Cognitive Dissonance

A plurality of Americans (48%), in a recently released poll from Bloomberg, thinks the Republicans' Pledge to America is a good idea, and more than half (55%) think the idea that the deficit is out of control and threatens our future to be essentially true.

But all of the ideas floated out there by Republican lawmakers to get a hold of the deficit -- raising the retirement age, raising the Medicare eligibility age, privatizing Social Security, etc. -- receive a cold or lukewarm response.

So we really like the idea that things ought to be done to reduce the deficit, but when it comes to taking action and actually making cuts, we lack the balls.