1. "Family of faggot fans fly the flag": There are no words... (Hattip: John Lichman, a sick, sick man.)

[" A West Midlands family is playing a central role in the quest to raise the profile of a forgotten British dish - faggots. The Doody family from Wolverhampton has been crowned The Faggot Family in a national competition, and to kick off their reign they will launch National Faggot Week."]

["The Supreme Court on Thursday embraced the long-disputed view that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to own a gun for personal use, ruling 5 to 4 that there is a constitutional right to keep a loaded handgun at home for self-defense. The landmark ruling overturned the District of Columbia's ban on handguns, the strictest gun-control law in the country, and appeared certain to usher in a fresh round of litigation over gun rights throughout the country. The court rejected the view that the Second Amendment's "right of the people to keep and bear arms" applied to gun ownership only in connection with service in the "well regulated militia" to which the amendment refers."]

["His artistic output doesn't lessen the seriousness of the crime, or make him more eligible for forgiveness or leniency; neither does the stupidity and carelessness of the victim's mother. Nothing does. It cuts both ways, though, and the standing ovation Polanski got at the Oscars surprised me—not least because of the snotty pouting that greeted Elia Kazan a few years earlier; I guess it's okay to sulk at a guy who named names, because that put Hollywood people out of work, but if you rape some no-name, all is forgiven?"]

["At one point or another, nearly everyone—Steve McQueen, Robert Mitchum, John Wayne, Paul Newman—was considered. Finally the studio went to Western icon Clint Eastwood who, eager to get out of the saddle, agreed. He just had two suggestions—use Don Siegel, the director on the movie he'd just finished, 'The Beguiled,' and switch the action to the San Francisco Bay Area, the actor's long-time home. The changes changed everything. Start with the choice of director. Siegel was a no-nonsense Hollywood veteran—he'd done the montages for 'Casablanca'—but he specialized in anti-heroes, and relished ambiguity. "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," his '56 classic, worked as a parable of left-wing subversion or of right-wing conformity; 'The Beguiled' toyed with audience sympathies. Eastwood was complicated, too. Although he had voted for Nixon, he wore his hair long, played jazz piano and sported jeans and open-necked shirts. The actor may not have liked everything about the times, but he was clearly of them; his presence made the movie vital in a way an older star couldn't have. And then, finally, there was the setting. The movie could have worked in New York; it had all the big parks and urban streets the script demanded. But San Francisco, with its curving roads and voluptuous hills, had a feminine feel; it was also seen as the bleeding heart of political permissiveness and 'alternative lifestyles.' It was precisely the contrast, and challenge, a man like Inspector Harry Callahan needed."]

["In addition to the likes of .com and .net, the Internet might soon have Web addresses ending in .fun, .cars and .prettymuchanythingyouwant. Heralding the most dramatic expansion of virtual real estate in 40 years, the international group controlling Internet addresses decided Thursday to let anyone apply to be in charge of new last names for the Web. The Internet Corp. for Assigned Names and Numbers—which is as close as the Internet gets to a governing body—opted to open up the process to companies, individuals and coalitions. That means that any word or name approved by ICANN could follow the dot in a Web address. Big corporations and Web address sellers—as well as scammers looking for new places to lure unsuspecting Web surfers—are expected to make bids for some of the new classes of Web address. The application procedure is still being hammered out, but it won't be cheap or hassle-free."]

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"Links for the Day": Each morning, the House editors post a series of weblinks that we think will spark discussion. Comments encouraged. Suggestions for links are also welcome. Please send to keithuhlich@gmail.com.