Out of it

I'm sorry I've not posted in awhile; I tore a muscle in my neck and I have been struggling to stay on an even keel for work. The pain is nearly constant, regardless of how I move (or don't move) my head and neck. I'm not here to complain, but I thought I'd let you all know why I disappeared for a week. I've been listening to the Senate debates over the last week or so as well, and my first impression is that Rick Santorum is a rabid dog and needs to be put down. His self-righteous anger is palpable and polarizing beyond all common decency for such an august body as the Senate.
The Senate was designed originally to be a more patrician, thoughtful, almost elitist chamber of debate and compromise. Senators are in office for 3 times as long as House members, theoretically so that they can vote their consciences more often and spend more time researching and thinking about issues. This status, however, has eroded to where the Senate is no more elite or thoughtful than the House. While Senators only run for office every 6 years, apparently they also need more money to do so, meaning that their campaigns are just as constant as those of Congresspeople, and their voting is (potentially) just as compromised by donor money.
One would like to think that even so, those skilled/fortunate enough to be elected to the Senate would be more inclined to think and vote as individuals rather than party hacks or automatons, if only out of respect for the country they all profess to love so much. One would be wrong, however, about the current members on the Republican side "of the aisle". The most persuasive argument I've seen for this lack of independence was the statistic Sen. Schumer of New York has shown on a number of occasions. The Republicans have voted 2703-1 in favor of Smirky's judicial nominations. That is ridiculously clear evidence of the mindlessness of Senate Republicans; it is impossible to believe that these people have given any thought at all to those votes, and that is shameful indeed.