Was 9/11 really that bad?  —  The attacks were a horrible act of mass murder, but history says we're overreacting.  —  IMAGINE THAT on 9/11, six hours after the assault on the twin towers and the Pentagon, terrorists had carried out a second wave of attacks on the United States, taking an additional 3,000 lives.

Libby Live: Ari Fleischer One  —  Hey, look at the exploding pig in the poke cartoon graphic I found!  Or perhaps "pig in the poke to stay out of the pokey"?  —  If you don't know the reference, Patrick Fitzgerald described the process of offering Ari Fleischer immunity "buying a pig in a poke."

Najaf battle foiled attack on Shiite clerics, Iraqis say … NAJAF, Iraq (CNN) — Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and other top Shiite religious figures were the apparent targets of an insurgent plot thwarted in an intense battle near the Shiite Muslim holy city of Najaf, Iraqi officials said.

Extreme youth: the Muslims who would swap British law for Sharia  —  A growing number of young Muslims are embracing radical Islam, with more than a third wanting Sharia to replace British law, according to a poll for a Conservative think-tank.  —  David Cameron will respond today …

What She Meant  —  Hillary's odd, non-verbal joke that's getting all the attention today was a revealing moment.  —  But it wasn't revealing because she was suggesting her husband is "evil and bad."  —  It was revealing because — asked about dealing with evil men like Osama bin Laden …

EXCLUSIVE: AIR AMERICA RESCUED  —  Air America Radio, in Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings since October, will be rescued at the 11th hour by Manhattan real estate developer Stephen L. Green.  —  Al Franken, the best-known host of the liberal network, will announce his expected departure …

HILL'S 'EVIL' JOKE ON HUBBY BUBBA  —  DAVENPORT, Iowa - Hillary Rodham Clinton left caucus-goers here yesterday believing that Bubba had given her a baptism by fire in how to deal with "evil and bad men."  —  Clinton's quip, made during a morning rally with about 500 Iowans …

Clinton's Presidential Posturing  —  When Lt. Gen. David Petraeus went before the Senate Armed Services Committee last week in open session, its members understandably had many questions for the new commander of American forces in Iraq.  —  They knew of his reputation as a battlefield leader …

Paper Chase  —  Did investigators turn a blind eye to the seriousness of the Sandy Berger scandal?  —  Washington scandals are curious things.  Sometimes special prosecutors are appointed and the media provide saturation coverage of their doings.  An example would be the Valerie Plame episode …

Women Feeling Freer to Suggest 'Vote for Mom'  —  Some women were struck by the politics of maternity practiced by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in recent weeks, the imagery and stagecraft that highlighted their roles as mothers and/or grandmothers.

Bush on the Couch  —  Analyzing the president.  —  Photo-illustration by Michael Elins  —  The Man With No Shadow  —  By Robert Stone, author of Prime Green: Remembering the Sixties  —  I  —  think Bush has come to believe he's on a lonely, noble mission—doing the right thing …

Baghdad Is Key  —  The Baker-Hamilton report explained that failure in Iraq could have severe consequences for our national interests in a critical region and for our national security here at home.  In my many conversations with members of Congress and foreign policy experts, few have disagreed.

Attack ads go online and underground  —  'Viral' Web video spreads fast and far, biting candidates hard — sometimes with their own words.  —  In a dim Culver City editing room, two video snippets of Republican presidential hopeful John McCain fill the monitors.  In the first, he says same-sex marriage should be allowed.

Cheney's Strategery  —  I continue to be astounded by Dick Cheney's bizarre public behavior.  He did an interview with Richard Wolffe at Newsweek last week and it was just as weird as the one he did with Wolf Blitzer.  —  The whole thing is delusional, but there are a couple of points …

Migrants Stream Into South Mexico  —  TAPACHULA, Mexico — Four Salvadoran men in jeans and T-shirts trudged along the railroad tracks under a hot sun, their steps carrying them steadily toward a fuzzy but seductive dream.  —  They had been in Mexico for only a few hours and already federal police officers …

MIAMI PLANS CASTRO DEATH PARTY IN ORANGE BOWL  —  MIAMI — With Fidel Castro seriously ill, the city of Miami is making plans to throw a party at the Orange Bowl when the Cuban president dies.  —  The city commission earlier this month appointed a committee — whose official job is to …

Spotting Freelancer Conflicts: A Solution With Problems  —  THE ability of The New York Times to maintain its ethical standards among its far-flung outside contributors continues to be a major concern of mine.  As these freelancers fill column after column at a lower cost than full-time reporters …

Google Halts 'Miserable Failure' Link to President Bush  —  It has been a bad month for anti-Bush snarkiness.  —  First, the anodyne impressionist Rich Little was selected to address the White House correspondents' dinner as a follow-up to the scathing routine last year by Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert.

Professor: Carter said 'Too Many Jews' on Holocaust Council, Saw as 'Political Gimmick'  —  We spoke to the former Executive Director of the Holocaust Memorial Council, Monroe Freedman, who confirmed a WorldNetDaily report that he had received a note from Jimmy Carter complaining that there were …