Who will the newest SUPREME COURT Justice? What is the Strategy?

[MsDemeanor]

When even I'm thinking "would we have this conversation about a single man appointed to the bench", something is seriously wrong.

[Martina]

The fact is that the culture is having this converstation. And i am too. People like her freak me the fuck out -- whether male or female.

She is the classic striver. Classic. So is Obama. i am glad they exist. They are good enough to manage to convince the banal and the conservative that they have a right to exist and to exist at the top. And we need them there. Some of them manage to have some kind of balance. i really hope Obama is one of them. Some of them are all about the trip to the top and have nothing to offer once they're there. If this woman is one of them, we will know within a year or two.

Most of them, male and female, whether married or single, have limited lives. i find that scary.

i do not celebrate that kind of ambition. i do not hold it up as a role model for young women. God help us if that's what we have to do to be successful and to make a difference. Fortunately, it's not.

Before the kind of media scrutiny and party polarization we have now, ordinary flawed qualified people could attain these heights. Now, not so much. Now if you don't toe the line almost your entire life, with your eyes on the prize, you are not gonna make it. i am amazed and happy that Obama did that. i will hopefully be glad that she has done it. i think it's weird human behavior though, and i am really sorry our culture seems to require it.

[Martina]

Originally Posted by MsDemeanor

When even I'm thinking "would we have this conversation about a single man appointed to the bench", something is seriously wrong.

Our talking about it is NOT the problem. The problem is that men can marry and have children and still pretty much devote their lives to their career. It's unusual for a woman to be in this position.

And my point is that it's fucked up for ANYBODY to do that, family or not. It's insane. You gotta have a scary lust for power to carry it off. Those people scare me shitless. Including Obama. But i like his politics, and it takes that kind of committment to succeed at those heights for an African American or a woman. It takes a lot of it for anybody to succeed at that level these days. But do i like or trust people like that? HELL NO. FUCK NO.

[AtLast]

My thoughts here go to the generational differences between mother & daughter.... and to the fact that many women do not have positive relationships with their mothers, especially around the these generational opinions of what constitutes fulfillment for women.

Like so many accomplished women in what remains a man's world (let's not lid ourselves), Kagan is driven and most likely had to make many decisions to get where she has been and is going that put aside things like marriage (same-sex or otherwise) or having children (as a partnered or single woman).

Hummmm.... speaking to balance (Martina brought this up).... her ability to hear other's opinions prior to making her own tells me she has good communication skills. Read or listen to some of her presentations to the Supreme Court. She also includes key points of understanding of what a justice stated prior to making her point back. I don't believe she is driven beyond being human... I think she actually took care of herself in building her career and not trying to be super woman. Unless you do have a supportive partner (one a whole hell of a lot of money) that does share with all of that has to get done in life, trying to do it all is not a healthy road for everyone in these kinds of professions. Then again, I tend to be pro-partnership/marriage- as long as it is one in which there is sharing of labor! Not everyone is.


Something that is bothering me is her record at Harvard in hiring so many non-POC in tenure-track positions. Then again, as the first female Dean, I'm sure she had her share of criticism and every single hire was scrutinized.

Personally, I’m glad she has not been on the bench. Guess that’s up for debate.

I am not thrilled with Kagan’s appointment overall, however. Too middle of the road for me. And she just doesn’t strike me as a champion of civil liberties, especially concerning detainees as in Gitmo. I feel like Obama played it safe, again….

Just have to study her more, I guess. Right now all of the initially criticisms are being spewed. Sounds like there are some issues about her ideas about the First Amendment.... Dunno...[/COLOR][/FONT]

[Soon]

A Liberal Analysis of Elena Kagan

[Andrew, Jr.]

I am glad Ms. Kegan was appointed, and I do hope that she does bring about change. God knows we need it.

[UofMfan]

Diane Wood would have been the better and bolder choice, especially since it has been predicted that Dems will lose the majority this November, so this was the opportune time. Not the time to play nice.

What little record there is available on Kegan does not make me jump up and down with joy, but who knows, she may surprise me.

When Bush jr. appointed Roberts and Alito he did not try to play nice, and with those two appointments he shaped the Conservative face of the Court that is today and will be for a long time.

