JUSTICE BUILDING BLOG

WELCOME TO THE OFFICIAL RICHARD E GERSTEIN JUSTICE BUILDING BLOG. THIS BLOG IS DEDICATED TO JUSTICE BUILDING RUMOR, HUMOR, AND A DISCUSSION ABOUT AND BETWEEN THE JUDGES, LAWYERS AND THE DEDICATED SUPPORT STAFF, CLERKS, COURT REPORTERS, AND CORRECTIONAL OFFICERS WHO LABOR IN THE WORLD OF MIAMI'S CRIMINAL JUSTICE. POST YOUR COMMENTS, OR SEND RUMPOLE A PRIVATE EMAIL AT HOWARDROARK21@GMAIL.COM. Winner of the prestigious Cushing Left Anterior Descending Artery Award.

Saturday, April 03, 2021

WHERE DO WE DRAW THE LINE

 WWII was an existential threat to the United States and the world. A small coterie of world leaders emerged, men meeting the moment. All of them rising to the challenge. The war would have been won without them, but at what cost? And knowing of their flawed personal characters, would we have been better off without them? 

Dwight Eisenhower was a mid-level desk bound general at the Pentagon when General George Marshall and President Franklin Roosevelt reached down and made him Supreme Allied Commander of all of the allied forces in WWII. It was Eisenhower's ability to work with the British and French and Canadian politicians and generals that allowed him to formulate the strategy that defeated Germany. Item: Eisenhower, arguably the most powerful man in the world, groomed and then had an affair with a much younger subordinate female- Kay Somersby, while leading the allied effort in North Africa and Europe.  Would the world have been better off with a more mediocre but morally stronger general? 

President Franklin Roosevelt led the United States out of a depression and then through World War Two. Leading a country through the waters of isolationism, and then navigating the egos of Stalin and Churchill, and making decisions that affected the lives of hundreds of millions of people world wide. He is arguably considered our second or third greatest president behind Lincoln and Washington. Item: FDR had numerous affairs while married to Eleanor, and he groomed his young secretary Missy LeHand for a sexual affair, including building a home on his estate that he intended to share with her once he was out of office. Would the world have been better if Wendell Wilkie had defeated Roosevelt in 1940, Governor Dewey had won the presidency in 1944 or if Herbert Hoover had won a second term in 1932 and continued the hands-off policies that led America into the depression? 

You're suffering a massive heart attack. There is a world famous heart surgeon on staff waiting to save you. He regularly cheats on his wife. There is a mediocre heart surgeon who saves about 50% of the people he operates on. He goes to church every Sunday and has been married to the same woman for 20 years. Who do you want to try and save you? 

How much should private moral character matter with public officials?  The most brilliant bio-tech scientist is available to work on a Covid-19 vaccine. She is trans-gender and on her times off likes to attend sex clubs with 18 year olds. Or we can hire a 50 year old man who got straight Cs in chemistry and biology in college. But he teaches Sunday school. Who do you want to try and save the world? 

There is NOTHING that excuses NY Governor Andrew Cuomo's alleged behavior with women. But he did a better job in the early days of the pandemic than the former president did. And if we had a choice on who could have been president during this last year, we would choose Cuomo, moral failings and all, over the last president. At least we would have had a leader who listened to scientists, would have told people from day one to wear masks, and would have been a leader. (Yeah, we know about the nursing home scandal. And we still pick Cuomo, so save us your nasty emails). 

Would the world have been better off with Richard Nixon as president during the Cuban Missile crises or with President Kennedy, who regularly had sex with much younger women in the White House. Would Nixon have been able to stand down General Curtis LeMay who was advising a first nuclear strike on the Soviet Union? 

Would all of you who voted for Bill Clinton in 1996 over Bob Dole change your vote if you knew Clinton would be grooming a young intern for sex in the oval office in the coming years? 

We believe Wood Allen to be a genius.  His movie Crimes and Misdemeanors is one of the best films of all time, examining the same moral questions we raise here. But based on what his personal behavior has been, we have chosen not to patronize his movies for the last 20 years. But knowing what we know, we would vote for FDR and Kennedy given the chance (we voted for Dole over Clinton so no problem there). 

Henry Kissinger (former National Security Advisor and Secretary Of State in the Nixon administration for you judges under 40) famously said "Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac".  

We will end with this. Where ever you draw the line, we as a society do ourselves no favors by requiring that our leaders have higher moral standards then normal human beings do. People have affairs all the time. They are sexually indiscrete at various times in their lives.  In college, before they understood the significance of  the racist ideals it represented,  they may have gone to a party drunk in blackface.  Ted Kennedy cheated at Harvard. He cheated on his wife Joan. He was a great senator. What we -meaning Rumpole- does not want is a country and a world led by mediocre people who are morally acceptable. Give us the troubled genius anytime. Give us the great man or woman with all their personal failings, so long as they meet the moment and provide the leadership we need. 

So sharpen up those pens and send us those nasty emails about what a sexist, racist clod we are, Just be ready to accept the mediocre surgeon when your heart stops beating. 


10 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree with you. Great art is no less great because the artist is an a--hole. I'm still angry about losing Al Franken as a senator.

Anonymous said...

"Item: Eisenhower, arguably the most powerful man in the world, groomed and then had an affair with a much younger subordinate female-Kay Somersby, while leading the allied effort in North Africa and Europe. Would the world have been better off with a more mediocre but morally stronger general?"

