Arrogance and opportunity

The goddess Nemesis. Don't mess with this one.

It is a fact of life that sometimes the wealthy and powerful tend to overreach. So do the rest of us in different departments of life.

That is often but not always a theme of Greek tragedy. Some characters are undone by their excessive pride, outrageous actions, or desire for knowledge. One lesson that such dramas were intended to teach is to beware of this danger.

But there's another way of looking at this that may be relevant to people interested in social justice. When you're struggling against more powerful forces, often it's their very overreach that creates an opening for action.

I can't say it any better than a friend did in a conversation earlier this week in talking about a real situation folks are working on here. He said:

Arrogance creates the opportunity for social change.

And, for the underdogs of the world, that isn't so tragic after all.

WHEN LESS IS NOT MORE. Many working families that still have jobs are dealing with pay cuts.

CHICKEN LITTLE REVISITED. It looks like the sky is falling again. This time, it's about health care reform.

SPEAKING OF WHICH, here's Don Perdue, one of the best members of the WV House of Delegates, on the same topic.

A REAL STIMULUS. This snapshot by the Economic Policy Institute makes the case that increases in the minimum wage boost consumer spending.

IN PRAISE OF ANIMALS. You don't have to travel around the world to be amazed and entertained by them, according to this author. His enthusiasm for the subject indicates to El Cabrero that he doesn't have goats.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED