Thomas embroiled in mess
Clarence's role with Alger group
Raises more concerns

#clarencethomas #ethics #horatioalger #haiku #poetry

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/clarence-thomas-ethics-mess-goes-bad-worse-rcna93379

“But a look at his tenure at the #HoratioAlger Assn, based on >2 dozen interviews & a review of public filings & internal docs, shows that #Justice Thomas has received benefits — many of them previously #unreported — from a broader cohort of #wealthy & #powerful friends. They have included major #donors to #conservative causes w/broad #policy & #political interests & much at stake in #SupremeCourt decisions….”

#ClarenceThomas #SCOTUS #Privilege #Power #Law #Greed

“Over the yrs, his #HoratioAlger friends have welcomed him at their vacation retreats, arranged VIP access to sporting events & invited him to their lavish parties. In 2004, he joined celebrities including Oprah Winfrey & Ed McMahon at a 3-day 70th birthday bash in MN for the (billionaire) industrialist Dennis Washington.

#ClarenceThomas #SCOTUS #Money #Privilege #Power #Justice #Law

“One entrepreneur called it ‘the closest thing to being knighted in the United States.’ At the same time, #Justice #ClarenceThomas has served as the group’s best messenger, meeting w/& mentoring the recipients of millions of dollars a year in #HoratioAlger college scholarships, many of whom come from backgrounds that mirror his own.…

“His friendships forged through Horatio Alger have brought him proximity to a lifestyle of unimaginable material privilege.

#SCOTUS #Privilege #Power #Law #Greed

“At #HoratioAlger, #ClarenceThomas moved into the inner circle, a cluster of extraordinarily #wealthy, largely #conservative members who lionized him & all that he had achieved. While he has never held an ofcl leadership position, in some ways he has become the assn’s leading light. He has granted it unusual access to #SCOTUS, where every yr he presides over the group’s signature event: a ceremony in the courtroom at which he places Horatio Alger medals around the necks of new lifetime members.

Hidden Gifts, Biased Decisions: Unmasking Billionaire Influence On Clarence Thomas

https://thedemlabs.org/2023/07/09/hidden-gifts-biased-decisions-unmasking-billionaire-influence-on-clarence-thomas/

#clarencethomas #scotus #HoratioAlger

Take #HoratioAlger, the 19th c American writer synonymous with #RagsToRiches thanks to the enormous volume of stories he wrote about young, male "street urchins" rising to positions of power. There are many problems with Alger's work and our conception of it. For starters, 19th c American street kids *overwhelmingly* lived and died in stagnant, grinding poverty. Nineteenth century America was not a country of ex-homeless kids who rose to positions of wealth and prominence.

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