The Kavanaugh debate has come unhinged

[Rockfish1]

Forget that you're a Republican or a Democrat for a moment. Instead of what is best for your team, think about the question that's actually before us: Should Brett Kavanaugh become the 114th Justice of the United States Supreme Court? Imagine that, instead of conjuring up whatever retort you feel like your side should make, what if we talked about the right thing to do now? What would that be?

To talk about that, we'd have to lay aside the grievances that have so many of us making so little sense so loudly. Yes, politicians must say what they must say. But we're not politicians. We're just people who have nothing better to do than yell at each other on an obscure internet message board. So we don't have to do any of the things that political operatives do. We could just talk sensibly to one another.

To my Republican friends, let me say that I understand you're pissed about all this. If I were you I'd be pissed about all this. Like you, I'd be angry that Democrats want to string this process out, in the hope that they'll retake the Senate then refuse to confirm any Trump nominee, depriving you of the solidly wingnut Court you've always wanted.

But if I were a Republican, I hope I'd remember that Republicans recently stole a Supreme Court seat from the Democrats. I hope it would occur to me that when Republicans stole a Supreme Court seat, that necessarily meant they couldn't go to the cops when The Other Guys stole it back. Indeed, the certainty that The Other Guys would steal it back at their first opportunity should have been baked in the cake.

So, while I understand that you are really pissed right now, you need to understand that you don't get to be really pissed right now. And like the rest of us, you need to calm down, stop fulminating, and think rationally. Otherwise people like me will point and laugh at you for being foolish.

I don't say this to defend anything any Democrat actually has done. Undoubtedly politicians are playing politics. But you're failing to recognize that this is massively true of your guys.

Again, the Republican outrage here derives entirely from their incandescent anger that the emergence of sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh might prevent them from confirming a wingnut before the midterms. That is 100 percent political.

This is already a long-winded post, there's football on, and I'm sleepy. So I'll just say that despite the offense my football-watching post has surely caused, I'd like to talk about what would be the right thing to do now. Not to bitch about how we got here. What is the right thing to do now?

 

[Rockport Zebra]

Forget that you're a Republican or a Democrat for a moment. Instead of what is best for your team, think about the question that's actually before us: Should Brett Kavanaugh become the 114th Justice of the United States Supreme Court? Imagine that, instead of conjuring up whatever retort you feel like your side should make, what if we talked about the right thing to do now? What would that be?

To talk about that, we'd have to lay aside the grievances that have so many of us making so little sense so loudly. Yes, politicians must say what they must say. But we're not politicians. We're just people who have nothing better to do than yell at each other on an obscure internet message board. So we don't have to do any of the things that political operatives do. We could just talk sensibly to one another.

To my Republican friends, let me say that I understand you're pissed about all this. If I were you I'd be pissed about all this. Like you, I'd be angry that Democrats want to string this process out, in the hope that they'll retake the Senate then refuse to confirm any Trump nominee, depriving you of the solidly wingnut Court you've always wanted.

But if I were a Republican, I hope I'd remember that Republicans recently stole a Supreme court seat from the Democrats. I hope it would occur to me that when Republicans stole a Supreme Court seat, that necessarily meant they couldn't go to the cops when The Other Guys stole it back. Indeed, the certainty that The Other Guys would steal it back at their first opportunity should have been baked in the cake.

So, while I understand that you are really pissed right now, you need to understand that you don't get to be really pissed right now. And like the rest of us, you need to calm down, stop fulminating, and think rationally. Otherwise people like me will point and laugh at you for being foolish.

I don't say this to defend anything any Democrat actually has done. Undoubtedly politicians are playing politics. But you're failing to recognize that this is massively true of your guys.

Again, the Republican outrage here derives entirely from their incandescent anger that the emergence of sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh might prevent them from confirming a wingnut before the midterms. That is 100 percent political.

This is already a long-winded post, there's football on, and I'm sleepy. So I'll just say that despite the offense my football-watching post has surely caused, I'd like to talk about what would be the right thing to do now. Not to bitch about how we got here. What is the right thing to do now?

Like he said I can never get my reputation back.

 

[twenty02]

This isn't a discussion if Scalia doesn't have a widow maker while riding horses or herding cattle or eating ribeye or whatever he was doing.

