Last weekend I was at Candlestick Park watching the local team squander a nine point lead against the 2-3 Eagles. Some of my neighbors and I got to talking about Plato and one of them shared this interesting quote:

“The Eleatic Stranger: Let us consider, in the first place, that there are two kinds of arts entering into everything which we do.”
“The Younger Socrates: What are they?”
“Str: The one kind is the conditional or co-operative, the other the principal cause.”
“Y Soc: What do you mean?”
“Str: The arts which do not manufacture the actual thing, but which furnish the necessary tools for the manufacture, without which the several arts could not fulfil their appointed work, are co-operative; but those which make the things themselves are casual.”
“Y Soc: A very reasonable distinction.”
“Str: Thus the arts which make spindles, combs, and other instruments of the production of clothes, may be called co-operative, and those which treat and fabricate the things themselves, causal.”
“Y Soc: Very true.”
- Dialogues of Plato, Statesman, [281, 21]

We disagreed as to whether the Gold Rush girls were conditional or causal. It was the Eagles first road win of the season.

Nothing complex or confusing about bad debt.

“Let’s have some stunts, folks.”
“Yes, let’s!” shrieked Juanita Haydock.
“Say, Dave, give us that stunt about the Norwegian catching a hen.”
“You bet; that’s a slick stunt; do that, Dave!” cheered Chet Dashaway.
Mr. Dave Dyer obliged.
-Main Street, Sinclair Lewis, 1920

The rescue nee bailout is the farcical next verse in a grand song and dance. Don’t expect the show to be taken off the air anytime soon.

Maybe partying will help. That, and campaign finance reform.