A seven hour drive will give you time to think. And I thought about a point on Radley Balko’s take on the Duke affair.

I don’t think that race played that big a role here on the “law and order” Right wingers who jumped to these guys’ defense. Granted, they probably would not have been as vociferous if this had been a pretty white cheerleader accusing three illegal immigrants (althought they defended Kobe Bryant when he was accused). Granted, they reflexively defend Scooter Libby to the point of absurdity (although they didn’t defend Duke Cunningham or Jack Abramof).

But I think a bigger issue for them was the people advocating for the victim — Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton. The minute the Right heard these guys thought the Duke trio were guilty, they just KNEW they were innocent. And it’s kind of depressing that our political — and legal — landscape has been reduced to ateam sport. Those guys think one thing, so I must think the opposite. It applies to the Left, too — or perhaps you’ve missed the people reflexively opposing everything Bush does, including massive hikes in social spending. People decide their opinions based on whose side they want to be on.

I used to joke that my default stance on any political issue was to find out what Hilliary Clinton though and support the opposite. It’s distressing that this sort of thinking is becoming all too literal for a significant faction of the American political body.

PS – And is Nancy Grace a fricking coward, or what?