A LOOK AT THE NEW Dodge electric sports car.

IS GRAPE JUICE as good for you as red wine? Possibly.

IN THE MAIL: From Peggy Noonan, Patriotic Grace: What It Is and Why We Need It Now. I’m not sure how much this overlaps with Black Belt Patriotism, but I kinda like the idea of Peggy Noonan and Chuck Norris as some sort of action-hero team . . . .

INSTA-POLL:

IF YOU STRIKE AT THE KING, you should at least get your facts right. Tulane Dean Apologizes for Errors in Law Review Article Claiming Donor Influence on Louisiana Supreme Court.

On the other hand, this suggests that the Tulane Law Review might be a stepping-stone to a career in journalism . . . .

IN THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, a look at the Barack Obama / Bill Ayers tie. “Despite having authored two autobiographies, Barack Obama has never written about his most important executive experience. From 1995 to 1999, he led an education foundation called the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC), and remained on the board until 2001. The group poured more than $100 million into the hands of community organizers and radical education activists. The CAC was the brainchild of Bill Ayers, a founder of the Weather Underground in the 1960s. Among other feats, Mr. Ayers and his cohorts bombed the Pentagon, and he has never expressed regret for his actions. Barack Obama’s first run for the Illinois State Senate was launched at a 1995 gathering at Mr. Ayers’s home.” Read the whole thing.

And Hot Air has some thoughts. “Ayers wanted teachers trained to instruct against “oppression” and to push schoolchildren towards political beliefs Ayers valued — apparently valuing them higher than actual education. Barack Obama agreed, and for several years worked in close partnership with Ayers to implement that educational policy. Even had Ayers never tossed a single bomb, this kind of educational philosophy would likely raise eyebrows with most parents, who desire a real education for their children and not some sort of political indoctrination camp. . . . What does that say about Obama’s idea of mainstream, as he has repeatedly described Ayers and Dohrn?”

And what does it say about the mainstream media, whose organs have quite consciously and deliberately ignored and minimized this subject?

REPORTING FROM SINGAPORE’S robot war games. With video, and this conclusion: “It’s going to be a while before robots take over the world.” SkyNet it ain’t.

REVIEWING THE REVIEWERS: A roundup of book reviews from all over.

I’M NOT SURE WHY, BUT LOTS OF PEOPLE have been hitting the Amazon and PayPal donation buttons lately. If your donation wasn’t anonymous, I’ve already sent you a thank-you email. If it was anonymous, well, this is your thank you. However, in general I’d rather people sent their donations to folks like Michael Totten or Michael Yon, who need the support to do independent journalism, or to the occasional blogger-in-trouble that I link. I appreciate the donations, but I don’t really need ’em, and your money’s probably better spent elsewhere.

UPDATE: A reader emails: “Have you thought about taking those donations and giving them to those you think can use them yourself?” Actually, I often do. And reader Steve Fisher suggests: “Instead you should set your donation links up as an independent journalist fund, with the option of donating to particular journalists.” I’ve thought of that, but it sounds like it would become unwieldy. I prefer just to encourage people to support sites they like.

JENNIFER RUBIN looks at how Sarah Palin is doing.

Well, Palin’s driving Naomi Wolf crazy, anyhow. Of course, Wolf was already close enough to walk . . . .

IS SLEEPING APART HEALTHY FOR A MARRIAGE? The latest Ask Dr. Helen column is up!

THE FIRST SELF-GENERATED campaign gaffe mashup?

TOM SMITH ON GOOGLE: “Now do you see why I think it is a really bad idea to let them do a deal with Yahoo that will give them a 90 percent grip on advertising on the web?”

STEVEN LANDSBURG ARGUES AGAINST THE BAILOUT PLAN.

What’s clear is that a bunch of financial institutions have made mistakes and lost money. What’s unclear is why anyone (other than the owners and managers) should care. People make mistakes and lose money all the time. Restaurants fail, grocery stores fail, gas stations fail. People pick the wrong stocks, they buy the wrong cars, and they marry the wrong spouses without turning to the Treasury for bailouts.