You, I, and everyone else knows he'd never have retired while Obama (or any Dem) was in office.

It threw everything up in the air. But Kennedy chose to retire (and if you believe reports, did so with the idea that Kavanagh would be nominated).

Kavanagh isn't a wing nut...he's a pure-bred GOP establishment lawyer. Hell, if history is any guide he'll end up being a full blown moderate by his later years.

 

[toastedbread]

This isn't a discussion if Scalia doesn't have a widow maker while riding horses or herding cattle or eating ribeye or whatever he was doing.

You, I, and everyone else knows he'd never would have retired while Obama (or any Dem) was in office.

It threw everything up in the air. But Kennedy chose to retire (and if you believe reports, did so with the idea that Kavanagh would be nominated).

Kavanagh isn't a wing nut...he's a pure-bred GOP establishment lawyer. Hell, if history is any guide he'll end up being a full blown moderate by his later years.

Nah. I saw a scale recently that had Kavanaugh directly behind Thomas in terms of his judicial philosophy. This is literally as conservative as you can get except for that pile of human blob(Thomas).

 

[twenty02]

Nah. I saw a scale recently that had Kavanaugh directly behind Thomas in terms of his judicial philosophy. This is literally as conservative as you can get except for that pile of human blob(Thomas).

Well this is a very politically active guy.....that has clearly been aiming for this seat for his entire career. He knows as an appellate judge he's got to have his conservative bonafides locked down to ever be considered for nomination.

But history has shown that most - not all - conservative justices moderate over time.

 

[toastedbread]

This isn't a discussion if Scalia doesn't have a widow maker while riding horses or herding cattle or eating ribeye or whatever he was doing.

You, I, and everyone else knows he'd never have retired while Obama (or any Dem) was in office.

It threw everything up in the air. But Kennedy chose to retire (and if you believe reports, did so with the idea that Kavanagh would be nominated).

Kavanagh isn't a wing nut...he's a pure-bred GOP establishment lawyer. Hell, if history is any guide he'll end up being a full blown moderate by his later years.

See here:
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-brett-kavanaugh-would-change-the-supreme-court/

 

[twenty02]

See here:
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-brett-kavanaugh-would-change-the-supreme-court/

Yeah I've seen that...but did you actually read it:

That score is based not on Kavanaugh’s rulings but rather on the nomination and confirmation process. Typically, these scores are based in part on the ideology of a judge’s home-state senators, but because Kavanaugh served on the D.C. circuit and D.C. does not have any senators, his ideology score is based solely on the president who nominated him, George W. Bush​

 

[Rockfish1]

Kavanagh isn't a wing nut...he's a pure-bred GOP establishment lawyer. Hell, if history is any guide he'll end up being a full blown moderate by his later years.

With respect, that seems pretty far fetched. Kavanaugh is Federalist Society through and through. That puts him at the vanguard of the reactionary project that's passing for conservatism at the Federalist Society. (It may surprise you to know that I often attend Federalist Society luncheons.)

Kavanaugh is also a partisan warrior, and in particular he was a nasty little shit during Ken Starr's never-ending Clinton investigation. He was all over the ridiculous Vince Foster stuff, and he was right there at the heart of lying about a blowjob -- which Kavanaugh regarded as a threat to the Republic.

I see Kavanaugh as an insufferable prick, but perhaps I'll be proven wrong after he's confirmed.

 

[toastedbread]

Yeah I've seen that...but did you actually read it:

That score is based not on Kavanaugh’s rulings but rather on the nomination and confirmation process. Typically, these scores are based in part on the ideology of a judge’s home-state senators, but because Kavanaugh served on the D.C. circuit and D.C. does not have any senators, his ideology score is based solely on the president who nominated him, George W. Bush​

Whoops. Was just looking for something that had that plot. Thought it was based on rulings.

 

[twenty02]

With respect, that seems pretty far fetched. Kavanaugh is Federalist Society through and through. That puts him at the vanguard of the reactionary project that's passing for conservatism at the Federalist Society. (It may surprise you to know that I often attend Federalist Society luncheons.)

Kavanaugh is also a partisan warrior, and in particular he was a nasty little shit during Ken Starr's never-ending Clinton investigation. He was all over the ridiculous Vince Foster stuff, and he was right there at the heart of lying about a blowjob -- which Kavanaugh regarded as a threat to the Republic.

