The Thomas Sowell
No Nonsense,
Plain Speaking,
Common Sense Award

I'm also awarding the Thomas Sowell No Nonsense, Plain Speaking, Common Sense Award to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas

What do you mean I can't make a second award so soon after the inaguaral award? It's my award and I'll give out to whomever I please as frequently as I please. That's the beauty of having your own award to hand out. This isn't an awards democracy -- I make up the rules here.

The second presentation of the Thomas Sowell No Nonsense, Plain Speaking, Common Sense Award goes to Justice Thomas for his concurrence in the Adarand affirmative action case. If you've read many Supreme Court cases you're already painfully award of how pedantic, obtuse and bloviating they can be. Which is all the more reason to recognize and honor Justice Thomas for his no nonsense, plain speaking and common sense.

[T]here can be no doubt that racial paternalism and its unintended consequences can be as poisonous and pernicious as any other form of discrimination. So called "benign" discrimination teaches many that because of chronic and apparently immutable handicaps, minorities cannot compete with them without their patronizing indulgence. Inevitably, such [affirmative action] programs engender attitudes of superiority or, alternatively, provoke resentment among those who believe that they have been wronged by the government's use of race. These programs stamp minorities with a badge of inferiority and may cause them to develop dependencies or to adopt an attitude that they are "entitled" to preferences. ...

In my mind, government sponsored racial discrimination based on benign prejudice is just as noxious as discrimination inspired by malicious prejudice. In each instance, it is racial discrimination, plain and simple.