Wait, what? That's right- SATURDAY NFL Open Thread. My investment touts:

Redskins (-7) (3 units); Cardinals (+4 1/2) (3 units); Ravens (-12) (4 units); Chiefs (-3) (3 units); and the J-E-T-S! JETS JETS JETS JETS! (-3) (5 units.) I'm rooting for the G-Men, but the Jets are going to win.

Also too, here's my top investment opportunity in 4 years - Oklahoma State (-3 1/2) over Stanford. LOVE this one. I like the Cowboys by 20.

Finally, Joe Posnanski on Tebow Time:

The Tebow story might be the only story in recent years about which I literally cannot get enough. We live in the Era of Overkill, and most of the wonderful sports stories lose their joy just a few hours into their news cycle. The story (and Tebow himself) have been hyped, re-hyped, soaked, drained, lauded, scorned, celebrated, mocked, on and on and on, to the point where it’s clear that we’re not even talking about Tebow anymore. We’re talking about so many other fascinating things — faith, teamwork, convention, talent, history, will and so on. We’re probably talking about ourselves.

Happy Holidays and Seasons Greetings!

The ACLU has the Criminal Justice Year in Review.

EFF reviews 2011 as "The Year Secrecy Jumped the Shark."

Former DEA agent (now author and security consultant) Robert Mazur, who laundered millions for the cartels on behalf of the agency, smacks down Congressman Darryl Issa's misguided call for a DEA money-laundering probe. (He also delivers a few punches to Union Bank in San Diego, which was in Issa's district, as well as Wachovia.) [More...]

The Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department has rejected South Carolina's Voter ID law on the grounds that it discriminates against minorities.

The law, passed in May and signed by Gov. Nikki Haley ®, requires voters to show a driver’s license or one of several other forms of photo identification.

....The rejection leaves the state with the option of trying to get the law approved by a federal court or passing another law and submitting it to the Justice Department.

It's good to see the Justice Department stepping up to the plate.

We've got blue skies and sunshine today. Time to head outdoors and get all those last minute errands run.

If you missed the X-Factor last night, Melanie Amaro won the $5 million Sony record contract and has producers lining up. The other two finalists needn't worry, Simon Cowell says contracts are also likely to be offered to Josh Krajik, Chris Rene (and Astro.) Ratings were high last night, the show will be back for a second season. I hope it's without Nicole Scherzinger.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

The Justice Department, concluding that there is no legal basis to place greater restrictions on the purchase of guns by lawful immigrants as opposed to citizens, is dropping a policy that did just that.

Here's the letter the ATF has sent out to federal gun licensees.

The Department of Justice (the Department) has recently concluded that, as a matter of law, applying a more stringent State residency requirement for aliens legally present in the U.S. than for U.S. citizens is incompatible with the language of the GCA. As a result, ATF will be revising the regulations in 27 C.F.R. Part 478 to conform to the Department’s conclusions by removing the separate 90-day residency requirement for aliens. Once the regulations have been revised, both U.S. citizens and aliens legally present in the U.S. will be subject to the same requirements for State residency

The Guardian and CNN have good recaps of Bradley Manning's hearing this week.

David Coombs, Manning's lead defense counsel, seemed for focus on two major issues - the Army's lack of response to Manning's emotional and behavior problems as well lack of security in the SCIF where Manning worked in Iraq.

The judge/hearing officer is to make his recommendation to the special Court Martial Convening Authority. by Jan. 16 as to whether Manning should face a full courts-martial proceeding. If convicted of the charges, Manning faces a potential life sentence.

There's nothing better than homemade green chile and a good bottle of wine on a cold winter's night.

That's what we're doing here, and watching the finale of the X-Factor.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

We got 9 inches of snow last night, and it's still piling up. 12 to 16 inches are expected before the storm is done-- much more outside of Denver. It's a great day to work from home.

As usual, viewers from our local Channel 7 news have submitted some great photos.

[Hat tip to Skippy for making this graphic several snow seasons ago.]

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Andrew Sullivan:

It is quite something for a writer to accuse a presidential candidate of essentially supporting America's enemies, and of being full of venom and hatred for the United States, when he has served this country as a congressman for decades. [. . . N]otice the baldly McCarthyite language by Dorothy Rabinowitz.

If Christopher Hitchens were alive, he'd never stand for this Decadent Coastal Enclave-based Fifth Columnism.

Speaking for me only

Dorothy Rabinowitz of the WSJ Editorial Board writes of Ron Paul:

Some in Iowa are reportedly now taking a look at Dr. Paul, now risen high in the polls there. [. . .] It seemed improbable that the best-known of American propagandists for our enemies could be near the top of the pack in the Iowa contest, but there it is. An interesting status for a candidate of Dr. Paul's persuasion to have achieved, and he'll achieve even more if Iowans choose to give him a victory.

(Emphasis supplied.) Of course, this "Fifth Column" is not confined to Iowa. From his coastal enclave in Washington, DC, Andrew Sullivan writes:

[Paul] is the "Change You Can Believe In" on the right[.]

Ahhh, the Decadent in their coastal enclaves, mounting a "Fifth Column."

Speaking for me only

At Cameron Douglas' sentencing yesterday for using drugs while in prison, the judge hammered him with a 54 month sentence, consecutive to the 5 year sentence he is already serving for a drug conviction.

“I don’t believe that I have had another case ever...of a defendant who has so recklessly, and flagrantly, and wantonly and criminally acted in as destructive and manipulative a fashion,”

After reading all the recent pleadings on PACER, the judge's 54 month sentence is not all that surprising. It's not just about a judge sentencing a relapsing drug-addicted inmate to a lot of time. The full story, as told by the pleadings of both sides and two other involved defendants, is below. Read it and decide whether you think the sentence was appropriate: [More...]

Krugman notes an important development out of the EPA on mercury and restates this important point:

The point that strikes me most, however, is that this shows that it matters who holds the White House. You can complain about Obama’s lack of a strong progressive agenda, which I sometimes do, or wonder what good it is to hold the White House when the other side blocks every attempt to do good through legislation. But mercury regulation would not have happened if John McCain were president.

Elections have consequences, and this is one delayed consequence of 2008 that will make a big difference.

This is not a plea to give Obama a free pass, quite the opposite (I think the larger problem is defenders of the President not seeing that criticism of specific policy need not imply lack of support for reelection). Criticism is necessary but the full picture must be kept in mind.

Speaking for me only