It's likely that the reason the GOP lost so badly in 2006 and 2008 is because their party was headed by George W. Bush, arguably the worst President in American history. Bush drove our nation off a cliff.

I agree that the Democrats can get cocky and lose, but I think the bigger danger is that, despite what the loonies on the Right say, they are a moderate to conservative party overall, and they will simply become GOP-lite instead of delivering the fundamental and progressive changes that the nation really needs. If the Democrats kowtow to Wall Street and ignore Main Street, as is their wont, then they surely deserve to lose future races.

I left the Democrats and became an Independent in 2008. If they want me to return, they have to earn it.

Salon does not bill itself as "Fair and Balanced," the way Faux News does.

What, were the Weekly World News and Ed Anger unavailable?

Citing rightwing lunatics and their tabloid rag only reinforces the intellectual and moral bankruptcy of what's left of the Republican Party.

Same was said of Reagan before he took office...and I seriously doubt he would be called a chickenhawk today

Aside from being a chickenhawk, Reagan was mostly a lying criminal who supported torturers and rapists and murderers (so long as they were rightwing torturers, rapists and murderers). The fact that Reagan took a militaristic stance once he achieved political power does not mean that he failed to serve in the military while simultaneously cheering on military action. Any coward can order troops into battle.

You also made this dubious assertion:

Quite true...but you are assuming they [our military] would not look at the loss of current liberties as not being against the Constitution.

What loss of liberties would that be? Please explain.

Anyway, the military didn't speak up during the Bush years, when our civil liberties were flushed down the toilet, so why would they speak up now?

The U.S. military is run by individuals devoted to the U.S. Constitution, and they will smash any rightwing extremist "rebellion" that arises, regardless of whether said rebellion contains unhinged former military members.

Besides, the leaders of the Republican Party, such as Cheney and Limbaugh, are all a bunch of chickenhawks (draft dodging and otherwise) who never served a day in their lives.

We will have one major party, the Democratic party, and several smaller parties including the Green Party, Libertarian Party, and a completely insane, xenophobic, paranoid, theocratic mutant confined mostly to the deep South that calls itself the Republican Party.

The challenge will be making sure that our little homegrown Taliban stays peaceful.

You know, a meditative activity that cleanses the mind?

Not true?

I don't agree that feminism is dead in pop culture, or anywhere else in our culture (except for the Republican Party), but there is an ever-present danger that feminism, like other movements to change not only specific laws, but the culture itself, might evolve into an permanent yet inert presence: people know of it, people joke about it, people argue about it to fill the time, and perhaps once in awhile it gets active and slays a particularly ugly dragon that arises. But what if feminism's momentum stops there, short of its goals and unable to push through to the end?

Just a word of concern from a feminist guy who is active in other movements, the future viability of which trouble him greatly.

Being a Republican is like being a damned soul in the darkest circle of Hell.

You said it.

I'm not one to gush that Mary Woronov = great anything, and I claim the high ground as one who considers "Cabin Fever" to be predictable trash (except for the old coot's line about "my n*****s"), but gimme that old time 1980's horror vibe any day!

I look forward to renting this on Netflix, as surely it will last 1/2 day in my local cinema before being bumped off by the next installment of "Twilight."

P.S. Word to the wise: rent "Mystery Science Theater 3000's" demolition of "Horrors of Spider Island!"

Pigs are smarter than dogs. If your neighbor treated his dog the way factory farmers treat pigs, the local and national news would be in uproar and your neighbor would be under arrest. And yet because of our insufficient animal cruelty laws, pigs are subjected to unending pain and suffering in factory farms, all so that stupid people can enjoy their cheap fucking bacon and ham.

Well, to hell with us. We torture animals and think we can get away with it, and every once in awhile -- not nearly enough -- nature slaps us in the face. If this swine flu should turn into the deadliest pandemic since 1918, not only will we have no one to blame but ourselves, but we will have richly deserved it.

I'm happy to go along with the crowd that excuses our torture of terrorists (whether actual or alleged) and advocates not prosecuting the U.S. officials who ordered it, so long as that crowd is willing to stay silent the next time a member of the U.S. military, or just a plain old civilian, is gruesomely tortured overseas. After all, torturers always have a justification for what they do, just like us.

Heck, even the Nazis offered up reasons for torturing their victims. If it was good enough for the Nazis, then surely it was good enough for the United States government (or do we think we're better than that?)

Ask yourself

Am I part of a twenty year relationship that produced a happy child?

And then, if you dare, ask yourself,

Why Not?

Because the world already has enough people and besides, cats are cuter than kids and you don't have to send them to college.

(Couldn't resist)