Let's not forget that many of the armchair civilization warriors come from social/economic classes where they don't have much otherwise to fear--i.e. their material needs are largely met, they are not likely to go bankrupt from healthcare costs, get laid off, or have their personal security breached--so what's left in terms of self-definition is the highly theoretical psychic threat to "civilization" to give meaning to their otherwise directionless lives.

the entire discourse about free trade, the free market or the "liberal global economic order" or even the "invisible hand" is almost universally warped due to its equating of "free capital" with a "free market"-- right now all we have is globally free capital, i.e. corporations are free to deploy capital virtually anywhere in the globe in its quest for the politico-socio-enviro milieu that will best maximize profits, but labor is constrained to national borders in its quest to maximize wages or whatever labor seeks to maximize. Since only capital and not labor is free, what we have is a distorted global market for capital and labor, not a free one, and I don't see how any intellectually honest economist can criticize intervention in the global trade market as somehow disruptive of what would otherwise be, or approach, a 'free market'

I just want to point out that the truther theories may serve a different psychological need than just dissent and anti-authoritarianism--if the government planned it, then maybe we are not vulnerable to actual attacks of this nature and a simple regime change at home will mean we are not vulnerable.

Lost is an insulting attempt to produce science fiction by people who are completely unqualified to do so. These guys are in way over their heads. For example, does anyone really expect any coherent answer to such long-standing questions as, what is the deal with those numbers? What happened to Desmond's ability to see into the future? Was that just a plot device to make a martyr out of Charlie? (By the way, did anyone else notice that all Charlie had to do was climb out the window to save himself?) Who or what is Jacob? Who is doing the whispering in the woods? Is the smoke monster in retirement? WTF?

In addition to that, Lost offers; time travel, mystery, unexplained phenomona, corporate greed, espionage, life after death? and much, much more. It's engaging. It makes you think, if you're up to it.

If the writers could actually take the time themselves to think through the logical/scientific implications of just one of these ingredients that they are throwing into the stew, it would go a long way to redeeming the show, but they don't, so it's an incredibly frustrating mishmash. There is an large body of science fiction writing in which the authors do take the time to think through the implications of these things but the writers at Lost are woefully ignorant of them and therefore can't avail themselves of the wisdom of their forebears. Compare Lost to Heroes, where at least some of the writers have obviously read the greats of sci-fi, Heinlein, Asimov, Spinrad, Ellison, Dick, etc. and the contrast is stark. I guess this is what happens when the generation weaned on the infantile pap that is Star Wars finally comes into its own in Hollywood.

could it be any more obvious that Mark Penn (a) is a corporate shill, and (b) is either serving the true interests of his candidate or has a serious conflict of interest between his corporate masters and the Clinton campaign? In either case, should he not commit seppuku in shame and dishonor? Why do democratic candidates keep hiring those of his ilk?