SIERRA NEVADA'S Dream Chaser program has gone global, announcing new partnerships with the European Space Agency and the German Aerospace Center to support development of its space plane.

Commercial spaceflight is finally here to stay.

POWERLINE: A perverse civil rights crusade.

MORNING EXAMINER: It's time to make unemployment benefits a permanent entitlement.

Democrats could then be candid about paying people not to work and Republicans would no longer have to worry about being called Scrooges for asking where the money will come from to pay for their not working.

At least it would be honest.

NEWT GINGRICH: Sign the petition; don't bail out the big insurance companies.

Actually the petition has nothing to do with bailing out 'Big Whomever'; it has everything to do with keeping Big Government from assuming even more control over our lives.

MORE RANDOM THOUGHTS from the retirement lane. Interesting isn't it? Bob Gates is excoriated by the Left for disclosing non-secrets about President Obama and Vice President Biden in his new book while Edward Snowden is praised by the Left for disclosing real secrets from his NSA employment.

RANDOM THOUGHTS from the retirement lane. I just lost my last remaining wisdom tooth this morning. Don't know how that'll affect the quality of my posts, but it sure as hell will affect the quantity (for the next few days, at least).