Oh hush! Black is slimming.

As you may have heard, there's a slot opening up on the Supreme Court. And this is good. I'm just as glad that at least one moderate-to-liberal justice is resigning before president-elect Sean Hannity issues his fiat in 2013.

Paul Campos, though, has unearthed some unfortunate reactions to some of Obama's potential picks. They're related to America's schizophrenic body image, and not necessarily limited to the right.

While obesity is a legitimate health worry in this country, it's also true that people--frequently women--get tagged as obese when they don't match any sane real world definition of it. And some on the internet are finding--as an example--Sonia Sotomayor too fat to be on the high court. Or a network sitcom, presumably.

Within hours after the news broke that Souter was resigning, concerns arose that Kagan and Sotomayor might be too fat to replace him. A commentator on the site DemConWatch.com noted that of the three most-mentioned candidates “the oldest (federal judge Diane Wood) is the only one who looks healthy,” while Kagan and Sotomayor “are quite overweight. That’s a risk factor that they may not last too long on the court because of their health.”

At The Washington Monthly, a commentator claimed to have employed a more scientifically rigorous method: “To all the short-sighted libs who are clamoring for the youngest-possible nominee... Right idea, wrong methodology. You want someone who will serve the longest, i.e. with the greatest remaining life expectancy—and that involves more than simple age. I tried assessing their respective health prospects, and ruled out all who even border on overweight. Best choice: Kim McLane Wardlaw, whose ectomorphitude reflects her publicly known aerobic-exercise habits.”

(Wardlaw’s “ectomorphitude” also gets rave reviews at legal gossip site Underneath Their Robes, which describes her as "Heather Locklear in a black robe. This blond Hispanic hottie boasts a fantastic smile and an incredible body, showcased quite nicely by her elegant ensembles.")

"Legal gossip site"? Jesus, Mary and Joseph! The whole ridiculous TMZ/Jennifer Love Hewitt/swimsuit kerrfuffle was some kind of height of Western Civilization? We're basing our laws on that now?

In conclusion, I'd point out that Antonin Scalia has been on the SCOTUS for over 22 long, looooong years now and shows know signs of going anywhere. I could make a cheap point by running a few pictures of him, but we're above that, aren't we?