Justice Antonin Scalia . . . leaned forward and said . . .

[TaleWgnDg]

.

Justice Antonin Scalia during oral arguments on Wednesday, March 2, 2005 . . . leaned forward and said from the U.S. Supreme Court bench:

"I bet that 90% of the American people believe in the 10 Commandments and 85% don't know what they all are, they (the 10 Commandments) are a symbol that this government derives its authority from God and that seems to me entirely appropriate."

Van Orden v. Perry (SCOTUS #03-1500) and McCreary County, Kentucky, et al. v. ACLU (SCOTUS #03-1693) . . . (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4520148
http://www.npr.org/dmg/dmg.php?prgCode=ATC&showDate=02-Mar-2005&segNum=6&NPRMediaPref=WM&getAd=1
(Nina Totenburg, NPR, All Things Considered, March 2, 2005, news reporting the U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments regarding the display of the 10 Commandments upon public/government property in two cases, one from TX (6 foot granite statue standing alone) and the other from Kentucky (framed and hung on wall with other framed/hung items), 5:44 minutes, 22 kbps, 22 KHz, stereo 1-pass CBR) . . . (U.S. Supreme Court transcripts are not available at this time except by prepayment.)

All of which leaves one to ponder? Was Scalia basing his assertion (or was it a Socratic query?) on the philosophy of John Locke? If so, then our form of government is derived from "God" but not our laws which are derived from and emanate from our constitution.

Scalia is walking a very thin line here. Using words such as "government" when indeed the issue is of law, not of government; and when the issue is of law not of philosophy.

If one is aware of the distinctions in law versus the philosophies of Locke, Hume, and Rousseau, then one is also aware that Scalia may be attempting to dupe the general public once again by pushing a square peg into a round hole in his activism from the bench.

This happens when 9 justices refuse to make a blanket rule of law prohibiting religion from state/government issues and vice versa. The result is picking and choosing, subjectively, cases reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court and opinions emanating from the bench = "activist judges" embroiled in religious ideology not law.

---

[Tux]

1. Maybe

They are trying to settle both sides somehow but I doubt that can happen. No matter which side gets, there will be outrage from the other side.

[UTUSN]

2. What Did the A-Hole Say? n/t

[skids]

3. But... but... but...

...I thought that the U.S. Government derives its authority from the "consent of the governed"...

[beam me up scottie]

7. How does it go again?

"We the people" wasn't it?

[atommom]

4. The Founding Fathers are spinning in their graves. They went

to great lengths NOT to make asinine statements like that. A democratic government supposedly derives its authority from the will of the voters. I'm not sure what the hell kind of government we've got going right now. :shrug: It looks as if the theocrats are staging a takeover.

[Disturbed]

8. JEHOVA has...

given Amerika and the world freedom?

Obviously this idiot Fascist judge has not even read the 1st Commandment.

This shit would be laughable if it weren't actually so freakin' real.

[atommom]

11. I know. It's like a bad dystopian sci-fi movie. Should we laugh or cry?

[catzies]

13. I have a maybe-soon-to-be-ex-friend who's a staunch atheist,

but is also a Faux-watching Repug, and he recently said to me, "We're a nation founded on Judeo-Christian values." (we were having a discussion on some aspects of the culture wars)

I told him, "I know what Bill O'Reilly thinks, but do you really believe that, with all you've read about the Founding Fathers?"

Then I told him, "Wow, you really did drink the Kool-Aid."

[atommom]

14. A staunch athiest AND a Faux-watching Republican? He sounds

confused. See if he'll read this and get back to you:

http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20050221&s=allen

[TaleWgnDg]

22. Can you believe that Associate Justice Antonin Scalia is also . . .

.

Can you believe that Associate Justice Antonin Scalia is also known as Pope Scalia? And that his echo . . . eeerrrrr, peer on the bench is known as Cardinal Thomas?

This would be funny if the portrayal did not smack of reality.

---

[GetTheRightVote]

5. The judges are starting to be scary as well

:kick:

[dave123williams]

6. The Constitution doesn't open with "God Almighty"...it's "We the People".

That's where the authority of Government comes from; the PEOPLE.

Anybody who says different is a self-deluded demagogue, or worse.

[Democrat Dragon]

9. Personally, I don't give shit about a religious statue...but

It may be part of a conspiracy to merge church and state, remember it usaully starts small. And sooner or later here comes the AmeriKKKan inqusition.

[UTUSN]

10. Scalia Pornographic - I Know Him When I See Him

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x3232000

[baldguy]

12. Scalia should be impeached for being a FUCKING IDIOT!

"That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the consent of the governed..."

IT'S CALLED THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE! THAT ASSHOLE SHOULD TRY READING IT SOMETIME!!!!!!!!


:grr: :argh: :grr: :argh: :grr: :argh: :grr: :argh: :grr: :argh: :grr: :argh:

[Jacobin]

15. That man is absolutely fucking bonkers

[Disturbed]

16. Which Commandments shall be posted?

The Decalogue According to the Protestant Version <**13>

First Commandment

Thou shalt have no other gods before me.


The Decalogue According to the Catholic Version <**14>

First Commandment

I am the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not have strange gods before me.


The Decalogue According to the Hebrew Version <**15>

First Commandment

I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

*Note that God aknowledged that there are other Gods. This God demands to be the supreme one. Does the bible ever spell out if God is a male or female?

Personaly I believe that all of this is a fairly tale. The God thing is wishful thinking on people's part, grasping for answers to existance and help in their lives.

[TaleWgnDg]

21. excellent point . . . well stated . . .

[ComerPerro]

17. How can 90% believe while 85% don't know all of them?

Doesn't this show how fake all this fundie self-righteous bullshit really is?

[Disturbed]

19. Isn't it obvious that

millions of Amerikans are real ignorant &/or stupid?

Lucky for the politicians and the Oligarchy that this is the case.

[Finding Rawls]

18. What pisses me off about Scalia

(aside from the being a horses ass) is that he really is a brilliant guy and I can't believe that he really believes some of the arguments that he makes. I've read a bunch of his opinions one of his dissents really struck a cord with me. I can't remember if it was a case about using interstate commerce to regulate drugs or guns, but it was simple and honest.

Of course, opinions like this one anger me to no end.

[lala_rawraw]

20. Can we have freemason symbols up too then, since

our country seems to be rooted in those as well? let's put them everywhere as stickers, posters, rock sculptures and I want to see someone challange that, ha!