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Bah, Humbug!Castigating Christmas at the office.

Compiled by Geoffrey AndersenUpdated Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2006, at 4:13 PM ET

(Continued from page 2)

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Bullshit: when our nation is at war, and arguably the ultimate cause of 1/2 a million deaths over-seas, being "non-political" is a morally repugnant stance. If your country is killing people, then as one who benefits from your country's government, economy, miltary and other institutions, you have a moral duty to take a stance on the killing. It is the status quo that benefits from an ignorant and apathetic body-politic, and thus the powerful who promote ignorance and apathy among our citizenry.

Citing the long tradition of presidents' children who have served in the military or otherwise contributed to the war effort of their times, ARChitect expresses similar distaste for apathy in the face of human casualties:

I was taught to have nothing but contempt for neutrality when people are dying. I don't blame the girls for not pitching into Dad's stupidity--but I do blame them for not taking a stand one way or another. Who gave them the free pass?

I'm reminded of all the times we're told we are a "nation at war." Bullshit. What war? No draft, no rationing, tax cuts--and government officials who won't lead the way, and whose kids obviously don't even believe enough to play a part themselves.

But in practice, whether or not the children of presidents serve in the military is a false litmus test of mor(t)al commitment, points out scout29c: "anybody who knows anything about the military knows that even if the Bush twins had been super gung ho, they would have never been allowed in harms way. No son or daughter of a senator is allowed in danger unless they try and push and force their way into it. The military doesn't want the responsibility of losing a politician's offspring."

As Dallas75 sees it, given the Bush daughters' position of privilege, some minimal engagement in politics is a more than appropriate demand to make of them:

The Bush twins, for the rest of their lives, will enjoy direct economic and social benefits because their father and grandfather were Presidents. Therefore, it's not too much to ask for them to take the war seriously and to make some sacrifice, even just a symbolic sacrifice, that recognizes the war. Maybe they oppose the war - that's fine - make a sacrifice that says so.
Join the Peace Corp, start a non-profit, volunteer with the Red Cross, anything at all. But the twins should at least acknowledge the personal debt they owe the military families fighting daddy's war.

Since there are two of them, couldn't one come out in support and the other in opposition? The polemic continues to flare in Readme, producing one of the better Fray turnouts in recent weeks. Thanks to all who have been visiting since Passport problems were resolved. We're glad to have you back! AC … 5:53pm PST

Thursday, Nov. 30, 2006

Confronting what she sees as a long-standing taboo in mainstream political discourse, Diane McWhorter argues that the comparison of the Bush administration's methods and actions to those of Hitler's Nazi regime—routinely discredited as either the extreme, inflammatory rhetoric of fringe leftists or as disrespectful of the uniqueness of Jewish suffering in the Holocaust—is in fact historically instructive and apropos.

This sparked a firestorm of controversy in the Fray, to the point that the incendiary tone of discussion became the subject of this post by achilleselbow lamenting the "constant narrowing of the public debate to a set of bumper sticker slogans and talking points … But due to poor education, the dumbing down of media, or just plain laziness and anti-intellectualism, people have lost virtually any ability to follow a logical argument." Similarly, MsRawksy calls use of Nazi analogies shameful and "counter productive in debating."