Apparently, I have teleported to Bizarro Earth

A reasonable, cogent, intelligent essay from Fox News?!?

Ron Paul and the Blowback Theory

This editorial concerns the statements by (Libertarian, borderline nutjob) Rep. Ron Paul during the recent Republican debate and Giuliani's ridiculous, flag-waving, anti-intellectual, idiotic response.

Perhaps, Paul suggested, the 15-year presence of the U.S. military forces in Muslim countries may have motivated them [the 9/11 attackers]. For that, Giuliani excoriated him, calling it an "extraordinary statement," adding, "I don't think I've heard that before."

Let's be blunt. Giuliani was either lying, or he hasn't cracked a book in six years.

The "blowback" theory isn't some fringe idea common only to crazy Sept. 11 conspiracy theorists. It doesn't suggest that we "deserved" the Sept. 11 attacks, nor does it suggest we shouldn't have retaliated against the people who waged them.

What it does say is that actions have consequences.

. . .

After last week's debate, reaction to Paul from pro-war types was swift and severe. The head of the Michigan GOP demanded he be excluded from future debates.

Several activists have called for him to be purged from the Republican Party (given what the GOP stands for these days, perhaps that's not such a bad idea). One former staffer declared Paul an "embarrassment" and announced he'd challenge Paul for his seat in Congress.

This is all patently absurd. Actually, it's offensive. No one knows precisely what morbid formula inspired the Sept. 11 attacks. Most likely, it was some mix of U.S. foreign policy exacerbating radical Islamists' already deep-seeded contempt for Western values.

But to suggest that we shouldn't even consider that our actions overseas might have unintended consequences is, frankly, just ignorant. And to attempt to silence anyone who says otherwise as outside the bounds of civilized debate is doubly ignorant.

Damn straight.

Have we really fallen so far that jingoistic, unthinking sloganism is the only response we can give to complex world politics?

Obviously for some in America, the answer is an emphatic "Yes! And if you don't like it, leave."