Morons on both sides

I've never understood the point of any politician bringing up Adolf Hitler or the Nazi regime, especially when they do so in comparison to something in modern times.  The Third Reich was the most oppressive, heinous regime ever.  There's no point in comparing anything to it.  You're only going to look ridiculous doing so.

Which brings me to the senior Senator from my home state, Dick Durbin.  He is in the middle of his second six year term, and until a year or so ago, he was a fairly quiet public official.  In the aftermath of the 2004 elections, he was elevated to the second highest position in rank among Democrats in the Senate, the minority whip.

Durbin is fairly liberal, which makes him an easy target among the more conservative media, and most of the time he ignores it.  It hasn't hurt his approval ratings much, as he was re-elected in 2002 with almost 70% of the vote. 

However, Dick put his foot in his mouth this week, and he did it by rolling out Hitler and the Nazis.  He compared the Guantanamo prison camp in Cuba to one of many historical oppressive regimes, including the Holocaust.

A little much, no?  There's no point to it.  Of course the United States does not resemble any of those regimes.  To even suggest that it does eliminates any shred of credibility.  I'm not sure of Durbin's motivation, but there would seem to be a better way to present his thoughts.  Maybe Dick's nervous about the presence of Barack Obama, who has the making of a political superstar, stealing his Illinois mo-jo. 

On the other side, there's Florida governor Jeb Bush, who seems hell-bent on keeping Terry Schiavo alive, in a relevant sense.

I won't rehash the results of the autopsy that were made public earlier this week, other than to reiterate that she was irreversibly brain damaged with no hope of recovery.  That isn't my opinion, that is a fact from the medical examiner.

Today Jeb announced that he has requested an investigation into the time frame that Michael Schiavo gave regarding when he first called paramedics when his wife collapsed in 1990. 

I should also mention that the autopsy results could not give a definitive reason why Terry Schiavo's heart stopped.  Jeb Bush seems to know why, though, and it looks like he will not stop until he can pin the blame on Michael.

And a special mention to Penn. senator Rick Santorum, who was hell-bent in keeping Schiavo alive.  After the autopsy results, Santorum, instead of acknowledging the facts, simply said that any incident where a state is attempting to end the life of an individual must come under federal review.

Say Rick, what about that death penalty that you so adamantly support, that you have said before is a states' rights issue?  Should that now fall under federal jurisdiction?

Dick, Jeb and Rick, you're not thinking right.  It's summer, maybe it's time for a vacation, boys.