an opening, and the Senate would be tasked with confirmation.

The selected judge would serve for four years before facing a nonpartisan retention election. If the judge wins, they stay and must stand for retention every subsequent ten years.

Schemel’s bill has bipartisan backing. According to Ballotpedia, at least 22 states use merit selection for some of their judges.

The reform already on its way to final approval this fall — albeit just one fifth of the way there — is a bill that would create districts for judges who make statewide rulings.

Under a proposal that could come up for a final vote in the House at any time once lawmakers return in September, the General Assembly would divide the state into nine Commonwealth Court districts; 15 Superior Court districts; andyears ago, having seen Wintel devour the margins of once proud computer companies such as Digital, IBM and Compaq. They found it wasn't worth the effort to differentiate their PCs from the competition, in what had become a commodity business. Nokia vowed to be the master of its own fate, and develop its own platforms. These it would share with anyone who felt the same way. Nokia also believed phones were personal, and embodied lots of personal choices. Phones weren't necessarily commodity items, and perhaps small differences such as design, ease-of-use and reliability mattered to the end user – more than price, the overwhelming consideration in a commodity market. So without ever declaring war, Nokia became the anti-Microsoft flagship for the entire industry.

Nokia saw its suspicions justified when