How to get out of a speeding ticket

I was driving to work about a week ago and pass a cop. He flashes his lights, turns around and pulls me over. He walks up and asks me that stupid question they always ask: "Do you know why I pulled you over?"

I basically ignored the question and just handed him my license, registration and insurance card. "Here you go, sir."

"I clocked you going 55 in a 40 back there."

"40? I thought it was 45, sir."

"Nope 40. Have you received any speeding tickets in the past year."

"Yes, sir. One."

"OK."

He walks back to his car. After about 5 minutes, he comes back to my car.

"Mr. Moyer. I see you have 3 speeding tickets since 2001. I can see just giving you speeding tickets isn't doing anything to slow you down. There just not having any effect on you."

At this time, my heart starts pounding and I'm thinking "He can't just take my license away!"

"So, Mr. Moyer, since tickets aren't making any difference I'm just giving you a warning and asking you to PLEASE SLOW DOWN."

So the key to not getting a ticket? Make sure you already have a bunch on your record.

Dems

Let me start with the disclaimer that I'm not a Republican.

With that out of the way...The Democratic Party has unfortunately positioned itself so that any news that is good for our country in the Iraq war is bad for them and any bad news for the country in Iraq is good for the Dems. That's a pretty tough place to put themselves and perhaps says a lot about the party (I'm speaking of the party and the lemmings who follow it religiously).

Now a lot of changes are happening in the Middle East. The Iraqi election went well, the Lebanese are kicking out the Syrians and the Syrians are handing over former Iraqi officials they magically just found. A lot of positive things are developing.

Now, it's not going to be a bed of roses. Things are still going to be tough and there will be setbacks, like the bombing in Iraq a couple days ago that killed well over 100 people. But things at least seem to be moving in a postive direction.

So my question is, can those who predicted disaster and invested their reputations so deeply in it, be happy about this? Can their irrational hatred for President Bush keep them from grudgingly admitting that maybe what we did was not just right but effective?

Jon Stewart of the daily show is struggling with this same question but seems sane enough to admit it was right and effective (if it turns out that way).

But that is why is is dangerous when a political party positions itself where all bad news for the country is good news for them. That's why many who call that party home feel their patriotism being questioned (though it often isn't).