My thought bubble: Hmmm. Alito resigns from SCOTUS just in time to be anointed Trump's running mate but too late for a replacement nomination to be vetted and confirmed. Trump will owe him, right?
We can be sure that Alito is plotting something. This may be it. His visions of grandeur may be to BE POTUS with full immunity, because maybe he can declare the accidental loading of the hamburder with a salting of something not meant to be eaten as his own "official act" as VP.
Define "too late"; if there was really a need, there are two candidates who have been thoroughly investigated and and would probably cheerfully take the job: Merrick Garland and Vice President Kamala Harris. Confirmation hearings would be interesting, especially for Harris, but there's not much doubt that either or both would be confirmed.
To stay in the fight one has to think like his/her enemies. I've watched the right wing since it bought into the strategies of Lee Atwater, Karl Rove, Bannon, Miller, arch foe Roger Stone, et. al. They all thrive on being dirty for the sake of dirtiness, a way to offend those they hate. They spend all their time gaming things out.
As Sarah Longwell pointed out in a podcast yesterday, Alito has MAGA brain rot. That's pretty harsh from her, but also accurate. Amazing that we have a man with such low caliber reasoning skills on our highest court; his analogy would flunk him out of the SATs.
I wonder if Alito hasn’t been spending too much time with the Thomases. The Republicans on the bench really seem to be allergic to all things J6. I wonder if they aren’t protecting Ginni as well as Trump. Alito’s tortured logic would be an embarrassment to him if he weren’t so desperate to provide cover.
Sisters-in-Law podcast floated the theory that Thomas and Alito are doing everything they can to assure they can retire soon under a Republican president.
That's probably a good possibility, and it doesn't necessarily negate my speculation. But in any event, Alito and Thomas are displaying ample evidence as to why they should retire.
I just don't think he/they are "reasoning" for us. They're reasoning for their intended audience - setting up a "plausible" excuse for doing what they want to instead of what's right. I'm still in hopes it doesn't go all the way south but it's the obvious disregard for how they appear to us (democrats, voters) that gives me forebodings. Playing to the MAGAt base, small in proportion to the population as they are, implies some power over the court.
They are throwing the worst out and seeing how much people will fight back. They expect us to cave. After all, they have done their worst, time and again.
It really pisses me off that the MSM is just la de da about the plan to let chump off the hook. I think they are brain dead, or blinded by the green. I'm sure it's the latter
... and yet explained by Trump's stated intent to poke holes in it when he's back in office. They view the Constitution as a multi-tool: Strict adherence to the letter when it suits them, ignore it when it doesn't.
Thanks for sharing the wonderful Jamelle Bouie's commentary on Samuel Alito, whom I cannot call Justice, who would not be in office if some lefties hadn't decided that Al Gore and George W. Bush were alike, and who would be in prison for treason by now if Merrick Garland were alive.
But something else came to mind. Let's make believe that the accused in this was not Pol Potbelly, but instead was President Joe Biden or Barack Obama. The vote against any--and I do mean any--claim of immunity would be 9-0.
When Richard Nixon tried to avoid his fate, the court voted 8-0. One justice recused: William Rehnquist, not because he was a Nixon appointee, but because he was close to so many of the people mentioned in the case. That closeness, and that decision to recuse, spoke volumes about Rehnquist, good and bad.
you wrote that Alito "would be in prison for treason by now if Merrick Garland were alive." I don't know what you meant to say but you need to fix this.
Alito is an amoral, misogynistic, bigoted hack that has had an original thought in decades. His every opinion goes back in time to where only white, landowning men had a say about how things got done. The glory days in his mind.
I suppose he somehow thinks that if he gives that bloated orange gasbag what he wants he'll somehow be spared from the pogrom if the gasbag returns to the presidency. Which only serves to prove he's a self-delusional idiot as well. My contempt for him and his federalist society overlords could fill several oceans.
Alito thinks he’s so goddamned smart, he uses his seat to hoodwink others with bogus “hypotheticals” as if they were valid. Tell us again how “corporations are people” because I would shoot that down so fast, HIS head would spin. He is a liar, playing semantics and asserting his twisted bias into the law. He needs to be yanked off the court.
I'm sure I'm not the only one who studied the writings of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke along the way to where we are now. Thomas Hobbes had a very low opinion of human nature (he, like virtually all of his contemporaries, was referring to men). Left to our own devices, our lives would be "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." In his view, humans should give up their freedoms to a strong central authority that would protect them from each other.
The Founders, however, led by Jefferson et al. were fans of Locke and the Enlightenment he helped inspire. Their view of human nature was considerably more optimistic: they believed that humans (meaning, once again, mostly men) were capable of self-government -- but they did devise a system that would make it hard for an autocrat to take control.
You see where I'm going with this, right? Justice Alito uses the phrase "stable democratic government," but he's no small-d democrat. His view of human nature is Hobbesian. He's more blatant about it, but that view is widely shared by the current crop of Republicans, the Federalist Society, and their wealthy backers. This tendency has been around a long time, but only in the last few decades has it become mainstream in the GOP. Alito's hypothetical says, more or less, "See? Hobbes was right. It took Trump to prove it, but there you are."
IF Alito were operating from a philosophical point of view, he went at it with a negative, self-fulfilling manner, guaranteeing the worst of human nature. But I don’t think he is philosophical. I believe he is part of what Hillary described as “a vast, right-wing conspiracy.” His ilk see themselves as superior, the ones who will land on top when the middle class is wiped out and the rest of us are scraping the barrel for subsistence. Alito, Thomas—these people aren’t lofty thinkers! They are greedy, self-satisfied and corrupt. They aren’t on the Supreme Court to serve; they don’t even believe in democracy. In fact, Thomas was infamous for his whining about his lousy pay. These guys answer to their billionaire Puppet Masters— Nothing philosophical beyond money and power where Libertarian fascists are concerned.
Who said Alito or any of them were "operating from a philosophical point of view"? or that they are "lofty thinkers"? Almost everything you say is consistent with a Hobbesian point of view. If you want to simplify the difference between Hobbesians and Lockeans, you might call the former pessimists (about human nature) and the latter optimists.
My point is: You don’t have to reach back to philosophy where these people are concerned. They don’t operate, as one reader said, with a moral compass. This is about greed—for power and wealth. I’m not playing semantics—I’m saying these characters are amoral. Lucky you, never having to deal, face-to-face with the reality of criminal-minded, fascist, beasts on a regular basis. Pessimistic? How about REALISTIC. Character disorders don’t operate in the realm of esoterica. Life is cheap for people like Alito, Thomas and his “release the Kraken” wife. They trample the environment and take at will what they want. They even shoot puppies. I have no problem with philosophical thinking—I have a problem with people who don’t know how to apply that thinking to the real world. We’ve had this “discussion” before—There are NO DECENT Republicans. They are all installed puppets doing the will of FASCISTS like Harlan Crowe or Charles Koch. They are, in fact Neo nazis. You can dress them up, but if you turn your back, they will take you out.
And you know what? When I reference behavior, I’m using modern writers who have researched Libertarian fascism and its modern day proponents. Optimism vs Pessimism—what a stupid character insinuation .
You're still missing the point, but by all means -- carry on. Reading does help, but there's more to understanding what's going on around you than putting labels on it. And thanks for suggesting that I'm stupid. No one's done that in a while.
I have a new book recommendation for the entire Community by Dr. Bandy X Lee: "The Psychology of Trump Contagion: An Existential Threat to American Democracy & All Human Kind."
Yes, THAT Dr. Lee who is professionally capable of making both psychological & legal diagnoses. Dr. Lee is a well known lecturer at Yale for 17 years with the oversubscribed course: "CASES & CURES of VIOLENCE".
Dr. Lee has a preview chapter of her new book posted at her own Substack Platform this weekend with some useful guidance on how to get out of this fine mess.
