Contempt.

con•tempt |kənˈtem(p)t|

noun

the feeling that a person or a thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn : he showed his contempt for his job by doing it very badly.

• disregard for something that should be taken into account : this action displays an arrogant contempt for the wishes of the majority.

• (also contempt of court) the offense of being disobedient to or disrespectful of a court of law and its officers : several unions were held to be in contempt and were fined.

• the offense of being similarly disobedient to or disrespectful of the lawful operation of a legislative body (e.g., its investigations).

PHRASES

beneath contempt utterly worthless or despicable.

hold someone/something in contempt consider someone or something to be unworthy of respect or attention : the speed limit is held in contempt by many drivers.

ORIGIN late Middle English : from Latin contemptus, from contemnere (see contemn ).


It was a great movie. However, when officials of the Executive Branch show contempt for the laws of the land and the Constitution itself, and then show contempt for the elected officials with oversight of important governmental functions performed by the Executive Branch, that form of contempt can and should lead to punishment. David Addington and John Yoo appeared before the House Judiciary Committee yesterday, and their testimony was nothing short of contemptible. These two men are at the center of a series of illegal operations by the Bush Administration, possibly including war crimes. But if you were expecting contrition from these two, think again.

To read about yesterday's testimony, please see here, here, and here. To listen to the hearing and some commentary, please go here.

I truly hope that Addington and Yoo suffer for their crimes.