As Thoreau says, "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds."

He did not, however, have to deal with Missouri politicians.

Recently, Missouri law enforcement released a report about the dangers posed by modern militias. And by "modern militias," they meant any political group that the current national administration might not like too much--like anti-abortionists, like fiscal conservatives, like pretty much any truly traditional values that the nation was built upon. In fact, that particular office of law enforcement suggested that these individuals might well be potential terrorists.

Some citizens didn't really care for that idea. And our Lieutenant Governor, Peter Kinder, among others, set up such a fuss that the report has been rescinded. In fact, Nixon backpedaled so fast that, to an unbiased observer, he resembled a small, freshwater crustacean distantly related to lobsters. He said

"Under a previous system, MIAC would prepare and distribute these reports to law enforcement agencies without review or approval from the colonel of the Highway Patrol or the director of Public Safety. ... That’s simply not acceptable."

In other words, "I didn't do it. It wasn't my fault. It was the other guy's fault. And even if it wasn't, you can't prove a thing."

"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds," said Thoreau. However, I don't think he ever meant that one should become a wind sock when opinion blew against one's beliefs.