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check it out -- it complements other stuff I've been reading, like Jacob Heilbrunn's recent AMERICA LAST, about the U.S. right's century-long romance with dictators. (William F. Buckley Jr. plays a leading role. <g>)
How you love to gas light. I didn’t say you were stupid—but gaslighting with thinly veiled insinuations of a “pessimistic outlook” sure was a stupid tactic. Now you are claiming what I say is “labeling.” YOU have missed the point. YOU missed the point the moment you suggested Alita “or any of them” were thinking in terms of John Locke (1632-1704) or Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). I include their dates to underscore how out of touch with current realities your comment is. Those men haven’t thought of philosophers like that in 50 years. The theory they are immersed in is Libertarianism and it’s cold-blooded, winner-take-all motivation. I’m not the one missing the point when they openly declare themselves part of the Koch Gang (he likes to refer to his nazi pals as a “cadre”) and I’m certainly not missing the point when I read their biographies and understand them for the ruthlessness they are capable of. That’s not “labeling.” They were raised by nazi fathers and nazi nannies; they collect nazi paraphernalia; they are comfortable with nazi fascism. I’m not “labeling”—It’s what they are, and they’re damned proud of it in their Mount Pelerin circle. (They had to make Switzerland their “special” meeting place—Germany wouldn’t put up with that crap.)
Nope—you can quote 16th Century teachings, but can you apply it to the real world? Do you think it’s possible to be a fascist without being socio- or psychopathic? I don’t. And it’s not just me—but hey! Those are “just” labels to you.
Read for comprehension, Dawna: I *never* suggested that Alito "were thinking in terms of" Locke and Hobbes. You seem to be arguing with yourself. Have fun with it.
If life is poor, nasty, brutish and short, it is only that for those who aren’t in their ivory towers. And they are the ones who make sure that they (and their ilk) stay there. At this critical juncture, guess who gets to suffer the lives of hell on earth….
Hobbes wanted to prove that a central, hierarchical authority was necessary, so he described life without such an authority as "poor, nasty, brutish, and short." My personal opinion is that what really saves men in general from living nasty, brutish, and short lives is *women*. In the U.S. the life expectancy of men started declining as women started focusing on their own well-being and that of their children if they had any -- but this couldn't happen until women had better access to credit, employment, etc. I do believe that this is part of what the backlash against abortion rights is about.
And I watched it happen, being older than dirt. Women having agency over their choices was the Everest of our existence. And I so appreciated it, after seeing how powerless my mother was all her life. School, work, and a wonderful husband gave me freedom to choose my path. The efforts to reverse our gains make my blood boil. I am especially livid with women who have gained power and seek to diminish the power of other women. And I absolutely treasure men who see women as equal partners and worthy humans.
Unfortunately, if you go back in women's history you'll see that those women who "seek to diminish the power of other women" have been around for a long time. They were leaders in the anti-suffrage movement -- Elaine Weiss's THE WOMAN'S HOUR, which focuses on the fight to ratify the 19th Amendment in Tennessee, the 36th and final state, is really good on this. Being not quite older than dirt (73 in June), I got to see Phyllis Schlafly in action. The anti-choice women had the nerve to name one of their organizations after Susan B. Anthony.
Not unlike them are the Black people (usually but not 100% men) like Clarence Thomas who throw their lot in with the oppressor because that's where the power, the money, and (they think) the prestige is. A Black person in the GOP can trade on his (usually his) token status the way Black people in the Democratic Party (many of whom are women) can't, because there are so many stupendously talented people of color in the Democratic ranks. Think of poor Tim Scott in the U.S. Senate. Or Nikki Haley, a woman of color, for that matter.
I remember Phyllis. Wrote many letters to editor of Houston Chronicle about her ridiculous idea of a vision of a woman’s life. I saw the life my Mom lived, a hard, powerless existence. But one she rarely complained about, but taught her four daughters to want more. We did. My bros learned to respect her and us, and hopefully their partners. She has no idea that she was such a powerful role model. You are so right about Clarence and his ilk. My Mom would count for a million of him.
What I dislike most about Schlafly and most of these other right-wing women is that they see themselves as exceptional. Do they follow their own advice about women's role? They do not. Schlafly had six kids. She was on the road much of the time they were growing up. Nuff said.
Ashley Montague, the anthropologist, insisted that "it's the function of women to teach men how to be human" so that human life is not nasty and brutish. (See, even there a man puts the onus on us.)
Aha, thanks! I'd forgotten that. Decades ago I read, and was infuriated by, Montague's NATURAL SUPERIORITY OF WOMEN. That's exactly what I took away from it. (IIRC it came out in the early '50s.)