I see Kavanaugh as an insufferable prick, but perhaps I'll be proven wrong after he's confirmed.

If you believe the Politico reporting....Kennedy was the one who pushed his name specifically...as part of his retirement. If one respects Kennedy (as I do, as someone with a libertarian/moderate bent)...I can't imagine him so affirmatively recommending a partisan hack.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/07/09/brett-kavanaugh-trump-private-meeting-706137

 

[Rockfish1]

If you believe the Politico reporting....Kennedy was the one who pushed his name specifically...as part of his retirement. If one respects Kennedy (as I do, as a libertarian/moderate)...I can't imagine him so affirmatively recommending a partisan hack.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/07/09/brett-kavanaugh-trump-private-meeting-706137

One of the things I like about you: You seem to have a generous nature. Too generous here.

 

[twenty02]

One of the things I like about you: You seem to have a generous nature. Too generous here.

Could be.

I hope for the best always. I also have confidence in our system that it is able to continually rebalance, and naturally find the creamy middle.

I like to just look at history and realize there were always problems...very often exponentially worse than whatever the most recent clown show is about. Then I carry on. I don't take any of this stuff personally.

 

[toastedbread]

If you believe the Politico reporting....Kennedy was the one who pushed his name specifically...as part of his retirement. If one respects Kennedy (as I do, as someone with a libertarian/moderate bent)...I can't imagine him so affirmatively recommending a partisan hack.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/07/09/brett-kavanaugh-trump-private-meeting-706137

Kennedy's final term was his most conservative in over a decade. He essentially kowtowed to the Trump admin.

Kavanaugh was his clerk.

 

[toastedbread]

Could be.

I hope for the best always. I also have confidence in our system that it is able to continually rebalance, and naturally find the creamy middle.

I like to just look at history and realize there were always problems...very often exponentially worse than whatever the most recent clown show is about. Then I carry on. I don't take any of this stuff personally.

The Roman empire constantly rebalanced itself until suddenly it didn't...

 

[twenty02]

The Roman empire constantly rebalanced itself until suddenly it didn't...

Well one day the sun will start to die....and in doing so it will expand and turn Earth into a marshmallow dropped in a bonfire.

I don't get stressed about that either.

 

[twenty02]

Kennedy's final term was his most conservative in over a decade. He essentially kowtowed to the Trump admin.

Kavanaugh was his clerk.

Yeah I know he was his clerk...how many clerks did he have over 30 years (I really don't know, but guessing hundreds). This is the one he recommended.

 

[TheOriginalHappyGoat]

Yeah I know he was his clerk...how many clerks did he have over 30 years (I really don't know, but guessing hundreds). This is the one he recommended.

Four per year, so about 120.

 

[Jeb MT Mater]

Forget that you're a Republican or a Democrat for a moment. Instead of what is best for your team, think about the question that's actually before us: Should Brett Kavanaugh become the 114th Justice of the United States Supreme Court? Imagine that, instead of conjuring up whatever retort you feel like your side should make, what if we talked about the right thing to do now? What would that be?

To talk about that, we'd have to lay aside the grievances that have so many of us making so little sense so loudly. Yes, politicians must say what they must say. But we're not politicians. We're just people who have nothing better to do than yell at each other on an obscure internet message board. So we don't have to do any of the things that political operatives do. We could just talk sensibly to one another.

To my Republican friends, let me say that I understand you're pissed about all this. If I were you I'd be pissed about all this. Like you, I'd be angry that Democrats want to string this process out, in the hope that they'll retake the Senate then refuse to confirm any Trump nominee, depriving you of the solidly wingnut Court you've always wanted.

But if I were a Republican, I hope I'd remember that Republicans recently stole a Supreme Court seat from the Democrats. I hope it would occur to me that when Republicans stole a Supreme Court seat, that necessarily meant they couldn't go to the cops when The Other Guys stole it back. Indeed, the certainty that The Other Guys would steal it back at their first opportunity should have been baked in the cake.

So, while I understand that you are really pissed right now, you need to understand that you don't get to be really pissed right now. And like the rest of us, you need to calm down, stop fulminating, and think rationally. Otherwise people like me will point and laugh at you for being foolish.

