"Sooner or later everyone sits down to a banquet of consequences." - Robert Louis Stevenson
We've had one more stumble into the yawning rabbit hole of our Nation's demise.
It's really hard to write this. History was made yesterday, when the 115th Senate voted to confirm Judge Brett Kavenaugh as a Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States.
And to every decision, there are consequences. One hundred people, elected to represent our interests, sat and made a decision. And that decision has consequences. Some are big, some are small, but the repercussions of that decision will be lasting.
I have been filled with anxiety and dread for several weeks, and now the reality is that this man is on the highest court. I look at my one-year-old granddaughter, and I fear the consequences that she will face because of it -- through her whole life. That's a sobering thought.
So what do we take away from the last couple weeks? (Caution: Debbie Downer stands up below, but keep reading; Hopeful Little Sister Resister comes back!)
Consequences to every last one of us:
1. Our Democracy has taken a astronomical hit. "Due Process" is a concept that is dead. Doing the Right Thing = dead. Compassion = dead. The nation is not only deeply divided, which in itself is not a bad thing, but the very fabric of our Nation is tearing. The principles which have guided us for 241 years are crumpled.
Here is an excellent
essay in the Washington Post that lays it out better than I ever could.
2. We've reached a new low in our discourse. A new level of incivility is upon the land. "Incivility" is an understatement. It was sickening to witness what we've witnessed in the last week or so. I could not believe a grown man acting so childish and entitled, challenging and mocking Senators of the United States.
We have come to expect this sickening behavior from SCROTUS. His comments at a
rally in Mississippi, mocking Dr. Ford and her testimony, was a new low, even for him. But it's not unexpected. And that fact in itself is incredibly sad.
We have come to expect it from the entitled, elite white old men who lord over the land. It was shocking, but not surprising, when Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), made Brett the victim, and made a spectacle of himself calling the process "Hell."
But the person who wants to be placed to the highest court? Speaking to
Senators of the United States of America? Sitting before them to ask them to bestow upon him the honor of sitting on the highest bench? Asking their favor to judge his fitness?
Brett sneered to Sen. Kolbucher (D-MN), "Have you ever blacked out?" Not once but TWICE. And to Sen. Whitehouse (D-RI), “Do you like beer, senator? What do you like to drink?” His graceless questions may have been awkward attempts at filibustering each Senator's five minutes, but it showed his true colors as a boorish, contemptible man-child. Not fit for the highest court in the land. Not fit even to have dinner in my home.
His defense of this angry, sniveling, undisciplined, undignified testimony? "
Look at what you made me do." Another gas-lighting, abusive man in power. Great.
3. Another branch of our Tri-Corner Government has been dirtied. The one that seemed to be standing firm with nearly unblemished reputation. The Supreme Court, once the hallowed ground for the most elevated, thoughtful, even-tempered, and fair-minded individuals in whose trust we place to hand down far-reaching decisions and to be an integral part of our Nation's checks and balances: Sullied. Credibility vanished.
Many in the Judge Business advised the Senate not to confirm. The
American Bar Association warned not to confirm in a letter sent to the Senate Judicial Committee.
Quite alarmingly, judges on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, D.C, Circuit, where Justice (I shudder to use that word) Kavenaugh sat for 12 years,
sent more than a dozen letters to Chief Justice Roberts, complaining of judicial misconduct on the part of Brett Kavenaugh. Justice Roberts did not act on the complaints, and now they are forever buried.
And perhaps most dismaying,
Justice Kagan has grave concerns about this appointment and what in means for our Nation. She laments, "It's an incredibly important thing for the court to guard is this reputation of being impartial, being neutral and not being simply extension of a terribly polarizing process." She fears that the Court will lose legitimacy. I've wondered over the last week what the other Justices think of him and the trajectory of the Court. Perhaps someday we'll hear from more of them.
Never in our history has there been so many misgivings about a Supreme Court nominee, from top to bottom, in this country. The Supreme Court is deeply wounded.
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∞ repercussions to the country. You can fill in with more (or comment below).
Consequences to our children:
Girls' and women's beliefs that they don't count, that they won't be believed, that there are no consequences to their attackers, are being cemented.