I have a bro who is in a nursing home in Pasadena, CA. He went there for a conference ages ago, got sick and never was able to leave. He retired from Library of Congress and still has his “marbles,” but when he was sick, state took custody. Weird happening. Good news and bad. Thanks for reminding me that I need to chat with him. BTW spent a lot of time in Pasadena, TX. Now very red, sad to say
An astute and often wry commentator once wrote, “if my thoughts could be seen…” —oh, yeah, you know the rest of the quote. How apt in this circumstance.
Sickening, infuriating, and leaves me speechless at the depth of soullessness exhibited by Alito in his suggesting that a future president without immunity would be motivated to NOT leave the office peacefully after losing the election. Alito's hypo leads one to think that he is preparing the way for a second and forever term for tffg who lacks a moral compass and has already demonstrated that he wishes to be a dictator and escape any consequences for his crimes.
In the oral arguments in the Idaho abortion case, Alito asked “What about the fetus?” Hypothetically he imagines the fetus can survive its mother’s death before fetal viability. Or maybe a dead fetus can come back to life if the mother continues to carry it until sepsis threatens to kill her?
Malice toward all and charity toward none, now ain’t he a good “Christian.” Same with Clarence and Ginni, the Gorsuch demon spawn, and a few hanging on the fence. They are writing their own Bible, Jesus needed a few corrections, as did our constitution.
Indeed they are. I contend that educating an idiot gives you the appearance of an educated man, but the core is still idiotic. Pigs are what they are through and through… no airs, no masks
Of course,Alito is willing to cut trump some slack, but would he have done the same if trump were a Democrat? The bias here is overwhelming and there are other so-called justices who would willingly give trump the benefit of the doubt, but not Biden? This stinks…
Thank you for bringing this article to our attention.
When we read "the president may be criminally prosecuted by a bitter political opponent" we don't connect the same dots Alito is implying for his intended audience. Every MAGAT out there hears "as in Donald Trump's case". The point that it has never happened escapes them because in their minds, in Trump's bitter whiney Xeets and interviews, according to FOX "news" commentraitors, that is what is happening right now to Trump.
We live in two different worlds, and comments that we hear in one way, they hear in another.
A tragedy beyond personal or even collective tragedy: this is global, human, tragedy -- all we can do is to mitigate it through individual and collective action. None of us are off the hook in these times.
It's now a 4-4 decision & apparently, the Chief Justice will give us a dissertation on his "hypothetical" that being of a "hypothetical" President who does an "official act" like appointing an Ambassador but, then sells the official act appointment for 1 Millions dollars.
The answer holds no weight because such BS does not answer the the "question precedented" by the unanimous 3 Judge Appellate Panel. In legal terms, the answer would be dicta with no case-law value for "years to come".
Appallingly, Alioto would not discuss the facts of the case upon which CERT was granted.
Alito is transparent - he is a soulless monster without any moral compass. In short, he is exactly like his Dear Leader.
My thought bubble: Hmmm. Alito resigns from SCOTUS just in time to be anointed Trump's running mate but too late for a replacement nomination to be vetted and confirmed. Trump will owe him, right?
We can be sure that Alito is plotting something. This may be it. His visions of grandeur may be to BE POTUS with full immunity, because maybe he can declare the accidental loading of the hamburder with a salting of something not meant to be eaten as his own "official act" as VP.
Define "too late"; if there was really a need, there are two candidates who have been thoroughly investigated and and would probably cheerfully take the job: Merrick Garland and Vice President Kamala Harris. Confirmation hearings would be interesting, especially for Harris, but there's not much doubt that either or both would be confirmed.
Goodness gracious, we should keep an eye on you! Should you ever go over to the dark side, things could go terribly wrong (more terribly wrong)!
To stay in the fight one has to think like his/her enemies. I've watched the right wing since it bought into the strategies of Lee Atwater, Karl Rove, Bannon, Miller, arch foe Roger Stone, et. al. They all thrive on being dirty for the sake of dirtiness, a way to offend those they hate. They spend all their time gaming things out.
I see the "et al" Judith but, I think you lmay have eft out Roy Cohn & Heinrich Himmler.
As Sarah Longwell pointed out in a podcast yesterday, Alito has MAGA brain rot. That's pretty harsh from her, but also accurate. Amazing that we have a man with such low caliber reasoning skills on our highest court; his analogy would flunk him out of the SATs.
