My sentiments exactly

This is the invitation I made to the Housewarming/Holiday Fancy-Dress Party I’m throwing in two weeks.

Our fiscal situation has deteriorated rapidly in just the past few years. The federal government ran a 2009 deficit of $1.4 trillion—the highest since World War II—as spending reached nearly 25% of GDP and total revenues fell below 15% of GDP. Shortfalls like these have not been seen in more than 50 years.

Going forward, there is no relief in sight, as spending far outpaces revenues and the federal budget is projected to be in enormous deficit every year. Our national debt is projected to stand at $17.1 trillion 10 years from now, or over $50,000 per American. By 2019, according to the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) analysis of the president’s budget, the budget deficit will still be roughly $1 trillion, even though the economic situation will have improved and revenues will be above historical norms.

[…]

The time to worry about the deficit is not next year, but now. There is no time to waste.

“

—

The Coming Deficit Disaster - WSJ.com

Mr. Holtz-Eakin is former director of the Congressional Budget Office and a fellow at the Manhattan Institute. This is adapted from testimony he gave before the Senate Committee on the Budget on Nov. 10.

Condensed from an already condensed reblog; click-through for the whole thing. Bold emphasis is mine.

via sds: bellatoris

I’m annoyed by all the cyclists I pass at night who don’t have lights on their bikes. So, even when I encounter another cyclist who has a light on the front, I still absent-mindedly look to see if they have a red rear light, too.

On my way home tonight I saw a cyclist riding the other way, and when I turned to see if he had a rear light, I saw him doing the same thing to me.

I felt like we were two dogs sniffing each other’s butt.

Recipe: Mudder's Milk

Awesome. I am SO making this for my Christmas party this year!

from serenityfirefly.com

1 litre (1 quart) soy milk, plain
360ml (12 oz) stout such as Guinness, or other dark, full bodied beer
64g (1/2 cup) wheat germ
112g (1/2 cup) brewers yeast
180ml (6 oz) grain alcohol or vodka to taste

Mix the soy milk, stout beer, wheat germ and brewers yeast in a 2 litre/quart pitcher, stirring well. Chill before serving. Now, either add the grain alcohol to the whole batch to achieve the 15% alcohol that Jayne mentions or mix the “milk” with vodka to taste. Serve in rustic pottery mugs and get ready to sing “The Hero of Canton”!

There’s a non-alcoholic recipe from the Serenity Cookbook at julesong.com, which calls for Tiger’s Milk protein bars; I think I will incorporate some of these into the above recipe.