I wish you would stop using the word "conservative" to describe these louts. It's inaccurate. Two plus two equals four. There are twenty-four hours in a day. The Federalist Society is not Burkean. Otherwise great post.
I will also argue that the Federalist Society is a collection of self-deceivers, a massing of the emotionally stunted segment of our society in dire need of reconstructive nurturing parenting (emotional therapy). This falls within the realm of extroceptual epigenetics (a mouthful, sorry), requiring a regression to a state of receptivity to positive feedback to trauma. Psychologists are working on it; it's a new field, and we're learning more every day.
You could not have made a better argument against the idea that "conservatives" are, in fact, conservative. Conserving means following similar process rules to reach applicable decisions, regardless of political stance. We have no reason to believe there will ever be no distinction between political points of view, which is why the Founders' system of checks and balances is so brilliant, if alternatively frustrating to opposing points of view (you know what I mean!). A heads-up perspective, emotional equilibrium, and insightful governing strategy brings us together as a people. It's "messy", but durable, and we've struggled too far to give it up now to an overweaning wealth concentration in the hands of reactionaries exercising bad faith and calling it "conservative". Thank you, George. Robert is right, that the creeping bad faith of Repugnicans has mounted slowly to this tipping point, showing the slow learning of professional fence-sitters that a more diligent defense of good faith is the key to keeping our democracy.
We made the mistake of believing that Trump would take over the judiciary after he consolidated power; however, we were mistaken, SCOTUS was waiting for a Trump to arrive and has chipped away at the constitution enough over the years to finally grant total authority to Dear Leader. It has been a slow painful death, by a thousand judicial and legislative (red states) cuts!
These recent opinions have fulfilled the conservative movements “wet dream” since the Nixon era; they made Trump the Unitary Executive, and he, Heritage and The Federalist Society will allow him to destroy every government institution beyond repair, before even one of these cases are ever brought before the Supreme Court.
And by that time, the damage will have been done and beyond recognition.
StevenTeles' Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement documents this in detail - excruciating but readable - using his interviews with leading figures in the movement. The question I always ask - derived from historical linguistics - is was there a break in transmission? At what point did X stop being X? If we trace Republican/Conservative thinking back and back and back, we get the connection between religion and the universal human value of 'feather your own nest." Religion allows that because you cannot argue with god and, by extension, with his representatives on Earth. That fits perfectly into the temporal use of law whereby representatives of the 'natural order' vest themselves with the authority to direct the rest of us. "...that their decisions flow from principle rather than preference," but they are principled: we are annointed to rule; that's the principle. They rely on spurious research by discredited scholars like Charles Murray who gave them the arguments for Black inferiority, further catering to some Americans' reliance on that inferiority to secure their own place in the hierarchy. Thus the turning points of Brown v Board, the Civil Rights Act, threatening a hierarchy carefully built over many generations. Where is the break in transmission?
I wish you would stop using the word "conservative" to describe these louts. It's inaccurate. Two plus two equals four. There are twenty-four hours in a day. The Federalist Society is not Burkean. Otherwise great post.
I will also argue that the Federalist Society is a collection of self-deceivers, a massing of the emotionally stunted segment of our society in dire need of reconstructive nurturing parenting (emotional therapy). This falls within the realm of extroceptual epigenetics (a mouthful, sorry), requiring a regression to a state of receptivity to positive feedback to trauma. Psychologists are working on it; it's a new field, and we're learning more every day.
You could not have made a better argument against the idea that "conservatives" are, in fact, conservative. Conserving means following similar process rules to reach applicable decisions, regardless of political stance. We have no reason to believe there will ever be no distinction between political points of view, which is why the Founders' system of checks and balances is so brilliant, if alternatively frustrating to opposing points of view (you know what I mean!). A heads-up perspective, emotional equilibrium, and insightful governing strategy brings us together as a people. It's "messy", but durable, and we've struggled too far to give it up now to an overweaning wealth concentration in the hands of reactionaries exercising bad faith and calling it "conservative". Thank you, George. Robert is right, that the creeping bad faith of Repugnicans has mounted slowly to this tipping point, showing the slow learning of professional fence-sitters that a more diligent defense of good faith is the key to keeping our democracy.
We made the mistake of believing that Trump would take over the judiciary after he consolidated power; however, we were mistaken, SCOTUS was waiting for a Trump to arrive and has chipped away at the constitution enough over the years to finally grant total authority to Dear Leader. It has been a slow painful death, by a thousand judicial and legislative (red states) cuts!
These recent opinions have fulfilled the conservative movements “wet dream” since the Nixon era; they made Trump the Unitary Executive, and he, Heritage and The Federalist Society will allow him to destroy every government institution beyond repair, before even one of these cases are ever brought before the Supreme Court.
And by that time, the damage will have been done and beyond recognition.
Brilliant!
StevenTeles' Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement documents this in detail - excruciating but readable - using his interviews with leading figures in the movement. The question I always ask - derived from historical linguistics - is was there a break in transmission? At what point did X stop being X? If we trace Republican/Conservative thinking back and back and back, we get the connection between religion and the universal human value of 'feather your own nest." Religion allows that because you cannot argue with god and, by extension, with his representatives on Earth. That fits perfectly into the temporal use of law whereby representatives of the 'natural order' vest themselves with the authority to direct the rest of us. "...that their decisions flow from principle rather than preference," but they are principled: we are annointed to rule; that's the principle. They rely on spurious research by discredited scholars like Charles Murray who gave them the arguments for Black inferiority, further catering to some Americans' reliance on that inferiority to secure their own place in the hierarchy. Thus the turning points of Brown v Board, the Civil Rights Act, threatening a hierarchy carefully built over many generations. Where is the break in transmission?
But knowing that, what is next to be done? Our Supreme Court is full of shit but aren't we stuck with them?
https://theweek.com/speedreads/748344/russian-birth-tourists-are-flocking-miami-trump-condos-give-birth-american-citizens
Well, certain people will continue getting birthright citizenship. In addition Trump is selling citizenship, who’d want to be here?
Also, I don’t think this EXTREME Court wants democracy to survive. Their religious zealotry fuels much of how they think and act.
They punted Roe to the states fully knowing chaos would ensue.
They don’t respect what 70% of Americans want from a “free” life and they keep showing that states are abolishing settled law.
My term in 2016 to describe what I saw coming: The Republican-Federalist-Putin Coup Against America.
Putin, Trump, Netanyahu, the three headed dog guarding the gates of hell. Cerberus.
Yes, great post. What can we do?