OMG! Stop Press! (Geez, d00d, you still, like, iron?)
Eric Alterman (and his English teacher) have discovered conservative, constructionist Justices rule against our Dear leaders in the Oval Office and Congress waaaaaay more often than their liberal, activist colleagues and they are shocked, just shocked at the hypocrisy of calling judges who obediently drop trou and bend over for least whim of the Executive and Legislative branches "activist." Oh, heavens no, they shrill, it's those horrid, horrid robed creatures who go look up what the founding documents actually say and apply that standard to the matter at hand who are the "activists."
Yeah, well, I s'pose so. Whatever. 'Cos that is their job, you nitwits. The structure of the Federal government was supposed to restrain Our Leaders from bending things all around to suit their moods; the Courts, among other things, exist to slow 'em down.
Naturally, the Progressives don't so much favor that, since it impedes their "progress." Towards what? The perfection of Man and/or Society, perhaps -- and they don't care who they have to impoverish or kill to get there. How many times has that worked out? Gotta long, Marxist-Red list of the times it has not, from New Harmony to Russia to Cambodia and beyond and I am (in the words of the famous IMPD officer) Not Impressed.
...If I'm an anarchist, you ask, how come I generally favor conservatives? This's why: there's only one side that will, at least sometimes, stand up and say STOP! in an effective way to our elected beaters, er, "leaders" and it ain't the Left; all the sinister side is good for is whiny protests that accomplish exactly nothing. Oh, and being horrified when The Fed'ral Gummint works in the manner the Framers intended.
Our President, he wants a Supreme Court Justice with "empathy." I guess reading comprehension and a firm grasp of the country's history and founding documents is too much to ask when what you're really after is somebody biddable. Hey, Eric? It is a codeword. For "spineless."
Rather than refer to them as "leaders" I prefer the phrase "public servant". Doing that changes the mindset to a more appropriate (IMHO) viewpoint.
ReplyDeleteI saw a picture of hopey-changey in the White House with the Statue of Liberty (In Chains, indeed) in the background; in a perfect world his hair would have caught fire from the irony.
ReplyDeleteJim
I guess nominating someone that's passed a bar exam is asking too much.
ReplyDelete(Wasn't gonna comment, but the WV was "phope" and I couldn't let THAT go to waste. Make of it what you will.)
Billy Beck for SC Justice!
ReplyDelete(Well, it would be exciting, at least...)
WV: "nourguel" I think he was in the Silmarillion.
Y'know, that actually makes sense to me; say what you will (and I most certainly have), Billy knows where he stands and he's not shy about it.
ReplyDeleteOk, let's not put too much credence in law degrees, etc. Look up Robert Jackson. No law degree, no college at all, very successful lawyer, became a Supreme Court Justice, took a leave to serve at the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials, then returned to the court.
ReplyDeleteNot poisoned by too much "training", what we euphemistically call education. He was actually had his own brain and it worked well, if not in concert always with more malleable and 'trainable' colleagues.