Iraq needs a Pinochet  —  The general was no saint, but he's a better model to follow than Castro.  —  I THINK ALL intelligent, patriotic and informed people can agree: It would be great if the U.S. could find an Iraqi Augusto Pinochet.  In fact, an Iraqi Pinochet would be even better than an Iraqi Castro.

Terror Fears as Blind Sheikh Faces 'Medical Emergency'  —  Richard Esposito Reports:  —  The imprisoned al Qaeda spiritual leader known as the "Blind Sheikh" suffered a "medical emergency" at the Springfield federal prison last week, and the FBI is warning his death could lead al Qaeda …

Press Briefing by Tony Snow  —  White House Conference Center Briefing Room  —  MR. SNOW: All right, welcome.  Let me run through the President's schedule for today.  Normal briefings.  He had a meeting with the President of Benin a while ago; also remarks at the White House Summit on Malaria.

Saudi Royal Family, Gov't Split on Iraq  —  AP Photo NY118  —  CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - Saudi Arabia's royal family and government leaders are deeply divided over how to handle the growing crisis in Iraq and other looming Mideast problems like Iran, with some favoring strong aid to fellow Sunnis and others more cautious.

Oppo Knocks?  —  Anybody who watched the Virginia Senate race this year knows that Senator-elect Jim Webb ran a savvy Internet campaign.  He hired bloggers, leveraged YouTube, played bloggers and the press off each other and off soon-to-be former Sen. George Allen.

Stories  —  At some point over the last couple of years I actually gained a bit of grudging respect for the conservative Christian critique that the media didn't reflect their views.  It's certainly the case that the media is overly deferential to religious views generally and conservative religious views specifically.

10 Tech Concepts You Need to Know for 2007  —  From concrete that can flex to sensors that you swallow, here are the technologies you'll be talking about.  —  Bendable concrete is 40 percent lighter than regular concrete and 500 times more resistant to cracking under pressure.  (Photograph by ACE-MRL)

Bakker, Brown: What the hell happened to Christianity?  —  Editor's note: Jay Bakker, son of former Praise The Lord leaders Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye Messner, is minister of Revolution Church and subject of a new documentary series, "One Punk Under God," on Sundance Channel.  Marc Brown is a Revolution staff member.

Should Johnson be unable to continue to serve, it could halt the scheduled Democratic takeover of the Senate.  Democrats won a 51-49 majority in the November election.  —  (CBS/AP) Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota was hospitalized and underwent surgery late Wednesday …

Granite Status: More than one Dem eyeing 2008 Senate primary  —  MOVE OVER, JEANNE.  Sure, she'd be the 800-pound gorilla, but former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen isn't the only Democrat strongly considering running for the U.S. Senate against John E. Sununu in 2008.  —  State Sen. David Gottesman of Nashua is strongly weighing a run.