Supreme Court Circus Continues With Hobby Lobby Ruling

Supreme Court Rules Hobby Lobby Personhood Trumps a Person's PersonhoodThe horrifying implications of today’s Supreme Court decision (BURWELL, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, ET AL. v. HOBBY LOBBY STORES, INC.) is an incredible shattering of a women’s protection of privacy and personal choice. However, this gut wrenching and mind boggling decision’s true repercussions are yet to be fully realized. This awful and obviously flawed decision can easily be construed to now branch off into a myriad of arbitrary “religious or person choices” that a company will be able to impose on its employees. This will open the flood gates for a huge variety of other lawsuits by companies to justify their will to take away rights from their workers. This will also create a flurry of suits and challenges against the ADA. If one part of the ADA can be challenged and overturned such as the mandatory coverage of birth control to do something as opaque as “religious objections” what else can be challenged? The answer, everything can. Using the same belief, because religion isn’t logic, people or corporations now have an opening to challenge anything and everything based off of “religious belief”.

Not only that, the Supreme Court just ruled that Hobby Lobby can now legally break the law. The ADA was specifically designed to guarantee a certain set of healthcare standards that has been deemed absolutely vital to the health and well-being of American citizens.  This Supreme Court decision states that Hobby Lobby no longer has to FOLLOW THE LAW because they have some kind of vague religious objection. This is truly mind boggling. There is over 50 years of very sound scientific study showing that birth control offers a large array of health benefits, treatments, management, and control. Overall, countries are better because of it.

Taking a look at the entire idea of someone’s freedom, we also see the hypocrisy in this decision. People have the right, and the freedom, to make decisions for themselves. This right however, ends with them. They do not have the right to take away the decisions and freedoms of others. This is exactly what this type of decision makes. It says that an employee does not have the right to make decisions regarding their own birth control but the company they work for does. You are not granting freedom when that “freedom” takes away the freedom and choice of another. Simple as that.

The damage that the Supreme Court has been doing to this country is ridiculous. It is now grossly obvious that these majority rulings of the Supreme Court are bought and paid for. Over the last few years they have systematically dismantled a person’s rights. When such basic fundamental human rights are stripped so a companies can save a few dollars there can be no doubt that the Supreme Court has failed us. Our democracy has failed us. Our government has failed.

Our only course now is to oust those corrupt politicians that support and praise these decisions that shatter our basic human rights. The people of this country fought, bled, and died to secure basic human rights that are being stripped away one after another. With the completely polarized politics now it is very easy to see the terrible excuses for human beings that support these decisions that take away our rights. These are the politicians that need to be called out and cast out of positions of power. Those that speak out against these atrocities need to be lifted up and put into those political positions to further improve this country.

However, removing corruption from our government is only the beginning of the solution. We must stay informed about those we elect to make this country better. When those politicians begin to falter and cave to the corporate influence we must call them out until they represent the people, not the corporations.

To prosper we must have personal rights, not corporate rights. To prosper we must have free speech, not monitored and metered communications. To prosper we must remove money from politics and put the public back into politics. To prosper we must have a free and independent media, not corporate funded propaganda channels. To prosper we must support and respect one another. To prosper we must have compromise and consensus, not hard lining and bullying. To prosper we must be informed and vote. So please make sure you are registered to vote. If you are registered make sure that those around you are registered. Support the creation of a national holiday on Election Day. The more we vote, the more power we wield. With this power we must change the direction of this country before it is too late.

If you can do more than vote and get others to the polls I would also encourage you to actively avoid going to any stores that support discrimination and the stripping of human rights. Make no mistake: Freedom is having the freedom to disagree and still have the same choices. If enough consumers stop buying their produces and using their services they will be unable to pay our politicians and Supreme Court justices to undermine our personal rights. It is high time we stop paying these companies and corporations to undermine their own employees and customers.

Supreme Court Sunders a Century of American Progress

United States of America Supreme CourtOver the last couple of years the Supreme Court of the United States of America has destroyed protections that have been in place for a hundred years or more. In several short but brutal strokes, the Supreme Court has made meaningless the suffering of countless Americans who fought back against discrimination, lack of representation, and persecution. The recent appalling decisions of the Supreme Court defy logic, fairness, and have strayed far from what America is supposed to be.

Citizens United and Private Contributions

people-politico-grip-moneyWe have known. K N O W N. That money is an absolutely corrupting and destructive influence in politics and governments. I’m not saying we have figured this out in the last couple years. We have known this for thousands, yes, THOUSANDS of years. This practice of plutocracy has destroyed countries, nations, and entire empires of humans. That is why we have had laws to limit and highly regulate what money gets funneled into politics. These limitations have been fairly effective over the last hundred years. We have, for the most part, truly had a democracy where the average American people mattered in politics. But the Supreme Court ruled that corporations may contribute to political campaigns, basically ruling that corporations have the same rights as people in regard to free speech, and more chillingly, giving corporations the go-ahead to buy politicians, and thus, elections. This decision has got to be one of the most destructive to American democracy.
How can the Supreme Court of America come to such a terrible and obviously flawed decision?

