NOTES, 22 OCTOBER 2021
Greetings, blog reader, on Friday, October 22, 2021. Let's catch up on some of the topics we have been following of late.
On the pandemic, all signs show a decline in new cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. It is clear the third great surge is waning. Booster shots are now available in some places and others soon. Children will soon get the vaccine. While life has not returned to "normal," it is much closer than a year ago.
As for the church litigation, we are in a lull now. We know that SC Supreme Court will hold a hearing on Wednesday, December 8, 2021 and that only the 4 appointed lawyers will be allowed in the courtroom. Everyone else may watch on the court provided live-stream. We still do not know two important pieces of information: 1-The names of the two lawyers on each side. These are to be submitted to the SCSC Clerk by November 1, 2021; and 2-Whether the Court has appointed a fifth Acting Justice to take the place of Justice Hearn who recused herself from this appeal.
The first point is not very important, but the second is. If the Court appoints an Acting Justice, this will improve the Church side's chances. If the Court does not appoint an AJ, this will improve the breakaway's chances. The reason is that a reversal of Judge Edgar Dickson's 2020 Order will require a majority vote of the participating justices. If there are only four justices, the Church would need three or four to overturn Dickson whereas the breakaway side would need only two justices to keep Dickson in place. If there is a fifth justice appointed, the breakaways would need three votes. So, a great deal rests on whether the Court appoints an acting justice to hear this appeal. Bear in mind, the hearing is on the appeal of the Church side of Dickson's Order which gave all in question to the secessionist party.
On another issue, the death of General Colin Powell, news broke yesterday that there will be a memorial service for him in the National Cathedral, at noon on November 5. It will be by invitation only, and with limited seating. The news report did not mention live coverage, but my guess is the Cathedral will at least live-stream the service even if the major TV networks do not carry it. Find a news article about the memorial service here .
Meanwhile, autumn is gradually sweeping across the south bringing with it the colorful splendor of the changing season. Two nights ago, the moon put on a spectacular show in what was called "the hunter's moon." It was unusually big and bright. I went outside to take a picture of the moon:
