Virtue

Ben is mystified about Democrat pols in Congress: they are acting all wimpy now that Massachusetts had elected a Republican to the Senate.

Megan has it right:

It's all very well to say that they should man up and pass it anyway.  This is the sort of thing that sounds very well from the comfort of your living room. But are you prepared to pledge that if health care reform passes, you'll resign your job?  Because that's essentially what you're asking them to do.

A rational army would run away.

Consider a simplified battle. A group of men on foot, armed with pike. Coming at them are some guys on horses.

If the men stand their ground, (YouTube, ahoy) they'll win the battle.  Some of them will die.  If one guys slips away he can run away while his mates fend off the cavalry.

Nobody wants to be one of the dead guys.   Everyone comes to this conclusions, they all run away, everyone dies.

The guys who run armies are not dumb.  They are aware of this problem and have devised many ways to encourage young men and woman to be irrational and stay on the line.   Call it soldierly virtue.

If politicians has soldierly virtue, Ben's desire for them to show spine would be the default choice. 

If they had soldierly virtue we would not be in this mess in the first place.