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The Australian:
Sunnis and Sadr's Shiites make peace — THE movement of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, alleged to have played a role in the anti-Sunni violence over the last few days, publicly made peace with political and religious Sunni leaders overnight. — Four sheikhs from the Sadr movement made a …
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Crescat Sententia, Say Anything, Flopping Aces, Blogs for Bush, New York Times and Outside The Beltway
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Omar / IRAQ THE MODEL:
Curfew extended in Baghdad and three other provinces. — The defense minister in a press conference currently on Iraqi TV gave statistics to correct what he described as "exaggerated media reports" about civilian casualties and attacks on mosques since the attack on the Samarra shrine:
New York Times:
Younger Clerics Showing Power in Iraq's Unrest — BAGHDAD, Iraq, Feb. 25 — American officials have been repeatedly stunned and frequently thwarted in the past three years by the extraordinary power of Muslim clerics over Iraqi society. But in the sectarian violence of the past few days …
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Steven R. Weisman / New York Times:
What Civil War Could Look Like — TWO days of mob violence last week after the bombing of a revered Shiite shrine did not simply aggravate Iraq's sectarian hatreds. Like a near-death experience, the carnage seems to have shocked Sunni and Shiite leaders into a new realization of what civil war would cost, and new efforts to avoid it.
Michelle Malkin:
RICIN AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS (UPDATE: MAYBE NOT) — ***ABC reporting tonight that more tests are needed...*** — Yeah, it's weird. — Reuters: … The powder was packed in a roll of quarters, opened by a student doing her laundry. — Chronology of events in the US and elsewhere involving ricin.
Discussion:
A Blog For All
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CNN:
Pentagon: Iraqi troops downgraded — No Iraqi battalion capable of fighting without U.S. support — WASHINGTON (CNN) — The only Iraqi battalion capable of fighting without U.S. support has been downgraded to a level requiring them to fight with American troops backing them up, the Pentagon said Friday.
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New York Times:
Silenced by Islamist Rage — With every new riot over the Danish cartoons, it becomes clearer that the protests are no longer about the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, but about the demagoguery of Islamic extremists. The demonstrators are undeniably outraged by what they perceive as blasphemy.
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Alexandra von Maltzan / All Things Beautiful:
In The Line Of Fire — Many of us have bitterly complained about the American MSM's lack of courage to stand up for what in pretty much any other circumstance it would have vociferously defended: Its freedom of expression. — The west is the source of the liberating ideas of individual liberty …
Glenn Greenwald / Unclaimed Territory:
Prepare the noose for Bill Buckley, the Cowardly Traitor — (updated below) — An important and long-overlooked point about the depravity, corruption and truly un-American impulses which define so many Bush followers is revealed by a comparison of these two statements: — Howard Dean, December 5, 2005
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Captain Ed / Captain's Quarters:
The Difference Between Bush And Conservatives — Today's opinion piece by William F. Buckley, the father of American conservatism, highlights the difference between traditional conservatives and the Bush Administration's efforts in foreign policy, along with a host of other arenas.
Charles R. Babcock / Washington Post:
Contractor Pleads Guilty to Corruption — Probe Extends Beyond Bribes to Congressman — Washington defense contractor Mitchell J. Wade admitted yesterday in federal court that he attempted to illegally influence Defense Department contracting officials and tried to curry favor with two House members …
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New York Times:
An Afghan Prison Expands, Filling Guantánamo's Role — While an international debate rages over the future of the American detention center at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, the military has quietly expanded another, less-visible prison in Afghanistan, where it now holds some 500 terror suspects …
Neil A. Lewis / New York Times:
Former Aide to Cheney Gains Access to His Notes — WASHINGTON, Feb. 24 — I. Lewis Libby Jr., the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney who is charged with lying to investigators about his role in the disclosure of the identity of a C.I.A. officer, won the right Friday to review …
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Ted Bridis / Associated Press:
Homeland Security Objected to Ports Deal — WASHINGTON - The Homeland Security Department objected at first to a United Arab Emirates company's taking over significant operations at six U.S. ports. It was the lone protest among members of the government committee that eventually approved the deal without dissent.
Walter Pincus / Washington Post:
U.S. Intelligence Agencies Backed Dubai Port Deal — Reviews by U.S. intelligence agencies supported Dubai Ports World's purchase of the British company running terminals at six American seaports, and the assessments were made available to the Treasury Department-run interagency committee …
Discussion:
Thoughts from Kansas
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White House:
President Addresses American Legion, Discusses Global War on Terror — Washington, D.C. — In Focus: Veterans — In Focus: National Security — THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Please be seated. (Applause.) Thanks for the warm welcome. Mr. Commander, thank you for letting me come …
Discussion:
Power Line, Happy Furry Puppy Story …, NewDonkey.com, Blogs for Bush, Daily Kos and Bring it On!
Catherine Seipp / Los Angeles Times:
The fascists of free speech — A FRIEND OF MINE took his young daughter to visit the famous City Lights bookstore in San Francisco, explaining to her that the place is important because years ago it sold books no other store would — even, perhaps especially, books whose ideas many people found offensive.