I don't say this to defend anything any Democrat actually has done. Undoubtedly politicians are playing politics. But you're failing to recognize that this is massively true of your guys.

Again, the Republican outrage here derives entirely from their incandescent anger that the emergence of sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh might prevent them from confirming a wingnut before the midterms. That is 100 percent political.

This is already a long-winded post, there's football on, and I'm sleepy. So I'll just say that despite the offense my football-watching post has surely caused, I'd like to talk about what would be the right thing to do now. Not to bitch about how we got here. What is the right thing to do now?

The rational solution is obvious. Behind closed doors, an unleakably small number of Republicans convince Trump to withdraw Kavanaugh and immediately nominate an unimpeachable candidate. Then the Senate does its normal due diligence and confirms the nominee before January 1st. Win-win.

 

[Rockfish1]

The rational solution is obvious. Behind closed doors, an unleakably small number of Republicans convince Trump to withdraw Kavanaugh and immediately nominate an unimpeachable candidate. Then the Senate does its normal due diligence and confirms the nominee before January 1st. Win-win.

Prior to the hearing, Nate Silver thought that Republicans' least worst option was to withdraw Kavanaugh as you suggest. After the hearing, it's hard for me to believe that doing the right thing is possible. The second half of that hearing was just about the rawest and most partisan thing I've ever seen, and the guy up for a lifetime appointment to the United States Supreme Court was the most partisan warrior of all. I'm afraid the wheels have completely fallen off, and only something awful can result. I'm afraid Senate Republicans are pot-committed to this and couldn't escape if they wanted to.

 

[twenty02]

In shocking news :

 

[toastedbread]

Yeah I know he was his clerk...how many clerks did he have over 30 years (I really don't know, but guessing hundreds). This is the one he recommended.

And how many on Trump's list clerked under Kennedy?

 

[TheOriginalHappyGoat]

In shocking news :

View embedded media

 

[TheOriginalHappyGoat]

And how many on Trump's list clerked under Kennedy?

Three. Kavanaugh, Kethledge, Gorsuch.

 

[Jeb MT Mater]

Prior to the hearing, Nate Silver thought that Republicans' least worst option was to withdraw Kavanaugh as you suggest. After the hearing, it's hard for me to believe that doing the right thing is possible. The second half of that hearing was just about the rawest and most partisan thing I've ever seen, and the guy up for a lifetime appointment to the United States Supreme Court was the most partisan warrior of all. I'm afraid the wheels have completely fallen off, and only something awful can result. I'm afraid Senate Republicans are pot-committed to this and couldn't escape if they wanted to.

Yup, but you asked for the right thing to do, not the wrong thong to wear.

I wonder what actual percentage of Americans see how insidious the Republicans are behaving here. They base their main argument on the Democrats delaying Ford's letter which delay ironically and arguably enabled Kavanaugh to get confirmed. I hope Democrats will nominate an ass-kicking trainload of good candidates in 2020 and they realize the American imperative to end the inane politicking and start a new era of future building.

 

[zeke4ahs]

Can someone explain what happened. I was listening in my car to most of the testimony until about 3. After Dr Frost , listening to all the commentators, even on Fox, everyone thought she was very credible and it would be hard to get Kavanaugh passed. Then Kavanaugh comes up and clearly shows that he does not have the temperament for the job, regardless of the validity of the sexual allegations. Yet when he is done, suddenly everyone says he’s going to be confirmed. Is it because he showed such deep partisanship? PS You might do a wellness check on your women friends tomorrow , especially ones you know have suffered any kinds of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. . I’ve been chatting and texting people all day. Looking at social media, there are lots of distraught females around. Watching a man accused of sexual abuse angrily scream and yell his way to a Supreme Court Justice seat is a bit triggering.

 

[zeke4ahs]

Has it been mentioned his remark to the senator that asked him about blackout drinking and he shot it right back to her? Right after she’d told him her dad was an alcoholic? He’s a mean drunk too.

 

[TheOriginalHappyGoat]

 

[TheOriginalHappyGoat]

One other thing, and I say this as an experienced drinker, there is at least one thing that Kavanaugh lied about repeatedly today: his drinking. He absolutely is a problem drinker, and he absolutely has been blackout drunk numerous times. There is no doubt about that. His answers were taken word-for-word from the Alcoholism Denial For Dummies guide.

