| Saturday, April 14, 2007 |
| Unreasonable people rule the world |
Wow.....what an outpouring.....I am so touched....really you have no idea.....there were over 500 congrats since my last posting, and thanks from the bottom of my heart to every one of you who cared about my ongoing bar drama, even though I can't possibly post them all.....I had no idea so many people had a vested interest in me passing the bar (finally).....
I'd like to write a little tonight about being "unreasonable" .....I have to tell you, so many important people in my life doubted me during this retaking process.....my family at times, my friends, coworkers......it just seemed unrealistic to most people that I would ever pass if I hadn't passed when I'd already taken three and then four shots at this thing.....and I'm not knocking any of them for thinking that way....some of them wanted to save me the grief that is so much a part of not making it, again and again.....I can't count how many times someone told me....don't try again...don't put yourself through it.....
Really though, their responses are reflective of a very common aspect of human nature, if we're honest enough to realize it....most of us are just not fighters....if it gets hard enough, we quit......if someone tells us we suck and won't make it.....we believe them.....if a highly respected group of bar examiners tells us we don't understand enough law to pass their damnable test......we might just think they're right......
I'm not trying to point out what a serious bad ass I am.....I had no idea what kind of capacity I had to slug it out until this thing happened to me.....I didn't know I had it in me to keep on when it looked pretty dumb to keep trying.....what I found amidst all this failure was belief in myself....and that my lovies is the magic bullet for passing the bar.....I learned how to be honest enough with myself to say, "I didn't prepare enough for the first test and that's why I failed"....and subsequently I learned after the tests that followed to say, "I put in the requisite amount of study and I know my answers were sufficient to pass....I don't understand why I haven't passed, but it isn't because I don't know enough law to pass a test that is supposed to test minimum competency....."
Honestly....it is my certain belief that something is amiss with the examining going on here in NC....I understand that the Feb passage rate here in NC was hovering around the 30's.....I find that outrageous.....having taken so many exams in this state, I can say they seem to be more about limiting admittance than they do about testing for broad based legal competence.....I'm also interested in the fact that as more people apply to take the test (every cycle has produced "record numbers" here in NC)....fewer and fewer are passing.....I encourage everyone to take a hard look at their own state and remember that the guardians of the gate have a vested economic interest in not admitting too many lawyers to practice......also remember that a lot of us who fail the bar simply don't try again....
Bar study will continue business as usual, since I have absolutely zero desire to practice in NC....I think every one probably knows NC has been more of a personal vendetta than anything.....
For those who may be looking for a reason to not quit.....I hope my story provides it for you.....you are the only person who knows what is reasonable.....whether you've spent the time and whether you know the law.....don't let anyone or any bar exam convince you to give up on yourself.... |
posted by Bar Bitch @ 10:19 PM   |
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| 8 Comments: |
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I appreciate your sincere comments on this issue. Some people are so insensitive when they do not understand what a person is going through when you have failed and failed the exam. I am one of those who have failed and I plan on passing the NY BASTARD of an exam this summer. Thank you for your strength and encouragement to continue to take it. The haters will always hate. Move on and God will provide you with people who honestly care about you!
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I hear ya', barbitch, I hear ya'. Let me relate this little anecdote: I have a cousin who has, generally speaking, been always a little bit behind me academically. He didn't go to the supposedly "good" schools like I did, and people treated him as such, and I never paid much attention; I just thought that was the way it was, and I bought into the myth.
Now there is a new myth: He passed the bar exam the first time, I went to the great school and flunked it. I have actually heard relatives say to me that "I guess [my cousin] is just one of those really smart people that pass it the first time." I now know what he must have felt like his whole life, and it is awful. Similar statements have been stated over and over again referring to me and my cousin, essentially creating a self-fulfilling prophecy in my mind.
People are unreasonable, and it is obscene. I imagine the great contributions so many people could have made if others hadn't institutionalized their status, and it makes me sad. The bar, no matter what state you are in, is just another step in an artificial caste system that we have in the United States.
No other common law country has a bar exam like ours; in the UK, through friends educated there, I know that law school is a three year UNDERGRADUATE program. You do what is called "articling" with a firm, take a short, few hour test, then you are "called to the bar." Not a breeze, but nothing like the Draconian system we have here, and no one ever bitched that the system produced incompetent lawyers; that is just total, cartel bullshit.
In any event, you made it; go off, do some good, and kick ass for us all if you can.
Best Regards,
BX King
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I wish I would have found your blog earlier...perhaps I would have retained my sanity longer! Congratulations on passing! I too am waiting for the evil Bar results. It's my fifth time taking Virginia's Bar...so this is it for me. There are no more chances at Virginia. This time I managed to do all the practice essays and 3000 multiple choice, so if that doesn't cut it, nothing will.
Bar results are expected May 1st...but they have been known to post early in Virginia...
I feel your pain regarding the "it's okay if you don't pass" comments and have felt it for the past three years. No one else can understand but a fellow repeat exam taker. For me, there is no "it's okay if you don't pass"...if it is, then why the heck did I waste three years in law school and end up with so much debt?!
I just want to say that I am proud of you for forging ahead and continuing to take the Bar. If you want to take Virginia...let me know...I could teach the blasted course (the Virginia law I'm good at...it's those pesky multiple choice that have gotten me the past four times). :) Congrats on earning your "Esquire." I hope to be joining you in "Esquireland" very soon.
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thank you for this great site. i hope you keep posting from VA. I just found out i passed the NC feb 2007 exam. I scored a 155 on the MBE and bombed the essays. Ive never failed anything. I find out if if i still have a job tomorrow. If i had stayed in michigan i would be an attorney (150=they dont grade your essays)...anyway im gearing up to do it again in july and i have to say that my decision to go at it is definitely partially due to reading of your persevearance.
thanks
B
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I finally passed after 6 times. I just found out. I keep thinking there's some way there going to try to come after me but I'm just being paranoid!!!!!! Best of luck to you and all of us who have struggled with the bar monster!!!
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Many congratulations. Am I the ONLY person left who doesn' have any license? I think so. Man, I suck. But anyway this is your moment. I'm glad you passed that hurdle, it must feel very good! Sorry I didn't see your update until now. Or maybe I did and congratulated you already and forgot. Feel free to post whatever worked for you because I could sure use the input.
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Congratulations! I just found out I failed the Colorado bar twice and reading your blog at least made me feel better about failing twice. I'm so glad you passed this time though!!!
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Congratulations! I just found out that I failed the Colorado bar twice and reading your blog has actually helped make me feel better. I'm so glad you finally got a happy ending!
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I appreciate your sincere comments on this issue. Some people are so insensitive when they do not understand what a person is going through when you have failed and failed the exam. I am one of those who have failed and I plan on passing the NY BASTARD of an exam this summer. Thank you for your strength and encouragement to continue to take it. The haters will always hate. Move on and God will provide you with people who honestly care about you!