A feisty liberal take on Obama's "civility"

In his September 11 "New Rule" column, "Float Like Obama, Sting Like Ali," Bill Maher takes exception to President Obama's sweet, conciliatory tone. Excerpt:

The Democrats just never learn: Americans don't really care which side of an issue you're on as long as you don't act like pussies. When Van Jones called the Republicans assholes, he was paying them a compliment. He was talking about how they can get things done even when they're in the minority, as opposed to the Democrats, who can't seem to get anything done even when they control both houses of Congress, the presidency, and Bruce Springsteen.
    I love Obama's civility in the face of such contumely, his desire to work with his enemies, it's positively Christ-like. In college, he was probably the guy at the dorm parties who made sure the stoners shared their pot with the jocks. But we don't need that guy now. We need an asshole.
    ...Stand up for the 70% of Americans who aren't crazy.
    And speaking of that 70%—let's call them the sentient majority—when are we going to actually show up in all this? Tomorrow Glenn Beck's army of zombie retirees are marching on Washington in protest of, well, everything.... [And they did march.]

Are we liberals indeed reluctant to assume the top dog role, much as I had to seek counsel to try to regain my dog's respect?

New real life begins

Before I got home this evening, I studied the advice I received earlier in the day from my friend Eric, who taught the puppy class we took Siegfried to a few months ago:

Status comes from controlling the resources. Whoever controls the food, the door, the play, the affection, is the leader! The ethological¹ definition of dominance is "primary access to limited resources." Think that by making your dog work for his resources, you are showing him that you are to be respected.

    So, before I opened the door to be welcomed home by dear wife and eager dog, I planned my new regimen with Siegfried. Nothing in life would be free. Let's go outside, Siegfried. "Sit." I give him a treat. "Stay." I open the door and step out. "Okay." Siegfried follows. Etc.
    Push-ups: "Sit." I give a treat. "Down." Treat. "Sit." Treat.
    "Siegfried, sit." He sits. I kneel down and pet him and whisper to him.

And it worked amazingly well. Siegfried seems like a different dog already. Key, I think, is having my WalMart nail apron around my waist with potato bits for treats. Really unbelievable how important a little piece of potato is to this wonderful canine.
    And also being firm. Ignoring his prods and nibbles, moving away, approaching with my agenda. I didn't wait to be nibbled at as a sign that he might need to poop. I led him to the door and said, "Sit." Etc. Out in the back yard, he immediately ran back and forth vigorously a couple of times and pooped! (My wife told me later that he'd nibbled her already but wouldn't sit when she told him to, so she hadn't let him out. Very convenient!)
    In a single evening, it seems possible that I might become the top dog. Relative to Siegfried, at any rate, if not to my wife. Thanks, Eric!
_______________

1. I had to look this up (although I'd heard Eric use the term once before):
   e⋅thol⋅o⋅gy  ee-thol-uh-jee, i-thol- (noun) The study of animal behavior with emphasis on the behavioral patterns that occur in natural environments.
   Origin: 1895–1900; earlier, as the study of relations between an organism and its environment < F éthologie, coined by French zoologist I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire (1805–61); see ethos, -logy