Kay Summersby was in her 30's by the time she started working for Eisenhower. Eisenhower was 18 years older than Summersby. Yes, it's a big age difference and a big power difference in their stations, but not statutory rape or cradle robbery. Summersby was not a minor. And there's still some historical dispute as to whether the relationship was ever sexual.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kay_Summersby

"Item: FDR had numerous affairs while married to Eleanor, and he groomed his young secretary Missy LeHand for a sexual affair, including building a home on his estate that he intended to share with her once he was out of office."

Marguerite LeHand would have been around 24 by the time she started working for Roosevelt. Roosevelt was 14 years older than LeHand. Yes, the power difference between their stations was immense, but that was not rape or child molestation. Though the intensity of FDR's dependence on LeHand probably did not help her health. She died of a stroke before Roosevelt did.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marguerite_LeHand

Talking about Eisenhower and Roosevelt interchangeably with Woody Allen is not helpful. They're not accused of commensurate things. So far as I know, Eisenhower and Roosevelt have not be accused of molesting underaged family members. It would have been more apt if you had brought up Patton's treatment of his niece.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Gordon_(Red_Cross)

"You're suffering a massive heart attack. There is a world famous heart surgeon on staff waiting to save you. He regularly cheats on his wife. There is a mediocre heart surgeon who saves about 50% of the people he operates on. He goes to church every Sunday and has been married to the same woman for 20 years. Who do you want to try and save you?"

No, I would not mind being operated upon by an adulterous surgeon, so long as he is competent at his job.

But let's up the question a bit. What if the "world famous heart surgeon" is not just a cad who regularly cheats on his spouse? Suppose the amazing stellar surgeon is a child molester? There have been a few of those.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/crime/article/Surgeon-accused-of-child-molestation-found-dead-14518994.php

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/alabama/articles/2021-03-11/former-alabama-doctor-convicted-of-child-porn-sex-abuse

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-51883495

You think those are peccadillos we can overlook? As long as they keep people alive in the operating room? Do we let them continue to molest with impunity so long as their patient survival rate impressive? Or some kind of arrangement where we let them out of jail to perform their lifesaving surgeries? Would you demand the pedophile surgeon get a special furlough so he could operate on you?

Anonymous said...

Didn’t cuomo do some horrible things related to assisted living facilities? I know they had lived full lives but that was a fair number of bodies he stacked up - 🤡

The pandemic was handled poorly by all accept in Sweden.

Anonymous said...

https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/countries-and-territories/sweden/

Anonymous said...

Rump, you’ve always been a strong and compelling writer, but the best you can say about Cuomo is “he did a better job in the early days of the pandemic than the former president did.”? So did Eisenhower, Roosevelt, and all the other departed folks you mentioned. C’mon, man, you’re better than that ...

Anonymous said...

Apparently, cuomo did not. He had to lie about the numbers and covered up deaths.

That is lying, not doing a good job. Also, the guy turns out to be a bit of a predictor, not just a sexual harasser.

The Professor said...

Rumpole, you've fallen for the "false dilemma" logical fallacy: Describing two mutually exclusive choices and positing that there are no other choices.

For your surgeon, the only choices are the loutish ONE person in six billion who can save you vs. bumbling Frank Burns who doesn't know his asp from his elbow and will kill you instantly. You ignore the second-best surgeon on staff, whose difference from Dr. Brilliant is minuscule.

For your general, the choices are the philandering but brilliant Eisenhower as the only savior of humanity, vs. the other choice of Gomer Pyle. You ignore Omar Bradley.

For your governor, you give us the sexual predator Cuomo and claim that the only choice is Rob Blagojevich. You ignore FDR.

For your tough on the Soviets president, you give us Kennedy instead of Nixon but ignore Lincoln, Teddy Rosevelt, G.H.W Bush (a decorated war hero who oversaw the collapse of ... wait for it ... the Soviet Union).

Point is: The behavior of the alleged top-of-his class but morally questionable genius usually shows that he's not really as top-of-his class as he appeared.

Anonymous said...

Ted Kennedy was a moral reprobate during his entire adult life. Google "waitress sandwich/palm restaurant" and read about that young girl's horrifying experience at the hands of this creep. What next? Praise for Harvey Weinstein as a great film producer?

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


The Captain Reports:

COVID-19 ADVISORY #79

SELF-MONITORING NOTICE

An individual who worked in the locations and dates listed below has tested positive for COVID-19.

Persons identified as having been in close proximity to the confirmed individual are being notified and will be asked to take all necessary precautions.

Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building, 1351 NW 12 St.:
Courtroom 1-5 for Bond Hearings
Courtroom 4-1 for Bond Hearings


Last date worked onsite: March 27, 2021


Persons who were in this location recently should follow self-monitoring steps for the next 14 days as outlined in the Centers for Disease Control website at:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/public-health-recommendations.html

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/general-business-faq.html#Suspected-or-Confirmed-Cases-of-COVID-19-in-the-Workplace
For more complete information on symptoms, visit the CDC web page on Symptoms:

Fever or chills
Cough
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Fatigue
Muscle or body aches
Headache
New loss of taste or smell
Sore throat
Congestion or runny nose
Nausea or vomiting
Diarrhea

Self-monitoring means people should monitor themselves for fever by taking their temperatures twice a day and remain alert for cough or difficulty breathing. If they feel feverish or develop measured fever, cough, or difficulty breathing during the self-monitoring period, they should self-isolate, limit contact with others, and seek advice by telephone from a healthcare provider or their local health department to determine whether medical evaluation is needed.

Anonymous said...

Not only did Cuomo allow more elderly to die than any other of the 50 states, he did so while giving preferential Covid treatment to his brother, the CNN host.

Yeah, great call Rump. Really