The Daily Loon

Andrew Sullivan sees the Middle East revolutions reaching near-Obama levels of audacity:

I remain stunned both by the courage of this immense younger generation - from Tehran to Tunis - trying to move past their sclerotic elders. But what really amazes is the speed and breadth of the change. Merely what has happened in Egypt would be historic enough - and Egypt, to my mind, remains the indispensable nation here. And yet, from Yemen to Morocco, the spirit of revolution has accelerated. Quite how this became the tipping point will be decided by historians. But one suspects the combination of a huge teen bulge with the communications revolution were central.

I also see some parallels with America. Of course we already had a democracy. But the mass young support for Barack Obama, his vision of a less polarized country and world, his biracial identity, his restraint and inspiration occurred first of all.

Post #700: The NY Times adopts the ObamaCare paradigm.

You'll have to pay through the nose to get the NY Times, unless you're slick enough to pick up on the wavers.

The world situation...

Here's the world situation as we know it:

• American troops are still trying to aid Afghanistan and Pakistan in their struggle with the Taliban and Al Qaeda.


• Iran is still developing nuclear weapons.


• American troops are still on duty protecting Iraq for Al Qaeda and other insurgents.


• Turmoil, upheaval, and revolution has spread across the Middle East.


• We're launching air strikes on Libya now.


• Out-of-control deficit spending could cause the European economy to collapse any day now.


• Out-of-control deficit spending could cause the American economy to collapse any day now.


• The drug war in Mexico is expanding beyond restraint.


• We have political power struggles from Washington D.C. to Wisconsin.


• The American government is threatening to shut itself down on a week-by-week basis.


• There is the ungoing humanitarian apocalypse in Japan.

Now we come to the worst disaster of all. A disaster that President Obama regrets more than all of the others put together, yet, as it turns out, was tragically self-inflicted. A disaster that future generations will point to as the 21st century's darkest hour.

That's right: Sascha and Malia won't be visiting Machu Picchu this year. Weep, humanity. Weep.

The Girl Named Mary Sue

I just finished "The Girl Who Played With Fire." At this point, it would be helpful to review the attributes of the title character, a Swedish girl named Lisbeth Salander.

• She has a photographic memory;


• is an untraceable, unblockable, world-class computer hacker;


• and has talent with mathematical analysis at the level of Fermat's last theorem.


• She is mysteriously sexually attractive to both men and women;


• yet the Swedish police find her to be an untraceable, wraith-like ninja who can elude a nation-wide manhunt at will.


• She is fast enough, if not strong enough, to go into the boxing ring against male boxers.


• Through a combination of wits, speed, and ruthlessness, she has managed to overpower half-a-dozen adult men, including professional criminal members of a biker gang.


• She has managed to terrify, admittedly irrationally, a man the size of Andre the Giant who is immune to pain.


• She has survived hurricane-force winds.


• She has survived three gunshots wounds, including one that left a bullet lodged in her brain.


• She has survived being buried alive.

How do we explain all this? There really is only one explanation. She is not actually mild-mannered Lisbeth Salander at all. She is really Sal-El, daughter of Zal-El, last survivor of the planet Krypton!