And instead of learning from the consequences of their ruling, they made another ruling to make sure the country is run by the rich and that democracy will no longer be decided by individuals, ruling to lift the limit that individuals can donate in politics. In fact, this changes America from a democracy, to a plutocracy.

  • Democracy: A system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives.
  • Plutocracy: A country or society governed by the wealthy.

This is simply horrifying.

Voter Rights Act Ruling

voter-infoThe Supreme Court argued that racism is no longer a problem in America so there is no need to have voter law protections. This is an absurd line of thinking.

First, racism is alive and well in this country. It is far from being gone. If anyone fails to see racism, it is because they are actively ignoring it.

Second, many proposed voting laws have been struck down by these voter protections. These laws were not drafted 20 years ago. They were struck down in the very same year as being obviously and overtly intended to make it harder for certain races to vote. On tape, at press conferences, and speeches around the country, republicans ACTUALLY stated their intent to keep certain voters from the polls.  Here is a great article showing many cases of voter discrimination. It is worth the time to read.

One of the most notable pieces of evidence that this Supreme Court decision was a grave mistake was that as soon as the decision was announced, the state of Texas ‘immediately put into effect’ the very voting right laws that had previously been blocked by the Voting Rights Act for racial targeting.

Supreme Court Strikes down the Separation of Church and State

sad-political-stateIn yet another mind boggling decision the Supreme Court has said that it is OK to hold religious prayers in government meetings.

Though the Constitution doesn’t explicitly mention the separation of church and state, it is accepted that the founding fathers intended for this separation.

And indeed, this separation has been important for fairness and inclusiveness. When the government stays out of religious organizations and vice versa, there is one less agenda involved. This most recent ruling is chilling, as is Justice Anthony Kennedy’s answer that if you don’t like it, you can just leave the room: “Should nonbelievers choose to exit the room during a prayer they find distasteful, their absence will not stand out as disrespectful or even noteworthy” This is such a juvenile and ignorant response to come from a Supreme Court Justice, and Justice Elena Kagan pointed that out, but much more eloquently.

Regardless of whether you are a Christian or not, prayers have no business in a government meeting, where people of all faiths or none should be recognized as equal contributors to the democratic process, and all should feel welcome. The core of democracy is a government of people, not of religion.

It seems such a simple concept to empathize with another and their point of view. This is a perfect example of this Supreme Court’s inability to do that. If the five majority justices are unable to empathize with people who are unlike themselves, it is obvious they are terribly underqualified for their jobs, since empathy is the primary trait one needs to judge fairly. How might they feel if they were the one Jew, Muslim, atheist, or other non-Christian person that was effectively being ostracized at one of these meetings?

Supreme Court Supremely Dysfunctional

The Supreme Court is no longer fulfilling the purpose of being unbiased judges. The Supreme Court is no longer the moderators of what is morally right, fair, and lawful.

Either they are so out of touch they no longer possess the skills to accurately see and judge the REAL America we live in, or they are so blatantly partisan and pushing an agenda it is sickening.

I almost want to think they are ignorant, because maybe they would have an excuse and could be educated. Unfortunately, I know this isn’t the case. You do not become a judge, let alone a Supreme Court judge, by being an ignoramus.

How to Regain a Just and Fair Supreme Court

collums-and-stairsThese Supreme Court Justices are obviously and overtly pushing a right wing agenda. This is terrifying. I come to this conclusion because America is so polarized right now the choices of a “side” are obvious. The choices of Supreme Court judges should NOT be obvious. In fact, in this time of extreme polarization the Supreme Court Judges should be a mystery. They should surprise us with every decision finding the middle ground. Sadly, this is not the case.

But what can we do? Seeing the corruption all the way up and including Supreme Court members tells us that the problem with America is systemic. With systemic problems we must change the system.

The first step would be to open the mystery of the Supreme Court by allowing cameras in the court. This should not be set up like a frantic press conference of a Hollywood star having an affair. Instead, it should be a CSPAN-like feed with static, always on, cameras that show us, the people, how the Supreme Court comes to its decisions. This would help us understand the how and whys behind their decisions. We could also uncover possible issues that could be corrected and the court enhanced to be more fair, moral, and efficient.

Next, lifetime appointments need to be eliminated. This is the ridiculous way that political parties “rig the system” in their favor. The effects of these appointments last for years and do terrible harm to our country. Terms should overlap major elections so no matter who is on the benches they will be judging and ruling for what is right and constitutional, not along party lines.

Finally, I would like to see more and more people take an interest in what the Supreme Court does. Many of us find it hard to keep informed and up to date on some of the most important decisions that affect us. Once more are staying informed on what the Supreme Court is doing, then those can take better educated actions to make sure that their votes, their conversations, and their lives are influenced by being better informed.

Ultimately I think that the people of America still have enough power to make the changes to America that truly benefits our society. If we do not exercise this right, we will be surprised to find that we have given up our rights, without a peep, while the people we trusted with our rights give them away.