1. Neil Genzlinger on the absurd proliferation of strip club scenes on television. As he points out, the problem with the scenes is not so much moral as it is that they are boring, lazy, and repetitive.

2. If you haven’t this Sabrina Rubin Erdely profile of the anti-gay climate of Anoka, Minnesota leading to a rash of gay teens committing suicide, do it. This is Michelle Bachmann’s district. The climate of hate she pushes trickles down to the public schools. The schools openly push hard-right evangelical values that vilify homosexuality. I don’t know Minnesota very well, so I can’t speak to why this area has so much hate. Would be curious to hear more informed people’s thoughts.

3. In case, the Anoka story didn’t make you angry enough, read Ari Berman on how the GOP is redistricting Southern states to not only destroy the Democratic Party but to resegregate the South.

4. When you think of Nevada, you probably think of a) Vegas, b) legal prostitution, and c) Vegas. But there’s a lot of land in Nevada outside of Las Vegas. And it’s populated by some very crazy people. Of course, Las Vegas is so much bigger than the rest of the state that Democrats can win the state and completely ignore everything outside of Vegas and the Reno/Carson City area.

5. On eating squirrel.

6. The interesting “transpartisan” political coalition in Nebraska that brought down the Keystone XL Pipeline. Also, I really want to visit the Sandhills of Nebraska.

7. Corruption and cronyism in the Alaska Fish & Game Department is all too typical of how western states run their wildlife programs: for the wealthy who like to shoot things.

8. I like American jobs as much as anyone, but I don’t like this. Caterpillar is shutting down a Canadian plant where it had locked out workers last month and moving operations to its plant in Muncie, Indiana, where it can take advantage of cheap American labor.

In the NROHQ kitchen just now, Charlie Cooke wondered aloud, and here I paraphrase: “Does anyone on the Left even ask the basic question of whether a private charitable organization has the right to dispose of its money as it sees fit?” But in fact, that anyone thinks there is a question here is a sign we’ve already lost.

The fact that nobody at the National Review seems to understand that Komen’s right to “dispose of its money as it sees fit” (which absolutely nobody denies) does not entail a right to be exempt from criticism — let alone a right to a permanent level of donations — is a sign that the National Review employs a lot of really dumb people.

…Simon Maloy has more.

…also unclear on this rather basic concept is the always hacktacular Jennifer Rubin.   [via Jill.]

Just in time for the rising backlash to its self-created public relations disaster, the Susan G. Komen Foundation—which announced this week that it would pull its funding from Planned Parenthood—has teamed up with Discount Gun Sales to market pink handguns.

An unknown portion of sales will be donated to the Komen Foundation’s Seattle branch in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It retails for $429.99 [sic'd]:

I really think it would be special if Texas would dye the chemicals it uses to execute innocent people pink. Imagine the positive publicity!

….And Komen caves!

….Or maybe Komen is trying to fool us into thinking it has caved.

Let me also encourage fans of Foreign Entanglements, the number of which I am utterly convinced pushes the boundaries of the term “several,” to “Like” Foreign Entanglements on Facebook.

Was Shuler worse as a legislator or quarterback?   Tough call…

By the way, since this new standard that any organization under a nuisance investigation by political opponents cannot receive funding was totally not tailored solely to apply to Planned Parenthood, I’ll assume that Komen will immediately end their funding of Penn State, right?  Or do actual serious investigations not count?