The Most Troubling Thing About “Kavanaugh”
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Breaking News Every Day
If you live in the US or are at all paying attention to American politics, there has been a single developing story dominating every news outlet - the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court and allegations of sexual assault by Dr. Christine Ford. This has become the most longstanding scandal during the most politicized presidency of the modern era, and rightfully so. A lifetime supreme court seat is in many ways more impactful than any 1 or 2-term presidency and a Kavanaugh’s successful nomination would mean a Republican dominated judiciary for the foreseeable long-term.
And the airwaves, both those of the mainstream and alternative outlets like YouTube, have been a battleground of speculation, attack, and defense. Anyone and everyone has an opinion, all fueled by sympathy, politics, and personal observation, especially after the official testimonies held just a few days ago. Personally, I’ve been overwhelmed by everything that continues to come out of the woodwork and am torn on a number of levels of how I should feel or think about the situation.
But my feelings are irrelevant to what I want to discuss today. The idea that has haunted me most about this whole ordeal is actually not at all concerned with Kavanaugh’s innocence or guilt. With an FBI investigation forthcoming, we’ll soon learn whatever truth is left to identify in the coming weeks/months and I’m sure there will be swift action either way.
The most troubling thing to me is how this entire affair has been handled by the Senate Judiciary and the implications of what this all means in both American politics and the life of a single person moving forward. No matter what happens with Kavanaugh, I think we’ve already all lost to some degree no matter where each of us fall on the politic spectrum.
Two Extreme Scenarios
To work this out, let’s consider the extremes and converge at a common understanding of what has happened thus far and the implications.
Brett Kavanaugh is found guilty of one or more of the major allegations. His nomination will likely dissolve and many Americans will celebrate a win both for human rights and political standing. In the most extreme case, Republican representatives will also be spotlighted for trying to push Kavanaugh through knowingly with an understanding of a questionable past.
Christine Ford’s allegations don’t stand and the process continues from an already irrevocably damaged point. In the most extreme case, the Democratic Party will be spotlighted for leveraging an unsubstantiated claim unjustly and strategically to shove away the Republican nominee.
There is of course a whole gray spectrum between these two polar possibilities, including some evidence but not enough for a guilty verdict, the undermining of Dr. Ford’s credibility, and many more that are in general more likely. I wouldn’t be surprised at this point if any of these options come to be seen as the truth. None of this will likely change the majority of public sentiment and I believe that at this stage, few are still interested in the actual court position over the question of guilt.
The problem is that in either extreme, we’ve all lost tremendous faith in the political system and the tactics used by either or both sides will warp how we view justice in cases to come. Let’s be very clear about what has happened thus far - Dr. Ford (and the Democratic Party) has put forth an unsubstantiated claim about Judge Kavanaugh. I use the word unsubstantiated not to infer truth or untruth, but to plainly describe the lack of evidence and more importantly, an official verdict outside of the Senate hearings in an official court case. This goes back to my earlier statement that my personal opinion on the affair is irrelevant. Dr. Ford’s testimony may very well be true, and a part of me wants to sympathize and stand by what she has said thus far. It may very well be untrue for a number of reasons, and a part of me wishes this man with a solid professional record will be less marred by this whole process.
The Court of Public Opinion
With all that being said, the biggest issue I have, during this time where complete innocence and complete guilt are both eluding any confident verdict, that the way this was all dealt with has already enacted tremendous harm on many people involved. And the lack of real evidence has lead the general public in devolving into mass speculation as if this were a reality show. I say this with great disdain for both political parties and ends of the spectrum. This hearing is being conflated with a number of larger issues including the experience of sexual assault victims, political malfeasance, and countless ‘beer’ memes, either to mock and discredit the judge or completely undermine Ford’s testimony. The airwaves are filled with “I feel” or “I believe,” phrases that I think should have no standing when it comes to this process. People are chiming in and taking sides simply because of their political views or gender-oriented ones. This seems terribly wrong to me.
As a (attemping rational) liberal myself, I actually have more criticisms of what the Democratic Party has done during these past few weeks. More so than actually trying to deduce the truth, this allegation has been leveraged as a scandalizing mechanism, more meant to cloud Kavanaugh’s nomination than anything. If the truth were paramount, a review and potential investigation would have been held outside these Senate hearings before being introduced to the public in this raw form. This all sets a precedent that any unsubstantiated allegation holds water in these types of hearings, that any person’s reputation and livelihood is subject to public judgement. Whether there is actually political collusion or not, this was a politicizing opportunity for the Dems and they took every advantage of it. Kavanaugh may be guilty, but Dr. Ford has been dangled in front of the public either way.
My guess as to what the outcome will be is that the FBI investigation will unlikely reveal any substantial new evidence, at least not enough to punish the judge in any way, and we’ll be back to square 1 of political squabbling over the seat. I’m afraid this will give more credence to the “fake news” rhetoric of the political right and the tactic used by the left will hurt them in the future.
