"If you live in a state where the bigoted assholes are pressing their agenda in opposition to basic decency and discourse, please join with me, and make every effort in your state to see a ban on same bigoted asshole marriage enacted."

-- Clockwork Smurf

There's the rub. We Americans pride ourselves in cultivating such a-holes for the future generations of a-holes. How, indeed can we stop the promulgating cycle of bigotry as an American right?

As you point out- one bigot raising children is bad enough. Double that power of parenting to convince one's children that certain citizens (they regard as a transitory label) are more entitled to love (with certain restrictions) than others outside the norm of comfort-zone marital bliss and the BA is set.

"My daughters school was doing a commemoration of George Bush..."

When I read this- how sad it is. In this fulfilled, Orwellian, new America we now can honor:

-filthy campaigns that make Stalin proud

-torture of the suspected

-destruction by our troops/mercenaries based on lies

-establishment of permanent, military presence

-looting of the treasury through war and tax benefits that redirect America's wealth upward

-the office of the POTUS no matter how corrupt, incompetent or manifestly deficient of morals

-greed and theft on Wall Street

AND

-more wounds upon our Constitution than the Founders knew possible

We now commemorate ambition if it's wrapped in the empty skull of anti-intellectualism and sound bites.

In this upside/down world (half or so of America) what is not commemorated by those people are humility and truthfulness.

I knew John Merrick (Elephant Man). John Merrick was a friend of mine. "Elephant Man", you're no John Merrick.

Every chance the MSM gets to spill forth the obscenity of military propaganda, not REPORTING their glorious ventures of brutality for freedom, but EXTOLLING the nobility of violence for G-d and country.

Nary are the puritans offended by this indoctrination and desensitization of the youth. It's fine to condition each successive generation to a bloodthirsty, military culture, but God forbid-

our culture is under attack if the yung'ns hear the f- word.

"...his steady defense of torturing enemy combatants."

In "Scarborough Country" torture is always honorable if a "Christian" nation applies it systematically to all perceived enemies with the finesse and graciousness of-

"Now, now, please accept our water, heat, cold, isolation, and viscous stress positions knowing we will never swear at you in your own language."

Should have spelled-

vicious (not viscous)stress positions

F-U-C-K! (everybody knows)

Fornication Under (the) Consent of the King

Our King "George" would be proud.

This raises the question, then? Are we indeed, after analyzing the past 8 years (not just post this election)a Center-Left or Center-Right nation? Legislatively, we seem to lean toward whatever you define the Republican Party, now, almost consistently (as Glenn well-argues) to the right.

The relevancy of the Democratic Party dwindles into oblivion, day by day. Obama's compromises before the election were troubling. Moreover, the "bipartisan" overtures and cabinet prospects he is considering now are even more bleak.

"Lawyers who defend even the worst parties are performing a vital service for our justice system. Holder is no more tainted by his defense of Chiquita than lawyers who defend accused terrorists at Guantanamo are tainted by that."

It's good to be reminded of this, Glenn.

When we think of the close association Gonzales had with GWB back in Texas, his WH Counsel and ultimately AG, we see the corruption of the DOJ that ensued.

When we pondered the cases that lawyers/judges (Alito and Roberts) adjudicated prior to their nominations for SC, we were appropriately concerned.

When you point out Holder's historical comments (from 2002-present)and evolution of positions we are enlightened, but also justifiably concerned.

As you say, Holder is a step in the right direction, but we progressives have been burned too often to feel any sense of relief until we see him confirmed. Morerover, only when he acts like an AG upholding the laws of the USA for everyone are we placated. If he believes his office (ala Gonzales) is to protect the Administration's turf, then we've reinstated the Bush nightmare of justice for the unjustifiable.

We've had the very competent initiatives of Cheney's ideologies: unitary, (unchallengeable) executive, fourth branch executive, CIA, black site, renditions, purposeful unravelling of Habeas Corpus, legislating rights to deprive citizens' rights of freedom from extraordinary surveillance, etc., etc.

If Obama is as ideologically competent with a host of these and other programs, we are done. Well, who knew Bush/Cheney would give us such a gift this Christmas that keeps on giving?

Those on the left (what's left of it after this election) must comfort themselves with what crumbs are spilled from the table of Obama's wonderful appointees selected to govern all the people right of center.

If only Bush had such a great epiphany in 2001, maybe the country would be eating from his magnanimous hand today.

This pragmatism/competency/ideology- the perfect threesome marriage of American Empire. If we're wicked enough to invade and occupy anyone with ulterior motives, it's o.k. Even though we're not even competent or pragmatic in doing it.

We own the confusing ideology behind it and that will keep shifting, morphing and propagandizing so the rest of the resistant nations come around or the hell with 'em.

-signed neobites

"-- mizbinkley" wrote "pragmatic reasons"

Not to be argumentative, just cynical.

You were under the impression that our foreign and domestic policies were ever fortified with "pragmatic reasons"? I do wish it were so.

The 100's of small companies and defense/security industries are very certain they had "pragmatic reasons" for promoting these wars and sucking up all the trillions in revenue from them.