Word: insisting
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...father and grandfather and the burdens and advantages that came with his birthright; he throws credit their way like garlands. In the Bush universe, the subject is a private matter. Indeed, even as he honors his father and worships his example, George W. Bush never misses a chance to insist that what he has accomplished he has done on his own, by his own efforts and talents and grit. He touts his record as a successful businessman without acknowledging how much of his success reflected the financial backing of his father's friends and their desire to be associated with...
...that free will comes from society--from our culture and nurture. By this reasoning, freedom equals the parts of our nature not determined by our genes, a sort of flower that blooms after our genes have done their tyrannical worst. We can rise above our genetic determinism, they insist, and grasp that mystic flower, freedom...
...shoot soldiers deserting on the battlefield, and we most certainly do not go after their families. An imperfect record notwithstanding, we respect human rights. And we attach value to the individual life. Although we might have a better military if we lost our national conscience, we properly insist that fighting power take a backseat to certain fundamental, defining values of our country...
...privacy are marked by sensory inconsistency. Out of sight, out of mind--is it so simple? Human beings, I would like to think, have progressed beyond the level of the ostrich in this respect. Yet sight, we feel, is much more embarrassing than sound. Why else would we insist on three-quarter stalls in public bathrooms? Why do walls keep our neighbors feeling private, even when aural clues leave little to our visual imagination...
...Better technology means you can install more sensitive alarm systems in your home and carry less cash on the street. The wane of Jack Daniels (and the rise of Evian) has yielded fewer drunken rages. Finally, although the prison-building boom sparked protest from those who insist we should spend the money on rehabilitation, no one can argue with cold reality: jails and prisons today lock up nearly 2 million people, and you simply can't knock over a 7-Eleven if you're reading Playboy in cell block...