...in which Rolling Stone investigative journalist Matt Taibbi kick-starts what I hope will be a furious debate in the mainstream press about Barack Obama's "seduction by Wall Street."

Barack perplexed? Although I am not holding my breath.

This is Taibbi at his best - outraged and outrageous. He connects the dots on the so-called Wall Street "bail out" like no other.

If only he were a secessionist.

And if you haven't yet read Paul Street's new book, put it on your gift list for this holiday.

And did you see the Congressional Research Service report about the possibility of as many as 56,000 more "private contractors" tagging along with those 30,000 U.S. troops over to Afghanistan...?

Oh, never mind.