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posted by chromas on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:34PM   Printer-friendly
from the hangerctl dept.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh named Trump's second Supreme Court justice - live updates

President Trump announced his selection of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to be his second Supreme Court justice Monday night. Speaking in the East Room of the White House, the president said that what mattered to him was "not a judge's political views, but whether they can set aside those views to do what the law and the Constitution require."

"I am pleased to say that I have found, without a doubt, such a person," he said in announcing Kavanaugh's nomination. "There is no one in America more qualified for this position and no one more deserving," the president also said. The D.C. Circuit Appeals Court judge "has impeccable credentials, unsurpassed qualifications, and aproven commitment to equal justice under the law," the president continued. He's "a judge's judge, a true thought leader among his peers. He's a brilliant jurist with a clear and effective writing style, universally regarded as one of the finest and sharpest legal minds of our time."

Kavanaugh thanked the president for the nomination, and in anticipating his coming meetings with senators on Capitol hill tomorrow, said, "I believe that an independent judiciary is the crown jewel of our constitutional republic." He promised, "If confirmed by the Senate, I will keep an open mind in every case and I will always strive to preserve the Constitution of the United States and the American rule of law."

Within a few days of Justice Anthony Kennedy's announcement that he would retire from the court this summer, Mr. Trump had narrowed the field to four: Judges Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Thomas Hardiman and Raymond Kethledge -- all young and all viewed as conservative. Ultimately, the president settled on Kavanaugh, the establishment favorite.

On the issue everyone wants to know about:

Kavanaugh has stated that he considers Roe v. Wade binding under the principle of stare decisis and would seek to uphold it, but has also ruled in favor of some restrictions for abortion.

In May 2006, Kavanaugh stated he "would follow Roe v. Wade faithfully and fully" and that the issue of the legality of abortion has already "been decided by the Supreme Court". During the hearing, he stated that a right to an abortion has been found "many times", citing Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

In October 2017, Kavanaugh joined an unsigned divided panel opinion which found that the Office of Refugee Resettlement could prevent an unaccompanied minor in its custody from obtaining an abortion. Days later, the en banc D.C. Circuit reversed that judgment, with Kavanaugh now dissenting. The D.C. Circuit's opinion was then itself vacated by the U.S. Supreme Court in Garza v. Hargan (2018).

See also:

Previously: SCOTUS's Justice Anthony Kennedy to Retire


Original Submission

Related Stories

SCOTUS's Justice Anthony Kennedy to Retire 124 comments

Covered pretty much everywhere (front page of CNN/FOX/younameit).

With the main swing vote in the U.S. Supreme Court leaving, and a replacement nominated by President Trump, the right wing of the court should become clearly dominant, allowing Roe v. Wade opponents, and other right-wing causes, a new chance at victory.

takyon: SCOTUSblog has a round-up of coverage:

Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement today, effective July 31, 2018. Amy Howe covered the news for this blog; her coverage first appeared at Howe on the Court. Other early coverage comes from Richard Wolf of USA Today, Michael D. Shear of The New York Times; Bill Mears of Fox News; Robert Barnes of The Washington Post; Jessica Mason Pieklo of Rewire.News; Nina Totenberg of NPR; Lawrence Hurley of Reuters; Greg Stohr of Bloomberg; and Pete Williams of NBC News. Analysis of Justice Kennedy's legacy comes from Noah Feldman of Bloomberg; Wolf of USA Today; Mears of Fox News; and Reuters staff. Coverage of the reaction from Congress and the President comes from Carl Hulse of The New York Times; Alex Pappas and Mears of Fox News; Seung Min Kim and Josh Dawsey of The Washington Post; and Alex Seitz-Wald and Rebecca Shabad of NBC News. Patrick Gregory of Bloomberg has a piece looking at potential replacements for Kennedy.

Early commentary comes from Jill Lawrence for USA Today; Bill Blum in The Progressive; Emily Bazelon for The New York Times; Elizabeth Slattery for The Daily Signal; Garrett Epps for The Atlantic; Richard Hasen for Slate; Ian Millhiser of Think Progress; and Joshua Matz for The Washington Post. Another piece in the Post comes from Philip Bump, who focuses on control of the Senate. More commentary comes from Scott Lemieux for NBC News and Matt Ford for The New Republic. Andrew Cohen writes for TNR, and he also has a piece in Rolling Stone. Commentary from Vox comes from Dylan Matthews, Andrew Prokop and Matt Yglesias. Pieklo and Imani Gandy released an emergency podcast reacting to the news. Various law professors give their analysis for Stanford Law School Blog.

Anthony Kennedy was sworn in on February 18, 1988.


Original Submission

Breaking News: Brett Kavanaugh Confirmed to the Supreme Court of the United States 275 comments

Brett Kavanaugh has been confirmed as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. The vote was 50-48 in favor of Kavanaugh.

Senators Collins, Flake, and Manchin had already announced their intentions to confirm Kavanaugh before the vote was held. Senator Lisa Murkowski, who was previously ready to vote "no", agreed to vote "present" instead so that Senator Steve Daines could attend his daughter's wedding instead of being present in the Senate to support Kavanaugh.

SCOTUSBlog: Kavanaugh confirmed as 114th justice
Nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court

Previously: SCOTUS's Justice Anthony Kennedy to Retire
President Trump Nominates Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the US Supreme Court
Trump's Supreme Court Pick: ISPs Have 1st Amendment Right to Block Websites

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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:40PM (27 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:40PM (#705021)

    In May 2006, Kavanaugh stated he "would follow Roe v. Wade faithfully and fully" and that the issue of the legality of abortion has already "been decided by the Supreme Court". During the hearing, he stated that a right to an abortion has been found "many times", citing Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

    "The Resistance" is ready [twitter.com] no matter the facts.

    • (Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:49PM (22 children)

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:49PM (#705025) Journal

      Honestly, I wonder if any evangelicals [afr.net] will be screeching at the pick. Amy Coney Barrett [afa.net] was much more likely to be a Roe v. Wade killer.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:29PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:29PM (#705050)

        Honestly, I wonder if any evangelicals [afr.net] will be screeching at the pick. Amy Coney Barrett [afa.net] was much more likely to be a Roe v. Wade killer.

        They'll have to screech pretty loud to be heard over the sky screamers.

      • (Score: 2, Troll) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:33PM (17 children)

        by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:33PM (#705053) Homepage Journal

        There's nobody better than Judge Brett on restricting the abortion. That's according to his clerk, Sara Pitlyk. She says he's PERFECTO. And she's in a position to know. nationalreview.com/2018/07/judge-brett-kavanaughs-impeccable-record-of-constitutional-conservatism [nationalreview.com]

        And don't worry, he's terrific on restricting the birth control too!!!

