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There are a couple of ways to assume leadership. One is to strike out boldly, marching to the drumbeat of the doctrine you have all your faith and trust in, or another is simply to find a parade already in progress, and get around in in front of it. In either case, it is necessary to glance back from time to time and see if anybody is still there.

A couple of the parades out there have shrunken to a rather small contingent. Is it the fault of the leader, or is it a fault of the drummer? Now in the event that the large parade is the one you have chosen to set yourself up to lead, how much of a chance is there to change the rhythm of the drummer? How about the tempo of the change?

People out there in the mushy middle vote for either the Republican or the Democrat, depending on how comfortable they are with the direction of one or the other. In recent years, the Republican party has veered over and scooped up a number of these "sunshine" voters, and is being as careful as they are able to avoid spooking them. The Democrats have been going berserk over on the other side trying to lure these same voters back, and not being able to prove their case. So if the intention is to make the other side nuts, Bush is following exactly the right track. And I believe he genuinely enjoys the spectacle of the rivals melting down. Part of the reason for sitting down to a hand of poker, winning the pot is only incidental to the greater satisfaction of humbling the biggest braggart at the table.

Crazed people do not have good judgment, and their actions are as likely as much a risk to themselves as they are to those in their near vicinity. But their overall influence is rather limited, and they do not leave a lasting effect on the big picture.

Those who hold what are considered to be minority opinions may eventually succeed in converting the majority to that opinion, but the effort takes considerable time and concentration on the task at hand, as well as a steady and unwavering vision.

The end result, two or three decades down the road, may not look anything like the original concept, but it will be a much better fit for its times.