When I first heard about this story, it struck me as a boon to the small business owners (whoever they might be) who make crosses for burning in the yards of uppity niggers or mongrel nigger lovers. I mean, hey, it must be hard to sell crosses when the biggots who burn them in front of some poor family's home might get put in jail. But with Bush's nomination of a judge who actively (if not illegally) works to lighten the sentences of those cross-burners, well, I expect 2002 should be a good year for cross-burning! And that's good for business! And what's good for business is good for America!
Of course I'm (facetiously) referring to judge Charles Pickering from Mississippi. The judge doesn't seem to have a very modern view about people of color or about enforcing laws that were written to help protect the rights of all Americans. It has been reported by the Los Angeles Times (2/8/2002, page A28) that in a 1994 case, judge Pickering thought federal sentencing guidelines were too harsh for a trio of good 'ole boys who burned a cross in the yard of an interracial couple. Heck Fire! Just some boys involved in a "drunken prank" (the judge's words). Just because they burned a little 'ole 8 foot tall cross and then fired multiple gun-shots into the OCCUPIED house, well, shucks, that ain't no reason to haul-off an send a good ole son of the Confederacy to the pokey for seven years is it? Darn it all, they barely missed the baby. If they'd a been serious, wouldn't they a' kilt it?
Seven years in jail? Just for burning a cross and shooting at a baby? That does seem harsh.
On the other hand, since the judge concedes that the men were drunk when they drove to the family's home, maybe we should tack-on an ADDITIONAL five or ten years for DUI?
Judge Pickering's involvement came when he called in the prosecutors (apart from the defense team) and demanded that they disregard federal guidelines and grant the would-be killer a lighter sentence. Now, I should add here that I don't know which of the three "drunken pranksters" actually fired the bullets and frankly, I don't care at all. If you drive the getaway vehicle you're just as guilty as the gunman who pulls the trigger. But what I DO care about is a judge who intervenes to lessen the punishment for such despicable (again, the judge's own description for the actions of these hoodlums) assassins.
This is the sort of man that Bush wants to give a LIFE-TIME job on the court of appeals? Is that the sort of person who should oversee district court decisions? I guess if you're the sort of person who burns crosses in front of someone's home, you'd probably say "Ye Ha!"