Boys' and men's beliefs that women don't count, that no one will believe them, that they have no consequences to their actions, are being cemented.
Consequences to the Midterms and Beyond:
Here's where we have some positives.
Many pundits have speculated that this issue has motivated the Republican base as it has the Democrat base. I doubt it. And if it has, it has only fired up the basest of the base (and I do mean that in the Shakespearian meaning of
base (
base (adjective): not showing any honour and having no morals)). I want to believe that most Republican citizens, in their hearts, believe Christine Blasey Ford and do not approve of this man's behavior at his Senate hearing. That's what is in my heart.
And for the rest, they may cheer their Misogynistic Cheeto, but I really don't think they are as fired up and mobilized as those on the Center on over to the Left.
So, the consequences for the Republicans: they are going to get demolished at the polls in a few weeks, and for years to come. And specifically, consequences for Susan Collins. Shortly after Kavenaugh was nominated, there came a
kickstarter-type campaign to raise money for Collins's eventual opponent, to be collected from donors only if she chose to vote to confirm him. She voted yes, so her as-yet-unnamed 2020 opponent has a chest of over 3 million dollars already! (
Susan Rice yesterday gave an indication that she may jump in the race.)
This article is great. It outlines that Republicans may have won the battle, but Democrats will definitely win the war.
The numbers fluctuate, but in general, there are more Democrats than Republicans, and
Gallup reports that as of October, 2107, at least, more of those who identify as independent lean left than lean right. From
Wikipedia:
As of October 2017, Gallup polling found that 31% of Americans identified as Democrat, 24% identified as Republican, and 42% as Independent. Additionally, polling showed that 46% are either "Democrats or Democratic leaners" and 39% are either "Republicans or Republican leaners" when Independents are asked "do you lean more to the Democratic Party or the Republican Party?"
And nearly every single one of them is fired up.
Change happens when people get angry. People in the streets ended Vietnam. People in the streets furthered Civil Rights. People in the streets WILL stand up and right our course. I'm sure of it. It'll take time to undo the damages, but
it will happen. We need to work together. Next stop: November 6.
And when they are in power again,
David Atkins of the Washington Monthly advises that they channel their inner Mitch McConnell and push their agendas hard. Change will happen. Change must happen.
Consequences to our knowledge base:
Ok, I'm stretching it but I need to find more positives. People are learning. Knowledge is good. We're learning more about sexual assault and its effects. We're learning about the concept of "innocent until proven guilty" (Hint: it's a legal premise protecting the accused in a criminal court. It does not apply to job applicants). We're learning about brain science and the way memories are laid down in our brain. Dr. Ford herself explained a little about the neurology of trauma memories being stored in the hippocampus. (Which by the way, if any one of those Senators can remember what they were doing at 8:46am EDT on September 11, 2001, but not recall what they had for breakfast that morning, they are living proof of the kind of episodic traumatic memory that Dr. Ford described).
Consequences to our Nations Laws:
There are real fears that Kavenaugh's inclusion on the Court will usher in overturning many of our treasured laws. The biggest fear is that Roe v Wade will be overturned and individual States will once again decide if abortion is to remain legal or not. There is also fear that Kavenaugh will be the deciding factor in overturning the Affordable Care Act, affirmative action, and even curtailing the Mueller investigation and giving life to the notion to the President is above the law. Reeeealllly scary shit.
For more reading on the consequences of Kavenaugh on the Supreme Court, read
FiveThirtyEight or
CNN.
Though the Court is now more conservative than ever, we have to remember that Kavenaugh is but one voice among nine. He will not be single-handedly changing laws. My heart wants to believe that the process will still work.
(please please please let the process work) And we still have the Notorious RBG! Please stay alive, Ruth!
Let us consider this other quote about consequences. We who have studied psychology know this to be true.
"The consequences of an act affect the probability of its occurring again." - B. F. Skinner
Now, it's our job. Each and every one of us must be active citizens of this great country and mete out consequences. Let's get to the polls on November 6. Motivate those around you. Keep the conversation going. Let's get that Moral Compass repaired
STAT!
WE CAN DO IT!
RESIST! VOTE!
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