U.S. Is Detaining Iranians Caught in Raids in Iraq  —  The American military is holding at least four Iranians in Iraq, including men the Bush administration called senior military officials, who were seized in a pair of raids late last week aimed at people suspected of conducting attacks …

DeLay bound for D.C. to lobby for conservatives, but some say no thanks  —  Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is about to return to the Washington political scene as a high-profile operative for the American Conservative Union if his negotiations with group Chairman David Keene are successfully completed.

Ethiopian Warplanes Attack Somalia  —  Ethiopia sent its warplanes to bomb Somalia today, openly escalating its conflict with Islamist fighters into a dreaded regional war.  —  According to witnesses, the warplanes bombarded several towns while Ethiopian tanks pushed aggressively into territory …

What's Wrong With Cinderella?  —  I finally came unhinged in the dentist's office — one of those ritzy pediatric practices tricked out with comic books, DVDs and arcade games — where I'd taken my 3-year-old daughter for her first exam.  Until then, I'd held my tongue.

The Freshman  —  Q: As a 60-year-old novelist, screenwriter and military man who served in the Reagan administration but had never run for elected office, you beat the incumbent, George Allen, for a Senate seat from Virginia this year.  Have you seen him since the election?

10 myths — and 10 truths — about atheism  —  SEVERAL POLLS indicate that the term "atheism" has acquired such an extraordinary stigma in the United States that being an atheist is now a perfect impediment to a career in politics (in a way that being black, Muslim or homosexual is not).

Joyeux (Belated) Festivus!  —  Sorry I wasn't home to celebrate Festivus with everyone yesterday evening, but I was at a family food and Christmas fest that went a bit longer than expected.  But frankly, who can get enough?  The fact that a comedy bit from a Seinfeld show (episode #166) …

Most Britons believe religion does more harm than good: poll  —  An overwhelming number of Britons believe religion does more harm than good while non-believers outnumber believers by nearly two to one, an ICM poll suggested.  —  Eighty-two percent of the 1,006 adults questioned …

Looking Back, One Year Later  —  After my first year as The Post's ombudsman, readers deserve a report on my job as their representative.  —  The Post stylebook says that "Ombudsmen provide . . . newsroom managers with another set of skeptical eyes to search out human error and incompetence …

Top US military commander in Iraq succumbs to Bush's pressure, at the expense of our troops  —  I remember a day when our generals actually had balls.  Now they're simply pathetic.  They objected to sending more troops to Iraq, but because Bush wants it, now they're in favor.

Wolfowitz owes us an explanation  —  ACCOUNTABILITY is one of those ideals, like justice or the triumph of right over might, that are wonderful in principle but usually disappointing in practice.  —  This is nowhere more true than in Washington, where one of the most powerful men …