        • (Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:28PM (16 children)

          by DeathMonkey (1380) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:28PM (#705147) Journal
          • (Score: 5, Informative) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:53PM (6 children)

            by DeathMonkey (1380) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:53PM (#705168) Journal

            A couple quotes...

            When Clinton was president:

            “After reflecting this evening, I am strongly opposed to giving the President any “break”... unless before his questioning on Monday, he either i) resigns or ii) confesses perjury and issues a public apology to you [Starr]. I have tried hard to bend over backwards and be fair to him... In the end, I am convinced that there really are [no reasonable defenses]. The idea of going easy on him at the questioning is abhorrent to me...

            When Bush was president:

            “I believe that the President should be excused from some of the burdens of ordinary citizenship while serving in office,” Kavanaugh wrote. “We should not burden a sitting President with civil suits, criminal investigations, or criminal prosecutions.” Furthermore, Kavanaugh opined that the “indictment and trial of a sitting President” would “cripple the federal government.”

            • (Score: 1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:12PM (1 child)

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:12PM (#705182)

              > When Bush was president:
              > “I believe that the President should be excused from some of the burdens of ordinary citizenship while serving in office,” Kavanaugh wrote. “We should not burden a sitting President with civil suits, criminal investigations, or criminal prosecutions.” Furthermore, Kavanaugh opined that the “indictment and trial of a sitting President” would “cripple the federal government.”

              Well, well, well.

              • (Score: 5, Informative) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:59PM

                by DeathMonkey (1380) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:59PM (#705265) Journal

                Yes, the magic (R) is even a get out of jail free card!

                These guys are shameless putting their Party before the Country.

            • (Score: 1, Troll) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:20PM

              by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:20PM (#705185) Homepage Journal

              Tremendous quote, I love that quote. I said that he did the Ken Starr Report, the Bill Clinton Blowjob Report. Which was very tough on President Clinton. But he changed his mind about that one, now he knows how important a President is to our Country. The President is the will of the great American people, of the Electoral College. The President is the Brain of our Country, the Heart. And I have an incredible amount of heart. And brain. I took the brain test, I scored 100%. PERFECTO. There's so many haters of our Country. They go for the heart, they go for the brian. With phoney dossiers, with wiretapps, with crooked so-called investigations. Judge Brett knows. Because he was one of them. He's evolved so much on that one. He's evolved beautifully. Very smart guy, very solid guy. Call your Senators. And EMAIL your Senators. Tell them to CONFIRM JUDGE BRETT ASAP!!!!

            • (Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:29PM

              by JoeMerchant (3937) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:29PM (#705399)

              This is what we need to be hearing - but Roe v Wade fills the press.

              --
              🌻🌻 [google.com]
            • (Score: 2) by TheGratefulNet on Wednesday July 11 2018, @02:42AM

              by TheGratefulNet (659) on Wednesday July 11 2018, @02:42AM (#705531)

              ie, a republican PUSSY.

              no backbone, caves in to align with his party.

              he's useless.

              therefore, he'll get the seat.

              godammitsomuch

              --
              "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
            • (Score: 1) by Sulla on Thursday July 12 2018, @12:29AM

              by Sulla (5173) on Thursday July 12 2018, @12:29AM (#706013) Journal

              This concerned me so i loolked into it and while I dont really agree I understand where he is coming from. He felt that his own investigation made him miss several chances to take out Bin Laden because they were so focused on Clinton. The again brought up the issue of not investigating a president

              while serving in office

              In 2009 during the Obama administration.

              He suggested that congress made a law or legislation about this, not that the courts decide not to try such a case if it is brought to them. The proper procedure being a congressional investigation (not the fbi) and impeachment (his opinion).

              His suggestion would be like what he Roman's had where as soon as someone was out of office they would be investigated/tried/civil suit to not use up resources when they might be needed. This has downsides and positives. If Trump were working for the Russians (nothing found yet and all of what Mueller has released suggests just that Manafort's trouble is unrelated to Trump) it should be something that needs to be investigated immedietly.

              From what Kav~ has said I am led to think that as a judge if a case were brought before him he would not just drop it, as all of the hard work has already been done.

              I have reservations about him due to how weak he is on the 4th amendment and as stated above I don't agree with his opinion on this, but I understand how he got there.

              --
              Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
          • (Score: 4, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:53PM (7 children)

            At the moment, Net Neutrality has no real business being a judicial issue; there's not much law covering it and judges deal with laws. It needs to be a legislative issue though, so we can quit having it decided and redecided by unaccountable bureaucrats.

            --
            My rights don't end where your fear begins.
            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:30PM (4 children)

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:30PM (#705191)

              Gee the corps are arguing it is a 1st amendment issue. Seems like pretty good grounds for judicial review. Also, policies follow laws so yes courts can rulenon them.

              Go hack to bed, your brain is tired. Or working normally, but hey thats an opinion so who am i to judge?

              • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:19PM (3 children)

                It's pretty obviously not a first amendment issue unless the government is interfering with speech somehow. And policies, as long as they're made within the authority granted by legislation, can't (assuming a supreme court who follows the law instead of their feelz) legally be overturned by a judge no matter how many people want them to be.

                --
                My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:34PM (2 children)

                  by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:34PM (#705241)

                  You're telling the wrong person, I'm just pointing out that the ISPs are making the argument. Also, you ignored the other part about legal hierarchy.

                  Laws guide policy making, judges rule on laws, so any policy can be ruled on by a judge to determine whether it violates the laws that allow the policy to exist. Keep pushing your simplistic world view where words are highly restricted when you want them to be but fluid and interpretive when they suit your needs.

                  #hypocrite #crticalthinkingisforthebirds

                  • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:11PM (1 child)

                    Fair enough on the first but no, policies are not really subject to judicial review unless a law was violated during their creation (out of scope of authority) or they violate some law or other. Like it's beyond a judge's authority to say anything about Hawaiian Shirt Tuesday at the CIA. Violation of a law is violation of a law and judges always have the authority to rule on that. You'd kind of figure it would go without saying but here I am having to say it.

                    --
                    My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                    • (Score: 1) by exaeta on Monday July 23 2018, @05:29PM

                      by exaeta (6957) on Monday July 23 2018, @05:29PM (#711329) Homepage Journal

                      Well it depends. Does the CIA *require* employees to wear hawaiin shirts on tuesday, or is it optional? If if was mandatory, you'd have a pretty good case for judicial intervention.

                      --
                      The Government is a Bird
            • (Score: 3, Informative) by Aegis on Tuesday July 10 2018, @11:27PM (1 child)

              by Aegis (6714) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @11:27PM (#705446)

              At the moment, Net Neutrality has no real business being a judicial issue;

              Tell that to the nominee you're defending!

              Trump’s Supreme Court pick: ISPs have 1st Amendment right to block websites [arstechnica.com]

          • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:29PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:29PM (#705326)

            It's more of this "Courts can ignore cases they don't like" bullshit which bothers me. And "You don't have this right we said you have because X".

            A perfect judge is probably not available. But I'd rather see a judge that recognizes the evils of allowing people to waive rights and furthermore the evils of the court ignorong cases.

            Plus national security is code for "tribal bullshit". Can't these judges grow up?

      • (Score: 1, Redundant) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:40PM (2 children)

        by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:40PM (#705056) Homepage Journal

        There's nobody better than Judge Brett on restricting the abortion. That's according to his clerk, Sara Pitlyk. She says he's PERFECTO. And she's in a position to know. nationalreview.com/2018/07/judge-brett-kavanaughs-impeccable-record-of-constitutional-conservatism [nationalreview.com]

        And don't worry, he's terrific on restricting the birth control too!!!

        • (Score: 4, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:58PM (1 child)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:58PM (#705075)

          I noticed some weirdness with posting this morning, so I assume your double-post was not intentional.

          wswswswswsws has a few things to say about your pick. I think you will find their conclusion provocative. Trump chooses second ultra-right Supreme Court justice [wsws.org]:

          Like Gorsuch before him, Kavanaugh is a dyed-in-the-wool right-wing partisan. Gorsuch came from right-wing Republican stock, as the son of Anne Gorsuch Burford, the Reagan administration EPA director who was forced to resign in disgrace for withholding documents from Congress about the favors she was providing to big polluters.

          ...The World Socialist Web Site wrote, after reviewing Kavanaugh’s role in the Starr investigation and the Florida recount: “Now the wheel comes full circle, with the Republican president, installed in office by right-wing judges, naming one of Kenneth Starr’s hatchet men to one of the highest judicial positions in the land.”

          Kavanaugh’s appointment to the D.C. Circuit was considered so provocative that it was blocked for two years by Democratic Party opposition, despite a Republican majority in the Senate at the time. Finally, in 2006, as part of a backroom deal to push through most Bush appeals court nominees and withdraw a few of the most odious, the Democrats dropped their opposition and allowed Kavanaugh’s nomination to be voted on. It was ratified by the Senate in a 57-36 vote.

          Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer declared last week, in an op-ed piece published in the New York Times, that he will rely on a handful of “pro-choice” Republican senators—primarily Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski—to vote against any Trump nominee committed to overturning the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion. Even if these two do break ranks, however, their defection would be offset by Democratic defections. Three Senate Democrats, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, voted to confirm Gorsuch last year.

          While the Democrats and their media apologists moan over the departure of Kennedy, this reactionary justice was part of a long series of right-wing 5-4 decisions, including Bush v. Gore. He wrote the majority opinion in the notorious Citizens United case, which green-lighted unlimited election campaign contributions from corporations and billionaires.

          In the course of his career, Kennedy’s only major deviation from the ultra-right consensus came in relationship to gay rights, where he authored a series of rulings striking down state laws directed against homosexuals, and ultimately legalizing gay marriage. Here, of course, he was following, not leading, a developing social trend, one that did not pose any threat to the capitalist system or the property and wealth of the ruling financial aristocracy.

          The conclusion:

          In reality, the selection of Kavanaugh is so provocatively partisan, it suggests that the Trump White House has fully taken the measure of the Senate Democrats and wishes to make a public demonstration of their spinelessness.

          • (Score: 3, Funny) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:25PM

            by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:25PM (#705102) Homepage Journal

            Thank you, Anonymous. So nice when folks give us the benefit of the doubt. And I was having big problems tweeting, bad cyber was keeping me from tweeting, I tried my tweet again, it looked like it didn't go through. Until it went through twice. As I wrote in my journal.

            I wish there were more folks like you. Because we wouldn't have the Phoney Russia Witch Hunt if those 13 Dems gave me the benefit of the doubt. But trust me, there's nothing doubtful about Judge Brett. Very solid guy, very loyal, very reliable.

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:09PM (1 child)

      by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:09PM (#705036) Homepage Journal

      OAN, otherwise known as OANN, is tremendous. Very positive coverage, great choice. Like the very best parts of Fox News.

      Big expense for our alt-left. They're draining their coffers on this one, believe me. George Soros digging very deeply into his purse.

      Judge Brett did the Ken Starr Report. Otherwise known as the Bill Clinton Blowjob Report. But he said it was a mistake. And he still says that one was a mistake. Smart guy! But our alt-left hates him for that.

      And don't worry, Judge Brett was talking about the OLD SC. My new SC will look at all those VERY FOOLISH decisions again. And make much better ones. I'm putting pro-life justices on the court. It's gonna be great!!!

      • (Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Wednesday July 11 2018, @12:09PM

        by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Wednesday July 11 2018, @12:09PM (#705679) Homepage Journal

        (cont) So funny that our alt-left made so many different signs. And I fooled so many people on that one. I said, "oh, I'm deciding, I haven't decided, I'll let you know." And so many folks tuned in at 9pm Eastern on Monday. Tremendous ratings! Little secret, it was decided long ago. Long ago and in a way I didn't even decide it would be Judge Brett. Because I talked to Justice Kennedy, we made a VERY SPECIAL deal. Where he said he would retire. So long as I put Judge Brett in the seat. Very fair deal, great deal for both of us. Because when the cases start coming in about me, "concerned citizens" -- otherwise known as haters & losers -- would start telling Justice Kennedy, "oh, recuse yourself!" Very difficult for me to win if he recuses. And a lot of heat if he doesn't. I can take the heat, believe me. And I can take the heat for everyone. But, not great for Justin Kennedy, Justice Kennedy's boy. Very nice boy. Who loaned me $1 billion when he worked at Deutsche Bank. And is now doing tremendous work for Jared & Ivanka. The Kennedys are great friends of the family, I only want the best for them. So, great time for Anthony to retire. And he asked me to put Judge Brett in there. Brett was Anthony's clerk. And he did a great job on Bush v. Gore. We dodged a bullet on that one -- can you imagine if Chicken Little Gore had been President? It would have been a TOTAL DISASTER for our Country. Brett's very loyal, that's so important. And very smart, he has many degrees from Harvard. Very well educated. Amazing resume. Very hard for our Senators to say "no" to. But he's the guy Anthony picked, that was the deal. And I always always honor the deals I make!!!!

    • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:37PM

      by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:37PM (#705243)

      "Context" : what does that word mean ?

      I'll help you: When you're being questioned to get a job, do you openly criticize the CEO's decisions ?
      In 2006, he was being asked, to be come a lower-ranked judge, about a Supreme Court decision. The only valid answer is "I will follow the standing decision".

      Now he will be in a position where he could review that decision. His previous answer is irrelevant, because he is only -moderately- bound by precedent (he will say so in his confirmation hearings), and no longer by hierarchy.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:51PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:51PM (#705255)

      stophardiman.com and stopkethledge.com were registered 2017-01-12. stopkavanaugh.com surprisingly only on 2018-06-28.

  • (Score: 0, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:50PM (40 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:50PM (#705026)

    No doubt our pee-resident troll will vicariously claim credit for this like the ineffectual loser she is.

    • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:47PM (39 children)

      by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:47PM (#705061) Journal

      This is tangential, but it's interesting how obsessed certain people have been with the pee story the DNC has been peddling to smear Donald Trump. Is that really the strangest sexual practice they've ever heard of? Across the entire universe of sexual practices, that's the one they can't let go of?

      To me, it rather seems as odd as saying, "OMG they did it doggy style. The perverts!!!" Or, "Omigosh they had anal sex?! Burn them!"

      Maybe in the 1950's it was de rigeur to assume heterosexual coupling in the missionary position only was the norm, but certainly in 2018 with the expanse of possibilities on display on the Internet that cannot still be true, and it's weird, really weird, for anyone to still breathlessly assume it is.

      It's weirder by orders of magnitude for Democrats to be the ones breathlessly hyperventilating about it, being the crowd of open-minded people they like to cast themselves as.

      Honestly, if you're gonna sanction homosexual sex, transgender anything, same-sex marriage and parentage, and the like then you do not get the right to hyperventilate about a fetish as mild as peeing. It just doesn't work. The hypocrisy shatters any pretense you might make to scandal.

      --
      Washington DC delenda est.
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:02PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:02PM (#705077)

        It is indeed feckless hypocrisy on the part of the ctrl-left.

        How do you reconcile the seeming progressive nature of your reactionary apologetics with the likely overturning of Roe v. Wade?

      • (Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:04PM (13 children)

        by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:04PM (#705078) Journal

        You conveniently ignored the "Russian hotel" aspect of it, which feeds into the idea that Trump could be blackmailed or controlled by Putin. A narrative seemingly supported by known liars Crapper and Cro-Magnon Brennan.

        Your comment is pretty much a worthless strawman burning for excluding that. Even if the whole dossier is a pile of fake news, the urine is just the tip of the peeberg.

        --
        [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
        • (Score: 5, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:17PM (10 children)

          Eh, I get the feeling that trying to blackmail Trump would be like trying to blackmail me. You'd just get "yeah, okay, go ahead and publish it then" as a response. Whether it's because you're obscenely wealthy or because you're at peace with yourself, you can't blackmail someone who genuinely doesn't give a fuck.

          --
          My rights don't end where your fear begins.
          • (Score: 5, Insightful) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:21PM (7 children)

            by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:21PM (#705096) Journal

            If a pee tape leaked, he would be known as Pee Resident forever. He seems to be a guy obsessed with legacy. Why else put your name on the side of the building?

            Urinate not 2 gr8

            --
            [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
            • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:42PM

              Only to people who were already inclined to think up worse shit to call him. His supporters aren't going to give a damn and after Clinton the independents and moderates aren't going to be especially phased either.

              --
              My rights don't end where your fear begins.
            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:40PM

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:40PM (#705157)

              Companys pay rent to put that name on their buildings. Seems to drive sales.

            • (Score: 4, Interesting) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:06PM (3 children)

              by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:06PM (#705213) Journal

              Is that really so? Bill Clinton splooged all over an intern's blue dress and penetrated her with his cigars. But his wife still came close to becoming the next president. And those are people who supposedly care about how they're perceived.

              Trump doesn't. He's a NYC real estate guy. They're up there with Wall Street bond traders for crass, macho, don't-give-a-fuck what you think. The more people tried to hang him for it, the more he'd turn it around as the kind of kink real men allow themselves to unwind, because they can. In other words, he would make it a badge of honor that demonstrates his power to do what others wouldn't dare.

              I just think it's incredibly goofy for people who approve of sodomy, homosexuality, trannies, and what-have-you to get all prissy about peeing.

              --
              Washington DC delenda est.
              • (Score: 5, Informative) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:52PM (2 children)

                by DeathMonkey (1380) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:52PM (#705257) Journal

                Trump is the whiniest little bitch on the planet. What the hell are you talking about?

                • (Score: 3, Interesting) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:13PM (1 child)

                  You know that statement goes directly in the face of the vast majority of the criticism of him to date, yes?

                  --
                  My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:14PM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:14PM (#705388)

                    Riiiing wada neeng jeeeing!

            • (Score: 3, Funny) by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday July 11 2018, @11:20AM

              by The Mighty Buzzard (18) Subscriber Badge <themightybuzzard@proton.me> on Wednesday July 11 2018, @11:20AM (#705670) Homepage Journal

              Fuck, I can't believe I missed that pun even after you bolded it. People, this is why you should never take your politics too seriously.

              --
              My rights don't end where your fear begins.
          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:40PM (1 child)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:40PM (#705245)

            Lawl, uh huh more clues as to how insane you are.

            Trump doesn't care about very specific things that make are horrible but in his twisted mind make him look "Alpha". He would have cared about a lot of the leaks, the "grab em' by the pussy" comment was one where he was definitely scared but then Fox spun the fuck out of it and people swallowed that shit like they were told.

            Release something actually embarrassing? Something that would make even his Trumpettes laugh at him? Then you'll see him crying like a baby.

            Actually, we already saw it. Donald "tiny hands" Trump, Donald "biggest inauguration ever" Drumpf? Mr. Crybaby any time someone says something that makes him look petty, weak, dishonest, stupid.

            I will give you that at least over the internet you keep up your stupid bravado even in the face of overwhelming evidence. I'm not sure if that means you have more of a spine or less.

            • (Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:18PM

              I love it when people are like "you're always wrong and it gets proven every time you speak" but never, ever point to a specific example. It's nice to know they have such good imaginations and it gives me a good laugh that it so fully overrides their actual memories.

              --
              My rights don't end where your fear begins.
        • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Sulla on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:15PM (1 child)

          by Sulla (5173) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:15PM (#705220) Journal

          I have a feeling if such a tape existed Trump would likely release it himself just to watch the left flip out and look the other way while he did something else. He has done similar things before, and he is the king of all publicity being good publicity.

          --
          Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
          • (Score: 1, Troll) by TheGratefulNet on Wednesday July 11 2018, @02:50AM

            by TheGratefulNet (659) on Wednesday July 11 2018, @02:50AM (#705533)

            he is the king of all publicity being good publicity.

            are you KIDDING me? (maybe a try at gaslighting? didn't work)

            with his braindamaged base, sure. they are deaf, dumb and blind. they refuse to even try to see. they are lost and hopeless. lets not waste time on them, they are beyond hope.

            the rest of us see what's going on and we are not fooled by his bullshit.

            the only thing he has done is to degrade the US and our relations with the world. nothing at all to be PROUD of, mate. and the rest of the world laughs at us.

            only ad-men think that there's no such thing as bad publicity. let me tell you, there most certainly IS.

            --
            "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
      • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:46PM (21 children)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:46PM (#705117) Journal

        I dunno. Being peed on, even by a beautiful woman, seems pretty perverse. An infant, or small child, who pees on me is an inconvenience. Anyone else, and I'd be pretty damned "pissed off" about it.

        Your point is well taken though. Dems are all inclusive, if you happen to hate hetero white males. If you are a hetero white male, or you happen to like hetero white males, then you can't be part of the club. That's just how it is.

        If Trump had run on the D ticket when he didn't have to run against Hillary, the D's would be bragging about how modern a man he is, because he can allow a woman to urinate on him.

        Meanwhile - I've never put a lot of stock into the claims about the prostitutes urinating on him. Maybe it's true, maybe it's not - it's not something I can be bothered to investigate. Trump is perverse enough without that bit of data.

        • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:45PM (20 children)

          by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:45PM (#705199) Journal

          An Alabama hot pocket [onlineslangdictionary.com] is perverse, to me. Having sex with an animal, any animal, seems perverse. Necrophilia is perverse in most people's books.

          In the universe of sexual perversity, having a woman pee on you is quite mild. Having Democrats be the ones to go on and on and on and on about it is more evidence that we're living in upside-down world. (Having them also go on and on and on and on about Russia after 60 years of the Cold War in which it was always the Republicans prevaricating against the Ruskies is more such evidence)

          It's all so phony.

          --
          Washington DC delenda est.
          • (Score: 2, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:24PM (9 children)

            Democrats are the new puritans, didn't you know? I mean they're up in everyone's face 24/7 in all forms of media trying to tell you what's approved and what's not and they're all about ostracizing you in every possible way if you step over any segment of their lines.

            --
            My rights don't end where your fear begins.
            • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:47PM (6 children)

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:47PM (#705253)

              I have yet to see any of this, are you watching/reading those insane right wing things? Fox, breitbart, stormfrog?

              You should worry, being reptilian in nature the chemicals may turn you gay along with all the frogs!*

              *it amuses me that there was a small grain of truth to the chemicals making frogs gay story.

              • (Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:54PM (2 children)

                by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @06:54PM (#705303)

                #metoo

                Famed geneticist Francisco Ayala resigns following unsubstantiated allegations of sexual harassment [wsws.org]. Explain this woman's "himpathy:"

                Astrophysicist Virginia Trimble [wikipedia.org], one of Ayala’s colleagues, told the New York Times, “He is a good human being. I don’t know how else to say it.” She said she was “floored” by the chancellor’s letter announcing the resignation and that her first action on reading it was to send Ayala an email declaring, “I don’t believe a word of it.”

                (Wikipedia link mine.)

                From further up the article:

                Ayala has not even been informed as to what specifically he is alleged to have done. He issued a statement to the Los Angeles Times, stating, “I deeply regret that what I have always thought of as the good manners of a European gentleman—to greet women colleagues warmly, with a kiss to both cheeks, to compliment them on their beauty—made colleagues I respect uncomfortable. It was never my intent to do so.”

                "...Graduate fellowships, endowed chairs and other programs started with Ayala’s funds" are now alienated from him. He will leave without emeritus status. Life's work completely destroyed over allegations that he is not even allowed to know.

                Explain Trimble's apparent himpathy here.

                It is too bad we did not run Aristarchus' submission about "himpathy," though it is just as well, as no productive debate would have ensued. However, I must know. What is the difference between himpathy and heresy? (Oh I am feeling serendipitously clever today. Well, perhaps merely a slight bit accidentally clever. Himpathy when a man does it, and heresy when a woman does it.) I assume I must throw out Trimble's testimony because it constitutes heresy, correct? And furthermore, I am to uncritically accept allegations, likely originating from men with power, having no form or substance, as gospel truth, lest I also be found guilty of either himpathy or heresy, depending on what you've determined my "true" gender to be, correct?

                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:29PM (1 child)

                  by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:29PM (#705325)

                  Someone needs to tweak their troll-bot.

                  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:46PM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:46PM (#705335)

                    Will you help me understand where it went off the rails?

              • (Score: 2, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:19PM (2 children)

                I have yet to see any of this...

                You are the most willfully blind motherfucker on the planet then.

                --
                My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:20PM (1 child)

                  by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:20PM (#705394)

                  While popular media is filled on both sides with plenty of bullshit rhetoric, the non-media people are always calling out some shitty bullshit behavior. Because you're a special little snowflake you can't comprehend the difference between criticism and actual attempts at censorship and forcing "correct" behavior. The cake baker was the closest thing in recent history I can recall that came close, and that didn't even go the way you're claiming.

                  Fly that persecution flag high! It'll let everyone know who the idiot is complaining about complaining and you don't even get the benefit of generations of racial prejudice to bolster your cause.

                  Racism is very much alive in the US and apparently you morons are so caught up in your own FEELZ that you can't comprehend why oh whyyyyy minorities are still upset. Maybe projection, or in this case a weird projection/appropriation, is one of the 12 steps needed for you to come to terms with REALITY.

                  Best of luck to you.

                  PS: yes there are total whackjob extremists in every cultural group, but using them as the mascots for everyone else just highlights your own nut obsession.

            • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:57PM

              by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:57PM (#705263) Journal

              Silly song just came to mind - 'Feel like dancing'. Let's dance back and forth all over their stupid line. Or, "Stick your left foot in, take your left foot out, and shake it all about".

              No, I've got it - the Dirt Band!

              "One Step Over The Line"

              When I look into your eyes
              See the world cut down to size
              Baby don't apologize
              Takin' me one step over the line

              When I touch your secret skin
              Babe I know it ain't no sin
              I feel you startin' to give in
              Now let's go one step over the line

              I know it's just your daddy's car
              Your daddy never went this far
              Baby we know who we are
              Let's go one step over the line

              I can be your drivin' wheel
              We could make those tires squeal
              Ooo I like the way it feels
              Takin' it one step over the line

              One step forward and two steps back
              It's for the first time baby
              I'm talkin' cake walkin' into the black
              A crossin' red line and I don't mean maybe

              I hear they buried lover's lane
              In a sea of tears and blame
              It's you and me go up in flames
              Baby, one step over the line

              They're drawin' boxes on the ground
              Just to make us look on down
              All we gotta do is look around
              And take it one step over the line

              A one step over the line
              Come on baby, one step over the line

              https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=va2fy8EQ620 [youtube.com]

            • (Score: 2) by hemocyanin on Wednesday July 11 2018, @02:56AM

              by hemocyanin (186) on Wednesday July 11 2018, @02:56AM (#705538) Journal

              A view from the left: totally true about Democrats. A bunch of prudes and shushers who never met a war in the fertile crescent, along the silk road, or in N. Africa they didn't like. Plus the hardon for Russia is demented.

          • (Score: 3, Insightful) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:11PM (9 children)

            by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @07:11PM (#705320) Journal

            Having sex with an animal, any animal, seems perverse.

            In other words, all sex is perverse. Even sex with homo sapiens.

            --
            [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
            • (Score: 0, Flamebait) by exaeta on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:12PM (7 children)

              by exaeta (6957) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:12PM (#705348) Homepage Journal

              Humans are not "animals" unless you are writing a biology paper. Learn contextual definitions egghead.

              --
              The Government is a Bird
              • (Score: 5, Funny) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:27PM (4 children)

                You're the first typing vegetable I've ever had the pleasure of conversing with then. Man, this "I can identify as whatever I want" bullshit is getting out of hand.

                --
                My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                • (Score: 1) by exaeta on Sunday July 15 2018, @04:50PM (3 children)

                  by exaeta (6957) on Sunday July 15 2018, @04:50PM (#707651) Homepage Journal

                  While I understand your point, under mainstream understanding "humans" are separate from animals and plants, etc. and we occupy our own category separate from other beings. The fact that biologically that distinction is arbitrary doesn't change the way the word is used 90% of the time.

                  --
                  The Government is a Bird
                  • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Monday July 16 2018, @05:37PM (2 children)

                    Yeah, I'm aware of that. I try to not cater to idiocy or hubris though.

                    --
                    My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                    • (Score: 1) by exaeta on Sunday July 22 2018, @05:56PM (1 child)

                      by exaeta (6957) on Sunday July 22 2018, @05:56PM (#710818) Homepage Journal

                      *cough* Ahem.

                      It's a bit pretentious of you to think scientists are "right" and regular usage of the word is "wrong", given the latter usage has much more precdent towards its usage. If you look at it objectively, scientists are wrong. Much like when scientists tell me that spiders aren't "bugs", I tell them to fuck off, who made you in charge of deciding what a "bug" is? Likewise, when a biologist tells me humans are animals, I would also tell them to fuck off since nobody made biologists in charge of deciding what the word "animal" means when used outside the field of biology. True hubris is thinking so called "experts" are in charge of the dictionary instead of looking towards how words are used (the objective approach).

                      --
                      The Government is a Bird
              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 11 2018, @10:03AM (1 child)

                by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 11 2018, @10:03AM (#705651)

                You bet the fuck they are, and you're a fine example.

                • (Score: 1) by Sulla on Thursday July 12 2018, @12:54AM

                  by Sulla (5173) on Thursday July 12 2018, @12:54AM (#706023) Journal

                  Wow, calling people animals? Okay Donald.

                  --
                  Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
            • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:21PM

              I dunno about perverse but it's bloody hilarious fairly often.

              --
              My rights don't end where your fear begins.
      • (Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:06PM

        by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:06PM (#705132) Homepage Journal

        Does anyone remember Adam Ant? Goody Two Shoes? "Don't drink, don't smoke, what do you do?" That song was about me, it could have been about me. I was a regular at Studio 54. I was the guy that didn't drink. Didn't smoke. Didn't snort coke. Didn't pop pills. But I did so much sexually. And frankly, I still do. I'm 72, I'm no baby. I've done everything you can imagine -- and many things you can't. But if they gave an award for missionary, I'd win it. I don't need an award, I have 5 children. 4 of them, so beautiful. One was a mistake. Nice thing about being very very rich, you can make a mistake sometimes and it's OK. You can give yourself a mulligan.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:57PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:57PM (#705262)

        The democrats finally learned how to fight, but they have done it by copying the republicans, and that puts me right off.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:59PM (27 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @12:59PM (#705033)

    Is this really the most important issue?

    • (Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:04PM (17 children)

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:04PM (#705034) Journal

      It is according to the mainstream media:

      https://news.google.com/search?q=roe%20v%20wade&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen [google.com]

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:12PM (16 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:12PM (#705039)

        Well pretty much everything I read there turns out to be wrong so whats really going on?

        • (Score: 4, Interesting) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:54PM (15 children)

          by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:54PM (#705070) Journal

          You can't really point to just one issue. There's a myriad of small and large issues spread out over a long period of time.

          Here's an issue. Democrats lost an election that should have been a cinch on paper, in part because of a low energy candidate with a cloud of misconduct surrounding her. And now Democrats have to pay the price, for many years. Consider that Brett K. over here could easily be trying cases on the SCOTUS for the next 30 years. That 2045 Singularity rolls around, and he's probably still there. Furthermore, President Trump could easily be picking a 3rd Justice, and even a 4th or 5th if he wins a second term. So SCOTUS will be right-leaning for a long time to come.

          The track record link in the summary mentions some of the decisions he's made. Here's some stuff relevant to our crowd:

          Digital privacy: He joined other judges in rejecting a challenge to the National Security Agency's warrantless collection of phone “metadata” — writing that the operation, exposed by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, "is entirely consistent with the Fourth Amendment." Furthermore, he wrote, a "critical national security need outweighs the impact on privacy occasioned by this program."

          He had a more mixed record in a case debating whether authorities needed a warrant to place a GPS tracker on a suspect’s car. On one hand, he and other Republican judges said, the suspect had no reasonable expectation of privacy in his public movements. But Kavanaugh separately said the government might have violated the suspect's property rights by tampering with his vehicle — an argument that Justice Antonin Scalia later cited in ruling that authorities indeed need a warrant.

          [...] Net neutrality: He called the FCC’s net neutrality order an "unlawful” First Amendment violation in a 2017 dissent.

          --
          [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:04PM (9 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:04PM (#705079)

            He sounds like a letter of the law type of dude.

            • (Score: 2, Insightful) by jmorris on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:24PM (8 children)

              by jmorris (4844) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:24PM (#705144)

              Which makes him a horrible person. To Proggies America is a horribly evil place with horribly evil laws written by horrible evil white men. If the guy upholds any of that evil stuff he is evil incarnate himself. Hell, just look at the evil white heterosexual maleness of him!

              I'm looking forward to mining the salty tears of the hapless proggies as they lose. Even better, actuarial tables give pretty good odds of either Breyer or Ginsberg leaving the court while Trump is POTUS, which is of course the only way either of those rabid partisans would leave, feet first. Even a decent chance of BOTH going, God does seem to be inclined to give Trump unnaturally uncanny luck. Which is kinda odd considering his history.

              I'm looking forward to abortion ceasing to be THE major issue of our day. With Roe overturned State Legislatures will quickly be forced to adapt local laws to local views and everybody will basically be happy with the result. And with it removed as a bad precedent a lot of other bad law can be cleared off the books. The Rule of Law has a chance to return to the land. But we will need at least one more seat to make that kind of Restoration stick.

              • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:48PM (2 children)

                Which makes him a horrible person. To Proggies America is a horribly evil place with horribly evil laws written by horrible evil white men. If the guy upholds any of that evil stuff he is evil incarnate himself. Hell, just look at the evil white heterosexual maleness of him!

                You troll but that's a disturbingly accurate representation of all too many of them.

                --
                My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                • (Score: 1, Flamebait) by jmorris on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:23PM (1 child)

                  by jmorris (4844) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:23PM (#705186)

                  It is hard to troll this one, reality is too insane. Isn't it a certainty that at least one of the late nite "comics" will have their trained seal audience clapping away at some dumb attack on his "unbearable whiteness?" Poor bastard didn't even wife up a PoC and have mixed race children to hold up as a shield. Could have at least adopted some pet Haitians as intersectional cover. And of course to complete the insanity trifecta, during the months of racist attacks we all see coming on this poor bastard, anyone who notices and calls them out will be the "real racists" because THEY can never be racist, no matter how racist they act.

                  • (Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:51PM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:51PM (#705256)

                    Hard to troll? Next you'll tell me that jmorris has trouble breathing sulfur.

              • (Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:29PM (3 children)

                by DeathMonkey (1380) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:29PM (#705355) Journal

                Which makes him a horrible person. To Proggies America is a horribly evil place with horribly evil laws written by horrible evil white men. If the guy upholds any of that evil stuff he is evil incarnate himself. Hell, just look at the evil white heterosexual maleness of him!

                Per usual Jmo can't win a debate with any of the actual humans posting on this site so he resorts to debating a figment of his imagination. Classic!

                • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday July 10 2018, @09:18PM (2 children)

                  Seemed fairly dead on the money for you to me. If that's not the case you might want to occasionally type some words that might let folks know that despite bitching about absolutely everything, you do love your country and aren't a fashionable bigot.

                  --
                  My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Aegis on Tuesday July 10 2018, @11:02PM (1 child)

                    by Aegis (6714) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @11:02PM (#705434)

                    Unlike you two, DeathMonkey posted actual quotes from the subject at hand to criticize.

                    Your attempt at debate is to circle-jerk with jmorris all over that strawman you just constructed.

              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:45PM

                by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @08:45PM (#705365)

                I'm looking forward to mining the salty tears of the hapless proggies as they lose.

                I'm sure there will be plenty of salty tears (and blood) on the floor before this is all over with. I won't be at all surprised if a fair bit of those tears and blood are your own.

                I'm looking forward to abortion ceasing to be THE major issue of our day.

                If you are looking for abortion to cease being THE major issue of the day, then overturning Roe v Wade is NOT the way to make that happen. Just the opposite, in fact. Look! On the horizon! The 1980s are galloping back toward us again!

                With Roe overturned State Legislatures will quickly be forced to adapt local laws to local views and everybody will basically be happy with the result.

                *Snort* Ummm, yeah. I'm sure everyone will be fine with the end result.

                And with it removed as a bad precedent a lot of other bad law can be cleared off the books.

                Such as? No, really. I'm genuinely curious about this. What "bad law" has come out of the Roe v Wade precedent? Please enlighten us.

          • (Score: 1) by Sulla on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:22PM

            by Sulla (5173) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:22PM (#705225) Journal

            could easily be trying cases on the SCOTUS for the next 30 years

            i thought the guy was 65 for some reason, but he is only 53.

            --
            Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
          • (Score: 5, Insightful) by Thexalon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:23PM (3 children)

            by Thexalon (636) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @05:23PM (#705228)

            And now Democrats have to pay the price, for many years.

            There are two problems with that statement:
            1. It's unclear how much of a price the Democrats really have to pay. Hillary Clinton really didn't: She can live quite comfortably on her 9-figures of assets for the rest of her life, plus whatever she got for the book complaining about losing. Pelosi, Schumer, and company are going to be just fine. Any of the candidates who lost their seats go on to be lobbyists, give high-dollar speeches, get news appearance fees, or in rare cases end up at think tanks, so they'll be just fine. And the big-money donors are getting what they need from the Democrats, which also means the Democratic-affiliated political consultants are doing just fine.

            2. Regardless of the price the Democrats have to pay, it's entirely possible a lot of citizens have to pay a very steep price for basically unopposed rule by a party that both believes government doesn't work and is doing everything in their power to prove it. For example, thousands of Puerto Ricans are still paying the price for incompetent-at-best disaster management that means much of the island has yet to recover from a hurricane that was almost a year ago. Had Obama's FEMA director Craig Fugate or one of his protoge's still been in office, disaster response would have been likely much better, and the island would likely have electricity, fixed roads, and sufficient food and water supplies.

            I don't give a damn about the price the Democratic leadership has to pay. I care a great deal about the price thousands of ordinary citizens have to pay for political foul-ups.

            --
            The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:23PM (7 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:23PM (#705099)

      Yes, it is.

      It is incredibly important.

      The only things that eclipse its importance are the larger sociological reasons of why we are even here. We become aware that capitalism, once again, has already begun its inevitable toboggan ride.

      The Transitional Program [marxists.org]:

      "The bourgeoisie itself sees no way out. In countries where it has already been forced to stake its last upon the card of fascism, it now toboggans with closed eyes toward an economic and military catastrophe."

      --Leon Trotsky, 1938

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:28PM (6 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:28PM (#705104)

        Yes, it is.

        It is incredibly important.

        Why?

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:37PM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:37PM (#705111)

          See here [care-net.org] and here [splinternews.com]

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:52PM (1 child)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:52PM (#705123)

            Fuck you, Bubba. If you can't articulate an answer to GP, then you obviously don't understand the issues you are talking about. We can't be bothered to read some obscure links, while at the same time trying to read your puerile mind.

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:21PM

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:21PM (#705139)

              t r i g g e r e d ! Try here [spectator.co.uk]

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:13PM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:13PM (#705135)

          Why is the fight against routine male infant genital mutilation important?

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:39PM (1 child)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:39PM (#705155)

            I don't think any medical issue should be a priority of the supreme court. I mean it was only in 1990 or so that doctors began believing that babies could feel pain...

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:09PM

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:09PM (#705180)

              Ah, I see your point.

              I attempt to draw attention to the larger sociological issues--the capitalist toboggan ride, which is partly demonstrated by the capability of the elites to dictate arbitrary limits to the inherent authority that an individual has over his or her own body. (Including drug policy in addition to sexual matters. Likely other examples lurking as well.)

    • (Score: 5, Insightful) by Thexalon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:49PM

      by Thexalon (636) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:49PM (#705121)

      Good point!

      For example, I consider the most important issues facing the court system to be binding arbitration clauses: When they can be used, and when they can't be, and when even if they're in place they can be ignored. The reason that's critical is that it has the potential to basically scrap the entirety of civil law in the US whenever a business is the defendant. In short, it's a recipe for every business you deal with, from your employer to your ISP, being able to do whatever they like to you and being beyond the reach of the courts if they do something that's against the rules.

      It's not that the abortion issue doesn't matter, but it's not the only issue that matters. And from what I've seen on Kavanaugh about those kinds of issues, I don't like what I see.

      --
      The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:11PM (9 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:11PM (#705038)

    Listen to the short, uninspired speech [youtube.com] Kavanaugh gives when introduced by Trump. It's terrible.

    It's a poorly written smattering of irrelevant factoids. It's more political (i.e., emotional) than judicial in nature; he was Bush's aid, and he was hired by Kagan.

    He's just a strange choice, and his speech-giving and writing just further damage my perception of judges in general.

    "What do you call the guy who ranked last in law school? 'Your Honor'."

    • (Score: 5, Insightful) by Entropy on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:29PM (2 children)

      by Entropy (4228) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:29PM (#705051)

      To be fair.. he's not a politician. His job isn't to speak in public, or lie about everything.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:51PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:51PM (#705066)

        In his speech, he talks about his mother being in the legal profession, his father loving sports, his mother's advice to follow one's gut, and his pride in having hired mostly women to be his clerks. It's a monstrously stupid, emotional, and base political speech, which was delivered in a childish manner and which diminishes this person's credibility as being worthy of crafting pronouncements from the Supreme Court.

      • (Score: 2) by fritsd on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:42PM

        by fritsd (4586) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @03:42PM (#705159) Journal

        Actually, I disagree, because I always thought that a judge had to be very careful with his/her words, on the record, in the courtroom. A certain amount of decorum is expected: "here speaketh the Law! You're sentenced to life in prison! No wait, strike that from the record, that's the next crim. 16 hours community service!".

        I know that's not like speaking in public, or lying about everything. But I'd imagine when a judge has to make a public speech it would be very short and about judges etc.

        I don't actually know any judges (can you tell?)

    • (Score: 2) by Oakenshield on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:33PM (1 child)

      by Oakenshield (4900) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:33PM (#705054)

      "What do you call the guy who ranked last in law school? 'Your Honor'."

      So you are saying if you can pass law school that automatically makes you a judge?

      • (Score: 4, Interesting) by Zinho on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:49PM

        by Zinho (759) on Tuesday July 10 2018, @01:49PM (#705062)

        No, he's saying that failed lawyers join the judiciary; they need a steady paycheck because they can't make a living in private practice.

        The relevant car analogy is that good auto mechanics get paid by the job, bad ones get paid by the hour.

        --
        "Space Exploration is not endless circles in low earth orbit." -Buzz Aldrin
    • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:05PM (3 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:05PM (#705080)

      ... and why someone of your liking is NOT the choice.

      The nominee has to pass the Senate, which is nothing but a gauntlet of politics. Just look at the YouTube comments to get a feel for the nature of the constituents that Senators represent; for example [youtube.com]:

      That high 5 from his youngest daughter told me all I need to know.

      This is a good man. A loving and devoted family man!

      His respect for President Trump was icing on the cake!

      You have to respect the office even if you didn't support the man!

      Kavanaugh did not support Trump in the election.

      He was even outspoken against him, and yet he respected Trump's decision process.

      Sorry, man, but that's the world in which we live. You're surrounded by morons, and in a democratical system, you've got to pander to them.

      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:27PM (2 children)

        by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @02:27PM (#705103) Journal

        I agree with your sentiment, but you have to be careful about extrapolating from YouTube comments. It's a caustic mix of normies, trolls, edgelords, 9-year-olds, conspiracy theorists, and plain morons. And each channel and individual video has a different mix, like a unique petri dish of bacteria swabbed from a mouth, toilet seat, or keyboard.

        --
        [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:12PM (1 child)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:12PM (#705181)

          And each channel and individual video has a different mix, like a unique petri dish of bacteria swabbed from a mouth, toilet seat, or keyboard.

          Hilarious and excellent!

          However, can we get a car analogy?

          • (Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:39PM

            by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday July 10 2018, @04:39PM (#705198) Journal

            It's like an Uber. The steering wheel is the most disgusting part since hands are touching it all day. But in the back you might have a lot of piss or vomit. And other times people might try to have sex in the vehicle. Finally, sometimes the driver or passenger are shooting at one another, spraying blood and viruses all over.

            --
            [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
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