The Supreme Court handed down its final decisions of the term this week, right before the Fourth of July weekend. And they were overwhelming wins for conservatives on significant issues of constitutional principle.
The Court unanimously upheld religious liberty in employment law. It also struck down affirmative action, upheld free-speech on matters of faith involving same-sex relationships, and struck down President Biden’s absurd student loan transfer program.
In so doing, it upheld the 1st amendment, the 14th amendment, and the separation of powers generally.
I feel somewhat elated about these decisions. They go at least a small way toward restoring the constitutional structure of our political life. The affirmative action decision in particular is a rejection of identity politics that will have resounding positive effects for our society. Now we can begin the real task of improving education for the poor, starting with reducing the stranglehold the teachers unions have over education policy.
Our country is not in the best shape right now, at home or abroad, but we are heading into this Independence Day with new hope. These were victories, not just for conservatives, but for the country – even if the left won’t quite admit it openly yet.
The story of Noah is familiar; the details, less so.
Noah is often seen as an ambivalent figure. He was righteous -- but only for his generation. What was his deficiency?
One answer suggests itself: knowing that the world was about to be flooded, he built an Ark for the animals and for his own family -- but did not try to save anyone else or to convince them to repent and change their ways (the prophet Jonah, later, would share that reluctance).
Abraham, later, would set himself apart by arguing with God -- with the Lord Himself! -- against the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, saying that they should be saved if there were enough righteous people to be found (there were not).
Still, Noah was good enough -- and sometimes, that really is sufficient to save the world. We don't need heroes every time -- just ordinary decency.
Hi all -- as I noted last month, I'm going to be closing down my Locals page, at least for tips and subscriptions -- I may keep the page up and the posts as well, but I'm no longer going to be accepting any kind of payment.
Look for cancelation in the very near future. Thank you for your support!
An interesting weekend -- one of the last of Daylight Savings Time -- in which there is much to celebrate, much to contemplate, and a bit to worry about.
The Gaza peace deal is shaky, but holding, after the living hostages returned; the shutdown is still going on, with no end in sight; the China trade war is heating up; and the confrontation with Venezuela continues to escalate.
The "No Kings" protest was a dud, despite the media's attempt to inflate it. What I find fascinating is that the Democrats have basically stolen the rhetoric and the imagery of the Tea Party protests, circa 2009. They claim they are defending the Constitution -- just like the Tea Party did.
On the one hand, this is good. How wonderful to have a political system in which both sides, bitterly opposed though they are, articulate differences through the Constitution -- and not, as in so many other countries, outside it.
On the other, this is sheer hypocrisy for the Democrats. Not only did they malign the Tea Party as ...
