Another loser not receiving much attention at the moment: Al Gore.

If you think about it, this election will color the way we look back at 2000. Instead of symbolizing a figure that came thisclose to winning the Presidency, Gore will be relegated to the footnote pile, ala Mondale, Dukakis, Dole, McGovern etc.

He *was* probably young enough to reinvent himself and emerge as an "elder statesmen" down the road, such as Nixon did, and would have been emboldened to do such if Bush was a one-hit wonder.

Alas, to paraphrase Paul Simon...You can't call him President, but you can call him Al.

But now...

On some blog (maybe this one) late Wednesday, somebody said something on the order of "It's not sufficient to revel in our side's victory, it's also to necessary to enjoy the loser's misery". In other words, schadenfreude. (I've always found it interesting -- with some pride-- that there's not even a word with that meaning in English.)

It's going to take some rare set of special circumstances to afford an opportunity to START trying to return civility to political dialogue in this country. I think we're blowing such an opportunity now.

When the possibility loomed that Bush could win the popular vote but lose the electoral college (we missed that by around 100,000 votes in Ohio), I frantically looked for a way to get out the message that it would be most effective if Repubs would graciously accept that, act like adults, and set an example (perhaps while giving a civics lesson to those who don't understand, nor appreciate, the electoral college concept).

For weeks, I've read dailykos.com quite regularly, and participated in the comments over there (until my sign-on with this name was blocked). The vituperation over there before the election was outrageous and unbelievable. Wednesday and Thursday about one message out of 10 mentioned (seriously) assasination. If that in any way represents the rank and file among democrats, we need some leadership from somewhere to reach those people, break through their arrogance and screwed up thinking. A little less gloat from this side and a little more gentlemanliness might pave the way to do that.

Yes, I said that.

A little less gloat from this side and a little more gentlemanliness might pave the way to do that.

It may be self-serving to say but I really, really doubt that, Deona.

Let me put it like this: Have you ever really been mollified that a boyfriend who was breaking up with you said "but I'd still like to be friends"? Or have you ever really appreciated that someone didn't lie about cheating on you, but "merely" cheated?

Losing is traumatic anyway, and especially for these idiots, who are really, really wrapped up in Bush hatred. How much better would it have been had we crushed them but then those on the right said, "There, there. You are still American citizens" ?

That's the equivalent of "Let's just be friends." No one ever says, "WOW! Friends! That's pretty darn good, too! All right, I'll take 'friends!' With bells on!"

1. If you didn't notice, Bush's victory speech came with the whole Cheney family there, including Mary Cheney and her partner...a nod, along with Bush's campaign statement that he is not unalternately opposed to civil union laws - that Bush will not let religious extremists dictate the makeup of the Republican Party. He will accept their chits on partial birth abortion, parental notification, oppose gay marriage - but he will not purge the Party of those the Religious Right dislikes. Bush also has the moderate wing of the Party he must work with.

2. Losers? Teddy and Chuck Schumer's next 4 Supreme Court nominations list just got teared on and torn up. Feinstein, Schumer, and Feingold's gun ban dreams got trashed. Hollywood is a big loser - not just the rope chain of liberal boobs being shown as fools - but Hollywood execs starting to realize that their usual Leftist gruel being dished out on TV shows and the movies isn't being swallowed as much by the gentiles anymore.

3. More losers? Michael Moore. The MSM after the CBS investigation results come out, and the books on how the 3 networks, LA Times, NYTimes, Boston Globe, PBS, etc went in the tank for the Democrats. Michael Moore. Jesse Jackson and Rev Al shown to be irrelevant to a black community ready to finally move past the early sixties.

4. Losers for the Republicans? The Big Pharma Welfare Package - after passage, Big Pharma jacked up American prices another 8% while agreeing to lower Canadian, Japanese, and Euro prices another 7%. The trade deficit which will continue to destroy the dollar and may cause OPEC to abandon the dollar and peg oil to the more steady Euro until the US fixes it's trade problems. Bush's huge deficits and need to create a 1 trillion transition account for reforming Social Security - will make more tax cuts to his beloved "wealthy folks" harder to get - Mandate or not.

You're dead right about E.J. Dionne. Next to that old fool Danial Schorr, Dionne is the most inept commentator working in big media today.

As for Estrich, how 'bout that face lift. She may look a little younger, but still sound like your 70-year-old aunt, the one with the four-pack a day habit.

Speaking of losers. I watched Real Time with Bill Maher last night. I'm sick of the man, but the gloating opportunity was far too good to pass up. Well worth seeing former Senator Alan Simpson tear Maher a new one.

The shocker? Andrew Sullivan . . . defending conservative Christians. A complete WTF?! moment. By god, the man sounded like *gasp* a conservative. Flipped over to his website, and there again, he rejects the notion that the election was nothing more than a queer bashing festival. And, he's optimistic about Iraq.

Am I on drugs? Is Sullivan?

Someone's bowin down to his new Republican daddy.

I kind of figured he'd do that. He had his brief outburst Tuesday night/Wednesday morning about how it was the gay-haters that got Bush elected before he pulled a "...uh...heh...so...can you take me back now?"

Trusting him as an ally is about as smart as trusting Pat Buchanan. He'll pull the same stunt soon enough.

Rob: I think you meant: "Someone is BENDING OVER FOR his new Republican daddy."

Mmmmmmmm . . . Shasta black cherry soda enema . . .

"... he still talks like Cindy Brady after she loses a tooth."

Now, that's why Ace is a funny guy.

Anyone notice how Matt Welch and, especially, Ken Layne, have show their asses on this one? 2 more losers.

Back in my salad days (when I was green), I gave Andy Sullivan $40. Now I give him my contempt.

I think McCain is trouble. I think he had his spine removed by the VC. Can you imagine him in the Zell Miller mode? Well, neither can I. There's no righteous indignation toward our enemies--he exists to sit on the fence and be wooed down on one side or the other. Same thing with Bill O'Reilly. How did we let this arrogant sonofaB attain such acclaim? He's a nasty self-promoting fencesitter.

You see, for me the test are the 240 swiftvets and how they were treated by these two guys.

Rumor is Wonkette got a $250K advance for her novel.

Wish I could lose and get slapped with that kind of punishment. But then, I don't talk about taking it in the pooper, either.

Most of the time, anyway.

As a Republican, I keep having this terrible dream:

It's election day 2008, and I must choose between Hillary Clinton and John McCain for President.

I mean, do I vote for the evil dyke bitch that I trust as far as I can throw her...

Or do I vote for Hillary?

I'm currently imagining a nekkid Andrew Sullivan saying "Take me back, Equus", and I'm not enjoying it one bit.

Hide your garden tools.

Why is Mary Cheney a loser from the elections of 2004?

She's obviously in good standing with her family and the boss. Whatever she has to say privately will be taken a lot more seriously than anything the Log Cabin Republicans might say now. Or Andrew Sullivan for that matter.

Being gay doesn't make you a loser. Being a backstabber who bet on the wrong side makes you a loser.

Also, everyone who took a swing at Mary Cheney lost: Alan Keyes, John Edwards and John F. Kerry, all losers.