I think this is an interesting map at the NY Times. No wonder those of us in The Big City were so shocked as it because increasingly obvious that GWB was going to win that election. He was hugely popular in a number of large cities. We were surrounded by his popularity. Speaking of the NY Times, read Krugman...the man has a lot of foresight, and he's not afraid to use it. And ok, fine...If I'm going to continue in this poltical vein, I think everyone should read this Harpers article entitled Baghdad Year Zero by Naomi Klein. I think it explains, in part, how we destroyed our credibility there.