I'm going to tell you people just what I've heard

Whenever you hear a man speak of his love for his country, it is a sign that he expects to be paid for it.
H. L. Mencken





Watching the theatre of the absurd yesterday with the Alito Confirmation hearings, I kept waiting for the hard questions to be asked, and consistently the hard subjects were danced around. Democrats are so afraid of appearing rude or confrontational that it's no wonder Bush et al. are able to get away with as much as they are. A lot of Americans are proud, rightly so, of their political system, but it may be time for them to consider a parliamentary system, the idea of the imperial presidency who only allows himself to be questioned at his leisure is not working.

However, 232 years into the game I doubt the US is going to change anything. Certainly, major overhaul such as that would not be in anyone's best interests. It's human nature, once one has power to consolidate as much as possible, and to not give up any power. This isn't so much a criticism as it is an observation. Very few people in history have consciously and willingly diminished their authority.

Reading Dick Morris' column this morning, he laments a leftward shift in the US electorate. I don't see it, but it may be a matter of perception. The democrats are certainly in a position to capitalize on that apparent shift, if indeed legitimate, however, I'm not sure they have the sand for it.