 

[toastedbread]

One other thing, and I say this as an experienced drinker, there is at least one thing that Kavanaugh lied about repeatedly today: his drinking. He absolutely is a problem drinker, and he absolutely has been blackout drunk numerous times. There is no doubt about that. His answers were taken word-for-word from the Alcoholism Denial For Dummies guide.

I've blacked out a couple times, and I've done or observed some fairly deplorable things (although nothing that approaches attempted rape). I will never be nominated for the SC, nor do I have any interest in pursuing such a position. If I were ever in such a position, I would admit to my mistakes, apologize, and chalk them up to immaturity and youth. That is what a reasonable person does.

 

[Bill4411]

Pass. There are better candidates available than this angry, whiny, entitled, dishonest man. I feel the hearings were not handled correctly but still Kavanaugh shows poor to very poor judicial temperament.

Brett also mentioned he had already hired four female law clerks presuming he would be approved and that no justice will have ever had only exclusively female clerks and knowing of Brettt I’ll bet they are beautiful too-likely future Fox News anchors types. Kavanaugh made it sound like he should be approved in part because he had already hired these women. He is way to presumptuous and entitled imo.

 

[Jeb MT Mater]

Can someone explain what happened. I was listening in my car to most of the testimony until about 3. After Dr Frost , listening to all the commentators, even on Fox, everyone thought she was very credible and it would be hard to get Kavanaugh passed. Then Kavanaugh comes up and clearly shows that he does not have the temperament for the job, regardless of the validity of the sexual allegations. Yet when he is done, suddenly everyone says he’s going to be confirmed. Is it because he showed such deep partisanship? PS You might do a wellness check on your women friends tomorrow , especially ones you know have suffered any kinds of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. . I’ve been chatting and texting people all day. Looking at social media, there are lots of distraught females around. Watching a man accused of sexual abuse angrily scream and yell his way to a Supreme Court Justice seat is a bit triggering.

His initial statement was a surgical analysis of how he couldn't have done what she said. He used his calendar as his basic proof. It probably seemed credible to all conservatives. He slid over the one weekend on his calendar when it most likely happened and I don't think the Democrats managed to expose that, although I stopped listening to him after a while.

His primary tactic in foiling the Democratic questioners was to filibuster their limited five-minute window to ask him questions and to dodge answering their questions. The most striking aspect of his testimony to me was the stark contrast between how he behaved respectfully toward Mitchell and the Republicans and arrogantly and contemptuously toward the Democrats. The only possible way ANYONE could have not noticed that contrast was if that viewer was in lockstep with his anger toward Democrats.

One more stark contrast was between how Ford directly responded to all of Mitchell's questions and how Kavanaugh not only rarely responded directly but also he added tomes of advertisements about himself and how he is and was a paragon of virgin purity, except for his occasional drinking of a beer or two too much..

 

[Courtsensetwo]

Forget that you're a Republican or a Democrat for a moment. Instead of what is best for your team, think about the question that's actually before us: Should Brett Kavanaugh become the 114th Justice of the United States Supreme Court? Imagine that, instead of conjuring up whatever retort you feel like your side should make, what if we talked about the right thing to do now? What would that be?

To talk about that, we'd have to lay aside the grievances that have so many of us making so little sense so loudly. Yes, politicians must say what they must say. But we're not politicians. We're just people who have nothing better to do than yell at each other on an obscure internet message board. So we don't have to do any of the things that political operatives do. We could just talk sensibly to one another.

To my Republican friends, let me say that I understand you're pissed about all this. If I were you I'd be pissed about all this. Like you, I'd be angry that Democrats want to string this process out, in the hope that they'll retake the Senate then refuse to confirm any Trump nominee, depriving you of the solidly wingnut Court you've always wanted.

But if I were a Republican, I hope I'd remember that Republicans recently stole a Supreme Court seat from the Democrats. I hope it would occur to me that when Republicans stole a Supreme Court seat, that necessarily meant they couldn't go to the cops when The Other Guys stole it back. Indeed, the certainty that The Other Guys would steal it back at their first opportunity should have been baked in the cake.

