State-Sponsored Horror in Oklahoma - NYTimes.com

I hope the rest of us - outside Oklahoma - are so much better than the people, apparently, inside. I wonder.

In Victory for Obama, Court Backs Rules for Coal Pollution - NYTimes.com

My response is "good, now keep going!".

Kerry Expresses Regret After Apartheid Remark - NYTimes.com

I certainly would not apologize and I would drop the U.S. commitment to preserve a religious state in the form of Israel. We support democracy first, and if the choice is religious rule, then everyone must be treated as equals. Nothing about Israel makes me believe that they share this view.

US severe storm pattern over 30 years

Fascinating map.
More here.

Getting Into the Ivies - NYTimes.com

As a Brown alumni interviewer, this understates the challenge for student applicants.

‘Smart’ Firearm Draws Wrath of the Gun Lobby - NYTimes.com

Where is common sense? We have too many guns! Any move to restrict access to the trigger is a real plus in my book.

Why the Democrats’ Turnout Problem Is Worst in North Carolina - NYTimes.com

We should be focusing publicly on getting a 100% turnout at the polls in November for everyone under 35 in North Carolina. You don't get many votes in life to determine your future; the only important one you get this year is in Nov. Use it!!!

Walking may spark creative thinking | Fox News

I surely agree!

Mitch Albom on life, charity and God - CBS News

The interview blew me away.

Hello, Stranger - NYTimes.com

Lots to consider here.

Brown University lets rapist who choked his victim reenroll after a semester-long suspension - Salon.com

This is outrageous.

Writing in a Nonstop World - NYTimes.com - NYTimes.com

I sure identify with this.

Finding stuff online

Last night, I spent a couple of hours researching a fine point on Flexible Spending Accounts, that provision of the IRS Code that allows some of us to put aside some untaxed money to pay for medical expenses. It's a great crap shoot in that you really have to predict the unpredictable - your health - in order to get it right. That's another story.
What struck me in my search for the facts was how much the web forest has overgrown the truth. In my case, I was looking for reasonably reliable information on a proposed IRS rule and on the management of FSA plans by employers. I never did find the latter, although I may have found a couple of places that - with proper payment - might have let me look at what they offer, but I am not their target; employers are.
For the former, the proposed IRS rule, I wound up being bounced by the IRS to Cornell and could not track down what happened to a proposed 2007 regulation. While I am a lawyer, I do not consider myself to be a tax lawyer and have not researched in that arena for a long time. Finally, it popped up almost inadvertently.
In the end, it would have been more fun to go to a well-equipped local library and look it up there in some real books.

Elections

Are we too the point where the election is about ideas and selecting the least-damaged people?

When Parents Are The Ones Too Distracted By Devices : All Tech Considered : NPR

Great story of idiocy.

Amid Politics, Obama Drifted Away From Kin - NYTimes.com

I don't fully understand this, but it is the President's business, not mine.

Android Central - Google+ - Google Street View kicked things up a bit today, now adding…

Really fascinating to think about "history" beginning in 2007!

Dan River Coal Ash Spill Timeline | North Carolina Health News

This is good.

Running Out of Time - NYTimes.com

I don't think government is the answer. Each of us needs to wage and win this war.

50 Years Into the War on Poverty, Hardship Hits Back - NYTimes.com

What are the education and advancement opportunities that might flow through the two satellite dishes on the roof of this house? Are we focused enough on this?