What's going wrong in our right system

Now, I know how Charlie feels about Thomas Friedman, and 9 times out of 10, I'm inclined to agree.  However, when I spotted a post on RCW's blog that started in a similar cynical manner, but argued that Thomas Friedman was actually making a legitimate point, I had to read on.  In his September 21st column in the New York Times, Friedman points out what is wrong with our system when comparing it to what China is doing right:

Studying China’s ability to invest for the future doesn’t make me feel we have the wrong system. It makes me feel that we are abusing our right system. There is absolutely no reason our democracy should not be able to generate the kind of focus, legitimacy, unity and stick-to-it-iveness to do big things — democratically — that China does autocratically. We’ve done it before. But we’re not doing it now because too many of our poll-driven, toxically partisan, cable-TV-addicted, money-corrupted political class are more interested in what keeps them in power than what would again make America powerful, more interested in defeating each other than saving the country.

If you want to read the rest of Friedman's column (if you haven't already), it's here.