Sens: Snowe's healthcare vote puts her top Commerce perch at risk  —  Sen. Olympia Snowe (Maine) is risking a shot at becoming the top Republican on an influential Senate committee by backing Democratic healthcare legislation, according to senators on the panel.

Let me ask you  —  The Internet has been around a while, now.  But, I still find it an amazing platform for innovation, not just in technology, but in life.  Beyond admiring the way it powers so many inventions and businesses, it has become a personal thing for me.

Russia Resists U.S. Position on Sanctions for Iran  —  MOSCOW — Threatening Iran with harsh new sanctions to advance negotiations over its nuclear program would be “counterproductive,” Russia's foreign minister said Tuesday, throwing cold water on the Obama administration's hopes that Russia …

Can I Vent?  —  Yesterday was probably the most embarrassing day yet for the progressive blogosphere during the short reign of the Obama administration.  So, now is probably a good time to just let loose and register my disgust with the movement I've been a part of for the last five years.

Orly Taitz Responds To Judge's $20k Fine: Shove It!  —  Reached on her cell phone by TPMmuckraker and informed of the $20,000 fine imposed on her by a federal judge this morning, Birther attorney Orly Taitz responded, first, with laughter.  —  “So he didn't recuse himself?”

Symbol carved into green at Lakeville golf course  —  LAKEVILLE, Mass — Police along with the Secret Service are investigating after a local country club discovered a symbol resembling a swastika carved into the green.  —  Lakeville County Club workers discovered the vandalism early Monday morning.

Liz Cheney takes on ‘radical’ W.H.  —  Former Vice President Dick Cheney's eldest daughter Liz will launch a new group aimed at rallying opposition to the “radical” foreign policy of the Obama administration which it says has succeeded only in undermining the nation's security.

O'Reilly Falafel Suit Turns Five  —  Fox News star's pervy sex fantasies, boasts just never get old  —  Happy anniversary, Bill O'Reilly!  On this date five years ago, the Fox News Channel host was named in a sexual harassment lawsuit brimming with lurid details about vibrators, phone sex …

NFL Casts Doubt on Limbaugh's Bid  —  BOSTON—Commissioner Roger Goodell said here Tuesday that it would be inappropriate for the owner of an NFL franchise to make the sort of controversial statements attributed in the past to conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh.

Christian Convert Teen Must Go Back to Ohio, Judge Rules  —  A 17-year old girl who fled from her home, fearing her Muslim parents would kill her for converting to Christianity, must go back to Ohio, a Florida judge ruled Tuesday.  —  Judge Daniel Dawson ruled Ohio has jurisdiction over the case involving the teen, Rifqa Bary.

Matthews: 'Someone's Going To Jam a CO2 Pellet Into Rush's Head'  —  What some guys won't say to get attention . . .  Analogizing Rush Limbaugh to a James Bond villain, Chris Matthews today fantasized: “at some point somebody's going to jam a CO2 pellet into his head and he's going to explode like a giant blimp.”

Khamenei Said to be in Coma  —  This story has been floating around the net for the past day or so, but this report comes from a person who is in a position to know such things.  As I know very well (having been gulled into wrongly announcing Khamenei's death a while back), it is easy to be misled …

Graham: GOP ‘not going to be the party of angry white guys’  —  (CNN) - South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham has always enjoyed a little back-and-forth with belligerent audiences.  —  He was at it again on Monday night as he faced down an angry town hall crowd in Greenville packed with libertarians …

The Cable Effect  —  I got to the office a bit before 9AM today and within 20 minutes I felt incredibly agitated.  I was pissed off.  I also had a feeling of despair about the prospects for health reform.  I was mad, and I also felt helpless.  What was wrong?  Was it just a bad case of the Mondays?

Number of U.S. Troops in Afghanistan Overlooks Thousands of Support Troops  —  Additional Deployments Not Announced and Rarely Noted  —  President Obama announced in March that he would be sending 21,000 additional troops to Afghanistan.  But in an unannounced move, the White House has also authorized …

Motorcycle helmet externality of the day … Here is the paper and I thank Brent Wheeler for the pointer.  So should we mandate or tax the use of such helmets?