WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING

The opposition to Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is actually not about him, but about the man who nominated him, Donald Trump . ... The irony is that Kavanaugh is a remarkably un-Trumpian nominee. Whereas Trump is populist, intentionally divisive, anti-establishment, immoderate, and contemptuous of many of traditional norms of comity and civility, Kavanaugh is a product of the establishment, gets along with colleagues across the spectrum, respects precedent and plays by the rules. Any Republican president would have placed Kavanaugh on his short list. He has no associations with the Trump wing of the Republican Party. The notion that any Trump nominee is illegitimate because he would shield Trump from hypothetical future subpoenas or prosecutions is belied by history. Richard Nixon’s appointments voted against him in United States v. Nixon, and (Bill) Clinton’s appointments voted against him in Clinton v. Jones. Michael McConnell, San Francisco Chronicle

Radiating rapidly from campuses into the larger polity, the noble defense of an infinitely multiplying list of “marginalized groups” is a predatory movement. Prowling the cultural veldt for givers of “offense” is a blood sport, and its pleasures are those of hunting: spotting your prey, stalking, going in for the kill. Any source of umbrage thus presents an exulting opportunity to score a trophy, stuff it, and hang it on your wall. Mainstream institutions straining to be with-it give credence to this pretense of injury and vulnerability . ...

We keep hearing about the terrible “distress” caused by, say, a Canadian production that uses whites to sing slave songs, or a straight actor playing a trans role. But bullies on the left ply weakness to conceal aggression, and today’s torrent of touchiness is bogus. No one’s truly in distress. No one’s feelings are hurt really. This stuff is all about pushing other people around. Lionel Shriver, The Spectator (U.K.)