supreme court term limits

every presidential cycle, it seems we get more talk and hand-wringing about how this election will forever alter the composition of the u.s. supreme court. true, yes, but it ain't necessarily so. what if we imposed term limits on those justices?

npr's justice talking took up the issue of supreme court term limits this week. personally, i'm often more flummoxed by the opinions of the court's junior members, but you might want to listen to jim lindgren's proposal and read his case against "gerontocracy" in the judicial branch. an excerpt:

While mental incompetence was rare in the first century on the Court, since 1898 it has become a regular occurrence for justices who serve more than 18 years; by one estimate about a third were mentally incompetent to serve before they finally retired.

yeesh. next thing you know, professor lindgren will be training his sights on tenured college professors and long-serving football coaches.