Ruth Bader Ginsburg

[steelyman]

The Bully Pulpit, by Doris Kearns Goodwin, is about Theodore Roosevelt and William Taft. Taft very much wanted to be a Supreme Court judge, not President.

It’s interesting but from a turn-of-the-20th viewpoint.

[street]

To some, that is all they have is work and the title is very hard to give up. Go girl, work till you drop if that what makes her happy. I wish her the best with her health.

[Gumby]

If I may, let me address the "apex of the profession" issue. I retired at the end of May this year. One of the last big cases I had involved potential federal preemption of state law. I argued and won at the U.S. District Court in Connecticut and at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The next step is a petition for certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court. There is now a "split in the circuits", meaning that the 2d Circuit holding in my favor is directly contrary to holdings in the 4th and the 9th Circuits on nearly identical state laws. It is also a very important issue involving the rights of a state to regulate businesses within the state. For those reasons, it is likely that the Supreme Court will grant the petition for certiorari and hear the case. I have to tell you that I was torn about retiring with that case pending. Arguing in the Supreme Court is the pinnacle of a lawyer's career. I thought several times about sticking around just to do that. Ultimately I did not, but that very tangential issue lets me understand how Justice Ginsburg might want to continue on with her work. It is the peak of the profession; she and the other justices are shaping the course of the law for years to come, and I might be reluctant to relinquish that as well.

[Lewis Clark]

One point of retirement is to allow us the time to do whatever we want. If what any person wants to do is work, then more power to them. Enjoying a job is no different from enjoying any other activity.

[samclem]

It is surprising to me that she was able to go to Sloan Kettering for three weeks of cancer treatment and it was never reported in the press. Justice Ginsburg's health has been a topic of frequent and intense press interest for quite some time. She either gave the Fourth Estate the slip or there are still some folks with grace and decency that decided to forego the scoop and give her some privacy.

My guess is that she got away without them noticing.

[USGrant1962]

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem It is surprising to me that she was able to go to Sloan Kettering for three weeks of cancer treatment and it was never reported in the press. Justice Ginsburg's health has been a topic of frequent and intense press interest for quite some time. She either gave the Fourth Estate the slip or there are still some folks with grace and decency that decided to forego the scoop and give her some privacy. My guess is that she got away without them noticing.

Or "they" noticed but didn't report it for some unknown reason.

[pb4uski]

But I think the point why people who are hugely financially successful continue to work. While I enjoyed my work, I never understood it. Once I had enough, that was it for me.

There are lots of people who have more money than they would ever reasonably need... like Warren Buffett for example.... so why continue to work?

[BeachOrCity]

Some people continue to work because they find it personally fulfilling. Or their job is really helping others.

Nothing AT ALL wrong with that!

[NW-Bound]

Sandra O'Connor, the first woman Justice, retired at the age of 75 to spend time with her husband who was suffering from Alzheimer. She was in good health, in contrast with the tradition of Justices serving until death or being incapacitated.

[candrew]

Ginsburg and the late justice Antonin Scalia were known to be close friends with polar opposite ideologies while sharing a love for the opera. In spite of their having arguments now and then, they never let it affect their friendship.

Each of them admitted that the other's dissenting opinions made them better jurists. In a statement Ginsburg released to honor Scalia after his passing she wrote, "We are different, we are one."

Hang in there as long as you want RBG.

[street]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mamadogmamacat From the articles I have read over the years, in addition to the prestige factor that others have mentioned (apex of one's profession and all that), the SC is also something of a social club. The justices apparently get on quite well with each other and their families too. RBG does not have, IIRC, a very large family of her own, just one daughter, and I think a nephew. Not sure if the daughter or nephew had any kids or not. So, there is a social factor as well. Another thing, some people really do live for their job, and cannot imagine living without it. Have no idea if she is such a person, but she may be.

I beleive she has a least a couple of kids and she does have grand kids but I don't know how many. Her mate died some years back.

[ShokWaveRider]

She does look very frail. We hope she has a few more years left in her yet. Long live RBG.

[Beststash]

A class act. RGB is a rock star to me.

[dixonge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by street This shouldn't have anything to do with politics, but the topic of why keep on is anyone guess. She loves what she does or she is very greedy and wants more and more. LOL

Third option - she doesn’t want to retire until her replacement faces a more liberal Senate. This is the modern reality. Even if every judge were completely neutral and impartial, those doing the approving and vetting are not. It isn’t *supposed* to be this way, but it is what it is. So that is ‘why’ she keeps on, in spite of the health issues.

[EastWest Gal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dixonge Third option - she doesn’t want to retire until her replacement faces a more liberal Senate. This is the modern reality. Even if every judge were completely neutral and impartial, those doing the approving and vetting are not. It isn’t *supposed* to be this way, but it is what it is. So that is ‘why’ she keeps on, in spite of the health issues.

Agree. At this point, it is partly political. Even if she had retired 3 years ago, it is likely her seat would have been forced to be held open by the Senate Majority Leader, as Scalia's seat was.

Also consider that she has no spouse at home, the job is not physical, it is mental, and they are in session only part of the year. Clearly it is not about the money. From what I have read, she has lived for her causes and her work. If that's the case, why retire? The job isn't stressful-she can't be fired, she doesn't have a boss. If you are doing what you love, why quit?

Look at Stephen Hawking. He couldn't move for much of his life, yet he continued to contribute to the world.

[eytonxav]

It's amazing she has survived so many bouts of cancer and now faces another one. I've known a few people whose work was there life and without it they seem to lose their identity and feeling of self worth. More power to her and I hope she can be like a cat with nine lives.

[Which Roger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeachOrCity Some people continue to work because they find it personally fulfilling. Or their job is really helping others. Nothing AT ALL wrong with that!

And you don't rise to the level of Supreme Court Justice without your career being your life's passion. If my career had been my life's passion, I'd probably still be working instead of posting on this forum.

[aaronc879]

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem She either gave the Fourth Estate the slip or there are still some folks with grace and decency that decided to forego the scoop and give her some privacy.

Grace and decency in political media? That's obviously not it. She must have hid it well.

[youbet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gumby The Notorious RBG will be remembered long after you and I are feeding the worms and forgotten by all.

She might be remembered, but she'll still be DEAD.........

[brewer12345]

All I know is what I read on a Wikipedia article, but pancreatic cancer sounds like the patient usually has a lifespan measured in months. Perhaps I misunderstood or misinterpreted what I wrote.

If Justice Ginsberg were simply a political animal, she would have bailed out when her political allies were in a position to appoint a successor in her own mold. She obviously chose not to do so. We can speculate as to why (personal reasons, etc.), but I will toss out another possibility. The choice to keep going may in part have been due to not wanting to make the court more influenced by political considerations.

I don't agree with much of her political agenda, but I can't help respect a lifetime of service in the court.