FIRST, THEY CAME for the gays.

TWO ECONOMIC BIRDS, one government stone.

SOME AMAZING SHARK PICTURES.

A LOOK AT the algorithms of love.

THOUGHTS ON TECHNOLOGY AND HUMAN ENHANCEMENT, from Sonia Arrison.

JOHN MCCAIN KERRY: I think McCain is overplaying the Vietnam vet thing. Who does that remind me of?

See, manly modesty is the way to go. Make too much of your military record, and you diminish it.

DON’T DROP THE SOAP: A side of Kathleen Sebelius I was unfamiliar with.

IN DEFENSE OF THE MINIVAN: “The minivan gets a bad rap in this country–it is almost universally reviled as a symbol of dweebish parenthood and mindless suburbia, a scarlet letter attached to soccer moms’ chests. . . . The minivan’s job is to haul people and cargo in as comfortable and efficient a manner as possible, and it fulfills that mission admirably.” (Bumped).

WHAT DID CONGRESS GET FOR ITS PURCHASE OF CARBON OFFSETS? Nothing, basically.

I could have saved them a lot of money!

BEST LINE OF THE NIGHT: “Others have said they would personally be happy to pay higher taxes. I welcome their enthusiasm, and I am pleased to report that the IRS accepts both checks and money orders.”

JIM DEMINT OFFERS THE CONSERVATIVE RESPONSE to the State of the Union. Which in itself is kind of bad for Bush . . . .

THOUGHTS ON THE Challenger anniversary.

BUSH ON IRAQ: Video.

UPDATE: Some not-entirely-positive thoughts from Don Surber.

WATCHING BUSH WALK OUT AFTER THE SPEECH, I’m struck by how happy he looks. Other Presidents have looked beaten-down by this point. Not him.

TALKING GLOBAL WARMING on Reason TV.

OKAY, I HAVE TO GLOAT JUST A BIT: Bush led off with earmarks. His actions aren’t as bold as I’d like, but still — back in 2005 when PorkBusters started, nobody in Washington cared and members of Congress were bragging about pork. Now the State of the Union leads of with an attack on earmarks, to thundering applause. Yeah, a lot of it’s a sham. But hypocrisy is the tribute vice pays to virtue, and this kind of hypocrisy indicates that the anti-earmark momentum is growing.

UPDATE: Liveblogging the SOTU here. Also here. For the full prepared text of Bush’s speech, click “read more.”

THE PROBLEMS OF MOVIE DISTRIBUTION: Will the Long Tail bring a Big Fix? Somebody ask Roger Simon!

GEOTHERMAL POWER in Alaska.

I MAY NOT MANAGE to watch the State of the Union, but Jules Crittenden and Rick Moran will be covering it for Pajamas Media.

CLAUDIA ROSETT: The amazing, disappearing Pentagon profile.

RAND SIMBERG OBSERVES THE ANNIVERSARY of Bush’s “Sixteen Words.” Here’s more background on those from FactCheck.org: Two intelligence investigations show Bush had plenty of reason to believe what he said in his 2003 State of the Union Address.

A NEW YORK TIMES PROXY FIGHT! “Investors Plan to Name Their Own Slate of 4 Directors at N.Y. Times Co.”

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER’S HEALTH CARE PLAN has been rejected.

In a way, this was foreshadowed in Daniel Weintraub’s book, which coincidentally just came out.

OUCH:

Rev. Al Sharpton on the ABC show “The View” today told former President Bill Clinton to “shut up”. While not identifying any individual statements, Sharpton said Mr. Clinton should end the “race-tinged rhetoric”.

When Al Sharpton is outraged by your race-baiting, well . . . .

A STATE OF THE UNION preview.