到 2026 年，将是我穿上法袍满 10 年。我在联邦地区法院的每一分钟都无比珍惜。那种特权是显而易见的——权力、被尊重，以及不管笑话好不好笑，都会有人笑。但随着时间和距离的拉开，我开始看清司法服务所带来的扭曲。其中有三点尤为突出： 你看到的，往往只是人性中最糟糕的一面，并因此重新校准你对人类行为“奥弗顿窗口”的认知。非法移民——罪犯。大型科技公司——隐私窃贼。加密行业——毫无价值的骗子。但当你离开法官席，你会看到一幅更完整的图景：那些善良的人，以及他们的企业，正在真正提供什么样的价值。 你会开始以为，每个人都在细细品味你写下或说出的每一个字。于是你不必要地夸饰自己的观点，甚至在自己并不真正了解的领域，也接受演讲邀请。离开法官席后你才会意识到，人们真正想听的，是“职位”本身的声音，而不是那个本来并不起眼的个人。 你会错误地相信，法院的每一项裁决都在推动社会向前。当然，历史上确实存在一些极具深远影响的判例，比如 Brown v. Board 或 Bush v. Gore。但在 99% 的情况下，你所做的，不过是在清理前人留下的烂摊子——这些事情，除了当事双方之外，几乎无人关心。/完 2026 will mark 10 years since I wore a robe. I cherished every minute in the federal district court. The privileges are obvious—power, deference, and laughter at every joke whether funny or not. But time and space I see the distortions that come from judicial service. Three stand out: You only see the worst of humanity on display and come to view the Overton Window of human behavior accordingly. Illegals immigrants—criminals. Big Tech—privacy thieves. Crypto—useless fraudsters. But off the bench, you see a more complete picture of what good humans and their enterprises are providing. You think that everyone relishes every word you write or speak. So you needlessly embellish your opinions. You accept speaking engagements even on subjects you know little about. Off the bench you see that it’s the office people want to hear from, not the otherwise unremarkable person. You mistakenly believe that court judgments all drive society forward. There are of course hugely consequential moments that came from a Brown v Board or a Bush v Gore. But 99 percent of the time, you are just cleaning up messes from the last that matter to no one except the parties. /end