“We think, well, you know, it’ll get better. Yeah, he’s a nice guy. I mean, it won’t be near as bad as what we think. This will be okay. I mean, yeah, maybe he’s not the best guy after a while. After a while you find out some things about this guy over in Europe who’s not so good of a guy after all, but ya know what, why do we need to be involved? We’ll just take care of our own problems.” [CNN]

“Despite his avowed non-interest and the fact he may not even be constitutionally eligible to hold the office, Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio is the top choice of Republicans and independents for the vice-presidential slot on the Republican ticket this year, according to a brand-new poll.” [WND]

Our guest columnist sought power, accepted it eagerly, and chose to return to life as a citizen rather than complete a first term.

Celebrating George Washington’s birthday is an American tradition to honor our first president. Though Presidents’ Day is now the more commonly-used term, and has expanded to include all presidents, the legal term for this federal holiday remains Washington’s Birthday.

We honor President Washington, not because he was flawless; he was not. He was, however, the epitome of self-sacrifice — both as a soldier and a statesman. It was that sacrifice that helped make America what it was destined to become. We honor him because of what he accomplished and the manner in which he approached service to this nation: with a servant’s heart.

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For years, Rick Santorum has been known primarily for two things: his titular definition, and his crying daughter. And in the years following his 2006 Senate smackdown, there’s been little reason to know any more.

But now that he’s leading the pack, however transiently, we’re learning that Santorum spreads much wider than we’ve suspected. He’s not just a bigot. He’s not just a bigoted wingnut. He’s not even just a bigoted wingnut fundamentalist.

Rick Santorum is a Holy Warrior.

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Title: “Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking”

Author: Susan Cain

Rank: 6

Blurb: “Q: Why did you write the book? A: For the same reason that Betty Friedan published The Feminine Mystique in 1963. Introverts are to extroverts what women were to men at that time — second-class citizens with gigantic amounts of untapped talent.”

Review: “My final nail in the book’s coffin was the chapter on ‘Asian Culture’. The author went to wealthy Cupertino, CA and interviewed a half dozen Asian introverted students. She lists a few pithy, fortune cookie length ‘Wisdom Sayings’ from Asian and Western philosophers to prove that Asia values introverts and America does not.”

Customers Also Bought: “Steve Jobs” by Walter Isaacson

Footnote: Introverts are also the property of their spouses, and were unable to vote until 1920.

Quiet [Amazon]

Buy or Die [Stinque@Amazon Kickback Link]

Really, ESPN? ‘Chink In The Armor’? [Romenesko]

Our guest columnist is a frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter, speaking in 2008 on a subject he disdains today.

This is not a political war at all. This is not a cultural war. This is a spiritual war. And the Father of Lies has his sights on what you would think the Father of Lies — Satan — would have his sights on: a good, decent, powerful, influential country — the United States of America.

If you were Satan, who would you attack in this day and age? There is no one else to go after, other than the United States, and that’s been the case for now almost two hundred years, once America’s preeminence was sown by our great Founding Fathers.

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