“The earth only has so much bounty to offer and inventing ever larger and more notional prices for that bounty does not change its real value.”

“Filibusters have proliferated because under current rules just one or two determined senators can stop the Senate from functioning. Today, the mere threat of a filibuster is enough to stop a vote; senators are rarely asked to pull all-nighters like Jimmy Stewart in 'Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.'”