To the extent that one can tune out of politics in this age of 24-hour media, such has been my state for the past week or so. Relatives visiting from abroad gave me an excuse to take a little vacation myself and be a tourist in my own backyard. Although I now live in the East Bay, it was to my old stomping grounds in San Francisco that I went to play tour guide. Showing off San Francisco's surrounding natural beauty and cultural offerings is something I usually enjoy. And, indeed, I did, with one glaring exception. Of course, what...