American conservatives are fond of jeremiads. Everywhere they look, they see flabby morals and flagging virtue. Children? We used to punish them for whispering in class, now they come to school with guns. Families? No one wants to get married any more, except the gays. Government? Never so bloated and corrupt. Our allies? Never so pusillanimous or venal. It's quite a trick to seize power in every corner of American politics - as conservatives have in the past decade - only to announce loudly that things were never worse.

LRB 23 September 2004 | PDF Download