U.S. Supreme Court justices living in fantasy land about affirmative action | Opinion

Supreme fantasy

As we saw in the news on June 30, the right-wing justices of the U.S. Supreme Court choose superficiality over actually. They must have been lost in their ideological fantasies again when they decided that affirmative action in college admissions does more harm than good.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor put it this way, “In so holding, the Court cements a superficial rule of colorblindness as a constitutional principle…”

Incredibly, Chief Justice John Roberts had just insisted that affirmation action involves “racial stereotyping” of students as individuals. He had it exactly backwards. Maybe this was another fantasy.

In any event, it sounded like Roberts doesn’t know that the practical objective of affirmative action in our college and universities today has been to make racially diverse campuses.

Tom Louderback, Louisville

Diversity U.

In response to the United States Supreme Court decision to eliminate affirmative action, I suggest opening up a private University of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion called “Democracy University.” It should not be affiliated or supported in anyway by either state or federal funding. It would provide its own private financial aid instruments and could adjust tuition in accordance with its paradigms and structure. I could well imagine a “private university” funded by Disney, called Disney University.

If the Supreme Court is going to force apartheid and segregation by making public universities anything but public, and sequestering them to the ultra-rich and well-connected (which is the inevitable course of this legislation from the bench), then it is time for the private sector educational system to step up. I mean, I’m sure this ruling doesn’t apply to the private Christian universities, now does it?

Unless this judgment applies to all bodies of higher education in the United States, it looks like all these legacy higher education schools will either go private or go theocratic fascist/racist to continue government funding. Not a degree of shame with which I would want to be encumbered.

If the Supreme Court wants to go this route, let’s embrace it. Let’s toss all the public universities to the curb and make private higher education (unencumbered with government affiliations and funding) the thing.

The thing is education happens and it can’t be stopped or controlled.

Robert Moreland, Lexington

“Soft bigotry”

Regarding recent articles on the striking down of affirmative action: first, two articles stated that the ending of race-based admissions in California in 1996 was followed by declining minority admissions. However, both failed to mention that minority graduation rates actually increased after 1996, suggesting that students were admitted to universities that better matched their academic preparation. If we want to uplift minorities so that they can improve their situations, and if a college degree is an important piece of that puzzle, then perhaps we should prefer policies that help minority students to complete their educations rather than being admitted in higher numbers, but finishing their degrees less often.

Second, it seems odd to say that we must end racism by using more racism, namely “the soft bigotry of low expectations,” which is what affirmative action is. Rather, we should work to improve minority students’ education in primary and secondary school to help eliminate the disparities in higher education and thus eliminate the perceived need for affirmative action. However, this would require a critical view of the current state of public education to understand why it is failing minority students, and that is something the Left is not willing to do.

Stephanie Mason, Danville

Equal Justice

After the recent decisions handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court, I went to their official website to see what the Court represents. The following is an abridged introduction: “Equal Justice Under The Law.” These words, written above the main entrance to the Supreme Court Building, express the ultimate responsibility of the Supreme Court of the United States. As the final arbiter of the law, the Court is charged with ENSURING THE AMERICAN PEOPLE THE PROMISE OF EQUAL JUSTICE UNDER THE LAW (emphasis added), thereby, it also functions as the guardian and interpreter of the Constitution.

I wonder if the Justices who handed down some of the rulings are aware of their duties or have even read this?

Cheryl Keenan, Lexington

Non-sports betting

In his July 2 article “Now Comes Sports Betting,” John Clay says of the “Historical Racing” slot machines, “instead of the outcomes being determined by a random number generator, winnings are determined by previously run horse races. Instead of betting against the house, I’m betting against other bettors, qualifying the game as a pari-mutuel wagering, which is legal in Kentucky.”

This is misleading. As his article notes, the Kentucky Supreme Court unanimously concluded these bets are not pari-mutuel and therefore not legal under the constitution of Kentucky.

However, in response, the Kentucky State Legislature did not “tweak the system” as Mr. Clay asserts. In a move that was dubiously constitutional at best, the legislature redefined the word “pari-mutuel” to mean something that it does not. Rather than changing either the industry or the Kentucky constitution, the legislature found it expedient to change the meaning of words.

