Islam, like Christianity, is not above criticism  —  The Pope quotes a barbed medieval criticism of Islamic violence in the course of a scholarly discourse, and Muslims all over the world go into uproar; churches are firebombed.  The Prime Minister's wife delivers a playful slap to a cheeky teenager …

Compromise Called Possible on Interrogations  —  President Bush's national security adviser signaled on Sunday that he was seeking a compromise with the Republican senators who are rebelling against the administration's proposal to explicitly permit certain severe interrogation practices against terrorism suspects.

Corruption That Shook Capitol Isn't Rattling Elections  —  Abramoff Case and Others Not Necessarily Key Issues  —  HAMILTON, Mont. — Sen. Conrad Burns gazed at a debate audience and asked if anyone could guess who was blocking efforts in Washington to control health-care costs.

GOP talk of vibrant economy rings hollow  —  FALMOUTH, Ky. - Used boots fetch $3 and old salt-and-pepper shakers bring in a buck at a makeshift flea market along Highway 27, presumably not what President Bush and Republicans have in mind when they herald a vibrant economy.

Narrow win for Swedish opposition  —  Sweden's centre-right opposition bloc has defeated the ruling Social Democrat party in the country's closest-fought general election for decades.  —  Moderate party leader Fredrik Reinfeldt declared victory as near-complete results gave him a 1% lead.

As Senator Falters, a Democrat Rises in Virginia  —  From the start, the Virginia Senate race was an emblematic campaign for 2006: combat boots vs. cowboy boots, in the inevitable shorthand.  —  A highly decorated Vietnam veteran and former secretary of the Navy who opposed the war in Iraq …

Harmful chemical leaks in space station  —  HOUSTON - International space station astronauts pulled an alarm and donned protective gear Monday after smelling a foul odor that turned out to be a harmful chemical leaking from an oxygen vent, NASA said.  —  "We don't exactly know the nature of the spill …

In Politics, Aim for the Heart, Not the Head  —  In 1935, researchers from Columbia University fanned out around the city of Allentown, Pa., and handed out leaflets ahead of local and state elections.  What residents did not know was that they were part of an experiment in political persuasion …

BUSH BASHING PIG HITS MADISON SQUARE GARDEN  —  ROGER WATERS [PINK FLOYD] CONCERT TOUR HITS NORTH AMERICA AND NYC WITH FLYING PIGS, URGING DEM VOTES IN ELECTION, 'IMPEACH BUSH' WRITTEN ON REAR OF PIG FLOATING OVER AUDIENCE... One concertgoer writes: 'Seeing Bush's name written across the pig's arse made me howl'... The pig had graffiti.

Major Problems At Polls Feared  —  Some Officials Say Voting Law Changes And New Technology Will Cause Trouble  —  An overhaul in how states and localities record votes and administer elections since the Florida recount battle six years ago has created conditions that could trigger a repeat …

The Path to Hysteria  —  My sin was to write a screenplay accurately depicting Bill Clinton's record on terrorism.  —  I am neither an activist, politician or partisan, nor an ideologue of any stripe.  What I am is a writer who takes his job very seriously, as do most of my colleagues …

Time for a Time-Out?  —  Will the GOP learn its lesson on pork?  —  If Republicans lose big in November, one reason will be their tardy response to public outrage over profligate spending.  The guilty pleas of former GOP Rep. Duke Cunningham and lobbyist Jack Abramoff prompted demands …

NEWSWEEK "Isikoffed" the Gonzales Memo  —  Since Christopher Hitchens is correcting old Dowdified quotes, I thought I'd correct one myself.  This one, from a 2004 NEWSWEEK article, is a major Dowdification — in my view, every bit as egregious as Dowd's original.  What's more, it's still influencing lefties even today.

Klobuchar keeps big lead over Kennedy  —  A charged-up DFL base and disapproval of Bush play a role in the margin, similar to a July poll's.  —  DFL U.S. Senate candidate Amy Klobuchar continues to hold a dominant lead over GOP rival Mark Kennedy, 56 to 32 percent, in the latest Minnesota Poll …

The Liberals' War  —  Why is the left afraid to face up to the threat of radical Islam? … Here's a puzzle: Why is it so frequently the case that the people who have the most at stake in the battle against Islamic extremism and the most to lose when Islamism gains—namely, liberals—are typically the most reluctant to fight it?

Bid to Stockpile Bioterror Drugs Stymied by Setbacks  —  The last of the anthrax-laced letters was still making its way through the mail in late 2001 when top Bush administration officials reached an obvious conclusion: the nation desperately needed to expand its medical stockpile to prepare for another biological attack.

Spending database bill marks new era  —  The Washington DC Examiner Newspaper, The Examiner  —  WASHINGTON - President Bush will soon sign the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act co-sponsored by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-OK, and Sen. Barack Obama, D-IL to establish a google-like Internet database of most federal spending.