Re: The Velvet Revolution   [Mark Steyn]

Kathryn, Jonah, that Tom Brokaw comparison between Obama's inauguration and the Czech revolution is, of course, deeply insulting to millions of people around the world who know what it's like to live under a tyrannous regime and aren't so parochial and narcissistic as to confuse it with sitting around over a decaf latte and lo-fat granola bar complaining that Bush is shredding the Constitution because some radio station in Texas hasn't put the Dixie Chicks' "Rock Against Libby" CD into high rotation.

Nevertheless, large numbers of Democrats do sincerely believe that some sort of Velvet Revolution has taken place—that a mass hopey-changey vibe forced the hated Gustav Husak of Crawford to revise his plans to seize power for life and agree to go quietly. And they look on today's events not (as Kathryn does) as the wondrous ritual of an enduring democracy but as a necessary tactical compromise—after which "war crimes" trials and "truth and reconciliation commissions" and all the rest will surely follow.

They won't. Aside from rhetorical feints, Obama has been at pains to emphasize continuity. But in the broader culture I would bet that the delegitimization of the last eight years is set to continue indefinitely.