In one word, "exceptional" partner. I would take a few of your best quotes from this post and restate them here, with a few hearty Amens, but it's impossible to narrow down the choices to just a few. The writing was surely on the wall when you penned this, last year. And I am just so glad that you decided to post it! Your ability to mirror the views of Conservatives is surpassed only by your ability to articulate those views.... 
Oh. MY. GOSH.
You've been inside my head again. I wish the words would come out of MY mouth as well as they have yours.
This is exquisite, true and right. And I'm linking it at geeeeZ. EVERY blogger should.
Imagine that you wrote this last year....and things have only become WORSE? Thank you........I have tears in my eyes. I love this country and it's so good to know others who do, too.
Well said, i feel the same way about the western world, not just America.
"Many Conservative bloggers are now also reacting to the crunch, the negativity and the gloom. I was quite surprised to witness my own lack of enthusiasm to keep pounding the table, to try to repeatedly alert people to the erosion, the cave-in, the slippery descent... shared by many folks who I have admired and read often. I have to consider whether they have lost hope or if they are perhaps concentrating on their own personal preparedness. Maybe both?"
Prior to the election of Hussein, i was hopeful, but not anymore. Too much has been sold out, given up and trashed for us to make it out of this. The very best we can hope for is to survive far diminished. Which still means we trundle off into history, just takes a little while longer.
It affected me as well, Donald. It's hard to continue to say the same things over and over and over again without getting burned out! This is a most excellent post, and I agree with all the comments so far.
Yesterday's Tea Parties gave me more hope though. It seems more people are finally waking up!
Many Conservative bloggers are now also reacting to the crunch, the negativity and the gloom. I was quite surprised to witness my own lack of enthusiasm...
I'm there too. Pile on top of that disheartened attitude some major personal upheavals here at home last week and I find myself unable to concentrate much on blogging right now.
I do also feel as though things are coming to a head. It's a situation that's been brewing for a very long time. I'm normally the type with an eye to the horizon; usually preferring to stow up a few things for "just in case". That has lately been stirred to a fervor. It is sad to see so many clueless sheep and to imagine their bleating when they realize how truly misled they've been. Oh well, what are we now but a group of right-wing extremists furiously clinging to our guns and religion.
A little scary - you are thinking the same way I am. Excellent post.
I too am feeling very low like AOW, and starting to think "why am I doing this (blog)?" Gayle also touched upon some feelings that I'm having - burned out but having a little bit of hope with a TEA party in my little township of 1800 people.
Can't get any more grassroots than that.
YOU my friend have put words to what we are ALL feeling....there is comfort in knowing you re out there..struggling and fighting on!..(hugs!) 
Where are you? I hope everything is okay.
Excellent writing!
We are NOT, as some naive folks claim, at the "beginning of the end of this economic downturn," we are, in fact, at the end of the beginning.
This one seems poised to be HUGE. In the most recent downturns, the private sector recovered BEFORE the public sector was forced to contract. This time, the private sector has contracted so deeply and so widely that the SECOND phase of this is going to be felt by the most spoiled people of all - government workers.
As the private sector continues to shrink, revenues will greatlt contract. What's more, future tax hikes will only decrease those revenues even more, as the top 10% of income earners (who now pay appx 70% of the income taxes) will defer more of their income in tax-deferred vehicles, further reducing tax revenues.
LOWER tax revenues will ultimately and inevitably result in smaller state and Municipal and ultimately, very probably federal budgets and that will mean major cutbacks (the eroding of pension and other benefits and the loss of purchasing power via rampant inflation) and layoffs.
When these workers are impacted...all hell will break loose.
We are now a LOT more spoiled than we were back in the 1970s, so going back to a 1970s styled economy, replete with STAGFLATION won't be acceptable.
The current unemployment rate stands at 9.4%
The money supply has more than tripled over the first four months of this administration....skyrocketing inflation, which will drag UP interest rates is on the way.
It would seem that DOUBLE DIGIT unemployment, inflation and interest rates ("stagflation") is unavoidable and well on the way.
It is doubtful that a far more spoiled nation is going to be able to deal with that.
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