A Bad Leak  —  President Bush says he declassified portions of the prewar intelligence assessment on Iraq because he "wanted people to see the truth" about Iraq's weapons programs and to understand why he kept accusing Saddam Hussein of stockpiling weapons that turned out not to exist.

All Burkle, All the Time!  —  Revenge is bloggy at Gawker.  —  All Burkle, All the Time: Meow!  The decision to let slimebag Jared Paul Stern guest-edit gawker.com over this weekend initially seemed a cheap attention-getting move by an ambitious Brit blog owner gravely ignorant of American libel law.

Keeping Al-Qaeda in His Grip  —  Al-Zawahiri Presses Ideology, Deepens Rifts Among Islamic Radicals  —  CAIRO — In January 2003, one of the two most wanted men in the world couldn't contain his frustration.  From a hiding place probably somewhere in South Asia, he tapped out two lengthy e-mails …

"Generals defend Rumsfeld"  —  From The Washington Times: … That last bit is, of course, telling.  —  Our Constitution calls for a civilian run military—and many career military personnel, particularly those who have done the necessary diplomatic work to make it to the rank of general …

A footnote on Mohammed Cartoons  —  This week the Nashville Scene published an article about a blog called Mohammed Cartoons that was created by Nashvillian Bill Hobbs, which, for a brief period of time, was linked to the Bryson for Governor blog.  I initially wrote here about Mohammed Cartoons …

From the tomb  —  Very early, on the first day of the week, just after sunrise they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance to the tomb?"  Mark 16: 2,3  —  For 118 days we lay in a tomb — Norman Kember, Harmeet Sooden and me.

Britons Feeling 'Tired of Tony'  —  LONDON — Verra Budimlija was once a classic fan of Prime Minister Tony Blair — she's 40, a well-educated advertising executive, the kind of voter who propelled Blair and the Labor Party to power in 1997.  —  Not only does she live in Islington …

Blair refuses to back Iran strike  —  TONY Blair has told George Bush that Britain cannot offer military support to any strike on Iran, regardless of whether the move wins the backing of the international community, government sources claimed yesterday.  —  Amid increasing tension …

US plots 'new liberation of Baghdad'  —  THE American military is planning a "second liberation of Baghdad" to be carried out with the Iraqi army when a new government is installed.  —  Pacifying the lawless capital is regarded as essential to establishing the authority of the incoming government …

Confronting Iran  —  Will we learn from our mistakes and apply tough diplomacy — or rely once again on the failed doctrine of preemption?  —  TEHRAN THIS WEEK claimed that it had enriched uranium, a first step toward nuclear weapons capability.  The question now is whether the Bush administration …

Mistaking caricature and generalization for journalism  —  (updated below)  —  The Washington Post published yet another article today — this one entitled The Left, Online and Outraged, by David Finkel — seeking to depict the liberal blogosphere as being nothing more than the venting ground …

Social Issues Top GOP Pre-Election Agenda  —  WASHINGTON - Protection of marriage amendment?  Check.  Anti-flag burning legislation?  Check.  New abortion limits?  Check.  —  Between now and the November elections, Republicans are penciling in plans to take action on social issues important …

Report: Pollard, Barghouti deal in works  —  Officials in Jerusalem claimed on Saturday that the US would free imprisoned Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard in exchange for Israel releasing jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti.  —  According to Army Radio, Israel is set to offer the proposed prisoner swap deal …

A FEW QUICK NOTES  —  Blogger (@#%$*&) has been down for most of the day for me, and just came back a few minutes ago.  However, blogging will be light anyway because I am working on the Carnival of the Insanities (which takes quite a bit of time to organize) and am finishing up Part III …

In Iraqi Divide, Echoes of Bosnia for U.S. Troops  —  JURF AS-SAKHR, Iraq — As Lt. Col. Patrick Donahoe scans the horizon through the mud-splattered, inch-thick windows of his armored Humvee, he can almost see Bosnia through the palm trees.  —  It is not there yet, Colonel Donahoe said …

U.S. arming of Iraq cops skates close to legal line  —  Required checks on rights abuses skipped  —  WASHINGTON — U.S. officials are doling out millions of dollars of arms and ammunition to Iraqi police units without safeguards required to ensure they are complying with American laws …