The price of shillyshallying  —  The failure of world powers to rein in North Korea means that we face a bleak and terrifying future  —  THE BIRTH announcement of each new arrival into the nuclear family in the past 50 years has been greeted by existing members with loud condemnations and dark prognostications.

FBI investigates Rep. Curt Weldon  —  WASHINGTON - The Justice Department is investigating whether Republican Rep. Curt Weldon of Pennsylvania traded his political influence for lucrative lobbying and consulting contracts for his daughter, according to sources with direct knowledge of the inquiry.

Happy Birthday, Navy  —  The US Navy turns 231 years old today.  —  A message from the Navy's Master Chief Petty Officer Joe R. Campa: … Thanks to each and everyone serving in the U.S. Navy.  —  If you have a loved one in the Navy (or any service branch for that matter), I've got a fabulous related gift idea.

Shays: Abu Ghraib Abuses Were Sex Ring  —  HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Republican Rep. Christopher Shays, who is in a tough re-election fight, said Friday the Abu Ghraib prison abuses were more about pornography than torture.  —  The veteran Connecticut congressman said a National Guard unit …

Democratic Faces That Could Launch Thousands of Votes  —  With a Parade of Attractive Candidates, the Party May Benefit From the Politics of Beauty  —  AUBURN, N.Y. — Maybe Democratic candidate Michael Arcuri is running strong in this Republican House district because he pledges to expand health coverage …

ALF suicide watch  —  If this post is slightly incoherent, it's because of the massive doses of antidepressants necessary to prevent Ali-Bubba from slashing his wrists.  —  This suicidal depression began when I made the mistake of going to Ryan Sager's blog, where he had posted Dick Armey's takedown on James Dobson.

Gay Marriage Losing Punch as Ballot Issue  —  The debate over same-sex marriage was a black-or-white proposition two years ago when voters in 11 states barred gay couples from marrying.  —  But this year shades of gray are everywhere, as eight more states consider similar ballot measures.

Iraqi federalism vote: Behind the contradictory numbers  —  The Iraqi parliament voted (Wednesday, October 11) 140 to nothing, in a more-or-less routine vote, to approve the federalism-procedures bill.  Or did they?  The New York Times said so.  But the Iraqi paper Azzaman said the vote was 138 to nothing …

Holy Land group's co-founder sentenced  —  Ghassan Elashi, co-founder and former chairman of the now-defunct Richardson-based Holy Land Foundation, was sentenced Thursday to six years and eight months in prison on charges that he did business with a terrorist and violated export laws with his brothers and their company InfoCom Corp.

Beyond the Coup Rumors, Options for Iraq  —  As the security situation in Baghdad has deteriorated over the past month, there has been growing talk among Iraqi politicians about a "government of national salvation" — a coup, in effect — that would impose martial law throughout the country.

Bush Is Said to Have No Plan if GOP Loses  —  Some Republican strategists are increasingly upset with what they consider the overconfidence of President Bush and his senior advisers about the midterm elections November 7-a concern aggravated by the president's news conference this week.

Dalai Lama sees Pope, says few Muslims "mischievous"  —  ROME (Reuters) - The Dalai Lama said after meeting Pope Benedict on Friday that "a few mischievous Muslims" should not be allowed to give the Islamic faith a bad name.  —  Muslims worldwide were offended by a speech by the Pope …

"Racist" Schoolgirl (14 yrs old) Arrested in al-Britannia  —  In al-Britannia, you end up in jail if you complain that immigrants do not speak English, but if you are saying that those who insult Islam should be killed, it's OK.  —  A quote from The Manchester Evening News, 12 October 2006:

Which Law Prof Blogs Have the Juice?  —  TaxProf Blog has a 6.4 "Blog Juice Rating," determined by:  — Number of Bloglines subscribers (40%)  — Alexa rank (15%)  — Technorati ranking (30%)  — Number of inbound links via Technorati (15%)  —  Here are the Blog Juice Ratings for various law professor blogs:

U.S. Economy: Fuel-Price Drop Spurs Consumer Spending (Update2)  —  Oct. 13 (Bloomberg) — Lower gasoline prices encouraged Americans to spend more on clothing, furniture and building materials, and propelled consumer confidence to the highest level in more than a year.