Goes to Eleven

Here is an exchange that took place in the 'rockumentary,' This is Spinal Tap.

Nigel Tufnel is one of Spinal Tap's members, and Mr. DiBergi is a reporter covering the band.

Nigel Tufnel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and -
Marty DiBergi: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel Tufnel: Exactly.
Marty DiBergi: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel Tufnel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you
go from there? Where?
Marty DiBergi: I don't know.
Nigel Tufnel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty DiBergi: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel Tufnel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty DiBergi: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Pause

This exchange is precisely how things in America work, or rather don't work, today.

Merry Ho Ho, all you wacky X-tians!! Tomorrow we look at Alterman, the reality of the threat posed by Jose Padilla by someone who really knows, and give you the latest on the indigenous terrorism front. Plus a look at Iraqi violence over the X-mas holiday.