This Slate podcast is brought to you by Bing.com, the search engine that helps you make everyday decisions with the help of your friends.

Now, what your friends like on Facebook is in your search results on Bing.

Hello and welcome to the Slate Political Gab Fest for Friday, July 29th, 2011.

I am David Plotz, the editor of Slate.

I am back. I'm alive. I survived the worst health week of my life.

Thank you for all your moral support.

Thanks for all those emails that people sent saying it was so much better not having you on the show.

No, people did not send such emails.

There was several such emails.

Very few.

There were a few get-wells.

There were a number of get-wells, too.

There were a bunch of get-wells.

And I did.

I'm now well.

But, oh, man, never, ever go tubing.

Never go tubing. Let that be the lesson. Never. Annie, have you ever

thought about going tubing? No, no. I've never thought about tubing. Good. Don't consider tubing.

Okay. Joining us, you here, across from me here in the Slate Washington studio, isate Business correspondent reporter Annie Lowry. Annie,

welcome to the Gab Fest for the first time.

Yeah, thank you for having me.

And joining us from New Haven, you heard also Slate Senior Editor Emily Bazelon.

...