Ex-Justice Official's Statements Contradict Gonzales on Firings  —  The former Justice Department official who carried out the firings of eight U.S. attorneys last year told Congress that several of the prosecutors had no performance problems and that a memo on the firings was distributed …

Kerry reopens door to possible presidential run  —  DENVER - Sen. John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) reopened the door to a possible 2008 presidential campaign during a book signing in Denver and then again, in an interview with 9NEWS.  —  The 2004 Democratic nominee told a crowd of more than 250 …

Donors Linked to the Clintons Shift to Obama  —  As Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton seeks to reassemble the Democratic money machine her husband built, some major fund-raisers long associated with her and him have signed on with Senator Barack Obama.  —  Among the biggest fund-raisers …

Why I Declined To Serve  —  Service to the nation is both a responsibility and an honor for every citizen presented with the opportunity.  This is especially true in times of war and crisis.  Today, because of the war in Iraq, this nation is in a crisis of confidence and is confused …

Kurtz: "Imus made fun of blacks, Jews, gays, politicians.  He called them lying weasels.  This was part of his charm"  —  On April 12, during a report on the controversy sparked by Don Imus' remarks about the Rutgers University women's basketball team, ABC's World News aired comments …

Public Knowledge of Current Affairs Little Changed by News and Information Revolutions  —  What Americans Know: 1989-2007  —  Summary of Findings  —  Since the late 1980s, the emergence of 24-hour cable news as a dominant news source and the explosive growth of the internet have led …

MTP Transcript for April 15, 2007  —  MR. TIM RUSSERT: Our issues this Sunday: The war in Iraq, are there any good options?  With us, the former special envoy to the Middle East and author for "The Battle for Peace," retired General Tony Zinni.  Then, the debate over Don Imus and his comments …

The Media Cornucopia  —  It's a Golden Age of media—but not for long, if the Left has its way.  —  Throughout most of history, humans lived in a state of extreme information poverty.  News traveled slowly, field to field, village to village.  Even with the printing press's advent, information spread at a snail's pace.

Don Ho, Hawaiian Musician, Dies at 76  —  Don Ho, an entertainer who defined popular perceptions of Hawaiian music in the 1960s and held fast to that image as a peerless Waikiki nightclub attraction, died yesterday in Honolulu.  He was 76.  —  The cause was heart failure, his daughter Dayna Ho said.

MOORE'S 'SICKO' STUNT  —  TAKES 9/11 WORKERS TO CUBA  —  Filmmaker Michael Moore's production company took ailing Ground Zero responders to Cuba in a stunt aimed at showing that the U.S. health-care system is inferior to Fidel Castro's socialized medicine, according to several sources with knowledge of the trip.

Divided Iraq has two spy agencies  —  Shiite officials wary of the CIA-funded, Sunni-led official intelligence service have set up a parallel organization.  —  BAGHDAD — Suspicious of Iraq's CIA-funded national intelligence agency, members of the Iraqi government have erected a "shadow" …

Four Hired Guns in an Armored Truck, Bullets Flying, and a Pickup and a Taxi Brought to a Halt.  Who Did the Shooting and Why?  —  A Chaotic Day On Baghdad's Airport Road  —  On the afternoon of July 8, 2006, four private security guards rolled out of Baghdad's Green Zone in an armored SUV.

Nixon and Deng: architects of our globalized world  —  Pope John Paul II hurtles toward sainthood in the Catholic Church, while Ronald Reagan achieved that ideological status long ago in the hearts of American conservatives.  —  Both are judged by many historians as decisive figures …

Message: I Don't Care  —  So evidently Markos really doesn't give a damn that he pissed off everyone with his idiotic comments regarding Kathy Sierra.  How else can you explain a post that says, in effect, "Yeah, right-codes of conduct are stupid.  What do we disagree on?"

DO BLOGS INFLUENCE SSRN DOWNLOADS?  Yes.  In fact, yes, they do.  —  Today is my last day as a guest blogger, and I wanted to start by thanking my hosts and also you, the VC reader.  This is an amazing place to workshop a paper having to do with computer security.

Independents and the 08 Elections … Dan Balz writes at the Washington Post: … Now, that looks good for the Democrats, but the Democrats have to be careful as well. … McCain pollster Bill McInturff explained why both parties try to appeal to the base, at this stage, and not to independents …