So, while I understand that you are really pissed right now, you need to understand that you don't get to be really pissed right now. And like the rest of us, you need to calm down, stop fulminating, and think rationally. Otherwise people like me will point and laugh at you for being foolish.

I don't say this to defend anything any Democrat actually has done. Undoubtedly politicians are playing politics. But you're failing to recognize that this is massively true of your guys.

Again, the Republican outrage here derives entirely from their incandescent anger that the emergence of sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh might prevent them from confirming a wingnut before the midterms. That is 100 percent political.

This is already a long-winded post, there's football on, and I'm sleepy. So I'll just say that despite the offense my football-watching post has surely caused, I'd like to talk about what would be the right thing to do now. Not to bitch about how we got here. What is the right thing to do now?

I agree with most of this. The only good news in the stolen appointment is that Gorsuch was a generally acceptable choice. BK...not so much.

 

[Hoopsdoc1978]

Can someone explain what happened. I was listening in my car to most of the testimony until about 3. After Dr Frost , listening to all the commentators, even on Fox, everyone thought she was very credible and it would be hard to get Kavanaugh passed. Then Kavanaugh comes up and clearly shows that he does not have the temperament for the job, regardless of the validity of the sexual allegations. Yet when he is done, suddenly everyone says he’s going to be confirmed. Is it because he showed such deep partisanship? PS You might do a wellness check on your women friends tomorrow , especially ones you know have suffered any kinds of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. . I’ve been chatting and texting people all day. Looking at social media, there are lots of distraught females around. Watching a man accused of sexual abuse angrily scream and yell his way to a Supreme Court Justice seat is a bit triggering.

If he is indeed innocent, then he showed remarkable restraint.

These allegations will be the first thing mentioned at the sound of his name from now on.

 

[iu_a_att]

Can someone explain what happened. I was listening in my car to most of the testimony until about 3. After Dr Frost , listening to all the commentators, even on Fox, everyone thought she was very credible and it would be hard to get Kavanaugh passed. Then Kavanaugh comes up and clearly shows that he does not have the temperament for the job, regardless of the validity of the sexual allegations. Yet when he is done, suddenly everyone says he’s going to be confirmed. Is it because he showed such deep partisanship? PS You might do a wellness check on your women friends tomorrow , especially ones you know have suffered any kinds of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. . I’ve been chatting and texting people all day. Looking at social media, there are lots of distraught females around. Watching a man accused of sexual abuse angrily scream and yell his way to a Supreme Court Justice seat is a bit triggering.

What happened is that while the number of women who are victims is large it is altogether likely that the number of men who are victimizers is considerably larger. The victimizers have banded together and decided that their transgressions are forgivable and therefor powerful and important men must not be held accountable for those actions.

 

[Marvin the Martian]

What happened is that while the number of women who are victims is large it is altogether likely that the number of men who are victimizers is considerably larger. The victimizers have banded together and decided that their transgressions are forgivable and therefor powerful and important men must not be held accountable for those actions.

I think there is an issue on how much sexual assault is perceived as a problem. Not on it being a problem, but how often it happens. Since women are disproportionately impacted, males are less likely to see it. Below was just shared by a daughter on Facebook, and shows how much more women (all women) have to think about the issue than we men.

Guys ask why women are so pissed off. Even guys with wives and daughters. Jackson Katz, a prominent social researcher, illustrates why. He's done it with hundreds of audiences:

"I draw a line down the middle of a chalkboard, sketching a male symbol on one side and a female symbol on the other.
Then I ask just the men: What steps do you guys take, on a daily basis, to prevent yourselves from being sexually assaulted? At first there is a kind of awkward silence as the men try to figure out if they've been asked a trick question. The silence gives way to a smattering of nervous laughter. Occasionally, a young a guy will raise his hand and say, 'I stay out of prison.' This is typically followed by another moment of laughter, before someone finally raises his hand and soberly states, 'Nothing. I don't think about it.'
Then I ask the women the same question. What steps do you take on a daily basis to prevent yourselves from being sexually assaulted? Women throughout the audience immediately start raising their hands. As the men sit in stunned silence, the women recount safety precautions they take as part of their daily routine.
Hold my keys as a potential weapon. Look in the back seat of the car before getting in. Carry a cell phone. Don't go jogging at night. Lock all the windows when I sleep, even on hot summer nights. Be careful not to drink too much. Don't put my drink down and come back to it; make sure I see it being poured. Own a big dog. Carry Mace or pepper spray. Have an unlisted phone number. Have a man's voice on my answering machine. Park in well-lit areas. Don't use parking garages. Don't get on elevators with only one man, or with a group of men. Vary my route home from work. Watch what I wear. Don't use highway rest areas. Use a home alarm system. Don't wear headphones when jogging. Avoid forests or wooded areas, even in the daytime. Don't take a first-floor apartment. Go out in groups. Own a firearm. Meet men on first dates in public places. Make sure to have a car or cab fare. Don't make eye contact with men on the street. Make assertive eye contact with men on the street.”

