only the big three were left. He found this to be a cautious tale for the tech stock speculation running rampant on Wall Street at the time. Of course, time proved him correct as tech company after tech company went the way of the American Bantam Car Company.

The fact remains that all bloggers share a passion for the written word and a connection to their audience that is devoid of the restrictions of traditional outlets and unlimited due to the reaches of the internet. The fact also remains that the majority of bloggers share their passion for little or no money, recognition, or respect. When these realities are weighed against so many other responsibilities, something simply has to give and often its the blog. Perhaps that is the ultimate reality of this medium, it lasts only so long as its creator's desire to say something. Maybe that is the way it should be. However, the final fact remains that I am not yet ready to shut my big mouth.

I look forward to another year, discussing the recent legal activity in Kentucky's tort and insurance law. I hope you will join me. Until then, I hope this post finds you ready to begin the New Year with a resolution of your own.

Ed