Has anyone ever noticed how people on the right of the culture wars divide are always accusing those on the left of being haters (as in Howard haters for instance).

Implicit in this kind of uninformed criticism is the presumption that only those on the left express hatreds, and that somehow right-wing criticisms of who-ever and what-ever are based on some kind of disinterested "truth".

This group-labelling seems to deny that our entire political tradition is based on the freedom to freely criticize any and every political player or group (as in her Majesty's loyal opposition).

It also slowly and surely over time creates the politics of binary exclusions, and eventually to the search for and targeting of (un-Australian or anti-American) scapegoating. We on the right are always right and you left-wingers are always full of hate.

We thus need to do whatever it takes to "take our country back" from the left/liberal "elites". Which is of course the binary slogan that has energized the Tea-Party zealots (and the former Hansonite's here in Ozland)

Never mind that the real elites, that is those who really get to decide as to who lives and dies, or loses their jobs, communities destroyed, or rivers polluted, and lush green mountains reduced to moon-scapes (as in the Appalachians) etc etc, are the captains of industry and commerce (the Koch brothers for instance). The very parties that would have poured mega-bucks into the GOP and Tea Party coffers in the recent mid-term elections.

I find this quite strange because I find that if I want my daily dose of hate all I have to do is log on to a right-wing website or blog. Such an exercise is a very depressing and dis-heartening experience - most unpleasant.

So right now, Amicus, from your point of view it really looks like more more war war, just like a Churchill.

To be sure, going by you, Netanyahu now sees his chance to dominate as the only one in the Middle-East with nuclear artillery at the ready, with all of us now just simple fools for believing Obama, though non-white might have had the much needed aproach for genuine future peace.

One might even be allowed to surmise, Amicus, that you could possibly be excited about it all?

Obama didn't fail 'coz he's timid. He failed 'coz America is overpopulated with right-wing fundamentalist Christian lunatics, who truly believe that rednecks and religious zealots are the best people to run a country.

"it's all about the look not the substance as it always is with the left."
-Amicus

Yeah, but at least the substance isn't nuttier than a fruitcake.

"To balance this regret, the left hate Sarah,because she's acapable woman"
-Amicus

Capable, yes. Sane, no. I've listened to her, and to 'the blather of the left', and 'tis quite apparent to me who is and who is not (metaphorically) frothing at the mouth. Call me strange, but I think I'd prefer an incapable head of state to one who is both crazy and capable. At least the incapable one won't be able to mess shyt up too badly.

"Would I prefer her? Who cares .. I'm not American, so it's irrelevant."
-Amicus

Except for the fact that America is the world's dominant superpower. When they sneeze, the rest of the world reaches for the tissues. When their banks engage in dodgy lending practices, it comes back to bite the whole world in the arse. Letting a crazy person like Palin get their hands on the levers of power bodes ill for the whole world.

Ritz Too, like me, mate, reckon you're tryin' to be Middle Road like a good historian.

Still bloody hard, though, like when we had the younger George Bush using Condoleeza Rice to run the UN.

Certainly we must take lessons from Sociological Analysis when after Napoleon we had Hegel still talking about the benefits of strong leaders while Immanuel Kant did not talk much about singular leadership, but democratic-style multi-leadership as later with the UN, but of course naturally buggered up by over-strong nations still with singular blatant power like our present United States

Like Mr Rudd and now Ms Gillard yes we can quickly became no we can't with Mr Obama. From the farcical CopenHagen to the ridiculous notion that wasting billions is good for the economy to symbolic gestures rather than any substance highlights the stupidity of the policies of the left. I actually feel embarassed for Mr Obama because I think he actually naively thought he could do a better job than Bush. Seeing a statesman like John Howard take this country to great prosperity has also highlighted how void those following him have been. Dumbing spitting shoe throwers are happy with Obama carrying on the same Foreign Policies as previous administrations. Thankfully it did not take the Americans long to realise that you need more than slogans to run a nation. Australians are just that little bit slower.

<<Obama...lacked the ideological and partisan conviction to effectively bury his opponents for a generation.>>

Like so many declarations from "progressives", the opposite is true.

Obama buried the Democrats for a generation because of his "ideological and partisan conviction".

Obama helped focus the attention of the majority of Americans on the destructiveness of the "progressive" agenda.

Hopefully it's not too late to undo the damage.