Withdrawn - Via CNN, the immigration bill is dead. This is a topic of intense interest for some blogs but I just can't wrap my head around it.

Do not pass GO, do not collect $200 - From Fox News "Judge orders Paris Hilton back to court": "Hours after Paris Hilton was sent home under house arrest, the judge who originally put her in jail ordered her back to court to determine whether she should be put back behind bars."

The funniest part of this whole Paris Hilton saga is when she complained that the books she had brought to jail were confiscated. What, exactly, was she going to do with these books? Comments are open!

More - Superficial: "So the big medical reason that got Paris Hilton released was that she wasn't happy in prison. Which, I always thought, was sort of the whole point. Was she expecting to ride on unicorns and dance under waterfalls?"

News from "the former regional breadbasket" - ABC News: "Food warning issued for Zimbabwe"

Close to home - Driving home today, there were no fewer than eight television cameras propped up in front of the Bloomfield, CT police station. It turns out some crazy people had been holding a teenage girl in their West Hartford home for nearly a year. Yikes.

Kids addressing entitlement spending: A. Boston Globe factcheckers: F

On the whole I should be happy to see this opinion piece in the Boston Globe ("Youths don't want our IOUs") about the Concerned Youth of America, who are taking the initiative in educating rising fiscal obligations:

"In about 30 years, when these kids would be in their peak earning years, you will have a debt-to-GDP ratio of about 200 percent," says Bob Bixby, executive director of the deficit-battling Concord Coalition. "They would be looking at stupefying tax rates and a stagnant economy or slashed programs for everything they might want to spend their money on. It really is a generationally immoral fiscal policy."

To sound the alarm, members of Concerned Youth of America plan to start chapters of their group at their colleges next year.

But, this being the mainstream media in general and the Boston Globe in particular, they just can't hide the bias:

We've got a Republican president who has presided over large budgetary increases, but who won't give an inch on the tax cuts that have eroded the revenue base.

Some erosion: "Sharp rise in tax revenue to pare U.S. deficit" and this (via Tax Prof Blog)

I know that the deficit is still too high due to spending and that the long-term obligations of entitlement spending will overwhelm us, but to say that revenues are down because of the Bush tax cuts is empirically wrong.

Extra - From Greg Mankiw: "The growth effects of tax policy"

The Bill of Rights is bunk - John Edwards sez: "The second amendment is a privilege, not a right"

Not gonna happen - Bill Kristol has been a staunch supporter of a pardon for Scooter Libby, who has just been sentenced to 30 months in prison for perjury charges, but I don't think there's a chance that President Bush will grant him a pardon.

More - Tom Maguire's insanely comprehensive review on Libby's sentence.

The cure that's worse than the disease

Nat Hentoff asks "Why are we still in the United Nations?"

The United Nations is increasingly becoming a parody of itself while American taxpayers last year provided $439 million to the regular U.N. budget - plus a headquarters in New York that the U.N. management wants to expand. Not only has this dysfunctional and occasionally corrupt organization failed to stop the genocide in Darfur, but on May 11, the insatiably brutal Robert Mugabe's government of Zimbabwe was elevated by the United Nations to chair its Commission on Sustainable Development - dealing with land, rural and economic development, and the environment.

Hentoff is way low with the official figure of $439 million, as Jesse Helms pointed out in his speech to the U.N. in 2000:

Last year, the American people contributed a total of more than $1.4 billion dollars to the U.N. system in assessments and voluntary contributions. That's pretty generous, but it's only the tip of the iceberg. The American taxpayers also spent an additional $8,779,000,000 from the United States' military budget to support various U.N. resolutions and peacekeeping operations around the world. Let me repeat that figure: $8,779,000,000.

Still, the U.S. is branded as a "deadbeat" nation at the United Nations, rebuffed by every country except Israel, yet almost single-handedly supports every administrative and peacekeeping function this East River cabal can dream up. (HT: Betsy)

Misleading headline of the day: "Clinton: Faith helped her through marriage infidelity"

Faith Hill? Blind Faith? Faith Ford? Percy Faith?

Wait, she doesn't mean religiosity as in a belief in God, does she? No, no, can't be.

America hates Washington

From ABC News: "Democrats Lose Their Edge - Poll Shows Congressional Approval Ratings Have Returned to Pre-Election Levels"

The Democrats in Congress have lost much of the leadership edge they carried out of the 2006 midterm election, with the lack of progress in Iraq being the leading cause. Their only solace: President Bush and the Republicans aren't doing any better.

Against my better judgment, I listened to some of the Democratic debate on XM radio this morning and (except for Mike Gravel and maybe Dennis Kucinich) every politician offered up the most vapid, featherweight explanations on nearly every topic. Here's Jeff Jacoby with "Short on substance":

But in truth, last night's debate wasn't funny. It was worrisome. Worrisome that in 120 minutes of talk, not one of the Democratic candidates had anything substantive to say about the global jihad. Worrisome that all but one of the Democrats oppose legislation to declare English the official language of the United States. Worrisome that on the issue they spent the most time discussing -- the war in Iraq -- not one spoke seriously or responsibly about the consequences of an American withdrawal.