Marilyn Machara, Lexington

Imperfect Union

Americans are a people whose vision has always exceeded their grasp. Thomas Jefferson’s expression “all men are created equal” in the Declaration of Independence is tarnished by his own and other Founding Fathers’ hypocrisy as slave holding tyrants inside the four walls of their personal domains. Too many of us share, and are descendants of, that curious and sobering legacy.

Yet, an entire generation of Americans rose up to give both blood and material sacrifice to end slavery and later generations fought abroad to restore freedom in other lands in two World Wars.

At home, we struggle with civil rights yet find the wisdom and strength to adopt the Civil Rights Act and a multitude of other laws geared to uphold the equality of men and women. Winston Churchill is credited with saying, “The United States can always be relied upon to do the right thing--having first exhausted all possible alternatives.”

Perhaps the Preamble to our Constitution best captures our essence. It doesn’t celebrate our “perfect Union;” it affirms the lofty aspiration “to form a more perfect Union.” The American experiment with democracy may one day end. It is up to each generation to step forth and proclaim, “Not today!”

Paul Collins, Hazard

Cult of Hate

This is a “liberal” response to Nina Reidmiller’s tirade of several days ago. We hear this kind of HATE talk all the time now that the “Cult of Trump” has allowed people to spew this kind of misinformation. That is the only thing that former President Donald Trump has done for this country. The writer didn’t come upon her invective all by herself. She has taken the Cult talk from all the hate outlets and made it her own!

The only way we as a nation can survive the “Cult of Trump” is with the Vote. If we don’t vote, we cannot save ourselves from this trash!

James Ware, Lexington

Gun Sense

As a member of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense, I know that guns are the leading cause of death for children 1 to 19 in the US.

Children should not be responsible for unsecured weapons in the home. It is solely the responsibility of adults to keep guns unloaded and in a secure location.

Everytown for Gun Safety has a program to keep children safe from guns. It’s called Be SMART and available at besmartforkids.org. If there is a gun in your home or vehicles, it is essential to securely store them so that they are inaccessible to kids.

There are many types of storage devices that meet the needs of gun owners. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that “hiding” a gun or placing it somewhere that seems out-of-reach will keep a kid from getting their hands on it.

The gold standard for secure gun storage is to keep all guns unloaded, locked up, and separate from ammunition.

Guns are the number one killer of our kids, so we should treat guns like any other safety issue. Rhea Vidrine, M.D., is Kentucky’s state lead for the Be SMART program.

Kathi Crowe, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense KY, Lexington

Summer justices

Well, the U.S. Supreme Court is on holiday now until the fall term begins. One has to wonder where these legal crows have scattered for the summer, and more importantly, who is picking up the tab for the wine, song, travel, attire, accommodations and entertainment costs of the justices?

Are they using their own funds to travel hither and yonder, or are their friends picking up the tab? From what we’ve learned this past year, there was a considerable degree of “gimmie, gimmie, gimmie a good time on your dime” and mums the word about all of their actions. Are they doing the same thing this summer?

I know, the Justices say they are all honest people doing nothing wrong—following the rules. Well, there are numbers of Americans who don’t feel the same way. When the Supreme Court opens this coming fall, legal returns for all the lavish summer gifts and living are going to be more than expected, and many American’s don’t like that at all because it looks like democracy is a barterable commodity. What’s next? Who knows? But you can be sure the founders of our great country are probably turning over in their graves.

Gene Lockhart, Lexington

Politically correct

Everyone who has arrived at geezer status (80-years plus) remembers playing “cowboys and Indians” as a child. A wonderful experience that pitted “cowboys” armed with imaginary six shooters against “Indians” ready for battle with imaginary bows and arrows. The best part was that the six shooters held at least 50 imaginary rounds and the Indians had an endless supply of imaginary arrows. What fun we had. Bloodless, yet the backyard was laden with multiple imaginary corpses - cowboy and Indian alike.

But a funny thing happened on the way to an America that has outlawed humor via a monster nobly referred to as “political correctness…”

How dare us to use the word “cowBOYS”! That awful “B” word. How chauvinistic. From now on we must use “cow persons.” There, all inclusive now. But wait a minute here. Cows have feelings too. So the game changes to bovine persons and Indians. All fixed. Let’s play.

But nope. It should be called bovine persons and Native Americans. Better, but not quite accurate enough for the faculty lounge crowd. So let’s introduce our young to a game just chock full of PC. It’s called “bovine persons and indigenous people.”

Okay kids go out there and have fun.

Wayne Burns, Lexington

Compiled by Liz Carey