In which smart people make me question the value of a college education:

So I made the mistake of going out onto the Internet to read up on the debt-ceiling thing.  We're clearly doomed if this thinking is representative.  Fareed Zakaria:

To come at it now after the budget has been passed is like getting your Visa bill and calling up the company to say, "Actually we don't want to buy all that stuff we bought." That's not how it works. First you pay the bill, then you can change your spending habits.

Where to start?  How about with the fact that we haven't had a budget since the fiscal 2009.  Fiscal 2010 and fiscal 2011 never managed to capture Reid and Pelosi's attention. House Republicans passed a budget for fiscal 2012 budget (due in two months), but it went to the Senate and hasn't been seen since.

And, of course, if you don't change your spending habits, you're not likely to have the cash to pay the bill.  Especially if you've already hit up dad, your brother-in-law and your best friend for loans.  Fiscal conservatives want to cancel the cable TV, drop the daily Starbucks, and perhaps, vacation in Branson instead of Honolulu. Would that be OK with Fareed?

I'm going back to my bubble until the apocalypse arrives. Shouldn't be long now.

99 cent mystery alert

If you read or saw the movie version of the Lincoln Lawyer, you may not know that Mickey Haller has a  half-brother, Hieronymus Bosch, who's been the star of his own series for almost 20 years.

Amazon now has an electronic version of the first book in that series, Black Echo, for $0.99.

Update: Well, that deal is over, but Black Ice, another Harry Bosch novel, is available for $1.99.

Anderson County Fair This Week

The Anderson County Fair starts tommorow. I haven't been to a county fair since I was a child. Hopefully, we'll make it to Clinton to check out some prize winning pigs and 400 lb. pumpkins.