ANALYSIS: TRUE. Cruz: America ‘one more liberal justice’ away from irrevocable damage.

He said the Supreme Court should face elections in order to hold the nine-justice tribunal accountable.

The GOP primary hopeful also said Chief Justice John Roberts put on an “Obama jersey” in his King v. Burwell majority decision that upheld the Obamacare subsidies.

Cruz has surged to third place with 10 percent support in the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucus, according to a Bloomberg Politics/Des Moines Register poll released this week.

People act like this idea is crazy, but why is it? Every other part of the government has become more democratic since 1789. And experience shows that elected state Supreme Courts are more protective of some rights, and not as protective as others, but overall not hugely different. If courts are going to legislate, treat them like legislators. And if you’re worried about politics influencing a decision, you should worry more about trial courts, where a single judge has much more power to affect the proceedings, often without being obvious.

COMET LOVEJOY COULD BECOME THE AWESOMEST PARTY DESTINATION IN THE UNIVERSE: “Scientists have recently concluded that the comet is spewing alcohol and sugar out into space — a combination that sounds like a killer Old Fashioned.”

Does SMOD bring the booze as well? It would certainly make mankind’s armageddon go down that much smoother.

WAR ON BOYS: Please Don’t Threaten My Son For Dating Your Daughter. “My oldest son is 16 and his life does not need to be threatened when he takes his date out for dinner. My son is 16 and yet he has enough sense to be respectful to his grandmother, his mother, his sisters, and, amazingly, his girlfriend. I, as his mother, take offense to the thought that he is some hormone-drunk sloppy boner-machine (man he’s going to hate me for writing that phrase in a public forum) who is completely blinded to good sense and morality.”

Well, you know, there are a lot of bigots out there, and they tend to stereotype the male gender. Just look at pretty much any college’s student-discipline office. . . .

IRS’ LOIS LERNER SKATES; AN UGLY PRECEDENT IS SET: “IRS officials now know they can go after any political opponent they want, ruin them any way they wish, swing an election — as occurred with Lerner’s actions — and get away with it,” Investor’s Business Daily notes:

No wonder confidence in government has plunged. Last June, Gallup conducted a survey on confidence in public institutions and found it “below historic norms” and with confidence in justice dropping to its lowest point since Barack Obama took office. Just 23% of the public had high or some confidence in a justice system that could play fairly; 34% had little or no confidence.

The Democrats may giggle with glee at seeing another of their own skate free based on the president’s executive actions through his DOJ flunkies.

But two can play that game. If a Republican as unscrupulous as Obama wins the election, the same banana republic politics in government will make Democrats the next victims.

The next GOP president may not be a gentleman of the George W. Bush variety. Political parties should be careful what they wish for.

Either way, the Coming Middle Class Anarchy looms ever larger.

GOVERNMENT IS JUST ANOTHER WORD FOR THE THINGS WE CHOOSE TO DO TOGETHER: DEA agents tied to sex parties, prostitutes rewarded $95,000 in bonuses.

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: Senior Citizens Getting Their Social Security Garnished for Student Loan Debt:

Compared to student loan debt, those 65 and older are much more likely to carry other types of debt. For example, about 29 percent carry home mortgage debt and 27 percent carry credit card debt. Still, student debt among older American households has grown in recent years. The percentage of households headed by those aged 65 to 74 having student debt grew from about 1 percent in 2004 to about 4 percent in 2010. While those 65 and older account for a small fraction of the total amount of outstanding federal student debt, the outstanding federal student debt for this age group grew from about $2.8 billion in 2005 to about $18.2 billion in 2013. . . .

Available data indicate that borrowers 65 and older hold defaulted federal student loans at a much higher rate, which can leave some retirees with income below the poverty threshold. Although federal student loans can remain unpaid for more than a year before the Department of Education takes aggressive action to recover the funds, once initiated, the actions can have serious consequences. For example, a portion of the borrower’s Social Security disability, retirement, or survivor benefits can be claimed to pay off the loan. From 2002 through 2013, the number of individuals whose Social Security benefits were offset to pay student loan debt increased about five-fold from about 31,000 to 155,000. Among those 65 and older, the number of individuals whose benefits were offset grew from about 6,000 to about 36,000 over the same period, roughly a 500 percent increase. In 1998, additional limits on the amount that monthly benefits can be offset were implemented, but since that time the value of the amount protected and retained by the borrower has fallen below the poverty threshold.

Remember, the colleges got their money up front.

