Iran nabs British sailors in Iraq waters  —  LONDON - Iranian naval vessels seized 15 British sailors who had boarded a ship suspected of smuggling cars in the Persian Gulf off the Iraqi coast on Friday, officials said.  —  The British government demanded "the immediate and safe return of our people and equipment."

Michael Yon threatened with expulsion by a general  —  This is stupid.  Michael Yon and Bill Roggio are the best out there.  Telling Michael Yon to exit the theater is the WWII equivalent of telling Ernie Pyle to quit filing dispatches.  —  Everyone knows the PAO system has never …

Liberals Relent on Iraq War Funding  —  House Likely to Pass Bill With Pullout Date  —  Liberal opposition to a $124 billion war spending bill broke last night, when leaders of the antiwar Out of Iraq Caucus pledged to Democratic leaders that they will not block the measure, which sets timelines for bringing U.S. troops home.

An Inside-the-Bushies Mentality  —  If you read the obituary pages of The Post each morning, you encounter the kinds of people who are being trashed by the Bush administration's contempt for public servants.  On a typical day, perhaps a third of the obits feature such people …

Retreat and Butter  —  TODAY THE House of Representatives is due to vote on a bill that would grant $25 million to spinach farmers in California.  The legislation would also appropriate $75 million for peanut storage in Georgia and $15 million to protect Louisiana rice fields from saltwater.

Thoughts on John and Elizabeth Edwards  —  The first time I got bad medical news was 11 years ago.  I responded what with then was (and sometimes still is) characteristic bluster.  I confidently told my doctor that I would crush this little obstacle and soon resume my life as normal.

Editor resigns over killed opinion section  —  An emotional internal rift rocked the Los Angeles Times today, as Publisher David D. Hiller scrapped a special edition of the paper's Sunday opinion section to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, causing editorial page editor Andres Martinez to resign in protest.

New to Pentagon, Gates Argued for Closing Guantánamo Prison  —  In his first weeks as defense secretary, Robert M. Gates repeatedly argued that the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, had become so tainted abroad that legal proceedings at Guantánamo would be viewed …

E-Mails Show Machinations to Replace Prosecutor  —  Administration Worked for Months to Make Rove Aide U.S. Attorney in Arkansas  —  Two months before Bud Cummins was fired as U.S. attorney in Little Rock, a protege of presidential adviser Karl Rove was maneuvering with the Justice Department to take his place.

Politics, Lies, and 93 v. 8  —  David Brooks has an excellent column today, and not for the usual reasons that liberals praise Brooks (and he drives conservatives crazy): because he comes halfway toward us.  It's because, in discussing the US Attorneys story, he nails a distinction that I, at least, was struggling with.

Army Revises Upward the Number of Desertions  —  A total of 3,196 active-duty soldiers deserted the Army last year, or 853 more than previously reported, according to revised figures from the Army.  —  The new calculations by the Army, which had about 500,000 active-duty troops at the end of 2006 …

Court strikes down Internet porn law … PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (AP) — A federal judge on Thursday dealt another blow to government efforts to control Internet pornography, striking down a 1998 U.S. law that makes it a crime for commercial Web site operators to let children access "harmful" material.

Police: Pakistan cricket coach murdered  —  KINGSTON, Jamaica - The genteel sport of cricket was dealt a brutal blow when Jamaican police said Pakistan's national coach was murdered in his hotel room a day after his team suffered a humiliating World Cup loss.

Ex-Interior No. 2 to plead guilty in Abramoff lobbying probe  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Deputy Interior Secretary Steven Griles will plead guilty to one count of obstruction of justice in the Jack Abramoff corruption investigation, The Associated Press has learned.

Fewer pledge allegiance to the GOP  —  A poll says 35% of those surveyed identify with Republicans.  Public attitudes seem to be drifting toward Democrats' values.  —  WASHINGTON — Public allegiance to the Republican Party has plunged during George W. Bush's presidency …