― Jackson Katz, The Macho Paradox: Why Some Men Hurt Women and How All Men Can Help​

I think if we had to daily account for the possibility of being sexually assaulted (even by friends and colleagues), we as a gender would be less sympathetic to Kavanaugh. I'm not saying all of us are, but there is a clear divide between men and women on the issue.

 

[Rockfish1]

What happened is that while the number of women who are victims is large it is altogether likely that the number of men who are victimizers is considerably larger. The victimizers have banded together and decided that their transgressions are forgivable and therefor powerful and important men must not be held accountable for those actions.

If Kavanaugh's nomination is not withdrawn -- and it won't be -- the right thing to do would be to conduct an investigation of the allegations against Kavanaugh. But that won't happen either. Instead Republicans will likely do the worst possible thing: They'll put Kavanaugh on the Court without ever making any effort to determine what the facts are.

Indeed, Republicans are now apoplectic that the allegations have been made at all. It's outrageous, they insist in fury, that an Important Man has been smeared by the allegations of these ladies. In their fury, they've persuaded themselves to just ignore what the women have to say, because this is all just a plot by perfidious Democrats to assault the character of This Honorable Man.

Here's Kevin Drum on Republicans' conviction that they're being victimized by Democrats:

This has been the signature of the conservative movement ever since the start of the Gingrich era: a deep-rooted belief that conservatives are regular victims of liberal cabals who are out to destroy them and everything that America stands for. Sex and gender are at the core of much of this, but it goes beyond that, something that Kavanaugh knows very well. After all, he’s been a movement conservative spear carrier for years: author of the Starr Report; pro bono counsel in the Elián González affair; part of the Bush v. Gore legal team; and then staff secretary in the Bush White House. He knows what animates the base and he’s perfectly willing to play the role of aggrieved victim if that’s what’s called for.

And to me, that was the most striking thing about Kavanaugh’s testimony: it was an over-the-top, nonstop grievance festival:

Since my nomination in July, there’s been a frenzy on the left to come up with something, anything to block my confirmation…. When it was needed, this allegation was unleashed and publicly deployed over Dr. Ford’s wishes…. This whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated political hit…. pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election….revenge on behalf of the Clintons…. millions of dollars in money from outside left-wing opposition groups.
​

That was from Kavanaugh’s opening statement. Later, Republicans took his cue and gave speech after speech about the perfidy of Democrats who had planned this entire smear campaign. Lindsey Graham said bitterly that any Republican who voted against Kavanaugh was “legitimizing the most despicable thing I have seen in my time in politics.” Ted Cruz directly blamed the whole affair on deliberate machinations by Dianne Feinstein: “The ranking member had these allegations on July 30th and for 60 days — that was 60 days ago — the ranking member did not refer it to the FBI for an investigation. The ranking member did not refer it to the full committee for an investigation.” John Cornyn said, “I can’t think of a more embarrassing scandal for the United States Senate since the McCarthy hearings.” Thom Tillis was all about the conspiracy theory from the word go: “I believe you’re the first major target of a new strategy that’s developed here….And maybe one of the best evidence of this is one of the websites — one of the groups that are out there, attacking you and trying to create fodder and all of these red herrings, has already acquired a URL for the next judge that they’re going to attack.”

