And I think one of the reasons why it would be such a good thing if an agreement could be reached on these fiscal and budget issues, is that it would send a signal that Washington can function and that compromise can happen.

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More broadly, continued inability to address the fiscal issues will signal that the United States government cannot function efficiently to the global market.

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Chief technical officer Nigel Gilhespy says the fabric is made of five layers of fabric, three of which are conductive, which means they create an electrical signal and perform a high-tech function.

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Recalling my past frustrations, this immediately put me on my guard and I started the countdown to the inevitable blue-screen-of-death that would signal that some driver or another was wholly incompatible with some function or another of my laptop.

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