I have been astonished by the number of people who have rushed to defend John McCain against charges of hypocrisy on the subject of torture.  An article by Michael Scherer in the April 10 edition of Time magazine is typical of the pervasively sloppy thinking among McCain apologists.

But on this latest piece of legislation, which arose during the heat of the primary campaign and may surface again later this month, McCain sided with Bush in opposing a further restriction of CIA techniques. Despite the claims of some partisans, McCain's decision was not a flip-flop, but rather the continuation of a position he took in 2005 when he first championed a bill to restrict the Bush Administration's ability to mistreat detainees.

Flip-flop charges only seem to stick for Democrats, not saintly public servants like John McCain or wormtongues like Joe Lieberman. The sad truth is that there is no flip to McCain on torture, just flop.

So enough with the "When a Man Loves a Woman" act.

If she's bad he can't see it
She can do no wrong

Two months ago, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof noted John McCain's flip flop on torture, but concluded that "Mr. McCain truly has principles that he bends or breaks out of desperation and with distaste. That’s preferable to politicians who are congenital invertebrates."  

I'm just guessing here, but the people who have been killed due to the Bush Administration's torture policies probably wouldn't find anything "preferable" about John McCain's "desperation and distaste" with selling them out.

As a break from the candidate wars, let us unite and focus our derision on the stupidity of our chattering class.  They really are driving me to drink at this point. That's about the only antidote to these idiots who continue to plague our discourse.  Every once in awhile, a new one pops up, and the optimist in me goes, "Finally, here's a new reporter who will actually do his/her job and not feed us with unending Joe Klein-esque bullshit."

And then, predictably, they write something that crushes my spirit and optimism yet again (and leads me to a bottle of Jack...).  Follow me below the fold to see the newest atrocities perpetuated by Time's new Swampland blogger, Michael Scherer.