Kagan confirmations, a confession

I haven't even bothered to listen. I'm not even sure why we have them. It's not as if anyone ever comes out and says, "Yep! I haves me an agenda and I am going to rock this court with my ideological rantings and biased nature." Don't you pretty much expect certain things from judges that are nominated by either party - when a Republican nominates a judge, I don't think it's at all surprising when that judge, once confirmed, ends up being socially conservative and favoring big business. Just like it's not shocking in the least when a judge nominated by a Democrat sides with unions and the "little guy" while being more open-minded on issues regarding race, religion, sexuality, and the like - (protectionism, if you will). It just seems as if these hearings are an avenue for the more boisterous members of Congress to toot their own horns as they attack or applaud the previous works of the nominee. I find the whole charade disappointing.