IN THE MAIL: Jay Nordlinger’s Here, There and Everywhere.

Plus, Hot Hand by Mike Lupica. And The Ranger’s Apprentice.

STORY OF THE DAY: IRS goes after couple whose ID stolen by illegal aliens. “I’ve read it twice and my jaw is still on the floor.”

WASHBURN BOMBS: “You know you’re in really sorry shape as a presidential debate moderator when another member of the press — a far more famous and powerful member — demands your resignation.” I’m almost starting to feel sorry for her.

GPS UPDATE: So after all the discussion yesterday, I’m thinking of getting the Garmin nüvi 350 — price has been chopped and it does very well in customer reviews. Anybody out there got one?

OUCH: “Hurrying in after the signing was over and signing the EU ‘Reform’ Treaty by himself, Gordon Brown reminded me of King John when he became a vassal of the Pope and made England a fiefdom of the Papacy. Like John, he was thinking only of himself.”

LEFT AND RIGHT COME TOGETHER in mocking dumb attacks on citizen journalism.

NAOMI NOVIK FOUNDS THE ORGANIZATION FOR TRANSFORMATIVE WORKS. It’s designed to promote fan fiction and fan culture. Website is here. I’m quite a fan of Novik’s — as some readers may recall, she won this year’s John W. Campbell award.

FICTIONAL CHARACTERS IN THE NEWS: This must be part of that journalistic “professionalism” we’ve been lectured about. “Evidence contrary to that narrative is not fit to print.”

CRITICIZING THE HUFFINGTON POST’S business model. Though the criticism comes across as a bit jealous.

FARC FAILS to Kidnap President Uribe’s Two Sons.

TEST-DRIVING the Nissan GT-R.

FINISHED READING S.M. STIRLING’S In the Court of the Crimson Kings last night. I enjoyed it very much; it’s one of those books whose feel sticks with you overnight, always a good sign. (Plus the cool King Crimson reference in the title). It’s a sequel to The Sky People, and part of his effort to update Burroughs-era pulp to the 21st Century. I was a bit skeptical of this when I first heard of it, but he’s definitely pulled it off. Here’s the interview where he described the series:

Right now I’m working on an alternate history series which might be summed up as “What if the background of some of the pulps existed in the real world?”

In the 1950’s, we discovered that Earth was definitely the sole inhabitable planet in this solar system, which was a terrible blow to traditional SF.

In my new alternate history, we discover instead that we have two other habitable, and in fact inhabited, planets. Mars is a cold, dry world of ancient ruined cities, thinly peopled by the decadent descendants of lost civilizations (or are they?); Venus a hot, wet, fecund one of primitive humans (and other hominids) with an archaic fauna.

Then I try to treat everything else in as densely realistic a style as I can. It makes for an interesting contrast.

It does.

ENERGY BILL UPDATE: “Senate Democrats yesterday bowed to Republicans and stripped a proposed tax increase for oil companies from a broad energy bill, clearing the way for passage of the measure that includes the first increase in vehicle gas-mileage standards in 32 years.”

BETTER THAN BRINKS: “Lexington Police say a woman shot Joshua W. Harrison, 27 of 3008 Maddie Lane, who was trying to get in a window. Harrison was shot in the lower torso. He was taken to UK Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Harrison is charged with burglary in 2nd degree and is being held in the Fayette County Detention Center.”

CAIR VS. TALK RADIO: Apparently Baghdad Bob is doing their PR.

But why would anybody listen to an organization that has only 1,700 members and is funded by foreign potentates?

THE AGONY OF VICTORY, and not the thrill of defeat. Blackfive looks at Pelosi’s latest misstep. Video here. More thoughts from Bryan Preston.

OBESITY AND POLITICS — but the best line is from the comments: “They are going to take potato chips from us for the common good.”

Plus, a solution: “Maybe all those fat people should start smoking again.” Hmm. Smoking goes down, obesity goes up. I wonder if this is another unintended consequence of government action . . . .

A BLEAT READER comes to the rescue.

VIOLENCE IN THE INNER CITY: It’s not often that the San Francisco Chronicle gets praise from Clayton Cramer.

IT’S A NEW LOOK for Bloggingheads.tv.

STEROIDS AND Chris Shays.

MORE ON THE GPS POST, here.

THOUGHTS ON terrible 1970s American cars.

ABC: Eyewitness Account of Huge Taliban Defeat. May there be many more, until they’re all out of the picture. It seems to me, though, that this sentence reveals a lot about both the war, and modern journalism: “While hundreds of Taliban are believed to have been killed, two British soldiers and one American soldier lost their lives.”

UPDATE: Reader Alex Gadea emails:

I love your posts, but I don’t think you are being fair to Stephen Grey, the writer of the Blotter article on the fighting in Afghanistan. I believe he is saying that it only cost 3 coalition lives to rout the Taliban, and even those were lost not due to anything the Taliban were able to do but by mines left by Soviet forces in the 80s. Grey appears to be actually be underlining how powerful and successful the attack was and does not seem to be making the invidious comparison that you seem to feel he does. I do believe the MSM has been attrocious and avidly anti-american in their coverage of Afghanistan and Iraq, but don’t allow anger over that to strike at someone who actually seems to be given an honest accounting.

Fair enough. The report is quite good — I just found the turn of phrase odd.

BLOGGER WILL BAUDE, a founder of Crescat Sententia, will be clerking for Chief Justice Roberts. Congratulations, Will! This’ll continue to put a dent in his blogging career, but I hope he’ll be back in the ‘sphere one day.