The confirmation of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor came with few surprises.
Everyone anticipated questions from Republicans about public statements Sotomayor made about her life influences, comments some interpreted to mean she could not rule on cases without bias.
Interestingly, previous appointees — including Justice Antonin Scalia, Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito — spoke openly before their confirmations about how their upbringings led them to conservative political viewpoints — but when they went through the hearings, Judiciary Committee members such as Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., praised them for that.
I suspect the next Republican nominee for the court will get the same treatment from Democrats.
But I wonder how many people can reach our country’s highest level of jurisprudence and not come to the job with life-experience baggage that influences the way they view the law and how they interpret it.
We can argue about the most influential of those “life” factors, but I think most would agree on a short list of what they include. My list: faith, education, economic status, home environment, and race and/or ethnicity.
So here is a snapshot of where the nine justices fall in some of those areas:
- Scalia: Roman Catholic; grew up in Trenton, N.J., in an Italian-influenced household; mother was an immigrant; both parents were schoolteachers; attended Harvard Law School.
- Roberts: Roman Catholic; grew up in a small town in the Midwest, the son of a steel industry executive; attended Harvard law School.
- Alito: Roman Catholic; grew up in Trenton, N.J., the son of a long-time employee of the New Jersey state legislature; attended Yale Law School.
- Sotomayor: Roman Catholic; grew up in a poor, working class neighborhood in the Bronx, N.Y., the daughter of Puerto Rican parents; attended Yale Law School.
- Justice Anthony Kennedy: Roman Catholic; grew up in Sacramento, Calif., the son of a lawyer/lobbyist; attended Harvard Law School.
- Justice Clarence Thomas: Roman Catholic (converted); grew up in a single-parent household in poor, rural Pin Point, Ga.; eventually raised by his grandfather in Savannah, Ga.; attended Yale Law School.
- Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Jewish; grew up in a working middle-class neighborhood in Brooklyn, N.Y.; attended Harvard Law School.
- Justice John Paul Stevens: protestant; grew up in a wealthy family in Chicago; World War II veteran (Bronze Star); attended Northwestern University Law School.
- Justice Stephen Breyer: Jewish; grew up in a middle-class family in San Francisco, the son of a lawyer and longtime volunteer for the Democratic Party, his mother; attended Stanford Law School.
Resources:
- http://www.oyez.org/courts/roberts/robt2
- http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/05/27/sotomayor.catholic/
- http://www.supremecourtus.gov/about/biographiescurrent.pdf
- http://supreme.lp.findlaw.com/supreme_court/justices/index.html
Declaration of Happiness of the 21st Century (Edition for Soliciting Comments and Supporting Signatures) By Xu Jing An
Happiness seeking is the essential distinction between mankind and animals, and is the mankind’s ultimate aim and common pursuit. Human beings may have distinctions in sex, class, ethnic groups or nationality and they may have different understanding of happiness. However, their motivation, willingness and aim to the pursuit of happiness are consistent. The history of mankind is nothing but the history of happiness pursuit. Up till now, the human beings are not so happy. In the world, about 450 million people are suffering from mental or brain diseases of various kinds. More than one million people commit suicide every year. Depression has now become the fourth severe disease. Mankind’s knowledge is nothing but the knowledge about happiness pursuit. Up till now, the most incomplete knowledge remains to be the knowledge of happiness. What is happiness? How can we obtain happiness? Most people refuse to think about it , pay very little attention to the study of it, and so have got the long-standing mistaken ideas in cognition. The modernization of the present world is the pursuit of the maximization of wealth with limited resources. Mankind’s common confuse is that the increase of wealth hasn’t brought the increase of happiness; Mankind’s common pain is the relationship between mankind and nature, between a person and others, between a person and him/herself, turning from bad to worse; Mankind’s common problems are the same, such as the overflow of human desires, the exhausted natural resources, the global warming, the decreasing or extinction of species, the increasing gap between the rich and the poor, the grave crime, the more indifferent feeling among people and the depression; Mankind’s common dilemma is that the human being’s material desires have exceeded the bearing capacity of the planet’s resources and environment. They are threatening the mankind’s secure and healthy survival. The day when the world’s modernization is realized will also be the day when the mankind’s civilization is totally destroyed. Mankind in the 21st century should reflect over the past, be aware of the situation and save themselves. Thtat’s why we have this declaration.
