Dangerous Rhetoric
As a member of the legal profession, I feel that I have been
assaulted. First, during the presidential election, the GOP felt
that they could demonize my profession for political gain. Now,
in the aftermath of the Schiavo saga, a key Republican Senator has tried to spin the recent bouts of violence against judges as a sign that the public is unhappy with the judiciary:
seen some recent episodes of courthouse violence in this country. …
And I wonder whether there may be some connection between the
perception in some quarters, on some occasions, where judges are making
political decisions yet are unaccountable to the public, that it builds
up and builds up and builds up to the point where some people engage
in, engage in violence.
Nevermind, that the man who killed the husband and mother of a Federal
Judge in Illinois was schizophrenic, or that the man who shot through a
courtroom in Atlanta was trying to escape during a rape trial,
aren’t exactly representatives of “public” sentiment. Spin. Spin.
Spin. Is this the message that we should be putting out when
we’re trying to teach the Iraqis that they shouldn’t blow up their
judges? Do we want to live in the specter of a place where people
don’t want to be judges for fear of violence? Think of judge killings
in Bogota related to the narcotics trade; it’s not exactly pretty.
Also, if you want to review and verify Senator Cornyn’s comments in their proper context, here’s the link.
Simon
April 6, 2005 @ 6:36 pm
Jeez, what a fucking assclown. Apparently, the rule of law goes right out the window when judges make decisions that stand in the way of a politician’s political gain. Never mind that most of the judges in the Schaivo case were Republican appointees, either. Who cares about proper constitutional interpretation when there’s voters to impress? This guy is in serious need of a cockpunch.
Sorry for the profanity, but stuff like this really gets on my nerves.