In our previous round, I noted that the left was fond of (a) saying they'd been called "unpatriotic" (by what prominent source?), and (b) calling their opponents "unpatriotic". At least one of my intrepid readers (hi Ryan!) attempted to provide some counter-examples.

So tonight, apropos of Wanda Sykes, I thought I'd kick off round two -- and possibly continue to update this over the next four years, God willing. The rules are simple:

1. We're looking for places where people are accused of "unpatriotism" or "treason" merely for partisan dissent, criticism, and policy disagreements. The accuser must be someone of some at least minor prominence, not an anonymous comment in position #58 on a discussion thread.

2. I'm not looking for actual, reasonable allegations of treason (such as when someone colludes with a hostile foreign power) or unpatriotism (such as when someone says the USA is a net negative in the world).

3. We're not looking for almost entirely metaphorical uses (such alleging "economic treason") or references to one's organization, company, or party (allegations of Specter's "treason" to his former party) instead of one's nation.

Okay? Already, let the games begin!

Left: Wanda Sykes, at the White House Correspondents' Dinner speech, says that Rush Limbaugh's wish that Obama would fail (which Rush clarified to mean specific policies he disagreed with: "I do not want the government in charge of all of these things. I don't want this to work.") was the same as wanting our country, as a whole, to fail, and thus "unpatriotic." And conservative commentators like Rush and Sean Hannity should be waterboarded. And, for good measured, wished Rush would die.

Left: Obama himself seems to agree that there's no essential distinction between supporting his specific policies and patriotism. In the New York Times: "Mr. Obama dispatched his chief of staff to Capitol Hill to help conclude the talks and reassure senators in his own party, and he called three key Republicans to applaud them for their patriotism." (L'etat, c'est moi!)

Left: Paul Begala: Paying taxes is patriotic (really? I hadn't realized that staying out of jail was a particular act of patriotism -- and wouldn't that criteria make half the current administration unpatriotic?) so protesting Obama's policies must be unpatriotic. "Patriotism is putting your country ahead of yourself -- which is the precise opposite of what the tea party plutocrats are doing."

Left: California 17th district candidate Bruce McFarland: "America, Love it or leave it... There was so much unpatriotic hate on the street during the so-called 'TEA' party, I thought I was in a Texan secessionist meeting..."

Left: Bob Koehler, nationally syndicated columnist from Tribune Media Services: The Bush administration's stance of "aggressive interrogation" / "torture" (including both terms to be neutral) was both treasonous and unpatriotic.

Left: An "environmental group" is running political ads in Missouri saying Roy Blunt is "unpatriotic" for allegedly receiving political donations from oil companies.

Well, that's all I could find -- six or more new prominent allegations of unpatriotism and treason -- all from the left toward the right. I tell you truthfully, I skipped no qualified entries from the right -- I honestly didn't see any which fit the rules. (The closest example I could find was likening Specter's switch to a kind of treason.) If you can find some I've missed, have at it!

If not, well, then that's more ongoing evidence that the left is far more obsessed with national unity (what I call "nationalism", distinguished from "patriotism" which is a love of your country, or it's historical ideals), are apparently insincere about honoring dissent. If I haven't missed something, this also tends to suggest that the left's is projecting when they allege their opponents frequently use allegations of treason and unpatriotism to discredit alternate views.