MORNING EXAMINER: The government shutdown ends, not with a bang but with an earmark. Or two....

"THIS MORNING, HIS MAJESTY KING BARRY THE FIRST magnanimously took some time out of his busy day to perform his most important task as King of America: condemning the common rabble who resist his will."

EVEN THE CHINESE ARE PILING ON: Chinese agency downgrades US credit rating.

OBAMANOMICS in a single cartoon panel.

DEPRESSING: Reading Among the Ruins.

HITLER learns about the ObamaCare exchanges....

HITLER learns about the ObamaCare exchanges....

AS GOOD AS IT GETS? Writing on the ObamaCare disaster, the Washington Post's Ezra Klein manages to cycle through the first three of Elisabeth Kübler Ross's five stages of grief.

I look forward to Klein entering the 4th stage, but then I hope he realizes the 5th stage isn't inevitable.

WHO KNEW? Police dogs are racist.

ANIMAL FARM REVISITED: “All healthcare is affordable, but some healthcare is more affordable than others.”

OTHER THAN THAT, the story was accurate:

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story indicated that the Berlin Wall was built by Nazi Germany. In fact, it was built by the Communists during the Cold War.

Last item in this article.

ADDED: for the reality-challenged readers of the Huffington Post, it helps to be born rich to accomplish all this before age 30.

RANDOM THOUGHTS from the retirement lane: the problem with Democrat strongholds is that the cost of living is so high that the people living there can't afford to buy a clue.

NOW THAT THE SHUTDOWN SLOWDOWN IS OVER, who is to blame?

PROGRESSIVE BLOGGER shocked by ObamaCare rate hike for his family. He probably wonders what happened to all those millionaires and billionaires who were going to pay for his 'free stuff'.

This comment from PowerLine pretty well sums it up: "In the old days, it was said that a neoconservative was a liberal who had been mugged by reality. Today’s liberals are apparently so obtuse that they can be mugged by reality ... and not notice."