I
It should be the common ideal of mankind to obtain the maximization of happiness with limited resources. To a person, a family or a nation, it is a fixed amount for the resources and wealth that can be obtained in a certain period of time, but happiness is a variable amount, that is to say, they can be very happy or not happy. Happiness is the pleasure produced after some important needs of mankind are satisfied and is also the unity of the objectivity of needs and subjectivity of feeling. The knowledge about happiness, the most important thing in life, is the adjustment to one’s own needs and the choice of ways to satisfy the needs, which embodies one’s value orientation, bosom and accomplishment, and ways of thinking. People should pay much attention to the training and cultivation of technical ability. The technical ability is something one possesses in the social division of labour to serve the society and to get paid. The application and development of the technical ability is decided by one’s attitude to life. If you don’t understand the knowledge of happiness, you won’t be happy even your technical ability is exceptional. Power, wealth and reputation make people be at an advantageous position in society and possess more resources, so they are considered to be the source of people’s happiness. However, whether one can really obtain happiness depends on one’s value ideals. If you don’t understand the knowledge of happiness, more power, more money or more reputation may bring unhappiness to you. The knowledge of happiness needs something like an enlightenment movement to get it popularized and spread out.
II Happiness comes from: The material happiness. When one gets enough food to eat every day, he will expect something more delicious; when one has got enough clothes to keep himself warm, he will expect something more beautiful; when one lives a peaceful life, he will expect more pleasure in his life. These are mankind’s natural desires. The limit and scarce of resources have decided that the main way of material distribution is nothing but exchange. Professional dedication and honesty are useful in making money and to practise fraud will only result in harming others and oneself. In the course of material exchange, competition and scheming are innevitable, exhaustion and frustration are the price of material exchange. The happiness brought by materials is transient. It is harmful to pursue too exceedingly for material things. It is a mistaken concept in cognition to take the happiness brought by materials for the only happiness in life and it is also the root of unhappiness. The happiness of feeling. The true feeling between people is the important source of happiness. Affection between blood relations, friendship, love, trust, sincerity, tolerance and precedence of courtesy will bring happiness to people. The happiness of feeling will not pollute the environment nor will it consume the natural resources. Please don’t neglect or even give up the happiness of feeling to struggle for the material happiness. A soft heart, a pure smile, a respectful salute and a sincere greeting will also bring happiness to people. After all, what people need most is still people! The mental happiness. The mankind’s mental pursuit is to exceed the limit of life and be eternal. If the existence of a person’s life can bring happiness to other people, then his life is continued or prolonged, and that is eternalization. Thinkers’ wisdom, scientists’ discoveries, artists’ work of art, entrepreneurs’ achievements or workers’ service can all be eternal. Power, wealth and fame can only be of eternal significance when they are used to serve the people. The greatness, sublimeness and boundlessness of the spirit may satisfy people’s pursuit, realize the significance of life and fill and level up the world’s unevenness. The understanding of happiness of each person and his/her choice may decide the personal destiny, the future of the nation and of the mankind.
III
The ways to gain happiness: Love yourself. Cherish your life and keep your right to pursue happiness. Keep fit physically and mentally: be psychologically peaceful, have enough sleep, keep balanced diet with nutrition and moderate amount of physical exercise, Live a meaningful life: not only satisfy oneself but also satisfy the needs of others and the entire society. The ego should be sublimated: from loving oneself by instinct and benefiting oneself at the expenses of others, then to loving oneself reasonably and benefiting oneself without harming others, further more, to loving oneself with a meaning and benefiting both oneself and others. The entire society should recognize the love of oneself, safeguard and guide the love of oneself. Love others and cherish others’ lives. To love others and to be loved by others are the source of happiness. Be gratitude to all the people you owe, and first be gratitude and show your filial respect to your parents. Take your responsibilities according to the role you are playing, love the people around you, such as your spouse, kids, brothers, sisters, classmates , friends, colleagues, neighbours and customers. People should help those who need help and sympathy and pity are something we all should have. We should advocate universal fraternity and love others. Love all the people and cherish lives of the mankind. Safeguard public interests of the society. Safeguard the public morals and be a citizen who abides by laws and observes discipline. Protect the environment. Every day, do one thing that is favourable to the environment. Economize resources and never waste any piece of paper, any drop of water and any grain of rice. Love the collective, the country and the planet. Love yourself, love others and love all the people. These are extracted from the brilliant civilization of mankind and are the most complete pursuit of mankind.
