The mass media assures us that the appointment of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court is all but certain. This nominee is clearly out of step with the majority of Americans. With Alito replacing Sandra Day O’Connor, the court will lean toward extreme right-wing positions on critical issues that affect our everyday lives.

The failure to stop this nomination in its tracks is likely to lead to a day in the not-so-distant future when we awake to a different reality. This is a world in which women are not permitted to exercise control over their own bodies. In this world, the government monitors personal phone calls and e-mail, and citizens are imprisoned due to “suspicious” activity and denied counsel.

The federal government has long ago ceased being grounded in checks and balances and instead the president has assumed dictatorial powers with the legislative and judicial branches providing a mere rubber stamp on the decisions of the executive.

In this future world, we are no longer able to redress discrimination due to age, gender, race, sexual orientation or disability through our legal system.

This is just a sampling of the potential impact of this appointment on our lives. This ultraconservative judicial philosophy has the potential to undermine a broad range of laws including environmental protections, rights in the workplace, health and safety standards, and even programs like Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare.

Support for this nightmare scenario can be found in the writings and decisions of Judge Alito.

Sandy Doctoroff, Auburn