Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc

The first part is, you knock the skittles down, the second is, you set them up again: Suzuki, Siemens, Berlusconi, Braun - they're indestructible, these little men! We dole out dollars to the bums we beat, extend a hand to lift them from the floor. Whose is the victory? Whose the defeat? They bounce back fresher, stronger than before. Well, maybe. What if we're the busted flush? What if they've always had the edge on us? We got there first, is all, only to spoil it - were squatting on the sand when oil first gushed. We won the Cadillac, but missed the bus. They're cleaning up. We'll soon be cleaning toilets.