GREAT GIFTS to send the Obama campaign in lieu of cash contributions. I'd recommend one of these.

HAVE YOU TRIED FOSSIL FUEL? Fixing Wind Power's Bat Problem.

Damn those pesky unintended consequences!

FRIDAY NIGHT NEWS DUMP: White House salaries edition. The White House staff includes

two Ethics Advisors (to make sure no ethical loophole goes unused);

three Special Counsels and nine Associate Counsels (for those cases where the ethical loopholes are found wanting);

one Supervisior, Document Management and Tracking (to identify documents for Congressional investigators);

fourteen Records Analysts (to maintain the shredders containing them);

and three Calligraphers (for all those fundraising invitations).

Here's the list for your own reading edification.

SOME THOUGHTS about stress and how to relieve it:

* Accept the fact that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue!

* Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.

* Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.

* Drive carefully... It's not only cars that can be recalled by their Maker.

* If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

* If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

* It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.

* Never buy a car you can't push.

* Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

* Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.

* Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.

* The second mouse gets the cheese.

* When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.

* Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.

* Some mistakes are too much fun to make only once.

* We could learn a lot from crayons. Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.

* A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY

* Save the earth..... It's the only planet with chocolate!

From my email.

OOPSIE! University of Texas students hijack a U.S. government drone in midair.

COMPARED TO OBAMA'S VENTURE CAPITALISM, Romney's venture capitalism is looking pretty good.

METHINKS Neal Boortz overreacts.

ED MORRISSEY: A Modest Proposal. You wouldn't have to fine me, either.

OBAMACARE is now ObamaTax. No matter what you call it, the money still comes out of my pocket.

MAYBE THE PROBLEM ISN'T RACISM. Maybe it's just you, which might explain why people are more likely to tell you to “go screw yourself” than offer sympathy if you cry "racism" these days.

BACK AGAIN: The power outage for us lasted a bit over 30 hours, with power restored just after midnight last night. The 'emergency' is, I think, a bit overblown, since it hasn't been that long since air conditioning became commonplace.

The worst part of the power outage for us was that we lost water (the well pump is electric), and for me personally was that I couldn't blog.

JUNE'S Nanny of the Month. There's never a shortage of nannies.

IS IT WORTH IT? The $10,000 College Degree. It's worth a helluva lot more than a 4-year, $100,000+ degree in 'victim studies' from Harvard.

WELL, they are the party of classless warfare.

"JUSTICE OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES said that a good catchword can stop thought for 50 years. The phrase 'social justice' has stopped many people from thinking, for at least a century -- and counting."

"THE PRESIDENT'S DECISION [on illegal immigration] is politically tainted, constitutionally suspect, cynically timed and poorly thought out. But it did result in one unintended consequence: We are reminded once again that there are millions of foreign nationals dying to reach the United States -- and to stay at any cost after they get here."

THE IMPERIAL PRESIDENCY: Justice Department refuses to prosecute Eric Holder after contempt vote.

I'm thinking the Imperial Presidency just signed its own death warrant.

OBAMA LIES, FREEDOM DIES:

WILL “THE BLADE” pop the higher education bubble?

BAD DECISION: California Gov. Jerry Brown signs budget that relies on voter-backed tax hikes. I doubt very much that voters in California are in a mood for more taxes.