Hateris Tebowis:

Week: 6 Tebow performance: Filling in for the ineffective Kyle Orton in the second half, Tebow nearly rallies Denver to a victory over the Chargers.

Haterus Tebowis comments: "That was adorable. But if John Fox listens to these stupid Denver fans and starts Tebow in a game next week, he needs to have his head examined."

Haterus Tebowis population: 150 million [MORE . . .]

A new study by Pro Publica finds whites are four times more likely to receive a presidential pardon than minorities.

ProPublica's review examined what happened after President George W. Bush decided at the beginning of his first term to rely almost entirely on the recommendations made by career lawyers in the Office of the Pardon Attorney.

The office was given wide latitude to apply subjective standards, including judgments about the "attitude" and the marital and financial stability of applicants. No two pardon cases match up perfectly, but records reveal repeated instances in which white applicants won pardons with transgressions on their records similar to those of blacks and other minorities who were denied.

The methodology is explained here.

Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich faces sentencing tomorrow morning. The Government is seeking a 15 to 20 year sentence. In a filing today, prosecutors argued he has shown no remorse and continues to blame others for his predicament. From their filing, available on PACER:

Blagojevich repeatedly committed serious criminal acts that have done enormous damage to public confidence in Illinois government. He has refused to accept any responsibility for his criminal conduct, continues to blame others for his criminal misdeeds, and has no mitigating factors beyond those frequently found in this
Courthouse.

[More...]

From a balmy, perfect 80 degrees in Key West to an icy, freezing 7 degrees in Denver -- pure culture shock. I'll be back to blogging soon, thanks to Big Tent Democrat for keeping the site running while I was gone.

To tide you over, and given the icy roads, here's a primer I wrote on "What to do if I Get in an Accident: [More...]re's the ACLU's Know Your Rights.

In the meantime, here's an open thread, all topics welcome. And some reminders about what to do if you get n a fender-bender or stopped by the police: [More...]

TEEEEEEEEEEEEBOOOOOOWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!

Open Thread.

Open Thread.

Herman Cain never intended to really run for President. He was running to sell a book and to get a Fox News gig. It was bad luck for him that he became "the frontrunner" for the GOP nomination (in reality he had no chance whatsoever of being the GOP nominee despite Nate Silver's insistence otherwise.) CNN's Erick Erickson writes at Red State:

I had thought and expected that Cain would continue until Iowa. He had enough money. Dropping out after losing in Iowa would have distracted from the present issues. Dropping out now will be viewed by a great many as an admission against interests [sic] that Herman Cain did have a 13 year affair.

In any event, Cain is out [. . . a]nd soon [. . .] will be forgotten. It is a sad ending for a good man.

I forgot him already. The big question in the GOP nomination fight is who is going to show up for The Donald's Debate:

It’s officially a reality television Republican primary now. Donald Trump is pairing up with Newsmax, the conservative magazine and news Web site, to moderate a presidential debate in Des Moines on Dec. 27.

How sweet is that? Trump is toxic with the general population but the GOP crazies still like him to some extent. And The Donald will not be ignored. Damned if they do and damned if they don't for the GOP candidates and The Donald Debate. I've not watched any GOP debates yet, but I'll live blog that one if anyone shows up just for the ridicule fun.

Speaking for me only

Aspen has not been kind to Charlie Sheen's wife Brooke Mueller. She was arrested late last night at Escobar and charged with misdemeanor assault and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute . A woman claims Mueller assaulted her at the Belly Up around 11:30 pm. (Via Pitkin County Press Release)

Saturday starts tonight - my college football picks:

PAC 12 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Autzen Stadium - Eugene, Oregon v. UCLA, Over 66 (2 units) (the win line is a zillion, too much)

MAC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Northern Illinois -3½ over Ohio (2 units)

Iowa State +10½ over Kansas State (2units), Houston -14 over Southern Mississippi (2 units), Cincinnati -9 over UConn (2 units), Baylor -3 over Texas (3 units)

SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - LSU -14 over Georgia (4 units)

ACC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Virginia Tech -7 over Clemson (5 units)

BEST BET - Oklahoma State -3½ over Oklahoma (10 units)

Bonus Premier League pick - Arsenal (-1) over Wigan.

Open Thread.

Open Thread.

Geithner!

It’s housing, stupid. More precisely, it’s housing finance. As the Obama administration seeks ways to revive the economy, not to mention win an election, it is becoming clear that the biggest mistake officials made when they took office nearly three years ago was to underestimate the continuing damage to the economy from the mortgage crisis.

No sh*t.

BLS reports:

The Labor Department said Friday that the nation’s employers added 120,000 jobs last month, after adding 100,000 jobs in October. The unemployment rate fell to 8.6 percent, after having been mired around 9 percent for most of 2011.

November’s jobless rate was the lowest recorded since March 2009. The rate fell partly because more workers got jobs, but also because about 315,000 workers dropped out of the labor force, and the jobless rate counts only people who are actively looking for work.