AT LONG LAST, after a grueling primary season attacking president George W. Bush as pro-life and too bellicose, the Democrats have come up with their dream candidate. And wouldn't you know, he's a pro-life Republican who's keen on the war in Iraq. Just what they wanted, you might say sarcastically, but it turns out that they do: What they want is John McCain, Arizona's long-term Republican senator, whom they want to pair with their nominee, John F. Kerry, in what would be the mother of all balanced tickets: right and left, West and East, outspoken and "nuanced," galvanic and dull....