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Culture Trumps Politics, cont.
Steyn Online ^ | 6/26/2015 | Mark Steyn

Posted on 06/26/2015 10:20:25 AM PDT by Servant of the Cross

The landmark Supreme Court decisions are bulk-discounted this week, so here's this hour's. In my conversation with Hugh Hewitt yesterday, I said:

As you know, Hugh, I'm not a believer in Supreme Courts that are as supreme as America's Supreme Court is.

But here they are redefining an institution that pre-dates the United States by thousands of years with gay abandon. Ireland held a referendum to approve same-sex marriage a few weeks ago. I would not have voted as my fellow Irishmen did, but I can respect their decision. Likewise, I can respect those legislatures from Belgium to Uruguay where the people's representatives, accountable to their electors, have voted to introduce gay marriage by law. But a system where, in effect, Anthony Kennedy gets to decide for 300 million whether he can divine a right to same-sex nuptials that its drafters cannily left tucked discreetly in some or other subordinate clause of the US Constitution is to torture that document beyond rational meaning - even before John Roberts started doing his "it depends on what the meaning of the word 'state' states" routine. In other words, American republican constitutionalism has itself become as meaningless as Obamacare or the definition of marriage. Why don't we just cut to the Twitter version?

We the... whatever.

The crude reality is that the judges are responding to the same cultural pressures as everybody else:

We're told that the presidency is important because the head guy gets to appoint, if he's lucky, a couple of Supreme Court judges. But they're playing catch-up to the culture, too. In 1986, in a concurrence to a majority opinion, the Chief Justice of the United States declared that "there is no such thing as a fundamental right to commit homosexual sodomy" ...

(Excerpt) Read more at steynonline.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: culture; homosexual; marriage; scotus
Bowers v. Hardwick (Yes, SRSLY)

Held: The Georgia statute is constitutional. Pp. 190-196.

(a) The Constitution does not confer a fundamental right upon homosexuals to engage in sodomy.

1 posted on 06/26/2015 10:20:26 AM PDT by Servant of the Cross
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To: Servant of the Cross

Leftwing culture is politics

everything is political to the left, everything


2 posted on 06/26/2015 10:21:17 AM PDT by GeronL
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To: Servant of the Cross

The issue is culture. The right sat on its ass for at least 70 years while the left took it over.


3 posted on 06/26/2015 10:23:53 AM PDT by SoCal Pubbie
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To: SoCal Pubbie

Righto. Politics is downstream of culture, specifically pop culture.

Look at pop culture today, and you can see where our politics will be in 15 or 20 years.


4 posted on 06/26/2015 10:26:48 AM PDT by Sherman Logan
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To: GeronL

It’s dead Jim. (America)


5 posted on 06/26/2015 10:27:18 AM PDT by bicyclerepair (Ft. Lauderdale FL (zombie land). TERM LIMITS ... TERM LIMITS)
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To: bicyclerepair

Yes it is


6 posted on 06/26/2015 10:27:48 AM PDT by GeronL
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To: Sherman Logan

Which is exactly why libertarianism is an adolescent farce.


7 posted on 06/26/2015 10:29:40 AM PDT by Trailerpark Badass (There should be a whole lot more going on than throwing bleach, said one woman.)
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To: Servant of the Cross
I came across this quote about 20 years ago and the more I thought about it, the more true I realized it is. The quote is from an Andrew Fletcher from 1703.

"Give the making of the songs a nation sings and I care not who writes its laws." Culture trumps law always until God tires of our singing...

8 posted on 06/26/2015 10:36:56 AM PDT by fatez (Ebola, Obama's solution for shovel ready jobs... Bring out your dead!!!)
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To: Servant of the Cross

The Constitution is not designed to win a popularity contest. I like to point out that in the 1930’s, polls taken showed that most people in the US wanted all black people to be sent back to Africa, and all Jews sent back to Palestine. Of course, had that actually happened, I would probably be posting here in German.

A Democratic Republic, which the US was at one time, is designed specifically to thwart the culture of the times and “popular opinion”.


9 posted on 06/26/2015 10:37:41 AM PDT by The Antiyuppie ("When small men cast long shadows, then it is very late in the day".)
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To: Servant of the Cross
Have to bring this up: There was an even worse decision from this SC. They agreed that unintentional housing discrimination is illegal. It opens the door for low income, high-density housing in places that are zoned otherwise, if the town does not have enough poor people.

At least, that's my understanding of it. This has become the "anything goes" Supreme Court, and it's happening with a majority of Republican appointees!

10 posted on 06/26/2015 10:57:01 AM PDT by grania
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To: Sherman Logan
Look at pop culture today, and you can see where our politics will be in 15 or 20 years.

Spot-on observation. Go back that far and TV shows like Ellen and Will and Grace were setting the stage for what happened today.


11 posted on 06/26/2015 10:58:01 AM PDT by Buckeye McFrog
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To: Buckeye McFrog

The Apostle Paul: Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things.

Which our culture has sedulously avoided doing for lo these many decades. Is it any wonder we’ve wound up where we are? What else could have happened?


12 posted on 06/26/2015 11:03:41 AM PDT by Sherman Logan
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To: Servant of the Cross

Culture Trumps Politics, IN A DEMOCRACY....

Politics Trumps Culture, IN A REPUBLIC.....


13 posted on 06/26/2015 11:08:04 AM PDT by hosepipe (This propaganda has been edited (specifically) to include some fully orbed hyperbole..)
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