Hi Claire, so nice to read you again.

I want to add my voice to those who claim that the Soviets are the authors of most of the evil in the 20th century. The wars we all know about -- I, II and Cold -- but the propaganda efforts are still damaging the western democracies. There is simply nothing quite like it. How many sad sacks just bought every thing that was spewed from them because it fit their own self-hatred? 

So many people wonder why America is hated so virulently in these last few decades and it's all because of the lies that were successfully promoted directly and in fifth column activities in our media, academia and Hollywood. This hatred of us is a great badge of honor  -- because we defeated them. But, it's not seen that way yet.

History will treat us well. 

God bless you in this worthy endeavor. Fighting commies is always fighting the good fight. 

I am reading Operation Solo by John Barron. Have you read it yet? It's about Morris Childs who was the greatest spy that the FBI had during the last few decades of the Soviet Union. It is riveting.

Great post, Barfly. Thanks.

The story about Nixon not complaining for the good of the country is a troubling thing, I admit. I heard him interviewed on this and have read his thoughts in one of his books. He seemed to want to present a good face on democracy when it was under an all out assault all over the world. If there had been a really unseemly fight the Soviets would have used this for their propaganda in the third world and elsewhere. 

So, it's a judgment call -- I can see both sides and I don't know which is right. The use of litigation in close elections is a necessary part of making a democracy work -- but this takes more than the allowed 30 seconds to explain in the media of today. Tough call. 

Regarding 2008, the fact that it wouldn't affect the outcome of the election must weigh even more heavily on the side of not using the litigation aspect. Also, McCain wouldn't have wanted to denigrate a newly elected president and absorb the attendant recriminations to be used in future campaigns. 

But, McCain could have come out with this later. He should have. 

Thanks, Peter -- very moving story. It's so sad to see what a terrible propagandizing country and media can do to a little child. What should a 10 year old know about war and the threat of a nuclear war and the cold war? She has no perspective to address this stuff. Very sad.

This topic reminds me of Peggy Noonan's book What I Saw at The Revolution. She told some great stories about the common touch that Reagan had. I know that many people found him difficult to get close to but Reagan was a man in full, he had been a celebrity for most of his life and he learned to be reserved especially as he moved further into the public sphere and the field of public policy. He had tremendous self-discipline and it manifested in this way, I think. 

But, stories like this tell us the truth of the inner man.

I think this is the nub. Libertarians love the idea of the Constitution but they are not constitutionally fit to want to be part of the first Constitutional Convention. They would probably march out in a fit one day.

Solidarity is at the heart of the genius of modern cultures. Those heroic men that we call our founding fathers stuck it out through thick and thin and bequeathed to humankind something marvelous.

One gets the clear impression from the libertarian personality type that they would never join our club but they are never content to just sit with bemused looks on their faces on the sidelines -- no, instead they are the smug observer who can never find anything to fight for so they just fight against and lob stones over the fence.

Even rational actors will choose different things. So, Yes we do need government.

Group decision making is very difficult. We have inherited a fairly good system for making group decisions in our Constitution and government presently constituted.

Tonot vote is a decision. But, what is most interesting here is that Fred has probably determined that Obama is worse than Romney. I don't care by how much. Voting is being asked by your fellow countrymen to give us your best judgment at each stage of the process. We're at a late stage in the process and OK some people aren't happy with the choice but still let's be patriotic enough to give the country the benefit of your wisdom. 

You people who don't vote because you are truly not interested or not able to determine which side is better -- you aren't able to help the country in this decision and we shouldn't press you for a decision. So, don't vote, please, you can only hurt the process because you are the very person that unscrupulous people will take advantage of.

Prawn, this proves once again that you are one of the best writers on this site. Thanks for the cogent and literate presentation of the argument.

This is a good argument to have because the approach that Fred takes is very typical of the modern mind. There are so many things that are silly about this kind of irresponsible tantrum but let me point out a very telling point in Fred's comment 4 above: 

And I noticed along the way the Democrats claim the exact same thing about the republic ending.  

I only ask this of Fred: Though the Dems claim this, too -- do you have any means of assessing the relative merits of either side? I think you do not have the means and that this inability to choose sides is a symptom -- not of the discussion at hand -- but of an unclear mind on the basics of a self-governing people.

I knew that face was familiar. 

Very funny.

If this keeps up, Mr. Young, we are going to have to start calling you a muckraker -- plain and simple. Enough is enough. Poor Mitt is being used as a punching bag. It's just not right.

Love the title. 

Doug, you are a very talented writer. I really enjoy going wherever your mind wants to take us.

This fable is really excellent.

Thanks for this. Keep up the good work. 

As I said at the time of the Carrie Prejean attack, the reason that Obama isn't treated the same way as Prejean is that everyone knows he's lying, on both sides of the aisle -- and the Democratic Media Complex assists in the lie.The only problem is that the Republicans won't tell the simple truth about this man.

If Prejean had said in preamble, "My view is the same as the president's -- that ..." she could have inoculated herself. But, as a standalone comment Prejean was a political target of the first order for those trained in the Alinsky methods. 

Obama is a known liar. Look at how he got away with lying about his knowledge of anti-American comments by Jeremiah Wright. The MSM proved then that they were in the bag for Obama more than for any other president in modern history. 

I know that many of you don't like this term but Alinsky methods are focused on lying, just like Marx's. This is all of a piece. We have to start telling the truth.

Books: Anything by Elmore Leonard. He's better than Louis L'Amour. He has a superb style and rollicking stories. He transitioned quite well with the same type of characters into crime fiction for which he is now better known.

Movies: Short but flawless list:

• Lonesome Dove Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones, (TV series but the very best). Related to two others: Open Range and Broken Trail
• The Cowboys, John Wayne and Bruce Dern (at his best)
• Tombstone, Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer 
• Seven Samurai, Toshiro Mifune (and yes, it's a western but in Japan and three centuries earlier). Better by far than Magnificent Seven, which was based on it.
• The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, Lee Marvin
• Hang Em High, Clint Eastwood

I like the True Grit by the Coen Brothers better. All three top actors are simply superb. Five Stars. The early courtroom scene sets the stage so perfectly and Matt Damon really comes through on the role that Glen Campbell wasn't quite up for.

Ain't this the truth. He and Ann will make a superb (and photogenic) first couple. 

Well said. 

The newspaper headlines could be interesting:

Obama fans flushed with pride.

Of course, even Chambers was already poisoned enough by his culture to join the Communists -- he was already an atheist. For many people, Communism seemed the only way out of wars and the historical cycles. 

But, regarding atheism, I really recommend this superb and very readable book on the subject: God's Funeral by A.N. Wilson. From the book description on Amazon: 

By the end of the nineteenth century, almost all the great writers, artists, and intellectuals had abandoned Christianity, and many abandoned belief in God altogether. 

And:

By 1900, the Church of England, so vastly rich, so politically and socially powerful, could be pronounced spiritually empty, however full its pews might be on a Sunday.

This intellectual movement started well over a century before Lenin. These seeds were planted long ago and we are dealing with a hearty variety of tree in atheism. I think atheism is the natural state of man, if he is left untaught. Our culture is going through a major change that will last for a few more centuries. God takes the long view.