Mahmoud Ahmadinejad revealed to have Jewish past  —  Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's vitriolic attacks on the Jewish world hide an astonishing secret, evidence uncovered by The Daily Telegraph shows.  —  A photograph of the Iranian president holding up his identity card during elections in March 2008 clearly shows his family has Jewish roots.

CONSERVATIVES' OLYMPIC GLEE CONTINUES.... It seems likely that conservative delight over the International Olympic Committee awarding the 2016 games to Rio will fade rather quickly.  There's just not much to keep their joy going — the United States sought the Olympics, made it to the final round, but came up short.

Garofalo: Led by Limbaugh, ‘Tea-Baggers’ a ‘White Power Movement’ Motivated by ‘Racism’  —  “Actress/activist” Janeane Garofalo used another media appearance to smear anti-Obama protesters as racists, this time, Friday night on HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher, insisting “it's obvious to anybody …

A DECISION THAT LOOKS EVEN WORSE IN RETROSPECT.... In February, when the debate over the economic stimulus package was at its height, a handful of “centrist” Senate Republicans said they'd block a vote on recovery efforts unless the majority agreed to slash over $100 billion from the bill.

Obama's Anzio  —  I'm late on this, due to festschrifting.  But another bad employment report yesterday.  I'm feeling pretty bleak about this.  —  And the worst of it is that it was more or less predictable.  I went back to my first blog post — January 6, 2009 — worrying that the Obama economic plan was too cautious.

The Coming Failure On Iran  —  The Obama administration's positive tone following its first diplomatic encounter with Iran covers a deep and growing gloom in Washington and European capitals.  Seven hours of palaver in Geneva haven't altered an emerging conclusion: None of the steps the West …

The Conscience of a Capitalist  —  The Whole Foods founder talks about his Journal health-care op-ed that spawned a boycott, how he deals with unions, and why he thinks CEOs are overpaid.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  “I honestly don't know why the article became such a lightning rod,” …

Google CEO Eric Schmidt On Newspapers & Journalism  —  Is Google a newspaper killer?  Not by a long shot, says Google CEO Eric Schmidt.  Nor does he want it to be.  In a long interview about his company's relationship with newspapers and the print journalism industry, Schmidt made it clear he wants established players to survive.

Roland Burris: “You know who is to blame for us losing the Olympics?  Bush.”  —  Wow, what a stretch.  Can I blame Bush, too?  I'm having a HEINOUS hair day and it's all Bush's fault.

Too Rich to Worry?  Not in This Downturn  —  IT turns out the other half — or at least the tiny slice who live at the top of the wealth pyramid — are not sleeping any better than the rest of America.  —  At a closed-door meeting of advisers to family offices — which serve families …

Internet Finally Discovers Glenn Beck Photoshoot Video, Freaks Out  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  Your interwebs are blowing up today at a YouTube clip that documents a Glenn Beck photo shoot, where the Fox News host has a substance, presumably Vicks VapoRub, applied to his face …

Danes explain why Obama failed  —  Courtesy of Death By 1,000 Paper Cuts.  Visit to order the bumper sticker.  —  It comes down to respect.  —  President Obama showed none.  —  And in the end, the Olympics committee returned the favor by humiliating the president of the United States …

John Ensign's Tax Problem  —  Following up on my July post (Adultery and Tax Planning) on the sordid tale of Sen. John Ensign's extra marital affair with Cynthia Hampton, a campaign staffer married to Douglas Hampton, Sen. Ensign's former chief of staff.  I noted that the $96,000 in “gifts” …