Rats!

I found myself listening to Rush Limbaugh (Air America wasn't available) when the announcement came of the choice of the new pope. A sense of dread infused me kind of like election night 2004 when the announcement came. Ratzinger. Rats!

Rush was all over himself congratulating the conservative movement for another triumph and bashing the liberal media for even bothering to speculate that there might have been another outcome. Yeah, like the last pope who had the courage to tell George Bush his war was wrong.

Yep, I can't deny it, Rush is right. The vise is tightening and those who would seek to control our every move and block off every escape route have us by the short 'n curlies. They've brought us war for lies, a bankrupt government, sound-byte education policies and bankruptcy reform designed by the credit card companies that can bump up your interest rate to 25%. You can't opt out because they own everything and you have to play along. I keep waiting for signs of the revolution, but they seem ever further away.

Catholics and these new evangelicals make strange bedfellows. Other conservative radio I listened to yesterday walked a fine line between Catholic-bashing and praise for a pope who looks like a Karl Rove wannabe. Ratzinger's last post was as head of the Vatican office that was still called the Inquisition until 1908, fer friggen sakes. I wonder what's on Benedict XVI's iPod? A lot of Wagner, I imagine.