Reader “Jessica” comments on our post taking note of the strange new chic that the terrorist group Hezbollah (kidnapper of Israelis, murderer of U.S. Marines) has taken on for our liberal pundits, including blogsters James Wolcott, Daily Kos, and Matthew Yglesias. (See Hip, Hip, Hezbollah!, March 10). The idea seems to be: Hezbollah hates George W. Bush, and we do too! Jessica writes: 


“Matthew Yglesias, who has denounced Iraqi elections during U.S. intervention, supports democracy in Lebanon under Syrian occupation….Either one believes democracy can exist under foreign occupation or intervention, or they don’t believe so….But it shouldn’t be surprising that a liberal would support democracy under a terrorist organization that has killed many civilians posing as a political party because Hezbollah is not American, and by now, it should be widespread knowledge that by and large liberals, to quote Ann Coulter, ‘love America like O.J. loves Nicole.'”


Yes, I don’t get how anyone can say with a straight face as Yglesias does: “[I]t’s never really been clear to me why people thought they could blithely conflate Lebanese democracy with Syrian pullback from Lebanon. These are just different things. Interrelated, yes, but still different.”


OK, here’s another way to put it, Matthew: Different, yes, but still interrelated.