Around the Blogosphere This Week

The media's been All Obama, All the Time the last few days, but I figure everyone's probably getting their fill of this story elsewhere. One of the columns I enjoyed the most was by Peter Wehner at National Review Online (subject link). Betsy's Page also had an excellent summation.

Turning to some of the other interesting odds and ends found on the Internet in recent days:

NY Demanding Web Retailers Collect Sales Tax: A new law will require companies based outside New York to collect New York sales tax for purchases made by New Yorkers. I'm really curious about this law's legality. I wouldn't be surprised if it's tested in court.

Undoing America's Ethanol Mistake: By Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison. This is particularly interesting to read in light of another article, Food Crisis Starts Eclipsing Climate Change Worries. I think we can safely say at this point that pulling corn out of the food chain to make fuel has been a disaster in more ways than one.

Widening U.S. 395 in the Eastern Sierra Could Be a Lifesaver: Anyone who regularly travels the 395 will be happy to hear that it's (oh-so-slowly) being widened to two lanes in each direction. My daughter traveled the 395 for a geology field trip outside Big Pine last weekend; we'll be driving it again this summer.

Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson, 91; Daughter of Broadway Impresario: The only child of Florenz Ziegfeld and Billie Burke had an interesting life.

California Gun Owners Face Further Harrassment: California has a bill pending which would put extreme restrictions on owning or transferring ammunition. Another bill which will see a Constitutional challenge?

Trip Overseas Provides Fresh Perspective on Nanny State: Gas is nearly $10 a gallon in Scotland. An interesting column by Katherine Kersten of the Star Tribune.

Paving the Way for the Fairness Doctrine?: Back to nanny statism, here's a depressing post by Iain Murray at the Corner, who notes "The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is considering reviving a regulatory mandate requiring TV broadcasters to maintain a physical presence in each city in which they broadcast. This, despite the massive technological evolution that has made it possible — and more efficient — for stations to locate studios in remote locations without sacrificing a focus on community content." There's more to read.

Laura Bush Hatred at the SF Chronicle: My letter to the editor was as follows: "After reading Mark Morford's nasty, pointless screed about Laura Bush, all I could think was 'And newspaper publishers wonder why their circulation is tanking at unprecedented rates?!'" More from NewsBusters.

Finally, if you are interested in the FLDS child custody case, there has been excellent ongoing coverage in recent days by DRJ at Patterico's Pontifications, as well as by the Headmistress at The Common Room. The Common Room is raising interesting questions about whether Texas authorities are acting responsibly and seeing that the hundreds of people involved receive due process, and what this could mean for other religious groups in future. I have no idea who's right or wrong in this mess, but she has written some thought-provoking posts analyzing the case.