Courtroom Drama

I'm reading through a liveblog transcript of the The Trial. In some ways it's one of the most interesting things I've ever read, and I'm agog at the level at which the judge is peering into this. It's even left me with a bewildered feeling and I've just realized why: I've gotten so accustomed to listening to politicians, to bullshit talking heads on Sunday morning news shows, spewing dumbed-down bullet-point sound-bites, appealing to Americans' lowest, basest instincts (death panels! the system worked!)... that thoughtful, philosophical, complex discussion on important topics causes a double-take. You mean we can actually, in a public forum, have a discussion about the nature of human identity and love and the role of the state? Wha-wha-what? Why don't we do this more often?