The Importance Of Being "Earnest"

I have to admit that Kirsten Powers really tickled my funny bone this morning.

ASK passers-by on any street in America what their top issue is for the upcoming presidential election, and they'll all answer the same thing: the Foreign Service Intelligence Act.

Gas prices, home foreclosures, the Iraq war - all pale in comparison. Single mothers gathered at the laundromat are all talking about one thing: FISA.

And if you get them to stop yammering on about immunity for telecoms, you won't be able to shut them up about their next favorite outrage: Barack Obama's decision to opt out of public financing.

Don't believe it? Then - unlike many left-wing bloggers and activists, known as the "net roots" - you're in touch with reality.

Now to be honest, all bloggers have a tendency to do this. We all tend to take ourselves a little too seriously, which is one reason why hanging around with guys like Mitch and Foot and the Fraters Guys and the Anti-Strib crew are necessary. A little humor, especially of the self deprecating variety is good for the mental outlook and for the humility. It is also a good reminder that there is more to life than politics. You have to come up for air every once in a while in order to clear your head. It also helps you to realize the one thing that a lot of us seem to forget when we lock ourselves in the rarefied air of the echo chamber.

The true believers' passion is admirable - but, at some point, grownups realize that they can't get everything their way. Instead, left-wing activists can seem emotionally stunted - always seeking the mountaintop experience, when governing happens in the valleys.

As a very wise legislator once told me - sometimes you have to go about the business of governing and in business you sometimes have to negotiate. When negotiating, you don't always get everything you want but if you are a good enough negotiator......