Cho Cho San Restaurant

Good food BYOB Japanese/Chinese eatery near our home in Philly. Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Roberts' Marriage Equality Dissent Assures His Third Class Legacy

PHOTO: a celebratory confection that we shared with friends on Marriage Equality Day, June 26, 2015

Appointed by George Bush, Jr. to the Supreme Court and as Chief Justice, John Roberts had the chance to rise above partisan ideology and build a legacy as an excellent jurist. However, on Friday, June 26, 2015, he joined three of his right-wing Republican Supreme Court colleagues, ideologues all, on the train to the wrong side of history with his silly dissent opposing marriage equality. Any law student knows that constitutional guarantees of fundamental rights, equal protection and due process to members of minorities cannot be voted on...they are not subject to the whims of the electorate. Yet Roberts penned a dissent full of legal crocodile tears over the supposed denial of the democratic process inherent in the beautifully-crafted and legally sound majority decision affirming marriage equality. Shame on the the Chief Justice who knows better but let ideology trump sound legal thinking. His dissent Friday, along with Citizens United and other poorly decided cases under his tenure, will insure his place in history as one of the lesser lights to hold the highest judicial position in the United States.

The Supreme Court Could Punt On Marriage Equality

I hope not, but the Supreme Court could dodge the issue of marriage equality. According to an article I read recently, the court could send the case back to the circuit court for review. This is because the circuit court used the lowest level of scrutiny when arriving at their decision that states could ban same sex marriage. However, the Supreme Court could send the case back to the circuit court with instructions to use a higher level of scrutiny when re-examining the case. In other words, the circuit court said that laws banning same sex marriage are constitutional as long as the state can offer a rational reason for them, e.g., providing children with opposite sex parents. But a higher level of scrutiny would require the circuit court to overturn same sex marriage bans in the absence of a compelling reason for them. If this happens then several outcomes are likely: the Supreme Court is off the hook and doesn't have to make a controversial decision; the circuit court will be forced to reverse their own decision and overturn the marriage bans; and finally and most significantly, this would establish a precedent that laws disadvantaging GLBTQ people will not survive court tests since a higher level of scrutiny will be applied to them. We'll soon see what happens.

Recent Smart Phone Photos

Spotted a couple of rabbits during my afternoon walk Wednesday. Dan and I had a delicious dinner out in Bay Shore Thursday evening. The restaurant was Aji, a Japanese eatery.

Morning In The Garden

Busy Weekend: House Blessing And Line Painting

The annual house blessing in Cherry Grove is a fun event that raises money for local charities. We also paint our boardwalks so that people can see where they end at night and not fall off. People fall off anyway especially if they have been partying. Our friend Stephen was painting his walk when I went by Saturday afternoon.

Seafood Special At Ichiban Oakdale

The former Tai Sho in Oakdale has changed hands. The new owners changed the name to Ichiban and partially re-modelled the restaurant. The menu has been expanded and now includes a spectacular mixed seafood dish that is available with a coconut curry sauce or grilled with garlic butter. I had the latter preparation and it was delicious. Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android