[I]s Bush's resignation / impeachment our goal?

In a word, no. [...] The goal now is realignment. Bush's disapproval is so high, and his position as the face of the Republican Party is so assured, that it is now possible to envision a vast national realignment away from the Republican Party based primarily on backlash against Bush-ism (aka, contemporary conservatism). Bush Sr.'s extended period of disapproval at this level led to the Perot and 1994 realignment, which helped us greatly in 1992 but on which we utterly failed to capitalize in 1994. Carter's extended period of disapproval led to the 1980 realignment, which saw Republicans sweep the senate and the White House, as well as the first serious defections of Dixiecrats from the Democratic Party. Johnson's extended struggles from 1966-1968 also led to a realignment in 1968.

Bush's approval is now low enough for a realignment to take place in 2006 and 2008. A realignment is far more important to Democrats and progressives than Bush's impeachment or resignation could ever be. This is a generational event and, considering the timing of previous realignments, 1968, 1980 and 1992-4, the timing also suggests that the opportunity is ripe. Also, the realignment will clearly come from Independents, not disaffected Republicans, as Jerome first envisioned several months ago, and as I have also documented as well. As Ruy Teixiera has called it, the opportunity before us is the Indycrat realignment.

This is it. This is our chance--our once in a generation window. If we keep Bush's approval low, results like we saw for Paul Hackett on August 2nd and across the country on November 8th will become the norm. Apart from withdrawal, I'm not even sure we need a major platform adjustment or roll-out. People pretty much already know what we stand for. As long as they grow convinced that Bushism doesn't work, they will come over to our side.

We probably won't get another chance like this for at least another decade, so we have to make it count. There are 1089 days between now and November 4th, 2008, the day of the next Presidential election. Make it happen. [Emphasis added -- Ed]

Kos:

We have bigger fish to fry than getting even against Bush for his misdeeds. Bush has three years of radioactive lame duck-ness left in his term. The key isn't to replace him with another Republican. The key is to use his every day in office to drive him to the American public the cost we pay as a nation for electing Republicans to office.

And as far as legacies go, what would be worst -- destroying his own presidency or destroying his entire party? Let's make sure it's the latter.

So can we please lay off the impeachment talk? Number one, it ain't going to happen, number two, we really don't want it to happen. And number three, it's a terrible waste of time and energy. As Chris and Kos point out, there's a real, positive way to put that energy to use that doesn't involve impossible fairy-tales and self-delusion.

And speaking of self-delusion, there's this, quoted on dKos from Powerline:

It must be very strange to be President Bush. A man of extraordinary vision and brilliance approaching to genius, he can't get anyone to notice. He is like a great painter or musician who is ahead of his time, and who unveils one masterpiece after another to a reception that, when not bored, is hostile.

I mean, huh? What the hell can these people be smoking? Are they so utterly deluded that they really believe this, is the need for self-deception so strong that they've convinced themselves of this balderdash? What the HELL is going on that people with enough intelligence to string together words with inherent meaning can be so incredibly STUPID as to believe this? Is the cult of personality so strong that everything else blurs away to nothing?

I don't fucking get it. Maybe some of my friends are right and there's some kind of mass hysteria going on, and Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and Bill O'Reilly are only the best known exemplars of it. If that's the case, then we don't just need a new president, and to turn the Congress over to the care of the party of rational adults, we also need an army of shrinks to help cure a third of the country. Should we be dumping anti-psychotic medication in the drinking water?

What gives?

Let us please try to remain always firmly a part of the reality-based community, and not get carried away by our enthusiasms (as in the "Fitzmas" expectations bubble). The future of our country rather depends on someone remaining rational.