In which Theodore Worthington Ichabod Tumblington (known as “Twit” to his chums at The Club”) has sherry on the veranda with his son and grandson, and explains to the the Facts of Life.

No, not *those* facts. The facts of life that matter most to the Twits and their neighbors, the Romneys.

As 2011 comes to a close, millions continue to be without a job, and far too many haven’t had a job for at least half of the year.

To the MOTUs, these are statistics; to me, they are the people I see almost every day. They are my neighbors, my parishioners, and my friends. For them, my new year’s wish is that they find the jobs they so desperately seek. For the MOTUs, my new year’s wish is that they pay the taxes to fund the safety net my neighbors, parishioners, and friends so desperately need.

Painting as crime? Seems freedom of expression in art is subject to police investigation if it makes “someone” uncomfortable.

Awesome activism from members of the Sheetmetal Workers union (SMWIA), 200 of whom burst into a private meeting of mortgage bankers to protest layoffs by a homebuilding company that got a $900 million in federal funds intended for job creation, and instead laid off workers. The banksters fled the scene, though one said he would have engaged the workers if they had “worn a suit.”

Not to get all quant-y on Young Wall Street, but let’s do the math, shall we?

$110,000 divided by 350 attendees means that the average donation was a little under $315. Per person. Dig deep, baby MOTUs — dig until it hurts.

Nelnet improperly exploits a loophole in the student lending regulations for years, and then last Friday afternoon settled a $1+ billion student loan fraud case for $55 million, just as college students head back to campus. Lovely.

But I’m sure that nothing like this could happen with insurance companies and the Health Insurance reform regulations, or the Wall Street firms and the FinReg rules . . .

Welcome back to campus, everyone.