Seriously is not the same as literally, Mr. Noah. We do have to watch out that folks like Tommy Boy don't get their hands on sharp objects let alone nukes (yes, these people write our laws). However, your article's brand of Alterman-esque hyper-literal ball-busting is not the tool for that job. In fact it's a big part of why we lose eminently winnable elections. We spend outsized time and energy in, yes, reactionary outrage against the right's "bad cops" while the Keystone Kops in real power stumble and bumble their way rightward -- good thing they're largely incompetent. We can certainly dismiss moronic ideas like Tancredo's, but the larger "war on terror" is moronic and can't possibly work. We need to control the debate, not simply froth on cue.