WASHINGTON POST: Economic news is bad for Obama’s reelection bid. “Any notion that President Obama’s reelection campaign was gaining momentum was shaken this week by a string of worrisome economic reports showing weakness in the job market and new lows for housing prices.” Ya think?

UPDATE: Reader John Kluge writes:

You missed the living example of Heinlein in the WAPO story about the economy and Obama you linked to. The Post admits the economy is terrible and that is bad for Obama. But says that it is just bad luck.

“Behind the economic distress is a series of unexpected events, including the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the European debt crisis and rising gasoline prices. As a result of the unemployment rate turning back up and the housing market reaching new lows since the slump began in 2006, numerous economists have reduced their expectations for economic growth this year.”

I can’t help but think of the famous Heinlein quote.

“Throughout history, poverty is the normal condition of man. Advances which permit this norm to be exceeded- here and there, now and then- are the work of an extremely small minority, frequently despised, often condemned, and almost always opposed by all right-thinking people. Whenever this tiny minority is kept from creating, or (as sometimes happens) is driven out of a society, the people then slip back into abject poverty.This is known as ‘bad luck.’.”

Indeed.

UPDATE: Joy McAnn isn’t buying the White House’s excuses, emailing:

Bush also inherited a recession, and on his watch the economy absorbed the aftermath of 9/11, which was a much more direct hit on the U.S. economy than the disaster in Japan.

And if there were anyone in the White House protesting that “rising gas prices” are a hurdle they’ve had to overcome, it would be a classic textbook example of chutzpah, since so much of what they’ve done has encouraged gas prices to go up.

Well, yes. And there’s this: “You can be sure that if a Republican were in the White House and unemployment was at 9.1%, there wouldn’t be any ‘Don’t blame the president’ headlines in the newspapers.”

CHANGE: US house price fall ‘beats Great Depression slide.’

MICHAEL BARONE: Is Paul Ryan seriously considering a presidential run?

I asked whether he was going to run for president. He said (this is not quite an exact quote) I’m going to stay where I am. It’s easier. He added that he really thought Mitch Daniels was going to run and had gained that impression when talking to him three or four times before he made his decision not to. I asked him, What is the filing deadline for running for reelection in Wisconsin? He said it was in July. Which means, of course, that he could run for president and if not successful in the Republican nomination process could still run for reelection to the House.

Read the whole thing.

IS SAN FRANCISCO’S CIRCUMCISION BAN ANTI-SEMITIC? “The campaign comic book, called ‘Foreskin Man,’ after its baby-saving superhero, features a litany of evil Jews doing battle with blond Nordic saviors.” Don’t miss the pictures.

More from The Anchoress.

CHANGE: Syria Drops Off The Internet As Turmoil Spikes. “If Egypt and Libya are any guide, one might conclude that events on the street in Syria are reaching a tipping point.”

PROFESSOR JACOBSON: So Now All These People Will Apologize to Sarah Palin About Paul Revere, Right?

It’s another Party Like It’s 1773 moment, apparently.

STEVEN CROWDER is exposing bigotry.

SURE, I BELIEVE THAT: The Government Accountability Board “said politics played no role in its decision” but “it was able to get through the [recall] petitions against Republicans faster than the ones against Democrats.”

LIONEL CHETWYND RESIGNS over liberal bias in the media. More in Variety:

Screenwriter and director Lionel Chetwynd, who has been the dean of Hollywood conservatives, has resigned from the Caucus for Producers, Writers and Directors in the wake of a new book chronicling what it calls a left wing bias in primetime.

The recently published book, “Primetime Propaganda,” by Ben Shapiro, includes interviews with a bevy of TV show creators including Vin Di Bona, Marta Kauffman, Nicholas Meyer and Susan Harris. As part of the promotion for the book, Shapiro has placed audio portions of interviews online, in which content creators respond to questions about injecting liberal themes into their programming. The book also chronicles instances in which conservatives in the industry claim they are discriminated against in employment because of their views.

More at the links.

IS YOUR PRIVACY AT RISK FROM “Browser Fingerprinting?”

AT AMAZON, a sale on Dockers clothing for men.

POLIWOOD: Limeys & Latkes: The Past and Future of American Television.

I CAN’T SAY “with certitude.”

PHOTOS: See The Sun, The Moon, And The Space Station. Very cool.

AT AMAZON, it’s the Friday Sale.

ALLOWING A PROTEST TENT CITY IN MADISON, WISCONSIN? Sure. Set as many pro-protest precedents as possible. In another year or so, other folks’ll be the ones benefiting from ’em.

JUST BE YOURSELF: A Supernova That’s Super Different.

THAT KILLING-BIN-LADEN BOOST DIDN’T LAST LONG: Bipartisan Congress Rebuffs Obama On Libya Mission. “Mr. Obama’s only allies were top Democratic leaders.”

A HIGH-PROTEIN DIET ISN’T BAD FOR YOUR KIDNEYS.

Related: Low-Carb, Higher-Fat Diets Add No Arterial Health Risks to Obese People Seeking to Lose Weight.