>One always gains a reputation for political sagacity by dumping on
>the "trots" while bemoaning the quadrennial parlor game of the
>"lesser of two evils."
Bemoaning? I'm not sure what you're referring to here.
I have a lot of respect for Trotsky, and even some Trotskyists. The whole New Left Review posse, one of the major influences on my political thinking, emerges from a brand of Trotskyism. But, as Tariq Ali's analysis of the U.S. election shows, it's not the rigid, catechistic sort that afflicts contemporary sects, for whom "Break with the Dems" is a foundational slogan, without providing much guidance beyond that. Oh yes, there's the need for "proletarian leadership," but so far the proletariat hasn't been moved to follow.
Doug