We're mad. They're a mob. There's a difference

• A Republican Mob Scene - Slate
• McCain Supporter Rants About "Hooligan" Obama And "Socialist" Takeover -- And McCain Agrees - The Huffington Post
• McCain's Ayers Attacks Backfire - The Nation

You know how I keep harping on the claim that liberals are just more decent people than conservatives? You're probably tempted to argue that such a claim is simplistic, painting a large and diverse group of people with too broad and partisan a brush. Which is an eminently reasonable response--for which reason I'm eminently tempted to agree with it, and to withdraw my overstatement. But then certain...things...happen, and I can't help but believe that Democrats would never act this way. It's as if we libs are the grown ups of the polity, and conservatives are the self-centered, emotionally volatile, low-information teens -- not to overgeneralize.

LATE ADDITION: Dan Balz’s Corrupted Journalistic “Balance” - Salon