This Supreme Court

I want to call your attention to an opinion piece by that marvelous grand lady of the press, Helen Thomas. The title is "High Court Takes Giant Steps Backward" -- and hasn't it just? Take a look:

The new Supreme Court is more conservative than it has been in decades. It’s also meaner.

It is a dream come true for Republican presidencies dating back to the “strict constructionist” court aspirations of President Nixon and now made possible by the conservative George W. Bush.

Before closing down for the summer last month, the high court tossed out a flurry of decisions that overturned or reinterpreted long-standing liberal precedents.

The court under Chief Justice John Roberts seems intent on rolling back advances in race and gender relations that have helped America achieve a more equal and humane society.

The 5-4 decisions of the conservative court dealt with race, abortion, free speech, church-state relations and a host of other issues. They also showed a pro-business and anti-consumer slant.

Here's an example:

In a blow to the principle of separation of church and state, the court rejected a challenge by the “Freedom From Religion Foundation” against a White House program that helps church charities competing with government programs obtain federal grants.

The ruling is a bow to the president who for the first time in history set up a White House office to promote faith-based entities.

And this bears pondering:

[Justice Stephen] Breyer summed it up when he said: “It is not often in the law that so few have so quickly changed so much.”

It's tragic. Simply tragic.