It is suspended, but if you screw up in the next two years (for example) they can make you serve it.

I think people are being too hard on the show's political messages.

First, this show really isn't meant to be taken seriously. It involves a hardcore liberal as the main character and a nutty conservative. I see them as having their own unique personalities.

And Alan always will go on a liberal rant every week. That is my favorite part because it's usually the funniest part.

You don't have to agree with the politcal message to find the humor - take the recent smoking ban rant. I was rolling on the floor when Alan finished it off when he said the meek candle of privacy is flickering and the almighty breeze is picking up.

My favorite Alan-rant had him viciously attacking Melvin the big-Texas attorney for a credit card company.

There are some rants that are so loaded that you can't help but burst out laughing, but yes, some rants are a bit more serious.

I don't agree with all of his rants but I do believe that this week hit it on the nail with the serious problem of warrantless wiretaps and Gitmo. At least Alan did tell her to pay her taxes.

Isn't David E. Kelley writing the latest draft of The Transformers?

EDIT:

Fine... I'll add a smiley....

My problem with them is that they are usually set up by situations and other lawyers that must truly be stupid. An example was the one where a kid got shot with a machine gun (AK47) and they were suing the gun manufacturer. Denny, being the gun nut was opposing this, and even shot a live round in the courtroom while dressed up as a patriot. But even as much as he loves guns, he never bothered to mention the fact that the gun in question was illegal to own anyway. I really don't mind the rants, but they can be so incredibly one sided as to be stupid. If the merits of the rant means you have to ignore the obvious counters to the rant rather than face them, it is just crap, imo.

So Megatron is an evil Republican and Optimus Prime's crusade is to eliminate the second amendment?

Didn't DEK have one of his characters give the exact same speech last season (or the last season of The Practice)? I remember Spader or someone giving the whole spiel about speech-free zones and then going into an example at a Presidential rally.

Preachy rants are expected, but recycling them so poorly would really knock the show down a couple of notches for me.