Massachusetts Special Election

Count along with me: 1, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3... Yep, turns out there several "third rails" in politics, the fatally underfunded and endlessly pilfered Social Security program is just one of many. Gun control is another, and how 'bout that socialized medicine thingy???

Since the Boy King ascended to the throne, I've watched in amazement as the Congressional Red Army enthusiastically reprised Hillary's "behind closed doors/top secret/sweetheart deals" health care debacle without even a token rewrite of her original script. As with most remakes, this new cast was in many ways even less appealing than the original.

Letterman? Leno? O'Brien? Musical sitcoms? Don't need any of 'em - this midterm election cycle will surpass any contrived entertainment. There'll likely be a lot more Republicans in office by this time next year, but more importantly this may mark the last time the American public ricochets from one wing of the left-right contrivance to the other.

Here's why: The .gov's appetite for money and power during this downturn has genuinely alarmed the gentle left as well as the center and much of the right. The left-right paradigm is wearing thin and an increasing number of everyday folks are starting to see through it. (Heat will do that to fog...)

I talk politics with a lot of people, and most everyone across the spectrum now agrees that the most humane thing government can do for most people is leave them the hell alone. A new atmosphere of critical thinking is forming. Should the Republicans again fail to bring a sincere liberty-oriented limited government mindset to the table the left/right shell game may be over. They could easily fail at this, as Peak Sincerity actually occurred a while back in American politics. (It'll be such a fascinating year!)

Brown ran as a centrist... (although I always thought that in Massachusetts John Kerry was a centrist!) Brown has a likable persona, but in actuality he's a RINO, and we shouldn't get our hopes up just yet.

On the bright side, this is another (and largest to date) rejection of Obama, and it's a also a repudiation of socialized medicine and of heavy-handed leftist governance in general. What the media lackeys (who still yearn for socialist utopia) won't tell you is that this rejection took place in a state that just tried socialized medicine, and that said experiment failed spectacularly. Moreover, it was Republican Mitt Romney who both proposed and signed the legislation, which illustrates why the Republicans had better pay just as much attention to the mood of the public as the Dems! Sure, the Repubs are getting a real present from the voters (with Obama starring as Santa Claus) but there are strings attached this time.

Bottom line: When a McCain machine campaigns for socialized medicine and a Romney machine authors and then signs such a scheme into law, the Republicans have as much if not more to learn from this election as the Dems. I say more, because unlike the Dems they pretend to know better.

For all my criticism and caution, I can state with confidence that there's at least a rather widespread recognition that we're on the wrong path. For Ted Kennedy's seat to go to ANY Republican speaks volumes! Overall a fine day, and hey, Mary Jo - this one's for you!