President Obama's Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor has been receiving much criticism for the following, now famous, quote:
"I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."
Stipulate that this quote is on its face defensible, and then imagine the following arguments between the other eight Supreme Court justices using the same logic:
Chief Justice Roberts: "As a man of Czech ancestry, I had occasion to eat a lot of cabbage and dumplings growing up in Indiana, which doubtless contributed to my status as a slow-footed high school linebacker and wrestler -- so you clearly don't understand why my point-of-view is the only correct one."
Justice Stevens: "I may be an 89-year-old man, but as a child of privilege who met Amelia Earhart and Charles Lindbergh at one of my father's luxury hotels, saw FDR give his nomination acceptance speech at the 1932 Democratic convention, was in the stands to see Babe Ruth's "Called Shot" against the Cubs in the 1932 World Series, then saw my father's hotel business go bankrupt during the Great Depression -- and saw him wrongly and unjustly convicted of fraud, I'm very sorry to say: I'm right, you're wrong."
Justice Scalia: "My father was born in Sicily, and my wife and I have raised nine children. Clearly, you lack my background. As the senior Catholic on The Court -- the de facto judicial Papal Nuncio, if you will -- you as the junior Catholic member should follow my argument, because I'm the one who is right. Have some garlic, it might help your thought process."
Justice Kennedy: "As the son of a successful lawyer named Kennedy -- not the Democratic Party kind of Kennedy -- and a graduate of Stanford, the London School of Economics, and Harvard, with all deference, I'm right. Can I convince you to come along to my point of view? It is, after all, the correct one."
Justice Thomas: "I was really born a poor black child, who later saw my father leave the family -- we subsequently became homeless -- and was raised in part by my grandparents. I have unfairly suffered ad hominem attacks by critics who disagree with my political philosophy, so I'm right."
Justice Ginsberg: "I'm a Jewish woman who saw her beloved mother die from cancer the just before I graduated from high school, and I myself am a cancer survivor. And while I often disagree with him, Justice Scalia and I are good friends. Have some garlic with him, but don't let that persuade you of his views. I'm the one who is right."
Justice Breyer: "I am also Jewish, and have three children, one of whom is an Episcopal priest. No offense intended, but I am the one with the correct views."
Justice Alito: "I'm from Jersey, married a librarian, and have two kids. I'm right... and by the way, Justice Scalia is right about the garlic."