The Six Axioms of Politico-Judicial Logic
These six axioms provide all you need to know to navigate the landscape of current debates about judicial decisions:
1) The heart wants what it wants.
2) The heart has a right to what it wants—as long as the harm principle isn’t violated.
3) A political or social outcome that is greatly desirable is also ipso facto constitutional.
4) A political or social outcome that is greatly undesirable is also ipso facto unconstitutional.
5) A judicial decision that produces a desirable outcome is (regardless of the legal reasoning involved) proof of the wisdom of the Founders in liberating the Supreme Court from the vagaries of partisan politics so that they can think freely and without bias. The system works!
6) A judicial decision that produces an undesirable outcome is (regardless of the legal reasoning involved) proof that the system is broken, because it allows five unelected old farts to determine the course of society.
From these six axioms virtually every opinion stated on social media about Supreme Court decisions can be clearly derived. You’re welcome.
Alan Jacobs is a Distinguished Professor of the Humanities in the Honors Program at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and the author most recently of The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography.
