Comments on: Firefighter to Testify Against Sotomayor

Senate Republicans Plan Testimony from White Conn. Firefighter Whose Reverse Discrimination Case Was Rejected by Nominee

[gravyboat4000]

"Years of discrimination continue to handicap African Americans".

President Obama?

I know,it's just a start, but how long mush non-African Americans sacrifice to,"make up for the past"?

There has to come a day when the,"lift up", must come to an end, and people are solely judged on their merit. No?

Or do we stay on our current path until Al Sharpton declares that the,"forty and a mule", have been paid in full?

[gravyboat4000]

Well said.


Well said.

[tmittelstaed]

"...I believe that promotions should be based on merit and on who scored best on the exams..."

Then why are you defending Sotomayor? The firefighter DID score best on the exam. Sotomayor's position here was that the best scorers should NOT be promoted, that's why she ruled in favor of the city.

Your problem is you are completely ignorant of this case and you just want to sound off. Your making us real Democrats who actually study the issues look like fools. Please educate yourself before posting here, you don't want to be mistaken for a Republican.

[tmittelstaed]

Simply put, because the laws that go to the US Supreme Court are GREY, meaning, that the legislative meaning of the law is NOT DETERMINABLE. The purpose of the US Supreme Court is to take a POORLY WRITTEN, UNCLEAR law that is interpreted many possible ways, and draw a line in the sand and say "this is what the law means"

If congress doesn't like the Supreme Court being "activist" and changing around the meanings of their laws that they write then they can simply write better and more specific laws. If the general public doesn't like judicial activism then they can demand their congresspeople do a better job.

But if congress acts like lazy slobs unwilling to tackle the hard issues, then someone has to make a decision - and that's the court. And that is why issues like this are relevant. The court should be interpreting these poorly-written statues based on a fundamental issue - fairness.

It's just like the strip search of the 13 year old. It's unfair for a school to strip search a 13 year old without her parents being informed or present. That's why the court ruled that the search was unconstitutional - even though case law supported the opposite outcome - because fundamentally it was unfair. If Sotomayor cannot or will not apply basic fairness to her decisions then she is no better than Clarence Thomas - who alone of all other justices, also voted against the 13 year old who was strip searched.

Is this a decision that should make or break Sotomayor's nomination? NO. But, is it a VERY RELEVANT decision that Sotomayor should have to explain herself with? ABSOLUTELY. Unless she can look Ricci straight in the eye and explain in a logical fashion why her ruling was fair, she doesn't belong on the Court.

[pvperson3]

"It is always assumed that activist judges are liberal.", does that apply to Thomas and Scalia? Those two are so extreme and predictable in their biased, conservative opinions that the term "activist" becomes moot.,

[tmittelstaed]

I'm a Democrat and if I was Ricci I would testify in a heartbeat.

What fundamentally happened here is an issue of fairness. Ricci was told he had to take a test, he was willing to take it. He was told that this is the stuff he had to study, he studied it. He worked at this and passed the test. After passing, the city says to him they are going to invalidate the test, not because of anything he did - but because of what some other guys over here DIDN'T do - ie: they didn't pass.

OK, so maybe the test was flawed and the city didn't realize it until after Ricci was tested. Fine, then change the test and the next guy who hasn't taken the test yet, now he has different stuff to study. But don't go back to all the people who passed the test and tell them that they have to start over at the beginning. The city had plenty of chance BEFORE Ricci took the test to "fix" it.

Besides all of that, how exactly do you write a test about FIREFIGHTING so that white people can pass it and black people can't? The city's supposition - that the test was racially biased - is completely illogical.

[thusspokezara]

Years of racial discrimination continue to handicap African Americans. We must continue to make up for those years of discrimination by setting aside jobs and giving other preferences to African Americans. Why should an African American child have to attend a second rate school like NYU, Middlebury, or Tufts?

[gravyboat4000]

"Years of discrimination continue to handicap African Americans".

President Obama?

I know,it's just a start, but how long mush non-African Americans sacrifice to,"make up for the past"?

There has to come a day when the,"lift up", must come to an end, and people are solely judged on their merit. No?

Or do we stay on our current path until Al Sharpton declares that the,"forty and a mule", have been paid in full?

[tmittelstaed]

What makes a school "second rate" is how the STUDENTS choose to do.

The fact is that the biggest single motivator to the students getting a good education are the PARENTS, NOT THE SCHOOL. If you think your kid's school is second-rate, or your child isn't doing well in school, then get off your ass, download some school study sheets from the Internet (the Internet is full of them) and sit down in the evenings with your kid and work through them, instead of watching episodes of Lost on TV.

