Supreme Court geeks are going to have to watch the whole C-SPAN series on the Supreme Court. The main video is here. I’m part of the way through the main video, and it’s terrific so far. A lot of the focus is on the remarkable Supreme Court building. I’ve generally thought that American law would be better off if the Supreme Court were moved to a strip mall in Herndon, with each Justice just getting a cubicle. But the building itself is remarkable, and the video is really very much worth watching.
“American law would be better off if the Supreme Court were moved to a strip mall in Herndon, with each Justice just getting a cubicle.” | People v. State says:
[...] writes Orin Kerr at the Volokh Conspiracy in a post about a C-SPAN video focusing on the “remarkable” Supreme Court building. That jibes [...]
October 9, 2009, 3:03 ambrentpeterson01 says:
This is great. Even Souter agreed to be interviewed in front of a camera! Perhaps, in retirement, he is loosening up a bit.
As for Orin’s comment that American law would be better off if the Supreme Court were moved to a strip mall in Herndon, it was interesting to see Justice Thomas (and, in a less direct way, Justice Breyer) suggesting that a majestic marble building might be inappropriate given the court’s role.
Oh, and to the first commenter: you know, it’s possible to think that something is “remarkable” while also believing that the thing isn’t a good idea. I, for example, think that the bubonic plague is remarkable while also thinking that we’d be better off without it.
October 9, 2009, 4:07 amJohn Kindley says:
To the previous commenter: Of course. That’s why I bothered to mention that Orin, while thinking that a majestic marble building might be inappropriate given the court’s role, nevertheless acknowledged that the Supreme Court building is remarkable. Putting the word “remarkable” in quotation marks probably obscured my meaning.
October 9, 2009, 4:32 amD.O. says:
For those of us not on the joke (maybe it’s only me), would you care to explain?
October 9, 2009, 5:21 amApu Nahasapasapeemipetilon says:
D.O.: I don’t really think it’s a joke, Kerr and some others just think that a building that grandiose is unnecessary for what should be the most humble branch of government
October 9, 2009, 2:48 pmbrentpeterson01 says:
John,
I apologize. When I read your comment late last night, I did not realize that the comment in this thread was a truncated version of a comment at your web site. I thought that “that jibes” was the end of your comment, and that it was intended in a sarcastic way. After reading your full comment, I see that you meant something entirely different than what I originally understood.
October 9, 2009, 3:08 pmSara says:
Does Kerr really believe this? How does one decide on “most humble.” How do you rank the others on your humility scale? How does such scaled humbleness jibe with the claim that the branches are “co-equal?”
October 11, 2009, 8:59 am