Bitter than you

When a controversy arises over someone's choice of words, I've always found it helpful to consult a dictionary to find the exact definition of the word(s) in question. In the internet age, it's easy to do, because clicking a link will allow access to several dictionaries in an instant.

The word in dispute at the moment is bitter, as used by Obama in reference to a segment of the population that has been ignored, lied to, and treated like idiots by their elected officials. Judging by the angry outcry in some quarters, one might think he'd called them something nasty, like my favorite 12-letter cussword. The real purpose of the whining is to distract people from actually thinking about the point that was being made.

I looked up the definition, and I guarantee you can find lots of bitter people in this country. Listen to the people who call conservative talk radio programs, or read the comments following news articles in USA Today and the Houston Chronicle, then tell me that isn't bitterness coming to the surface.

One reason things are like they are is that most people either don't vote, or if they do vote, they're too easily distracted by fluff like this. Obama was closer to the cold, hard truth than most people want to admit. And for the record, I'm one of the bitter Americans Obama talked about. Except for the part about clinging to my guns and religion, you can put me on the list.