Oneil Cruz is rapidly becoming "the other Cruz."
The latest data show that between 2010 and 2023, identification as LGBTQ+ has almost tripled among the student body at Brown (from 14% in 2010 saying they were not heterosexual to 38% now). Global warming cultists would probably conclude that this is evidence of homosexuality's infective nature.
Trouble with Math at the Supreme Court
Seeking to show that considering race in admissions was fair and realizes equality, Jackson argued in her dissent that diversity "saves lives" and is essential for "marginalized communities." She asserted that diversity is for the "betterment" of students and society at large beyond college campuses.
"For high-risk Black newborns, having a Black physician more than doubles the likelihood that the baby will live, and not die," Jackson wrote as one example.
That claim came from an amicus brief filed by lawyers representing an association of medical colleges. The brief stated that for "high-risk Black newborns, having a Black physician is tantamount to a miracle drug; it more than doubles the likelihood that the baby will live," citing as support a 2020 study that examined mortality rates in Florida newborns between 1992 and 2015.
In a letter Friday filed to the Supreme Court docket, Norton Rose Fulbright wrote that the argument cited by Jackson in her opinion "warrants clarification" and sought to clear up any "confusion."
"The principal cited finding of the [study] was that the mortality rate for Black newborns, as compared to White newborns, decreased by more than half when under the supervision of Black physician," the law firm's letter said. "In absolute terms, this study found that patient-physician racial concordance led to a reduction in health inequity."
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed this week, Ted Frank, a senior attorney at Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute, responded directly to Jackson's claim, lambasting the justice for making a mathematical error.
"A moment's thought should be enough to realize that this claim is wildly implausible," wrote Frank, who filed an amicus brief in support of Students for Fair Admissions. "Imagine if 40% of black newborns died — thousands of dead infants every week. But even so, that's a 60% survival rate, which is mathematically impossible to double. And the actual survival rate is over 99%. How could Justice Jackson make such an innumerate mistake?"
Frank went on to argue that the 2020 study was "flawed" and didn't match Jackson's claim about Black newborns having a significantly higher chance of surviving with a Black physician.
"The study makes no such claims. It examines mortality rates in Florida newborns between 1992 and 2015 and shows a 0.13% to 0.2% improvement in survival rates for Black newborns with Black pediatricians (though no statistically significant improvement for black obstetricians)," Frank wrote.
"So, we have a Supreme Court justice parroting a mathematically absurd claim coming from an interested party's mischaracterization of a flawed study. Her opinion then urges 'all of us' to 'do what evidence and experts tell us is required to level the playing field and march forward together.' Instead, we should watch where we're going."--Kliegman
The point here should not be that mortality rates and survival rates are different, but that politically motivated decisions are being generated by the courts using any and all information that supports them. Justices are simply regurgitating them. And that is not the behavior one expects from objective examiners of life-changing decisions delivered by the highest court in the land. We should not expect the justices to be polymaths, but we should be able to expect reflection and caution. Regrettably, reflection and caution corelate well with intelligence.
Trouble with Math at the Supreme Court
Seeking to show that considering race in admissions was fair and realizes equality, Jackson argued in her dissent that diversity "saves lives" and is essential for "marginalized communities." She asserted that diversity is for the "betterment" of students and society at large beyond college campuses.
"For high-risk Black newborns, having a Black physician more than doubles the likelihood that the baby will live, and not die," Jackson wrote as one example.
That claim came from an amicus brief filed by lawyers representing an association of medical colleges. The brief stated that for "high-risk Black newborns, having a Black physician is tantamount to a miracle drug; it more than doubles the likelihood that the baby will live," citing as support a 2020 study that examined mortality rates in Florida newborns between 1992 and 2015.
In a letter Friday filed to the Supreme Court docket, Norton Rose Fulbright wrote that the argument cited by Jackson in her opinion "warrants clarification" and sought to clear up any "confusion."
"The principal cited finding of the [study] was that the mortality rate for Black newborns, as compared to White newborns, decreased by more than half when under the supervision of Black physician," the law firm's letter said. "In absolute terms, this study found that patient-physician racial concordance led to a reduction in health inequity."
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed this week, Ted Frank, a senior attorney at Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute, responded directly to Jackson's claim, lambasting the justice for making a mathematical error.
"A moment's thought should be enough to realize that this claim is wildly implausible," wrote Frank, who filed an amicus brief in support of Students for Fair Admissions. "Imagine if 40% of black newborns died — thousands of dead infants every week. But even so, that's a 60% survival rate, which is mathematically impossible to double. And the actual survival rate is over 99%. How could Justice Jackson make such an innumerate mistake?"
Frank went on to argue that the 2020 study was "flawed" and didn't match Jackson's claim about Black newborns having a significantly higher chance of surviving with a Black physician.
"The study makes no such claims. It examines mortality rates in Florida newborns between 1992 and 2015 and shows a 0.13% to 0.2% improvement in survival rates for Black newborns with Black pediatricians (though no statistically significant improvement for black obstetricians)," Frank wrote.
"So, we have a Supreme Court justice parroting a mathematically absurd claim coming from an interested party's mischaracterization of a flawed study. Her opinion then urges 'all of us' to 'do what evidence and experts tell us is required to level the playing field and march forward together.' Instead, we should watch where we're going."--Kliegman
The point here should not be that mortality rates and survival rates are different, but that politically motivated decisions are being generated by the courts using any and all information that supports them. Justices are simply regurgitating them. And that is not the behavior one expects from objective examiners of life-changing decisions delivered by the highest court in the land. We should not expect the justices to be polymaths, but we should be able to expect reflection and caution. Regrettably, reflection and caution corelate well with intelligence.
2 comments:
SCOTUS Lost Credibility after Marbury V Madison , That ruling made SCOTUS power over all other branches of Government
The problem is we need an adult in politics without the batons, fretting, or star chambers.
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