The fiscal cliff deal that almost wasn't  —  House Speaker John Boehner couldn't hold back when he spotted Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in the White House lobby last Friday.  —  It was only a few days before the nation would go over the fiscal cliff, no bipartisan agreement was in sight …

Peter King: Halt donations to House GOP  —  New York Republican Rep. Peter King went to war with his Republican colleagues on Wednesday after leaders spiked a Hurricane Sandy relief bill, calling on New Yorkers to stop all donations to GOP House members.  —  “These Republicans have no problem finding …

New Year, New Dish, New Media  —  When I first stumbled into blogging over 12 years ago, it was for two reasons: curiosity and freedom.  I was curious about the potential for writing in this new medium; and for the first time, I felt total freedom as a writer.  On my little blog, I was beholden to no one but my readers.

Al Jazeera Is Said to Be Acquiring Current TV  —  Al Jazeera is putting the final touches on a deal to take over Current TV, the low-rated cable channel that was founded by Al Gore and his business partners seven years ago.  —  If the deal is completed, Current will provide the pan-Arab news giant …

The Democrats' Coming Civil War  —  The party is poised for a showdown over Social Security and Medicare.  Obama vs. the liberals.  —  Obama and Elizabeth Warren.  —  Image by Mark Wilson / Getty Images  —  For Democrats, there may be few things more entertaining than watching …

That Bad Ceiling Feeling  —  More thoughts about the fiscal deal:  —  One good thing is that the deficit scolds are furious: they had their hearts set on exploiting this crisis to push through benefit cuts, and it didn't happen — part of the larger good news that Obama didn't gut Social Security or Medicare this time around.

Court OKs secret drone opinions  —  The U.S. Government has no legal duty to disclose legal opinions justifying the use of drones to kill suspected terrorist operatives abroad, although doing so would contribute to “intelligent” public debate over the legality of that practice, a federal judge wrote in a ruling issued Wednesday.

Leading Conservative Religious Organization Warns That Christians Will Soon Be Treated Like Blacks In Jim Crow Era  —  The American Family Association, a top conservative Christian organization, emailed members today with a dire warning that, within 50 years, Christians will be treated like African Americans during the Jim Crow era.

Democratic Congressman Laughs At Fox News' Fiscal Cliff Misinformation  —  Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) schooled the hosts of Fox & Friends on the details of the deal to avert the so-called “fiscal cliff” during an appearance to explain his opposition to the Senate-passed compromise on Wednesday morning.

The Post-Productive Economy  —  Take a look at these farm houses which I saw under construction in remote areas of Yunnan province China.  They were not unusual; farmsteads this size were everywhere in rural China.  Note the scale of these massive buildings.  Each support post is cut from a single huge tree.