Depression and Democracy  —  It's time to start calling the current situation what it is: a depression.  True, it's not a full replay of the Great Depression, but that's cold comfort.  Unemployment in both America and Europe remains disastrously high.  Leaders and institutions are increasingly discredited.

Kidding around: Romney defends bet  —  Mitt Romney on Fox & Friends this morning, responding to controversy surrounding his offer of a $10,000 bet with Rick Perry during last weekend's GOP debate. … He then blamed Barack Obama for advancing a narrative that Romney is out-of-touch.

Iowa audience members yell at Rick Perry after Ames appearance [includes video]  —  Ames, Ia.  - A packed coffee house where Rick Perry spoke this afternoon turned into a bit of a ruckus that left the candidate heading out the back door and straight to his vehicle after several Iowans screamed questions about his views on gays.

Sperm-donor kept wife in the dark  —  A conservative Christian politician has a secret life as a sperm donor for lesbian couples - even though he has campaigned against gay marriage.  —  American politician Bill Johnson has spent most of this year in Christchurch helping run the earthquake recovery …

Speaker John Boehner faces toughest test of his leadership  —  John Boehner's first year as Speaker has been filled with conflict as the Ohio Republican has battled President Obama, Senate Democrats and members of his House majority.  —  This week arguably is Boehner's biggest challenge of 2011 …

Supreme Court to hear challenge of Arizona's restrictive immigration law  —  The Supreme Court on Monday said it would review Arizona's restrictive immigration law that sparked a national controversy and inspired similar state efforts across the country to crack down on illegal immigrants.

I Was Wrong, and So Are You  —  A libertarian economist retracts a swipe at the left—after discovering that our political leanings leave us more biased than we think.  —  BACK IN JUNE 2010, I published a Wall Street Journal op-ed arguing that the American left was unenlightened, by and large, as to economic matters.

When Truth Survives Free Speech  —  Last week, a story came across my desk that seemed to suggest that a blogger had been unfairly nailed with a $2.5 million defamation award after a judge refused to give her standing as a journalist.  A businessman who was the target of the blogger's inquiries brought the suit.

Higgs boson: Excitement builds over ‘glimpses’ at LHC  —  The Higgs search is approaching its endgame at Cern  —  Scientists are widely expected to present evidence on Tuesday that the most coveted prize in particle physics - the Higgs boson - has been glimpsed.

Barack Obama's ‘60 Minutes’ Interview Has Me Screaming at My TV Again  —  Today on Morning Joe, they were playing clips of Steve Kroft's 60 Minutes interview with President Obama, and I literally started screaming.  There is only so much of this bulls-t I can endure without talking back to my TV:

Record 64% Rate Honesty, Ethics of Members of Congress Low  —  Ratings of nurses, pharmacists, and medical doctors most positive  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Sixty-four percent of Americans rate the honesty and ethical standards of members of Congress as “low” or “very low,” tying the record “low” …

As Americans struggle, the Obamas make do with 37 Christmas trees  —  The economy may be weak, unemployment strong and the first family soon to vacate the White House for another half-month of vacation in Hawaii.  —  But the Obamas have gone all out in decorating their house this year …

Study of the Day: Drinking Alcohol Fuels the Desire for Unsafe Sex  —  New research shows that liquor consumption affects a person's intention to have unprotected sex, one of the leading causes of HIV infection  —  PROBLEM: Alcohol consumption has long been implicated in the incidence of unsafe sex, the leading cause of HIV infection.

A Romance With Risk That Brought On a Panic  —  Soon after taking the reins of MF Global in 2010, Jon S. Corzine visited the Wall Street firm's Chicago offices for the first time, greeting the brokers, analysts and sales staff there.  —  One broker, Cy Monley, caught Mr. Corzine's eye.

Opposition grows to Occupy's port shutdown plan  —  Occupy Oakland's plan to shut down the city's bustling port on Monday for the second time in as many months is facing a complicating wrinkle nowhere in sight last time - opposition from several unions and some within the Occupy movement itself.