The Washington Post offers tips on how to keep your EV battery running in frigid temperatures. The link at the end of this graf is supposed to be a "gift link" (from me, Marie Burns, the giftor!), meaning that non-subscribers can read the article. Hope it works: https://wapo.st/3u8Z705
Sunday
Jun282015
The Commentariat -- June 29, 2015
Internal links removed.
ScotusBlog is liveblogging today's Supreme Court opinions. Amy Howe: "We expect decisions in Glossip v. Gross (the challenge to Oklahoma's lethal injection procedure and in particular its use of midazolam, a sedative); Utility Air Group v. EPA (Clean Air Act and when EPA must consider costs); and Arizona Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (whether Arizona voters can transfer power over federal congressional districting to an independent commission)." ...
... Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court ruled on Monday against three death row inmates who had sought to bar the use of an execution drug they said risked causing excruciating pain. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote the majority opinion in the 5-to-4 decision. He was joined by the court's four more conservative justices." CW: Nonetheless, my friends, Alito abhors infliction of excruciating pain on puppies.
5-4 decision in Arizona elections case; Kennedy joins "liberals" in majority opinion. Amy Howe: "The Court has several times refused to address the question whether partisan gerrymandering violates the Constitution. This decision gives the states an opportunity to deal with partisan gerrymandering by giving an independent commission power to draw federal congressional districts." ...
... Adam Liptak: "The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that Arizona's voters were entitled to try to make the process of drawing congressional district lines less partisan. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote the majority opinion in the 5-to-4 decision. She was joined by Justices Anthony M. Kennedy, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan."
... Amy Howe: Utility Air case, 5-4 in favor of plaintiff, opinion by Scalia. Amy Howe: "The EPA must consider costs before deciding whether regulation is appropriate and necessary; it will up to the agency to decide, within limits of reasonable interpretation, how to account for costs.... Kagan dissents, joined by RBG, Breyer, and Sotomayor." ...
... Adam Liptak: "The Supreme Court on Monday blocked one of the Obama administration's most ambitious environmental initiatives, one meant to limit emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from coal-fired power plants. Industry groups and some 20 states challenged the Environmental Protection Agency's decision to regulate the emissions, saying the agency had failed to take into account the punishing costs its regulations would impose."
The Guardian.
The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? -- Bree Newsome, as she descended the flagpole in front of the South Carolina statehouse, confederate flag in hand
... Karen Attiah of the Washington Post: "By her words, [Bree Newsome] is refusing to fear the hatred behind the symbol, the longstanding system in America of the forced labor of blacks under the threat of the most unspeakable forms of torture, terror, violence and death.... Her words stand as powerful example of defiance in the faces of agents of the state in America, who historically have taken black lives with impunity for generations.... For all of us, Bree Newsome moves beyond the trope of the knee-jerk, saintly forgiveness expected of black Americans subjected to violence. Importantly, she stands for us all as an example of the Bible as blueprint for nonviolent resistance in the face of blatant social injustice around the world."
Supreme Court plaintiff Jim Obergefell rides in San Francisco's gay pride parade.Matt Flegenheimer & Vivian Yee of the New York Times: "Two days after the United States Supreme Court affirmed same-sex marriage as a right, well-timed pride parades on Sunday in the country's twin hubs of gay activism, New York City and San Francisco, promised a sort of social catharsis -- a bicoastal toast to the nation's rapid shift on gay rights and an extended curtain call for the movement that coaxed it." ...
E. J. Dionne: "... the core liberal conviction about jurisprudence, developed during and after the New Deal years, still rings true: that the Supreme Court plays its most constructive role in our national life when it uses its power to vindicate the rights of beleaguered and disadvantaged minorities."
... the Court invalidates the marriage laws of more than half the States and orders the transformation of a social institution that has formed the basis of human society for millennia, for the Kalahari Bushmen and the Han Chinese, the Carthaginians and the Aztecs. Just who do we think we are? -- Chief Justice John Roberts, dissent in Obergefell
It's not quite clear to WorldViews why Roberts decided to implicate these four particular cultures in his opposition to the legalizing of gay marriage. But we can suggest reasons why they are hardly exemplars of 'traditional' unions between men and women. -- Ishaan Tharoor of the Washington Post, who goes on to decimate Roberts' supposed "traditional marriage" enthusiasts." An excellent read.
