Empathy in Action – a poisonous doctrine for any judge
Another excellent article (by Thomas Sowell) amplifies my earlier critique of “empathy” as a basis for selecting judges (particularly for the highest court – state or federal Supreme Court). ALL citizens are entitled to fair and equal treatment before the law – Justice must be blind to race, class, ethnicity, or social status. We must uphold the rule of law – not “rule by whimsy” to benefit a favored few.
‘Empathy’ in Action
A poisonous doctrine for any judge, much less a justice of the Supreme Court. (some excerpts follow)
| It is one of the signs of our times that so many in the media are focusing on the life story of Judge Sonia Sotomayor, President Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court of the United States.You might think that this was some kind of popularity contest …
Barack Obama’s repeated claim that a Supreme Court justice should have “empathy” with various groups has raised red flags that we ignore at our peril — and at the peril of our children and grandchildren. “Empathy” for particular groups can be reconciled with “equal justice under law” — the motto over the entrance to the Supreme Court — only with smooth words. But not in reality. President Obama used those smooth words in introducing Judge Sotomayor, but words do not change realities. … No doubt the political spinmasters will try to spin this to mean something innocent. But the cold fact is that this is a poisonous doctrine for any judge, much less a justice of the Supreme Court. That kind of empathy would for all practical purposes repeal the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which guarantees “equal protection of the laws” to all Americans. (For the full text of Sowell’s excellent article, click here) |
Though after they were in place, poeple were bound to read into them and come to conclusions of their own, and certain ideas gained popularity and snowballed until they were held as true.
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