Excellent article. Highly creative and disturbing in equal parts. Here is my look at another what-if on this important day.
http://historicalsolutions.stratumsites.com/What_If_United_Flight_93_Doesnt_Crash_In_Western_Pennsylvania.asp

On target, Mollie. Eastwood spoke for the folks who populate the downtown diners and uptown dives across the nation. Nothing wrong with having that voice shared on the big stage. Sometimes we get a tad too wrapped up with the dynamics of the smartest kids in the room talking to each other and no one else. Give me a pair of Eastwoods over a hundred barking pundits any day of the week.

Spot on with the recommendation to read both Federalist and Anti-Federalist papers. I'd only add one other thing--toss in an overview of signers' private comments on their major concerns and also a few foreign reactions. Taken together, this is a worthy and invaluable guide to American citizenship and governance in the 21st century.

 Shameless profit plug. I use history to teach leadership to clients. Lewis & Clark's expedition is one of my newest modules. I've made a point to root it in apolitical historical detail, focusing on the book by Ambrose, among other sources. On two occasions I've presented to clients and in both instances, fifty upper and mid-levels leaders in an organization were fascinated by this historical event and its applicability to modern life. Next up: Jefferson and leadership. Stay tuned!

There is a line that shouldn't be crossed. West didn't cross it. Nothing wrong with hard-hitting comments. They're far better than the faux politeness that so many people find nauseating about politicians. 

 Sure, the reading markets have changed. No question. However, I think the broader point made here is that of overall levels of comprehension. From my end, I've had adults (in middle and upper management positions) read the Gettysburg Address aloud. They stumble and stammer though it. The words are tough for them, both in pronounciation and meaning. I think these two points--the comparison of newspaper front-pages from two eras and the difficulty of handling the G. Address--are sadly, perhaps ominously, linked.

The people who comprise the establishment need to spend more time a) out of Washington DC; b) listening to people who aren't part of the policy wonk crowd; and c) reflecting on the meaning of what they hear in these conversations. Unless all of these things happen, the GOP will do very little that is different and thus will end up on the receiving end of another lashing in a few years.