As Hemingway wrote in "The Dangerous Summer" "its the spot where the boys wet their knuckles in Madrid". Basically, its where the spine meets the back of the neck, and if you put the sword through the vertebrae you turn 2000 pounds of pissed off bull into steaks and hamburger. If not, you won't enjoy th rest of your day so much. Its also a great metaphor. I've seen Ted Koppel do it in an interview with Dick Cheney about WMDs in Iraq. Koppel was waving the cape, Cheney charges, is winded, and then the followup question is delivered like a rapier to the spine. Boom, thud, game over. It was a truly beautiful moment, politics aside, if you enjoy blood sports.

Thing is, its damn hard to hit that sweet spot, and any matador that can, particularly if he's wounded deserves respect. Its also a goal for politicians, being able to deliver the finishing stroke. Here's hoping that the good guys can manage it in 2012.

FQ13