Ronald Reagan was the first president to trace the problems of modern society – everything from the rising crime rate to out-of-wedlock births, even runaway government spending – to “activist judges.”
The definition of an activist judge is one who will not be bound by the limits of law or the Constitution but who uses his or her power to legislate from the bench.
Last month, the Supreme Court gave us a perfect example of judicial activism when it handed down decisions legalizing homosexual sodomy and affirming that some individuals are more equal than others in upholding the admission practices of the University of Michigan’s law school, which gives preferential treatment to some racial and ethnic minorities.
Are Americans overly concerned about the Supreme Court? Apparently not.
The shocking results of a landmark survey done in April by the Polling Company reveals that 75 percent of respondents were able to identify the number of cartoon characters created to promote a popular breakfast cereal, but only 32 percent of the participants knew that there are nine justices who sit on the nation’s Supreme Court.
Was this a poll of underachievers? Hardly! As age, income and education levels increased, so did the likelihood of knowing the correct number of justices, but only by a small margin. In a stinging indictment of our institutes of higher learning, only 44 percent of those with college degrees were able to come up with the right answer.
There was a time when you couldn’t get out of high school without knowing the basics of our government, but not anymore.
Those who live in the Mountain or Pacific regions can give themselves a little pat on the back. You were more likely to know the correct number of justices – 39 percent and 37 percent respectively – but come on: that, too, is pathetic.
Kellyanne Conway, the president of the Polling Company, reported that 66 percent of respondents proudly ticked off the names of the three Rice Krispies characters – Snap, Crackle and Pop – but only 36 percent could name a single member of the current Supreme Court.
A total of only 11.4 percent could name three or more justices despite the fact that this court has the first two women justices in American history – and only the second black justice who replaced the first and was confirmed after one of the most bitter and slimy confirmation battles ever conducted.
Sandra Day O’Connor, the first woman justice, was the one most frequently identified, but only by 24 percent of respondents. Clarence Thomas was remembered by 19 percent of participants.
Only five people out of the 800 polled could name all nine. No, I’m not going to finish the list for you in this column but, if you can’t do it by yourself, shame on you. Look them up for yourselves then teach these names to your children and grandchildren.
While you are at it, better teach them about the founding fathers who gave us the Constitution and set up three separate but equal branches of government. These men paid a tremendous price to give us this government with its checks and balances but, while we were vegging-out on soaps and reality television, or following the antics of the latest pop stars, that balance has titled.
Presently, the majority of the justices who are sitting on this Supreme Court have made it known that they do not feel bound by either the words in the Constitution or the intent of its framers. They feel free to make laws or knock them down according to their individual whims.
Do you get it?
These people are appointed for life. If they are free to legislate from the bench or overrule the actions of the president of the United States, then no longer are there any limits on their power.
Presently, the only limits are self-imposed. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the nation’s second woman justice, who was sold to the American people as a moderate because she favors gradual – not radical – changes in our laws, says the high court risks its legitimacy when it “steps boldly in front of the political process.”
If you follow this process to its logical conclusion, it is only a matter of time until the separate-but-equal concept is abandoned altogether and we are ruled by this nine-member junta, made up of people whose names we do not know and apparently have little interest in learning.
Be sure to sign up for Joseph Farah’s free e-mail list solely designed as an organizing tool of his bid to impeach the Supreme Court majority.
Editor’s note: The upcoming August issue of WND’s acclaimed Whistleblower magazine will be on America’s out-of-control judicial system, focusing in particular on the United States Supreme Court, whose recent rulings have validated reverse discrimination, opened the door for legalized polygamy, incest and bestiality, and freed hundreds of sex abusers. The current issue (July), titled “THE CONSTITUTION: America’s ultimate battleground,” explores whether the Constitution is still America’s “supreme law of the land.”
Subscribe to Whistleblower, starting with “THE CONSTITUTION: America’s ultimate battleground.”
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