Source:www.telegraph.co.uk

President Bush's approval ratings are in the toilet along with most of his political decisions.

The mid-term elections are just around the corner and it's starting to look as if the Republican Party is going to lose quite a few seats in the House, and possibly the Senate.

If the current polls are at all accurate one has to believe that the probable move away from Republican control is a referendum on Bush's performance.

The Dixie Chicks lead singer, Natalie Maines, it seems, foretold the future, when she stated that she was ashamed that Bush was from Texas, since it now appears that most of the rest of the country feels ashamed that he's from the U.S.A.

Her remark, which triggered the now famous, "shut up and sing," remark from one of Bush's better educated worshippers, led to a virtual ban on the playing of their music by many of the nation's radio stations.

To me this is nothing short of a form of indirect censorship. I'm sure the White House put pressure on broadcasters to bring this about, and I'm wondering if this is the beginning of state controlled entertainment, and mind control.

Maines didn't say anything threatening, inflammatory, or unpatriotic; she merely expressed her feeling that Bush was misguided in his handling of the situation in Iraq.

The whole concept of this country revolves around the people's right to dissent and voice their disagreement with the actions of our elected and appointed officials.

Whether or not one agrees with the Dixie Chicks, who continue to be publicly critical of the present administration, despite the loss of some fans and income, you have to admire them for not backing down.

Here's the link to an excellent article about the Dixie Chicks protest to Bush's handling of the war.