Sotomayor hearings start on Monday

July 11, 7:22 PMAtlanta Astrology ExaminerPatricia Lantz

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          AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais

Let the Hearing Being
by Nan Aron
The Senate Judiciary Committee will convene Monday morning at 10:00 a.m. to begin the hearing on Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to become an associate justice of the Supreme Court.  The hearing will be a consequential moment in our history, but not so much because the confirmation of Judge Sotomayor is on the line. Barring some unforeseen and very unlikely event, Republicans will quickly back off attacks on Judge Sotomayor herself. They recognize that it is politically dangerous to criticize her given her appealing personal story of rising from a housing project in the Bronx to the pinnacle of our judiciary through enormous talent and hard work, her record as a moderate who feels bound to follow the law strictly on the bench, and her ethnicity and gender.
Instead, they will use the occasion to promote their distorted view of the law – not what it is but what they would like it to be in a republic ruled by hard-right judicial activists such as Chief John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito. For that reason, the week will offer an enormously important contrast between the nominee and her supporters and this ominous Republican vision. Read more at The Huffington Post 

Though the Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee may "quickly back off attacks" on Judge Sotomayor herself, right-wing pundits and journalists certainly have not. One example is the statement from a 2001 speech given at a Berkeley Symposium, on issues facing Latinos in the judiciary.

Sotomyor is quoted as saying “I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male.”  These widely circulated words from the 2001 speech were taken out of context and are repeated as proof of Sotomayor's bias, but it's hard to imagine that every judge on the Supreme Court is not biased in one way or another.

I believe it's fair to say that how they all were raised, their culture, their heritage, their family's economic status as well as their gender, and all their varied life experiences do shape their perspective of the world. And it could be said that our Supreme Court is biased because of its lack of diversity, and perhaps a wise “Latino woman” with Sotomayor's background will add a much needed new perspective. Certainly, her early life's story seems more in tune with those of average Americans. 
 

And, as Judge Sotomayor put it in a speech given in 1999, the goal of our legal system not simply to decide cases, but to provide "justice," "an elegant and beautiful word that moves people to believe that the law is something special."

In that inspiring and so far unnoticed speech, Judge Sotomayor assesses what doing justice means in our court system where "the law commands a result, a result that leads to a winner and therefore a loser." To think about justice, she tells a group of young and aspiring lawyers:

"you must constantly step out of the role you are in and not just listen to your adversaries but learn to appreciate their perspectives... To be fair, to seek truth is not easy. It is the hardest task you face. Justice asks you not only for a fair result but for a commitment that you will pursue justice fairly in every step you take as a lawyer.'' Read more on the The Huffington Post 

Sonia Sotomayor was born June 23, 1954, Bronx, NY (time unknown), and is a Sun sign Cancer, confirming her strong commitment to home and heritage. Although the Moon moved from Aries to Taurus in the early afternoon on the day Sotomayor was born, her biography seems to exemplify the confident, do it now, move forward, action oriented, pioneering quality of an Aries Moon individual.

President Obama praised Sotomayor by saying she is a woman who is “rooted in the real world and has not forgotten where she came from”. This statement clearly speaks of the major aspect in her horoscope (Cancer Sun opposite Mars in Capricorn), “not forgetting where she came from” is definitely a Cancer characteristic, while “rooted in the real world” is that of Capricorn.

Having Mars in Capricorn Sotomayor is certainly not helpless or weak. This Mars gifts her with stamina, seriousness, authority and ambition. And, this is often the Mars placement in the horoscope of an individual who started at the bottom, like Sotomayor, but diligently and patiently worked their way to the top.

The probable Aries Moon with Mars in Capricorn is certainly a asset for a woman who is in a profession historically dominated by white males. And Judge Sonia Sotomayor has been described by some lawyers as domineering, demanding and exacting, and still others criticized her for being outspoken and temperamental. This is exactly what could be expected to be said about a woman working with the sort of energy revealed in Sotomayor's horoscope.

This wise “Latino woman” is not the sterotypical Cancer homemaker, supported by the rest of her horoscope she is strong and confident with great courage and ambition, a pioneer who has worked her way to the top of her profession in a man's world.

More astrology related to Sonia Sotomayor

Sonia SotoMayor
by Marry Plumb
On the day of her nomination Sotomayor said: “For as long as I can remember, I have been inspired by the achievement of our founding fathers. They set forth principles that have endured for more than two centuries. Those principles are as meaningful and relevant in each generation as the generation before.” (2) This strong connection to the founding fathers echoes Cancer’s respect for the past and tradition. Read more on at The Mountain Astrologer

 

Obama's choice for the Supreme Court: Sonia Sotomayor
by Lynn Hayes
Although Ms.Sotomayor's Mercury (thoughts and the mental process) is in Cancer, which tends to signify an emotional thinker, her chart also contains a tight conjunction of Mercury to Uranus (innovation and change). This shows that she is not afraid to embrace new ideas and explore new ways to solve old problems although the nurturing quality of the sign of Cancer will filter through every one of her decisions. Mercury in her chart is retrograde, meaning it appeared to be moving backwards at the time that she was born. In a natal chart that can signify someone who is less adept in the world of communication, and there is some criticism about Ms.Sotomayor's ability to be able to clearly articulate legal details. Read more at Astrological Musings
 

Some interesting Sotomayor trivia:

As a district judge, she once ruled in favor of the producers of Seinfeld in a copyright infringement case brought against the publishers of a trivia quiz book about the popular sitcom. “The Seinfeld Aptitude Test seizes upon the notion which lies at the very heart of Seinfeld that there is humor in the mundane, seemingly trivial aspects of everyday life,” Sotomayor wrote in her opinion. “Simply put, without Seinfeld there can be no Seinfeld Aptitude Test.” Authors of unauthorized trivia quiz books have been crying in their beers ever since.

Additionally, this life long Yankee fan has been called “The Woman Who Saved Baseball” because she put a quick end to 1994/95 strike!

Update the hearings have begun...