If the Republicans COULD HAVE put up somebody stronger than Bush, who after all lost the election, why didn't they?

Lox, you are making a mistake by conflating the things that matter to us with the things we argue about. What matters to most of us is our family. But nobody else knows anything about our family so an argument about that would make no sense. We argue about things like gun control and abortion and such because (1) these are in the public eye and laws and court rulings can make a difference, and (2) they show up some of the fundamental differences in how we feel about human rights and responsibilities.

Alex