DAVE KOPEL ON the United Nations vs. the Second Amendment.

GLOBAL COOLING WITH A TWIST, of lime: “Scientists say they have found a workable way of reducing CO2 levels in the atmosphere by adding lime to seawater. And they think it has the potential to dramatically reverse CO2 accumulation in the atmosphere, reports Cath O’Driscoll in SCI’s Chemistry & Industry magazine published today.” I’m skeptical, but stay tuned.

WELL, IT’S NOT ABOUT THEM: Iraqis underwhelmed by media circus for Barack Obama visit.

UPDATE: Howard Kurtz thinks it’s all good for Obama.

SWITCHING TO HOME SOLAR POWER: A report after a month. (Via Slashdot).

MAX BOOT: Maliki Feints.

SEAN CONNERY, parental role model.

ABC NEWS: cow farts are killing us. Is there a PETA VNR behind this?

SCOTUSBLOG: “The state of Louisiana on Monday asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its ruling a month ago striking down the death penalty for the crime of child rape. The rehearing petition, citing an omission in the Court’s opinion of any mention of a federal law on that issue, was filed late Monday afternoon.” Some background here.

RICK MORAN ON THE NYT’S McCain rejection. “The Times is dying. And the story of John McCain’s discarded op-ed is one of the big reasons why.” It’s almost as if they’re not objective!

Michael Silence quotes an observer:: “By sending their biggest stars across the globe to interview Obama, ABC, CBS and NBC have reinforced the notion that the Democrat is getting an easy ride.” Plus, if you report embarrassing things about Obama, you get kicked off the plane! If a Republican did this, it would be fascism . . . .

But some people are upset over the plane-kicking: Jeffrey Goldberg: “This is not the change we’ve been waiting for.”

Joe Gandelman: “an incident that could contain the seeds of a future political boomerang.”

UPDATE: Radio Equalizer notes that the Boston Globe published this column by Joan Venocchi: “The Audacity of Ego.” So the NYT is more in the tank than the Globe?

ANOTHER UPDATE: More thoughts here: “And herein lies the double-standard. McCain has not changed his position on Iraq in some newsworthy way, while Obama is busy laying the groundwork to ‘refine’ his policy. Thus, the NYT seems interested in rewarding Obama for starting to shift his position (even if the NYT would privately prefer otherwise), while blocking McCain because he has been consistent (and correct about the surge).”

DOUGHNUTS: IS THERE ANYTHING THEY CAN’T DO? “This event, which happened recently in Staunton, IL, was a sweet one, as eating doughnuts got minutes taken off your final time, a situation where ‘prizes were awarded to those who finished with the fastest time, the fastest adjusted time (depending on number of doughnuts eaten) and for most doughnuts eaten.’ I’m starting my training this instant for next year’s race.”

When I was in law school, the Entryway H Invitational featured similar events, but for beer: Beer golf, beer bowling, beer softball, beer squash — the last a bit of a mistake, as alcohol, swinging wooden objects, and small hard-walled rooms don’t mix.

OMAR FADHIL on Obama, diplomacy, and the Middle East.

BRIAN WANG: Offsetting Peak Oil for One to Two Decades.

Well, one of these could probably handle half my driving now. Maybe more. And Tennessee is N.E.V. friendly.

UPDATE: What happens when one of those little N.E.V.s gets t-boned by an SUV: “My girlfriend’s got a little bruise on her arm and a sore back, but she’ll live. The ZENN’s a little torn up, though.” Warning — your results may differ . . . .

Plus, the psychology of fuel efficiency, and why raising the MPG of gas guzzlers is more important than making efficient cars more efficient:

Say you have the ability to trade in a 10 MPG SUV for a 20 MPG crossover, or a 25 MPG car for a 50 MPG hybrid. Which switch is better for the environment? As it turns out, the former, even though one might be tempted to say that the former only improves efficiency by 10 MPG while the latter improves it by 25. Assume a 100 mile trip. The SUV will consume 10 gallons versus 5 gallons for the crossover for a net savings of 5 gallons. The car will consume 4 gallons versus 2 gallons for the hybrid for a net savings of 2 gallons.

I’ve actually mentioned this point before, but it bears repeating.

UPDATE: Arnold Kling thinks reports of inflatable electric cars are a hoax.

FROM DAVID KAYE, more on that L.A. Times DNA-match story.

ORIN KERR on why the United States has an exclusionary rule.

WILLIAM TUCKER: “All over the world, nuclear power is making a comeback. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has just commissioned eight new reactors, and says there’s ‘no upper limit’ to the number Britain will build in the future. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has challenged her country’s program to phase out 17 nuclear reactors by 2020, saying it will be impossible to deal with climate change without them. China and India are building nuclear power plants; France and Russia, both of whom have embraced the technology, are fiercely competing to sell them the hardware.”

THE ABSENCE OF RAMONES TUNES IS TROUBLING: The new Rock Band 2 songlist is out.

Plus, a hands-on report.

INTRODUCING MILBLOGS TV. Reporting from Iraq.

SOME PEOPLE ARE ALREADY looking forward to a failed Obama Presidency. I’m not. The discussion in the comments is amusing, though.

MICKEY KAUS: “Maybe we should pay more attention to the issues on which Obama hasn’t noticeably shifted to the center. For example, 1) health care and 2) tax increases. In each case, the relevant question would seem to be: Is he sticking to his guns because a) that’s what he really believes his presidency should be about, or b) the issue is so central to his coalition that changing his position would disrupt his election strategy?”

MCCAIN OPED RESPONDING TO OBAMA REJECTED BY THE NEW YORK TIMES.

People are going to start to think the press is in the tank for Obama or something. Oops — too late!

ROUNDUP AND REMOVAL OF CANCER CELLS, using nanotechnology.

AMERICA’S twelve cheapest cars.

MISUSING THE “RED CROSS” EMBLEM? LET THE INTERNATIONAL OUTRAGE BEGIN! A plane traveling from Venezuela with a Red Cross emblem was busted in Sierra Leone with 1,322 pounds of cocaine on board.

HMM: Much of Earth’s oil reserves can be traced to a single volcanic eruption, scientists say.

UH, RIGHT. Kiss my Astra?