BECAUSE ARISTOS ALWAYS VALUE THE DIFFICULT AND RECHERCHE? BECAUSE THEY’RE POSITIONAL GOODS? Why vinyl and Polaroids are coming back in the digital era.

REALITY DOESN’T GO AWAY IF YOU IGNORE IT: Europe’s Reality Problem.

I DON’T KNOW I LOOK FORWARD TO THE CROSSOVERS: Think Game of Thrones and Sesame Street.  The songs alone are worth it.  For instance “It’s not easy being raped,” “B is for beheading” “The people in your neighborhood [will all die screaming.]” Is HBO taking all the magic out of ‘Sesame Street’?

WELL BEYOND THE JV TEAM: Deadly Inspiration.

SO MUCH MAKES SENSE NOW: LSD is the new business fad.

ONLY SARAH PALIN NEVER SAID THAT: Nancy Pelosi’s ‘Sarah Palin’ moment.

HOW THE GOVERNMENT RETARDS TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS: Blind spots in cars could eventually be a thing of the past.

GO YOUR OWN WAY: You’re better off ignoring Uncle Sam’s ever-changing diet advice.

UPCOMING: Through Fire (BAEN).  And in case you want to support my writing, yes, pre-orders are really, really good for a writer’s career.

AND THAT SAYS SOMETHING: Obama delivers the most boring speech of his presidency.

TO US CHINESE GOVERNANCE IS A TRAGEDY: To the Chinese, Our Presidential Debates are a Bad Sitcom.

HIS HEART MIGHT BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE. HIS MIND, OTOH: Biden’s cancer ‘moon shot’ is a grand idea that’s doomed.

PAM UPHOFF: Empire of the One (Wine of the Gods Book 14)

BUT IT WASN’T A STAND DOWN-STAND DOWN: Gowdy: Witnesses have confirmed stand-down order on night of Benghazi.

“I don’t know why the mainstream media doesn’t understand that you have to talk to everyone before you draw conclusions,” Gowdy said, noting the committee has roughly 12 witnesses left to interview before winding down its investigation.

Indeed!

REVIEW: “13 Hours” — the movie and the politics.

IT’S IN THEIR NATURE: Iran will slap us again after Obama’s pathetic response to sailor incident.

CAN CHINA EVENTUALLY HAVE ENOUGH? The only real solution to the endless North Korea crisis.

I KNOW YOU’VE MISSED MY SHOCKED FACE: Istanbul bomber entered Turkey as refugee from Syria, PM says.

ATTACK LINKED TO THE KURDISH WORKERS’ PARTY: Car bomb attack in southeast Turkey kills 5, wounds 39.

THE WIND SHIFTS: France bans three ‘radical’ Islamic groups after attacks.

I DON’T KNOW, I KNOW THEY VIOLATED THE REMAINS OF MY PATIENCE WITH THIS PRESIDENT: Did Iran’s videos of U.S. Navy captives violate Geneva Convention?

UNSUSTAINABLE, YOU SAY? Al Jazeera America to shut down cable news channel.

SEEMS SENSIBLE: In London Met Police to increase armed officers to counter terrorism.

OH COME ON, THE MINUTE WE HEAR “EXPLOSIVE VESTS” WE KNOW WHO IS RESPONSIBLE: “We have previously received a threat from Islamic State that Indonesia will be the spotlight,” police spokesman Anton Charliyan told reporters. But he said police did not know who was responsible.

VIA RICHARD FERNANDEZ: Someone on twitter from Jakarta.