I wonder if Alito hasn’t been spending too much time with the Thomases. The Republicans on the bench really seem to be allergic to all things J6. I wonder if they aren’t protecting Ginni as well as Trump. Alito’s tortured logic would be an embarrassment to him if he weren’t so desperate to provide cover.
Sisters-in-Law podcast floated the theory that Thomas and Alito are doing everything they can to assure they can retire soon under a Republican president.
That's probably a good possibility, and it doesn't necessarily negate my speculation. But in any event, Alito and Thomas are displaying ample evidence as to why they should retire.
They deserve to be removed from the Court. A congressman could go to jail for the moves Thomas and Alito have made.
Why would they retire, they rule, Dems and Repubs, and everything in between
They don't want to be a MAGA RBG and leave an open chair for a Dem to fill.
God, that would be the unforgivable sin.
or not be investigated
Retire? Why? They believe they are gods protected by the 50 perpetual read state senators!
He is not capable of embarrassment.
One thing is certain: Alito is spending too much time with his Honey pot $$$$ Fascist billionaires.
He knew exactly what he was doing. They are laughing their arses off at those of us who have given them the benefit of the doubt.
I just don't think he/they are "reasoning" for us. They're reasoning for their intended audience - setting up a "plausible" excuse for doing what they want to instead of what's right. I'm still in hopes it doesn't go all the way south but it's the obvious disregard for how they appear to us (democrats, voters) that gives me forebodings. Playing to the MAGAt base, small in proportion to the population as they are, implies some power over the court.
I agree. They look at their desired outcome and twist the law and the Constitution into knots to justify it.
They are throwing the worst out and seeing how much people will fight back. They expect us to cave. After all, they have done their worst, time and again.
lawyers do this and catch a fair number of fish
Trash fish, yes, my fisherman husband said there is such a thing. Just like there are trash humans, apparently.
Official acts “…about that million dollars” for the hypothetical ambassadorship
It really pisses me off that the MSM is just la de da about the plan to let chump off the hook. I think they are brain dead, or blinded by the green. I'm sure it's the latter
The radical justices' lack of adherence to the Constitution is mind boggling.
... and yet explained by Trump's stated intent to poke holes in it when he's back in office. They view the Constitution as a multi-tool: Strict adherence to the letter when it suits them, ignore it when it doesn't.
Maga brain rot resides in Clarence and Neil G, too! The handmaiden has her own demons buzzing in her ‘tete’!
Thanks for sharing the wonderful Jamelle Bouie's commentary on Samuel Alito, whom I cannot call Justice, who would not be in office if some lefties hadn't decided that Al Gore and George W. Bush were alike, and who would be in prison for treason by now if Merrick Garland were alive.
But something else came to mind. Let's make believe that the accused in this was not Pol Potbelly, but instead was President Joe Biden or Barack Obama. The vote against any--and I do mean any--claim of immunity would be 9-0.
When Richard Nixon tried to avoid his fate, the court voted 8-0. One justice recused: William Rehnquist, not because he was a Nixon appointee, but because he was close to so many of the people mentioned in the case. That closeness, and that decision to recuse, spoke volumes about Rehnquist, good and bad.
you wrote that Alito "would be in prison for treason by now if Merrick Garland were alive." I don't know what you meant to say but you need to fix this.
Alito is an amoral, misogynistic, bigoted hack that has had an original thought in decades. His every opinion goes back in time to where only white, landowning men had a say about how things got done. The glory days in his mind.
I suppose he somehow thinks that if he gives that bloated orange gasbag what he wants he'll somehow be spared from the pogrom if the gasbag returns to the presidency. Which only serves to prove he's a self-delusional idiot as well. My contempt for him and his federalist society overlords could fill several oceans.
Alito thinks he’s so goddamned smart, he uses his seat to hoodwink others with bogus “hypotheticals” as if they were valid. Tell us again how “corporations are people” because I would shoot that down so fast, HIS head would spin. He is a liar, playing semantics and asserting his twisted bias into the law. He needs to be yanked off the court.
Nailed him and them. Hoodwink is the word as they smirk and spin the merry-go-round.
I'm sure I'm not the only one who studied the writings of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke along the way to where we are now. Thomas Hobbes had a very low opinion of human nature (he, like virtually all of his contemporaries, was referring to men). Left to our own devices, our lives would be "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." In his view, humans should give up their freedoms to a strong central authority that would protect them from each other.
