Report from the NRO cruise

This is scary. The National Review has a cruise every so often, and Johann Hari of The New Republic paid his money and went along. Johann has provided a character study of the modern, wealthy and powerful conservatives as they let their hair down among themselves.

TNR unfortunately charges for entry to their website, so we are fortunate that Digby has kindly provided enough from Johann's article to whet the appetite. Her is her conclusion:

They were all there, Kate O'Beirne, Kenny boy Starr, even William B Fuckley himself, dyspeptic as ever, proclaiming victory over communism (again) while trying to sidle away from the modern nazi generation he spawned as quietly as possible.

If there is ever any doubt in your mind as to what truly gets these people up in the morning, this lays it to rest. They are so afraid of dark people they must have a supply of Depends on hand at all times. Dinesh D'Souza, who is quite dark himself, tries awfully hard to be one of the "Real Americans" but he must wonder what they think when they see him out of the corner of their eye when they are alone in a ship's corridor after a few too many martoonis. (If he doesn't, he's an even bigger fool than he seems.)

It nearly impossible to believe that these are the people who have been running the world for the last six years --- and they are. These are Dick Cheney and Don Rumsfeld's people. We put a bunch of rich, deluded, paranoid racists in charge of the most powerful nation on earth. It's a miracle we're still alive.

If you have wondered if it is true that conservatives are motivated by fear, and if it is true that they will spend every tax dollar they can get hold of and laud every dead American soldier, sailor and Marine for dying to protect them, wonder no more.

It's true.