“Relying exclusively on history and tradition may seem like a way of avoiding judge-made tests,” she wrote in a concurring opinion. “But a rule rendering tradition dispositive is itself a judge-made test. And I do not see a good reason to resolve this case using that approach rather than by adopting a generally applicable principle.” [More]
Between this, Gorsuch playing for the other team, Machine Gun Sammy giving “how to ban” instructions, Kavanaugh looking the Bruen gift horse in the mouth, and Roberts being Roberts, you’ll have to forgive me if I don’t view the bump stock opinion as proof our troubles are over.
I just hope Clarence Thomas doesn’t drop.
Some unknown time ago, someone who’s name we will probably never know, said that guns have two natural enemies: rust and politicians. As long as that remains true, our troubles will never be over.
Sometime down the road, it may become possible to feed into an AI that we can only imagine the collected writings of all of the people that we call the Founders, and assemble their essence into a virtual “committee of the whole” to render judgement on things that we have SCOTUS decide today.
Frankly, I hope that never happens. I want the people on SCOTUS to be more logical, more knowledgeable, better trained, yet just as human and flawed as I am. The next perfect Associate Justice will be the first. Meanwhile, we have to make the best of what we have.
“And there ain’t any ghosts in that engine.” — Machinist’s Mate First Class Jake Holman in “The Sand Pebbles”