"Purlie" was a Broadway show written by Ozzie Davis and starred Melba Moore and Ben Vereen. There was a line in that show that concerns exactly this glass half full/half empty situation; the line was: " The world ain't comin' to an end, my friend, the world's just comin' to a start!"

Of course things are different. But that doesn't mean they are worse---just different. The philosophical difference between Republicans and Democrats is that Republicans want to invade and bomb to oblivion those parts of the world that they can't understand and feel threatened by. Democrats seem to favor finding a way to adjust to and absorb change. That's precisely why I cherish my bumper sticker that says, "Vote Republican, It's easier than thinking!"

Publius