Yer right, he is an idiot. Even if he is a very effective one. Sad to say, I have learned a lot from watching his progress over the last few years... most of it having to do with how one gets their way by manipulating, and then how one avoids accountability.

i can't say that I'm "proud to be an American under the Red White and Blue..." however. Even though I did serve in the military. What do I care about the flag, or where I come from ? If a dictator took over tomorrow and turned this into a horrible country, I would still have those, but what would they be worth ? It's not the symbol, it's the substance. That's why we didn't bother "pledging allegiance" to the flag (though we did salute it). Instead we took an oath to "defend the country against enemies, both foreign and domestic". It's not the flag that counts, it's what's behind the flag. If that disappears and you're still proud of the flag and the country, well... let's just say I like to avoid any confusion and would rather not invest any reverence in the flag in the first place. Or in other symbols,

As for Bush... notice that he respects the symbols... which for many is sufficient... but in the actual substance, he's a disaster. Sort of the difference between looking to what he says, versus what he does.