THE CHURCH SUPPORTS LEGAL STATUS OF SAME SEX UNIONS

As reported in the October 21, New York Times, Pope Francis, in the documentary film (Francesco) released the same day at the Rome Film Festival, voiced a progressive shift in the Church’s tone affecting the LGBTQ community by supporting same-sex civil unions. The Catholic Church remains, though, opposed to same sex marriage).  The documentary reaffirms Pope Francis’ position that gay people are ’children of God’.

AMY CONEY BARRETT ‘S ‘ORIGINALISM’ WILL PUSH AMERICA BACK TO 1800s VICTORIANISM

The recent Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, used the term ”Sexual Preference” to describe the membership of the LGBTQ community. This was both shocking and foreboding. ’Shocking’ because, first, ’Sexual Preference’ as applied to the LBGTQ community is scientifically an obsolete and inaccurate descriptor by at least a couple of decades... as established by genetic studies that.prove human gender is not the 1800s strictly (and strictly ’enforced’) heterosexual picture and therefore variances (LGBTQ) from traditionalist heterosexuality are genetically ’natural and legitimate’ and therefore cannot, should not, be an issue for legal punishment, social ostracizing. employment discrimination ... or any form of gender-disadvantaging..

Second, equally as shocking, Barrett’s use of “sexual preference”, if sincere and not the rote-spouting of an ideologue who knows better, either reveals she is embarrassingly ’out  of touch’ or painfully ignorant about current scientific realism regarding sexuality and is thus unqualified to render a SCOTUS opinion on some of today's most important and sensitive legal protection issues in America. 

(if Barrett was insincerely spouting learned ideology then America is indeed screwed because Barrett comes with a ’preformed, Radical-right agenda’.).  

With Justice Barrett in the lead, will America see a revival of gender conversion therapy that will, in disguise as a ’corrective’ medical treatment, legally pressure LGBTQ persons to recant their ‘flawed’ sexual ‘choice’, i.e., LGBTQ, to miraculously and enthusiastically embrace their new heterosexuality... a genetic lie?  

And then, lastly, Barrett’s use of the ‘sexual preference’ descriptor is foreboding because whether sincere or not, Barrett will be a factor for regressing America by fifty years or more on several critical legal fronts - healthcare, ‘abortion rights, voting rights and protections, women’s equal pay in the workplace, labor rights, minority issues, ...and in other issues that are not strictly in the ’progressive’camp but are vital to the security and quality of American life.

ORIGINALISM!  

(This post is a warning about the dangerous, regressive effect an ultra-conservative ‘Originalism’ interpretation of the American Constitution will likely have on America. And more, will the recent nomination to the Supreme Court of Amy Coney Barrett, a self-described ‘Originalist’ (ala her legal mentor Anthonin Scalia under whom she clerked) bring about a radically imbalanced Supreme Court (6-3 conservative) in favor of ultra-conservatism and consequentially reverse a century of American social progress.

CRITIQUING ORIGINALISM. 

This blogger regards ‘Originalism” as an excuse to avoid putting the extra effort, beyond simply reading, into studying and understanding the deeper meanings of the American Constitution as they relate to an evolved America two hundred years after the Founders, ...and gaining a perspective about future issues that might face the Constitution . This and more would be the benefits of a non-literalist interpretation of the Constitution. Doesn’t it seem that the ‘sacred’ jurisprudence goal of any serious candidate for the Supreme Court would be to present the benefits of such deeper search for meaning ... to show palpable, distinguished evidence in writings and case opinions that the candidate to the court has delved to and outstanding degree into the ‘What’s’,‘Wherefores’, Why’s’ and ‘Hows’ that underpin the deeper philosophical concepts that shaped the Founders’ thoughts and intentions, especially regarding the potential ‘Relevancy’ contained in a ‘Living Constitution’. 

IMHO, Originalists take a permanent lunch break midway in the above sequence of Constitutional interpretayion while others are left to clean up the wreckage caused by ‘mis-application’ from too-narrow interpretations resulting in mis-applicaton.

A quick explanation of legal-world ‘Originalism’ could be by comparison with its opposite’s view of the Constitution. 

For an ‘Originalist’, the Constituion is a static document containing the Founders holy words which should only be read and memorized like a catechism...and not ‘messed with’ by verlaying things and opinions outside its exact historical context. For example, an Originalist ‘studying’ the Constitution as written’ would not see any relation between the written words and the multitude of passing cars (no horses in sight) and especially seeing people of all colors and gender endowmemts walking around blithely and unworried by their ‘differences’ from a so-called norm... as written, or implied in our Constitution, 200 plus years ago.

The apposite legalist, on ther other hand, becomes immersed in the Constituion and attempts to interpret its words relevant to the here and now. 

Given that a majority of the Founders were slave owners, and saw neither slaves nor women as potential voters, it seems highly threatening to current social meaning and stability to take ‘Originalism’ seriously. 

