HEH: “President George Bush, looking quite thin, tall and tan, accepted the Nobel Peace Prize Thursday, defending his ability to seek peace while fighting two wars abroad.” Amusing photoshop at the link.

BEATING PARALYSIS. Not the metaphorical kind, but the real thing.

IS AVATAR REALLY lefty propaganda? At least one lefty is cheering it as such.

REIHAN SALAM: Hillary Was Right: Barack Obama wasn’t ready to be president, and he better figure out what he’s doing before it’s too late.

GUESS THE MOVIE by Nicolas Cage’s Hair.

ILYA SOMIN: Addressing the Most Important Weakness of Conservative-Libertarian Public Interest Law. “Left-liberal scholars and activists have long understood this crucial lesson, and they have created an extensive network to facilitate follow-up litigation to enforce their high court legal victories. In almost every major law firm, there are lawyers who do small-bore pro bono cases on behalf of various left-wing causes. These cases often build on and enforce favorable appellate decisions. By contrast, conservatives and libertarians have been slow to grasp this point and act on it.”

DONALD SENSING: The Case Against The Kindle.

IF ONLY THE U.N. WERE THIS TOUGH ON TERRORISTS: Journalist question about ClimateGate gets armed response.

SEN. JAMES INHOFE ON CLIMATEGATE. And talk of potential criminal liability.

A BUDGETARY FLUNK FOR the Senate Healthcare bill: “A new report from government economic analysts at the Health and Human Services Department found that the nation’s $2.5 trillion annual health care tab won’t shrink under the Democratic blueprint that senators are debating. Instead, it would grow somewhat more rapidly than if Congress does nothing.” That whole doing-nothing approach just keeps looking better.

JONAH GOLDBERG: “Imagine if someone wrote an op-ed saying that we need a planetary ban on abortion. Feminists would get their dresses over their heads in outrage about such a naked assault on ‘reproductive freedom.’ But here is a woman in a very prestigious Canadian newspaper arguing, in effect, that every country in the world should force women everywhere to have an abortion if they already have a child . . . . how on earth can anyone believe in ‘reproductive freedom’ and not be absolutely horrified by the police-state evil of such proposals?”

BAD REVIEW FOR BARNES & NOBLE: Nook E-Reader Promises, But Doesn’t Deliver.

ERIK SOFGE: INVENTORS SLAM PATENT REFORM EFFORT. “Now, after a raft of failed bills, the Senate Judiciary Committee has approved a general vote on the Patent Reform Act of 2009, or S. 515. (A similar bill, H.R. 1260, is floating around the House, but has yet to make it through committee.) And as impassioned as the opposing camps may be, their arguments are taking place largely outside of public view—yet the implications for the future of innovation in the United States may be profound. In essence, the reforms would bring elements of the U.S. system into compliance with common practices around the globe. But some of America’s most prolific inventors say the changes could seriously impair the culture of innovation that has long driven prosperity in this country.”

PRAISE FOR NPR: Lisa Davis of the Dallas Tea Party writes:

Robert Siegel, host of NPR’s “All Things Considered,” was in the Dallas area last week and attended several DTP gatherings. He’d called and stated he’d like to do a story and asked if we would agree to let some of the “happenings” be recorded. “Of course” we said. “As long as you are fair.” WELL…he was! The story was on Mr. Siegel’s “All Things Considered” this past Wednesday (December 9). Here’s the link.

He attended our neighborhood Tea Party, Sarah Palin’s book signing, a Tea Party coordinator meeting, and interviewed the founders and steering personnel. It turns out he understood that we are not only protesting and rallying, we are also educating our community. Considering that NPR has a history of being liberal organization, word is that we are all very pleased with the representation!

People on the right don’t like NPR, but as I’ve noted before, their reporting is generally pretty good.

FAIRNESS: People see money differently than goods. “If it’s something that has its own intrinsic value – in-kind goods such as food or vacation days – people are more likely to see equal distribution of such items as fair. But if it’s something that is only valuable when it’s exchanged – such as money or even credit card reward points – ideas of fairness shift to a more market-based attitude. In that case, the thinking is that people should receive according to what they’ve contributed.”

MATT WELCH: The Class War: Public Employees vs. the Rest of Us. Except law professors, of course. We’re nature’s noblemen.

PETER KELEMEN: All Real Scientists Are Climate Skeptics.

ED MORRISSEY: Do “Safe Schools” Require an Iron Fisting? “This post is not safe for work.”

CASUAL SEX: Not actually bad for your emotional health. Hey, there were times in college where it did wonders for mine . . . .

UPDATE: Reader Shawn Gallagher emails: “Apparently it’s pretty good for your golf game, too.” Heh.

POPULAR SCIENCE: Ranking the players in the private space race.

And, for some background, here’s a piece I wrote for The Atlantic a couple of years ago.

APTERA PROTOTYPE SPOTTED wearing peculiar modifications.

MEGAN MCARDLE: Baucus Needs To Go. “I’m sorry, I tried to be all breezy and cynical about this, but it’s time for Democrats to tell Max Baucus that it’s time for him to resign. Not because he had an affair with an employee, which doesn’t bother me as long as it doesn’t bother the employee. But nominating your girlfriend for US Attorney, and then withdrawing the nomination when a paper says they’re about to break the story, clearly indicates that you know it’s unsavory.”

CNN: 61% Oppose Senate Health Care Plan.

IN THE MAIL: From John Gibson, How the Left Swiftboated America: The Liberal Media Conspiracy to Make You Think George Bush Was the Worst President in History. Whatever it was, it seems to be wearing off . . . .

INCREASING THE DEBT CEILING by $1.8 Trillion?