using python at the bash shell?

[skip at pobox.com]

    John> Aside from the normal commands you can use, I was wondering if
    John> it's possible to use Python from the terminal instead of the
    John> normal bash commands (e.g. print instead of echo). 

Take a look at ipython <http://ipython.scipy.org/>.  It's not precisely what
you've asked for, but it provides some features that help integrate Python
with the shell environment.

Skip