Support Reason Because in a World Where the Choices Are Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner, The Survivors Envy The Dead

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Matt Welch and I published The Declaration of Independents, which was praised by George Will and others and led to the interview with Brian Lamb at the bottom of this post.

At one point, the C-SPAN founder asked me about this quote from the book:

"In a world where our choices are limited to John Boehner and Nancy Pelosi, the survivors envy the dead."

"What do you mean by that," Lamb asked. My reply, in part:

"Throughout virtually every aspect of our lives, we're seeing greater individualization, personalization, and greater ability to mongrelize and hybridize our lives, our enjoyments, our very identities. And yet in politics, we're still stuck between Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It's the Wolfman versus Frankenstein. [Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner] are proxies, shorthand for the incredibly narrow range of choices that we actually have in our [political lives]."

If you agree with that assessment and think that we deserve a politics that allows us to be freer and more in control of all aspects of our lives, please contribute to Reason's efforts. We're out here 24 hours a day, seven days a week - on the beaches and the landing grounds and in the fields and in the streets and in the hills - making the case that we need more freedom and choice, not less of it.

Here's the full interview with Lamb, which includes a discussion of what we're doing at Reason and Reason.tv:

Comments

[Joe M]

Wait a second, Nick isn't The Jacket. He is merely its host body.

[Gojira]

This is teh awesome:

Alabama GOP has second thoughts about immigrant crack-down after
the embarrassing traffic stops of two foreign employees tied to the state's prized Honda and Mercedes plants.

[affenkopf]

Capitalism once again being the best weapon against bigotry.

[Poet Laureate sloopyinca]

Support Reason Because in a World Where the Choices Are Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner, The Survivors Envy The Dead

I wonder how much better a zombie House of Reps would be over what we are saddled with. Speaker of The House Zombie Philip Pendleton-Barbour has a nice ring to it.

[Poet Laureate sloopyinca]

How the fuck did the Angels swoop in and sign Pujols? Wilson, too. But...Pujols?

[Brett L]

Pujols is dead to me.

[Apatheist]

Pujols kicks ass but that 10 year contract is going to look foolish. You really think he's going to be worth $25 million a year when he's 41?

[Brett L]

Makes more sense for an American league team than it did for the Marlins. At least he can DH

[Poet Laureate sloopyinca]

Agreed. And those contracts usually get renegotiated as they get close to ending.

[Fist of Etiquette]

We're out here 24 hours a day, seven days a week - on the beaches and the landing grounds and in the fields and in the streets and in the hills...

And just like we did for the Limeys in WWII, ordinary Americans like us are asked to come to the rescue and pull your fat out of the fire, huh, Reason?

[R C Dean]

You not only have Nancy Pelosi within reach, you actually have a grip on her.

And you are carrying a large hammer.

I know what I'd do if I ever found myself in that situation. Apparently, Boehner made a different choice.

[Poet Laureate sloopyinca]

Which of those two has spent more money on their skin? Oddly enough, I'm putting my money on Boehner. You can't keep a nuclear tan like that without going deep in your pocket.

[Brett L]

Maybe he couldn't find a stake?

[tarran]

Reminds me of the time I found myself introduced to some FDA inspectors - from the same group that banned Replagal sales in the US - and I was expected to smile and shake hands with the mass murderers.

It cost me a great deal of my self respect to be nice to the sociopaths.

[Hazel Meade]

So, speaking of survivors envying the dead and such, one thing I don't get about 'The Walking Dead' is how everyone thinks life is somehow not worth living now that they are living in small band survival groups where any of them might die at the hands of enemies.

Isn't that, like, pretty much the human condition for 99% of our species existance? How do you think the native americans or any other tribal society lived? And a lot of people think we were happier then.

[R C Dean]

And a lot of people think we were happier then.

Jeebus Hazel, why don't you just stand in front of a mirror and say "White Indian" three times?

[Hazel Meade]

I think White Indian is actually Ward Churchhill. What do you think?

[juris imprudent]

Can't be - that would require Churchill to have a scintilla of honesty (at least as regards the handle).

[Fist of Etiquette]

The Battlestar Galactica finale seemed to think Luddite was the way to go. Just wait until humanity has to deal with zombie Cylons.

[AlmightyJb]

6 can eat my brains.

[Appalachian Australian]

They aren't happy because they aren't free to gambol through downtown Atlanta.

[Chloe]

Had someone try to gambol through the ED the other night. Got a nice dose of haldol for the effort.

[Hazel Meade]

Yes they are. It's just that the zombies are free to eat their brains.

[P Brooks]

And, of course, you won't see THIS at Mother Jones.

Wagons, circled.

The Justice Department is standing by Breuer, and Holder testified Thursday that department heads were not aware of the program early on.

"The documents produced to date also belie the remarkable notion that this operation was conceived by department leaders, as some have claimed," Holder said. "It is my understanding that department leaders were not informed about the inappropriate tactics employed in this operation until those tactics were made public and, as is customary, turned to those with supervisory responsibility over the operation in an effort to learn the facts."

Coming up- the persecution of the innocent.

But why are we wasting a lot of time and energy fighting amongst ourselves, right? We have smaller fish to fry, like lowly American citizens.

Holder said such a program "must never happen again," but effectively urged lawmakers to move on -- and tackle the broader issue of the flow of firearms into Mexico.

"We cannot afford to allow the tragic mistakes of 'Operation Fast and Furious' to become a political sideshow or a series of media opportunities," he said. "Instead, we must move forward and recommit ourselves to our shared public safety obligations."

He used the occasion to prod Congress to support efforts to give the Justice Department broader legal tools to track firearms purchases.

"We have screwed the pooch in every conceivable way in this matter. Therefor, Congress' only logical response is to promote everyone involved, increase our budget, and give us more power and authority.":

Or the terrorists have won again!

[juris imprudent]

When you put it like that the terrorists begin to look like an attractive option.

[AlmightyJb]

If al qaida wants to destroy the US they should spend their money on getting incumbents re-elected instead of on terrorism.

[Agammamon]

How do you call yourself a department head if your subordinates are running a large, expensive, and extremely unphotogenic op without your knowledge?

What does it say about you if you have so little strength of personality, so little respect from your subordinates that they just run major ops not just behind your back, but without the knowledge of several levels of management?

This is just an indication of how disfunctional the management in your organization is. And don't tell me that its difficult to know and control what everyone is doing. The goddamn US Navy has a third of a million people in it and you don't see motherfuckers running wild. Shit we're puckered so tight that anytime a CO so much as sneezes innappropriately he's relieved.

[Brett L]

I'm guessing Dejah Thoris won't be gamboling across Mars in just jewels in the Disney Barsoom.

[Mr. FIFY]

Wow... I read all of those as a kid... well, n bit older than a kid.

Wonder if it's gonna wind up being a fucked-up movie. Probably.

[juris imprudent]

I have to disagree with the first alt-text - it could always get worse.

And likely will.

[Agammamon]

Why are they holding hands in the picture? See, this is one of (the many, many) reasons I couldn't go into politics. I'm not going to hold hands Pelosi, I'm sure as fuck not going to hold some middle eastern potentate's hand while strolling down the street, no matter how innocuous it is in his culture.

Sorry for the rant, but those pictures are just creepy to me.

[Mr. FIFY]

Didn't she have to wear head covering when she visited the Middle East? If she was the feminist she claims to be, she'd have walked the streets naked.

[Nike Dunk Shoes]

thanks