News Nuggets 1035

DAYLEE PICTURE: The foothills of Mount Sharp ... on Mars!  From the Atlantic.

UP-FRONT PUNDIT-OF-THE-DAY!!
The Ugly Presidential Campaign (Dana Milbank) from the Washington Post 
"Forgive me, but I’m not prepared to join this walk down Great Umbrage Street just yet. Yes, it’s ugly out there. But is this worse than four years ago, when Obama was accused by the GOP vice presidential nominee of “palling around with terrorists”? Or eight years ago, when Democratic nominee John Kerry was accused of falsifying his Vietnam War record? What’s different this time is that the Democrats are employing the same harsh tactics that have been used against them for so long, with so much success."

Israel's Iran Itch (Roger Cohen) from the New York Times
"The drumbeat for an attack resumes: Israel should resist it. In patience lies strength. "

Did the Bounds of Cyber War Just Expand to Banks and Neutral States? (Katherine Maher) from the Atlantic
"A new virus called Gauss, the apparent successor to Stuxnet and Flame, seems to target Lebanon's Swiss-like financial sector."

For Europe’s Economy, a Lost Decade Looms (Jack Ewing) from the New York Times
"The euro zone is hurtling back into recession, economists declared after official figures this week portrayed a shrinking economy. But by some measures the downturn has been under way for years."

The Meep-Meep Moment On Entitlements? (Chris Bodenner) from Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish at the Daily Beast
"In broad strokes, the issue is that Americans want more government than they are willing to pay for, but they have been shielded from this truth over the years for the sake of political expediency. ... now is the time for Obama to show courage as well.  He has avoided the referendum election, he has made it a choice election, and it's a debate over starkly different policies that polling suggests he could win handily."

The GOP’s Will to Fantasy (Jonathan Schell) from the Nation
"When ideology takes over from reality, fantasy is not a disadvantage for the believers; it is the source of appeal. The deceptions are then popular not in spite of their untruthfulness but precisely because of it. "

Obama’s Re-Election Odds Are Better Than You Think Says Hirsch from Yahoo Finance
"With less than 12 weeks until the elections, Hirsch gave us the latest snapshot of what the market is signaling about the November outcome. "It's suggesting that Obama has a better chance than people think," he states."

Poll Gives Obama the Edge, but How Would Voter ID Affect the Lead? from the Philadelphia Inquirer
"The numbers reflect the broad state of the race with the election fewer than 11 weeks away. Voters give a solid edge to Obama - who oversaw the killing of Osama bin Laden and the end of the Iraq War - on foreign policy, but a slight advantage for economic matters to Romney, with joblessness still at 8.3 percent. So why is the incumbent winning, considering that 57 percent of those surveyed believe that things in Pennsylvania are headed in the wrong direction? The most likely factor is that, gosh darn it, people just seem to like the president better."

Paul Ryan's Five-point Bump ... for Obama (Markos Moulitsas) from Daily Kos
"...when the GOP's own propaganda pollster can't pretend that Ryan has given his ticket a sustained bounce, and in fact shows the opposite, it merely reinforces just how awful Mitt Romney's vice-presidential pick truly was."

Aug. 16: Why I’m Not Buying the Romney Rally (Nate Silver) from the New York Times
"The intuition behind this is simply that, under this theory, it’s a bad sign for Mr. Romney that Mr. Ryan has produced a below-average bounce so far. "

The Romney Family Takes Charge (McKay Coppins) from BuzzFeed
"Political advisers were skeptical, but Romney's wife and sons encouraged the candidate to go with his gut and pick Paul Ryan."

Interviews with Colorado Undecideds Should Give Both Candidates Pause (Greg Sargent) from the Washington Post
"Overall, most voters I spoke to, even those who lean Republican, have absorbed a long view of the Obama presidency. They think he was dealt an extraordinarily tough hand and that he’s probably done the best he could under the circumstances."

GORILLA REUNION NUGGET!!
Gorilla Brothers, Alf And Kesho, Hug As They're Reunited After Three Years Apart (PHOTOS) from the Huffington Post
"... as the pictures below show, the two apes wasted no time getting reacquainted. According to the Mirror, Kesho, 13, and Alf, 9, recognized each other right away, hugging and shaking hands when they saw one another."

POLITICAL HISTORY NUGGET!!
From the House to the White House (Lewis Gould) from the New York Times 
"The history of vice-presidential candidates drawn from the House, like Paul Ryan, is entertaining and revealing."