[Jeff Higgins]

I'm 44, Denis. I'll readily admit I was either too young or not paying attention during most of those administrations. It just seems to me that some of our current zeal, either for or against whoever happens to be in office, is much greater than in the past. I have always thought it might be due to the loud-mouth moron talk radio personalities on the one side and the quite clueless Hollywood liberal types and intellectual elitists on the other. I remember it as ramping up during the Clinton years from the likes of Limbaugh and company. Those of us that more or less straddle the fence (purples?) are often amazed at how virulent the avowed blues and reds get. Often to the obvious detriment of achieving anything at all or working together in any way. And now the assumptions made about a leader's personality or character; I prefer to make those judgements after I have gotten to know some one. Judge their actions and policies and work to support the ones you like and change the ones you don't. To judge a leader as immoral (Clinton) or stupid (Bush) is impossible from our vantage point.