Justice Thomas is the perfect example of how hard it can be for a judge to lay aside the personal experiences that shape his worldview.

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What a relief to be able to lay aside reading about the investigations of national security leaks and turn to the well-trampled ground of congressional sleaze.

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That last line was a not-so-veiled poke at the last energy giant to dominate Houston, Enron, where Kinder served as president before Ken Lay nudged him aside in favor of the now incarcerated Jeffrey Skilling.

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Finally, I put the book aside and lay gazing upward into darkness.

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But even if the conviction is set aside, the prosecution succeeded in crushing Lay, who seemed shocked by the verdict. (See: " Leaders and Followers") And when you're facing what is essentially life in prison, the gravity of the situation, of course, takes a tremendous physical and mental toll on a defendant.

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