Experts Advise Bush Not to Reduce Troops  —  President Looking Beyond Study Group's Plan  —  President Bush heard a blunt and dismal assessment of his handling of Iraq from a group of military experts yesterday, but the advisers shared the White House's skeptical view of the recommendations …

Kennedy drops support for a Kerry presidential run in '08  —  WASHINGTON —Senator Edward M. Kennedy Monday dropped his public commitment to support Senator John F. Kerry in a 2008 presidential race, saying that he won't wait "indefinitely" for Kerry to declare his intentions while the Democratic primary field takes shape.

Annan Criticizes U.S. in Farewell Speech  —  U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in his farewell address, criticized the Bush administration, warning that America must not sacrifice its Democratic ideals while waging war against terrorism.  —  In remarks prepared for delivery Monday …

The Big Lie About the Middle East  —  Tell James Baker: Arab nations don't care about the Palestinians  —  No sensible person is against peacemaking in the Holy Land.  Applause and hopefulness would seem the reasonable reaction to the Iraq Study Group's recommendation that the Bush Administration …

Unhappy With Democrats Over Iraq, Kucinich Plans Another Bid for White House  —  Citing dissatisfaction with his party's strategy on Iraq, Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich (Ohio) announced yesterday that he would run for the Democratic presidential nomination.  —  Again.

Iraqis Consider Ways to Reduce Power of Cleric  —  After discussions with the Bush administration, several of Iraq's major political parties are in talks to form a coalition whose aim is to break the powerful influence of the radical Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr within the government, senior Iraqi officials say.

2nd pastor resigns over gay sex scandal  —  ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The founding pastor of a second Colorado church has resigned over gay sex allegations, just weeks after the evangelical community was shaken by the scandal surrounding megachurch leader Ted Haggard.

Only fairness will assuage the anxious middle  —  A recent meeting with the incoming freshmen of the 110th House of Representatives made clear to me some of the forces that will shape American economic policy in the next few years.  Coming from very different parts of the country …

Small nuclear war could lead to cooldown  —  SAN FRANCISCO - Some of the scientists who first advanced the controversial "nuclear winter" theory more than two decades ago have come up with another bleak forecast: Even a regional nuclear war would devastate the environment.

$20bn gas project seized by Russia  —  Shell is being forced by the Russian government to hand over its controlling stake in the world's biggest liquefied gas project, provoking fresh fears about the Kremlin's willingness to use the country's growing strength in natural resources as a political weapon.

The Blogosphere is the Last Refuge of a Scoundrel  —  Call me crazy, but the blog launched today under Tom DeLay's name — he said tonight on Hardball that he's not actually writing it ("I'm not a very good writer") — is not half-bad.  I'm not saying that it's great, or that it will even be accepted …

Arctic sea ice 'faces rapid melt'  —  Science reporter, BBC News, San Francisco  —  The Arctic may be close to a tipping point that sees all-year-round ice disappear very rapidly in the next few decades, US scientists have warned.  —  The latest data presented at the American Geophysical …

Skilling won't have to report to prison yet  —  WASECA, Minn. — The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has delayed the start of former Enron CEO Jeff Skilling's prison sentence that was scheduled to begin here Tuesday.  —  The court said today he would not have to report to prison …

Iran Opens Conference on Holocaust  —  Iran held a gathering that included Holocaust deniers, discredited scholars and white supremacists from around the world on Monday under the guise of a conference to "debate" the Nazi annihilation of six million Jews.  —  Among those representing …

Students interrupt Iran president … TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) — Iranian students have staged a rare demonstration against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, setting off firecrackers and burning pictures of him as he delivered a speech at Tehran university, reports said.

Went to war?  Good president!  Kept the peace?  Not so hot  —  Why do presidential rankings favor imperial commanders in chief?  —  History may prove kinder to President Bush than the voters were on November 7.  That, however, says less about the value of Bush's contributions than it does …

Seattle Restores Christmas Trees  —  Here's one small victory for Christmas: … This is actually a defeat for small-minded bureaucrats rather than any explicit animus towards Christmas.  When Rabbi Bogomilsky sent the letter threatening a lawsuit, he didn't want the trees removed …