OTHERS’ VIEWS ON ORIGINALISM

Umair Haque’s article (Medium, October 24, 2020) cuts right to the core of his distaste for Originalism in its relation to the Senate Confirmation Hearing on the nominaton of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court:

Umair Haque on Originalism:                                                                                                  “How “Originalism” Prevented America From Becoming Part of the Modern World  (“The ACB Hearings Show How Antiquated, Racist, and Misogynist Trying to Think Like a 18th Century White Man Really Is”)

Haque’s is a fitting social media title that aptly conveys the controversy about judge Barrett’s unsuitability because of her “Originalist” interpretation of the American Constitution. 

America may have a decades-long clean-up ahead if Amy Coney Barrett indeed sits on the Supreme Court. (Of course, there will be many praying that she will ‘grow’ to acknowledge America’s evolution since the Founders and Barrett will adapt her legal and moral perspectives in accord.

==============================

The title of this post summarizes the atmosphere surrounding the potential Supreme Court shift toward a strict (radical, perhaps) conservativist interpretation of the American Constitution in both legal philosophy and applied principles. This shift is anticipated from Donald Trump’s nomination to fill the recently vacant seat of liberal SCOTUS Associate Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsberg (deceased Sept 18, 2020) with the conservative Amy Coney Barrett (Appelate Justice).  

Judge Bader Ginsberg was ‘with’ us from 1993 to 2020, and played a central role, in her unassuming way, in shaping a modern America .... despite America’s strong counter-tides of tradionalist, even regressionist sentiments and factionism.  Ruth Bader Ginsberg will be more than missed.

  

Donald Trump, in a not unexpected manner, plans to drop on America, a souvenir of his hopefully only term as president.   

Trump’s ‘gift’ to America in this case is the nomination of Amy Conney Barrett to fill the now empty seat of Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Justice Ginsberg was a champion of women’s rights and equality, and made every effort to develop and extend the protections of those principles to everyone. Amy Conney Barrett is a stark contrast to Judge Ginsberg. Barrett is a career legal conservative and a somewhat more-than-even-traditional religious conservative - although raised in a strongly Catholic family, Barrett belonged to an ecumenical, charismatic covenant group, the People of Praise centered in Indiana.

Barrett comes with several areas of doubt about her suitability and legal ‘fit’ for the Supreme Court in today’s world, i.e., her ability to understand and relate to how America, and the world, have evolved over the 200 years since the Constitution was created. 

Recent article titles examplify the debate over her suitability to the nation;s highest court.  One such title is the lead-off to this post from ‘David’, Crooks and Liars (October 14, 2020)

 Internet Recoils In Horror Over Barrett's Ruling That Saying N-word Doesn't Make Workplace ‘Hostile’  (A ruling by Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett that whitewashed racism in the workplace shocked the Internet this week.)

Umair Haque notes this reservation in blunt manner (agreed with by Pericles21) in the above-mentioned Medium article (October 14, 2020);  

How “Originalism” Prevented America From Becoming Part of the Modern World  (“The ACB Hearings Show How Antiquated, Racist, and Misogynist Trying to Think Like a 18th Century White Man Really Is”)

And finally from  CathyYoung’s article on the Barrett nomination (ArcDigital, October 13, 2020):

The Handmaid and the Feminist                                                                                    Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination raises difficult questions of faith, justice, and gender.                                                                                                                                        “I believe that Barrett’s under-the-wire nomination — especially in conjunction with the Garland fiasco — stinks to high heaven on fair-play grounds. In fact, I would argue that if Barrett has not been confirmed by November 3 and if Trump loses, she should withdraw.”

Most notable from Ms Young’s just quoted ArcDigital article is it disparages the importance the LGBTQA community attaches to Coney Barrett’s “Sexual Preference” descriptor ... about which this blogger ‘Strongly’ takes issue in that “Sexual Preference” is so much a ‘Tell’ about where Coney Barrett’s mental context seems to belong, historically .... perhaps in Victorian England in the 1870s or so when LGBTQ were imprisoned or sent to mental wards). Or, most recently, in the 1950s America ...

“It’s this issue — the compromised moral legitimacy of the nomination itself — that Barrett’s critics should emphasize. Instead, much of the left has chosen ridiculous lines of attack such as Barrett’s use of the term “sexual preference” rather than “sexual orientation.” (Some LBGT activists argue “preference” is offensive because it implies that sexual orientation is a choice — even though the term is still widely used in scientific literature.) 

This blogger is not LGBTQA but “Sexual Preference” is so rmbarrasingly ‘yesterday’! Amy Coney Barrett has a lot of catching up to do to become a positive factor in America’s continued evoltition/

WHAT IF TRUMP JUMPS SHIP? (THERE ARE SO MANY SUCH SCENARIOS)

 To be brief - ‘we’d best be thinking about this last Knuckle Ball thrown by a ‘C&C’ master - Chaos and Confusion’, that is!!   

