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Sotomayor the Wise
Just to follow up on Jim's post, I think the problem with the benign interprtation of Sonia Sotomayor's controversial Berkeley speech is that she wasn't just candidly acknowledging that Latina roots would lead a judge to reach different conclusions than a while male counterpart, but "more often than not reach a better conclusion" (emphasis mine). That's a very important distinction.
It's true that Sotomayor's position becomes a bit more nuanced if you read on to the point where she says, "I am reminded each day that I render decisions that affect people concretely and that I owe them constant and complete vigilance in checking my assumptions, presumptions and perspectives and ensuring that to the extent that my limited abilities and capabilities permit me, that I reevaluate them and change as circumstances and cases before me requires." But that still doesn't explain away the earlier comment.
Text of the full speech is here.
Comments
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Oldefarte| 5.28.09 @ 2:22PM
I think that her arrogant comments goes more toward her feminine nature than her Hispanic nature-----most women somehow THINK that they are SMARTER than the average male; and that they represent the BRAINS, while males represent the BRAUN. Maybe they're right!!!
Real American| 5.28.09 @ 2:35PM
the real problem is that her mind has been warped by her immersion into identity politics. Per those politics, white males are oppressors and what they do is suspect, whereas noble minorities have compassion and can understand each others' condition and empathize with their plight (assuming they all share one.) She sees her job on the bench as putting her finger on the scales of justice to ensure that those folks are more equal than white males who, of course, only side with their own. It's a bunch of BS, but that's her thinking.
conservatives = teh stoopid| 5.28.09 @ 3:24PM
I will say this slowly for the stoopid who dwell here:
When Judge Sotomayor made the statement, she was specifically discussing the importance of judicial diversity in determining "race and sex discrimination cases".
Do you understand now why she is not a racist or bigot? Of course not, that's why you are republicans. You idiots are the reason why the your party will end up being a display at the local zoo. And I will go every day to fling my crap at you. Enjoy your third party status of irrelevancy. She will be confirmed. There is nothing you can do. Now go cry a river with Glenn Beck. He needs the help.
Murphy| 5.28.09 @ 4:50PM
Mr Klein makes a good point. I would be more comfortable if Sotomayor had emphasized the difference made by race (and so on), and perhaps how difference can make one -- say -- a better judge.
I do not agree with other critics (not Mr Klein) who call her a "racist" and a "bigot" (Limbaugh, Beck, Gingrich). That goes way too far.
Bob| 5.28.09 @ 5:29PM
Philip -- I've heard by many of the contributors on AmSpec that because they've had political experience and many of us have not, that they have a BETTER understanding of politics. If you are dealing with minority/poor defendants/plaintiffs, why wouldn't someone with direct experience make BETTER decisions?
The same thing is true about my background in business and economics. You have a background in financial reporting and your columns on that subject are clearly superior to many of your counterparts and you know it.
Her statement was clearly over the line, but parsed properly, it is not entirely wrong.
Murphy| 5.28.09 @ 8:21PM
Any college educated person will acknowledge that our cognitions are conditioned by our backgrounds. Her comment was imprudently articulated, but I don't see it as a major problem.
What IS a major problem is that these debates end up circling around single statements, torn out of context, that people make.
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