Mark Kleiman makes a point via Philippe de Croy about the Estrada nomination. It makes me wonder if judicial vetting by the Senate is similar to the popular conception of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle: if you can't observe something, you won't affect it. In this case not being able to see or "observe" Estrada's work product at the Solicitor General's office, it will not affect that work product now that it's in the past. Heisenberg does not apply. However, will as Mark points out future nominees worry about what they do, write, and say with the thought that their future appointments may be affected by all those things. So Heisenberg does apply. And that's as it should be, there is no way that these folks have no opinions, no values and attach no significance to the world around them then all of a sudden gain consciousness upon gaining appointment to the bench. To believe that is just plain silly and stretches the credibility of the senators, the voters and the Republic.

To all physicists, please forgive my playing "fast and loose" with Prof. Heisenberg.