"Neener, neener, neener," responded the Senate majority

Losses mounted this week for Democrats as Republican senators voted down bankruptcy law changes such as allowing elderly individuals filing for bankruptcy to remain in their homes while undergoing the process. According to CNN.com,“also rebuffed, 58-39, were two proposals focused on people whose significant medical expenses for illness force them to file for bankruptcy.” All this from a party lead by a man who claimed in his convention speech, “I'm running with a compassionate conservative philosophy: that government should help people improve their lives, not try to run their lives.”

I suppose they figure repossession doesn’t constitute interfering with the lives of Americans. What does a terminal cancer patient need a home for anyway? In light of this special form of “compassion,” I’m reminded of the refreshing frankness of the federal student loan program, which in addition to the ever-appealing choice of bankruptcy for the forgiveness of debts, offers this attractive alternative: “Option B: You die.”