lol…as a fellow former memeber of the elitist hamster wheel, i must concur. i dunno how it makes you feel, but to me, these kinds of reactions are extremely disheartening, and in a sense, even maddening, becayse they cheapen the value of the word that supposedly sets us apart from other academic and social enviroments, namely, “intelligence.” i mean yeah, i know all of us experience a bubble bursting at some point in our lives, but does it have to be so utterly devoid of perspective? as my people and i say in da ‘hood, “gettin’ hot like dat, you just playin’ yaself.”

It’s not really the results, come to think of it. It’s the feeling of powerlessness and alienation. It’s the feeling of hopes for the future crashing to earth.

I don’t exaggerate to simply say that it feels much the way 9/11 felt to me. It really doesn’t matter if this feeling is justified or not (and I know it is objectively not the same situation at all), but so be it. You can’t get rid of this kind of insanity by judging it harshly. You gotta accept it and talk it through if you find yourself indulging in it, ignore it and offer what compassion you can when it comes from others.

Ignore him and he’ll go away. Keep being outraged every time he writes another column, you’ll keep him employed.

Unlike you, I voted for Badnarik (how ironic is it that his name starts with “bad”). I had to write him in since here in Oklahoma we like to exclude just about anyone we can from our electoral process. But I totally agree with your decision calculus. If forced at gunpoint to pick one or the other, I probably would have voted for Kerry, but only on the theory that (barring hell freezing over – errrr – a libertarian winning) the country runs best with a democrat in the white house and republican majorities in the house and senate – total gridlock is about the only other way to slow down the growth of government.

Thanks for your post. Now, where’s that margarita?