Update From Miami  —  Watching Polos Opuestos on Channel 22 here in Miami, and the word is that the rumors of fidel's death are just that.  Host Maria Elvira Salazar interviewed Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, and the mayor emphasized that there have been no movement of law enforcement to handle the rumored situation.

Pentagon to start Iraq info hub  —  Office to distribute data ahead of military progress report due in Sept.  —  WASHINGTON - Shaping the Bush administration's message on the Iraq war has taken on new fervor, just as anticipation is building for the September progress report from top military advisers.

Giuliani Boasts of Surplus; Reality Is More Complex  —  Rudolph W. Giuliani has been broadcasting radio advertisements in Iowa and other states far from the city he once led stating that that as mayor of New York, he "turned a $2.3 billion deficit into a multibillion dollar surplus."

GIs' morale dips as Iraq war drags on  —  With tours extended, multiple deployments and new tactics that put them in bare posts in greater danger, they feel leaders are out of touch with reality.  —  YOUSIFIYA, IRAQ — In the dining hall of a U.S. Army post south of Baghdad …

Terror Suspect List Yields Few Arrests  —  The government's terrorist screening database flagged Americans and foreigners as suspected terrorists almost 20,000 times last year.  But only a small fraction of those questioned were arrested or denied entry into the United States …

The Work Behind Our Iraq Views  —  How can one gather and assess information about Iraq — collected on a trip or from any other source?  Information from a war zone is difficult to attain and interpretation is open to many views.  —  Unfortunately, much of the blogosphere and other media outlets …

Iraq fraud whistleblowers vilified  —  Cases show fraud exposers have been vilified, fired, or detained for weeks  —  One after another, the men and women who have stepped forward to report corruption in the massive effort to rebuild Iraq have been vilified, fired and demoted.  —  Or worse.

California Considers Hemp Pilot Program  —  A newly proposed law in California would establish a five-year pilot program for farmers to grow industrial hemp in four counties.  The law would also define "industrial hemp" as separate from marijuana under the state's health and safety code.

Student cracks $84m porn filter  —  A MELBOURNE schoolboy has cracked the Federal Government's new $84 million internet porn filter in minutes.  —  Tom Wood, 16, said it took him just over 30 minutes to bypass the Government's filter, released on Tuesday.  —  Tom, a year 10 student …

Lawmakers' Iraq views shift at home  —  August is a time ripe for political conversions.  —  Members of Congress are away from Washington during a month-long recess.  They're talking to their constituents, reflecting on their political careers, jetting off on fact-finding trips to Iraq …

China to act on gender imbalance  —  The Chinese government says it is drafting new laws to tackle the growing gender imbalance caused by the widespread abortion of female foetuses.  —  The practice is already banned, but new rules are expected to set out specific punishments for parents and doctors.

Robert Fisk: Even I question the 'truth' about 9/11  —  Each time I lecture abroad on the Middle East, there is always someone in the audience - just one - whom I call the "raver".  Apologies here to all the men and women who come to my talks with bright and pertinent questions …

Progressives Unite!  —  There is something strange going on in the progressive blogosphere these days: instead of uniting against Republicans, progressive bloggers like Matt Stoller have decided to declare war on every Democrat who they consider not to be progressive (read anti-war) enough.

Not Too Long Now, Says The Fred  —  (US News) A round of applause, please, for former Virginia Sen. George Allen, who finally got likely GOP presidential candidate Fred Thompson to hint when he plans his big announcement.  Filling in for Richmond's WRVA morning host Jimmy Barrett …

Come Saturday Morning: *Snicker* *Giggle* *Snort*  —  Good morning, everyone!  —  The following Boing Boing goodie was forwarded to me via e-mail (as opposed to owl post or snail mail), and at first I thought "I should really share this with TRex because he would just go to town on this sucker!"

Advocates Launch Iraq War Ad Campaigns  —  Liberal and conservative organizations have launched multi-million dollar advertising campaigns to pressure members of Congress to support their positions on the Iraq war.  Representatives from both camps present their views.  —  Freedom's Watch Promotes Iraq War in Ads