In Which Zandar Answers Your Burning Questions

Over at Balloon Juice, Doug asks:

I think it’s fair to ask, and I don’t mean this in a snarky way: is the Taliban this crazy? If one made an honest, detailed comparison between the beliefs of Republican rank-and-file and the beliefs of Taliban rank-and-file, what conclusions would one reach? This is a serious question.

Serious answer:  The Taliban are in fact ready to sacrifice themselves in order to defeat their enemies and to impose power.  Republicans are a lot smarter...they're willing to sacrifice anyone else but themselves in order to defeat their enemies and impose power.