Morning-after pill to be available without prescription  —  Buyers must prove they're 18 or older  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Women can buy the morning-after pill without a prescription, the government declared Thursday, a major step that nevertheless failed to quell the politically charged debate over access to emergency contraception.

Wanted: Scarier Intelligence  —  The last thing this country needs as it heads into this election season is another attempt to push the intelligence agencies to hype their conclusions about the threat from a Middle Eastern state.  —  That's what happened in 2002, when the administration engineered …

New Orleans Mayor Takes Swipe At NYC  —  Nagin Cites Failure To Rebuild Ground Zero While Defending Katrina Clean-Up  —  (CBS) Confronted by accusations that he's taking too long to clean up his city after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin defended himself by remarking on New York City's failure to rebuild Ground Zero.

Hezbollah Didn't Win  —  Arab writers are beginning to lift the veil on what really happened in Lebanon.  —  The way much of the Western media tells the story, Hezbollah won a great victory against Israel and the U.S., healed the Sunni-Shiite rift, and boosted the Iranian mullahs' claim to leadership of the Muslim world.

New Yorker Arrested for Providing Hezbollah TV Channel  —  A New York man was arrested yesterday on charges that he conspired to support a terrorist group by providing U.S. residents with access to Hezbollah's satellite channel, al-Manar.  —  Javed Iqbal runs HDTV Corp. …

GOP Senate challenger McGavick reveals drunken driving incident  —  OLYMPIA, Wash. — Republican U.S. Senate challenger Mike McGavick, in a remarkable confession of what he called his personal and political shortcomings, on Thursday revealed a drunken driving incident and discussed his divorce …

Files From Duke Rape Case Give Details but No Answers  —  DURHAM, N.C. — On March 21, a week after an African-American woman charged that she had been raped by three white Duke University lacrosse players, the police sergeant supervising the investigation met with the sexual-assault nurse …

Inquiry Opened Into Israeli Use of U.S. Bombs  —  The State Department is investigating whether Israel's use of American-made cluster bombs in southern Lebanon violated secret agreements with the United States that restrict when it can employ such weapons, two officials said.

Rep. Schmidt's marathon ad questioned  —  COLUMBUS, Ohio - Republican Rep. Jean Schmidt is fast, capable of running a marathon in 3 hours, 19 minutes, 6 seconds.  —  At least that's what a photo on the Ohio congresswoman's Web site shows.  —  No way, says a rival who contends that the picture …

Sadr's Militia and the Slaughter in the Streets  —  'We Don't Need a Verdict,' One Commander Says  —  BAGHDAD — In a grungy restaurant with plastic tables in central Baghdad, the young Mahdi Army commander was staring earnestly.  His beard was closely cropped around his jaw, his face otherwise cleanshaven.

Pamela Bone: Muslim sisters need our help  —  If she is dubbed right-wing for expressing solidarity with women in Islamic countries, the author doesn't mind wearing the label  —  IN Tehran in June, several thousand people held a peaceful demonstration calling for legal changes that would give …

France Sets Big Force for Lebanon  —  2,000 to Serve As Peacekeepers; 'Clarifications' Set  —  French President Jacques Chirac said Thursday that France would commit 2,000 troops to a new international peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon.  The decision breaks a stalemate that has held …

12 arrested on jet to India to be freed  —  HAARLEM, Netherlands - Prosecutors said Thursday they found no evidence of a terrorist threat aboard a Northwest Airlines flight to India that returned to Amsterdam, and they are releasing all 12 passengers arrested after the emergency landing.

Kentucky Governor Signs Plea Deal  —  Gov. Ernie Fletcher of Kentucky, who was indicted in May in connection with a hiring scandal, signed an agreement yesterday admitting wrongdoing by his administration and promising to reconstitute the state's Personnel Board.

Fairfax Native Says Allen's Words Stung  —  S.R. Sidarth had built an impressive record of achievements for such a young man: straight-A student at one of Fairfax County's finest high schools, a tournament chess player, a quiz team captain, a sportswriter at his college newspaper …

Club Mad  —  The governor of Alaska, Frank Murkowski, came in 3rd in the Republican primary on Tuesday, and although it has widely been interpreted as a revolt over local issues, there can be no doubt that it sent a chill down the spines of DC incumbents, particularly the Senate majority.

Ann Coulter gets her freak on  —  Whenever Ann is faced with the reality that Osama hasn't been caught yet by this administration-well-Poor Ann.  Kirsten Powers actually responds to Coulter's ridiculous line that Afghanistan is going swimmingly and brings up the fact that Osama is still alive and well.