That's what we do with our kids. Both of them. Even during the summer. Do they like it? No. But, in the fall when they go back to school they are at the level that they were when school ended, they haven't forgotten 1/2 of the school year, like your kids. That's why our kids will be going through college and working at nice jobs in a decade or so and your kids will be flipping hamburgers. But, I'm sure you won't care since you won't have missed all those Lost episodes!

Get a clue. And I'm not even going to start with all the single women out there who think that their kids are better off with 1 parent while they are in school.

[ToolMangler1]

Why should an African American (Why should any American) child have to attend a second rate school?????

Are you smarter than an Eight Grader??
check this out...
------------------------------------------------




This is the eighth-grade final exam from 1895 in Salina, Kansas , USA. It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley Genealogical Society and Library in Salina , and reprinted by the Salina Journal.

8th Grade Final Exam:
Salina , KS - 1895
-----------------------------------

Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use of capital letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no modifications
3. Define verse, stanza and paragraph
4. What are the principal parts of a verb? Give principal parts of 'lie,''play,' and 'run.'
5. Define case; illustrate each case.
6 What is punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.
----------------------------------------

Arithmetic (Time,1 hour 15 minutes)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. Deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. Wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3,942 lbs., what is it worth at 50cts/bushel, deducting 1,050 lbs. For tare?
4. District No 33 has a valuation of $35,000. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find the cost of 6,720 lbs. Coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft.. Long at $20 per metre?
8.. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance of which is 640 rods?
10. Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt
-----------------------------------------

U.S.History (Time, 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton , Bell , Lincoln , Penn, and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, 1865.
-----------------------------------------

Orthography (Time, one hour)
[Do we even know what this is??]
1. What is meant by the following: alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals
4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u.'(HUH?)
5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e.' Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi, dis-mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono, sup.
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last..
9. Use the following correctly in sentences: cite, site, sight, fane, fain, feign, vane , vain, vein, raze, raise, rays.
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks
and by syllabication.
--------------------------------------

Geography (Time, one hour)
1 What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas ?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia , Odessa , Denver , Manitoba , Hecla , Yukon , St. Helena , Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall and Orinoco
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S. Name all the republics of Europe and give the capital of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give the inclination of the earth.
------------------------------------
Notice that the exam took FIVE HOURS to complete.

Gives the saying 'he only had an 8th grade education' a whole new meaning, doesn't it?!

Also shows you how poor our education system has become and,

NO, I don't have the answers!

[enwr77]

The recent Supreme Court decision on the firefighter?s case demonstrates why Judge Sotomayer is needed on the Court. The article on how she reviews cases in detail demonstrates even more that she is a great choice. It shows intelligence and responsibility. Having gone Pro Se on a case and witnessed judges pick and miss vital details; Judge Sotomayer will be a welcomed change.

As far as the decision on the firefighter?s case, it is not a given that the Supreme Court made a perfect decision. After all, the majority of the five who decided in favor of the firefighters also took away the voting rights of African Americans in Florida during the 2000 Presidential election.

There are activist judges that make decisions based on conservative ideas. It is always assumed that activist judges are liberal.

[gravyboat4000]

Well said.


Well said.

[enwr77]

The recent Supreme Court decision on the firefighter?s case demonstrates why Judge Sotomayer is needed on the Court. The article on how she reviews cases in detail demonstrates even more that she is a great choice. It shows intelligence and responsibility. Having gone Pro Se on a case and witnessed judges pick and miss vital details; Judge Sotomayer will be a welcomed change.

As far as the decision on the firefighter?s case, it is not a given that the Supreme Court made a perfect decision. After all, the majority of the five who decided in favor of the firefighters also took away the voting rights of African Americans in Florida during the 2000 Presidential election.

There are activist judges that make decisions based on conservative ideas. It is always assumed that activist judges are liberal.

[HiTor15]

Reverse discrimination is likely the biggest issue facing our society today...there is to me no more dangerous an issue.....Yesterday I read an article where Chuck Schumer of NY was found giving a speech to an organization called COMPETEAMERICA.ORG which is a foreign worker lobby pushing for laws to allow more foreigners into our nation with the intent of taking our best jobs so that corporations can make more money at the top!!! AT A TIME LIKE THIS WITH TEN PERCENT UNEMPLOYMENT SCHUMER IS LOBBYING FOR FOREIGNERS!!! When I pointed that out, ABC immediately pulled my comment, when i posted again they pulled my comment again, and finally they completely booted me off...OBVIOUSLY SOMEONE CARES A WHOLE LOT ABOUT SCHUMER AND THE IMMIGRATION ISSUE AT ABC.COM BUT THE QUESTION IS HOW MUCH DO THESE PEOPLE CARE ABOUT AMERICANS? WHAT SCHUMER IS DOING IS MONSTROUSLY STUPID AND HE SHOULD STOP!!! PERIOD..YET HERE IS ABC.COM WITH OBVIOUS CONSENT FROM THE TOP TRYING TO PREVENT THE REACTION OF ORDINARY AMERICANS TO THIS STUPIDITY....WE ARE IN EFFECT BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINST IN OUR OWN NATION!!! THIS IS NOT A JOKE, YOU CANT LAUGH IT OFF, AND SOONER OR LATER THERE WILL BE REAL TROUBLE ABOUT IT....YOU JUST CANT DO THAT...YOU CANT DISCRIMINATE AGAINST AMERICANS IN THEIR OWN NATION AND THEN CRY FOUL WHEN THEY IN TURN KICK YOUR BUTT!!!! WHICH FRANKLY IS LONG OVERDUE!!!!