(This post makes note and recommends this possible scenario from the recent NewYorkMagazine article,  What If Trump Is All Too Eager to Give up Power? (Josh Barrow, Intelligencer, New York Magazine, October 19, 2020)

HEAR WE ARE (AGAIN) - HIGH FOOLISHNESS: THE EMPEROR’S CLOTHES....(FILL IN AS WISHED)

It seems we (in America) are living in endless, daily-repeating episodes of a ‘Ship of Fools’, Middle Ages’ response to the 1346 AD, Black Plague - a chaotic, frightened and confused era that was ’led‘ by (or better, ’driven by’) deranged, ranting, kakistocratic demagogue-saviors who in turn were followed by a mobs of superstitious, anti-rational opportunists. Familiar? (See Pericles21’s 2020, posts of July 5 and May 16 - respectively:

“AMERICA UNDER TRUMP: A SHIP OF FOOLS SAILING RUDDERLESS IN STORMY SEAS ... WHERE, OR WHO, OR WHAT IS THE CAPTAIN? IS IT TRUMP, COVID-19, RACISM...OR ALL THREE? HEAVEN HELP US”

and (May 16), 

HISTORY REPEATS: COMPARING OUR COVID-19 PANDEMIC TO THE 1346 AD GREAT BLACK PLAGUE

Our government leadership has gone over the cliff and the rest of us are about to blindly follow or are considering about joining in the leap, or are standing back, gaped mouthed, watching it all but afraid time has run out to save what's left of the American experiment ... even if the rest of us see clearly that Trump, the Republican orthodox conservatives and their (none-written) agenda are all smoke-and-mirror BS!  

The apex of this farce will be, when DT returns to office and says he was always recommending masks and social distancing and masks, how loudly the WH staff, MAGAs and other Trumpists will shout their support and  with blood-rage, cry louder for heavy punishment on those who still refuse to mask up and distance. Whack-a-doodle America .... but hard to laugh anymore.

Seems we’re in a poorly written, badly cast (“D level”), fictional, morality tv episode that loops round and round. 

It's hard to find the words to describe how the White House crowd, mostly educated and certainly privileged,  blindly followed Trump and willingly (even proudly) exposed themselves to the virus; then put nooses around their own necks, and now are looking at their colleagues and families getting the virus but with idiotic, wide-eyed smiles are not able to see a way to self-extricate from the Trump train wreck... even though the very simple solution is to just walk away. 

Trumpism! What a lesson in cult dynamics. 

Every Day in Trumpworld is new chaos and confusion.  And even now, hospitalized with full-on Covid19, it appears he’s conned his doctors to lie for him (that he is doing well) although their misconduct endangers even his own life. 

What an evil level of Dante’s Hell this is....and the upcoming  ‘election’ result is a coin toss (rigged?). This might be a deliriously comic play if it didn’t involve 214,000 deaths ...so far.

THE DEBATE DEBACLE WAS NO SURPRISE BUT CHRIS WALLACE’S MODERATOR ATTEMPT WAS A FLOP

This post is a reaction to an October 1 (2020) article in CNN news (Failure of Imagination: Why Trump can still shock the media) that covers the September 29 (2020) First Presidential Debate of the 2020 election. By several media accounts, the debate was a ‘Sh...tshow’ and much cyber print has been given to what contributed to that outcome. This blogger, Pericles21, was strongly unimpressed especially by the non-performance of the moderator, Chris Wallace, who is touted as a ‘star’ Fox News element (anchor or actor - depending on one’s attitude about Fox News).

Note: Pericles21, in ’normal’ universes, has a warm respect for Mr Wallace but to be kind, the debate was very far from home.

Àn opinion overall - even a dummy expected Trump to ’perform’ at his most outrageous level. so why was the media apparently.taken by surprise? 

A second opinion - as to why the debate fell apart: of course the main actor, Trump, carries most of the weight for that failure but there was also a second factor, and not always a minor actor, the media moderator Chris Wallace who just plain failed to be an effective moderator. Wallace’s performance was a cringe-worthy side show as he struggled to keep control of the debate but then fell to preserving what little dignity left in the debate and belonging to him personally.  After 15 minutes, Wallace’s priority seemed to be to save what remained of his packaged media facade - the cultivated, stiff, poseur posture and out-of-touch fake voice modulation. (Does he whine in real life?)  Wallace appeared to be struggling to step outside from his ’poseur’ media straight jacket but he was never successful. He never became a ’real’ and moderating agent. Wallace looked so trapped in a faux media costume, desperately trying to maintain his image as Trump ranted away and just chased Wallace around.  Wallace should go on retreat and try to figure out who he is, what current America is all about and what side/pov he feels comfortable with. He was nearly as much a turn-off as DT.