Photo: Antonin Scalia photo by Stephen Masker Posted on 07/08/2015 4:37:58 AM PDT by Louis Foxwell
What Does "Jiggery-Pokery" Mean? Antonin Scalia's Unapologetic Use of Rhyming Photo: Antonin Scalia photo by Stephen Masker
The announcement today of the Supreme Court's decision on the fate of Obamacare was met online with paroxysms of delight, rage, and (in slightly smaller quantity) amusement. The feelings of delight and rage were largely motivated by one's political leanings; the feelings of amusement were provoked by a phrase employed by Antonin Scalia.
In his dissent, Scalia waxed furious about the "interpretive jiggery-pokery" employed, in his view, by the majority of the court in their decision. Few onlookers took exception with the word interpretive, but what follows that word is a turn of phrase rarely seen in legal writing, and aroused the interest of many.
Jiggery-pokery (meaning "dishonest or suspicious activity") is a fine example of what is referred to as rhyming reduplication, and Scalia appears to have more of a fondness for this type of language than do most of his fellow justices (he used the phrase argle-bargle several years ago in another decision). There are many such examples in English; razzle-dazzle, teeny-weeny, nitty-gritty, and perhaps the most applicable of all for use in a Supreme Court decision: phony-baloney.
Jiggery-pokery comes from Britain, as does most of the finest rhyming slang and spicy mustards, and has long been thought to have originated at the end of the 19th century. However, recent research has indicated that it is older than previously thought. The earliest known use of the phrase comes in 1845, in an article of December 27th from the Berkshire Chronicle (a newspaper from Reading, England), entitled Protection to Agriculture: "...under the present law, the averages were made up so faithfully and fairly as to prevent any jiggery-pokery."
Based on the above citation, Scalia can now point out that jiggery-pokery has been used to describe legal matters for at least 170 years, and as such, should be considered stare decisis, or at least settled law.
That seems rather niggardly.
If the “keepers of the law” have no regard for it,
why should we, beyond the concept that they can enforce their will through deadly force?
Ruling by threat of death for non-compliance will only work for so long before the ruled figure out they actually outnumber the rulers.
On another thread someone said that every law should end with the phrase "or you will be incarcerated or shot."
At first I thought it was hyperbole, but after thinking about it for a while it does make sense. It might dissuade some from promulgating useless stupid lases.
That’s one thing that libs will vehemently and studiously try to avoid about anything they do, through the government, because “they care” and they’re “a good person” -
the fact that anything done through the government carries the inherent threat of deadly force if you choose to not comply.
They don’t like it because it’s not them, the “good people” that force others to comply with their will - that’s something “right wingers” do.
...Who is she?
That’s racist!
Lolololol
Nicely done! Congrats!
Word for the day 30 June 2015 was jiggery-pokery. My post then:
Recent Supreme Court decisions create dismay
Apparently the laws do not mean what they say
Forget the facts
And from a hat
Pull decisions that are all jiggery-pokery
Nope. I only give awards when the WFTD is used in the post.
Say the magic word and get a prize.
Egads! Are you SURE that is a reward? Looks more like the booby prize to me.
No takebacks allowed, but, due to the circumstances - your excellent poem and obvious dissatisfaction with a rare graphic of the Hill - I will grant a second award.
I trust this alleviates - and levitates - your deflation.
Breezy and cloudy again today-
The jiggery-pokery in DC
Is a bad state of affairs
Which happens all the time
Since no one really cares
About all the money taken
From each person who works
Then goes without a receipt
To just be spent by jerks
Who don’t give a thought
To watching where it goes-
Votes cost some real money
When you put on real shows...
And the tech problems at American Airlines, WSJ and NYSE are just coincidence-mas pan y circo...
The first time I heard that word “jigaboo”, was when I was 10 or 11 and a neighbor’s visiting nephew we were hanging out with at the creek used it-he was from Illinois. None of my cousins had ever heard it either, and using a word like that would get you an ass beating in our family...
Are those really Hillary’s feet? Her shoes are a size too small...
Last week, we had the Aboriginal reduplication Wagga Wagga.
Now I was invited to make—and made—a post with several reduplications, including one of the simplest of all—”uh-oh”!
I’m no poet, but I’m a great reduplicator!!!!
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