A House (and Senate) Divided; the Gift That Keeps on Giving

I read an article yesterday that reminded me of what has to be one of the most childish and petty moments in American government history. Now, I hope it was at the top of the list of petty moments, otherwise our government is more of an embarrassment than I previously thought.

About a year or so ago (summer 2011), we were forced to witness what was initially presented as a philosophical debate about the how much debt the government can take on, on behalf of we the people. It quickly deteriorated into one temper tantrum in response to another. If you’ve ever seen a two-year-old rolling around on the floor of a supermarket crying because mommy won’t buy them candy, you have the basis behind Senate and House debates.

But of course, in contrary to the threats of a potential government shutdown, in the eleventh hour the debt ceiling was raised. Which by the way was inevitable, simply because no politician who needs actual votes to keep their job would have wanted to take responsibility for any of what could have happened if the ceiling was not raised.

Well for all the fanfare, the noise, and the international attention that our omnipotent elected officials garnered, we the people, once again, will be taking it up the…, I mean on the nose to the tune of about $1.3 billion in increased borrowing costs last year, and it’s going to be that way for some time to come. We got the gift of constant news headlines and coverage, which I guess was kinda entertaining and kinda annoying for that oh so memorable summer, and we will keep enjoying the fruits for years.

-IJS
@IJSblog