Secrets of the CIA  —  A former colleague says the fired Mary McCarthy 'categorically denies' being the source of the leak on agency renditions.  —  April 24, 2006 - A former CIA officer who was sacked last week after allegedly confessing to leaking secrets has denied she was the source …

Police: Many casualties in Egyptian resort blasts  —  Three explosions rocked the Sinai resort city of Dahab on Monday night leaving at least 100 dead and wounded, according to the doctor who runs Egypt's rescue squad in the peninsula.  —  Dr. Said Essa said he was headed to the scene of the blasts …

Bush's approval ratings slide to new low  —  Poll: Only one-third say he's handling his job well  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — President Bush's approval ratings have sunk to a personal low, with only a third of Americans saying they approve of the way he is handling his job, a national poll released Monday said.

Transcript: Bin Laden accuses West  —  The following is an edited translation of an audiotape attributed to al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, parts of which were aired by Aljazeera on April 23, 2006.  (It is not known where or when the recording was made.)  —  Praise be to Allah …

Warily, Iraqis Investing Hope in New Leaders  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq, April 23 — On the cusp of their first permanent government since the American-led invasion, Iraqis are not exactly celebrating.  Rather, they seem to be gritting their teeth and clinging grimly to the battered hope for democracy …

Disgrace  —  Thanks to reader Samela for pointing out this incredible series in the Chicago Tribune outlining contractor abuses in Iraq.  It's rather surprising that no other papers or any of the networks have bothered to report the story (at least that I'm aware of) but I can understand it.

INTRODUCING HOT AIR  —  I'm excited to introduce you today to Hot Air—a conservative Internet broadcast network I founded with a team of multi-talented bloggers.  (Press release here.)  —  Internet video is booming.  Apple's iTunes store has sold a gazillion videos since its debut.

A Religious Push Against Gay Unions  —  WASHINGTON, April 23 — About 50 prominent religious leaders, including seven Roman Catholic cardinals and about a half-dozen archbishops, have signed a petition in support of a constitutional amendment blocking same-sex marriage.

An Experiment in Journalism  —  I went to the Middle East for six months so I could expand my freelance writing portfolio.  But I found, after a few months, there may be a better way forward than publishing disconnected dispatches here and there for low pay.  —  The mainstream media is an industry in decline.

Islamist protest in N.Y. - 'Mushroom cloud on way'  —  Rally at Israeli consulate features pictures of Muslim flags flying over White House  —  A New York rally by the Islamic Thinkers Society outside the Israeli consulate yesterday featured chants of "The mushroom cloud is on its way!

Dissident President  —  George W. Bush has the courage to speak out for freedom.  —  There are two distinct marks of a dissident.  First, dissidents are fired by ideas and stay true to them no matter the consequences.  Second, they generally believe that betraying those ideas would constitute the greatest of moral failures.

Paperless news is doing just fine  —  Newspapers are dying.  This isn't an ideological statement or a heartfelt wish, just a simple observation.  Horse-drawn carriages yielded to cars, and steamships and ocean liners yielded to airplanes.  Consumers prefer efficiency, and the market cannot be denied.

Yelling 'Fire' on a Hot Planet  —  GLOBAL warming has the feel of breaking news these days.  —  Polar bears are drowning; an American city is underwater; ice sheets are crumbling.  Time magazine proclaimed that readers should be worried.  Very worried.  There are new hot-selling books …

2006: What About the Senate?  —  The recent election talk from our pundit class has been about the chances of a Democratic takeover of the House.  Many expect this.  I am open to this possibility; however, as I have written in the past, I think the data favors a Republican retention.