Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Chief Justice Rehnquist Dies at 80

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the breaking-news-that-isn't-tech-related dept.

After 33 years at the bench, Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist has passed away at the age of 80 due to thyroid cancer. This comes after the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor from the court over the summer. Rehnquist's passing gives President Bush the opportunity to replace the second justice of his term, this time perhaps to assume the highest role in the judicial system.

12 of 730 comments (clear)

  1. Rest in peace my friend by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    fuck all the politics , lets remember the man..

    1. Re:Rest in peace my friend by rolfwind · · Score: 5, Insightful

      fuck all the politics , lets remember the man..

      Agreed and Disagreed.

      Agreed with anything relating to Renquist.

      Disagreed when it comes time to replace him.

      Because the Supreme Court is more important than the President and Congress. It's pathetic and sad, but true, they are the last line of defense between the government and the Constitution.

      Especially in recent times as the executive and legislative branches grab more and more money and power for themselves in the guise of representing the people - the Supreme Court seems to be the one branch actually interested in what the Constitution says other than figuring ways around it (even though I think that's going down the drain slowly too with that last property & profit decision in June).

      It's harder to buy a judge - they don't need reelecting. There's only nine of them (easier to monitor them unlike Congress) and they don't try to do as much in secrecy as say, the White House.

      Plus, except for death and voluntary retirement, most Supreme Judge's terms extend right past the president that nominates them. the congress that confirms them into infinity.

      Their biases alone will not only determine crap like abortion, but whether highstake legisition like DMCA is constitutional. Multiply that by all the technologicial issues (stem cell, cloning, etcetera) and you can easily see the Supreme Court as the trump card of any movement - be it conservative, liberal, free software, open software, etcetera.

      It comes down to them.

      I would dare say in the longterm, the two upcoming new Justices (whoever they may be) will impact us more than any elected politician short of President ever will.

    2. Re:Rest in peace my friend by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Hear hear.

      Though like many Slashdotters I am a left-winger, I really appreciate how so many of our compatriots not only vote but also so clearly care about values and ethics. Renquist was one of America's great justices.

      Slashdot Politics could be a powerful force if properly directed!

      Keep up the great work,
      -joshua

  2. I vote for Judge Judy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    She will kick ass.

  3. Re:slashdot by FunkSoulBrother · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Considering the sweeping implications, I'd say it falls squarely under "stuff that matters".

  4. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  5. Re:YRO? by John+Seminal · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Obviously important, but your rights online??!?

    Are you stupid. The court has more power than the president. They are the only institution that can VETO both the president and congress. They are a staple of humainty.

    Back when the court was something, they are the ones who told the police they must read rights to people. Back then, the courts said that people could not be taken by government for no reason. That government could not look at your reading list and label you as a terrorist because you read Carol Marx. Do you know how many Joe McCarthy's there are in government, and how the courts have stopped them?

    Times are changing.

    Why did Rehnquist not retire? Why did he stay when he was sick? Was he this sick? Why did Vincent Foster kill himself in a public park?

    --

    Rosco: "If brains were gunpowder, Enos couldn't blow his nose."

  6. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  7. Re:Obvious issues... by bl968 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Here's a nice article with lots of facts for you to ignore on our godless consitution. It wasn't accidental it was intentional.

    "In 1797 our government concluded a "Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the United States of America and the Bey and Subjects of Tripoli, or Barbary," now known simply as the Treaty of Tripoli. Article 11 of the treaty contains these words:

    As the Government of the United States...is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion--as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity of Musselmen--and as the said States never have entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mehomitan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.

    This document was endorsed by Secretary of State Timothy Pickering and President John Adams. It was then sent to the Senate for ratification; the vote was unanimous. It is worth pointing out that although this was the 339th time a recorded vote had been required by the Senate, it was only the third unanimous vote in the Senate's history"

    --
    "GET / HTTP/1.0" 200 51230 "-" "Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; Setec Astronomy)"
  8. Two sides to every story... by sd_diamond · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Since blasting McCarthy is so popular, how about another side to the story http://www.aim.org/publications/aim_report/2003/13 .html

    OK, that's... interesting.

    For those that don't have time to RTFA, here's a time-saving summary:

    "There were some Commies and spies (hey, aren't they all really the same anyway?) living in the U.S., so McCarthy was perfectly justified in destroying as many lives as he wished."
  9. Re:he knew the danger by TooManyNames · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Yeah, damn those Republicans and their obvious endorsement of all things corporate. Oh wait, which side of the court voted to allow corporations to swipe land from citizens in the interests of the so called public good? Hmmm, couldn't have been our liberal saviors could it? Let's think about Kelo v. City of New London for a while... Oh wait, yeah, the 5-4 decision expanding eminent domain to include corporate interests was completely the work of the John Paul Stevens, Anthony Kennedy, David Souter, Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Not exactly your model Republicans.

    Open your eyes for just a moment and realize something. Democrats are not your friends. Republicans are not your friends. Each party will seek to expand the government to suit their own interests (which is why it's so great that massive expansion in either direction isn't too easy).

    --
    "Is not a sentence" is not a sentence. Well damn.
  10. Re:The modern political spectrum. by drooling-dog · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Libertarians are the clowns swinging from the chandeliers.

    And there they will continue to swing until they realize that the unchecked concentration of private power can be as oppressive as that of government power, and leads inexorably to fascism as the former consumes the latter. Could it possibly be happening here?