Did You Know Sotomayor Has Diabetes?

I've been trending more recently towards writing about Cornell, since I think that's what most of my readers are interested in. (Do you know how many first-time visitors from the cornell.edu domain swung by after this post?)

But sometimes, particularly over the summer, there isn't a lot of exciting news about the Big Red.

If you've watched any of the questioning of Judge Sotomayor over the last few days, you'll know that there isn't much the Republican members of the Judiciary Committee left uncovered. All of the hot-button issues were raised, and Sotomayor, in the style of the successful nominees John Roberts and Samuel Alito, managed to say a lot without really saying anything.

One thing that hasn't been touched, by politicians or pundits, is the issue of Sotomayor's diabetes. Timothy Phelps of the LA Times has a balanced and thought-provoking blog post on the matter:

Diabetes experts say that advances in the treatment of Type I diabetes mean that a victim of the disease can live to an advanced age if he or she manages blood sugar level well, and Sotomayor’s doctor says she has managed extremely well. But other experts say privately that it is almost impossible to manage perfectly.

It is unlikely, experts say, that Sotomayor will have the longevity of someone such as Justice John Paul Stevens, who is 89 and has been on the court for 34 years. Sotomayor’s seat could more quickly be filled by a Republican than someone without a chronic illness.

Of course, Sotomayor's diabetes is no reason to deny her the promotion to the Supreme Court. If I were a pessimist, I might write that there's a good chance that some Republicans are relieved she might not be able to serve as long as Stevens did. Longevity of justices certainly seems to be a Republican goal, since Clarence Thomas (43 when nominated), Roberts (50), and Alito (55) were all fairly young.

Phelps notes that the nomination of a justice with a disability seems likely to have an impact on future decisions affecting the disabled:

In 1999 the court decided that workers with treatable medical conditions, such as diabetes, were not disabled under the Americans with Disabilities Act and therefore could be fired because of their medical problems. The decision provoked an outcry, and last year Congress changed the law to protect people like Sotomayor.

I hope that Sotomayor enjoys a long tenure on the bench, and her successful career will certainly serve to inspire young people who have been diagnosed with diabetes.