I BLAME RACISM: Less Stimulus Money For U.S. Minorities.

RAND PAUL polling surprisingly well in Kentucky.

BIGOTS: WaPo Female Condom Story Omits Gays. Related item here.

MARKDOWNS on videogames.

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR: Political extremism: Not so easy to categorize. “Both sides in the political debate have tried to label the IRS suicide pilot and the Pentagon shooter. But the truth here is way beyond such facile political analysis.”

You mean like Patrick Grier’s facile analysis for the CSM? More on Grier’s piece from Eugene Volokh. “Is there some item I’m missing in the Monitor article that does support the suggestions in the headline, and the plain statement in the lead paragraph?”

THE HILL: Unrest in Democratic Party plays out in Emanuel controversy. “There are people in the White House who are trying to get rid of Rahm, and they are leaking everything they can.”

NIKKI FINKE: “WORST OSCARS EVER!”

UPDATE: “Here’s how you determine who’ll win Best Documentary: the environmental pic wins unless there’s a Holocaust contender. Cynical but true.”

ANOTHER UPDATE: Ann Althouse: “I’m recording this with my DVR and pausing, then fast-forwarding. Otherwise it would be intolerable. Right now there’s a dance routine (that’s supposed to showcase the scores). It’s ghastly. I watched a second, sped ahead, watched a second, cursed, paused, and am now waiting for enough time to pass for more fast-forwarding. Why must they waste our time with this musical crap?”

KRAUTHAMMER for President?

GINA LOUDON: Democrat-Media Complex Accuses Tea Partiers of Being On… the Other Side.

WRONG ON EVERY COUNT: Paul Ehrlich’s lifetime of hot air. And rewards therefor.

FROM STEPHEN GREEN, it’s The Week In Blogs.

HOPE: Retiring Democrats May Oppose ObamaCare.

UPDATE: Related: An incentive for moderate Dems to stick together.

FORBES: The problem is spending, not just deficit.

MORE IN DEFENSE OF Electronic Throttle Control.

BBC: Bombers fail to derail Iraq’s election success.

Iraq just keeps outperforming expectations. Well, some people’s expectations, anyway.

PRACTICING illegal circumcision.

MICHAEL BARONE: Low-tax Texas Beats Big-government California.

ANDREA SEE: “At least people with autism have a medical reason for being different, I’m just difficult.”

HOW OLD IS TOO OLD TO GO BRALESS? For Carla Bruni, braless is fine, and the complainers should shut up.

From the comments: “If I saw Hillary Clinton or Nancy Pelosi without a bra, different story.” Absolutely.

UPDATE: Reader Kevin Greene writes: “This right here is why the media is doomed. Here you have a fabulously beautiful woman in a fantastic dress and the media runs one low-resolution picture? If ever there was a reason for a high-definition slideshow, is it not Carla Bruni in a hot dress?”

ANOTHER UPDATE: Better media performance here.

THIS WEEK’S big book news.

MICKEY KAUS FOR SENATE: “The Time Is Right.”

CALIFORNIA UPDATE: Billions in red ink drowning California’s cities, schools and counties, too. I heard my state’s Finance Commissioner on George Korda’s talk radio show, and it’s clear that he regards California’s situation as a cautionary tale. I hope that other states are taking the same lesson.

UPDATE: Related thoughts from Don Surber: “I blame incrementalism. Some sob sister story creates a new program for only pennies a day that quickly becomes an expensive bureaucracy. And well, here we are.”

BRIAN DOHERTY: Sensible “Cyber War” Preparation, Or Just More Government Snooping?

ROGER KIMBALL IS HAPPY TO HEAR OF ADAM GADAHN’S CAPTURE, but wonders where Eric Holder proposes to try him.

UPDATE: Now we’re getting mixed reports on whether it was Gadahn. Stay tuned.

HENRY VIII, KING ARTHUR, whatever.