A Sunday Sense of Place

On the Brink. Thankfully, a deal has been brokered in Washington. It looks like it worked out. Supposedly the "affordable housing"/ACORN component is not included; there are provisions to protect the taxpayers "investment" and somehow limit the compensation of failed CEO's. The government will be insuring the banks somehow against the mortgages, Republican demand. Don't know the details, and we know who resides there. But all in all, it looks like cooler heads prevailed. Rumor has it, it was Pelosi. (See, I'm fair.)

Back the Way We Came. In this, Victor Davis Hanson reminds us that Frankenstein was the name of the inventor, not the creature, as he seeks to assign blame for this mess. Hint: "We have met the enemy, and he is us." Read it. It seems an opportune moment for some self-examination.

Up the Road A Spell. Now we turn to the upcoming Vice Presidential Debate. I'm not particularly optimistic about Palin's performance. It is fortunate it's against Biden, who I like by the way. But unlike the oh-so-syrupy condescending author of this column in the New York Times, I think it's because she's been ham stringed by not causing McCain grief. She's trying too hard to toe the company line. My advice to her: Screw it. Be who you are. Nobody expects you to be a foreign policy whiz. As to the writer, to paraphrase a country song, "Take your cheap sympathy and shove it." Cleanse your palate. Take a look at this

In the Rear. Here's an oldie but goodie about the common man. "Ten angry beer drinkers" are looking to stop the planned InBev purchase of Budweiser. They've filed suit in Federal Court alleging anti-trust. Not a hothouse chance in hell, but ya gotta love 'em. And don't forget to read the best explanation of the Castro stratagem- using the suffering of his people to advance his agenda- to be found in the Wall Street Journal here. Is it a strategy or a tactic?