Overheard at Barnes & Noble

"Let's get you a book, Mike."

"I don't wanna book!"

"We're getting you a book, Mike."

"I wanna game!"

"A book is just like a game."

"Then you play it!"

On the Mend

My mother is out of the hospital, finally, and in a skilled nursing facility, where she'll be for another week or so before returning home. The doctors don't see any reason why she won't make a full recovery in the long run and be as active as she was before, which for an 83-year-old was pretty active.

Thanks to all who provided prayers and just plain good thoughts. They're much appreciated, by all of us.

Praying for Norma Jean

A person can easily get caught up in the rush of work and how to juggle deadlines that conflict. And become focused on our "kinetic military action" in Libya, or the deficit, or Wisconsin. But all it takes is one late-night phone call saying that your 83-year-old mother is having emergency surgery halfway across the country, and your world narrows down to your own family, and nothing more.

She's out of surgery and stable, but hardly on the road to recovery, at least not yet. So for any readers so inclined, please pray for Norma Jean.

I Got Nothing

Or at least, nothing but too much work on my desk and too many world events to keep up with.

And a dog that needs yet another walk. Back soon.

"Princess of the Universe" Filler!

Because this weekend is full of long-overdue time with my wife, Utopia has always been one of my favorite bands, and the post on Libya simply isn't ready yet...

Goldendoodle Filler!

Meet Eubie, a 4-month-old Goldendoodle and our own girl's new best friend:


Life is always better with dogs...

An Unserious Man in an Unserious Party

Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) on the defunding of NPR:

A national debt that tops $14 trillion. A projected deficit of $1.6 trillion in the Obama administration's proposed budget for next year. A federal government currently borrowing 40 cents of every dollar it spends.

James O'Keefe and the politics or bias of NPR aside, we're well beyond the point where we can afford something that might be nice to do. Or that we might like to do. If this country is going to have any future at all, we need to cut the federal government back to the bare essentials. And those bare essentials do not include federal funding of NPR.

Or Click & Clack.

Pop Quiz: Presidential Leadership Edition

Which of the following strong presidential responses to a pressing issue or crisis best exemplifies our current leadership?

A) Presidential response to the tsunami and nuclear crisis in Japan:


B) Presidential response to the revolution in Libya, currently being crushed by forces loyal to Qaddafi:


C) Presidential response to the deficit, debt crisis, and lack of a federal budget:


Hint: At this point, I don't just miss George W. Bush. I'm actually starting to miss Jimmy Carter.

Andrew Klavan: "Multiculturalism Explained"

My Last 36 Hours in 3...2...1...

3

is the number of neighborhood dogs I've guided safely home after discovering them roaming free, with no tags or ID, because their owners left the gate either unlatched or wide open.

2

is the number of neighborhood "window watchers" who know me by sight, if not by name, from walking my own dog up and down these streets for four years yet still thought I was a criminal mastermind trying to burgle a house under cover of herding an escaped dog back into its yard.

1

is the number of people who thanked me.

Return to Normalcy

How to Promote a Sci-Fi Extravaganza

Say what you will about anime and its live-action remakes, the cast of Space Battleship Yamato definitely know how to promote their blockbuster film:

Clearly, I need to watch more Japanese TV during my insomnia hours.

The Eternal Question

How Not to Spend a Saturday Morning

Is there anything better than spending two glorious hours on a Saturday morning trying to make a mew printer work properly? Especially when that printer is a replacement sent by the manufacturer because the original printer you bought from them turned out to be defective?

There is. And it's how I plan to spend my Saturday afternoon.

(WARNING: Foul-mouthed yet entirely appropriate rap music ahead...)

James Clapper: Qaddafi, Social Network Will Win

WASHINGTON -- In open testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said Muammar Qaddafi would prevail in the Libyan civil war and The Social Network would win the Academy Award for Best Picture.

As in previous hearings, Clapper's comments provoked immediate controversy. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) stated, "You just undercut every American diplomatic effort to convince a murderous dictator to step down, and you pulled the rug out from under every Libyan now risking his or her life for freedom. You do know this is an open hearing being broadcast throughout the world, right?"

Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI) echoed Graham's criticism. "You're making it pretty hard for us to keep covering for you, Jim. And for God's sake, don't answer Lindsey's question."

It was Clapper's comments about the hit film The Social Network, however, that truly sparked the ire of Sen. Graham. A transcript of the relevant exchange follows:

GRAHAM: How can you not know the Oscars were given out almost two weeks ago?

CLAPPER: Senator, it is the consensus opinion of the national intelligence community that the 83rd Annual Academy Awards ceremony has not, in fact, taken place.

GRAHAM: So The King's Speech didn't really win Best Picture?

CLAPPER: Senator, our analysts feel that a mercy Oscar in a technical category is the likeliest outcome for that film.

When asked about this exchange, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney stated, "Vice President Biden has full faith and confidence in Director Clapper. Oh, wait. You were asking about the president. Let me get back to you."

Today's comments were not the first brush with controversy for Director Clapper. In February, he provoked a firestorm with his claim that the Muslim Brotherhood was a "largely secular" organization. A spokesperson for the National Intelligence Coordination Center later clarified that Clapper had meant to say the Brotherhood was a "largely spectacular" organization.

In related testimony during the Senate hearing today, Clapper revealed the U.S. intelligence community now believes that most members of the Muslim Brotherhood are not actual brothers. "Though some members may well be connected in a familial fashion," Clapper explained, "recent communication intercepts indicate the Muslim Brotherhood is actually an umbrella organization that includes many people, from many countries, who may or may not be related."

Current Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and rumored Clapper replacement Leon Panetta refused to comment on this story, explaining that he had not yet watched analysis of the hearing on CNN.

Shocking Photo: Arizona Now Requires Proof of Immigration Status for Eggs

Can you spot the undocumented egg?