Good riddance

Herewith an open letter to Michael Stokes Paulsen, Distinguished University Chair and Professor at the University of Saint Thomas School of Law.

Dear Mike,

I just got around to reading your piece, Good Riddance, Jim Chen, You No-Good Lousy So-and-So, 24 Const. Commentary 1 (2007). It's a tribute that only you could have pulled off. You managed the rare feat of making me laugh and cry at the same time. I meant what I've said about you in the blogs: "I don't miss working at 229 19th Avenue South in Minneapolis, but I do miss working with Michael Stokes Paulsen."

It's worth noting the irony. As far as I can tell, Good Riddance was the last thing you wrote before you joined the law faculty at Saint Thomas. I don't have as gaudy a platform as Constitutional Commentary to pay you tribute. So you'll have to accept this online gesture.

Good Riddance, of course, is the real title to a 1997 Green Day song many people call The Time of Your Life. In honor of your love and mastery of music, and of the years we worked together at Constitutional Commentary and its host institution, I offer a video and the lyrics to Good Riddance.

Best wishes,
Jim

Green Day, Good Riddance, Nimrod (1997)

Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you where to go
So make the best of this test, and don't ask why
It's not a question, but a lesson learned in time

It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

So take the photographs, and still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial
For what it's worth it was worth all the while

It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life