Both BlackBerry and Nokia are now trying aggressive come-backs in Europe just as Samsung and Apple gird for major flagship launches in spring and early summer.
While the focus now is on a possible agreement in coming days or weeks, anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist told CNN earlier this week that the nation should gird for long-range battle.
In other words, instead of one warning label appropriately approved by a federally warranted agency, drugmakers must now gird themselves for warning labels as judged by 50 states and who knows how many other jurisdictions.
To gird against this, the major credit-card companies in 2006 formed an industry group called the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council, which establishes minimum technical protections for businesses that accept credit cards.
The drivers reckon that it won't make too much difference which side of the gird they start on because there is still so much dust and sand around the edge of the circuit.
Morgan in dealings with attorneys general in at least two states, is a sign of the legal strategy that is emerging as lenders and mortgage servicers gird themselves themselves for what is likely to be a contentious and complicated inquiry.