Andrew Koppelman of the New Republic: "John Roberts's claims of judicial restraint should be taken with a grain of salt.... Dartmouth professor Brendan Nyhan writes that what may look like a leftward tendency on the Supreme Court is actually the consequence of conservatives' willingness to try out increasingly extreme legal theories in the Court.... Claims that would have been summarily rejected a few years ago are now taken seriously by constitutional lawyers.... The essence of Roberts's restraint is this: He is less of a zealot than his colleagues on his right. That isn't saying much."
Esther Breger of the New Republic: "... Kennedy's florid language, some of which might be more at home at a vow-renewal ceremony, presented a vision of marriage's role in society that's archaic and all too common.... It was hard to shake the suspicion that parts of Justice Kennedy's opinions, like the part where he suggests unmarried people are 'condemned to live in loneliness,' were written with the consultation of my Jewish mother."
... Via Driftglass.
... Nick Gass of Politico: "Louisiana will comply with the Supreme Court's order legalizing same-sex marriage, Gov. Bobby Jindal said Sunday. 'We don't have a choice. Our agencies will comply with the court order,' the Republican presidential contender said on NBC's 'Meet the Press' after being asked why his state is the only one that has not yet issued marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Appearing from the state capital, Baton Rouge, the governor explained his state is waiting on a 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision to reverse a previous ruling upholding traditional marriage and implement the high court's ruling. On Friday, the state's attorney general's office issued a statement saying it found nothing in the Supreme Court's decision that made it a legal requirement for officials to comply immediately." CW: Following his interview of Jindal, "MTP" host Chuck Todd introduced a video celebrating June weddings. All of the featured couples were opposite-sex. Todd said the video had been prepared prior to Friday's Supreme Court decision & added that he hoped viewers would see the video as "gender-neutral." ...
... Nullification, Texas-Style. Austin American-Statesman: "County clerks can refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based on religious objections to gay marriage, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Sunday. Paxton noted that clerks who refuse to issue licenses can expect to be sued, but added that 'numerous lawyers stand ready to assist clerks defending their religious beliefs,' in many cases without charge.... Paxton's opinion also noted that judges and justices of the peace can refuse to perform same-sex marriages.... Paxton said Friday's 'flawed' opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned bans against same-sex marriage in Texas and other states, placed religious people in conflict between following their faith and the U.S. Constitution." ...
... Mark Oppenheimer in a Time opinion essay: "Rather than try to rescue tax-exempt status for organizations that dissent from settled public policy on matters of race or sexuality, we need to take a more radical step. It's time to abolish, or greatly diminish, their tax-exempt statuses." CW: Too bad that's not going to happen.
Alan Blinder of the New York Times: "On Sunday afternoon, hours after the weekly worship service, the pews of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church filled again, and [Charleston, S.C.,] turned anew to the rite, now sadly familiar, of mourning another victim of a massacre. This time ... the congregation memorialized the Rev. DePayne Middleton-Doctor, a mother of four who was an admissions coordinator at Southern Wesleyan University, one of her alma maters. Earlier on Sunday, Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. visited the church and, less than a month after the death of one of his sons, invoked his own battles with grief during a stirring and brief speech to the congregation." ...
... Dan Morse of the Washington Post: "Vice President Biden paid a surprise visit to Sunday morning services at Emanuel AME Church [in Charleston], telling congregants that he came to support them and to help get through his own mourning. 'My family and I wanted to show our solidarity,' Biden said during five minutes of remarks.... The vice president arrived with his son Hunter and his daughter-in-law Kathleen. He spoke about his anguish since the death of his son Beau from brain cancer last month." ...
... Bryce Covert of Think Progress: "According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, at least six predominantly black churches in four Southern states have been damaged or destroyed by fire in the past week. While some may have been accidental, at least three have been determined to be the result of arson." ...
