Rob's Blog

Depressive Progressives

My wife, who is a social worker and adamant Democratic supporter, recently made this observation in light of the contentious debate around health care reform. When facing obstacles and frustrations, the Democrats and Liberals tend to wring their hands, blame each other and blame themselves. The Republicans tend to lash out, blame those with whom they disagree, and speak in one voice, right or wrong. Do they really believe that Obama wants to euthanize seniors? Do they really believe that government run health care is an anathema, in the face of the relative efficiency of Medicare, which seniors are loathe to have changed, and the VA health plan? And is he really a Muslim foreigner who wants to turn the U.S. into a socialist republic? Prior to the election I met an otherwise intelligent woman on a plane who was utterly convinced that Obama, if elected, would insist on swearing in on the Koran, not the Bible. Really! In psychological terms, according to my wife, the Democrats suffer from neurosis, whereas the Republicans have a personality disorder. A neurotic blames himself when things go wrong, and is subject to second-guessing and self-recrimination. Someone with a personality disorder sees nothing wrong with himself, lacks introspection, and thinks any problem is caused by "the other guy". Perhaps both parties should undergo some psychotherapy to work out some of these issues, although it's unclear whether that would be covered under the present health care system.

Katie's blog

Before I collapse tonight, I wanted to link to my niece Katie's hysterical blog
Halpyourself . Good work Katie. Keep up the Halper tradition of humor, sarcasm and disbelief!