Over The "Cliff" Into 2013?

I write this on the last day of the year, one that was amazing for me personally.  My wife and I became grandparents, and we celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary.  My childhood home was sold and emptied out, and I brought a number of very tangible mementos from it to my home and office.  Most importantly for the country, Obama got re-elected, and the U.S. Senate is still in the hands of sane people (the less said about the House, the better).  AND none of this touches on the terrific "Avengers" film that finally got released this year (talking about childhood memories).

And yet, 2012 ends on a note of uncertainty for the country, and especially for the economy, because a handful of House teabags can't get it through their heads that they are not the future of this country.

The saddest part about all of this, to me, lies in the fact that past generations from both parties took (speaking of the Avengers) a Captain America approach--the letter "A" meant more than the letters "D" or "R."  I'm not entirely sure what letter matters most to the Tea Party caucus in the house.  Then again, I'm not sure that most of them can spell.

While I take comfort from the fact that I am certain they are a minority, and owe their short-term power to gerrymandering and not actual numbers, they are nevertheless in a position to do enormous harm.  When it comes to the disabled, they already have, effectively spitting in the face not only of the disabled but one of their former leaders.

Can Obama and Democrats in Congress stop this?

I am convinced that they can only do so if all of the rest of us remain engaged.  Citizenship and democracy are full-time activities.  And the struggle to preserve and advance them never ends.  I don't agree with H.G. Wells on everything (like a lot of British intellectuals, he was a terrible anti-Semite), but he believed that history never stood still.  It always moved in one direction:  forwards, or backwards.  And, above all, he believed that the choice of directions is always ours.

It still is.  So, in the words of Doc Brown from "Back to the Future," make it a good one.

And now, on to other year-end miscellany ...