This is just a note on the supreme irony of Todd Akin's refusal to heed the calls of his party for him to step aside.
For most of my lifetime, Republicans have been only too happy to keep doubling down on the theme of radical individualism, and have stoked it to the point that we now have a large portion of the country who actually believes that they would do just fine if they could just shed their responsibilities to everyone else—and the government that tries to make them live up to those responsibilities.
That is, Republicans have become the party of the selfish.
Why does it surprise them when tea-party wackos like Akin simply act according to the selfish ideals that the Republican Party pushes for political advantage?
You want radical individualism? This is it. Todd Akin and his tea-party compatriots believe that they owe nothing to anyone. And so they act like it too.
You raised the nasty pit bull, Republicans. Can't feel too sorry for you when it bites your head off.