this is the sort of writing I'm talking about

Mary: [Voiceover] I once dated a man who taught quantum physics. I learned two things that night. The first being, if you ask a quantum physicist to explain how gravity works—not what it is, not how it behaves, but how it works—he will first talk himself in circles, then wind up crying, and finally, sometime between entree and dessert, call you a bitch and leave. . . .

The second revelation came as I sat at the bar in morose solitude, pondering the cantilevered relationship between bartenders, gut ,and lower extremities, and this is important, so pay attention: before the big bang, before time itself, before matter, energy, velocity, there existed a single immeasurable state called yearning. This is the special force that on the day before days obliterated nothing into everything. It is the unseen strings tying planets to stars. It is the maddening want we feel from from first breath to last light.

And it's not just the writing, but the way that monologue, recited calmly and in an unhurried way, and ending a long, difficult, double-braided story, is accompanied by a softly played acoustic guitar and scenes of two couples, each where one person is struggling with failure and shame and where their partner is gently offering them support and hope and love.

bad analogy, false premise--two strikes is enough to call this out

I am so tired of hearing small-minded fiscal conservatives try to justify their catastrophic and wrong-headed attempts to cut government budgets during a recession (when we *should* be deficit-spending) by claiming that "governments should be just like families, and only spend the money they have brought home".

Even setting aside the issue of how valid it is to say that a macroeconomic entity should behave like a microeconomic entity (I would say "not"), the very premise is flawed.

Familes only spend the money they bring home? Bullshit. Before America's unhealthy love-affair with credit cards got started, very few families bought homes, cars, or even major appliances with cash or cheques. Investing in capital goods and services (has anyone reading this NOT had college loans?) with borrowed funds is a long-standing American tradition. To suggest that everyone spends only what they earn, and that this is somehow a wise and realistic goal, either for individuals or governments, is an argument only made (IMO) but those well out of touch with reality.