U.S. Justice Alito says pandemic has led to 'unimaginable' curbs on liberty

 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito participates in taking a new family photo with his fellow justices at the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 1, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

 

(Reuters) - U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito said the COVID-19 pandemic had led to "previously unimaginable" curbs on individual liberty, singling out restrictions on religious events.

 

The justice, who is seen as a conservative, told a meeting of the Federalist Society late on Thursday he was not underplaying the severity of the crisis or criticizing any officials for their response.

 

But he added: "We have never before seen restrictions as severe, extensive and prolonged as those experienced for most of 2020."

 

"The COVID crisis has served as sort of a constitutional stress test," he said during his address over a video link for the conservative organization's annual conference https://bit.ly/2H21TvK.

 

Alito, who was appointed by Republican President George W. Bush in 2006, referred to restrictions on gatherings that had affected religious events.

 

"Think of worship services! Churches closed on Easter Sunday, synagogues closed for Passover in Yom Kippur", he said.

 

"It pains me to say this," Alito added, "but in certain quarters, religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right."

 

The justice said freedom of speech was also under threat.

 

"Although that freedom is falling out of favor in some circles, we need to do whatever we can to prevent it from becoming a second-tier constitutional right," he said.

 

Alito's remarks on free speech echoed his words from 2016 at the same event when he referred to college campus culture that conservatives say stifles free speech to avoid offending political sensibilities on matters such as gender, race and religion.

 

Social norms had created a list of things that was now unacceptable for students, professors and employees to say, he added on Thursday.

 

"You can't say that marriage is a union between one man and one woman", he added. "Until very recently that's what a vast majority of Americans thought. Now its considered bigotry."

 

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Michael Perry and Andrew Heavens)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-11-14

 

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This would be laughable if he were not a Supreme Court Judge.

 

wrt what constitutes ‘a marriage’ he needs to pay more attention to the law and the Constitution and spend less time listening to that ‘talking in tongues stuff’.

 

I suggest justice Alito volunteer in a covid ward for a week (properly kitted out with ppe) before saying such a thing this is a national emergency we must stop this bs and pull together!!

Religious Liberty? Sheesh. It's a freakin' pandemic, certainly we can practice our religion at home for months?

 

"religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored, right" This is the sort of dross pompeo and barr have been peddling on the conservative speaking tours. Other than white terrorists murdering people in churches and synagogues I don't think religious freedoms are beign restricted?

 

He's a very strange duck.

 

He went off an at least eight issues bugging him.

 

 

https://reason.com/volokh/2020/11/12/video-and-transcript-of-justice-alitos-keynote-address-to-the-federalist-society/

 

Specific to the OP:

 

Seventh, he turned to how COVID-19 has affected religious liberty.

 

Just as the COVID restrictions have highlighted the movement toward rule by experts, litigation about those restrictions, has pointed up emerging trends in the assessment of individual rights. This is especially evident with respect to religious liberty. It pains me to say this, but in certain quarters, religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored, right.

 

 

Edited November 14, 20205 yr by Scott
Edited for Fair Use Policy

Religious gatherings has been one cause of the virus spreading in the USA.  No wonder the USA is in such a mess with Supreme Court Justices like this guy...

"This guidance is not intended to infringe on rights protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution or any other federal law, including the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA). The federal government may not prescribe standards for interactions of faith communities in houses of worship, and in accordance with the First Amendment, no faith community should be asked to adopt any mitigation strategies that are more stringent than the mitigation strategies asked of similarly situated entities or activities".

 

"In addition, we note that while many types of gatherings are important for civic and economic well-being, religious worship has particularly profound significance to communities and individuals, including as a right protected by the First Amendment".

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/faith-based.html

 

The Justice is speaking  toward  freedoms ,such as First Amendment rights inherit from the Constitution ! Surely this can apply to all gatherings where people exercise their civic rights to speak and to gather! 

 

Freedom  is not realized until you loose it!

 "Coronavirus is taking away people’s freedom bit by bit. First, it was not going to school, then no friends, and then being stuck at home. This isn’t really freedom. Freedom is being able to do what you want and being able to do things that make you happy".

https://forward.com/culture/444993/you-dont-know-what-freedom-is-until-its-gone/

 

 

 

Edited November 14, 20205 yr by riclag
txt

4 minutes ago, riclag said:

"Coronavirus is taking away people’s freedom bit by bit. First, it was not going to school, then no friends, and then being stuck at home. This isn’t really freedom. Freedom is being able to do what you want and being able to do things that make you happy".

https://forward.com/culture/444993/you-dont-know-what-freedom-is-until-its-gone/

 

Reasonably well-written for a sixth-grader. I'm shocked she feels like her freedoms are constrained by being "grounded"?

