It's scary to imagine where this country will be in 10 years.

Considering the recent string of nominees coming out of the White House, the future seems rather uncertain.

After the nomination of Harriet Miers failed, President Bush nominated Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the U.S. Supreme Court to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. He appears to be an ultra conservative in the mold of Justice Antonin Scalia, enough so that his nickname is "Scalito."

He isn't a surprising nominee. Alito's viewpoints on sensitive legal issues should please the president's base at a time when he desperately needs support.

At the same time, the court seems to be regressing to "an old boys' club," in the words of Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid.

This isn't good for the court or the country.

To Bush's credit, this nominee doesn't appear to be another buddy in the White House. However, the divisiveness presented by Alito's nomination will make it difficult for the president to get the nomination confirmed quickly before the end of the year.

It simply won't happen. Democrats, who would criticize nearly any pick, have a reason to not want Alito on the court. They are concerned about his viewpoints on abortion, an issue which any nominee would face scrutiny.

Alito has shown to be strongly pro-life. This might bring abortion politics to the forefront of Alito's confirmation hearings.

Arlen Specter, R-Penn., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he fears a potential filibuster, or stalling of debate, by the Democrats over the sensitive issue.

However, Alito's pro-life stance isn't the only reason to scrutinize his nomination.

There should be two tests for any potential nominee: Is the nominee qualified and does the nominee add a viewpoint to the court?

Alito passes one of the tests. Alito is qualified for the job; much more than Miers.

Unlike Miers, Alito has legal experience. He has argued 12 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of the government and many more in lower courts prior to his position as a judge.

Although Alito does appear to be qualified, the purpose of nominating a Supreme Court justice shouldn't be to add a "me too" to Scalia's position on matters the court faces. How is this needed over a new viewpoint?

It's important for the court to be a body filled with multiple viewpoints which represent the diversity of America. The nomination of yet another upper-class white male does nothing to further what should be the ultimate goal of the court.

The diversity of the Supreme Court adds to its impartiality. Removing this damages the court, regardless of if the nominee is qualified or not.