Paul Simms: “God’s Blog” : The New Yorker

Paul Simms: “God’s Blog” : The New Yorker: "Unfocussed. Seems like a mishmash at best. You’ve got creatures that can speak but aren’t smart (parrots). Then, You’ve got creatures that are smart but can’t speak (dolphins, dogs, houseflies). Then, You’ve got man, who is smart and can speak but who can’t fly, breathe underwater, or unhinge his jaws to swallow large prey in one gulp. If it’s supposed to be chaos, then mission accomplished. But it seems more like laziness and bad planning."

The Volokh Conspiracy » Eugene Volokh

The Volokh Conspiracy » Eugene Volokh: "Even given the normal latitude for hyperbole and imprecision in such a context, it seems to me that Michael Moore’s recommendation calls for (and reflects) more ignorance of the Constitution — or willful disregard for the Constitution — than “guts.”"

Instapundit » Blog Archive » JAMES TARANTO: The Great Deflation: Barack Obama Keeps Getting Smaller And Smaller: Like a leak…

Instapundit » Blog Archive » JAMES TARANTO: The Great Deflation: Barack Obama Keeps Getting Smaller And Smaller: Like a leak…: "You deserve better than you’ve been getting out of Washington over the last 2½ months–for that matter, for the last 2½ years.”

For the last 2½ years. Is that not as explicit an acknowledgment of failure as has ever been heard from a sitting president?"

11th Circuit Rejects Mandate in Health Law - NYTimes.com

11th Circuit Rejects Mandate in Health Law - NYTimes.com: "The Cincinnati court ruled that the mandate was constitutional. The Atlanta court disagreed, in a majority opinion written by Chief Judge Joel F. Dubina, who was appointed by the first President George Bush, and Judge Frank M. Hull, who was named by President Bill Clinton. Judge Stanley Marcus, another Clinton appointee, wrote a dissent."

Breaking: 11th Circuit Rules Individual Mandate in ObamaCare Unconstitutional (Updates)

The PJ Tatler » Breaking: 11th Circuit Rules Individual Mandate in ObamaCare Unconstitutional (Updates): "Breaking: 11th Circuit Rules Individual Mandate in ObamaCare Unconstitutional (Updates)"

Wow.

Obama plan: Destroy Romney - Ben Smith and Jonathan Martin - POLITICO.com

Obama plan: Destroy Romney - Ben Smith and Jonathan Martin - POLITICO.com: "“Unless things change and Obama can run on accomplishments, he will have to kill Romney,” said a prominent Democratic strategist aligned with the White House."

Give a man a fish, and he’ll riot for free fish | The Daily Caller

Give a man a fish, and he’ll riot for free fish | The Daily Caller: "Give a man a fish, and he’ll riot for free fish"

Why Do Russians Hate Ice? - NYTimes.com

Why Do Russians Hate Ice? - NYTimes.com: "Later, I asked one of the waitresses, why the no-ice policy.

“Over in Ukraine, they put ice in their drinks,” she explained. “But not in Russia.”

“Really? My family’s from Ukraine, and they don’t use ice.”

“Well then I guess we all don’t use ice.”

“Yes,” I persevered, “but why?”

“That’s just how it’s always been,” she shrugged."

Matt Damon’s got a lot to learn - BostonHerald.com

Matt Damon’s got a lot to learn - BostonHerald.com: "Sorry, Matt, but if I were your math teacher back at Cambridge Rindge and Latin, I’d have to give you an F. Wrong on theory and fact.

First the data — starting with Matt’s myth that teachers work for a shi— . . .  er, “less-than-adequate” salary.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the average Boston teacher earned around $80,000 last year. That was the average. And that doesn’t include the generous health care or pension benefits, which would equal $100,000 in the private sector. All for just 180 days of work."

The Mathematics of Basketball - ScienceNOW

The Mathematics of Basketball - ScienceNOW: "To shoot, or not to shoot, that is the question. Whether 'tis nobler to try to score right away or wait for a better chance.

Professional basketball players face that quandary multiple times in every game. And in an article posted at arXiv.org on 29 July, Brian Skinner, a graduate student in theoretical physics at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, provides some mathematical guidance for the best time to take aim."

A break from automated blogging.

Here's a thought inspired by the Wu thing. Maybe it would be a good idea to have a law that says, every time a political office holder resigns, the largest opposing political party gets to choose his replacement. An alternative: the person who received the second most votes in the last election should automatically take office.

I think that would encourage the party to look harder at a candidate's behavior earlier, but it would also likely encourage politicians to try and wait out any controversy.

Fabulous picture, but…

Fabulous picture, but…: "Suppose you take a loan and buy a Lexus. You decide to buy a car for your wife. You keep the Lexus and take out a second loan to buy her a Ferrari. Your wife loses her job, so you’re struggling to make the payments on both cars and your teenaged daughter asks for a car and you buy her an Acura. So what’s the source of your impending bankruptcy? It can’t be the Acura, right? That’s only a small part of your debt!"

The Volokh Conspiracy - John McCain as Gandalf?

The Volokh Conspiracy - John McCain as Gandalf?: "To paraphrase Lloyd Bentsen: I served with Gandalf in numerous D&D campaigns; I knew Gandalf from reading the Lord of the Rings umpteen times; Gandalf was a friend of mine. And John McCain is no Gandalf."

Greg Mankiw's Blog

Greg Mankiw's Blog: "Lacy, Will you marry me? Kyle.

My first thought: How charming!

My second thought: I hope there is not another couple named Lacy and Kyle sitting on the beach this afternoon."

Althouse: "We all remember that classic scene from The Godfather where the movie producer Jack Woltz wakes up with a horse's head in his bed."

Althouse: "We all remember that classic scene from The Godfather where the movie producer Jack Woltz wakes up with a horse's head in his bed.": "The cinematic trick is: You're so preoccupied with the startling thing you've actually seen as you discover the horse head along with Woltz that you have no mental space remaining in which to ask how'd they get that thing in there? You might ask: What sort of people would do a thing like that? — which is the aspect of the scene that TPM invokes in its absurd analogy. But you're not supposed to think: No way could they do that. In fact, if you're inclined to ask questions like that, you probably don't enjoy movies too much."