Considering who the folks are behind this No-Labels movement, I suppose it should come as no surprise that the very premise of their existence, labeling themselves as the No-Labelers, is shaky at best and laughable at worst. How can you proclaim that you are a no labels entity when the basis of your existence is differentiating yourself from those you label as liberal or conservative? Personally, I think they should call themselves The Middlins which is what my blessed old Aunt Betty always called me, her deservedly precious, favorite middle of three children.

Don't get me wrong, like many American Thinker followers, who are moderately conservative to strongly conservative types, I tend to move back and forth somewhat cautiously and sometimes unsurely across the political spectrum depending on the issue at hand. Like most of you, I generally do not skate out there on the far edges in any direction. But that is also a matter of perspective; what we consider the outer edges may appear to others to be much closer to their essential core. My feeling is that what matters is not so much what you label someone politically as it is the vehemence with which you do it. A chuckled, "Ah, he's just a typical liberal," which one may say of a family member or friend is a far different thing from the angry expletive, "He's a stupid, damned, moonbat liberal!" usually said of politicians and journalists in my case at least. Upon reflection, my only equivalent of that for the conservative side of the political spectrum is, "He's just a far-right nut case!"  

And therein, in the midst of all this labeling, persists the dilemma of the No-Labels folks. How do they avoid labeling the folks whose political positions serve to define the No-Labels folks themselves? How do they describe those folks that I call those, "Stupid, damned, moonbat liberals?" without putting a label on them? How do they describe folks like me who say such things as, "Stupid, damned, moonbat liberals?" What are they gonna call Rush Limbaugh? The simple truth is there is no such thing as existing in our politicized environment without labels and any political organization that attempts to ground itself upon such a shaky concept is on tremulous terra firma for sure.

C'mon, think about it you guys: surely you can see that naming your movement, "No Labels," is labeling can't you? Hey, take some advice and go with Middlins; it's much more evocative of your purported position and doesn't carry the target-rich possibilities of No-Label.

Aunt Betty could have explained it to you; boy, that woman could talk...

UPDATE: and George Will most certainly can.