Paul Krugman: Time to Take a Stand  —  Here's what will definitely happen when Gen. David Petraeus testifies before Congress next week: he'll assert that the surge has reduced violence in Iraq — as long as you don't count Sunnis killed by Sunnis, Shiites killed by Shiites …

Fugitive fundraiser Hsu captured in Colorado  —  (09-06) 20:52 PDT SAN FRANCISCO — Fugitive political fundraiser Norman Hsu, who skipped out on San Mateo County authorities this week rather than face sentencing for a 1992 fraud conviction, was apprehended Thursday night by federal and local lawmen in Grand Junction, Colo.

New Videotape From Bin Laden; Al Qaeda's No. 1 Still Alive  —  Brian Ross Reports:  —  Intelligence sources tell ABC News they believe the expected video message from Osama bin Laden is authentic, recently produced and evidence the al Qaeda leader is still alive.

Gallup Ranks the 2008 Candidates According to a Feeling Thermometer  —  Obama rated the most positively by Americans; Hillary enjoys broadest partisan support  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Using a "feeling thermometer" rating scale, Gallup recently tested the public images of several of the Republican …

BURIED LEDE ALERT....Fred Kaplan has a good piece in Slate today about the upcoming Petraeus report and what Congress needs to ask about it.  But I was more taken by an astonishing statement at the end of the piece from Stephen Biddle, a member of Petraeus's advisory panel.

Hardline takeover of British mosques  —  Almost half of Britain's mosques are under the control of a hardline Islamic sect whose leading preacher loathes Western values and has called on Muslims to "shed blood" for Allah, an investigation by The Times has found.

More On Ed Schultz's Bar Fight  —  Earlier this evening I wrote a post about North Dakota and national radio personality (and Democrat mouthpiece) Ed Schultz getting into an altercation with Kevin Nagle.  Upon first hearing of the story, something just didn't seem right.

Go 2 Guy: Seahawks duo blitzed by Bush backlash  —  KIRKLAND — Are you still fans of Matt Hasselbeck and Mack Strong after they visited President Bush last week in Bellevue?  Or have their political leanings turned you against them?  —  The Seahawks quarterback and fullback gave …

Majadle: Alleged IAF flyover won't spark war with Syria  —  In the first reaction from an Israeli official to Wednesday night's alleged IAF foray over Syria, Science, Culture and Sports Minister Ghaleb Majadle said Friday that IAF planes enter Syrian airspace on a daily basis …

The Case of the Disappearing Bees May Be Solved  —  Colonies of honeybees (an invasive exotic species) have been dying off in the last year.  Some ideological environmentalists—the Sierra Club—attempted to blame biotech crops as the cause.  However, as I pointed out …

Thompson Runs to The Right  —  Fred D. Thompson took his bid for the White House to the campaign trail Thursday, vowing to compete aggressively for the support of Iowans and pitching steady, experienced and conservative leadership.  —  "I still have the same common-sense conservative beliefs …