Not everyone’s happy with the Supreme Court decision that same-sex marriage is a right guaranteed by the Constitution. Enraged Wisconsin governor Scott Walker was overheard in a Madison restaurant saying that he’d like to “challenge the male justices who voted in favor to a fist fight.”
When they heard about his comments the justices demurred. “I’m about thirty years too old to accommodate the Governor,” Justice Breyer said. “And besides, my sciatica’s been acting up pretty bad lately.” Nor was Justice Kennedy interested. “Never been one for fisticuffs,” he said. “If Governor Walker wants to settle the matter over a chess board he can name the time and place."
But the five justices who voted in favor of the measure decided the honor of the Court must be defended, so they chose the toughest among them to pick up Walker’s gauntlet: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who made a personal call to the Governor.
“Yeah, I’ll fight you,” she said. “But boxing’s for wimps. We’re going to throw down Mixed Martial Arts style. In the steel cage. One walks out; the other's carried...”
We take you now to Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut, for the play-by-play:
“Ladies and Gentleman, there’s the bell! Walker charges across the ring and launches a flying kick at Justice Ginsburg’s head, but she dodges it and slams an elbow into his kidney. Now they’re circling each other cautiously…they’re in the center of the ring. The Governor tags Justice Ginsburg with a solid right to the chin and she’s down! He tries to stomp her and the crowd boos, but she rolls away and gets back to her feet.
Justice Ginsburg throws a right cross and the Governor puts an arm up to block…but the right was a feint! She steps inside and shoots a stiff left jab and he retreats, shaking his head.
Now they’re standing in the middle of the ring, trading punches. Walker throws a left hook that misses; Ginsburg ducks under it with a spin move and launches a roundhouse kick that catches the Governor flush on the temple!
He’s down! Governor Walker is down! Justice Ginsburg drops to pin him and the referee slaps the canvas! It's over! Now she's dancing around, thumping her chest…someone shoved a rainbow flag through a gap in the cage and she’s waving it as the crowd goes wild…”
After the match Justice Ginsburg, wrapped in the flag, was asked by the ringside interviewer, “Do you have any message for people like Governor Walker who are upset with the Court’s decision?”
“Yes,” she replied. “Get over it. Find something better to worry about than what your neighbors do in the dark.”
Charles Coe is author of two books of poetry: “All Sins Forgiven: Poems for my Parents” and “Picnic on the Moon,” both published by Leapfrog Press. His poetry has appeared in a number of literary reviews and anthologies, including Poesis, The Mom Egg, Solstice Literary Review, and Urban Nature. He is the winner of a fellowship in poetry from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Charles’s poems have been set by a number of composers, including Beth Denisch, Julia Carey and Robert Moran. A short film based on his poem “Fortress” is currently in production by filmmaker Roberto Mighty. Charles is co-chair of the Boston Chapter of the National Writers Union, a labor union for freelance writers. He was selected by the Associates of the Boston Public Library as a “Boston Literary Light for 2014” and is a Fellow at Boston’s St. Botolph Club, a Boston institution that supports the arts, sciences and humanities.
