New Chief Justice/Weather Gone Wild!/Poetry's Role

(P1)Political

Let's Pick Our Fights More Wisely

Why all the fuss over the nomination and confirmation process of Judge John Roberts as Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court?

Sure he'll be there in position for 20 or 30 years, but just think about almost anybody else Bush could have or would have chosen. John Roberts is NOT a Clarence Thomas or Antonin Scalia and is certainly not a Robert Bork. Sure he is a Republican and a Conservative. What other type choice might you hope for from a Republican Conservative President with a Republican congress? Under the circumstances, John Roberts is the very best we're going to get.

I'm a Democrat who believes in choosing my fights wisely. Also, by virtue of my age, I've been around long enough to witness countless other supreme court confirmation hearings. No matter what party is in charge, the opposition will always protest that the nominee has not answered sufficiently regarding his or her position. The plain fact is that, in the interest of judicial even handedness and future flexibility, they cannot.

I almost totally agree with Columnist David Broder of the Washington Post in his column "Roberts Sterling Showing. Please read it and let me know what you think. Bear in mind that a. I am a registered Democrat, b. I believe in a woman's right to choose, c. I am for civil rights and universal health care, d. I am against the stupid, bloody, wasteful adventure in Iraq. e. In most respects, if you want to label me, you can call me "liberal." However, in this case, let's be fair. Above all, let me know what you think by commenting for or against. I'll be fair here. While I hate to concur in a Bush decision, I think his choice of John Roberts for Chief Justice appears to have been the best one under all of the circumstances.

Please let me know what you think. Were you George Bush, who would you have nominated?

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(P2) Philosophical

What The Hell's Going On With Our Weather?

With an unheard of 2 back-to-back Category 5 hurricanes in a row, I believe it's time to revisit my remarks about global warming. Recall that, although the administration outwardly downplays and even denies the phenomenon, their own EPA publishes warnings and tips to Insurance Companies on how to save money from the effects of "global warming." I published that article before Katrina. See August Archives and August 26th, 2005 posting.

According to 5 scientists at www.realclimate.org, "The available scientific evidence indicates that it is likely that global warming will make - and possibly already is making - those hurricanes that form more destructive than they otherwise would have been."

Nicholas Kristoff writes, "So far, Bush has resisted serious action on global warming on the basis that strong measures 'would have wrecked our economy.' Tell that to Portland, Oregon. In early July, I wrote a column from Portland about its pioneering efforts to cut greenhouse gases. New calculations had indicated that it had cut total emissions below the level of 1990 - the benchmark for the Kyoto accord - even as nationally, emissions have increased 13 percent. And Portland has been booming economically. Since then, Portland has discovered a small error in its calculations: In fact, total emissions were reduced to a hair over 1990 levels, not to a hair under. In any case, while the numbers aren't perfect, the trend is clear."

Please call the need to the attention of all your friends, representatives, and even to Republicans. Believe it or not, they care about the future too. The best way to approach them is with some evidence of what continuing environmental neglect will do to their economy. Certainly the insurance companies are worried! Katrina and now Rita!

Please Post Your Comments Here and/or Read the Comments of Others.You can sign in as "blogger" or "other" but add your name to your text. Or email me at edcoletti@sbcglobal.net. We need your feedback.


(P2) Poetical

I like what Poetry editor Christian Wiman has to say about poetry's role

"Let us remember...that in the end we go to poetry for one reason, so that we might more fully inhabit our lives and the world in which we live them, and that if we more fully inhabit these things, we might be less apt to destroy both."