Begun, these culture wars have

Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman to serve on the high court and the key swing vote in some of the nation's highest-profile cases, announced her resignation Friday.

Oh, boy. The elections, the Schiavo case, the filibuster impasse -- all just a prelude to this. Replacing a moderate-conservative (and a swing-vote) on SCOTUS is going to be the polarizing event that helps define the culture wars. Very few issues have the capacity to alter the legal fabric of the nation like this one, so the fighting will be tooth-and-nail. The eventual outcome could very well be dire -- but the struggle might be just as bad.

And this is just O'Connor. Imagine what happens if Rehnquist goes, too, which I'm expecting any day now.

thump thump thump thump pow thump

Via Boing Boing: the Never-Ending Fall (Flash). Should be called something like Sphereaturvat. It's a very realistic simulation on how it feels trying to get through grad school on no coffee. Hint: use your mouse to free her if she gets stuck, or if you just want to hurt her.