There are few things that irk me more than treating intelligent, highly paid professionals as mindless modules plugged into the system. There is a difference between, say, a criminal defense lawyer who fulfills a role needed to sustain our system of justice, and a lawyer who gets paid to be litigious mercenary. I don't think it's a big leap to assume that lawyers with the qualifications and enough professional stature to get hired by the RIAA have other job opportunities. Little Timmy's not going to go through the winter without shoes because daddy didn't take the RIAA job.
Being intelligent and capable is not sufficient, wisdom and courage are far more important at the levels of leadership he will operate at.
A measure of wisdom, is seeing how the pieces fit and a measure of courage is being able to take a moral stand and use your ability for the greater good.
A person who may become a member of the supreme court, should definitely have all 3.
