The Bush administration's head-fake on Iraqi WMD has apparently inoculated the American public against a whole class of related afflictions, to the point that otherwise concerned adults determinedly schlep everyone to the mall, slogging through the day, repeating, as with a mantra, "must ... enjoy ... holidays ..." despite the news that al Qaeda is now deeply engaged in a persistent, high profile campaign to seize control of a substantial nuclear arsenal capable of inflicting unprecedented catastrophic damage on India, Israel, Iraq, and countless others across an already volatile region.

One can only hope that responsible government officials are doing the best they can, given the obvious resource constraints, to sift through the haystacks and connect the dots, before the timer expires. Meanwhile, a satiated public idles away the days in front of the television before exercising their democratic rights to select the first "World Idol."

Next week, a well-paid columnist will juxtapose the numbers for American voters in the "World Idol" competition with those of the 2000 Presidential campaign. In a few months, the numbers will reappear alongside those for the first few 2004 primaries.