You know things are bad for the country when the prospects for the Democrats is at an all-time high, and yet none of them are celebrating.  That's been the situation these days in Washington as our congresspeople put the world on the brink of financial collapse in order to whine about how unfair it is that a watered-down version of universal healthcare that was deemed Constitutional by the Supreme Court and voted on by their bodies of legislature, is now the law of the land.

"We don't like it" cried the Republican Party.

"Obama is Hitler!" chanted the Tea Party Wing-nuts.

And that's all well and good.  Well no, it's not.  It's absolutely ridiculous actually.  It's ludicrous that the very people we have elected to represent us feel they have the moral authority to reject any laws they disagree with.  But, let's but this affront to the side for another day.

Make your stand Republicans.  State your case.  Submit your 'point of orders' in the House and the Senate.  But it should go without saying that you don't all up and shut down the government to make that point.  You don't sacrifice the lives of other human beings around the country, scientific research worldwide, and the financial well-being of every American citizen--just to make a stand for your point of view.  That's called a "hissy-fit," and we even admonish young children not to throw them. Here is an easy rule of thumb: If the Koch brothers are supporting the Democratic position (and the ground beneath your feet isn't crackling into world-ending magma) you need to GET YOUR ASS ON BOARD.  That is like a mongoose and a cobra going out for drinks. No, that's like a KKKlansman going down on a black transvestite.  It's a blue moon having a baby while on birth control and using a condom.  If the planets aline, just go with it.

And now, in the immediate aftermath of this self-inflicted disaster which cost the county billions, there are those in the GOP that are flouting this as a victory. As if they have become a they that is somehow completely removed and unaffected by the realities facing this country.  It's as if they have emotionally ceded from this country while simultaneously infiltrating and infusing themselves into its federal government.  It feels a bit psychotic to me.

But maybe Ted Cruz (I mean Rafael Edward Cruz) knows something we don't.  I mean, maybe he only has a year to live and has decided to try to accumulate as much notoriety as possible, in as little time as possible; consequences be damned.  In that case, this shutdown was a win for him.  And it would actually make a lot of sense, finally illuminating the origin of Ted's inexplicable hatred for health care.

As far as I can tell, Cruz has to be holding back some information, because otherwise it would be unfathomable that a guy born in Canada (his mom is a US Citizen) to the son of a Cuban defector, could be so anti-immigration.  He is against any path to citizenship.  Just to be 100% clear on this: "Ted" Cruz supports the position that were his Cuban father, who came to the States illegally to escape Fidel Castro in 1957, to come to Texas today, his son would not want there to be any way for him to become a U.S. Citizen.  Thankfully for the elder Cruz, his son hadn't been hatched yet, and he became a US citizen in 2005.

If Ted Cruz ran the world, not even his own father could be an American.  Pretty cold Rafael, pretty cold.

But back to the GOP celebration:  "We took them to the brink," they say.

"Three cheers for Boehner!"

Unfortunately for them, this time America seemed to be watching.  It was just too crystal clear this time that it was the Republican party's strategy to 'shut that whole thing down' as a response to the impending health care rape.  Liberals may like to believe that the Republican constituency is unintelligent, but everyone understands what it feels like to get screwed over.  And if you are one of the majority of Americans (political party be damned) who is working their ass off just to make ends meet, this shutdown affected you personally.  No amount of talking-head hedging can change that.  (Or, god forbid, denying that there was much of an effect at all, or even a benefit@!)

A political shift is taking place.  The rift emerging between the Tea Party and the other white Republicans has widened into a chasm, and I believe the next set of elections are going to be an eye-opener. Whether or not that will return our government to a state where it can be deemed a "working legislative body" remains to be seen.  Let's check back in a few months when a simple vote to increase the debt limit comes to the Senate again.

Said another way: