From the Old News Department: I’m still shaking my head over the Supreme Court ruling regarding Obamacare. Why? Because I still don’t understand John Roberts’ rationale for upholding the mandate of the Affordable Care Act.

I’m in favor of universal healthcare, but the reasoning doesn’t compute for me. All this hairsplitting about tax and penalty, with Obama insisting it’s a penalty when it needs to be a tax for Roberts to uphold it, but if it’s a tax, then….we’ve got an infinite loop.

Now, most people, according to an informal poll, contend that John Roberts is smarter than I am. Close, but he has the edge. True, I possess a prestigious degree from Huntington University in the rigorous discipline of Communications. Nevertheless, the pedestrian Law degree Roberts obtained from Harvard is considered to be superior. Go figure.

Nevertheless, intellectual peon that I allegedly am, I continue to be a bit baffled. I’m glad, at least, that the ruling makes sense to Justice Roberts.

I just got around to reading, from the July 16 edition of Time magazine, reactions from four previous solicitors general. The first one, by Ted Olson, was brilliant and funny. He has fun with all the mental twists and turns, and I just had to admire the creativity of his writing. Read it here.

(Actually, I’ve read quite a bit about the ruling. While Roberts’ rationale eludes me to an extent, I’m fascinated by what he was trying to prevent from happening, and the role he sees for the Supreme Court. But I’m not going to go into that.)