In early July 2008, Samuel Alito stood on a riverbank in a remote corner of Alaska. The Supreme Court justice was on vacation at a luxury fishing lodge that charged more than $1,000 a day, and after catching a king salmon nearly the size of his leg, Alito posed for a picture. To his left, a man stood beaming: Paul Singer, a hedge fund billionaire who has repeatedly asked the Supreme Court to rule in his favor in high-stakes business disputes.
Singer was more than a fellow angler. He flew Alito to Alaska on a private jet. If the justice chartered the plane himself, the cost could have exceeded $100,000 one way.
https://www.propublica.org/article/samuel-alito-luxury-fishing-trip-paul-singer-scotus-supreme-court
If you’re going to ever say, “yeah, we know…” you should take a moment to acknowledge that was the exact strategy of bombarding the public with a constant stream of scandal, crime and controversy - to numb you to real issues like this, worth actual outrage and attention.
I know it’s overwhelming, I feel it too, but I work to not indulge that feeling when I can avoid it. Glad you came back a second time and read the article.
Oh, 100%. And I was being slightly glib, more of a “oh, they found more?” feeling when I thought it was Thomas. Not really a numbing of outrage as much as just another data point. But you’re completely right about the strategy.
Great, I figured as much. Too many people use the blanket, “Uh yeah, we know…” as an excuse to ignore reality that demands some sort of response and relieve the guilt of tuning out.