Microsoft + Yahoo + $44 Billion = Battle with Google:

Is this the battle of the century, as boxing promoters used to declare? Miguel Helft and Andrew Ross Sorkin deliver the narrative of the preliminaries in today's New York Times. The deal ain't done yet, but the timing is interesting, with Superbowl Sunday just hours away. And we all thought it was going to be a bleak winter with the writer's strike nearly ruining our Hollywood ringmasters and the recession ruining us.

But life has a way of keeping us entertained even when Hollywood fails. Is anyone even watching the NBA anymore?

Today in History:

Sixty-five years ago today, the last of the Nazi forces fighting in the battle for Stalingrad—that's in Russia—surrendered to the Russian forces. Thus began the end of World War II. The History Channel would have you believe that D-Day, in June of 1944, marked the beginning of the end of the war, but you need to check the numbers and take a closer look at history, not just the version some blathering high school teacher gave you or the narrative that some politician or Hollywood spun out; i.e., look at the story teller's motivation.

The truth is that Stalin's troops did more to bring about Hitler's downfall than the combined forces of democracy. Or, if you prefer, Hitler's own megalomania was his chief undoing. He over extended himself. Sound familiar? A man must know his own limitations—as somebody once said.

Is Mitt Romney an Android?

See Gail Collins Op-Ed piece in today's New York Times. She may not answer the question, but she does pose the possibility, and keep this in mind: if we want a president whom the folks on Comedy Central can poke the most fun of, Mitt has the greatest possibilities.

Always remember that only a damn fool believes you can run government like a business. Every Republican except the current White House resident knows this.

Speaking of which, back on February 3, 2005, The New York Times reported "Released tapes prove that Enron, which was Bush's top career patron until 2004 and among his top donors in the 2000 election, was responsible for the rolling blackouts in California as part of a price-gouging scheme."

Just remember, that George W. Bush's only successful business venture was conning Texas taxpayers into giving him hundreds of millions of tax dollars to build a baseball park that left the taxpayers poorer than they were before. Always follow the money.

Speaking of Money:

I'll bet you're like me, and you've forgotten Bush's ploy to misdirect our attention from the boondoggle of war to space flight. Today's Washington Post reminds us that billions of taxpayer dollars have already been spent to create a space station on the moon. But now NASA is worried that with a recession under way and global warming threatening to remake the geography of the earth that the next administration might not support Bush's grandiose schemes. They're planning to spend millions to have Madison Ave. create an ad campaign to promote the adventure.

Too bad they don't have Microsoft's money. They wouldn't have to depend on the whim of taxpayers worried about how they're going to pay their mortgages, the heating bills, and their kids' educations.