Try again, Clarence

Per a New York Times article headlined, "Justice Thomas Says He Was Advised Lavish Gifts Did Not Need to Be Reported":

Justice Clarence Thomas said on Friday that he had followed the advice of “colleagues and others in the judiciary” when he did not disclose lavish gifts and travel from a wealthy conservative donor.

In a statement released by the Supreme Court, the justice said he believed he was not required to report the trips.

“Early in my tenure at the court, I sought guidance from my colleagues and others in the judiciary, and was advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the court, was not reportable." ...

What kinds of gifts and travel are we talking about?

ProPublica revealed on Thursday that the justice had traveled by private jet and yacht at the invitation of Harlan Crow, a Texas real estate billionaire. The vacations, which took place over nearly two decades, included trips to Indonesia and to Bohemian Grove, an exclusive retreat nestled in the redwoods in Northern California.

I had seen the ProPublica headline but couldn't bring myself to read the piece. Clarence and Ginny Thomas so disdain public opinion, and are so immune to public pressure, that I figured, why bother raising my blood pressure to no good purpose?

However, Clarence's "they told me it was okay" excuse takes his contempt for public opinion and the public's intelligence to new depths.

Clarence, you know damned well that flying on a private jet isn't like being treated to dinner at Applebee's. That you can't be bothered to muster even the smallest amount of shame for your failure to disclose — that you expect us to swallow the rank excrement of "but 'they' told me it was okay" — is despicable. You have benefited from your past and present colleagues' indifference to the institution's reputation, a reputation which, thanks in no small part to you and your wife, is deservedly in the toilet.

In short, Clarence, you're full of it.

You've pledged to comply with new disclosure guidelines adopted last month. If you do, better late than never. However, I'm betting you'll still find ways to skirt the intention of those guidelines. After all, neither you nor Ginny loves being treated like the little people who have to follow the rules, do you?