Judge Robert Bork has died. Although he was best known by the public for the contentious Supreme Court hearings that resulted in his nomination to the Supreme Court being defeated -- and because the malicious lies about his views purveyed by the likes of Ted Kennedy created the term "Borking" -- he held a significant place in American public life for a long time.
He was an antitrust scholar, a Yale Law School professor, Solicitor General, Acting Attorney General and a judge on the DC Circuit. He was also the author of fine books including Slouching Toward Gomorrah and The Tempting of America.
By all accounts, he was a man of great intellect and personal integrity -- who refused to tailor his views to prevailing notions of political correctness. He paid a price for that.
But he was a great American whose contributions to American jurisprudence and legal thought will long endure.
May he rest in peace.