 

Look if people want to celebrate religious services they can. Has anyone (congregants) been arrested or prosecuted?

 

Recommending is different than mandating.

 

Alito is just beyond the norm. Another Leonard Leo appointee.

 

 

Alito is an extreme right-wing nutjob.

Freedom is the right to unnecessarily risk other people's lives according to this idiot.

45 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

 

Reasonably well-written for a sixth-grader. I'm shocked she feels like her freedoms are constrained by being "grounded"?

 

Look if people want to celebrate religious services they can. Has anyone (congregants) been arrested or prosecuted?

 

Recommending is different than mandating.

 

Alito is just beyond the norm. Another Leonard Leo appointee.

 

 

 And yet,look at the great pains the cdc ,  and Alito proclaim that help protect her and countless millions of others  rights regardless of age!

Freedom isn't realized until you loose it

9 minutes ago, edwinchester said:

Freedom is the right to unnecessarily risk other people's lives according to this idiot.

Exactly ,the idiot even protects the rights for  10 of thousands to gather in groups to protest during a pandemic! A equal opportunity nut job ,say what!

Edited November 14, 20205 yr by riclag
txt

For comparison purposes, the freedoms Justice Alito is defending were denied to the state of Victoria in Australia for several months. The socialist government there listened to the science. End result is there have been no coronavirus deaths or new infections for a fortnight, restrictions have been lifted.

In the same time, the USA is averaging 1000 deaths a day, and the caseload is growing by 100,000 a day. It's gone from 2.6 million to 4 million in the last fortnight.

Perhaps Americans would be better off if they listened to the scientists, rather than to a certain President, and lawyers. But what else can be said about a country where 50% of the population still believe in angels?

Charles Dickens said the law is an ass, he lived long before Justice Alito, but he probably had his kind in mind.

 

 

It is your freedom to contract a dangerous disease.

 

Doesn't sound so good does it?

4 hours ago, rooster59 said:

 

"It pains me to say this," Alito added, "but in certain quarters, religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right."

 

Alito should explain his opinion to the family of Bishop Gerald O’Glenn. 

https://www.news24.com/you/news/pastor-dies-from-covid-19-just-weeks-after-holding-a-packed-church-service-20200414

Right-wing nuts like this probably laugh when they hear of all the covid deaths.  Hundreds of thousands Americas die and all these fools can say is "we want our liberty."  We need more lockdowns and jail those Trump crazies who don't wear masks and throw away the key.  These nut cases will kill us all in the name of liberty.  Meh.

4 hours ago, rooster59 said:

"It pains me to say this," Alito added, "but in certain quarters, religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right."

Nonsense. 

50 minutes ago, riclag said:

Exactly ,the idiot even protects the rights for  10 of thousands to gather in groups to protest during a pandemic! A equal opportunity nut job ,say what!

AFAIK most of the BLM protesters were wearing masks, whereas supporters at Trump rallies were not, and were actively encouraged by Trump not to do so, by example.

It has been reported about 10% of the Secret Service attached to Trump's detail  have contracted COVID-19, being infected at the rallies while carrying out their duties.

Equal opportunity? More like a skewed distribution.

6 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

AFAIK most of the BLM protesters were wearing masks, whereas supporters at Trump rallies were not, and were actively encouraged by Trump not to do so, by example.

It has been reported about 10% of the Secret Service attached to Trump's detail  have contracted COVID-19, being infected at the rallies while carrying out their duties.

Equal opportunity? More like a skewed distribution.

Not a fair discussion when people continuously flame off topic Trump nonsense!

Good day

4 hours ago, Tug said:

I suggest justice Alito volunteer in a covid ward for a week (properly kitted out with ppe) before saying such a thing this is a national emergency we must stop this bs and pull together!!

 

No, I think you got that wrong re wearing PPE... Apparently from his comments, he would want the "personal freedom" to work in a COVID ward without anyone infringing on his freedoms to do and wear what he wants, regardless of the consequences to himself and others around him.

 

And, with 240,000+ Americans dead from CV and the numbers rising all the time, if the thing he's most concerned about is the fact that some large gathering church services, and all other comparable kinds of large gatherings, have to be canceled by government order because of a recognized and declared public health crisis....  Then he truly is in some bizarre right-wing place disconnected from reality.

 

 

Edited November 14, 20205 yr by TallGuyJohninBKK

It seems to me this is a classic example of the kind of severe myopia some develop when spending too much time locked up in their ivory tower.

56 minutes ago, riclag said:

Somchi I thought I was safe to share my opinion of my  countries freedom of speech ,instead you rant on me with off topic Trump nonsense

 

It's pretty difficult, dare I say impossible, to disconnect the CV disaster in the U.S. from Trump. The two are inextricably linked. And his conduct and failure to deal seriously with the pandemic and follow scientific/medical experts' guidance is the cause of many of the 240,000+ dead Americans thus far.