The Founders, however, led by Jefferson et al. were fans of Locke and the Enlightenment he helped inspire. Their view of human nature was considerably more optimistic: they believed that humans (meaning, once again, mostly men) were capable of self-government -- but they did devise a system that would make it hard for an autocrat to take control.
You see where I'm going with this, right? Justice Alito uses the phrase "stable democratic government," but he's no small-d democrat. His view of human nature is Hobbesian. He's more blatant about it, but that view is widely shared by the current crop of Republicans, the Federalist Society, and their wealthy backers. This tendency has been around a long time, but only in the last few decades has it become mainstream in the GOP. Alito's hypothetical says, more or less, "See? Hobbes was right. It took Trump to prove it, but there you are."
IF Alito were operating from a philosophical point of view, he went at it with a negative, self-fulfilling manner, guaranteeing the worst of human nature. But I don’t think he is philosophical. I believe he is part of what Hillary described as “a vast, right-wing conspiracy.” His ilk see themselves as superior, the ones who will land on top when the middle class is wiped out and the rest of us are scraping the barrel for subsistence. Alito, Thomas—these people aren’t lofty thinkers! They are greedy, self-satisfied and corrupt. They aren’t on the Supreme Court to serve; they don’t even believe in democracy. In fact, Thomas was infamous for his whining about his lousy pay. These guys answer to their billionaire Puppet Masters— Nothing philosophical beyond money and power where Libertarian fascists are concerned.
Who said Alito or any of them were "operating from a philosophical point of view"? or that they are "lofty thinkers"? Almost everything you say is consistent with a Hobbesian point of view. If you want to simplify the difference between Hobbesians and Lockeans, you might call the former pessimists (about human nature) and the latter optimists.
My point is: You don’t have to reach back to philosophy where these people are concerned. They don’t operate, as one reader said, with a moral compass. This is about greed—for power and wealth. I’m not playing semantics—I’m saying these characters are amoral. Lucky you, never having to deal, face-to-face with the reality of criminal-minded, fascist, beasts on a regular basis. Pessimistic? How about REALISTIC. Character disorders don’t operate in the realm of esoterica. Life is cheap for people like Alito, Thomas and his “release the Kraken” wife. They trample the environment and take at will what they want. They even shoot puppies. I have no problem with philosophical thinking—I have a problem with people who don’t know how to apply that thinking to the real world. We’ve had this “discussion” before—There are NO DECENT Republicans. They are all installed puppets doing the will of FASCISTS like Harlan Crowe or Charles Koch. They are, in fact Neo nazis. You can dress them up, but if you turn your back, they will take you out.
And you know what? When I reference behavior, I’m using modern writers who have researched Libertarian fascism and its modern day proponents. Optimism vs Pessimism—what a stupid character insinuation .
You're still missing the point, but by all means -- carry on. Reading does help, but there's more to understanding what's going on around you than putting labels on it. And thanks for suggesting that I'm stupid. No one's done that in a while.
I have a new book recommendation for the entire Community by Dr. Bandy X Lee: "The Psychology of Trump Contagion: An Existential Threat to American Democracy & All Human Kind."
Yes, THAT Dr. Lee who is professionally capable of making both psychological & legal diagnoses. Dr. Lee is a well known lecturer at Yale for 17 years with the oversubscribed course: "CASES & CURES of VIOLENCE".
Dr. Lee has a preview chapter of her new book posted at her own Substack Platform this weekend with some useful guidance on how to get out of this fine mess.
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check it out -- it complements other stuff I've been reading, like Jacob Heilbrunn's recent AMERICA LAST, about the U.S. right's century-long romance with dictators. (William F. Buckley Jr. plays a leading role. <g>)
What a victim. You are the one missing the point.
