Today, the debt talks collapsed.

This will be a short post, but I've already updated my facebook status too often to respond there. What I want to point out is, only today...in 2011...do we call a President who has offered to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid as well as lower tax increases than the bi-partisan Senate Panel a "Socialist". If that doesn't demonstrate where the Republican party has degenerated into today, I don't know what has. Combine that with the primary where each of the candidates feels the need to out-anti-Islam, out-anti-gay and out-Christian the others and it's genuinely scary this party is considered a valid governing body.

I thought last election that with the rise of Palin, four years later we'd see a re-generated and newly thoughtful party that returned to its genuinely Conservative roots, but apparently not. Instead of stepping out of the hole, they've entrenched themselves deeper. It's a pity really. There was a chance, today, to achieve genuine change in the American entitlement system, and to help bring down the deficit. Instead, we get nothing...because of a dogmatic, religious-like zeal against any kind of tax increase.

Taxed. Enough. Already. they say...and they remember the days when things were good. The funny part is, the days that current Republicans become so nostalgic for were neither romantic for Women or Minorities, but they were also spurred by MASSIVE government spending in almost every sector of the economy. Moreover, tax rates are lower now than they have been since, what, the fifties?

I sometimes get the impression Obama wants to just put the ball up and go home. Not because he's defeated, but it's like playing cards with a three year old. They make up rules that don't make sense and just throw down a two and say, "I win!" Any grown up would be exasperated. The unfortunate part is, he has to keep playing because he knows in the end, we must win this fight or the nation will lose in the long term.