“What’s a diorama?” “I dress myself!” “What’s a website?”

Oh… damn… screwed up. That last one isn’t a quote from Ralph Wiggam of The Simpsons; it’s a quote from a UK judge; during a terrorism trial.

I like the coverage of the story here; but there’s a straight-news version of it at this site.

You know; we would probably save a lot of time and money if we made sure that judges were basically informed and competent about the topic under discussion.

Let’s face it - a judge is one person, and he can’t be an expert in everything (granted, a basic knowledge of what a website is should be a prerequisite for breathing, but I digress). A judge shouldn’t be getting a basic grounding in a subject from a $200/hour lawyer; he should be getting it from a $20/hour tutor. The state should ensure a basically competent judge; the defense shouldn’t be required to pay money to sit and wait while the judge learns what he really ought to have already known.