So you would almost have thought it didn't happen, but there was a major US Supreme Court decision about the problems that arise when the judiciary is too indebted to political contributors - or, perhaps more importantly locally, "other electoral assistance". For folks who have not followed the case, basically a large West Virginia coal company attempted to force a competitor out of business by buying all the land around its competitor and blocking road access to their holdings. Courts ruled the action illegal and awarded a $50 million judgement to smaller competitor. Massey then spent $3 million dollars to help elect West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Justice Brent Benjamin. Benjamin later voted unsurprisingly to reverse the $50 million judgment against Massey. His election to the bench turned out to an investment with a $47 million direct profit to Massey Coal.

OK, so the Philly mayor's race has gotten kind of dull. There's still a LOT at stake in the Nov. 6 election, to add to mansei's recent post. Here's the scariest example, and it's recent:

Pennsylvanians who will soon put two new justices on the state's highest court can choose between candidates including a follower of conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia or an admirer of former liberal justice William J. Brennan Jr.