tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25740524.post7597041782807950200..comments2024-03-11T13:16:19.098-04:00Comments on Ad Orientem: An "Empathetic" Justice SystemUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25740524.post-5626824198639724282009-05-08T11:50:00.000-04:002009-05-08T11:50:00.000-04:00Many, many people held in the eighteenth century t...Many, many people held in the eighteenth century that slavery was immoral. For that matter, so did many people in the second century...<br /><br />Also, I think it is quite rude to say that the author of this blog is "unthinking" about his beliefs and positions. I've never met the man personally, but that is certainly not the impression I get from reading his blog.Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02029716952735323038noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25740524.post-68683044297051129302009-05-06T23:01:00.000-04:002009-05-06T23:01:00.000-04:00In the last paragraph above "reduction" should rea...In the last paragraph above "reduction" should read "elevation."John (Ad Orientem)https://www.blogger.com/profile/14329907942477160166noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25740524.post-44686655705795543422009-05-06T22:56:00.000-04:002009-05-06T22:56:00.000-04:00Anonymous,
As far as the law goes, the Constitutio...Anonymous,<br />As far as the law goes, the Constitution is indeed holy writ. Certainly times and opinions change. There is a mechanism for dealing with these changes. It's called "amendment." But you see the Congress and the legislatures of the states (popularly elected representatives) are supposed to do the amending, not unelected judges.<br /><br />Yes there have been some instances of rightward judicial activism which I strongly deplore. But such has been comparatively rare. It is liberals who discovered and abused the courts as a means for advancing their agenda items which they could not get through democratically elected legislatures. This sort of thing (whether done for the right or the left) is extremely dangerous to the idea of the rule of law. <br /><br />It reduces the law to whatever those in power at the moment wish it to be. Only original intent as the guiding principal of jurisprudence can prevent the reduction of our courts into some sort of political super legislature which can arbitrarily rewrite the law whenever it wishes.<br /><br />Christ is risen!<br />JohnJohn (Ad Orientem)https://www.blogger.com/profile/14329907942477160166noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25740524.post-21592153649236574302009-05-06T22:42:00.000-04:002009-05-06T22:42:00.000-04:00As if "conservative" judges aren't dyed in-the-woo...As if "conservative" judges aren't dyed in-the-wool activist judges.<br /><br />You've accepted, unthinkingly, the notion that the U.S. Constitution is some sort of Holy Writ, that must be followed as originally conceived. It was conceived in the 18th century- long before such recent notions as that slavery is immoral, women are an inferior species, etc; etc;.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com