IV
Charitable activities start from yourself. The injustice in the world can’t be the excuse for us to do evils. In the past, present and future of mankind, all sorts of wicked things exist, however, that doesn’t prevent us from treating ourselves, others or all the people kindly. Benevolence is wisdom, art, forbearance, state of mind and the broad-mindedness. The charitable activities start from yourself and from now on. Respect the Christian ethics that teaches people to be benevolent for God. Respect the Islamic ethics that teaches people to be benevolent for Allah. Respect the Buddhist ethics that teaches people to be benevolent for the next life. Respect the Confucian ethics that teaches people to be benevolent for one’s own ancestors. Respect all the ethics that teaches people to be benevolent. Advocate our new ethics that teaches people to be benevolent for our own happiness. Happiness and morals live side by side. For your own happiness, you should restrict yourselves. If you treat others badly, you’ll suffer retribution. If you treat the nature badly, you’ll be punished by the nature. If you keep yourselves further away from morals, you’ll be more miserable. Pursuit of freedom and self restriction, possess right and take responsibilities, be bold in taking and be generous with money, to develop new fields and cultivate oneself through meditation, these are the crystallization of the eastern and western moral civilization and the most complete moral pursuit.
V Create conditions for happiness. The sole criterion to judge whether a party, a government or an organization is a good one or not, is to see if it works for the happiness of the people. A well-to-do economy, democratic politics, harmonious society, clean environment, low consumption of materials and mental enjoyment, all these should become the targets of social development. Happiness index should take the place of GDP to be the social development index. Spread the knowledge about happiness. Encourage the people to pursue not only the material happiness but also the happiness of feeling and the mental happiness. Inspire the people to love oneself, to love others and also love all the people. Advocate all the ethics that teaches the people to be benevolent and also advocate our own new ethics that teaches the people to be benevolent for our happiness. It is the responsibility of education and mass media to stop the exaggeration of violence, pornography, evil and luxurious actions. It is allowed to published this declaration on the net and/or on the newpapers , and/ or translate it into other languages. The signers will take the responsibilities to advocate and carry out this declaration. Signatures only represent the future but not the past and signers are allowed to make a statement to withdraw from this declaration at any time. Those who agree with this declaration, please sign your name and send it to this address: xujingan2009@163.com
By October 16th, 2009, we have got signatures from 341 people, the following are the English translation of the information about some of the the signers:
Xu Jing’an: President, Forum for Building China’s New Culture Mao Yushi: Chairman, Tianze Researcg Institute Du Guang: Professor, Central Party School Xin Ziling: A well-known author in biographical literature Zhou Ruijin: Former Deputy Editor-in-Chief of People’s Daily Cao Xuede: Major General & Vice President of China’s Generals’ Institute of Paintings & Calligraphy Lu Wenke: Former Governor & Vice Chairman of the People’s Congress of the Zhejiang Province Chuan Zhen: Vice Chairman, Nanjing Buddhists’ Association Abbot of the Xuan Zhuang Temple Locon: Master Ling Xia ( of the Italian nationality ) Chen Yiwen: Researcher in Scientific & New Sociology ( a Chinese English ) Zhou Xiaozheng: Professor, Research Institute of Sociology, Chinese People’s University Hu Xingdou: Professor, Beijing University of Science & Engineering Tang Jing: Professor, Beijing Industrial University Zhang Chunliang: President, Research Institute of the Confucian Teachings Qian Quan: Vice President, China Research Institute of Oriental Culture Wang Dianqing: Honorable President & Professor, Beijing Research Institute of Oriental Morals Zou Dongtao: President, China Opening & Development Research Institute of Central University of Finance & Economy Zhang Junde: Professor & Doctoral Tutor, College of Journalism, Fudan University Dean of Cultural Media Department, Shanghai Jian Qiao College Zhao Jun: Researcher in the Center of Social Investigation, China Research Institute Of Economic Reform Huang Xiuqing: Professor, Beijing Young People’s College of Politics Zheng Jian: Professor, Administration Research Center of Zhongshan University Liu Xinyi: Professor, Overseas Chinese University Wang Ting: Doctor, Vice Dean of the Department of Art, Shenzhen University
Han Bangkai: Associate Professor of Translation, Graduated from Peking University before Cultural Revolution, in the First Group of M.A.s from Peking University after Cultural Revolution
……
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