The model used to build the economic structure currently collapsing around us is deficient.

That's why the structure is collapsing.

The building metaphor is apt. There was not an earthquake. The building collapsed because the blueprint was wrong; never mind that supportive additions (Glass-Steagall, anyone?) were removed.

Putting that aside: we have a car-centric economy. There are, I realize, other centers; or perhaps Venn diagrams is a better concept. But the fact remains about cars, whatever else may share the center.

We simply cannot build a sustainable economy with huge chunks of our culture attached to such an industry. It's a broken model.

You don't believe that literally huge chunks of our culture are attached to the automobile? Movies out of Hollywood commonly feature car chases; even the recent Indiana Jones movie, taking place mostly in a South American jungle, had a car chase; popular music commonly features the automobile and then there are the music videos; American suburbs are *completely* centered around the automobile, and not one single television hour lacks for a car commercial. There is supposed art-house cinema in my NYC neighborhood; and I cannot go to a single movie there without seeing a commercial for an automobile before the previews.

It is a non-sustainable industry, and is best described as "This is us, crapping in our nest."

So, again: is anyone out there up for a sufficiently aggressive and imaginative design?

It's not like the Invisible Hand has not slapped us upside our thick heads. Good thing the Invisible Voice goes unheard, or we'd all be deaf in the bargain. Oh, wait....

I was just reading David Seaton's blog and something was nibbling at me; I was saying yes, David is right; he's got a nice blog; and it was nagging me but I couldn't bring it into focus and then I got to this:


 "David Walker,...has this to say:" "The US is at a critical crossroads. Our future will depend on actions taken within the next few years. We must turn the economy round and address the long-standing challenges associated with our entitlement programmes, spending policies, regulatory approaches and tax systems.(...) The president and Congress must put a process in place that will enable elected officials to reimpose tough statutory budget controls and reform our nation's Social Security, Medicare, healthcare and tax systems. All these require significant reforms that Washington has delayed for too long."

Suddenly, it bit me dead on my ass.

 "If only you people had let us privatize Social Security..." or, given how late it is in the game: "You're going to help us, whether you want to, or not..."

That's politics. You're welcome.

How long before we start seeing permutations of "Look what your fist did to my face!" from torture apologists standing in an echo chamber?

For myself, I believe this interview signals no change.

Nothing will change until George Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, and John Yoo are perp-walked from a holding cell to a court of competent jurisdiction to hear and answer the charges against them.

Until that day, nothing has changed.