Anyone unfamiliar with Molly Ivins' writing might think, upon reading a recent column, that she really is just plain excited about her recent adventure at Texas A&M's cow college. Such a person would soon learn, however, that with Ivins everything relates to everything else, especially politics. From her recent column (courtesy of Truthdig.com):

So the latest thing in cattle handling is cow whispering (I’m not making this up—this is straight from A&M). Either on foot or horseback, you just kind of sidle around your herd without upsetting them, talk to them gently and suggest they might like to go that way for a while, and then perhaps a tour along the pen line, and then perhaps some consideration of the gate and another little tour of the pen line. But all of this is done without loud noise, sudden movements or eruptions of testosterone. It’s such a revolutionary development of an American macho tradition it’s a little like watching NFL teams come onto the field in tutus. But it also works a lot better on the cows.

What might this anecdote have to do wih politics, aside from the obvious metaphor? Ivins concludes with the following paragraph, but you'll want to read the words in between, too:

War is about rounding up people with Shock and Awe and really loud noises, and about thinking you can herd them by hurting and killing them. Politics is what you do if you’re not so stupid you walk into an unnecessary and unprovoked war. I’m founding Cow Whisperers Against the War.

Even those who may not agree with Molly Ivins' politics must still agree that she is one of the  most entertaining, yet thoughtful and even-handed, writers on the Left of the political spectrum.