How you love to gas light. I didn’t say you were stupid—but gaslighting with thinly veiled insinuations of a “pessimistic outlook” sure was a stupid tactic. Now you are claiming what I say is “labeling.” YOU have missed the point. YOU missed the point the moment you suggested Alita “or any of them” were thinking in terms of John Locke (1632-1704) or Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). I include their dates to underscore how out of touch with current realities your comment is. Those men haven’t thought of philosophers like that in 50 years. The theory they are immersed in is Libertarianism and it’s cold-blooded, winner-take-all motivation. I’m not the one missing the point when they openly declare themselves part of the Koch Gang (he likes to refer to his nazi pals as a “cadre”) and I’m certainly not missing the point when I read their biographies and understand them for the ruthlessness they are capable of. That’s not “labeling.” They were raised by nazi fathers and nazi nannies; they collect nazi paraphernalia; they are comfortable with nazi fascism. I’m not “labeling”—It’s what they are, and they’re damned proud of it in their Mount Pelerin circle. (They had to make Switzerland their “special” meeting place—Germany wouldn’t put up with that crap.)
Nope—you can quote 16th Century teachings, but can you apply it to the real world? Do you think it’s possible to be a fascist without being socio- or psychopathic? I don’t. And it’s not just me—but hey! Those are “just” labels to you.
Read for comprehension, Dawna: I *never* suggested that Alito "were thinking in terms of" Locke and Hobbes. You seem to be arguing with yourself. Have fun with it.
If life is poor, nasty, brutish and short, it is only that for those who aren’t in their ivory towers. And they are the ones who make sure that they (and their ilk) stay there. At this critical juncture, guess who gets to suffer the lives of hell on earth….
Hobbes wanted to prove that a central, hierarchical authority was necessary, so he described life without such an authority as "poor, nasty, brutish, and short." My personal opinion is that what really saves men in general from living nasty, brutish, and short lives is *women*. In the U.S. the life expectancy of men started declining as women started focusing on their own well-being and that of their children if they had any -- but this couldn't happen until women had better access to credit, employment, etc. I do believe that this is part of what the backlash against abortion rights is about.
And I watched it happen, being older than dirt. Women having agency over their choices was the Everest of our existence. And I so appreciated it, after seeing how powerless my mother was all her life. School, work, and a wonderful husband gave me freedom to choose my path. The efforts to reverse our gains make my blood boil. I am especially livid with women who have gained power and seek to diminish the power of other women. And I absolutely treasure men who see women as equal partners and worthy humans.
Unfortunately, if you go back in women's history you'll see that those women who "seek to diminish the power of other women" have been around for a long time. They were leaders in the anti-suffrage movement -- Elaine Weiss's THE WOMAN'S HOUR, which focuses on the fight to ratify the 19th Amendment in Tennessee, the 36th and final state, is really good on this. Being not quite older than dirt (73 in June), I got to see Phyllis Schlafly in action. The anti-choice women had the nerve to name one of their organizations after Susan B. Anthony.
Not unlike them are the Black people (usually but not 100% men) like Clarence Thomas who throw their lot in with the oppressor because that's where the power, the money, and (they think) the prestige is. A Black person in the GOP can trade on his (usually his) token status the way Black people in the Democratic Party (many of whom are women) can't, because there are so many stupendously talented people of color in the Democratic ranks. Think of poor Tim Scott in the U.S. Senate. Or Nikki Haley, a woman of color, for that matter.
I remember Phyllis. Wrote many letters to editor of Houston Chronicle about her ridiculous idea of a vision of a woman’s life. I saw the life my Mom lived, a hard, powerless existence. But one she rarely complained about, but taught her four daughters to want more. We did. My bros learned to respect her and us, and hopefully their partners. She has no idea that she was such a powerful role model. You are so right about Clarence and his ilk. My Mom would count for a million of him.
What I dislike most about Schlafly and most of these other right-wing women is that they see themselves as exceptional. Do they follow their own advice about women's role? They do not. Schlafly had six kids. She was on the road much of the time they were growing up. Nuff said.
Ashley Montague, the anthropologist, insisted that "it's the function of women to teach men how to be human" so that human life is not nasty and brutish. (See, even there a man puts the onus on us.)
Aha, thanks! I'd forgotten that. Decades ago I read, and was infuriated by, Montague's NATURAL SUPERIORITY OF WOMEN. That's exactly what I took away from it. (IIRC it came out in the early '50s.)
Jeri, I’ve come to appreciate you more and more over the years from your comments. Keep ‘em coming!
Thank you, MaryB of Pasadena. So appreciate your kind words. Are you Mary B of CA or TX, or .??
