I really like David Brook's column today. (Did I really say that?) Cable personalities give so much attention to Beck and his like and to tea-baggers and birthers and their like--they seem more numerous than they are. I hate to realize that I get confused over whether these nut cases represent the Republican or conservative mainstream.

But as Brooks points out, these people aren't mainstream Republicans. The press invents this--along with endless focus on celebrities and certain select missing persons. Can we return to those days of yesteryear, when both parties had respect for each other, even in the midst of harsh disagreements.