I thought Wolf Blitzer might pin down the Democrats on their formless support for "action" in Darfur compared to the potential for genocide in Iraq:

MR. BLITZER: But what about genocide? What about the possibility of genocide [in Iraq]?

GOV. RICHARDSON: I think there has to be pointed out a difference in our approach. Obviously genocide is something -- in Darfur -- you know I have been involved in that issue. I believe what we need to do there is stop this genocide. What don't we care about -

MR. BLITZER: But what about Iraq, if it were, God forbid, to happen?

GOV. RICHARDSON: Well, obviously I would keep troops in Kuwait, where they are wanted. I would move them to Afghanistan to fight al Qaeda. But I believe that our troops have become a target. Our troops right now have done a magnificent job. And so what -- the difference between all of us here is this: all of these resolutions, the funding supplemental, appropriation on funding on issues relating to timetables is not working because the president is vetoing.

Bill Richardson: against genocide, but get the troops out, and it's the President's fault anyway.

Extra - Mark Steyn on hand-wringing over Darfur: "There is a grotesque narcissism in the determination of the Save Darfur campaign to embrace every strategy except the one that would actually save Darfur while there's anyone still left to save." Like global warming and foot-stamping on Iraq, it's all designed to soothe the ego without actually taking action to solve the problem. No wonder Americans are disgusted with all of Washington.

More - Let's take away the Olympics! That'll stop genocide in Darfur. And more U.N. peacekeepers, the "fries with that" for every Democratic proposal.

Kill your television - In an interview with LA Weekly, famed sci-fi author Ray Bradbury clarified that his book Fahrenheit 451 is not about government censorship. Rather, it's an anti-television screed. Now we know. (HT: Fark)

Yawn - Well, here's the Sunday morning talkshow lineup and we're definitely getting into the dog days of summer here. Bob Shrum hawks his new book on Meet the Press while Matalin and Carville bicker.

The "Sideways" effect - Slate examines how wine has supplanted beer as the alcohol of choice for drinking Americans. I made the switch a couple of years ago for the following reasons: 1.) as alcohol goes, wine is a healthier alternative, 2.) beer drinking is open-ended since you can always have "just one more" but wine (for me) is one and done, 3a.) I hate paying a deposit on empties and 3b.) taking them back for my nickel.

Terror plot at JFK - Just coming in: "4 Charged In Plot To Blow Up Jet Fuel At JFK"

Update - This is some diabolical stuff here: "Federal authorities announced Saturday they had broken up a suspected Muslim terrorist cell planning a "chilling" attack to destroy John F. Kennedy International Airport, kill thousands of people and trigger an economic catastrophe by blowing up a jet fuel artery that runs through populous residential neighborhoods."

The carbon credit two-step - Seriously, did anybody really believe that carbon credits really offset energy consumption? It was a lie the lefty greens wanted to believe. Via Blue Crab Bvld: "Global warming Ponzi scheme."

Will not be seen on "The 700 Club" - For Internet consumption only: Budweiser's "Swear Jar" commercial. Did I laugh? Oh yes I did.

Law and Order - Things you did not know about Fred Thompson

Here's something I just recently discovered: if Thompson is elected President, the U.S.A. is going to have the hottest first lady ever. FLOTUSILF.

Highly-skilled Germans opt for a 40% tax cut

By moving to Switzerland:

Fed up with comparatively poor job prospects at home - where unemployment is as high as 17 per cent in some regions - as well as high taxes and bureaucracy, thousands of Germans have upped sticks for Austria and Switzerland, or emigrated to the United States.

The brain drain out of Deutchland follows a trend I've predicted for a while now: the tax burdens of socialist states will be exacerbated by an aging population, driving more skilled workers to the United States. In turn, this will help to delay (but not avoid) our own entitlement crunch.

And LO! the Seventh Seal was broken - Michael Waltrip, the clown prince of NASCAR commercials, qualified for Sunday's Dover race. Praise the Lord!

Free, free, free! Everything free in Massachusetts!

Our new governor has decided that only legislation can improve the quality of life in the Bay State. From the Boston Globe: "Patrick seeks free two-year state colleges"

Governor Deval Patrick plans to unveil a proposal today to make Massachusetts' community colleges, among the priciest in the nation, free to all high school graduates in the state by the year 2015, according to documents obtained by the Globe.

What a deal! Any details?

But Patrick's ambitious plan includes neither price tags nor funding proposals as the state struggles financially. Instead, it calls for a commission that would be charged with transforming the plan into reality.

Uh-huh. Well, if I form a commission to figure out how to get a new car, I'm certain the biggest hurdle won't be finding a dealer.

Extra - From New England Republican: "It's time to face some cold hard facts. The state is struggling to pay for the education system it has today, so muddying the waters with billions in additional spending and new programs is irresponsible."