The following is an excerpt from OpinionJournal.com’s “Best of the Web” written by the editor, James Taranto.

Bottom Stories of the Day

  • “Outage Disrupts Haircut, Other Downtown Endeavors”–headline, Cape Cod Times (Hyannis, Mass.), Jan. 25
  • “NRA Members Strongly Oppose New Gun Restrictions, Poll Finds”–headline, Washington Post website, Jan. 25

What Difference Does It Make?
“Seeing Double: Clinton Spokesperson Confirms Daily News Analysis That Secretary of State Is Wearing Glasses to Correct Vision Problems After Concussion and Blood Clot”–headline, Daily News (New York), Jan. 25

Questions Nobody Is Asking

  • “Did Coke Really Have to Tell Us It Makes Us Fat?”–headline, AdAge.com, Jan. 24
  • “Would You Want Hillary in Your Foxhole?”–headline, Atlanta Journal-Constitution website, Jan. 24

Tax That Fellow Behind That Tree
One of the many ObamaCare provisions to take effect at the beginning of this year is a 2.3% tax on medical devices. Novation, a company that purchases medical devices for hospitals, announces in a press release that it is shocked to learn that the price of such devices is going up:

The community-based, pediatric and academic hospitals served by Novation are reporting that many are being directly billed by at least one medical device manufacturer to cover the costs associated with the Affordable Care Act’s medical device tax. But Novation . . . is taking a firm stance with suppliers who are trying to pass their medical device excise tax obligations on to hospitals.

While the administration of the Medical Device Excise Tax is complex and still evolving, it is clear that Congress did not intend to impose this tax on hospitals. . . .

“Novation is taking a firm position with manufacturers that the Medical Device Tax may not be passed onto the hospital members we serve,” says Jody Hatcher, President and CEO of Novation. “While most device manufacturers are taking responsibility for this Tax, there are some manufacturers attempting to pass their obligation on to hospitals. This Tax should be the responsibility of the manufacturers, and Novation is dedicated to ensuring that member hospitals are impacted by it as little as possible.”

Why not go all the way and demand that manufacturers give devices to hospitals free of charge?

For more “Best of the Web” click here and look for the “Best of the Web Today” link in the middle column below “Today’s Columnists.”