Oh - no - they understand freedom. To the New Left it means: We are free to lie, lie, lie, lie and lie and then our friends at the papers and in cable can continue to lie lie lie for us. In moments like these I try to remember the Anne Coulter Mantra and go into my happy place: "It's no excuse that the Democrats are lying. They do that all the time. Republicans have got to learn to let it go."

And the lies told by the MSM and liberal politicians become the "truth" once they reach the Democrat-in-the-street.I have to shake my head when some liberal accusatorily cites one of their sloganesque lies that has been exposed as such for some time because their media hasn't retracted it.

It is amazing how intolerant & loony the left has become. They hate America & love dictators. As you mention, once, while people disagreed politically, they did share a love of country & a common social code. The left has lost all sence of reality & proportion.Did you see the Daily Kos, call Iraq better off under Saddam?

Didn't see that one, those moonbats over there are still flogging the "timed withdrawal" theory, where we let the enemy know when we'll be leaving so they can hang back and wait, then attack full bore.

I hate america. I love dictators. I kick babies. I'm a liberal.Geez, you people got me nailed but good...

C'mon, Dan, you're being facetious: You're a pacifist, so I know you don't kick babies. :)

Thanks for the humorous acknowledgement, Seth.As to y'all's concern about the "MSM," you realize, don't you, that the media is owned by folk like Disney, GE, Rupert Murdoch and even Sumner Redstone (CBS) who calls himself a "liberal Democrat," but who supported Bush last time around? And why did he do that?The chairman of the entertainment giant Viacom said the reason was simple: Republican values are what U.S. companies need.The MSM is profit-driven, and to achieve this profit, they need to maximize the number in their audience to satisfy their advertisers. Sensational stories draw viewers. The higher the shock value, the bigger the draw. The moral, spiritual, or historical impact an event has on the world holds little meaning to the “gods of information” in the mainstream media. At best, the MSM is apolitical (and sure, you can cite some instances of the more liberal - although not progressive - media "stars" pushing a slight liberal slant), but generally speaking, they want to support the status quo that the Republicans best represent. Keep in mind that for every instance you cite of a liberal slant, I can cite a conservative instance.

Dan,You cite one MSM denizen who says he voted for Bush. I'm sure there's one hammerhead out there that won't bite you as you swim past, bleeding profusely. One example in thousands does not homogeneous make.Look, I see this all the time. I sorta had this argument with someone in the comments section at another blog. When I read a news item at Fox, for example, I observe that it contains information that is good or bad to both sides. Same with theWashington Times, who are mighty quick to criticize Bush if they feel they need to.When I go to the MSM, say the NYT, WP or LAT, since by then I've usually read the story in a couple of other places and am reading one of the lib rags just to see how they spin it.They make a point of not only giving the anti- Bush side, but embellishing it wherever possible.Most recent: Their coverage of that wretched creature in the ditch. They followed her every move with the attention usually reserved for visiting heads of state. They didn't bother mentioning that Bush had already met with her and she'd come away from the meeting saying he really cared about her son's loss, he was sincere, etc. They didn't talk about the parents of other war casualties who had travelled all the way to the ditch to uproot crosses she and her cohorts had planted with their children's names on them, people who expressed disdain that she would dare desecrate their loved ones' memories by including them in her pitiful little melodrama. They didn't report the counter rally by parents of other casualties.Repeat after me: "Because they want to create the illusion that all those parents are behind Ditch Lady all the way!" Just like they seemingly try to convey, falsely, that GWB is the only person in the entire world who wants our troops in Iraq.You want a couple of great examples?Go to NY Girl's blog, Fri 19 Aug, the post is still there, it is titled, "Planet Today Show Gets A Reality Check" Read the post, then watch the short video linked to at the bottom.Go to http://michaelyon.blogspot.comYon is an embedded{and I mean so embedded that you'd need a heavy duty screwdriver to pry him out} journalist with a combat unit in Iraq that sees heavy action almost constantly. See what he writes, up close and personal.No, Dan, the conservative media is nothing like the MSM. Oh, and the "profit driven" angle: sure they are, but the NYT and their fellow travellers apparently believe that there are more liberals in the country, so that's the side upon which they butter their bread, even as they watch the voters hire more and more Republicans and less Democrats on every level, as each election comes and goes.