... Timothy Cama of the Hill: "Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) said he totally 'disregarded' a New York Times report, based on findings from the New America Foundation, that white supremacists, anti-government extremists and others have killed nearly twice as many people as radical Muslims since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.... 'Everything should be investigated, everything should be stopped,' King said. 'But to compare these deranged white supremacists with an organized international terrorist movement, that's The New York Times at its worst.'" ...
... CW: If Peter King were not such an ideological ignoramus, he would know that Charleston assassin Dylann Roof, among many other American white supremacists, have been heavily influenced by the international white supremacy movement which encourages such so-called "lone wolf" attacks. BTW, Petey, wouldn't the Irish Republican Army -- whose violent actions you reportedly aided & abetted -- be a white international terrorist organization? Look in the mirror, you jerk. You used to be a card-carrying white member of the international terrorist movement. And shame on George Stephanopoulos for not calling you out on your hypocrisy. ...
... Jim Fallows analyzes President Obama's eulogy to the Rev. Clementa Pinckney.
Robert Reich: "Almost lost by the wave of responses to the Supreme Court's decisions last week upholding the Affordable Care Act and allowing gays and lesbians to marry was the significance of the Court's third decision -- on housing discrimination. In a 5-4 ruling, the Court found that the Fair Housing Act of 1968 requires plaintiffs to show only that the effect of a policy is discriminatory, not that defendants intended to discriminate. The decision is important in the fight against economic apartheid in America -- racial segregation on a much larger geographic scale than ever before."
Paul Krugman: "... next week [the Greek government] will hold a referendum on whether to accept the demands of the 'troika' -- the institutions representing creditor interests -- for yet more austerity. Greece should vote 'no,' and the Greek government should be ready, if necessary, to leave the euro.... These supposed technocrats [of the troika] are in fact fantasists who have disregarded everything we know about macroeconomics, and have been wrong every step of the way. This isn't about analysis, it's about power -- the power of the creditors to pull the plug on the Greek economy...." ...
... The New York Times is liveblogging developments in the Greek crisis.
Michael Corkery & Mary Walsh of the New York Times: "Puerto Rico's governor, saying he needs to pull the island out of a 'death spiral,' has concluded that the commonwealth cannot pay its roughly $72 billion in debts, an admission that will probably have wide-reaching financial repercussions."
Presidential Race
John Wagner & Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: Sen. Bernie "Sanders -- a self-described democratic socialist -- has seen his crowds swell and is gaining ground in the polls on the formidable Democratic front-runner, Hillary Rodham Clinton. In New Hampshire, where Sanders was on yet another weekend swing, one survey last week showed him within 8 percentage points of Clinton. Sanders's emerging strength has exposed continued misgivings among the party's progressive base about Clinton, whose team is treading carefully in its public statements. Supporters have acknowledged privately the potential for Sanders to damage her -- perhaps winning an early state or two -- even if he can't win the nomination." ...
... Mark Hensch of the Hill: "Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Saturday he has been waiting for the nation to catch up to his support for same-sex marriage.... He argued he was well ahead of the historic decision, unlike Hillary Clinton.... 'Back in 1996, that was a tough vote, Sanders said of his opposition to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)....Sanders at the time served in the House of Representatives, which voted 342-67 in favor of DOMA. The Senate voted 85-14 in favor, before former President Bill Clinton signed it into law. 'That was an anti-gay marriage piece of legislation,' he added of the law that defined marriage at the federal level as the coupling of one man and one woman."
I believe marriage is not just a bond but a sacred bond between a man and a woman.... The fundamental bedrock principle that [marriage] exists between a man and a woman, going back into the midst of history as one of the founding, foundational institutions of history and humanity and civilization, and that its primary, principal role during those millennia has been the raising and socializing of children for the society into which they are to become adults. -- Sen. Hillary Clinton, in a 2004 Senate speech ...
... Sam Biddle of Gawker: "A decade prior, she stood by her husband as he signed the Defense of Marriage Act, a piece of legislation that codified gay America's second-class status.... Only in 2013, as a presumptive 2016 presidential contender, did Clinton reverse her stance."
