This slacktivist post takes on the furor over John Edwards’ being a trial lawyer, which has been by far the most interesting facet of Kerry’s tapping him for the Democratic ticket. As a physician, I am supposed to be all for “tort reform” and contemptuous of attorneys, but I don’t stand with the stereotype of my profession in this respect. Some of my best friends are lawyers… Seriously, though, since a segment of my profession seems to answer only to monetary concerns and not at all to an ethical standard based on the privilege and burden of fulfilling the sacred trust bestowed upon them by their patients, the threat of a lawsuit may be the only effective barrier between them and negligent practices — or legitimately compensating for the damages when nothing stands as a barrier. As this post points out, “Americans despise lawyers, but only until they need a good one on their side.” And they can tell the difference between an advocate and a bloodsucker. Perhaps Edwards’ background will make for a more truly polarized campaign in which “tort reform” finally gets exposed for the corporate shill that it is and populism finally gets pitted against the Republican pro-corporate agenda in the way it has been painfully obvious it has needed to for a long time. If the RNC does not figure out how unwise that route would be. The slacktivist post describes his Republican opponent’s efforts to tar him with the “lawyer” brush in his 1998 Senatorial race. It backfired, with voters coming away impressed with Edwards’ advocacy for the people, and the post goes on to note with amazement and glee the Republican conclusion that they simply hadn’t attacked lawyers hard enough. On the other hand, the North Carolina race didn’t have Karl Rove holding the leash of the attack dogs. In any case, it will be interesting to see how the GOP balances the need to attack Edwards with the need to defend that big mutha liability of ’em all, Dick Cheney. I certainly look forward to the fall’s vice presidential debates; it will be especially fun to see Edward’s legendary oratorical skills from the courtroom used against Cheney.