Mayo Clinic in Arizona to Stop Treating Some Medicare Patients  —  Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) — The Mayo Clinic, praised by President Barack Obama as a national model for efficient health care, will stop accepting Medicare patients as of tomorrow at one of its primary-care clinics in Arizona, saying the U.S. government pays too little.

The God That Fails  —  During the middle third of the 20th century, Americans had impressive faith in their own institutions.  It was not because these institutions always worked well.  The Congress and the Federal Reserve exacerbated the Great Depression.

Judge Drops Charges From Blackwater Deaths in Iraq  —  WASHINGTON — In a significant blow to the Justice Department, a federal judge on Thursday threw out the indictment of five former Blackwater security guards over a shooting in Baghdad in 2007 that left 17 Iraqis dead and about 20 wounded.

TSA nominee misled Congress about accessing confidential records  —  The White House nominee to lead the Transportation Security Administration gave Congress misleading information about incidents in which he inappropriately accessed a federal database, possibly in violation of privacy laws …

Obama Palin Shoe Shining Email Could Get Colorado State Worker In Trouble  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  DENVER (AP) — A Colorado state employee could be disciplined for sending an e-mail showing President Barack Obama shining the shoes of former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

'Underwear Bomber's' Alarming Last Phone Call  —  Abdulmutallab Called His Father to Say It Would Be Their Last Contact  —  The accused “underwear bomber” made a dramatic final call to his father that he found so alarming, the father approached Nigerian officials who took him directly …

U.S. Transferred Detainee Before Hostage Release  —  BAGHDAD — Only hours before a British hostage was released, the American military turned over to Iraqi authorities one of the suspected leaders of a Shiite insurgent group believed to be behind the kidnapping, Iraqi officials said Thursday.

Chinese New Year  —  It's the season when pundits traditionally make predictions about the year ahead.  Mine concerns international economics: I predict that 2010 will be the year of China.  And not in a good way.  —  Actually, the biggest problems with China involve climate change.

What ever happened to the “Duke 88”?  —  The “Duke 88” consisted of 88 Duke professors who signed an ad which implicitly assumed that Duke lacrosse players raped a black stripper, an allegation that proved to be entirely fraudulent.  The ad praised protesters who had put lacrosse players' photos on …

Rocket Launcher Found In Apartment  —  No Charges Filed  —  HOUSTON — Police went to a southwest Houston apartment to break up a disturbance but ended up finding something else, KPRC Local 2 reported Wednesday.  —  A woman called police on Monday and said a man was forcing his way into her apartment in the 5300 block of Elm Street.

What Might Have Been  —  Looking back over a decade that was pretty great for China, India, much of Eastern and Central Europe, Brazil, and some parts of Africa but bad for the United States, it really is sobering to reflect on how contingent it all was.  —  As you know, I'm a firm believer …

Democrats Officially Kill Successful DC Voucher Program  —  This is big government at its finest hour.  The Democrats have officially killed a successful private school voucher program banishing more than 3,300 low-income children back to the DC schools they so desperately wanted to escape.

Israel seeks ‘crippling sanctions’ as time runs out on Iran  —  Article's topics: Iran, Nuclear Weapons, United States, Michael Oren  —  As the deadline for Iran to respond to the international community's offer regarding its nuclear program passed Thursday, the US has toughened its rhetoric …

A Thing of Beauty  —  This Chris Matthews quote is a Palinesque work of art: … Yes, Gerald.  I hope you and your loved ones have a Happy New Year, even though we live under the grave threat of KUNG FU FIGHTING TERRORISTS!