Blog 3.7

1. What does the Martin-Quinn score attempt to measure?

2. What trend do you notice as justices serve on the Supreme Court for many years?

3. How does the Greenhouse Effect theory try to explain this phenomenon?

4. How does the Cocktail Party theory try to explain this?

5. How might the historical reputation of a justice effect their decision making?

6. Why have conservatives been disappointed so far by Chief Justice John Roberts?

7. Of all the theories for why this occurs, which do you think is most realistic?  Why?

Answers

1. It's a measure of judicial ideology.

2. They become more liberal.

3. Activists have consistently pressured judges into making more liberal decisions.

4. Conservative judges want to be seen as more reasonable and moderate, so they make more liberal decisions.

5. History fails to remember conservative judges kindly, so to preserve legacy, they may make more liberal decisions.

6. His decisions have been drifting toward the liberal end of things.

7a. Either the cocktail scene or the experience have the largest effects.

7b. I believe that our interactions with other individuals shape large parts of our growth and life; therefore, because these two topics are built upon such, I find these to be the most realistic.