[pvperson3]

It's interesting that the GOP and their mouthpieces (limbaugh and such) make such a big deal out of her being over ruled by the Supreme Court, she's had something like 380 cases and 6, yes 6 including the firefighter case have been overruled. That's seems a really GOOD record to me, why doesn't it to the GOP? Are you going to call witnesses from the other 374 cases to testify? Of course not, they wouldn't be as good on TV as a white firefighter in uniform will be.

[voxpopulus]

Legislators write the laws. Judges interpret them. You Republicans who do not get that really should do yourselves a favor and opt for silence.

[pvperson3]

What's the matter GOP, was "Joe the Plumber" too busy to appear?

[GiveMeFreedom]

So gravy, I take it you can make a list of countries in the world today that have been governed by predominately white European heritage people and countries not governed by white European heritage people. Then with this list you would likely determine that the best countries to live and work in are countries on the latter list.

Just to help you I will list just a few of the latter list - Saudia Arabia, Yemen, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Guatamala, Chad, etc. Yep great human rights and wonderful freedoms and safe too.

[gravyboat4000]

OMG! Another one?

The ruling on this case had NOTHING to do with Judge Sotomayor's,"feelings". This panel ruled on the law, as it's written in New Haven.

Rush, you're good, I think these people would fall on a sword for you.

[gravyboat4000]

You hit your head recently?

Nobody here has said anything negative against these heros. Show me one post that has spoken negatively about them.

You can't, and you won't be able to.

This isn't about them, it's about the MORONIC GOP looking for ANYTHING to tear this women down.

She'll be the next SC Justice, and you'll be cryin in your 36 pack.( clearly, an 18 pack won't do anymore for someone like you).

Bitter beer face...

[johninpennsyl]

Some people are finding this discrimination thing is a double edge sword,and all of a sudden they don't like it.
Your turn in the briar patch.

[gravyboat4000]

Nice gimmick, GOP. And what about the hispanic fire fighters that were also part of the lawsuit?

Are the Reublicans going to call forth the entire panel that ruled along side Judge Sotomayor?

What a stupid move for the GOP this is. The American public,(except for the Limbaugh Lemmings), will see this for what it is, a,"race bating", gimmick.

It's rather funny, pathetic and desperate.

[GiveMeFreedom]

So gravy, I take it you can make a list of countries in the world today that have been governed by predominately white European heritage people and countries not governed by white European heritage people. Then with this list you would likely determine that the best countries to live and work in are countries on the latter list.

Just to help you I will list just a few of the latter list - Saudia Arabia, Yemen, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Guatamala, Chad, etc. Yep great human rights and wonderful freedoms and safe too.

[siuengrmatt]

Wow! This is why i can no longer relate to the Republican Party (think before you speak/type). First off, just because you are working on a case that involves a racial discrimination clame (Lawyer, Judge, etc) doesn't mean you are a racist. Don't forget there was a panel of judges that decided. Also, you make it seem as it was a unanimous ruling in the supreme court. It wasn't, the ruling was 5-4. Therefore it is based on interpretation law and not predjudice. Maybe the 4 need to be thrown out as racists. if that is the case, Scalia, Kennedy and Thomas need to be thrown out for being on the losing side of Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) because they are obviously racist.

[siuengrmatt]

Wow! This is why i can no longer relate to the Republican Party (think before you speak/type). First off, just because you are working on a case that involves a racial discrimination clame (Lawyer, Judge, etc) doesn't mean you are a racist. Don't forget there was a panel of judges that decided. Also, you make it seem as it was a unanimous ruling in the supreme court. It wasn't, the ruling was 5-4. Therefore it is based on interpretation law and not predjudice. Maybe the 4 need to be thrown out as racists. if that is the case, Scalia, Kennedy and Thomas need to be thrown out for being on the losing side of Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) because they are obviously racist.