AARP’s shot across the bow on the fiscal cliff talks is most unpleasant. Perhaps you’ve seen the ad on TV. As seniors go about their day, a stern female voice says of Medicare and Social Security, “We earned them.” She goes on, “If Washington tries to cram decisions about the future of these programs into a last-minute budget deal, we’ll all pay the price.”

She left out “down your throat.”

Several unpleasantries here, in addition to the blatant threat. There’s the return to the nastiness and half-truths that buried productive conversation during the debate over Obamacare.