"The Age of Statesmen Is Gone"

William Schambra's article on election invective in the CS Monitor is a breath of fresh air in a constipated campaign. Just hours ago I got into my first office debate - not arguing the merit of the candidates, but arguing whether or not George Bush has ushered in one of the all-time worst eras in American history. Now, regardless of your political leanings and how much you hate Bush, any rational person with a grip on history and economics should be able to understand that Bush can't be much worse than his predecessors simply because he isn't much different.

Don't like big deficits or unilateralist rhetoric? Meet Ronald Reagan. Can't abide with civil rights infringements? Truman and Eisenhower, and even Lincoln, presided over all of the above. Tax cuts too big? John F. Kennedy, at your service. Pointless war with no exit strategy? That's a Texas thing - he's just filling Lyndon Johnson's shoes. Unpopular with Old Europe? James Monroe set this precedent. Anti-Arab? That began with John Adams.

Neither Bush nor Kerry will lead America into the apocalypse, give nukes to our enemies, or sell the nation off to the special interests. Historical perspective - both on the evilness of a candidate and on the degree of rancour in his partisans' vitriol - would serve us all.

Oh, and I'd be interested to know if anyone downloads and plays the CS Monitor's Power Politics III.