Is this not exactly what the founders had in mind?

Uncle Sam got his hundred-year check-up. The doc's diagnosis was obesity.

Big brother Senate, being himself a little pudgy with too much of the good life, hadn't really noticed Uncle's steadily spreading overfed condition. But lean-and-mean little brother House had seen what was happening, and demanded that the old guy be taken in for the checkup.

Sure enough, the examination revealed a debilitating sclerosis and some alarming diabetic tendencies. The doc called for a low-fat diet and a high-exercise regimen.

It is a good thing that lean and mean little brother House was paying attention, and pressed the issue of old Uncle Sam's widening girth and indolent lfestyle. Is this not exactly what the founders had in mind when they prescribed one half of the Congress to arise directly from the districts of the people?

Thus does the restlessly critical little brother assure that big brother and their rich Uncle do not lapse into a fattened lethargy, and ultimate demise. The process is, yes, a little messy, a little scary, but that's a healthy democracy for you.

Glass half-Full