ANN ALTHOUSE UNDERSTANDS CONSERVATISM, with help from John McCain.

Plus, unimpressed with claims of a McCain flip-out: “Maybe a better question is what sort of person views that as ‘flipping out’?”

The press hates it when pols get mad at reporters. I’m not convinced that anyone else does.

UPDATE: Ken Wheaton of Advertising Age isn’t a fan of the new McCain ad. “Did someone have some spare Star Trek B-roll hanging around?”

DOES HUGO CHAVEZ HELP THE POOR? Not so much.

But he talks about it. Isn’t that enough?

GOOD NEWS: Another FARC leader killed.

JIM GERAGHTY: “You realize the two advisers who have gotten Obama in trouble are named ‘Austan’ and ‘Power’. If there’s another adviser named ‘Danger’ on the campaign, they might as well let him go, too.”

A REMOTE-CONTROL PAINTBALL-FIRING ROBOT. I prefer the BeerBot myself, but they both have their uses. Perhaps they could be combined, or — no, that way lies madness.

LOVE FOR THE Ferrari Testarossa. With video.

RON BAILEY: For the Record, U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions Are Down.

We are the change we’ve been waiting for!

WELL, AT LEAST GEORGE MCGOVERN KNOWS that it’s not 1968 any more:

Since leaving office I’ve written about public policy from a new perspective: outside looking in. I’ve come to realize that protecting freedom of choice in our everyday lives is essential to maintaining a healthy civil society.

Why do we think we are helping adult consumers by taking away their options? We don’t take away cars because we don’t like some people speeding. We allow state lotteries despite knowing some people are betting their grocery money. Everyone is exposed to economic risks of some kind. But we don’t operate mindlessly in trying to smooth out every theoretical wrinkle in life.

The nature of freedom of choice is that some people will misuse their responsibility and hurt themselves in the process. We should do our best to educate them, but without diminishing choice for everyone else.

It’s not too late for him to jump into the Democratic race is it? This is better than anything I’ve heard from Clinton and Obama . . . .

HMM: Pelosi’s Bill Could Benefit Husband’s Stock Holding.

UPDATE: Sorry, my “hmm” was unclear. I don’t see this story adding up to much of anything, unless there’s something more out there.

IS OBAMA SOFT? Yes, says David Brooks, but not how you think:

The real softness of the campaign is not that Obama is a wimp. It’s that he has never explained how this new politics would actually produce bread-and-butter benefits to people in places like Youngstown and Altoona.

On the other hand, there’s this: “If anyone doubts that Obama’s supporters engage in cult-like behavior, try pointing out that they engage in cult-like behavior.” Yeah, there’s a certain Ron-Paulish vibe there.

UPDATE: What cult of Obama? Nothing to see here, move along.

MORE FOREIGN-POLICY EMBARRASSMENT FOR OBAMA: “For all the chatter about Obama adviser Samantha Power’s calling Clinton a ‘monster,’ another set of remarks made on her book tour in the United Kingdom may be equally threatening to the Obama campaign: Comments in a BBC interview that express a lack of confidence that Obama will be able to carry through his plan to withdraw troops from Iraq within 16 months. . . . Power downplayed Obama’s commitment to quick withdrawal from Iraq on Hard Talk, a program that often exceeds any of the U.S. talk shows in the rigor of its grillings.” Like Obama’s NAFTA doubletalk, I actually find this reassuring, but it’s still a problem for the campaign. Is it free-fall yet?

UPDATE: Retreat, at any cost. Well, so much for the reassurance.

BOB KRUMM TO RUSH LIMBAUGH: Be careful what you wish for. I have to say, I question the idea that Hillary would be easier to beat than Obama. Obama’s inexperience — and considerably farther-left views — will be a problem for him, as is becoming increasingly apparent. And his staffing isn’t looking so great these days, either.

BEER ROBOTS: Man’s new best friend?

IS THIS A GREAT COUNTRY, OR WHAT? A jet-powered Dodge Caravan. At the link, video of this “unholy amalgam of military might and mom-approved mobility.”

SAMANTHA POWER RESIGNS as Obama adviser after the Hillary-as-Monster comment.

Meanwhile, Hillary gets another break: Archivists block release of Clinton papers. Including the background on the Marc Rich pardon.

WELL, THIS GADGET looks cool, but I’m afraid that — as with the Kegerator — it would translate into a quick 20-pound weight gain.

IN THE MAIL: When the Tide Rises, by David Drake.

WHY HEALTH INSURANCE isn’t insurance.

Plus, related thoughts from Megan McArdle: “We force everyone to pay into fire departments because fires have very bad negative externalities: if your house catches on fire, unless you live on a rural farm, there’s a good chance that your neighbor’s house will burn down too. Fire prevention is a genuine public good; most health care, with the exception of things meant to stop the spread of infectious disease, simply isn’t.”

A CLASSIC ETHICAL BIND for lawyers.

NAME THAT PARTY: Special DWI Edition!

THOUGHTS ON JURY NULLIFICATION from Radley Balko. My own thoughts can be found here.

HERSCHEL SMITH ON Iran and Iraq.

MICKEY KAUS: Dial “P” for Pander!

HILLARY VS. OBAMA: Will Puerto Rico decide everything?

THE OIL BUBBLE: About to pop? I certainly hope so.