RealClearPolitics – Interview with Senator Judd Gregg.

Most of us want to be fair, in the sense of treating everyone equally. We want laws to be applied the same to everyone. We want educational, economic or other criteria for rewards to be the same as well. But this concept of fairness is not only different from prevailing ideas of fairness among many of the intelligentsia, it contradicts their idea of fairness.

RealClearPolitics – Society & the Fallacy of “Fairness”.

Mark Steyn: Getting our groupthink on | way, nick, audi – Opinion – The Orange County Register.

WASHINGTON — When the Congressional Black Caucus wanted to pay off the mortgage on its foundation’s stately 1930s redbrick headquarters on Embassy Row, it turned to a familiar roster of friends: corporate backers like Wal-Mart, AT&T, General Motors, Coca-Cola and Altria, the nation’s largest tobacco company.

In Black Caucus, a Fund-Raising Powerhouse – NYTimes.com.

More than $3.47 billion was spent on lobbying in 2009, about $170 million more than in 2008, according to the watchdog’s analysis.

Lobbyist spending jumps 5 percent last year despite nation’s recession woes – TheHill.com.

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While endorsing international efforts to pressure Tehran into curbing sensitive nuclear technologies, Israel has hinted it could resort to force. But some analysts say Israeli jets would be stymied by the distance to Iran and by its defences. Asked in a television interview about Israeli leaders’ vows to “take care” of the perceived threat, ex-general Dan Halutz, who stepped down as armed forces chief in 2007, said: “We are taking upon ourselves a task that is bigger than us.”

Reuters AlertNet – Israel general doubts power to hit Iran atom sites.

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Though not currently enrolled in a party, he is known as a Democrat. But if he ran for the Senate, it would very likely be as a Republican or independent so he could avoid a costly primary.

As a candidate, Mr. Zuckerman would be following the path of a close friend and fellow media executive, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who switched his party affiliation from Democratic to Republican to run for office.

Mr. Zuckerman, whose fortune is estimated to be about $2 billion, owes most of his wealth to the real estate industry. He co-founded Boston Properties, which owns and manages office buildings in New York and elsewhere, in 1970, and is now chairman of the board. He bought The Daily News in 1993.

Mortimer B. Zuckerman Is Said to Mull Run for Senate – NYTimes.com.

SAVANNAH, Ga. – A single-mom soldier who says she refused to deploy to Afghanistan because she had no family able to care for her young son will be discharged from the military instead of facing a court-martial, the Army said Thursday.

Army discharging single mom who refused deployment – Yahoo! News.

Israeli agents have been targeting meetings between members of Hamas and the leadership of the militant Hezbollah group, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.

Israel is accused of waging covert war across the Middle East – Times Online .

Greece debt bailout: EU leaders split over euro crisis | Mail Online.

A rise in VAT is looming whichever party wins the general election, as Labour and the Conservatives draw up plans to balance Britain’s books.

Alistair Darling and George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor, are both considering raising VAT to as high as 20 per cent — the European average — from the current rate of 17.5 per cent, The Times has learnt.

New tax bombshell: 20% VAT – Times Online .

President Obama Signs Law Raising Public Debt Limit from $12.4 Trillion to $14.3 Trillion – Political Punch.

OSLO (Reuters) – The U.N. panel of climate experts overstated how much of the Netherlands is below sea level, according to a preliminary report on Saturday, admitting yet another flaw after a row last month over Himalayan glacier melt.

Men (74%) would much rather enjoy a romantic dinner with someone special than women (59%), according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

Ten percent (10%) of women would like flowers instead, while 11% prefer chocolate. Twenty percent (20%) of women aren’t sure what they want for Valentine’s Day.

67% Want to Dine with Someone Special on Valentine’s Day – Rasmussen Reports™.

As the winter Olympics begin, the Department of Homeland Security has disclosed that it will be monitoring the comments and posts on websites and social media like Twitter for information on possible terror threats. Among the sites listed in a privacy impact statement filed Friday afternoon by DHS are the Drudge Report, the Huffington Post, Twitter, Google and this web site, the Blotter.

During the Olympics, the Feds Will Be Reading Your Tweets – ABC News.

According to The Washington Post, voters want smaller government and fewer government services by a large 58 percent to 38 percent margin. Pollster Scott Rasmussen reveals that 61 percent of voters believe tax cuts help the economy, that 59 percent think tax cuts are a better job-creation tool than increased government spending and that another 59 percent believe higher deficits hurt the economy.

Rasmussen also reports that a full 83 percent of Americans blame the deficit on the unwillingness of politicians to cut government spending. And get this: In a whopper of a poll result, The New York Times reports that 75 percent of Americans dislike Congress.

This is why there’s a political revolt out there. Washington just doesn’t get it.

The Washington, D.C., Disconnect – Rasmussen Reports™.

Pennsylvania Governor: GOP’s Corbett Well Head of Three Potential Opponents

Election 2010: Pennsylvania Governor – Rasmussen Reports™.