Putting a finger on what's been bothering me

I've really been disturbed by the political scene lately, but I haven't been able to quite figure out why. It hasn't been the Democrat victory in November, it hasn't been the ineptitude of Republicans, and it hasn't been the seeming loss of momentum suffered by conservatism. With today's story on Israel's tactical nuke "plan," I've finally figured out what has been bothering me. 2007 seems like it could be a very dangerous year. Iran, in particular, is going to take world events in directions we don't want them to go. Yet there have been two twin obsessions here in the United States this fall and early winter: The 2008 presidential elections and the quote-unquote fact that the war in Iraq is unwinnable. The source of my discontent is that we are in serious danger of being caught unaware again in 2007 as we collectively pick lint out of our belly buttons and gaze in the wrong directions.