What I've Learned  —  Nearly 50 years ago, when I arrived in Minnesota as a student fresh from Africa, I had much to learn — starting with the fact that there is nothing wimpish about wearing earmuffs when it is 15 degrees below zero.  All my life since has been a learning experience.

Holocaust conference begins in Teheran  —  Iran opened a conference on the Holocaust on Monday, saying it would not be an attempt to deny the World War II genocide but merely to discuss it in an unrestricted atmosphere.  —  However, the conference was initiated by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad …

Diana was bugged by secret service in U.S.  —  American intelligence agencies were bugging Princess Diana's telephone over her relationship with a US billionaire, the Mail's sister paper has learned.  —  Evening Standard reports that she was even forced to abandon a planned holiday with her sons …

Iran students heckle Ahmadinejad  —  Iranian students have disrupted a speech by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at a prestigious Tehran university, setting fire to his picture and heckling him.  —  "Some students chanted radical slogans and inflamed the atmosphere of the meeting" …

Pelosi piques public's interest  —  As incoming head of the House, with more eyes on her, she intends to paint her own picture.  —  WASHINGTON — When Nancy Pelosi appeared on national television on the morning after voters returned the House to Democratic hands, Leon Rebibo's phone started ringing in Los Angeles.

Perception or Deception?  —  According to AP Executive Editor Kathleen Carroll, Iraqi Police Captain Jamil Hussein is a well-known source that they have had a relationship with for two years.  —  According to Curt at Flopping Aces, Hussein was cited in Associated Press reports …

Seeking Iran Intelligence, U.S. Tries Google  —  Internet Search Yields Names Cited in U.N. Draft Resolution  —  When the State Department recently asked the CIA for names of Iranians who could be sanctioned for their involvement in a clandestine nuclear weapons program, the agency refused …

Hamas confirms meeting with group of Democrats  —  Leader claims U.S. party willing to hold dialogue with terrorists  —  TEL AVIV - A key Hamas official has confirmed reports from last week the terror group held meetings with "important Democrats."  —  Ahmed Yousuf, chief political advisor …

Hey, Rosie: Read my lips  —  Ching, chong, smackdown's on:  —  Hoisted by her own petard for her Asian language mimickry, diva of political correctness Rosie O'Donnell is getting blasted by a Chinese-American NYC city councilman for offending minorities: … It's one of the rare times I am enjoying the P.C. circus at work.

Wanted: A Strong Wooden Stake and Several Garlic Bulbs  —  Those are some of the tools that are necessary to ensure that a vampire is really dead.  As one has died today and his truly vile regime was responsible for the deaths of thousands, the torture of many more thousands …

Pakistani Islamists protest against pro-women law  —  KARACHI (Reuters) - Thousands of Islamist protesters demonstrated in southern Pakistan on Sunday against a new law that reduces the burden of proof on rape victims by allowing them to seek justice without the need for four male witnesses.

Good News, Everybody: We've Got a New Iraq Slogan!  —  Not surprisingly, the Bush administration is already backing away from most of the proposals put forth by the Iraq Study Group.  The New York Times, with unintended comic irony, noted it this way: "Administration officials …

GOP alienation marks turnabout for Bush  —  Dissent and calls for checks on the president have mushroomed since the party lost Congress in the midterm election.  —  WASHINGTON — President Bush, weakened by an unpopular war and the loss of Republican control in Congress …

2008 hopefuls woo Bush clan donors, aides  —  McCain, Romney seek edge that family's GOP network could provide.  —  WASHINGTON — With the Bushes preparing to stand down from a quarter century in top elected offices, a frenzied competition has erupted in the Republican Party over who will inherit …

LOOKING BACK.  In fall 2006, the United States turned on the NeoCommentators.  Their smug, wrongheaded chatter had helped lead the country into a catastrophic war and then, without missing a beat, turned to condemn those who sought to end it.  Infuriated, readers nationwide began agitating …

Inquiry Sought Over Evangelical Video  —  Defense Department Asked to Examine Officers' Acts Supporting Christian Group  —  A military watchdog group is asking the Defense Department to investigate whether seven Army and Air Force officers violated regulations by appearing in uniform …

Cow 'emissions' more damaging to planet than CO2 from cars  —  Meet the world's top destroyer of the environment.  It is not the car, or the plane,or even George Bush: it is the cow.  —  A United Nations report has identified the world's rapidly growing herds of cattle as the greatest threat to the climate, forests and wildlife.