a glimmer of hope?

today the supremes rules that an oregon assisted suicide law is constitutional. with roberts joining scalia and thomas in dissent, the alliances within the new court are revealing themselves. when alito is confirmed, he will now doubt fall into the conservative camp, providing them with a fourth surefire vote.

but hope comes in the form of anthony kennedy. kennedy has historically been considered part of the conservative foursome, but he has shown himself to be increasingly moderate. he's the new o'connor, emerging as the crucial swing vote. he will continue to seem more and more reasonable when contrasted with his reactionary brethren.