I’m writing for tomorrow, and like most of us, waiting to see what comes of the Senate talk, and waiting to see if I can catch Patty, who is beating my butt! Out of respect for the folks who were already here, I am NOT celebrating Columbus Day.

Update: I’m taking a partial day off. I have been unable to sleep between noise in the building, worry over the impending default, the shame of having my fantasy football team Mashed by the Patty Monster, and guilt that some poor Canadian could not be thankful yesterday, being deprived of ownership by a fine fellow like me. I hope to be back to speed tomorrow, but back to bed for now.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 4:45 (average 4:50). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From NY Times: So you have this neighbor who has been making your life hell. First he tied you up with a spurious lawsuit; you’re both suffering from huge legal bills. Then he threatened bodily harm to your family. Now, however, he says he’s willing to compromise: He’ll call off the lawsuit, which is to his advantage as well as yours. But in return you must give him your car. Oh, and he’ll stop threatening your family — but only for a week, after which the threats will resume.

Not much of an offer, is it? But here’s the kicker: Your neighbor’s relatives, who have been egging him on, are furious that he didn’t also demand that you kill your dog…

What can I say? Paul Krugman’s analogy is brilliant!

From MSN News: Ken Cuccinelli is running for governor, not Congress, but the Virginia Republican is still struggling to dodge the political fallout from Capitol Hill.

His campaign in this crucial battleground state is in danger of becoming the first political casualty of the federal government shutdown, which Americans largely blame on Republicans.

With the election just weeks away, Cuccinelli’s poll numbers have tumbled since federal agencies were shuttered Oct. 1. The conservative state attorney general was already lagging, but he went from within striking distance of a vulnerable Democrat to trailing by 8 to 10 percentage points in three independent polls.

The Republican shutdown is certainly a dark cloud, but this is a silver lining.

From Truthdig: America’s great minds of business and finance have reached a consensus on the government shutdown and worse, the prospect of a debt default: While the latter is worse, both are bad. Those same great minds are well aware how the shutdown came to pass and why default still looms on the horizon, whether next week, next month, or next year.

Yes, the frightened corporate leaders surely know how this happened—because their money funded the tea party candidates and organizations responsible for the crisis.

Vulture capitalists got so greedy that they forgot that karma is a bitch!