Judge Prez

The culture of violence, fear and sometimes manufactured terror takes a toll politically and ethically on any democratic society, especially when it becomes the most popular spectacle in town. Unfortunately, the line between fiction and material reality, along with the more hallowed spheres of politics and governance, has collapsed and it has become more difficult to determine one from the other. Forms of violence and violations of civil rights that should be unthinkable in a democracy are now lauded as necessary and effective tactics in the war on terrorism, and so rarely subject to critical interrogation. Some of the more notable transgressions are evident in former Vice-President Dick Cheney's infamous statement to Tim Russert on NBC's Meet the Press in which he stated that the Bush administration would have to "work ... the dark side" and the 2006 comment by John Brennan in which he claimed that we have "to take off the gloves" in some areas in order to wage a war against terrorism. And while torture has been denounced by President Obama, the administration has in actuality created a new foundation for violating civil rights and promoting human abuses.

way more, sad but true:
http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/14483-the-shooting-gallery-obama-and-the-vanishing-point-of-democracy

and if you can stomach it, this disappointing poll:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57568828/poll-45-approve-of-obamas-handling-of-the-economy/