Read the whole thing. And remember — just because International A.N.S.W.E.R. is against the bailout doesn’t actually guarantee that the bailout is a good idea.

Meanwhile, Christine Hurt comments on whether the bailout is a good idea: “That’s the question I was asked by my fellow conferees at my non-corporate conference. My answer has to be ‘compared to what?’ . . . Would the market be able to right itself, after breaking more than a few Wall Street eggs, eventually? Not sure.”

Plus this: “What’s the easiest prediction to make from the financial crisis? More law school applicants.”

Professor Bainbridge pulls together some other issues, and makes the Chrysler comparison.

UPDATE: Arnold Kling on crisis management: “My point is that strong leadership is bad, even though it is popular. I recently reminded readers of the bad consequences of the strong leadership of President Nixon’s Treasury Secretary John Connally. I think that the current strong leadership coming from Ben Bernanke and Henry Paulson will prove similarly unfortunate. In the Presidential campaign, the candidate whose temperament is most conducive to strong leadership is John McCain. So far, Barack Obama comes across to me as cautious and cerebral. If I thought he would stay that way, then I would root for him in the election. However, my guess is that in the coming weeks his political instincts will lead him to remake his image into that of the strong, decisive leader that the public presumably craves.”

And, from Virginia Postrel: “I will also note that private equity funds and hedge funds, which aren’t subject to all this wonderful regulation, appear to be doing better than the rest of the financial world.”

Is that because they know they could lose their shirts?

IN HOLLYWOOD, Republican is the new gay! And it’s fabulous!

COULD WIND FARMS affect weather systems?

J-STREET BLOWBACK: Anti-Iran Rally Turns Into Anti-Obama Rally. That may put an end to the gloating from J Street, anyway. . . .

BIDEN MUSCLE-FLEXING: “Barack Obama’s running mate says a campaign ad that mocked Republican presidential candidate John McCain as an out-of-touch, out-of-date computer illiterate was ‘terrible’ and would not have been done had he known about it.”

RON PAUL makes his Presidential endorsement.

BANE OF BANERANTS has died. Please send your prayers and condolences to his family.

MEGAN MCARDLE: How close was the market to a meltdown last week? “I do not work for the Treasury, the Fed, or an investment house, so take this for what it’s worth. But my understanding is really, frighteningly close. . . . Consider that the Great Depression came upon a society much less dependent on unsecured credit than we are. Then count your lucky stars that our financial officials are moderately competent.”

UPDATE: David Zaring looks at the Democrats’ counterproposal. My advice to the Dems — get Chris Dodd’s name off of it . . . .

ANOTHER UPDATE: Tom Maguire weighs in.

Plus, thoughts from Arnold Kling.

MORE: How you respond is up to you, but the folks at International A.N.S.W.E.R. email me that they’ve set up a site called VoteNoBailout.org to oppose the bailout plan. That doesn’t guarantee that the bailout is a good idea, of course . . . .

PALIN EMAIL UPDATE: Lawyer: Kernells want to do ‘right thing’ in Palin e-mail probe. The News-Sentinel is promising more tomorrow.

OBAMA SUPPORTER John Althouse Cohen on “How Obama Lost Me.”

Plus, Mike Rappaport on why he’s not supporting McCain.

Don’t people wind up feeling this way every four years? Which isn’t to say they’re wrong. As for me, I haven’t liked a candidate enough to be actually disillusioned by one in . . . well, ever, really. The good news is that the guy you don’t like usually fails to live up to your fears almost as much as the guy you like fails to live up to your hopes. . . .

CHRIS FOUNTAIN SAYS THE NEW YORK TIMES SAW THE MORTGAGE MELTDOWN COMING IN 1999 — they just didn’t realize it at the time.

UPDATE: Thoughts on the current situation from Fabius Maximus.

DEALBREAKER: “The reality is that the media can do far more damage far more quickly than short sellers ever will. Shall we call for them to face criminal charges for their poor judgment as well?”

Tom Smith comments: “I would not make this mistake, and I’m just a blogger, quite literally in my gym shorts.”