Comair Plane Took Off From Wrong Runway  —  LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) - A commuter jet mistakenly trying to take off on a runway that was too short crashed into a field Sunday and burst into flames, killing 49 people and leaving the lone survivor - a co-pilot - in critical condition, federal investigators said.

Slow and Low  —  Rahm oh Rahm, what are we going to do with you?  —  You were showing so much promise the day after the Connecticut primary: … But that was then, this is now.  Today in the NYT: … Say what?  —  I won't descend into cheap, common snark and point out that Joe Lieberman …

Life and Death  —  Western guilt blinds us to the nature of Islamic extremism.  —  The simple back-and-forth of war can create the illusion that both sides have a legitimate point to make even when this is not so, and it is clear that Hezbollah's cause has greatly benefited from war's "equalizing" effect.

WHY A PAC?  —  If you've checked the Blue America ActBlue page in the last couple of days, you may have noticed a new addition.  That ain't no candidate's face the second from the top.  No, it's the graphic symbol that our sometime art director, Adam, did to represent our "campaign" …

Iran tests submarine-to-surface missile  —  TEHRAN, Iran - Iran tested a new anti-ship missile fired by a submarine during war games Sunday, raising worries it could disrupt vital oil tanker traffic in the Gulf amid its standoff with the West over its suspect nuclear activities.

Nasrallah sorry for scale of war  —  Hezbollah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah has said he would not have ordered the capture of two Israeli soldiers if he had known it would lead to such a war.  —  "Had we known that the kidnapping of the soldiers would have led to this …

In Defense of Andrew Young  —  Andrew Young unwittingly ended his brief tenure as Wal-Mart's ambassador to U.S. cities this month with his remarks about the nation's urban mom and pop shops:  —  "Those are the people who have been overcharging us — selling us stale bread and bad meat and wilted vegetables …

Reuters Urges Investigation of Airstrike  —  Here's Reuters Palestinian propagandist Nidal al-Mughrabi, on the airstrike that injured two Palestinian journalists yesterday: Wounded cameraman tells of Gaza blast. … Reuters, of course, wants an investigation.

"Anybody knows not to mess with me"  —  Nancy Pelosi leads the Democrats with a fiery style that could make her the first woman Speaker of the House  —  Nancy Pelosi, the leader of the Democrats in the House, portrays herself as a polite, grandmotherly lady.

'Democracy is under attack': Gore  —  LONDON (AFP) - Former US Vice-President Al Gore warned an audience at the Edinburgh International Television Festival that "democracy is under attack".  —  The former presidential candidate said television networks in the world's biggest …

Contrary to what is now the accepted wisdom in the media, Hezb'allah in its recent offensive against Israel neither "badly bloodied the Israel Defense Force," nor "fought it to a standstill" in Southern Lebanon.  In fact, the opposite is the case.  By any legitimate measure Hezb'allah was handed …

'Gaza is caught in anarchy and thuggery'  —  "When you walk in the streets of Gaza City, you cannot but close your eyes because of what you see there: unimaginable chaos, careless policemen, young men carrying guns and strutting with pride and families receiving condolences for their dead in the middle of the street."

California Seeks to Clear Hemp of a Bad Name  —  STRATFORD, Calif. — Charles Meyer's politics are as steady and unswerving as the rows of pima cotton on his Central Valley farm.  With his work-shirt blue eyes and flinty Clint Eastwood demeanor, he is staunchly in favor of the war in Iraq …

"Truthiness," "Wikiality" named TV words of year  —  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Truthiness" and "Wikiality" — two of the words popularized by political satirist on his TV show "The Colbert Report"— were named on Sunday the top television buzzwords of the year.

S R Sidarth Update  —  After discussions with a fellow blogger who linked a previous post on S R Sidarth, I've decided to provide this update.  After discovering some particularly vulgar comments on a posting board made by an S R Sidarth, I made a post critical of S R Sidarth.