So Foul and Fair a Day I Have Not Seen -The Death of Justice Scalia

   

  I was surprised and saddened by Justice Scalia's death. His death is a huge loss for our country. I found him to be an interesting intellectual and always taped any show he appeared on. Even when I vehemently disagreed with him, I enjoyed hearing his views. I am a unionist. I've been reading some comments on Scalia's death and they are troubling.

     Scalia's death does not let the union off the hook. It delays the inevitable. I want the middle class to survive and I want to be protected by a union. I do not want the death of unions. Does that mean you or I should be forced to pay dues to an entity like the UFT? Where oaths of allegiance take the place of honest voting? Where an entire segment of the membership is discriminated against? Logically and legally it shouldn't. Is it in my best interest that dues remain mandatory? Yes. Would Scalia have ruled against mandatory dues? Probably.

    Can modern people disagree, become angry and still remain civilized? Do we have to devolve into Neatherals when we have minor or profound differences? Can those who represent us include all of us, even when it goes against the most popular views? It should. The last time I heard Scalia, that's basically what he said. His comments were concerning the total disregard of a large segment of the population (evangelical Christians) on gay marriage. Even if you get angry on a visceral level over an issue, it shouldn't blind you to other viewpoints. It most certainly shouldn't provoke a personal attack, especially on a dead man.

    As the various UFT caucuses and US political parties fight among themselves, there seems to be increasingly outrageous and vindictive personal attacks. As written in Macbeth, 'Fair is foul, foul is fair'.