Mark My Words

With the passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia this past week, the internet was flooded with the news.
When I first read the headline that a Supreme Court Justice had suddenly and unexpectedly passed away, my first thought was “well, depending on who it was, the other side will have a field day with this news”.
And sadly, I was right.
When I logged onto Facebook, I was immediately appalled (but not surprised), at what I read.
I understand that many people have strong feelings as it relates to not only politics and religion, but also the Supreme Court. I am fine with that.
In fact, I have a friend that once said that she votes solely for candidates that would side with her on issues that could possibly, maybe someday, reach the high court. I find that interesting, but to each their own.
In any event, when Justice Scalia passed away, I knew that it was just the beginning of a firestorm that would not be going away anytime soon.
One of the first comments I read was of extreme joy that Scalia had passed away. I am being serious. Extreme, unfiltered joy.
Again, I totally understand that people have VERY strong feelings toward the courts and those who make decisions that they do not always agree with.
But to take such gleeful joy over the death of this man seems quite ridiculous and wildly inappropriate.
Another person commented that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was going to have fun dancing on his grave and in fact, was probably already having a party due to his death.
Maybe my friend was unaware, but the two of them and their families were great friends and vacationed together, even though they were often on the opposite side of each other on the issues. They were able to set that aside and create a lasting friendship. Isn’t that fascinating?
Many more comments were made that were even more venomous than this, but I do not feel right repeating that garbage.
There is nothing wrong with people having strong opinions regarding their beliefs. Heck, some of my best friends are those that, politically speaking, are polar opposites of me.
However, I am at a loss as to why people think it is fine to post such nasty comments about people, especially at a time like this. There are plenty of people with whom I do not agree with, but the last thing I would do is mock their death and applaud it. Really?
The lack of civility in our country is beyond me. It is hurtful, divisive and uncalled for.
Of course, people are passionate about their politics and as we know, the Supreme Court seems to be more about political appointees and not so much about the rule of law. I find this disturbing as well.
I want judges who interpret the law, not back the “side” that helped them get on the bench.
To end my “supreme” rant, I will say that I do not agree with those who are calling for the President to NOT put forth a nominee to replace Scalia or they will block his eventual nominee. That is his right as a President, just as it is the right of the Senate to approve the nominee or not.
The real knee-slapper in all of this is the fact that President Obama attempted to filibuster President Bush’s nominee of Samuel Alito. Granted, the two issues are not identical, but now, ten years later, President Obama says he “regrets” doing it. I guess we live and learn, don’t we?

Submitted by Mark McGlothlen