I used to believe that a thousand years from now, America would still be remembered as the country that first landed on the moon and began the exploration of the solar system.

I now believe we will be remembered for moments like this.

However, I do disagree with NYMAG's assessment of Inhofe's Senate outburst as due to either ignorance or stupidity. Far from the oafish blunder it appears on the surface, it is a carefully calculated and deliberate obfuscation meant to promote a specific economic agenda by advancing the ideological and political philosophy that protects and preserves it. And it does so by appealing to some of the basest and most reprehensible aspects of American anti-intellectualism, fear and greed. The Inhofes of this world know exactly what they're doing, and why.

The ghost of John C. Calhoun still haunts Capitol Hill.