I want one of these dogs so badly.

Oh even the idea that Japan has been in a "perma-recession" has been debated endlessly with more than a few economists even arguing that the Japanese economy has outperformed the U.S. economy in some metrics. And I'm not sure you can use "foreign workers" and "social stratification" as an example of recession; the…

I don't know how "normal" my upbringing was, really. My parents were very politically astute, and I understood what was going on in the world around me from a very early age—even during the Reagan era. I've been politically aware my entire life as a result, and I can get absolutely engrossed in history, so I tend to…

"Common sense" states that all of this is high-stakes nonsense. Japan has a national debt that's 215% of its GDP (as of 2012)—worse than Zimbabwe and Greece and a little less than triple the debt ratio the U.S. has. And yet Japan bustles around as prosperous as ever. I doubt any bank or government seriously expects…

As someone who was 15 years old 18 years ago as well and not ignorant, I remember the furor over the shutdowns during Clinton's presidency being plastered all over the news. It was not a secret.

Or it could lead to 4-6 years of complete apathy and corruption as term-limited politicians jockey for a prime job as a corporate consultant or lobbyist after their term ends. Term limits are not the ultimate panacea for all that ails in Washington.

An ideal perhaps, but nobody actually wants to do it.

You're right. It's not hard. As I responded elsewhere in this thread...

See my other responses. I should have said Congress has authorized "spending"—and that does include past authorizations whether that be budgets or continuing resolutions—and the inevitable creep of interest will mean that the debt ceiling must be raised accordingly.

Fair enough. Of course, the national debt is also the result of past budgets and continuing resolutions and the inevitable creep of accumulated interest. The budget (or lack thereof) and the debt ceiling are separate issues indeed.

Well, he was right, actually. And then we fixed it. And then we broke it again. Are we not surprised to see history repeat itself considering these circumstances?

A continuing resolution is a type of appropriations legislation used by the United States Congress to fund government agencies if a formal appropriations bill has not been signed into law by the end of the Congressional fiscal year. The legislation takes the form of a joint resolution, and provides funding for…

Fine. Congress has passed a "continuing resolution" that authorizes this spending, but now won't raise the debt ceiling to pay for it. At some point, these are semantics, but the larger point remains.

Fine. Congress has passed a "continuing resolution" that authorizes this spending, but now won't raise the debt ceiling to pay for it. At some point, these are semantics, but the larger point remains.

An inapt analogy if only because Congress authorized the budget knowing full well it was going to hit the debt limit, but now refuses to authorize raising it. Macroeconomics ≠ microeconomics even if the latter is easier for the public to understand.

I love women and tits and pussy (even lesbians)

If you love this, you'd love the Canadian version. Imagine all that text in both English and French in the same amount of space! It's why I buy my limited editions in the U.S. :P

I believe that, at least in the U.S. (and considering the international nature of copyright, probably elsewhere too), covers of original songs are actually legally protected—which is why covers of Beatles songs are all over the place in Hollywood, while the original songs are not. They do have to pay the original…

I heard "fuckball" at first, but after playing it a few more times through, he definitely says "fluffball." I really hope they don't change that line in the game!