An Introduction to Law.

Today was our first real day on the Columbia campus.  My RA made my suite wake up early so we could avoid the long breakfast line. We ate breakfast quickly. I had some eggs and bacon and not to slam the Columbia dining hall but lets just say I will be eating cereal and granola for the rest of the trip. At about 8 AM we headed over to the Columbia theater for our official welcome and orientation. We waited about an hour for the orientation to start. I met a boy from Las Vegas and we talked about the schools we attend and what we like and don't like about our schools. Eventually the orientation started and we basically went over safety and responsibilities on campus. One new thing I learned was NOT to make eye contact with ANYONE. I thought this was particularly interesting when compared to the Bay Area where we pretty much say hi to anyone we see. New York culture sure is different from the Bay Area!

Margaret, our new Russian friend Valerie, and myself!

At 10 AM Bryan, Emily, and I went to our first class in the building named after Alexander Hamilton (a graduate of Columbia's original Kings College). Walking up the stairs I got really energized and excited, it was time to start classes! The first two hours of class was just talking. We went over the schedule and the syllabus and talked about what things like the "law" and why people accept the Constitution. Our teacher, Luke, is not a full professor yet, but he is still an interesting and engaging teacher. One problem is that he will not let us call him Skywalker, but other than that he is so nice and friendly and explains things so well, He actually reminded me of one of my favorite ECHS teachers, Mr. Jepson. Our class is about 30 kids and all of them are super smart and interesting people. One kid is from Switzerland and another is from Lebanon! 

After a brief lunch break we went back to class for another two hours. We went over the Bill of Rights and discussed all the clauses. We went over all of them very quickly because we did not want to get into serious metaphysical debates about the definitions of population, freedom, speech, arms, and other words in the Bill of Rights open to interpretation. Finally we played a quick game where we split into groups and competed to see who remembered the most legal terms. Our team came in second so I was pretty excited. I left the class feeling exhilarated, I felt like this class was made for me. We did have some homework, only reading, so Emily and I decided to work on it together in the Library.

Taking a break on one of the many green lawns at Columbia!

For two hours straight Emily and I read two articles from James Madison's "Federalist Papers", and the disposition of the Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison. Slowly and carefully we highlighted key sentences and tried to understand the very dense material. As we slowly understood the material we became fascinated with what the said. The first essay by Madison explained the need for a strong central government in order to stop factions from splitting the country apart. The second one explained why a republic is much better than a democracy. Both went into serious detail, slowly explaining the point by establishing counter points and responding to them. For example the essay explained two ways to destroy factions without changing the government, and immediately explains why they will not work ever, so therefore a strong government is 100% necessary. Marbury v. Madison was also incredibly interesting. One of the first landmark cases in the Supreme Court's history. The case revolved around one of the Midnight Judges appointed last minute before he left the presidency. Before the appointed judge Marbury was accepted, President Jefferson urged Secretary of State James Madison not to give him the appointment. Marbury went to the Supreme Court trying to get a writ to force Madison to appoint him. The case put John Marshall and the Supreme Court in an awkward position no matter who they sided with. Marshall took the the case and turned it into his own favor. He declared that he could not give the appointment to Marbury (even though Marbury was a fellow Federalist) because the law that would give him the right to was unconstitutional. Marshall's decision set the stage for the judicial review and the Courts ability to establish whether laws are constitutional or not. I still have two more to read so I am excited to crack down and finish them up. There are no lessons or readings like these at ECHS so I felt a little unprepared to read them. In the end it just took a few re reads and a some highlights and now I am starting to understand most of the concepts discussed.

Today was an amazing day. I just signed up for three activities  the Met on Friday, Book or Mormon on Saturday, and an off Broadway show called Potted Potter on Monday. I am so glad to be here and I am so excited for tomorrows classes to start up again!