THE PSYCHOLOGY OF NAKEDNESS.

A LESSON IN FAIRNESS FOR OBAMA:

President Obama this week started testing his new campaign theme, replacing “hope and change” with the equally vacant promise of “fairness.” Apparently he hopes Americans can be fooled twice.

In a talk Tuesday at the site of Teddy Roosevelt’s “New Nationalism” speech, Obama repeatedly invoked the notion of fairness. “We are greater together,” he said, “when everyone engages in fair play, everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share.”

The problem is that fairness, just like hope and change, can mean anything anyone wants it to.

How convenient.

SOMETHING THAT CAN’T GO ON FOREVER, WON’T: CBO: U.S Deficit Ran $240 Billion For First Two Months Of Fiscal 2012.

RUSSIA: Anti-Putin Protests Grow: Tens of thousands say they are prepared to take to the streets in the biggest challenge yet to the country’s government.

TEN YEARS AGO ON INSTAPUNDIT: Explaining guns to David Brooks.

SO SOMEHOW A COUPLE OF PAGES GOT LEFT OUT OF THE SCAN ON MY SCIENCE FRAUD PAPER, but there’s a complete version posted now. Download if you like — it’s free! (Bumped).

AT AMAZON, recommended gifts for geeks.

Also, a killer DVD collection, on sale today only: Clint Eastwood: 35 Films, 35 Years. (Bumped).

WALT DISNEY’S FIVE GREATEST INNOVATIONS.

AS THEY SHOULD: Lawmakers Blast Administration For Calling Fort Hood Massacre ‘Workplace Violence.’ “Sen. Susan Collins on Wednesday blasted the Defense Department for classifying the Fort Hood massacre as workplace violence and suggested political correctness is being placed above the security of the nation’s Armed Forces at home.” Sounds about right.

WELCOME TO THE 21ST CENTURY: Flying Robots Build 20-Foot Tall Tower.

#OCCUPYFAIL: Boston Judge: Occupy Protest Not Free Speech.

Eugene Volokh has thoughts.

AND SOME THOUGHT I WAS OVERLY CYNICAL FOR SUGGESTING THIS POSSIBILITY: New e-mails: ATF officials discussed using Fast & Furious to … push gun control. “But then, none of this is surprising: Congressional Democrats and even Eric Holder himself have already used F&F as a pretext to call for more gun control. I thought the sleaziest bit of White House scandal spin we’d see this year was the Energy Department asking Solyndra to hold off on layoffs until after election day in 2010. Nope: Per the new F&F e-mails, they’re actually using their own scandals now as a pretext for greater regulation. Says Dan McLaughlin, ‘Obama Administration once again lives down to every paranoid caricature of itself.’”

AT AMAZON, pre-Christmas deals in Electronics.

AT AMAZON, bestsellers in Automotive Safety.

WALTER RUSSELL MEAD: How To Ruin Your Life. “It is hard to know which is more disturbing, here: that a college can accept student loan money for a course like this without being charged with financial fraud or the vapid thinking and limp prose that Globe editors evidently think belongs in their newspaper.”

RANDALL PARKER: “So really, Romney’s the best bet for the Republicans. He’s got very high analytical skills, understands finance, understands business management, and knows how to be a CEO. His Mormonism is not important. That he governed a liberal state from a moderate position was really the only choice he had as governor of Massachusetts. He’s not a nut case or a dummy like some of the other Republican candidates. He harkens back to an earlier (and better) Republican party when executive competence mattered and ideological zeal was suspect.”

I can understand why people think he’s a squish. But (1) he was a lot of conservatives’ favorite against McCain; and (2) if you’re really worried, focus on the Congressional elections. Which isn’t a bad idea regardless.

GALLERY: 2011’s Top Pictures From Space.

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: “The problem is not that we are overeducating ourselves as many would have you believe. Rather, it’s that we are spending a fortune to undereducate ourselves.”

SEVEN WAYS to save an extra $10,000.

Here’s an earlier post of mine on financial planning.

SIX MORE REASONS why the job market is still bad.

NEWS YOU CAN USE: This Season’s Most-Shoplifted Items.

HIGHER EDUCATION UPDATE: Going Practical: “The Shale boom has helped create a new program at Youngstown State University. On Wednesday, university officials with the STEM College announced they are creating a Natural Gas and Water Resources Institute. Students will be able to receive a minor in gas technologies or take part in research projects involving the hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, process. The Institute will train science, math and engineering majors for shale specific jobs.”

ANN ALTHOUSE ON THE RECALL: “What I want is to know to what extent signature-gatherers are being paid. Who is being paid, how much, and by whom? I want to follow the money.”

THE DATA DIET: How Fitness Gadgets Can Get You In Shape. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve found the Livestrong App helpful.

I’M NOT SURE THAT’S A GOOD TURN OF PHRASE: Nasa’s Voyager 1 in ‘cosmic purgatory’ on verge of entering Milky Way. “It is about to become the first man-made object to leave the Solar System, although Nasa expects it to take between several months and years before it completely enters interstellar space. Voyager 2 will follow later.”

Last year I reviewed Stephen Pyne’s Voyager: Seeking Newer Worlds In The Third Great Age Of Discovery. I thought the book had flaws, but Pynes did a great job of explaining why the Voyager probes were such a great accompishment.