THE REVOLUTIONARY POTENTIAL of CCDs.

JENNIFER RUBIN: Will Obama Repair His Wimp Image? “Frankly, it might be a good time for the president to battle his left flank and demonstrate some moxie, if he has it. The world and a vast number of centrists in America, not to mention conservatives, think he’s a wimp. This is his time to prove them wrong.”

RADLEY BALKO interviewed by The Economist.

MICKEY KAUS: STOP STIGMATIZING STIGMA!

But a stigma placed on cash-like welfare (which food stamps are) remains a positive sign of a healthy work ethic. If you came across two societies–Society A, in which food stamps were stigmatized, with families reluctant to go on the dole even if they were eligible, and Society B, in which they weren’t, you would want to bet on (and live in) Society A. It’s one thing to relax the stigma on welfare in times of epic economic decline. It’s another if the stigma doesn’t return with the possibility of employment.

Indeed.

L.A. WEEKLY: L.A.’s Medical Weed Wars: How the Potheads Outwitted Antonio Villaraigosa and the L.A. City Council. Okay, even for a bunch of potheads that’s not a huge challenge. But as Xeni Jardin has noted, it’s producing some real quality-of-life problems.

TIGERHAWK: Thoughts on the ClimateGate Video.

Related: ClimateGate: The Destroyer Of Worldviews.

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS created or saved.

Check out the list of Candidates. With this kind of PR, I’m starting to take my run for Tennessee’s 29th District more seriously! What do you think?

BUILDING A NATION OF CAMERAMEN. And women.

MODELING THE ECONOMY AS A PHYSICS PROBLEM. I’d prefer building lots of new nuclear plants to total economic collapse, please.

SO HOW’S THAT “SMART DIPLOMACY” THING WORKING OUT? Iran Plans Ten New Uranium Enrichment Plants.

POP SECRET: Microwaves at a nuclear warhead plant.

IN THE MAIL: From David Weber and Eric Flint, Torch Of Freedom. It’s an “Honorverse” book.

CLIMATEGATE AND AN ARMY OF DAVIDS: My Sunday Washington Examiner column is up.

SALENA ZITO: Bedford Falls, USA:

Main Street America has entered an era of populism that embraces neither party. People are tired of government bailouts, spending and unchecked corruption, as well as the media’s perceived lack of curiosity or investigation into all three.

They are really tired of being told their values and way of life are not politically correct.

Sounds kind of familiar. Read the whole thing.

DANIEL GROSS: China Is A Communist Country, But I Have Yet To Meet An Actual Communist.

Plus these words of wisdom: “If somebody just went out in the street and shouted, ‘I will divide the property of rich people into poor people,’ I think he would be elected. But it is useless, as parity will not solve the problem of economic development.”

RASMUSSEN: 81% Disagree With New Mammogram Recommendation.

WOMEN WHO WANT TO WANT: Desire follows arousal.

THE PAJAMA SHOPPING REVOLUTION? Black Friday store spending edges up; online soars.

Shoppers who endured long lines and sometimes-frigid temperatures spent only slightly more during their Black Friday shopping sprees than they did last year, according to data released Saturday by a research firm.

At the same time, their pajama-clad counterparts, a much smaller group that accounted for only a fraction of overall sales, shopped online from the warmth of their homes and dramatically boosted their spending.

And yet online advertising was down last quarter.

INSIDE THE TUBE: Incredible Wave Photography.

ROGER SIMON: ClimateGate: Time To Postpone Copenhagen.

MY EARLIER POST ON WILLIAMS-SONOMA led people to ask which coffeemaker I bought — a reasonable question in light of past coffeemaker blogging. It was this one from Cuisinart. A few years ago I rejected a similar model because it had a “ready” beep that couldn’t be shut off (such noisemaking by appliances is a pet peeve of mine). But this one has an easy-to-use silencing feature. So far it’s doing fine.

UPDATE: Reader Dan O’Brien writes: “I have this one. It’s my second. If this one dies, I’d buy another exactly like it.”

LISA FAIRFAX ON The Financial Literacy (or Lack Thereof) of Young Americans. Of course, the older Americans in Congress aren’t looking so hot either . . . .

IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS — in Afghanistan.

Plus, helping the troops stay warm.

STILL FIGHTING OVER TRAFFIC CAMERAS IN OAK RIDGE: “More than four months after special cameras to photograph traffic offenses were installed in four high-traffic locations, they remain as controversial as Oak Ridge City Council’s narrow vote to approve them. More than 5,000 violation notices a month are now being mailed out, mostly for speeding on Oak Ridge Turnpike, records show. Through September, the cameras generated $337,427 in revenue from the $50 citations.” Which is the point, no matter what else they say.

Plus this: “By far, out-of-city drivers receive the majority of traffic violations, O’Connor said. In October, he said, 4,015 nonresidents and 1,002 residents were mailed speeding notices, he said.”

DEFENDING A PROFESSION that no longer exists.