Never give a debt ceiling saga an even break.

There aren’t too many situations arising in the world today that don’t call to mind a Star Trek episode. CIA drones? “A Taste of Armageddon.” Big PHARMA? “Operation: Annihilate!” Xenophobia? “Balance of Terror,” “The Devil in the Dark,” and, oh heck, pretty much any original series episode with Spock in it (which would be all of them, you green-blooded hobgoblin!).

But the entertainment reference that our most recent “crisis” over the debt ceiling conjures up is a scene from Mel Brooks’ “Blazing Saddles.” (No, not that one! Although if you’ve ever watched C-SPAN for too long, I can see why you would think that.) It’s the scene in which Bart, after every citizen in town has drawn guns on him, pulls out his revolver, presses it to his own temple, and says “Drop it, or I swear I'll blow this n*****'s head ALL OVER THIS TOWN!” The punch line is that the townspeople fall for it and drop their guns.

Although it’s not a punch line in the real-world. The GOP is pulling out their majority, pointing it at their own country, and saying “Drop it, or we swear we’ll blow this nation ALL OVER... well, THIS NATION!” And like the townsfolk in Brooks’ fictional Rock Ridge, many of the Dems are dropping things: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and the return of the saner tax policies that were in place when this country was running surplus - just to name a few. But unlike Rock Ridge, this is not a movie. Although it is fiction.

The fiction of it is that this problem needs to be solved this very minute! Numerous times in our history, the debt ceiling has been raised in a simple up-or-down vote, not tied to long-term issues like the budget deficit. This is the first time, though, that it has been used as a hostage. I realize that in our current political climate, words like “thug” get thrown around so much as to be meaningless, but what else would you call someone who threatens to harm those you hold dear if they don’t get their way? If we have to return to the good old days of poor houses, robber barons, and Triangle Shirtwaist fires, at least we won't have that pesky debt ceiling hanging over our heads. Unfortunately, Mr. Boehner is so out of touch with those American People he likes to reference, he either does not realize or does not care that if he gets his way, a few more of them will have nothing over their heads.
What I am desperately hoping for is intervention from an entity more powerful than Congress! Mightier than the White House! A more weighty and influential constituency than the American People themselves!

Wall Street.