Quick Hits

-First up is a nice post from Mario Rizzo on how overblown the whole "Fiscal Cliff" drama is.  To put it in perspective, the spending cuts next year are $136 billion out of a $7 trillion budget -- in other words, not much.

-Next is a "great" quote from Paul Krugman about the possible ramifications of an eventual bond vigilante attack: "Because America has its own currency and a floating exchange rate, a loss of confidence would lead not to a contractionary rise in interest rates but to an expansionary fall in the dollar".  No surprise there -- every outcome shall be spun to validate his views.