Former DNC press secretary Terry Michael issues a blistering call to the opposition party to start espousing genuine opposition to the Iraq war. He calls party household deities such as John Kerry and Joe Biden "quintessential-have-everything-every-way empty suits" and decries an across-the-board failure of political imagination on the Democratic side of the aisle by rousing another taboo subject in debate over the war--the Vietnam conflict:

We can't cut-and-run, the world won't respect us, Vietnam would be in chaos, the "serious" voices told us in the '60s. So we stayed for years, spread more of the chaos we created, and thousands more of my generation were sacrificed, so "serious" men wouldn't have to admit they were wrong. . . . Until major newspapers and networks permit proponents of ending the war now to be taken seriously, Americans will hear no meaningful debate about whether it is in our national interest. The current non-debate is about tactics for muddling on through, rather than purposeful discourse to decide whether to stay or go.

My bet is that most editors and producers will prefer to remain properly housebroken. It's less messy to propagate power than to question it.

It's also less messy to publish such a cri de coeur in the Washington Times--which is apparently the only place where the longtime political communications professional was able to place it. But lest any of this disturb you, just cruise over to the WaPo website, and read the archive of Bernie Goldberg's chat on his new evisceration of the liberal press, "100 People Who Are Screwing Up America." Phew: We had almost forgotten the formula for a second there. All together now: bigfoot liberal media still bad! Hate America and screw it up! -- HOLLY MARTINS

The Non-Debate on the War [Washington Times, courtesy of Hit and Run]

Book: 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America [WaPo Online]