I'm not sure that the characterization the media is giving this is fair. I watched the arguments before the Court a few weeks ago (how's that for a slow Saturday night?), and the questions were a mixture of what was specifically protected by the State Constitution (and whether "equal protection" actually applies), the history of legal definitions of marriage, and the very obvious attitude that the State justices didn't want to produce a ruling that changed current interpretations but which might be superceded in the near future by the Supreme Court, where a couple of similar cases are pending. They sort of chickened out, but it's easy to see why they would shy away from a ruling that would change how things work in New York, just to possibly have it all negated within a year or two, and then the state would have to deal with all of the marriages being...not anymore.
If you ever get a chance to watch such arguments (here, it's often on "America and the Courts" on PBS), it's fascinating, not just to see the process in action, but to see how it later gets covered by the media. The Court I saw was open-minded, sharp, and it was fairly easy to see the pertinent issues from how they questioned counsel. I've read some rulings (not this one, but for instance, the Supreme Court Guantanamo ruling last week - the dissenting opinions are, for the most part, amazingly nonsensical), and they tend to be much harder to sort out than the actual presentations and question sessions. It's be great if the Supreme Court was televised.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2006-07-07 01:01 pm (UTC)If you ever get a chance to watch such arguments (here, it's often on "America and the Courts" on PBS), it's fascinating, not just to see the process in action, but to see how it later gets covered by the media. The Court I saw was open-minded, sharp, and it was fairly easy to see the pertinent issues from how they questioned counsel. I've read some rulings (not this one, but for instance, the Supreme Court Guantanamo ruling last week - the dissenting opinions are, for the most part, amazingly nonsensical), and they tend to be much harder to sort out than the actual presentations and question sessions. It's be great if the Supreme Court was televised.