IN THE MAIL: From Thomas Sowell, Intellectuals And Society.

SO, BROWN WON. This is big news; while the White House is still in the healthcare bunker, things like Jim Webb’s move for a “suspension” until Brown is seated suggest that Democrats in Congress, being closer to the front lines, have a better idea of what’s really going on. We may still see something called “health care reform,” but it seems much less likely that it’ll be anything like ObamaCare, and if they do somehow ram ObamaCare through they’ll see anger that’ll make the Massachusetts special election look like a cakewalk.

But while Scott Brown could get elected as the anti-Obama figure — and while others will be able to pull that off in the fall — the GOP needs to be sure that it doesn’t just look like it’s lining up for its turn at the trough. Polls show that most Americans want smaller government, even with fewer “services.” Running on a platform that money’s better kept in voters’ own pockets, rather than handed over to special interest logrolling and vote-buying, will work: If it’ll work in Massachusetts, it should work pretty much anywhere. It is a fashionably-gloomy line among some on the right to say that the country’s too far gone in statism and the government-handout parasite culture to support such an approach — but again, if you can make it with this in Massachusetts, you can make it pretty much anywhere.

Of course, what the GOP apparat does is less important nowadays than it was. As I noted before, there’s a whole lot of disintermediation going on here — Scott Brown got money and volunteers via the Internet and the Tea Party movement, to a much greater degree than he got them from the RNC. Smart candidates will realize that, too.

And lies don’t work as well as they used to. Obama promised transparency and pragmatic good government, but delivered closed-door meetings and outrageous special-interest payoffs. This made people angry. If Republicans promise honesty and less-intrusive government, but go back to their old ways, the likelihood that the Tea Party will become a full-fledged third party is much greater. Are the Republicans smart enough to realize this? I don’t know. The Democrats weren’t smart enough to look at Virginia and New Jersey and realize that what they were doing was a mistake that would backfire.

And on the third-party front, the Tea Party enthusiasm for Scott Brown bespeaks considerable pragmatism. Republicans who are seen as sellouts may face third-party challenges — or primary challenges, or both — but support for Brown indicates that people aren’t in a “take your marbles and go home” mode yet. Throwing a monkey-wrench into the ObamaCare works was seen as more important than getting the perfect candidate in, and that was a very wise move. I suspect that we’ll see similar pragmatism between now and November, but the GOP should also remember — as was shown in NY-23 — that making an example to encourage the others can be pragmatic, too.

UPDATE: Ed Morrissey: Don’t Get Cocky.

FUSION: I blog more about Polywell Fusion, but ITER is moving along, too.

BYRON YORK: With New GOP Strength In Senate, Will ObamaCare Die In The House?

Related: Barney Frank deals potential death blow to ObamaCare. Maybe he figures even his seat isn’t safe now . . . .

GOVERNMENT HEALTH CARE: How Did School Staffers Get Insulin Instead of Flu Vaccine? “While ABC News contacted people at the departments of health for the town of Wellesley and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the Wellesley School District, it remains unclear how the flu vaccine, which is distributed in pre-filled syringes, was mistaken for insulin, which is drawn from a vial because each dose needs to be calibrated when it is given.”

“JESUS CODES” OR JESUS! CODES? ABC Raids Message Boards to ‘Break’ a Decades-Old Story. “The manufacturer of gun sights used by the U.S. military inscribes references to New Testament passages on them, a fact known to the public for 23 years.”

UPDATE: A reader emails:

The Office I work in is having a good laugh at the idea this is a SECRET Code. Hey, I’m a Catholic and we don’t do Bible references that way, but even I know what is going on as I look at something like “2COR 4:6” inscribed on a tool or someone’s desk nametag, tee shirt etc. I suppose it is a secret if you work in an environment where there are no Protestant Christians, and you aren’t one yourself. (Which is an odd situation given that 30% or so of the US is.) Although I’m sure it wasn’t their intent, this tells me more about the ABC newsroom and editorial staff than about Trijicon.

I hear each scope is equipped with “cross” hairs, too. Will these Christianists never stop?

J.D. JOHANNES: The recession ended last night. Well, possibly.

ROGER KIMBALL: “Bringing about ‘redistributive change’ is what the Obama administration is all about. The victory of Scott Brown is a reminder that even in the most liberal state in the Union, that statist imperative inspires fear and loathing, not support.”

TRAFFIC: Over 772,000 pageviews yesterday. That’s a lot of interest for a state special election, isn’t it?

UPDATE: Reader Dave Bosserman writes: “Nice pageviews, kid. Now don’t get cocky.” Heh. Indeed.

TSA NOMINEE ERROLL SOUTHERS has withdrawn. “The White House says the president has accepted Southers’ decision with great sadness.” Oh, I’m sure.

Some background on Southers here.

HOW JOURNALISTS GET INTO HAITI: “If aid organizations are having such a hard time delivering food and medical supplies, how are so many journalists getting into Haiti? They’re hitching rides with the military.”

HAROLD FORD, JR.: A bold progressive leader.

POLITICO: Forces Of Change Now Target President Obama.

MORT ZUCKERMAN: He’s Done Everything Wrong: “Obama punted on the economy and reversed the fortunes of the Democrats in 365 days. He’s misjudged the character of the country in his whole approach.”

WELL, THIS DIDN’T TAKE LONG. “Health care was supposed to be done by August, now it drags on forever like Stalingrad!. . . . And where are the gays in the military?” Should have stuck with Hillary. Heh.

EVAN BAYH: The Far Left Has Taken Over The Democratic Party.

RON BAILEY: The era of massive global climate meetings may finally be ending. Thank goodness.

POLITICO: Democratic leaders face new resistance on health reform.

BILL QUICK: After Brown . . . A Call To Arms! “Here’s the strategy. We contest every race.”

SCHADENFREUDE: Media Matters In Desperate Denial Over Brown Win.

Plus: Axelrod Sounding Awfully Kind About Scott Brown. “A clever Brown campaign + a bad campaign by Coakley + local issues = the White House spin in the event of a Coakley loss. Considering how stingy the White House generally is with praise for any foe (including citizens at Tea Parties), the pro-Brown element of this spin seems telling.”

And: Frank Luntz’s focus group explains things.

FEELING THE PAIN. But is it really him, or is it an underblogger?

POLL: Massachusetts Voters Evenly Split On Tea Party Movement. If they’re evenly split in freakin’ Massachusetts, well, then . . . .

UPDATE: We Are All Tea Partiers Now. The people, united, will never be defeated.

PETER SUDERMAN: Everyone Hates Health Care Reform.

INDEED: “GOP’s Brown Wins In Epic Upset.”

UPDATE: “Rick, this is the first time in years that David Gergen has helped elect a Republican!”

HEH: How Stupid Does Ben Nelson Feel Now?

UPDATE: Reader C.J. Burch writes: “Ben should feel like a man who sold his soul to people who can’t protect his job or his reputation and who won’t give him his soul back. Because that is what he is.”