A Simple Tale of a Bag of Marbles

I remember getting into one fight in my youth.  A classmate and I had a heated argument about who had the prettiest mother, which argument erupted into a full-blown, albiet short-lived, physical confrontation.

In the early '50's, kids who 'held the goods' had marbles.  Really.  Marbles.  And, it wasn't uncommon for a kid known to have many and/or valued marbles to be confronted on the way home by a few rough-necks who wanted to steal the marbles.

I have been thinking about that lately.  I have been thinking how Barack was hit up on the way home from school for his marbles.  Now, Barack was a very popular kid and represented the whole school in marble tournaments because he was considered to be a straight-shooter.  So, when confronted by the bullying thieves, three thugs with crew cuts, blue jeans, red-shirted sleeves rolled up, fists clenched... Barack's entire school stood behind him, cheering support. And, being the diplomat that he presented himself to be, he negotiated to keep his stash.

"Tell you what," said Barack, in an ever-so-calm silken voice, cool as his blue shirt. (I think it was blue..well, at least it started out blue, but maybe had gone through a wash with some red laundry since...)  "I present, here, the glass spheres..." as he carefully lay them out for counting. "And, oh! Here's a boulder..you'll like that!... all those cat-eyes... and here's a naked lady, and steeley in this pocket.." turning his pockets inside-out, presenting his prize.

The three bullies, one in tears, one as gaunt as his rigid thinking, and the third muffling rhetoric of continued domination,  grabbed up the marbles and took off running, complaining, calling names back at Barack while lusting over their haul, counting each marble and dropping it into a bag.

"Wow.  Negotiating is tough," said Barack as he rejoined his classmates. "But, see how well negotiation works? I know nobody's 100% happy. But, that's the art of the deal.  I do still have one cat-eye and a plan to get marbles back,"  he said, all proud, flashing a big smile.

No matter how complicated one might like to make the story, it really is a simple tale.

In case you were wondering, I won the little fight with my classmate.  I don't remember who suffered the most physically as we each walked away...but, I won because I really did have the most beautiful Mother.

"And, smart, too!  Hey!  Didja hear me??  SMART, too!"

so if you're out walking in the street some day and spot some hollow ancient eyes... please dont just pass em by and stare .. as if you didnt care..say hello in there...hello.

Our feline friends...

Fareed Zakaria...

 "To put it in perspective, if Congress were to do nothing, the Bush tax cuts would expire next year," he says. "That by itself would yield $3.9 trillion to the federal government over the next 10 years. We would go to the bottom of the pack in terms of deficit as a percentage of GDP among the rich countries in the world — we would basically solve our fiscal problems for the short term."

 

http://www.npr.org/2011/06/30/137522219/what-does-a-post-american-world-look-like

"This is what compromise looks like..."

Mr. President:

It is my understanding this was your response to your "base" following your agreement w/conservatives yesterday on the debt ceiling "crisis."

Mr. President,  I was a highly energized, adamantly involved volunteer/supporter of yours in '08.  Now, while I most definitely will not be supporting any Republican, neither will I be supporting you in '12.

Respectfully, Sir, that, also, is what compromise looks like.

"...it is astonishing that apparently nobody has bothered to read the text of Public Debt Law of 1941 itself, embodied in 31 USC 3101, which is what codifies a national debt limit. That law states that

"The face amount of obligations issued under this chapter and the face amount of obligations whose principal and interest are guaranteed by the United States Government (except guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury) may not be more than [some arbitrary huge number] . . . "

Please take careful note of the words "EXCEPT guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary of The Treasury". By undeniably clear law as passed by Congress, such obligations are NOT constrained by any so-called debt limit. Now all you have to do is run your finger down to the very next section 31 USC 3102 [Bonds] and you will read

"With the approval of the President, the Secretary of the Treasury may borrow on the credit of the United States Government amounts necessary for expenditures authorized by law . . . "

By this section Congress gives the President the EXPRESS, inherent and unilateral authority to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to incur obligations to cover all expenditures authorized by law, which is to say the sum of the appropriations bills Congress has already passed. And as we have just so clearly demonstrated such obligations are immune from any so-called debt ceiling limitation. Surely there is some White House attorney smart enough to figure this all out as we have.

The President must invoke this authority now, as he is fully empowered to do by 31 USC 3102. And then Congress needs to get serious about raising the revenues to pay its bills, and not just on the backs of poor people."

http://www.peaceteam.net/action/pnum1082.php