judges should do what they can to restore faith in our institutions and recuse themselves if there is even the appearance of potential impropriety. Not speaking to the specifics of this case because I know very little about it, but trust in our judiciary is at an all-time low, which isn't a good thing for our country. Interestingly enough, it plummeted with the overturning of Roe. Judges will often believe they can be impartial and they probably can, but perceptions matter too.

Read this piece on the train a little earlier. Looks at trends in trust in our public institutions and how we compare with other markets (sorry if behind a paywall). Our situation isn't great (in fact, it is quite bad; like our comps are Hungary and Columbia bad in some cases). Not that we should always believe everything is on the up and up, healthy skepticism is a good thing (as is accountability for malfeasance).

I do think all of the MAGA gaslighting over the last few years has driven us to new lows - one only need to peruse this board for a while to see it in action. But demonizing the far-from-perfect press isn't new (though MAGAtown takes it to a new level), same with mistrust of the police, and we know our institutions of higher learning haven't been terribly welcoming of different ways of thinking for a while now. But I do worry that there is a tipping point, if we can never assume most people are acting with decent intentions (we don't have to agree) and we become cynical about everything. Thinks that are important to us just break down - though I think there are people out there that want this to happen.


[Post edited by Capital City Hoo at 04/25/2024 08:32AM]