[Martina]

This guy says that criticizing her as careerist when Roberts' record was just the same is sexist. i would say the same about him. People who have planned and carried out a career trajectory from the bassonette make me nervous -- but whatever.

There is no info about her of any heft. We will have to wait and hope. i hate that government is like this. We can't KNOW what we are getting because to have a record means that you are too easy to tear down. It's an argument not to stand for anything. To wait and hold on until it's your opportunity. What kind of people does that create? Not my kind.

http://trueslant.com/jamellebouie/20...little-sexist/

[Outlaw]

Originally Posted by MsDemeanor

When even I'm thinking "would we have this conversation about a single man appointed to the bench", something is seriously wrong.

Similar: The speculation around the appointment of David Souter, a single man.

Dissimilar: The discussion of stance, and not the political one...Softball Photo

[MsDemeanor]

TPM video about the softball pic [nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSyOEnerVQc&feature=player_embedded"]YouTube- Cable News Wonders: If A Judicial Nominee Plays Softball, Does That Make Her Gay?[/nomedia]

[AtLast]

Simply for the hell of it, what are some of the attributes people see as important for a Supreme Court justice?

Sure, I have my own political stances, but I am thinking about things like temperament and character as well as what kind of class background someone has. I know I have a bias toward justices having some semblance to more working class experiences. Or, middle-class that reflects not being born into there being no doubt that one will have the opportunity for higher education, let alone being able to go to Ivy schools.

When I think of myself in terms of things like temperament- I would have to say that I would not vote to confirm me! I would not be able to look at constitutional matters without getting fired-up about certain things. So, when I try to appraise these nominees, I do think about this. And of course, I think about political ideologies. Then there is just one’s ability to think critically and apply abstract reasoning.

What say you all? Boot me in the butt, I don’t care, I want to view the hearings with some new stuff to think about.

[Soon]

Bill Maher: Why Can't Liberals Get A Liberal On Supreme Court? (VIDEO)

good discussion about atheism/religion too

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by MsDemeanor

TPM video about the softball pic YouTube- Cable News Wonders: If A Judicial Nominee Plays Softball, Does That Make Her Gay?

GeezUsFuckingchrist!

[Soon]

Sex Lives of Supreme Court Justices

By MICHAEL KINSLEY on May 18, 2010 9:28am

Now that the sex lives of Supreme Court justices have become grist for commentators, we are finally free to discuss a question formerly only whispered about in the shadows: Why does Justice Antonin Scalia, by common consent the leading intellectual force on the Court, have nine children? Is this normal? Or should I say "normal," as some people choose to define it? Can he represent the views of ordinary Americans when he practices such a minority lifestyle? After all, having nine children is far more unusual in this country than, say, being a lesbian.

Let me be clear: the issue is not the fact that Scalia has chosen to have nine children. That is his personal business. The question is whether he is an extremist advocate of the so-called "Nine Children Agenda." Can he deal open-mindedly with children’s issues when he has so many himself? Can he persuade his children to recuse themselves when appropriate (or, in the vernacular, "Just shut up, will you? I’m trying to write an opinion here. Sweetheart, could you please come and take him…stop climbing up my leg…watch it with that glass of water, buddy…no, that’s some condemned prisoner’s brief that daddy has to reject, so don’t …would somebody please take this kid…LOOK OUT for the… Jesus H. Christ, how am I supposed to get any work done"?).

Speculation is already rampant about why Scalia chose nine children over a more conventional lifestyle. Is he a sex maniac? That suspicion naturally arises. But perhaps once he started, he just never got around to stopping. Or maybe he just likes children. In recent days, Scalia’s friends have rushed to his defense, going out of their way to portray him as a model of sexual restraint. "Every Friday a bunch of us used to go down to this bar to pick up women," one of his college roommates recalls. "We’d always ask Nino if he wanted to join us, but he always said he was too busy studying. Frankly, we thought he was gay."

[Soon]

[AtLast]

Might be jumping the gun- but it seems to me that Obama will have another SC nomination fairly soon. Bader Ginsburg will probably leave the court within in his first term as well. What a powerful woman, indeed! ARGH... the mid-term elections are critical here, I think. My hope is that if Obama has this chance again, a more progressive thinking Justice would be terrific. With the political picture as it is...... not betting on it!