G.O.P. Sets Aside Work on Immigration  —  As they prepare for a critical pre-election legislative stretch, Congressional Republican leaders have all but abandoned a broad overhaul of immigration laws and instead will concentrate on national security issues they believe play to their political strength.

Lieberman marches alone as former allies surround Lamont  —  HARTFORD, Conn. — U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman continues to go it alone.  —  While prominent Connecticut Democrats surrounded U.S. Senate candidate Ned Lamont at an annual Labor Day parade Monday in Newtown, the three-term incumbent …

UPDATED: Death of the Crocodile Hunter  —  My family has thoroughly enjoyed Steve Irwin's enthusiastic and informative (if often eccentric) wildlife programs.  —  The Crocodile Hunter's komodo dragon show, however, has a unique place in our tv pantheon - in that show the intrepid Irwin flees …

Dissent at Dartmouth  —  Ivy League liberals try to stifle democracy.  —  The left-leaning faction that dominates American higher education doesn't take kindly to strangers—particularly those who challenge the prevailing academic orthodoxies.  Just ask Harvard's Larry Summers.

Voters are anti-incumbent and angry, new poll finds  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Most Americans are angry about "something" when it comes to how the country is run, and they are more likely than in previous years to vote for a challenger this November, a new poll suggests.

President Bush Honors American Work Force on Labor Day  —  Paul Haul Center for Maritime Training and Education  —  Presidential Message: Labor Day, 2006  —  THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all.  Please be seated.  Happy Labor Day.  —  AUDIENCE: Happy Labor Day.  —  THE PRESIDENT: Yes, thanks.

33 bodies found scattered across Baghdad  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq - Police found the tortured, blindfolded bodies of 33 men scattered across the capital Monday and the U.S.-led coalition reported combat deaths of seven servicemen, a day after Iraqi leaders said the capture of a top terror suspect would reduce violence.

The Brilliance of Labor  —  Admit it.  Many of you think labor unions are dinosaurs, lumbering beasts with pea-sized brains stumbling along waiting for extinction in a world passing them by.  God knows, union leaders have done stupid things at times, but what strikes me is the sustained innovation …

Iraq follows Al Qaeda coup with mass arrests  —  BAGHDAD — Iraqi security forces killed 14 "terrorists" and arrested almost 200 suspects, the government said Monday, in a spectacular follow-up to their earlier capture of an alleged top-level Al Qaeda leader.

This Can't Be Love  —  Across the eastern United States, a gruesome ritual is in full swing.  The praying mantis and its relative, the Chinese mantis, are in their courtship season.  A male mantis approaches a female, flapping his wings and swaying his abdomen.  Leaping on her back, he begins to mate.

Many Entry-Level Workers Find a Rough Market  —  This Labor Day, the 45 million young people in the nation's work force face a choppy job market in which entry-level wages have often trailed inflation, making it hard for many to cope with high housing costs and rising college debt loads.

Who Are the Real Victims of Religious Hate Crimes?  —  Are Muslims the New Jews... as Daily Kos claims?  —  Are US Muslims Plagued by Discrimination since 9-11?  —  Little Green Footballs has news of the "whitewashing of radical Islam" HERE and HERE.  —  With the 5 Year Anniversary …

U.N. to mediate Israeli soldier release  —  JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia - U.N. chief Kofi Annan said Monday he would appoint a mediator for indirect talks between Israel and Hezbollah on the release of two abducted Israeli soldiers, the first public word of negotiations between the bitter enemies since fighting in Lebanon ended.

What a shambles over Iran  —  The collapse of resolve towards Tehran's nuclear plans will deeply undermine international order  —  PERSIAN PROVERBS have a particularly poetic quality to them.  Among my personal favourites are: "The wise man sits on the hole in his carpet" …

Joe Blog  —  A reminder that the Lieberman blog is apparently going live tomorrow.  It's basically going to be a trap to entice people to say mean things about the Last Honest Man so they can go whine to the press about how mean everyone is unlike Stay the Course Joe.

The Summer Next Time  —  IN late May, for those of us who teach, the summer stretches out like the great expanse of freedom it was in grammar school.  Ah, the days on the beach!  The books we will read!  The adventures we will have!  —  But before hunkering down to months of leisurely lolling around …