Posted 2:48 PM by Robert

Democynics

Oscar Wilde famously said that a cynic is someone who knows the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

Today that's what we call a Democrat.

The rest of the country addresses the job at hand, while the Party of Narcissism [Thomas ("Shores of Tripoli") - Jefferson wept!] focuses ever more intently on how best to count the costs to itself and its prospects - and how best to manipulate the moment. Bring out the dancing Hollywood celebs!

But Senator Daschle and company should worry: the defense and security issue is not likely going away by 2004, or even 2008. After Iraq there's Korea, Iran, al Qaida, Palestine, and lots of others - maybe even China. And it just won't do to keep arguing that the President is just going to invade them all - he isn't. But the issues they raise and the threats they pose to the United States will preclude a return to the Clinton-Gore years of delusion, when the public would accept that such matters can be dealt with by phony "diplomatic solutions" (as in the case of Korea) or just by willfully ignoring them (as in the case of the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center).

The economy will still matter a lot. But so will defense and security.

So keep speaking your mind, Senator Daschle. By the way, Senator, how much more of that kind of speaking do you think you can do before no one in South Dakota will speak to you? Has anyone bothered to take a poll to determine Senator Daschle's current standing there - the state he supposedly "represents?"