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I completely agree. The Dems almost won 2000 (some argue they did), and they could easily have won 2004 if they had fielded a decent, smart-tough candidate. Even in 2004 I don’t think Bush won it — the Dems lost it.

You’re wasting your time. It’s like asking someone who was closer to right about Iraq: the French or us?

The mere fact that Mr. Bush has been right so seldom that he approaches asbsolute zero matters not at all: he has the jutting chin and the chest-thumping down pat, and mere bloody-minded incompetence is nothing compared to all of that.

Here’s a project for you - go back and review what that crazed “barking dog” Dean said throughout 2003 about the Iraq situation. Now compare with that wonderful statesman George W. Notice the difference? One was 100% right and the other 100% wrong (and continues to be).

Now - stop ingesting Republican stereotypes and talking points about Democrats and think for yourself - who should be making the decisions here?

It’s amazing what a little dose of realiy will do for you - and our country.

And don’t fear the statins: you get used to the third testacle pretty quickly.

I attribute W’s two presidential wins to Democratic incompetence. They may be able to claim un-involvement in Bush’s policies that are leading to leech-infested waters; but they are not without responsibility. They failed to lead. They failed to offer a truly viable option. They deserved their fate as a result. They must prove why they’re relevant, lest they be routinely defeated by people like Bush. Lots of people on the left muse about ‘Bush the Chimp,’ and perhaps he is. But what does it say to be beaten twice by a chimp? And please, don’t give me ‘the election was rigged’ or ‘Americans are stupid sheep’ as a comeback. Those kind of responses only prove the point that Democrats need to revamp their thinking.

Democrats checked out too long ago. They’ve thrown too much of their credibility at the KOSer crowd. They’ve fielded exceptionally weak candidates, two elections in a row. Gore couldn’t beat Bush in 2000 in a landslide? After 8 years riding on the coattails of the Golden Clinton Years? That speaks volumes about how he was the wrong man for the job. That election shouldn’t have been close. It was a cinch, and he botched it. Big time.

The first thing the Democrats should do right now is gag Kerry and Gore. Just shut them up somehow. The show is over for those two tape loops. And Dean too. Why on earth are Gore and Kerry the dominant voices in the Democratic party right now. Clear the decks!

I’m also concerned, per Global Guerillas, that there is something fundamental about our political system that cannot address existential threats as we face them. I hope I am wrong. But with that view, I see both parties as culpable in the general dysfunction.

As far as cholesterol goes, the first phase is to lose weight and see what can be accomplished without drugs. Then another blood test, and we go from there. In all likelihood, I will wind up on a statins of some kind. I’d rather not if it is possible. Oats aren’t all that bad. And I’ve figured out a way to make Thai curries with simulated coconut milk using a mixture of flour, Rice Dream, Soy milk and a touch of coconut extract.

Culpability falls more on those of us — myself very much included — who supported the war, and less on those who opposed it. More on Republicans — myself not included — and less on Democrats. We are each responsible for our ideas, and our actions including our votes.

With power comes responsibility. Mr. Bush has made every decision on Iraq, from the start to the present. It’s on him primarily. To use the language of psychobabble the Dems have been ennablers. But it’s Mr. Bush who has been the primary actor in this drama.

But, Cicero, dude, just get on the Zocor, man. 40 mg a day and I can eat whatever I want and still have the cholesterol of a marathoner. Life’s too short not to enjoy the occasional slab of fatty animal product.

And everytime we visit with conservative friends they wail and bemoan how they didn’t see this coming - and I have to remind them of the ugly, ugly arguments we used to have 3 years ago in which I warned them of the exact situation they are so upset about today!

Conservatives have suddenly developed collective amnesia and the dire need to believe they are not responsible for voting in and supporting these guys through two election cycles even in the face of overwhelming incompetence and corruption.

Get over, grow up and take some responsibility folks.

And don’t let it happen again.

I really, really have to take exception to your statement “And no, I don’t think Democrats have the key out of this muddle, per se. It’s as much their making as anyone else’s.” I realize that it’s difficult to acknowledge just how badly the guy you voted for screwed things up, but to claim that the party that hasn’t been in control of either Congressional branch or the White House has equal culpability is kind of mind boggling. Of course there’s things they could have done better, and many of them cast politically expedient votes that have come back to haunt them. But considering that a large part of the problems we face come from inadequate oversight, I fail to see how the party that has been rebuffed at evey turn when they tried to question the administration’s tactics and policies is equally at fault with the party that was doing the rebuffing.

I hate to ruin the tone, but I do take exception to hearing all of the people who enabled Bush now claiming that he somehow let them down. Bush has done exactly what those who oposed him expected him to do, and when the people who voted for him somehow try to say that they are no more culpable than the people who voted against him, I think it’s important to correct the record.

My best to your wife and daughter.