Lotus Exige

In these uncertain times, cars are the best investment. The Lotus Exige.

Seriously?

$326 for Legos?

Horns

Ugh, this is going to get interesting. OU is a good team, but I'm not sure how it is possible that Oklahoma is going to jump them. Actually, I am...a really bad tiebreaker system used by the Big 12.

Mumbai

Fareed Zakaria

Speed Traps

God bless Apple.

Citigroup

People smarter than me with reactions to the Citigroup bailout. Short version, they're not fans.

Nominee for Most Idiotic Sentence(s) of the Year

Harold Meyerson

"And yet, at the same time, the industry needs to be restructured, and it is ludicrous to believe that the executives who have helped run these companies into the ground are the executives who can make the necessary changes. The task cannot be given either to them or to a bankruptcy judge. It must be undertaken by the federal government -- by the Obama administration and the next Democratic Congress."

Yes, that is exactly what we need. All that has been missing has been Congress running an auto manufacturer.

NCAA

Always wondered why more recruits don't take this approach.

Very Pretty Photos of Nature

Here

Brad Delong

Is really, really smart. And really, really worth reading.

Earmarks

I've never been one who is all wild-eyed about the reports of earmarks in appropriations bills. One, because they are not new or particularly novel, although they have grown massively. Two, earmarks are a rounding error compared to the entitlement crisis we face. Three, there are very good reasons for earmarks. When Congress doesn't direct the spending, it leaves that discretion to the agencies, the largely unregulated fourth branch of government. Agencies, in turn, direct money to their patrons, the committee chairmen who oversee their oversight committees and who appropriate them money.

Now what is broken is the process by which earmarks are authorized. The omnibus bills that package them all together and then require a single up or down vote feeds into every image of Congress as a group of detestable slimebags. Earmarks need to be subject to votes and they need to be decided on their merits.

Anyway, the Seattle Times put together a list of the atrocities. Here.

The Right Kind of Bailout

Felix Salmon

Newsweek 's Secrets of the 2008 Campaign

A seven part series from Newsweek who had reporters embedded with the campaigns. Long, but good. Hat tip to Duane for pointing me toward the story.

More Auto

Megan McCardle weighs in as well

Bailing out the Auto Industry

I've been wondering why bankruptcy is not a viable option for the automakers. Bankruptcy allows debt to be restructured or eliminated and a company can emerge in a much stronger position to actually be successful. I've not closed my mind to the idea that there may be a reason, but I've not seen anyone offer a convincing reason why a bailout is preferable to bankruptcy. But today we've got a good round of opinions on it.

Justin Fox

Brad DeLong

Jonathan Cohn

Poker

Back when I was playing seriously, apestyles was one of the guys who I tried to watch and learn from. He's an absolutely sick player and having watched him play tournaments has helped, me mend some leaks in my game. Anyway, good story in the Statesman.

Zen

I like this passage that Grge Mankiw posts.

More Josh Childress

Another good story.

Losing Like an Adult

I was wondering when someone was going to write this. Just think back to last election and the reaction of folks on the Left. Wild conspiracy theories, vile insults aimed at their neighbors, gnashing of teeth, all around pathetic behavior. While I'm sure losing sucks for folks on the Right, it's been refreshing to watch them lose like adults.

I Wish Scott Boras Was My Agent

It's funny to me that general managers vilify Scott Boras because he gets them to massively overpay for subpar talent. Half of the salary cap discussion is because the general managers need a rule in place to stop them from spending like idiots.

Dear God

Anyone who has heard Lee Corso announce a game or, say, talk out loud knows that he is bat shit crazy. Here is a nice image of him firing two shotguns off over his head while wearing a mascot suit.

Hmmm

I watch a disturbing amount of Bravo (Top Chef, Flipping Out, Million Dollar Listing, Housewives, Top Design, Project Runway). Actually, it's my wife and I get sucked into it and once I watch it then I'm invested and it just goes from there. Anyway, this is a pretty interesting story from the NY Times.

Audi RS5

In these uncertain times the only safe place to put money is into cars. If my wife won't let me have the Tesla, ZR1, GTR, or M3, then perhaps I will be able to get the Audi RS5.

No One Likes a Show Off

Especially the guy who knocks him out.

Devin Harris on Other PGs

I always think it's interesting when NBA players give their take on who they think the best players are. This one is limited to point guards, but it's still pretty interesting.