Guilty Until Proven Innocent
In the era of Twitter, YouTube, and other forms of popular social media, the power of the courts hold less and less weight. To millions of Americans, Kavanaugh is a rapist, Ford is an innocent victim, and the Democrats are the champions of the marginalized. This worldview won’t change with any verdict or conclusion, and has concretized even before any official investigation. This is a problem.
Even if this were all found to be true, I don’t believe this helps any real liberal or humane cause. It may seem like a win for victims, but this crumbling of the judicial process is an apolitical regression.
Again, I’m not saying I believe Kavanaugh. But it troubles me deeply that this decision has already been made by public sentiment. This is nothing new in the modern era of televised media, but it becomes all the more permanently damaging. I know many of my left-leaning friends would be appalled to hear my reasoning on this and I completely understand their own perspectives, but I always want to believe that justice leans on the side of innocence. Kavanaugh might be a “privileged, wealthy, white fratboy” that deserves little empathy from anyone according to many, but I’m starting to see how damaging this circumvention of the rightful legal process is to him, his family (his children in particular), any of us that might find ourselves in some form of a similar situation where some accusation in itself is enough to destroy your reputation and livelihood. I pray that the guilty are punished, but let’s be crystal clear, at this point there is no guilty party and tremendous punishment has already been distributed.
That’s all I’ve got today, as I’m already exhausted spelling out these paragraphs. Let me know what you think below.
For me left and right have lost their meaning in our current political environment. It's more like establishment vs anti-establishment or corporate globalism vs populism.
There is simply too much I'd like to express -- too much for a post, let alone a comment.
One thing is clear, this disgusting coordinated campaign of personal destruction will dissuade many exceptional people from considering a career in public service.
I agree. This is becoming an almost purely ideological battle with tremendous losses on both sides.
The right isn't populist and globalism is inevitable. You are silly.
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The reason for this is Kavanaugh's own fault, he has repeatedly told proven and blatant lies many times under oath. He also never stated under oath that he wants this investigated so his innocence can be proven. An innocent person would be screaming at the top of their lungs that they want the FBI to investigate his past to prove these allegations have never happened. Yet with him it is extremely obvious this is not what he wants.
This is the behavior of a guilty human. He brought this onto himself, with a past like his he should have never accepted the nomination or should have stepped down as soon as the allegation came out to the public. The reason he did not is because just like he has been able to get away with the despicable behavior in his youth, he thought he would be able to get away with it again. Unfortunately today there are too many pissed off witnesses that are coming forward from his past.
A tremendous part of me wants to agree with you. From the outside this seems like guilty behavior and it's easy for us to say "if I were innocent I'd welcome any investigation." But with just a bit of empathy of Kavanaugh's position, I can understand great reluctance to willingly go down this route, something he did not sign up for when agreeing to these hearings. The investigation is going to draw out this entire ordeal which is already having a disastrous toll on his family, career, and reputation, without any actual evidence other than viral soundbytes.
Maybe, but it is something he should have expected. In my opinion this is probably the most important job in the USA, even more important than President because it is a lifetime appointment. The background check for this job should take multiple months by the FBI and they should comb through every minute of your past and relationships. The ordeal he is going through is just as bad as the ordeal his accusers are going through. These are not just some random women, these are elitist upper class women who are from the same socioeconomic circles he is from, it was not an easy decision for them to come forward. Look at the resume of his latest accuser Julie Swetnick
It is not an easy decision for someone like her to make accusations like this because she knows her life will have drastic changes. There is no reason for someone in her position to make up lies like this, she is simply pissed off and wants justice.
This is the most dangerous presumption that has be gleaned from this whole process. Because we have collectively come to a conclusion that Ford is "credible" and a "victim," it automatically seen as proven guilt on Kavanaugh. This is a false premise.
Ford could be lying. Ford could be misinterpreting her experiences. Ford could have an ulterior motive. If we believe her "credibility" is a valid piece of evidence, we no longer have a justice system. We have a popularity contest.
This is a most dangerous presumption you are making, just because someone is considered credible that does not prove the counter party is guilty. The only way to determine guilt/innocence is with a thorough investigation. Once all data and all witnesses testimony is gathered people can make an informed decision.
In this situation I agree with Stephen King
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The best way to investigate into allegations of this kid are to bring them forward publicly, as we know that Trump and the GOP wont fo anything themselves. They need to be forced, and it worked. Any rational and sane human would not want the theatrics, but the GOP are not either of those.
Also, he isn't fit for the court either way. He is a corporatist and has said he doesnt like women's body rights, he also lies under oath constantly. He is a disaster with or without being a rapist.
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I have to disagree here. The Dems are just as culpable for the theatrics here, and this route has served them tremendously. There is no sanity on either side because the aims for both parties are extreme.
Democrats are dumb as fuck, and I agree their aim is less with helping victims and more with gaining power, but that has no bearing on the facts at had: Kavanaugh is a monster
Upvoted.
Better be careful using rational logic, or your liberal friends/party will seek to destroy you.
Lol chill on the tinfoil
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I'm just glad I'm allowed to think for myself in my tinfoil, instead of mindlessly allowing my TV to tell me what to think.
Nobody watches TV, dude, it's 2018, not 1991.
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