[links] Link salad, Sunday morning

The Wall Street Journal discovers religious pandering in the Republican party — Almost three decades after the fact, unfortunately. Money shot:

There was one significant mistake in the speech. I do not know why Romney did not include nonbelievers in his moving portrait of the great American family. We were founded by believing Christians, but soon enough Jeremiah Johnson, and the old proud agnostic mountain men, and the village atheist, and the Brahmin doubter, were there, and they too are part of us, part of this wonderful thing we have. Why did Mr. Romney not do the obvious thing and include them? My guess: It would have been reported, and some idiots would have seen it and been offended that this Romney character likes to laud atheists. And he would have lost the idiot vote.

My feeling is we've bowed too far to the idiots. This is true in politics, journalism, and just about everything else.

The New York Times on the invention of the Internet — Specifically with reference to Al Gore's role -- his alleged "I invented the Internet" claim is another one of those conservative lies that will never die. Money shot:

IN the 2000 election, Al Gore, then the vice president, was derided by opponents who claimed that he had said he “created” the Internet. But many of the scientists, engineers and technology executives who gathered here to celebrate the Web’s birth say he played a crucial role in its development, and they expressed bitterness that his vision had been so discredited.

Railroad launched ICBMs

Binary timepiece — :: wants :: (Thanks to chriswjohnson.)

Star Wars, the baroque version

Eco-friendly kangaroo farts could help global warming