The Necropolitan Sentinel

Has everyone gone mad? Have they forgotten all of the teachable moments from The Simpsons?

With the creation and Treasury deposit of a new platinum coin with a value of $1 trillion US Dollars, we would avert the absurd-yet-imminent debt ceiling faceoff in Congress in two quick and simple steps! While this may seem like an unnecessarily extreme measure, it is no more absurd than playing political football with the US — and global — economy at stake.

Because it's "absurd" to insist that we have methods in place to pay for our absurdly huge expenses before we call up that Native American lady…again.

I'll tell you what. You can have your trillion dollar coin if you either make it the size of a kilometer-wide asteroid, or if you give it to me to look at before you spend it. I just want to look at it. No, really, I promise I'll give it back!

[UPDATE]

Don't go in the bathroom right now. Krugman's in there having some "alone time" with a portrait of John Maynard Keynes as he parses the '96 law which makes this idiotic idea technically legal.

This jackwagon over at Bloomberg is going all-in with the five-year-old-on-the-floor-having-a-tantrum method of debate.

Keep in mind that the law they say justifies this was written as a way to create commemorative coins and sell them retail. As in, "Don't miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to purchase this beautiful .9999 pure platinum coin commemorating our nation's massive debt! Call now! (All major Chinese credit cards accepted.)"

[UPDATE 2]

This is the kind of thing you write when you overthink your bright idea. When a conservative throws out a so-crazy-it-must-be-brilliant idea and everyone calls it plainly stupid on its face, eventually that conservative is forced to concede that yeah, okay, maybe it's a little too crazy to work. Oftentimes he's even obliged to apologize for even suggesting it (because he failed to be serious enough, you know). When a Leftist throws out a so-crazy-it-must-be-brilliant idea and everyone calls it stupid on its face, he responds with righteous indignation, a complex, technocratic reason for why it may sound crazy but it is actually brilliant, and you are the fucking idiot for questioning him.

See also: Andy's criticism over at AoS.

Meanwhile we'll continue to slog along at ~7%-8% U3 unemployment and ~2% real GDP growth (or lower, when you factor the government's deficit spending out of that number) because the tricks and gimmicks aren't really fooling anyone.

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