I don't need wall-to-wall media coverage to remind me what happened on 9/11, any more than I need the media to remind me of what happened on 11/22/63.  

And I sure don't need the intelligence agencies to yank my chain every year at this time, nor do I need these manufactured stings every so often so that the FBI can announce the break-up of a major terrorist cell.

I'm tired of being treated as if I have the IQ of a cantaloupe, tired of being manipulated, and jerked around.  Tired of the "Report Suspicious Activity" reminders over the highway.  Tired of the campaigns to frighten people into surrendering their rights.

It was a terrible day, but the way it has been used as justification to erode our rights, to frighten people into submission, the way it has used the deaths of innocents to impose an authoritariam agenda that is antithetical to the principles that formed the foundation of this country - well, it makes me feel sick inside.

For a decade now, we've had our political leaders creating a schizophrenic sense of unease among the populace, telling us on the one hand to go about our regular everyday activities, while simultaneously reminding us to be afraid of the boogeymen who are constantly out to get us.  And with each iteration, the desire to establish scapegoats grows and grows.

I wish that W. would be retired to a cave somewhere.
Failing that, I wish that Obama would cease trotting the old s.o.b. out for curtain calls.

But there's another reason I don't support bringing back W. again, and that is because, unfortunately, his presence would be redundant.

The way I could agree with you is that it sometimes occurs to me that if we had elected McCain, the so-called wishful-thinkingly-called "Democratic Left" would be up in arms against the current policies being pursued by the executive and legislative branches of government.