You're interpreting the statement "Every American is obligated to consider the good of the country" through a narrow partisan filter: Your ideology is good for America, all others are bad. Because the principle I state implies that ideology should sometimes take a back seat, to you it's noise.

But there's more to principle, and to that statement, than ideology. All principles are not created equal, and my statement, to me, defines the highest principle, one that trumps lesser ideology-based principles.

I see the greatest problem facing America today to be extreme polarization. It's more important than any other single concern because it cripples our ability to address all problems. You complain that the polarization is crippling Bush's ability to fight a "war on terror" as he defines it; I see the polarization crippling our ability to address problems like global warming, poverty, economic recession, job loss and declining income, and on and on. Things have gotten so bad that any solution is better than none. Failing to act guarantees we drift right into the icebergs.

Adherence to that principle is why, in this election, I'm judging candidates primarily on their ability to be uniters, not dividers. All the Republicans except McCain are running on a basic platform of "hate the Democrats, and stop them at all costs". McCain, in sharp contrast, has a record of looking for solutions, and cooperating with Democrats if that's required to achieve the solution. That approach beats the hell out of gridlock, because 1) we at least attempt to solve problems; and 2) the resulting solution is more likely to be correct because it emerges from a balance of viewpoints. Two heads are better than one, as the first six years of Republican monolithic misrule during Bush's reign amply demonstrated.

I'm off now to vote.