Last day of this conference, and it is going out in style! Great speakers today, and the highlight was a presentation from Condoleezza Rice. Very interesting, very smart, very well presented. Of course, there was a lot of networking and planning for future successes. The meeting next year will be in Miami at the Fountainebleau in Miami. It will probably rain. After the meetings, many of us took naps before the closing reception, and then there were a few of my colleagues that came by for a glass of wine. All-in-all, not a bad way to end a conference. My plane leaves it 10:30 in the morning, so that is kind of a civilized was to travel back t=home!Gerrymander -- Verb: to divide (an area) into political units that give one group an unfair advantage. The court is expected to rule soon on whether or not the state's districts were illegally gerrymandered.
Did You Know? Elbridge Gerry signed the Declaration of Independence, served as governor of Massachusetts, and was vice president under James Madison. While governor, he tried to change the shape of voting districts to help members of his political party get elected. His system resulted in oddly shaped districts, including Gerry's own, which looked like a lizard. Upon seeing a map of the new divisions, a member of the opposing party drew feet, wings, and a head on Gerry's district and said, "That will do for a salamander!" Another member called out, "Gerrymander!" thereby coining a term for dividing regions based on political favoritism.
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