INSOMNIA THEATER (COLLEGE SPORTS EDITION): Earlier this week at Texas A&M University, two college sports heavyweights, ESPN’s Jay Bilas and NCAA VP Oliver Luck, debated the proposition “College athletes should be allowed to be paid” to kick off FIRE’s new program, FIRE Debates. Throughout the school year, FIRE Debates will continue to bring leading figures to colleges and universities for Oxford-style debates on controversial topics relevant to students. We hope the program will remind students that free inquiry and open discussion not only play a central role in both education and democracy, but are also healthy, productive, and even fun. Check out the video of the full debate below and take a look at our upcoming FIRE Debates!

WHO KNEW HE WAS SO ALL-POWERFUL? Gloria Steinem’s laughable excuse for feminism’s bad rep. “Countless women refuse to call themselves “feminists,” and Gloria Steinem knows why: It’s Rush Limbaugh’s fault.”

AT AMAZON, deals galore at the Men’s Denim Store.

Plus, deals on Hunting & Tactical Knives.

And please remember: InstaPundit is an Amazon affiliate. When you do your shopping through the Amazon links on this page, including the “Shop Amazon” tab at the top or the searchbox in the right sidebar, you support this blog at no cost to yourself. Just click on the Amazon link, then shop as usual. I very much appreciate it when you do.

UNEXPECTEDLY! “It’s like every Canadian just got a pay cut” as dollar plunges after Trudeau’s win. Hey, it’s only a few percent!

So far.

WHAT DO THEY TEACH THEM IN DIVINITY SCHOOLS NOWADAYS? “Jesus didn’t try to convert,” says Dean of National Cathedral.

THIS SHOULD BE HANDY: Nearly Every USGS Topo Map Ever Made. For Free.

TEN YEARS AGO ON INSTAPUNDIT: “JAMES LILEKS’ NEW BOOK, Mommy Knows Worst: Highlights from the Golden Age of Bad Parenting Advice, just came out. My copy — preordered months ago — is already on its way. I’ll post a full report when I’ve read it, or maybe (since she’ll probably snatch it up first anyway) I’ll get the Insta-Wife to post a review.”

The book was great, although some of the parenting advice — like making sure your baby gets enough sun — doesn’t look so bad now.

I WAS HOPING FOR SOMETHING BETTER: Leading Malaria Vaccine Gets Mixed Reviews.

I HAVE FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCE WITH THESE: Some Great Gadgets For Washing Windows.

ON THE UPSIDE, THE DARK AGES WERE ACTUALLY A PERIOD OF CONSIDERABLE FREEDOM AND CREATIVITY: Robert Zimmerman: The Coming Dark Ages.

I think there will be a lot more patriarchy in the coming dark ages, though.

AFFORDABLE LIVING, BAY AREA STYLE UPDATE: Wooden Shack in San Francisco Sells for $408,000:

The dilapidated shack was built as relief housing in 1906 after a devastating 7.8 earthquake ripped through San Francisco and destroyed more than 80 percent of the city. As such, the fixer upper is considered a historical property and cannot be torn down or undergo significant changes.

“[The new owners] are very limited to what they can do,” Han said. “But they are going to fix the foundation, the roof, plumbing…it needs a complete overhaul.”

He added that he has never seen a house in the city go for such a low price.

Earlier post on “Affordable Living, Bay Area Style” here.

MAUREEN O’HARA, HOLLYWOOD ROYALTY, DEAD AT 95.

A PJ PARENTING ROUND TABLE DEBATE: Should Teachers Be Allowed to Carry Guns in Schools?

As always, leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Related: Did A UT-Austin Economics Professor REALLY Quit Over Campus Carry?

CARDS IN THE SNOW: Peter Egan’s April, 1998 column on the puzzling dangers we face every time we drive. To be honest, I’d rather read a 1998 column from Peter Egan than a brand-new one from most writers.

LIFE IN THE 21ST CENTURY: It Ain’t Easy Parenting in the Loneliness of the Suburbs.

AT AMAZON: Take 20% off Sweaters, Coats, and More.

Also, new deals on Top Rated Products.

CLEANING OUT A BUNCH OF CRAP, and living Todd Steed’s “Beware of Boxes.” So true. Every thing you have has a memory attached, even if you haven’t taken it out of the box for years. The sad thing is, I don’t even need love letters. I can get nostalgic over a 15-year old CD of a Nebraska Guitar Militia rough mix.

FASTER, PLEASE: Antiaging protein is the real deal, Harvard team claims. “Back in the 1950s in a weird, vampiric experiment, scientists first showed that connecting the circulatory systems of old and young mice seems to rejuvenate the more elderly animals. A handful of labs have recently been racing to find factors in young blood that may explain this effect. Now, a Harvard University group that claims to have found one such antiaging protein has published a study countering critics who dismissed the work on the molecule as flawed.”

CLIMATE-CHANGE ACTIVISTS SHOULD BE CHEERING: First New U.S. Nuclear Reactor in Two Decades to Begin Fueling in Tennessee.