California. I've lived here all my long life.
I have a bro who is in a nursing home in Pasadena, CA. He went there for a conference ages ago, got sick and never was able to leave. He retired from Library of Congress and still has his “marbles,” but when he was sick, state took custody. Weird happening. Good news and bad. Thanks for reminding me that I need to chat with him. BTW spent a lot of time in Pasadena, TX. Now very red, sad to say
An astute and often wry commentator once wrote, “if my thoughts could be seen…” —oh, yeah, you know the rest of the quote. How apt in this circumstance.
Me too
Sickening, infuriating, and leaves me speechless at the depth of soullessness exhibited by Alito in his suggesting that a future president without immunity would be motivated to NOT leave the office peacefully after losing the election. Alito's hypo leads one to think that he is preparing the way for a second and forever term for tffg who lacks a moral compass and has already demonstrated that he wishes to be a dictator and escape any consequences for his crimes.
Just pulling a rabbit out of a hat. It’s all smoke and mirrors. Nothing real about him or the repubs these days
Alito uses hypotheticals to assert BULL SHIT CONSPIRACIES, and that’s just flagrant bias.
Ask him how many angels dance on the head of a pin, since he bases his beliefs on unknowable suppositions.
In the oral arguments in the Idaho abortion case, Alito asked “What about the fetus?” Hypothetically he imagines the fetus can survive its mother’s death before fetal viability. Or maybe a dead fetus can come back to life if the mother continues to carry it until sepsis threatens to kill her?
He is a stupid man. I have known him in many iterations in the work world. He is an educated idiot. Here’s that old lipstick on a pig thing again.
I agree, and in addition to stupidity, Alito seems to have deep reserves of malice toward all, and charity toward none, but especially toward women.
Malice toward all and charity toward none, now ain’t he a good “Christian.” Same with Clarence and Ginni, the Gorsuch demon spawn, and a few hanging on the fence. They are writing their own Bible, Jesus needed a few corrections, as did our constitution.
Amen to that, Jeri!
Pigs are very intelligent
Indeed they are. I contend that educating an idiot gives you the appearance of an educated man, but the core is still idiotic. Pigs are what they are through and through… no airs, no masks
I think Alito is incompetent. He should answer to that…
Good stuff. A point better made than that which I attempted a couple days ago. Thanks for reposting.
And yes, Alito is a goon.
Of course,Alito is willing to cut trump some slack, but would he have done the same if trump were a Democrat? The bias here is overwhelming and there are other so-called justices who would willingly give trump the benefit of the doubt, but not Biden? This stinks…
Thank you for bringing this article to our attention.
When we read "the president may be criminally prosecuted by a bitter political opponent" we don't connect the same dots Alito is implying for his intended audience. Every MAGAT out there hears "as in Donald Trump's case". The point that it has never happened escapes them because in their minds, in Trump's bitter whiney Xeets and interviews, according to FOX "news" commentraitors, that is what is happening right now to Trump.
We live in two different worlds, and comments that we hear in one way, they hear in another.
A tragedy beyond personal or even collective tragedy: this is global, human, tragedy -- all we can do is to mitigate it through individual and collective action. None of us are off the hook in these times.
all true and well said. But the 30% who apparently agree a president SHOULD be immune from prosecution really scare me.
Thank you. JAMELLE BOUIE!
It's now a 4-4 decision & apparently, the Chief Justice will give us a dissertation on his "hypothetical" that being of a "hypothetical" President who does an "official act" like appointing an Ambassador but, then sells the official act appointment for 1 Millions dollars.
The answer holds no weight because such BS does not answer the the "question precedented" by the unanimous 3 Judge Appellate Panel. In legal terms, the answer would be dicta with no case-law value for "years to come".
Appallingly, Alioto would not discuss the facts of the case upon which CERT was granted.
Thank you Tom for sharing Jamelle's post.
The minute Alito started his
hypothetical, I figured that
was it. I am so sick to my
stomach of him and his
hypotheticals. Of his 16th
century reasoning. I can't
imagine what it must be like
being married to this worm
and having to listen to his
slimy pontificating. I'd stab
him with my dinner fork,
repeatedly, till he was
perforated all over.
This court has done more
damage to the Constitution
and people's rights in the last 12 years, then in 236 yrs.