Is a burrito a sandwich? The Panera Bread Co. bakery-and-cafe chain says yes. But a judge said no, ruling against Panera in its bid to prevent a Mexican restaurant from moving into the same shopping mall. Panera has a clause in its lease that prevents the White City Shopping Center in Shrewsbury from renting to another sandwich shop. Panera tried to invoke that clause to stop the opening of an

Remember the Chinese pilot who clipped the wing of one of our surveillance planes, causing it to have to land in China, where it was dismantled?  Next up, hide and go seek, according to Bill Gertz in the Washington Times: A Chinese submarine stalked a U.S. aircraft carrier battle group in the Pacific last month and surfaced within firing range of its torpedoes and missiles before being detected, The Washington

Do I ever bother you with that “required reading” stuff?  No, I don’t.  But Michael Rubin’s article in today’s WSJ is an “ought read,” I think.  It’s prophylactic without being difficult to apply. “Rubin . . . Rubin.  That’s a funny name for a Puerto Rican, isn’t it?” This one from Paul Greenberg on the subject of political inevitabilities is good, too.

Of course, had they just called it “surrender” to begin with, that might have taken some of the, you know—thrill out of it. EMBRACE OTHERNESS, PEOPLE!  IT’S THE NEW BLACK! **** (h/t STACLU and Newsbusters)

The mole rats all have double chins.  I see them standing around, curiously shaped, oddly curved, radiating a combination of health, consumption, and accent.  I can’t hear them, yet I know they have annoying accents by the simple look of them.  On the streets of New York City, you often find them: ambiguously young, clustering about, talking simultaneously to each other, to cell phones, to themselves, to the air, whatever–just

Specifically, John Mellencamp’s “Little Pink Houses”: “Personal foul . . . Mellencamp . . . excessive use of the cowbell . . . penalty is fifteen yards from the spot of the foul . . . repeat second down.”

As part of his chronicle of the LAT’s disgorging information on top Democrats now that the election’s over, Patterico points out a new story on Harry Reid: Incoming Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid vows to make reform of congressional earmarks a priority of his tenure, arguing that members need to be more transparent when they load pet projects for their districts into federal spending bills. But last year’s huge $286-billion

From Armymarinemom at Free Republic: On site report from Kristinn at a Cindy Sheehan anti war rally being held at the Independence Mall outside the Constitution Center. , Cindy said that she is determined t not only wants to see George Bush impeached but she wants to see him tried for Crimes Against Humanity. She states is so determined to see this done she says she will live for 1000

One of the drags of posting on a high-profile blog like Jeff’s Joint is that lunatics sign you up for email services from places and things they figure will annoy you, like this: NCL and Rosie O’Donnell would like you to join us aboard Norwegian Pearl for a 1-night cruise benefiting Rosie’s For All Kids Foundation – a not-for-profit organization dedicated to helping America’s kids. Friday, December 15, 2006 Port

She has been dubbed Iran’s Paris Hilton after appearing in a sex video on the internet. But while Paris’s exploits propelled her to worldwide stardom, Zahra Amir Ebrahimi faces ruin, a public lashing and even a jail term. Ebrahimi is one of the best-known actresses in the strict Islamic country and made the 20-minute sex tape privately with her boyfriend on a camcorder at the flat they shared two years