With just a few days left until virtual Armageddon, ie: The sequester, Both sides are steadfastly holding their ground.

I don't see a last minute deal happening this time, and frankly, I'm glad. I'm sick and tired of jumping from crisis to crisis, ALWAYS created by House Republicans. Boehner has his hands tied dealing with a fractured caucus, and the baggers think compromise is for losers.

This IS going to HURT, and HURT bad. Meat-axe cuts to the budget always do. I'd like to see an agreement where you get the same amount of deficit reduction to defense and discretionary spending with a BALANCED amount of cuts vs tax code changes. Allowing departments to cut spending where their mission is not jeopardized is the best way to handle budget cuts, but I would INSIST that the Defense budget's cuts not be reduced, only targeted.

The so-called recovery will be stopped, or even slide back into recession if the sequester goes into effect, which will......LOWER TAX REVENUES further, making the deficit even worse. I don't like this at all. State budgets, already strained, will be hit even greater due to the impasse in DC. The ripple effects will be astounding if an agreement is not reached. However, if an agreement does not include revenue, or tax code changes, reduced Federal spending will still affect consumer spending, and State tax revenues, for the worse. How much, I have no idea.

Will sanity prevail, and an agreement reached that does not gut safety net programs, and add the needed tax code changes so that the economy isn't harmed by just spending cuts?

I doubt it...

More to come.