ANNALS OF REPORTING  —  For a variety of reasons I try to stay out of the debates over blogs as such, what they're good or bad at and the rest.  But this morning I was alerted to an opinion column in the Los Angeles Times by Michael Skube, a journalism professor at Elon University.

Manly men  —  People who talk about masculinity — especially conservatives, who seem to obsess about it, but in a peculiarly juvenile way — have always seemed a little weird to me.  It's like the cliche retort the wealthy like to use: "If you have to ask how much it is, you can't afford it."

TRANSCRIPT: The Democratic Debate  —  George Stephanopoulos Moderates Democratic Debate on a Special Edition of "This Week"  —  STEPHANOPOULOS: Good morning, everyone, and welcome to this special edition of "This Week."  We're back here at Drake University in Iowa for the first Democratic presidential debate in Iowa.

Sunday Sampler Platter: Rove Farewell Tour  —  (Photos: Courtesy of Fox News Sunday, Meet the Press, Face the Nation)  —  Karl Rove undertook a three-stop farewell tour of the talk shows on Sunday - not his own decision, he said he was just doing "what I was instructed to do."

Elvira Arellano Arrested Outside Downtown Church  —  Chicago Immigration Activist Taken Into Custody Sunday Afternoon  —  CBS News Interactive: Immigration and Naturalization  —  (CBS) LOS ANGELES Elvira Arrellano, a Mexican woman who sought sanctuary from deportation in a Chicago church was arrested Sunday in Los Angeles.

The Lost War  —  We've Spent 36 Years and Billions of Dollars Fighting It, but the Drug Trade Keeps Growing  —  Poppies were the first thing that British army Capt. Leo Docherty noticed when he arrived in Afghanistan's turbulent Helmand province in April 2006.

As Democracy Push Falters, Bush Feels Like a 'Dissident'  —  By the time he arrived in Prague in June for a democracy conference, President Bush was frustrated.  He had committed his presidency to working toward the goal of "ending tyranny in our world," yet the march of freedom seemed stalled.

TV Ads: Bush-Petraeus 10-Year Plan Means a Draft  —  Americans have seen some news reports over the last few days suggesting that the White House "might-maybe-could-possibly" bring some troops home from Iraq next year.  If this happens, that's great.  But don't break out the confetti just yet.

Iraq Report: Qods in Iraq  —  As US and Iraqi security forces have stepped up operations against Sunni and Shia extremist groups in Iraq, Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch stated there are about 50 members of Iran's elite Qods Force operating inside Iraq to arm and train groups such as the "rogue" Mahdi Army and the Special Groups terror cells.

Military commanders tell Brown to withdraw from Iraq without delay  —  Senior military commanders have told the Government that Britain can achieve "nothing more" in south-east Iraq, and that the 5,500 British troops still deployed there should move towards withdrawal without further delay.

Rudy plays the security card: ID for all tourists  —  EVERY foreigner in America, including British visitors, would be required to carry an ID card bearing photograph and fingerprints under plans drawn up by Rudolph Giuliani, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination.

Blair's deal on new EU treaty 'largely revives the rejected constitution'  —  A group of Europe's "wise men" has pronounced that the European Union treaty agreed by Tony Blair in June is substantially the same as the constitution rejected two years ago.  —  The elder statesmen's verdict …