. . . The problem here is not that Republicans were grandstanding over imagined liberal schemes to destroy anyone and anything in pursuit of their poisonous schemes to crush everything good about America. The problem is that most of it wasn’t grandstanding. They believe this deeply and angrily. And it explains the lengths Republicans are willing to go to these days—even to the appalling extent of accepting a cretin like Donald Trump as a party leader. If you believe that your political opposites aren’t just opponents, but literally enemies of the country, then of course you’ll do almost anything to stop them. I would too if that’s what I thought.
​

The new GOP is not conservative. It's reactionary.

 

[Courtsensetwo]

Donnelly votes no. His IN race just got interesting.

 

[iu_a_att]

If Kavanaugh's nomination is not withdrawn -- and it won't be -- the right thing to do would be to conduct an investigation of the allegations against Kavanaugh. But that won't happen either. Instead Republicans will likely do the worst possible thing: They'll put Kavanaugh on the Court without ever making any effort to determine what the facts are.

Indeed, Republicans are now apoplectic that the allegations have been made at all. It's outrageous, they insist in fury, that an Important Man has been smeared by the allegations of these ladies. In their fury, they've persuaded themselves to just ignore what the women have to say, because this is all just a plot by perfidious Democrats to assault the character of This Honorable Man.

Here's Kevin Drum on Republicans' conviction that they're being victimized by Democrats:

This has been the signature of the conservative movement ever since the start of the Gingrich era: a deep-rooted belief that conservatives are regular victims of liberal cabals who are out to destroy them and everything that America stands for. Sex and gender are at the core of much of this, but it goes beyond that, something that Kavanaugh knows very well. After all, he’s been a movement conservative spear carrier for years: author of the Starr Report; pro bono counsel in the Elián González affair; part of the Bush v. Gore legal team; and then staff secretary in the Bush White House. He knows what animates the base and he’s perfectly willing to play the role of aggrieved victim if that’s what’s called for.

And to me, that was the most striking thing about Kavanaugh’s testimony: it was an over-the-top, nonstop grievance festival:

Since my nomination in July, there’s been a frenzy on the left to come up with something, anything to block my confirmation…. When it was needed, this allegation was unleashed and publicly deployed over Dr. Ford’s wishes…. This whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated political hit…. pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election….revenge on behalf of the Clintons…. millions of dollars in money from outside left-wing opposition groups.
​

That was from Kavanaugh’s opening statement. Later, Republicans took his cue and gave speech after speech about the perfidy of Democrats who had planned this entire smear campaign. Lindsey Graham said bitterly that any Republican who voted against Kavanaugh was “legitimizing the most despicable thing I have seen in my time in politics.” Ted Cruz directly blamed the whole affair on deliberate machinations by Dianne Feinstein: “The ranking member had these allegations on July 30th and for 60 days — that was 60 days ago — the ranking member did not refer it to the FBI for an investigation. The ranking member did not refer it to the full committee for an investigation.” John Cornyn said, “I can’t think of a more embarrassing scandal for the United States Senate since the McCarthy hearings.” Thom Tillis was all about the conspiracy theory from the word go: “I believe you’re the first major target of a new strategy that’s developed here….And maybe one of the best evidence of this is one of the websites — one of the groups that are out there, attacking you and trying to create fodder and all of these red herrings, has already acquired a URL for the next judge that they’re going to attack.”

. . . The problem here is not that Republicans were grandstanding over imagined liberal schemes to destroy anyone and anything in pursuit of their poisonous schemes to crush everything good about America. The problem is that most of it wasn’t grandstanding. They believe this deeply and angrily. And it explains the lengths Republicans are willing to go to these days—even to the appalling extent of accepting a cretin like Donald Trump as a party leader. If you believe that your political opposites aren’t just opponents, but literally enemies of the country, then of course you’ll do almost anything to stop them. I would too if that’s what I thought.​

The new GOP is not conservative. It's reactionary.

I wonder if Dr. Ford might not consider filing a civil suit against both Kavanaugh and Judge. Perhaps there is even room for a criminal filing.

 

[toastedbread]

I wonder if Dr. Ford might not consider filing a civil suit against both Kavanaugh and Judge. Perhaps there is even room for a criminal filing.

I'll throw a real curve-ball. I think the only hope left is that Michael Avenatti's client files criminal charges against Kavanaugh and Judge in Maryland. I think it's highly unlikely, but not impossible.

Edit:

 

[twenty02]

Yes.....unhinged: