The Ugly Side of the G.O.P.  —  I applaud the thousands of people, many of them poor, who traveled from around the country to protest in Jena, La., last week.  But what I'd really like to see is a million angry protesters marching on the headquarters of the National Republican Party in Washington.

The Center Holds  —  In the beginning of August, liberal bloggers met at the YearlyKos convention while centrist Democrats met at the Democratic Leadership Council's National Conversation.  Almost every Democratic presidential candidate attended YearlyKos, and none visited the D.L.C.

Columbia's Conceit  —  Exactly what would it have accomplished to "engage in a debate" with Hitler?  —  On Saturday John Coatsworth, acting dean of Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, made the remark that "if Hitler were in the United States and …

GOP Senator Says Bush Should Put Health Bill Before Policy Goal  —  A senior Senate Republican accused President Bush yesterday of holding a bipartisan expansion of the popular State Children's Health Insurance Program hostage to his broader policy goals of using tax deductions to help people afford private health insurance coverage.

23% Approve of MoveOn.org Petraeus Ad, 58% Disapprove  —  Twenty-three percent (23%) of Americans approve of an ad run in the New York Times "that referred to General Petraeus as General Betray Us."  A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 58% disapproved.

Two girls, the Saudi Religious Police, a mobile phone and a can of pepper spray  —  Jules Crittenden and Blue Star Chronicles have it:  —  Saudi Religious Police Attacked by Girls (emphasis added) … Notice how the crowd didn't take the Religious Police's side, either. … It gets better:

Democratic Party Maintains Solid Image Advantage Over GOP  —  Public Prefers Democratic Party to Republican for handling terrorism, military security  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Public attitudes toward the two major political parties have not changed much in recent months.

Kevin Spacey Meets Venezuela's Chavez  —  CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Actor Kevin Spacey met privately Monday with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, one of Washington's most outspoken critics in Latin America.  —  Neither Spacey — who has won Academy Awards for roles in "The Usual Suspects" …

The roots of Islamic reform  —  What are the origins of the phrase, which seems widely misunderstood and erroneously linked to extremism.  —  Since 9/11, "Islamic reform" has become an all-purpose phrase: equally a western impulse to protect itself from Muslim violence and a humanist notion aimed at assisting voiceless Muslims.

SO HARD?  —  Now, was that so hard?  —  As you know, Iranian President Ahmadinejad spoke yesterday before a raucous crowd at Columbia University.  The president of the university excoriated him.  He backtracked a bit from his statements about Israel, perhaps as some commentators have noted …

Court grants 17 new cases; voter ID, death penalty review  —  The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to add 17 new cases to its new Term's decision docket, including a pair of appeals on the constitutionality of requiring voters to show a photo ID before they may vote (Crawford v. Marion County Election Board …