News Nuggets 917

DAYLEE PICTURE: Shadow Creek in California. From National Geographic.

UP-FRONT TALK RADIO NUGGET!!
Check out this post-Fluke look at the talk radio business.  VERY interesting developments in a short period of time!
A Conundrum for Conservative Talk Radio (Paul Farhi) from the Washington Post
"Dan Sileo just got a taste of what might be called the Rush Limbaugh Effect. On his sports-talk radio program in Tampa last week, Sileo enthusiastically endorsed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ interest in a trio of free-agent players. Maybe a bit too enthusiastically. “If they got those three monkeys, I’m good,” Sileo said about the players, all of whom are African American. ... That was Monday. By Tuesday, Sileo was gone..."

A related subject:
Why Mainstream Media Ignores Conservative Bestsellers (Conor Friedersdorf) from the Atlantic
"Ameritopia debuted at the top of the New York Times bestseller list. The right embraced it. Why didn't anyone else? ... The resulting discrepancy between how good a book is and how good conservative fellow travelers say it is was evident to me when I read Levin's last book, Liberty and Tyranny."

A New Challenge for Our Military: Honest Introspection (David Rothkopf) from the Foreign Policy Magazine
"It's time to hold the generals accountable for Afghanistan and Iraq. ... We have lost more than lives in our wars in the Middle East, more than money, more than precious elements of our national reputation. We have also lost our ability to judge our actions or their consequences with a critical eye."

U.S. War Game Sees Perils of Israeli Strike Against Iran from the New York Times
"A classified war simulation held this month to assess the repercussions of an Israeli attack on Iran forecasts that the strike would lead to a wider regional war, which could draw in the United States and leave hundreds of Americans dead, according to American officials."

Hurray for Health Reform (Paul Krugman) from the New York Times
"It’s said that you can judge a man by the quality of his enemies. If the same principle applies to legislation, the Affordable Care Act — which was signed into law two years ago, but for the most part has yet to take effect — sits in a place of high honor."

Why President Obama Is Doubling Down On Health Care (Zeke Miller) from BuzzFeed
"The Supreme Court is forcing his hand, and the contraception debate offers a political opening. But the legislation is still unpopular, and Republicans say they welcome the debate."

Ob-Gyn Doc: Republican Posturing Over Ultrasound "Doesn't Make Any Sense" (Chris Potter) from the Pittsburgh City Paper
"Corbett did have one caveat, however: He only favored an ultrasound requirement "as long as it's exterior, not interior." It's the "close your eyes" line that has set up a howl of protest, one so loud that it almost conceals the sound of Democratic hands rubbing together with glee."

Protect Pregnant Women: Free Bei Bei Shuai (Katha Pollitt) from the Nation 
"On March 14, Bei Bei Shuai will have spent one full year in jail in Marion County, Indiana. Her crime? The prosecutor calls it attempted feticide and murder. What it really is: attempting suicide while
pregnant."

Many Kinds of Catholic (Frank Bruni) from the New York Times
"If Catholicism is measured by obeisance to the pope, his cardinals and the letter of Vatican law, then Rick Santorum is the best Catholic to ever get this far in presidential politics. ... for this he has been rewarded with a truly noteworthy level of Catholic support. Noteworthy because it’s so underwhelming."

Barack Obama Raises $45 Million For Re-Election Campaign In February from Huffington Post
"Picking up the pace, President Barack Obama raised $45 million for his re-election bid in February, bringing his total to about $300 million for this election cycle, his campaign said Monday."

Welcome to the Sweet 2016! (Chris Cillizza) from the Washington Post 
"In our bracket we have seeded the top eight Democrats and top eight Republicans considered — by us — to be their party’s leading presidential candidates in 2016."

The Prepared Politician Can Still be Authentic (Michael Gerson) from the Washington Post
"On this issue, Santorum cannot be accused of hypocrisy. His Super Tuesday victory speech, delivered in Steubenville, Ohio, did not make use of a teleprompter -- or any other form of rhetorical discipline. It was a 20-minute ramble of lame jokes, patriotic platitudes and half-developed campaign themes. On the evidence of these remarks, Santorum's guiding philosophy is "free enterprise" and "free people" held together by free association."

Paul Ryan’s Budget is Bad Politics. Just Ask Republicans (Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake) from the Washington Post
"The debut of the House Budget Committee chairman’s vision for what conservative governance could and should look like might win him kudos from the conservative policy class, but it elicits only groans from GOP political professionals."

Throwdown: How The GOP Budget Will Overwhelm Politics In 2012 from Talking Points Memo
"The GOP is being driven, for the moment, by a vocal and ideological faction that’s unwilling to retreat from the controversial tax and spending plan they endorsed last year. This year’s Republican budget is expected to include similar plans to roll back popular programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and comes as the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments about the constitutionality of “Obamacare.”"

Is Mitt Romney the Most Unpopular Likely Presidential Nominee Ever? (Andrew Romano) from Newsweek
"Romney would have to overcome a larger favorability deficit than any other modern presidential candidate, and currently boasts the worst primary-season favorable-unfavorable split of any major-party nominee of at least the last 36 years."

Romney and the Right-Wing Shakedown (Michael Tomasky) from the Daily Beast 
"Santorum for AG? Newt at the UN? John Bolton for State? The far right has presented mealy-mouthed Mitt with a stunningly long list of demands."

Rick Santorum Goes Off the Rails (Joan Walsh) from Salon
"He dismisses contraception -- and unemployment. He cheers religious bigotry, then doesn't. A campaign unravels."

CUTE/RIDICULOUS ANIMAL THING OF THE DAY!
Dog and River Otter Play (VIDEO) from the Huffington Post
"According to its YouTube description, this river otter and dog have been slowly building a friendship over several months, and now they play together like this every evening."

POLITICAL CORRUPTION NUGGET!!
The Most Corrupt States from the State Integrity Investigation
Check out this cool inter-active map!!
"Your state: Click a state on the map or in the rank list to see its corruption risk report card."