You can cherrypick a couple of weirdos in any large group.
I will say though, that I thought the right wing had jumped the shark in their hatred of Bill Clinton. I was wrong. President Bush has made the left so enraged that they are virtually delirious with hatred. The Democratic Party was already the party of intolerance, but they have been completely unhinged since 2000.
Extreme partisanship is never fun to watch or hear, but what is being said in today's election truly pales to what was being said back in the day...you know, like the election of 1800 (or 1802...too tired to do the math) between Adams and Jefferson. Or almost any other election, for that matter. Honestly, Jefferson would have loved being treated as respectfully as Clinton or Bush were treated.
It's far too easy to wax nostalgic for some halcyon, bye-gone time when everyone stood on principle and were elected because they were self-evidently the best candidate...well...I don't think that time ever existed.
Governance, and the process to be in position to govern, has always been a messy, nasty business.
A4s mentioned that all men have feet of clay...too true. Vote your way but don't go crazy if the result is not to your liking. We can vilify the opposition party (Democrat or Republican) all day long...but in the end they are loyal, patriotic AMERICANS, too.
It is possible for two sane, logical, and intelligent individuals to hold diametrically opposed view points...and neither one needs to classified as "evil". If you doubt that, sit down sometime with a Rabbi, a priest and a Baptist minister.
The bottomline (to me)...especially for all the active duty types...is that we swear an oath to the constitution...never to an individual leader and for good reason. This country could (and probably has) elect a fire-breathing demagogue of either political persuasions...and yet the Union has endured and will endure.
So cringe/giggle/guffaw/change the channel when the weirdos get their 15 seconds of infamy...and remember that our job is to protect the constitution (and the country whose course it directs), against all enemies foreign and domestic.
I'll step down from my soapbox now.