 

He probably doesn't care a whit about the religious freedom issue Alito is talking about. Sadly, he only cared about two things -- himself and his reelection. And that's what proved to be his undoing, along with that of vast numbers of now dead Americans.

 

27 minutes ago, riclag said:

Not a fair discussion when people continuously flame off topic Trump nonsense!

Good day

Dear me, another Trump supporter that can't handle the truth. I suppose you thought Trump's performance in the first presidential debate was a fair discussion too.

If you consider I am flaming, or off topic, report it to a moderator. I'm happy to let them decide.

Interesting... seems Alito didn't travel to the group's conference to deliver his remarks in person.... Wonder why? Perhaps something to do with the CV pandemic???

 

Quote

he said during his address over a video link for the conservative organization's annual conference

 

Perhaps for the same reason his own U.S. Supreme Court earlier this spring, for the first time in history, held oral arguments in cases via conference call instead of in person... "In keeping with public health guidance in response to COVID-19."

 

Quote

Supreme Court for first time to hold arguments via teleconference next month

...

“In keeping with public health guidance in response to COVID-19, the justices and counsel will all participate remotely,” the statement said. “The court anticipates providing a live audio feed of these arguments to news media. Details will be shared as they become available.”

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-for-first-time-to-hold-arguments-via-teleconference-next-month/2020/04/13/f7e325d0-7d8d-11ea-a3ee-13e1ae0a3571_story.html

 

Quote

Virus Pushes a Staid Supreme Court Into Revolutionary Changes

The court is set to depart from history twice on Monday: The justices will hear arguments by conference call, and the public will be able to listen in.
...
But on Monday, the court will break with history twice: hearing the first of 10 cases that will be argued in a telephone conference call, and letting the public listen in. It is a momentous step for a cautious and secretive institution and yet another way in which the coronavirus pandemic has forced American society to adjust to a new reality.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/03/us/politics/supreme-court-coronavirus.html

 

But but but, what about Alito's freedom?  I guess he thinks it's OK -- not just OK but a constitutional right!!! -- for the religious extremists to merrily infect each other and those around them, and then suffer the consequences... But Supreme Court justices, ahhhh, apparently not so much...

 

Edited November 14, 20205 yr by TallGuyJohninBKK

3 hours ago, riclag said:

"This guidance is not intended to infringe on rights protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution or any other federal law, including the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA). The federal government may not prescribe standards for interactions of faith communities in houses of worship, and in accordance with the First Amendment, no faith community should be asked to adopt any mitigation strategies that are more stringent than the mitigation strategies asked of similarly situated entities or activities".

 

"In addition, we note that while many types of gatherings are important for civic and economic well-being, religious worship has particularly profound significance to communities and individuals, including as a right protected by the First Amendment".

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/faith-based.html

 

The Justice is speaking  toward  freedoms ,such as First Amendment rights inherit from the Constitution ! Surely this can apply to all gatherings where people exercise their civic rights to speak and to gather! 

 

Freedom  is not realized until you loose it!

 "Coronavirus is taking away people’s freedom bit by bit. First, it was not going to school, then no friends, and then being stuck at home. This isn’t really freedom. Freedom is being able to do what you want and being able to do things that make you happy".

https://forward.com/culture/444993/you-dont-know-what-freedom-is-until-its-gone/

 

 

 

Now address the bit about what constitutes a marriage.

14 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Now address the bit about what constitutes a marriage.

I'm in love with my big bike, we want to get married. Is that a problem??

2 hours ago, cmarshall said:

Alito is an extreme right-wing nutjob.

Brevity is the soul of wit.

 

Well said!

The U.S. Supreme Court went down this road earlier this spring, and came away with a 5-4 sensible decision, with Alito and his ilk dissenting. But that was with RBG on the bench. Today, with Trump's right-wing extremist packed court, who knows. Maybe Alito would be writing the new majority opinion in the reverse:

 

Quote

Supreme Court, in 5-4 Decision, Rejects Church’s Challenge to Shutdown Order

A California church argued that restrictions on public gatherings treated houses of worship worse than many businesses.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday turned away a request from a church in California to block enforcement of state restrictions on attendance at religious services.

The vote was 5 to 4, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joining the court’s four-member liberal wing to form a majority.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/30/us/supreme-court-churches-coronavirus.html

 

Edited November 14, 20205 yr by TallGuyJohninBKK

10 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

I'm in love with my big bike, we want to get married. Is that a problem??

If your bike had a say in the matter, probably.

15 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

I'm in love with my big bike, we want to get married. Is that a problem??

 

Only if you forget to let the exhaust cool down.

17 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

I'm in love with my big bike, we want to get married. Is that a problem??

Only when you come to the bit where you ‘consummate’ your union.