On a Sunday evening, I gather my dogs, pour a glass of wine, fire up the grill, and repair to the deck with the Sunday New York Times. For a conservative, this is a guilty pleasure. But this week, I am afraid, it caused me to lose my religion.
A recent e-mail exchange with our Dean raised the following question: What team is a fan of the Milwaukee Brewers supposed to hate? This was the provocative statement: “My distaste for the Cubs meant that, even if the White Sox had lost to the Brewers this weekend, I could have seen something good in the matter.” Surely, to hate like this is to be happy forever. But who can we despise? And who will detest us?
The easy answer is the Cubs, but I have bad news. They are just not that into us. During last July’s four game debacle at Miller Park, I overheard a Cubs fan say that it would take years before he could hate us like he hates the Cardinals. Ours would be hate unrequited. Oh, sure, they might call and ridicule us when St. Louis isn’t around. We’d be just any port in a storm.
The Supreme Court’s decision on Monday in Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Company is interesting for what it may portend and for the methodological dispute between the majority and the dissent.
You know (or I’ll tell you) the basic facts. Massey has an important case before the West Virginia Supreme Court – an appeal of a $ 50 million verdict against it and in favor of Caperton and others. Massey’s CEO makes independent expenditures in the amount of $3 million in support of candidate Brent Benjamin. Benjamin wins and so does Massey – by a 3-2 vote with now Justice Benjamin in the majority.
The Supreme Court held, in a 5-4 decision, that Benjamin’s failure to recuse himself violated Caperton’s due process rights. So what’s the problem?