More fun debt facts - Mark Steyn notes that due to quantitative easing, the Fed purchased 70% of all U.S. debt last month: "In other words, under the 2011 budget, every hour of every day, the federal government spends $188 million it doesn’t have, $130 million of which is “borrowed” from itself."

Now that's what I call bandwidth - This is kind of a big deal. Popular Science: "Record-breaking fiber optic cables transmit 100 terabits per second." That's equivalent to transmitting three months of HD video in one second.

Hangin' around the crib with those slacker kids

Yeah, all eight of us are pretty upset - Hot Air: "MA Republicans not so wild about Romneycare."

Deep in the Fourteen Amendment

Here's an interesting take from the Atlantic: "The speech Obama could give: 'The Constitution forbids default.'" Apparently there's a section in the 14th amendment that states: "...the validity of the public debt...shall not be questioned."

Oh, I don't question the debt's validity. Just like Standard & Poors, I question our capability of paying it.

The expanding chorus - CNBC: "U.S. banks warn Obama on soaring debt."

Nature abhors a vacuum

President Obama was in full pique today as he denounced the media and those crazy birthers (e.g. Donald Trump) for the whole birth certificate thing. As former CBO director Douglas Holtz-Eakin notes today, if MSNBC was keeping this story alive, it was because the President was doing nothing whatsoever to address the issues that Americans really care about:

The president’s first budget led to a debt spiral, but he excused it because of the financial and economic crisis. The president’s second budget led to a debt spiral, but he excused it because the Bowles-Simpson commission was going to fix it. The president’s third budget led to a debt spiral, but he whined that he had to do that because Republicans might criticize a real budget.

The comparison to the House budget was so shaming he was compelled to give a speech on a new "plan" to end the greatest threat facing this nation. But there was no plan. Just another speech. And today, more whining.

Today Obama said the birth certificate thing was a distraction from the real problems that the nation needs to address...except he won't. Now let's go visit Oprah.

Call collect, E.T. - Oh, boo-hoo, the government is cutting off funding for SETI, the large radio dish array (have you seen "Contact"?) that listens for weird stuff in the universe.

In this age of trillion-dollar deficits, the government should cast a gimlet eye on federally-funded programs that fail to do the very thing they were created to do.

How I learned to stop worrying and love the deficit

Michael Kinsley asks an important question at the conclusion of his article in the LA Times:

The question remains: If the deficit doesn't matter, why have any taxes at all? And if there is some point at which the deficit does start to matter, and become dangerous, when is that point if $1.6 trillion isn't it?

We're now borrowing somewhere between 40 and 42 cents of every dollar the government is spending. Since certain dwarfish Princeton economists insist that this unprecedented level of borrowing is inconsequential, why not make it 100%? Just fire up the $100 printing presses and be done with the whole thing.

Wow, I feel so much better now. Yee-haw!

Oh yeah, that other stuff

Here's Mickey Kaus:

When did everyone decide that it’s high gas prices that are hurting Obama? Seems crazy to me. He’s losing two out of three wars, the economy is flagging, and his signature domestic achievement is unpopular. So it must be the gas!

Don't forget President "Present"'s general lack of leadership on anything of consequence. Darn those oil companies!

Extra - If it's Tuesday, it must be time for Oprah and fundraisers. Golf can wait.

Candy for everyone! - Real Clear Politics: "Politicians, not public, to blame for debt crisis."

No worries, we'll just keep on borrowing $188 million an hour from China, right? Awww...snap!

Happy Easter!

Devalued - Mark Steyn notes in "The Disappearing Dollar" that many of the measures of prosperity - the U.S. credit rating, the dollar, housing, education - ain't what they used to be.

And then there's this from the WSJ: "Dollar's decline speeds up, with risks for U.S."

Obama disassociates himself from the high gas prices his policies invited

Recently the President breezily dismissed his slumping poll numbers as a product of high gas prices. Like everything else in Obama's world, if it's bad it has nothing to do with him.

As gas prices soar above $4/gallon, let's reflect:

Incoherent energy policy? Check.

Domestic oil production scheduled to start declining next year? Check.

Starting a senseless war with a Middle East oil state? Check.

Royally ticking off the Saudis? Check.

Energy secretary who once said "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe." Check.

Insensitive "Let them drive Volts" moment to father with SUV. Check.

Yet another useless commission to take the place of real leadership. Check.

Now let's burn off a couple hundred tons of Air Force One jet fuel. Obama's gotta fly back from California to celebrate Earth Day.

Extra - Volokh: "Don't blame the speculators."

More - Instapundit finds that some tourist destinations fear Americans taking a "staycation" due to gas prices.

Even more - From Doug Ross.

Poor fish! - The masthead on Google today gave me a chuckle.

A third more in taxes - Megan McArdle explains that without restraint in spending, taxes for everyone will have to go way, way up: "These are huge changes in the overall tax burden, and they will have big effects on people's lives and the economy."

Righty-tighty, lefty-loosey

Can somebody tell me if I'm crazy? This Lowe's commercial bugs the heck out of me. The woman slides under the sink and the rear of the wrench moves to the right as she says "righty tighty!" But if the back of the wrench is moving to the right, the head of the wrench is moving counter-clockwise or to the left.

Help me out here. I can't be the only one who has noticed this. And before I get the "perspective" thing, take note that it's a pipe hanging down from a sink - it should tighten just one way, unless it has some weird reverse thread.

Obama lies - That's what Factcheck said about the President's attack on Paul Ryan's plan.

Shared responsibility - Echoing a post I had below, David Harsanyi writes over at Real Clear Politics: "If Washington is so great, let's all pay for it."

Default by another name - Megan McArdle: "Inflation won't cure our debt woes."