Tales of a Sleazy Scion. Robert O'Harrow & Tom Hamburger of the Washington Post on Jeb Bush: "... records, lawsuits, interviews and newspaper accounts stretching back more than three decades present a picture of a man who, before he was elected Florida governor in 1998, often benefited from his family connections and repeatedly put himself in situations that raised questions about his judgment and exposed him to reputational risk."
Class president and an athlete who did not hang out with nerds.James Hohmann of the Washington Post: "Chris Christie will use his Tuesday announcement, at the high school where he graduated, to present himself as the candidate in the 2016 field with the biggest and boldest ideas. The New Jersey governor plans to continue unveiling a steady stream of provocative policy plans in the coming months aimed at generating free media coverage and forcing Republican rivals to say whether or note they agree." As the Wall Street Journal also noted, Christie's venue of choice is "risky," since it will bring to mind Christie's old schoolmate David Wildstein, who pled guilty to charges related to the closing of the George Washington Bridge. Christie attempted to distance himself from Wildstein by boasting, "We were not even acquaintances in high school ... We didn't travel in the same circles in high school. I was class president and an athlete, I don't know what David was doing."
Relying in part on Justice Clarence Thomas's dissent in Obergefell, Rand Paul, in a Time opinion piece, makes the libertarian argument for governments' getting out of the marriage business. CW: Perhaps the right conclusion; definitely for many of the wrong reasons. ...
... Elizabeth Bruenig of the New Republic: "Senator Rand Paul ... remained conspicuously silent until yesterday, when he published a rambling op-ed in Time that's insightful in only one unintended way: It demonstrates how he plans to capitalize on conservatives' concerns about the future of marriage by pushing calamitous economic projects."
Sean Sullivan of the Washington Post: "Republican presidential hopeful Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.) warned in an interview broadcast Sunday that if his party embraces the idea of pursuing a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman, it will damage the Republican Party's chances of winning the 2016 election. 'I don't believe there is any chance for a constitutional amendment defining marriage between one man and one woman to get a two-thirds vote in the House or the Senate and be ratified by three-fourths of the states,' he said on NBC's 'Meet The Press.'"
David Edwards of the Raw Story: "Although [Donald Trump] has said his views are 'evolving,' his campaign position is that only 'traditional marriage' between 'a man and a woman' should be legal.... After the U.S. Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage on Friday, Trump accused Chief Justice John Roberts of letting the country down.... [Um, Donald, Roberts dissented in the Obergefell case.] CNN host Jake Tapper [asked] ... Trump about how his three marriages were morally justified if he only believed in so-called 'traditional marriage' values.... 'Well, they have a very good point,' Trump admitted."
Mark Hensch: "Ben Carson won the 2015 Western Conservative Summit straw poll, organizers announced on Sunday. Colorado Christian University's Centennial Institute said in a statement that Carson took 224 of the 871 votes cast during the weekend event. The Centennial Institute said that Carson is its first back-to-back winner since the straw poll started in 2011. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) won in 2013, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) took the top spot in 2012 and former Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain was the winner in 2011.Former Hewlett Packard chief executive Carly Fiorina captured 201 votes for second place in the latest straw poll." CW: Apparently the poll is an excellent predictor of who will win the nomination.
Mike Allen of Politico: "Ohio Gov. John Kasich will jump into the crowded Republican presidential field on July 21 at the student union at his alma mater, The Ohio State University, in Columbus...." Apparently God sent the signal.
American "Justice," Ctd. Rachel Aviv of the New Yorker: "Caddo Parish[, Louisiana] issues more death sentences per capita than anywhere else in the nation, and three-quarters of the people on death row are black." The story of one young black man's death-sentence conviction for a "crime" he most likely did not commit.
