A.k.a. Richard Posner, Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, leading light of the law and economics movement, author of dozens of books on law, literature, and public affairs and umpteen dozen more articles on the same for law journals and legal periodicals, and all-around super-genius.

Here’s the cover of his latest book. What would Rick Ellensburg say?

It’s hard to convey to non-lawyers how esteemed Posner is within the profession. It’s not overstating things to say he’s among the more influential thinkers in American legal history, although his libertarianism has led him to take certain, um, eccentric positions that make his elevation to the Supreme Court politically impossible. The point is, even if you’re not interested in civil liberties in the terrorist age, it’s worth listening just to expose yourself to a figure whose notoriety doesn’t nearly match his intellectual standing.

And yes, he has a blog.