IT'S AN ILL WIND that blows no one good. I can once again listen to NPR without cringing! The Left has halted its whinging about the Electoral College and criticizing every breath Bush takes and even the New York Times can now see what a lot of other people saw in W. last year. The New Republic is excellent this week, in particular Peter Beinart's TRB which examines whether certain Leftists are really concerned about a "chilling effect" on free speech or just using any excuse to oppose the war. I've already mentioned below how great Christopher Hitchens has been (here's a nice piece echoing Naipaul on the pursuit of happiness.) Even Jonathan Alter is worth reading these days!

Ken Layne thusly sums up our new found national unity:

Something weird is happening in this country, and it's not just Anthrax and suicide hijackers. The rational people on the Right and Left are finding -- surprise! -- that we have very much in common. We like it here, and we like the world. We like writing, we like stirring up some trouble, we like being alive and free to do what we want, even if that freedom can leave us unemployed now and then. We like to make stupid jokes, we like to insult public figures, and we like to bitch about our government and the cops and the IRS. But if some medieval nut sandwich wants to Tread On Me, I will gladly stand up with Joe Farah and Andrew Sullivan and Al Giordano and Tony Pierce and G.W. Bush and Amy Langfield and Matt Drudge and Matt Welch and Maureen Dowd and Chris Rock and Tom Petty and Kobe Bryant and Heather Havrilesky and Jeff Whalen and we will smite any motherfuckers who want to blow up the world.