Beyond the Beltway
"Party of One." Katharine Seelye of the New York Times: "In the last few weeks, [Maine Gov. Paul] LePage's pugnaciousness has surprised even his critics, and prompted some to raise the specter of impeachment. In a standoff that began with differences over tax policy, Mr. LePage has alienated just about the entire Legislature, including his fellow Republicans and erstwhile allies. He has called them names and gone on a veto spree, canceling a record number of bills...; in turn, the Legislature has responded with an override spree, reviving many bills unanimously. On Monday, Mr. LePage is expected to veto the $6.7 billion, two-year state budget; the Legislature will return Tuesday, when it is expected to override the veto."
Michael Miller of the Washington Post: Dr. James Bradstreet, a prominent anti-vaccine doctor who claimed vaccinations caused autism, was found dead in a river in Chimney Rock, North Carolina, a bullet wound in his chest. Authorities have ruled his death a suicide, buth is family & supporters see a conspiracy to murder him."
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Reader Comments (16)
hahahahahahaha!
CW you had me in stitches with the GWB closure for Christie's announcement, but you've outdone yourself once again with Chuck Todd's gender-neutral wedding video!
..."Following his interview of Jindal, "MTP" host Chuck Todd introduced a video celebrating June weddings. All of the featured couples were opposite-sex."
Did Tuck Chodd learned NOTHING from his fuck up last week on Press the Meat? He is one stupid Ass Hat! Fire him yesterday. He is right up there with Our Miss Brooks and Tommy Freedom in my "Book of Common Disdain."
@Kate, Kate...reread the wedding bit. That Marie is so clever! she's a sly one, she is! She's having us on!
You'll laugh.....
What a kick to read Ishaan Tharror's instruction to John Roberts' re: his cultural mishaps. Now, you would think that Roberts would have done some investigating before... well, this is just too delicious.
Not only can Marie do her sly magic conjuring up a Chuck Todd video of traditional June wedding couples––no gay guys or gals cuz twas BEFORE the S.C. decision, so says Chucky, but she can turn the clock back not by minutes, not by hours, but by days. It is now June 20th, not the 29th. I tell you, people, we gots some terrific Web mistress here––before you know it we'll all be sitting pretty on some tropical island trading places with the rich and famous.
"Lookin good, Billy Ray!
"Feelin good, Lewis."
So, you thought we had our longest day of the year last week, eh? June 22nd, eh?
Wrong, oh calendar breath! (colander breath for you cooks out here).
The longest day of the last four years, actually, will be tomorrow. Because tomorrow we add a Leap Second, one extra second, to adjust our universal clocks in order to account for the earth's rotation slowing down just a skosh. The average day is supposed to take 86,400 seconds, but according to NASA, we haven't had an actual 86,400 second day since Charles Darwin set sail on the Beagle in 1820.
The news of this extra second has Confederates up in arms (it doesn't take much). They question the validity of the science, natch, and also the temerity of any mere mortals to "add" time, not to mention that we should all be very afraid of random seconds being added will nilly by haters of Freeedom.
To wit:
Ted Cruz is outraged. "This is a states' rights issue and as such, states get to decide if and when a second should be added to any clocks. This is an assault on the Tenth Amendment by liberals and big government types! In fact, we should be able to add and subtract time when and where we want. Like when Democrats vote. Sorry...all out of time..."
Rick suffered an involuntary release of santorum upon hearing the news. "God's creation is perfect. It doesn't do climate change and it doesn't slow down." he snarled in his most Christian-like tone of voice.
Grover Norquist's press release decried the lost productivity. "If all the milliseconds lost to this stupid thing were added together, we wouldn't have such a large debt and there'd be no need for taxes."
Glenn Beck wept inconsolably at the mention of "Charles Darwin".
Antonin Scalia issued a scathing dissent on the extra second. "Mumbley Peg" he said, inscrutably, then stormed off.
Jeb(!) agreed. Then checked his watch, just in case.
Marco Rubio declared that the loss of all those milliseconds explains why the earth really is only 5,000 years old. "And everyone doubted me!" he said, victoriously.
Donald Trump offered to buy the extra second. "I'm the richest man in the world. Everyone knows that. I'll stockpile all those seconds and when elected, if anyone asks me, 'Have you got a second?' I'll say of course. I'll be the Best Second Loaning president in history."
Mike Huckabee was angry. "Think of all the Christians that could have been born in those lost milliseconds. This is a conspiracy by science to fill the world with atheist babies!"
Roger Ailes was jubilant. "Oh! All the extra money I can make selling that extra second to advertisers who support Fox's attempt to make the country stupider than Michele Bachmann!" he cackled.
Dick Cheney released a diatribe from an underground bunker in an undisclosed location. "Adding a second will dangerously impact the security of the United States! A second is all it takes for the Enemies of Freedom to press the button and end the world!" he warned. He suggested that time be handed over for control by NSA operatives at black sites of his own choosing. "Not a second to lose", he said, unironically.
@Akhilleus: Excellent reporting. For some odd reason, none of your sourcing links worked today.
Marie
@PD Pepe: Slip of the finger, since corrected with same finger.
Marie
Oops, forgot the link. See? It only takes a second...
NASA explains it all.
Wingnuts may be outraged but this isn't the first time time has been re-timed to be more....er, timely. In fact, because of the switch (several hundred years after the fact, because Pope, Catholic, Rome), from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, Washington's birthday ain't when it wasnot even alluding to the fact that no matter when it was, whether it was or not, it's now on Monday, no matter when it was.
So maybe he was never actually born...
Wingunts, discuss amongst yourselves. And put those guns away!
Marie,
Other links to follow just as soon as that extra second kicks in.
Okay CW! You done me agin. I do not read with my usual critical eye at midnight, and what you wrote about Tucky Chodd seemed exactly what he undoubtedly did. You really are the sly one! And so wry too. I hope you participate in the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest!
I think I will have to go for Reality Chex first thing in the AM from now on--after coffee!
I've been noticing the glut of MSM pieces denoting the liberal tenor of the recent SCOTUS decisions, some of which conclude that a balance has now been struck and we can expect the court to drift back toward the right after this lurch to the left.
Bullshit.
We'd need decades of "liberal" decisions to balance the scales. A couple of big decisions accomplishes little by way of parity. It's another example of the success of Confederate propaganda that one or two decisions not in their favor represents potential Armageddon, the takeaway being that Liberals are taking over and that will be enough of that for the next 10 years, please.
What will happen--is happening--is a backlash. Already we've seen Confederate states stating outright that they will not obey the law. Confederates express their displeasure with situations they don't like with both lawlessness and violence. And it's not going to get better soon. The original Confederacy, after it lost, created the KKK to inflict its particular brand of Christian-based hatred on the country. Something similar has been brewing with the modern Confederacy, talk of secession, lawbreaking, and burning of black churches, no doubt in support of Confederate Hero of the Month Dylann Roof.
I opened my e-mail this morning to find a Confederate screed sent around by another employee. This is a pretty routine thing in my state. Political diatribes sent around using company e-mails are not in any way discouraged. This one had to do with the recent horrors inflicted on the faithful by evil liberal judges on the Supreme Court (how John Roberts became a liberal is a modern wonder). The e-mail is full of outright lies and inaccuracies about how the founders created the country in the image of the Christian god. It includes many quotes that originated not with Patrick Henry or James Madison, but with Confederate hater, liar, and phoney historian, David Barton, and warnings that "those people" are stealing the country. Again.
These people are pissed. It doesn't matter that Confederates have been able to move this country far to the right, they are playing a zero sum game and each tiny victory for the other side is seen as an enormous loss that must be avenged or eradicated.
Last night I watched the Ken Burns documentary on the Statue of Liberty. At one point, the poet and human rights activist Carolyn Forché, bemoans the fact that the promise of the Statue, of liberty that held out such special hope for immigrants, had been reversed, that forces in the country were actively working against those promises. She was saying this in 1985. But the kind of xenophobia and anti-immigrant stances supported by the genial old Gipper, is nothing compared to the way that Reagan era xenophobia has morphed into fierce hatred and mendacity which sees GOP presidential candidates refer to immigrants as murderers and rapists and child molesters. Highly respected Confederate "experts" like Ann Coulter are taking to the air and in print to say that immigrants are here to kill Americans, bribe government officials, destroy our way of life and help Democrats get elected illegally.
