SCOTUS Finally Gets One Right

Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that the school integration plans used by districts in Seattle and Louisville were unconstitutional because they considered a person's race in determining whether a student could attend his desired school. Could it be that, finally, the days of social engineering by the state on the basis of race are coming to an end?

Left-wing commentators have long approved of twisting the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause - and Congress' power to enforce it - into something that permits racial distinctions when they serve a social purpose deemed desirable. However, no matter how desirable any goal may be, be it segregation or diversity, when one class of people is preferred by government over another - especially on the basis of a trait completely out of the control of the members of that class, be it race, sex, or eye color - other classes of that trait must, by definition, be unfavored. And whatever else that may be, and however better a society that might create, there is simply no way to argue logically that all persons are being protected equally.

To be sure, there is along history of tortured Constitutional law that has permitted preference of classes in spite of the 14th Amendment. What is really needed is passage of an Equal Rights Amendment that expands its original class of sex to include race, age after attaining majority, and sexual orientation. Only then will the courts be forced to stop once and for all twisting the meaning of what constitutes equal protection to fit current social and political norms.

We are no fans of the Roberts court. Justices such as Scalia, Alito, and especially Thomas are abject embarrassments to what the Supreme Court means to our government and the society its decisions affect. But in this particular case, the Court has finally begun the long overdue process of returning to what the Constitution actually says instead of permitting government behavior simply because five or more Justices like its results.

Quote of the Day

Behold the turtle; he makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.
   - James Bryant Conant