www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Alito Confirmed and Sworn in as Supreme Court Justice

Read the story from the Washington Times [washingtontimes.com]

Will this be a good thing or a bad thing for us serious Christians?

It could be VERY good for us, Christians!

A new conservative era could be dawning upon us. He joins Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Kennedy, Scalia, and Thomas as the 5th Catholic justice in the current U.S. Supreme Court (9 justices en banc), unprecedented in its august history!

From 33% before Judge Roberts' confirmation to 44% after his confirmation as Chief Justice last year, then to 55% Catholic representation with Justice Alito's swearing in IS a dramatic jump, by all measures!

Justice Kennedy, though, seems to be perceived as the "inheritor" of retired Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's "swing vote." Even then, the conservative bloc is clearly on the upper hand!

Thanks be to God!

Amado

HOORAY!!!!!

I wonder if the Democrats who voted for him are Pro-Life all the way. This is their chance to speak up and help change things.

I think it's a great day for us, sure. Now we've got like 5 Catholics on the Court or something. We've taken over.

however, I'm seriously afraid of what this can mean for our freedom. I'm not at all in favor of crowning GW king. Security is not as important as freedom. I think right now we should be seriously afraid about the lack of checks and balances in the Federal government.

There's a quote by Benjamin Franklin that's been heavy on my mind lately:

�Those who desire to give up freedom in order to gain security, will not have, nor do they deserve, either one.�

This time around, only 4 Democratic Senators voted for Justice Alito, while 1 Republican voted against!

The final tally: 58-42 in favor.

Amado

P.S. Did you know that Justice Antonin Scalia has a son who is a Catholic priest?

I knew that.

Will they overturn Roe vs Wade?

California will still allow abortion and sodomy. So will New York and Massachussets.

"Before Kingdoms change, hearts must change."- uttered in the movie Jesus of Nazareth

Hmmm, the man has more years on the bench than any other supreme court justice has had in what 70 years?
Anyway, it's great, he'll do a good job.
John Roberts' parents are originally from Johnstown, PA.
The good thing Domilsean is that there are the other justices to help keep each other in check, so I don't predict a shift in the defining of these security measure as constituitonally granted powers to the executive branch.
Hmm, anyone guess what my undergrad degree is in?

But we Christians who do not consider ourselves "conservatives" in the modern-day American political sense of the term could be very troubled with the rise of a new "conservative era."

If Roe v. Wade is overturned, then I say it's worth it. Honestly, though, I don't see Roe v. Wade (or Casey) being overturned in the foreseeable future.

So, those of us who aren't conservative would ask, What will this mean for the poor in our country? The underprivileged? The environment that God entrusted to us? Education, housing, food, opportunity for those who cannot afford it?

Logos Teen

LT,

I have to agree with you. I can't consider myself politically conservative or liberal, because I've got issues in both camps that I support and oppose. I've gotten blasted from both sides for my views. I also feel that there are many values and positions out there that Christians espouse that are rather contrary to the Gospel, but they're put forth as "conservative" and therefore, somehow by neo-conservative proxy, Christian.

Personally, I'm tired of the evanglical protestants hoarding the name "Christian" (and abandoning the term Protestant), as if we Catholics and Orthodox were somehow NOT Christian. I'd better start before a rant forms.

Most of us have to work for a living.

The workplace is, or should be, one place where everyone's interests converge. This is particularly true for public workers: government should lead the way and not discriminate against anyone. The government workplace should look like society at large.

Because of this, everyone who works for a living has a dual set of interests and needs to think clearly about their own interests and goals at work and in their community as well as their religous, family and social obligations. We need to think about paying our bills and raising families.

There are no Justices on the Court now who have any real familiarity with the many workplace problems workers face every day. Judge Alito is not just another potential Supreme Court Justice with no obvious worker-advocacy background, however. Instead, his judicial decisions reveal that he consistently votes against the interests of workers.

Among Judge Alito's many anti-worker decisions: he voted against Family and Medical Leave Act coverage for state employees; he voted against overtime pay for newspaper workers; he voted against holding high level corporate officers responsible for unpaid wages and benefits once their companies have filed for bankruptcy; he voted against enforcement of workplace safety standards in the chemical and mining industry; he voted against worker interests by excusing businesses from giving WARN act notices that they are closing down and limiting the damages available when companies violate WARN act standards. Other anti-worker votes included setting aside an arbitration award reinstating a discharged worker, overturning various positive NLRB rulings and ruling against "no docking" collective bargaining agreement provisions that permit employers to allow union stewards to receive their regular pay and benefits while handling grievances. This doesn't sound at all christian to me or in line with Catholic teaching.

Judge Alito's decisions indicate that his views are far, far right of the mainstream. We need a Supreme Court Justice who will be fair to everyone, not biased in favor of corporate and business interests.

We may indeed be happy about a Catholic majority on the Court and his votes on abortion. But, at the end of the day, if our workplaces aren't safe, if workplace discrimination is upheld and institutionalized, if we lose wage and hour law protections and government stops looking like society at large because FMLA is reinterpreted the other issues won't matter so much to many of you.

Judge Alito will NOT vote to uphold your rights if you work for a living.

Be well.

bob r.

Logos Teen,
Do you mean to imply that those of us who are "Conservative" dont have concern for those issues?
Stephanos I

as opposed to the unserious kind? I think he will make hard core right-wingers happy but like Mr Rossi , I worry about the fate of ordinary workers in his decisions which favored corporate power.

Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,for his judgements are true and just...
Praise our God , all you his servants, you who fear him small and great.. Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready."
Stephanos I