Short Takes

Sorry I haven't been posting all that much: between the blizzard this weekend (alright not quite a blizzard because we missed the cutoff for the time requirement by like twenty minutes in Boston, but still quite a storm), having some class work to do, and there not being any big stories that really piqued my interest yesterday I just haven't been feeling the vibe. But I wanted to point out some links and other stories this morning just briefly:

- I've been trying to figure out what to say about the whole Cheney-shot-a-guy-in-the-face thing; I figured if I waited long enough someone would do it justice for me, and Joe Gandelman has come through on that front again. He's got an omnibus post covering the implications, the story itself, and, necessarily, the jokes (including a link to the Jon Stewart coverage last night, which was absolutely hysterical). Now, mainly I just hope that Mr. Whittington is able to make a full and speedy recovery, and I agree with Alan at Maverick Views in thinking this story probably doesn't really have any serious legs (funny ones it's got plenty of, and I assure you it will be around in that capacity for quite a long time to come).

- An Endangered Species Act success story: the bald eagle is on its way to officially being removed from the endangered list. This is good news, both for the birds and in that the legislation did its job and did it well.

- There's a decent article in The Hill today about a couple of the various competing earmark-reform bills taking shape in the Senate.