It's the usual farrago of right-wing lies but with a much harsher edge.
And it's not going to get better anytime soon.
It could be that Confederates will demonstrate how essentially dangerous and untrustworthy they are in the upcoming national election, but too many of them are still burrowed in like ticks at the state and local levels and their paranoia and lawless instincts, their anti-American essence, and virulent hatred will cause trouble for years, especially when we have someone like Chuck Todd ensuring that the crazy is referred to as a both-sides do it phenomenon.
And to prove that the Supreme Court has many parsecs to go before it could be considered even slightly moderate, never mind liberal...
Today's majority opinion on how the state handles the execution of human beings is at best medieval, and at worst....well, shit, I don't know if it could be worse.
According to Sammy (the Killer) Alito, because the plaintiffs didn't prove that the state could find some other less excruciating way to kill them, then representatives of the state could pretty much do whatever they liked. Justice Sotomayor, in the link Marie provides, suggests that, by that logic, Johnny and the Dwarfs would be A-OK with having prisoners flayed alive or drawn and quartered since the plaintiffs couldn't "prove" that a less barbaric method than, as Sotomayor describes it "the chemical equivalent of being burned alive".
How about a bullet to the head? Is that any less barbaric than what Alito thinks is cool? Pumping in poison so that prisoners can die in agony, "burned alive"? Are these guys for real?
I don't wonder how it is that John Roberts has gone liberal all of a sudden, I wonder where the fuck he and his winger cronies come from, and moreover, how they consider themselves good Christians or even decent logicians.
I guess they must be Confederate Christians. And winger logicians.
But same sex couples getting married will be an end to civilization, right? Fucking barbarians.
Okay, one more.
How fucked up is this guy?
According to Ted Cruz, the back to back SCOTUS rulings that made sure sick people could be cared for and people who love each other could get married constitutes "one of the darkest 24 hours in our nation's history".
Dark days for Americans: the attack on Pearl Harbor, Black Tuesday, 9/11, the Oklahoma City bombing, Gettysburg, the San Francisco earthquake, Hurricane Katrina, the assassination of a president, and......healthcare and equal treatment under the law. Horrible events all, according to a warped mountebank.
How is it possible that this disgrace of a human being is given a scintilla of respect as a candidate for any office higher than Chief Scooper of Dog Shit?
@Akhilleus: As at least two court observers have pointed out, the way the Supremes tilt the needle to the left is by taking wackadoodle winger cases, then ruling against them. These then get scored on the "liberal" side.
You could "prove" Ted Cruz was a liberal if all the questions you asked him were things like, "Should it be legal for unfaithful wives to be stoned to death?" or "Should all the Amendments to the Constitution, including the Bill of Rights, be abolished?"
Marie
P. S. But just in case, better not to ask him -- in case the answer to either of the above is "yes."
I think Justice Stephen Breyer has been growing with the evidence about capital punishment: http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/06/breyer-dissent-death-penalty-glossip-gross-scotus. It's nice to see older men/people who are not hostile and insulting in the face of new evidence that undermines their former positions. After the last week of listening about the opinions of old men on the Supreme Court, the only reason to respect them is their power over you. I certainly don't respect their "intellectual ability" when it is spiteful and tyrannical. Their emotional intelligence is stunted and overbears whatever intellectual gifts they may have possessed.
Whew! what great reads. During supper this evening my mister and I were discussing the demise of the Jon Stewart show and how no one will ever replace him–-Sui generis he is––but here on R.C. we have our own one of a kind–-Akhilleus–-whose assiduous comments not only inform, but many times (as today) are hilarious. You, my friend, could go on the road with your wit, but am glad you stick with us––and I thank you. Man oh man, do I need to laugh!
@Kate: When the New Yorker first published these cartoon caption contests a friend of mine and I entered for weeks at a time––we thought our captions were the cat's meow, but obviously the New Yorker judges thought differently. My friend said it was probably because we were too political and snarky. Over the years I find these cartoons really bizarre –-and not a bit clever or funny. I don't even read them anymore. What's your take?