Debt Ceiling

 The news outlets are reporting that the US will hit its debt ceiling limit today.  Most of us don't know what that means really.  Geitner and others are predicting dire consequenses if Congress does not raise the debt ceiling limit, but he believes he can manage this situation until sometime in August by borrowing against federal employee retirement funds.  That must make all those civil servants feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  At some point will retirees not receive their social security checks, active duty and military retirees not receive their DFAS payments, teachers and policemen stop receiving their paychecks?  The federal government has already halted the inter governmental loan process wherein state and local governments can borrow funds to meet their immediate cash flow needs.

The Republicans are adamant that they will not approve a debt ceiling increase unless there are significant ("drastic"?) cuts in spending, meaning entitlements, i.e., social security, medicare, etc.  If they persist the likely result will be the end of the Repubican Party as we know it.

What isn't being acknowledged yet is that the stimulus programs introduced by Bush and implemented by Obama have helped move the country out of a downward economic death struggle.  The financial institutions (yes, I know, many think bankers are the ultimate bad guys) have paid or are paying back the infusion of funds, ,with interest, the automobile companies have paid back their stimulus funds, with interest, Americans with 401 (k)s are seeing their plans recovering and though halting, the unemployment rate is going down.

So, why not stop all of this political brinksmanship.  Act like grownups and listen to your constitutents. Vote for the increase in the debt ceiling, negotiate on spending cuts and tax increases for the superwealthy (and all of us if need be), but don't hold professional fiscal management hostage to improvident, swaggering miscalculation of what Americans will swallow.  A little honesty and transparency, please.

The Rising

Yesterday, I awoke to the news that Osama Bin Laden had been killed.  If I were a night owl I would have known sooner, but I had gone to bed early so missed the initial elation shared by others in America.

Through the day my memories of September 11, 2001 kept returning.  I was in Kansas City nursing my father-in-law after major surgery and Hubby was in New Hampshire working on a project.  That beautiful morning I had taken a long walk almost down to the Plaza and when I returned Dad asked if I knew what had happened.  This was in my pre BlackBerry days so, no, I didn't know that two planes had plowed into the WTC towers.  Instinctively, I tried to call Hubby.  While trying to place the call the news came in that a plane had crashed into the Pentagon.   Hubby and I did get to chat just a few minutes.  Thereafter, I was only able to get one call placed ... to the clerk's office at the New Kenty County J&D Court.  I was canceling a hearing which I knew I would miss because the planes had all be ordered down.  The clerk was crying and I cried too.

During the next few days I felt so alone and disconnected.  I was separated from family and dogs, my local news sources, and friends.  I did manage to get a flight back to Virginia on Friday morning, the first day there were flights after 9/11.  It was a chaotic flight home because airplanes and crews were out of place having been ordered down at the airport closest to the planes' location when the order was issued.  I got to KCI at 4:00 a.m. and finally arrived in Richmond after 11:00 p.m.  The travelers that day were somber.  There was very little conversation.

Like everyone else it took me time to absorb what had happened and to understand that the world had changed for my country, for me.  I had many fitful nights with little sleep.  I imagine, like everyone else.

Some months later Springsteen issued  The Rising.  I found it hypnotic.  It is not his best work, not his most creative, but  it gave me solace and eased my lonliness.  Yesterday, after hearing of bin Laden's death The Rising came to mind and some of the lines from Empty Skies reminded me of that extraordinary string of days with no planes in the air.   

So I can't say that I celebrated bin Laden's death as much as breathed a sigh of relief.  I know Al Qaida is still out there, or rather, among us, but I felt satisfaction that a man who had hurt us so badly, had that pain brought home to him.  Revenge or justice.  I don't know.  I don't care.