Al Qaeda's Man in Iraq Gets Encouragement From His HQ  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq, April 13 — Osama bin Laden's top lieutenant has released an Internet video calling on Iraqi insurgents to remain strong in the fight against Americans and praising the leadership of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi …

Cheney Authorized Leak Of CIA Report, Libby Says  —  Vice President Dick Cheney directed his then-chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, on July 12, 2003 to leak to the media portions of a then-highly classified CIA report that Cheney hoped would undermine the credibility …

The Left, Online and Outraged  —  Liberal Blogger Finds an Outlet and a Community  —  SHERMAN OAKS, Calif. — In the angry life of Maryscott O'Connor, the rage begins as soon as she opens her eyes and realizes that her president is still George W. Bush.  The sun has yet to rise and her family …

Slacker Friday  —  I've got a new Think Again column called McCarthyism: Standard Operating Procedure, here and a new Nation column here called "AIPAC's Complaint."  Both deal with the reaction to the Walt/Mearsheimer report, and I'll have more to say about each next week.  —  Slacker Friday:

What Rumsfeld knew  —  Interviews with high-ranking military officials shed new light on the role Rumsfeld played in the harsh treatment of a Guantánamo detainee.  —  Print EmailFont: S / S+ / S++  —  U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld answers questions from reporters …

Exxon Chairman Gets $400 Million Retirement Package Amid Soaring Gas Prices  —  Exxon Made Record Profits in 2005  —  April 14, 2006— Soaring gas prices are squeezing most Americans at the pump, but at least one man isn't complaining.  —  Last year, Exxon made the biggest profit of any company ever …

Saving A Piece Of History … How do miracles happen?  Sometimes, it takes a bolt from the blue to bring them to life: … Long after the Viet Nam war ended, Jim Mayer's tradition lived on.  Strangely enough, the dream-come-true for so many wounded vets today at Fran O'Brien's started with something of a dream all those years ago:

For Immigrants and Business, Rift on Protests  —  In Bonita Springs, Fla., 10 restaurant workers were fired this week after skipping their shifts to attend a rally against legislation in Congress cracking down on illegal immigrants.  In Tyler, Tex., 22 welders lost their jobs making parts …

Iran president: "Zionist regime" a threat  —  TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's president said on Friday that the existence of the "Zionist regime", Iran's term for Israel, was a threat to the Islamic world, days after declaring Iran had become a nuclear power by enriching uranium.

Appeals Court Slaps L.A. Over Arrests of Homeless  —  Los Angeles' policy of arresting homeless people for sitting, lying or sleeping on public sidewalks as "an unavoidable consequence of being human and homeless without shelter" violates the constitutional prohibition against cruel and punishment, a federal appeals court ruled today.

Munich  —  Munich - the name, not the movie - has long been one of the neoconservative movement's most cherished political symbols, a kind of short-hand description for everything the neocons despise about liberals and their approach to foreign policy.  —  Munich equals appeasement - the worst sin in the neocon theology.