And Justice for All

 Part I of "As the Stomach Turns"

The issue that was under review in the Judiciary Committee really wasn’t about whether Dr. Blasy-Ford or Judge Kavanaugh is telling the truth. Without an investigation ANY accusation is reduced to he said, she said. We have been exposed to an accusation but with no evidence upon which to attach a TRUTH placard. Which one of the two you choose to believe comes down to which one rings true to you, which one do you want to believe, and which one did a better job of being credible and likable.

Those who watched the hearing did not see two people laying out evidence to substantiate their case. What we saw was how our government has been distorted and deformed, to the point where it is no longer a reflection of the lofty ideals that gave birth to our nation.

Both sides of the aisle are guilty of dismantling of our democracy. The left is fond of blaming all dystopian functions of government on the current administration. But it appears that this inexperienced, ill-prepared president is particularly guilty of being unwilling, unable or uninterested in playing the traditional game and in eschewing that role he has left the torpid winds of underhanded politics and politicians to wreak their damage, unchecked and even lauded and applauded.  The fury of the storm has stripped away the pretense that we have elected officials collaborating with each other for the benefit of their constituents.  With a leader who disdains civility and diplomacy and whose behavior garners applause and wild demonstrations of support the entire political scenario has shifted more dramatically toward disruption and destruction. But it is not just HIS disruption and destruction. It is his willingness to abandon the pretense that has laid bare the baser qualities of the American psyche, spreading the contagion that threatens our national health. That diseased body was on full display at the hearings and those who went beyond watching and actually SAW the performance should be dismayed.

Traditionally, under our Constitution, a person is innocent until proven guilty.  Prosecutors are charged with obtaining evidence of culpability and defenders with refuting the evidence and/or obtaining evidence to the contrary.  Dr. Blasy-Ford was correct in her request for an investigation. Evidence to support her claim can only be obtained by a professional investigation. It was embarrassing to witness a room full of seasoned lawyers (members of the Judiciary Committee no less) equating signed statements “under penalty of felony” to an investigation by the FBI. Riveting and painful as her testimony was it only presented a credible reason for the need of an investigation.  It did not present verifiable, substantiating evidence to support the accusation.

Judge Kavanaugh’s testimony presented two powerful pieces of evidence, each contradicting the other. On the one hand his uncanny ability to refer to calendars dating to the time in question seemed to present exculpatory evidence. But the veracity of the information in the calendar must be established through an investigation; the calendars mean nothing at face value. The second piece of evidence was his anger and partisan accusations of conspiratorial goals; not entirely without merit.  The final stages of the Judiciary Committee’s hearing were most certainly manipulated to cause as much delay as possible, with the obvious objective of maximizing the potential to have the final confirmation vote fall after the midterm elections. But his arrogant display of anger and disdain for the Senators also gave credence to the accusations of his sense of entitlement and the ease with which he sinks into bullying. Most telling was his repeated response to questions about possible alcohol abuse. He consistently responded with a recitation of his academic and athletic achievements. Aside from being a non-sequitur his response insinuates a belief that the sacrifice of hard work and success is justifiably rewarded with alcohol consumption, leaving the issue of its possible abuse as a shadowy appendage to the question, not worth answering. He never, categorically, stated that he had not had periods of blackout, failure to remember his actions while drinking or bouts of belligerence while under the influence of alcohol. Instead, in one instance he arrogantly turned the question around to the questioner.

The Republican entourage of lawyers and lawmakers bent on not letting the delay tactics of the Democrats achieve their intended goal decided it was better to torpedo justice than to risk the possibility of losing the chance to fill the Supreme Court seat with Judge Kavanaugh. The Democrats bet democracy against the lives and reputation of two people and lost everything. 

Our nation, held aloft on the righteous columns of “justice for all”, demonstrated to the American people that we can no longer aspire to that promise. We the people have elected representatives to Congress, within both parties, who do not defend the constitution, who do not pursue justice, who do not revere the uniqueness of the government structure set in place by intellectual giants. They created a functioning system created to thwart monarchical tendencies, to limit the abuses of privilege and defeat injustice. Years of malfeasance have undone their carefully crafted and robust system, injecting and infecting it with a fragility that threatens to leave us with nothing to pledge allegiance to. The most recent victim is Dr. Blasy-Ford, but this time the perpetrator is not Judge Kavanaugh; it is the collective. We the people are rewarding the manipulators and the pretenders. It is not they who are as naked as the emperor, but we! We have been stripped of a functioning government, we have been fed a crock of lies and we have gleefully complimented the chef and asked for seconds.