Will Privacy and Free Choice be Sodomized?
The Supreme Court is going to be busy this session. Not only are they addressing Affirmative Action and sodomy laws, but Miranda rights are also to get a review.
The Miranda case is merely an extension of the Administration's assault on liberties in the name of fighting terrorism. The actual case comes from Oxnard, CA, but the Department of Justice has filed friend-of-the-court briefs in support of repealing Miranda rights. Think of all the TV scripts in process that would have to be re-written if Miranda rights are repealed. As a youth, I never understood why "remaining silent" was a good thing, but I sure do now.
More incredible is the Sodomy case. Naturally, the challenge comes from Texas, which has laws on the books outlawing sodomy between homosexuals. Thirteen states have sodomy laws on the books; some only ban homosexual sodomy, others ban anal and oral sex for everyone.
The laws are rarely enforced, but when they are it is typically selective and symbolic enforcement.
I'll say it again: I view this type of Supreme Court power as Exhibit A for why the Nader campain in 2000 was a serious, serious mistake for liberal thinkers. One common refrain from the pro-Nader camp was that there was "no difference" between Gore and Bush. Well, Gore isn't exactly a populist liberal icon, but anybody who really believes that there is "no difference" isn't living in reality. The President (and the legislative bodies) control the makeup of the high court. The high court fundamentally shapes questions of privacy, choice, life, you name it. The appointments DO matter; thus the people making the appointments matter. As I see it, the Supremes are one of the only entrenched bodies that can stand in the way of the current attempt to steamroll individual rights. If we weaken that body too much, we might not have the luxury of evaluating whether we can cast a "symbolic" vote for Nader. In the meantime, how much have we sacrificed so that we could have a national commentary on the "One Party" system? And where are the benefits of that sacrifice? I don't see them.
12:25:29 PM 
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