Outside the Beltway

Despite 9.5% unemployment, American firms are struggling to find qualified applicants for job openings.

Dilbert creator Scott Adams says that the amount of stress in the world is constant, with relief always transferred to another person or another time.

Are we nearing the point where presidents won’t be able to fill Supreme Court vacancies?

This year’s Zogby poll of public opinion in the Middle East exhibits a marked shift on the Obama Administration, Iran.

November’s elections will set modern records for most Senate seats and governorships on the ballot.

Some Democrats who support ending the Bush tax cuts for high earners want to exempt their own rich constituents.

A college degree is becoming a virtual necessity to making a good living in America, yet most still aren’t pursuing higher education.

Holland became the first NATO member to pull out of Afghanistan. How long before the rest follow?

Drinking a beer every mile during a half marathon isn’t as good an idea as it sounds.

ABC’s Sunday talking heads show has a new host. Is she a secret Taliban sympathizer?

Should anyone care that Chelsea Clinton’s wedding was ridiculously lavish?

Does anybody here know anything about slide or film scanners or 8mm conversion?

Some number of people are staying married while living separate lives. This is, apparently, news.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi won’t say whether she thinks the war in Afghanistan is worth the increasing toll on American blood and treasure.

The phone call is a dying legacy of a bygone day, supplanted by less intrusive forms of communication.

The US standard of living is not only growing but its lead over Europe and Japan is growing.

Screaming at one another and treating political opponents as enemies doesn’t seem to be getting us anywhere. But is there a realistic alternative?

President Obama went on TV and said something true. What was he thinking?

A review by the Army of its alarming spike in suicides blames it on the new strain of risk-seeking recruits who join during wartime and commanders who neglect to rein them in.

Topics include the WikiLeaks episode and its fallout, the DISCLOSE Act, filibuster reform, and the possibility that the economy has already recovered as much as it’s going to.

Are you really a nonprofit if your CEO is making a million dollars a year?

Three different ways they’re viewing the leaked “war logs” across the Pond.

Depending on which papers you read, the British NHS is undergoing minor restructuring, secretly planning major cuts in basic services, or doing nothing of concern.

You’re invited to attend President Obama’s birthday party. That’ll be $30,000.

General Stanley McChrystal retired with full honors while being lauded by the Secretary of Defense.

Some American atheists are using hair dryers to reverse childhood baptism.

If it’s online, it’s forever.

I’ve got to get a new BlackBerry or move to the iPhone and am looking for suggestions.

The movie version of Captain America will dress like the flag but won’t be waving it.

The median duration of unemployment is at levels not seen in decades. What do we do about it?

Now we’re doubling down on the Karzai government.

While people keep flocking to Facebook in droves, the site has the lowest satisfaction rating of any e-business site.

WaPo’s Breaking News Blog highlights a story that is, well, hardly breaking news: inconsiderate people on the DC subway.

Too many conservatives forget Ronald Reagan’s dictum that “somebody who agrees with you 80% of the time is an 80% friend not a 20% enemy.”

Money, so they say, is the root of all evil today.

How do President Obama’s accomplishments stack up from a liberal standpoint?

Should outrageous people like Pamela Gellar be invited to spread their message on national television?

Topics include the state of the social contract, the terrorist attack by an al Qaeda affiliate in Uganda, claims al Qaeda is racist, and the new Black Panther Party.

Matt Yglesias argues that “Northern Europe is Egalitarian Because of High Taxes.” I would argue that he has his causality backwards.

Oakland’s police chief, miffed at recent budget cuts, has listed 44 crimes that his officers will no longer respond to.

Journalists have been following Maxwell Scott’s advice since long before “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” was made.

News headlines are increasingly divorced from the article content, with serious connotations for a nation of skimmers.

Before we raise taxes on the rich, let’s first stop the flood of tax money that’s subsidizing their lifestyle.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court says cops can’t arrest people sleeping in parking lots for drunk driving. Cops and DAs are annoyed.

One can be an elite and not be elitist and vice versa.

Cleveland Cavaliers owner reacted to his star player’s departure with a scathing open letter. Was it fair?

Those with million dollar plus mortgages are defaulting at almost twice the rate on those smaller loans. Are the rich more ruthless?