I would hope that a wise White descendant of north-woods white trash with the richness of his experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a New York Times reporter who hasn’t lived that life.

Oh, hell – it’s like potato chips.  Once you start, you can’t stop.

Sotomayor’s comment (“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 who hasn’t lived that life”) promted me to wonder – is the nominee being taken out of context?

The NYTimes, America’s official gatekeeper of record, says no, not really:

In her speech, Judge Sotomayor questioned the famous notion — often invoked by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her retired Supreme Court colleague, Sandra Day O’Connor — that a wise old man and a wise old woman would reach the same conclusion when deciding cases.“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 who hasn’t lived that life,” said Judge Sotomayor, who is now considered to be near the top of President Obama’s list of potential Supreme Court nominees.

Her remarks, at the annual Judge Mario G. Olmos Law and Cultural Diversity Lecture at the University of California, Berkeley, were not the only instance in which she has publicly described her view of judging in terms that could provoke sharp questioning in a confirmation hearing.

This month, for example, a video surfaced of Judge Sotomayor asserting in 2005 that a “court of appeals is where policy is made.” She then immediately adds: “And I know — I know this is on tape, and I should never say that because we don’t make law. I know. O.K. I know. I’m not promoting it. I’m not advocating it. I’m — you know.”

I would hope that a wise conservative guy with the richness of his experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who takes anything said at  Berkeley seriously, who hasn’t lived that life