Unfortunately, what GWB is doing to make the world safer is making it more and more dangerous for American. Except for GWB.

America acts unilaterally, precipitously, and then tells the World, "Get over it". The US doesn't realize the fear and resentment lasts, and lasts, and lasts. Look at Iran - the US overthrew their leader in 1953 and they still hate us. And somehow it's their fault, in conservative eyes, for hating us because a popular leader was overthrown and a dictator installed.

What I'm noticing is a rather degree of animosity, a sense of loss of country, and real hostility toward this Administration amongst a larger and larger proportion of the people. Nixon was regarded as a scoundrel and crook, Ford sort of benignly, Reagan and Bush the First were disliked but you had the sense the country meant something to them.

What happens, though, is that most people in the middle don't concern themselves very much, watch TV and that's it. The Rs spend so much money on negative ads it's really impossible for the average person to get a picture as to what is going on.

Sad. The history of the US is there is a fierce rebound. Remember Gingrich, and the "Contract with America"? How far, how fast did those folks fall? (And the economy boomed under the Democrats. Had a surplus, was working on debt, all that stuff GWB apparently hates. Even had a bigger counter-terrorism budget that GWB wanted, until 9-11.)

I haven't seen the division this deep ever. There's a lot of energy developing against this Administration. It remains to be seen if money and an incessant bombarding of the population with negative ads (reminiscent of what Saddam does with his population) can continue to sway the swing vote, or there will be a repeat of what happened to the "Contract with America".

Might not be all bad, though. After the current madness is over we can get back to surpluses, paying off the debt, so the Republicans can piss it away in the next cycle.

Arf