1,155 homes — and counting  —  Criticism is mounting that the region was unprepared.  —  Exhausted and sometimes discouraged, firefighters struggled for a third day Tuesday to wrest control of more than a dozen wildfires in Southern California that threatened such familiar landmarks …

Clinton, Giuliani Overshadow Field for 2008 Race, Poll Shows  —  Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) — Two New Yorkers dominate the 2008 presidential race: Hillary Clinton and Rudy Giuliani.  —  A new Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll shows that Senator Clinton has opened up a 31-point gap over her chief Democratic rival …

Hillary Says She Would Support Filibuster Of Intel Committee's Telecom Immunity Bill  —  At a press availability in Colorado a little while ago, Hillary commented on the Senate FISA bill and said that she would support a filibuster of the current legislation that's just emerged …

Redstate Bans Ron Paul Supporters  —  Redstate has made a mistake in dealing with the Ron Paul Internet phenomenon.  Instead of dealing quietly with trolls, the excellent conservative blog has announced a blanket policy banning supporting diaries and comments for Ron Paul from the site.

Sept 11 'not that terrible' says Doris Lessing  —  Doris Lessing, the Nobel Prize-winning British author, has called the attacks on New York on Sept 11, 2001, "not that terrible", compared to the campaign of terror waged by the IRA in the UK.  —  Lessing, 88, who won the Nobel Prize …

Wilton: Romney endorsement a mistake  —  SPARTANBURG, S.C. (BP)—South Carolina pastor Don Wilton said Oct. 23 he made a "personal error" in agreeing to support the campaign of Mitt Romney for president.  —  The pastor of First Baptist Church in Spartanburg and a former president …

As Campaigns Chafe at Limits, Donors Might Be in Diapers  —  Elrick Williams's toddler niece Carlyn may be one of the youngest contributors to this year's presidential campaign.  The 2-year-old gave $2,300 to Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.).  —  So did her sister and brother, Imara, 13 …

McCain says he wants to shoot Osama  —  ROCHESTER, N.H. — Republican presidential candidate John McCain told workers of small weapons factory that he not only wants to catch Osama Bin Laden if elected, but said he "will shoot him with your products".  —  "I will follow Osama Bin Laden …

New book says US uses 'methods of the most tyrannical regimes'  —  More than 100,000 pages of newly released government documents demonstrate how US military interrogators "abused, tortured or killed" scores of prisoners rounded up since Sept. 11, 2001, including some who were not even suspected …

Children's Health Yields to the Senators From Pork  —  The United States Senate yesterday was confronted with a stark choice: health care for children, or pet projects for lawmakers' home states.  —  The final tally?  —  Pet Projects 68, Kids 26.  —  In truth, the children never had a chance.

Targeting the neglected white male  —  Which of these statements are racist?  Which are sexist?  Or which are merely political?  —  "We can't make John black; we can't make him a woman.  Those things get you a lot of press, worth a certain amount of fundraising dollars," says Elizabeth Edwards.

How to Cool the Globe  —  DESPITE growing interest in clean energy technology, it looks as if we are not going to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide anytime soon.  The amount in the atmosphere today exceeds the most pessimistic forecasts made just a few years ago, and it is increasing faster than anybody had foreseen.

Madness as Method  —  Dick Cheney's craziness used to influence foreign policy.  —  Now it is foreign policy.  —  He may have lost his buddy in belligerence, Rummy.  He may have tapped out the military in Iraq.  He may not be able to persuade Congress so easily anymore — except for Hillary — to issue warlike resolutions.

A buttery voice for Obama  —  Norma Duffield Stong Lyon does some of her best work in 40-degree temperatures, so she is certainly hardy enough to deal with January's Iowa caucus weather.  —  Strong, who goes by "Duffy," is something of an Iowa icon, where she is known as the "Butter Cow Lady" …

Nonie Darwish at Berkeley  —  during Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week … The online nicknames of the seven "citizen journalists" are: bbuck, Chicken Kiev, Dan K., Luvpotion v.9.0, Marwan's Daughter, neocon hippie, and Temmy. … "Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week" is a nationwide series of lectures …

Harry Reid Blames California Wildfires On Global Warming...Before He Denies He Said It.  —  After a closed door policy meeting with other Senate Democrats, Majority Leader and utter buffoon Hary Reid of Nevada took to the microphones just outside the floor of the United States Senate, and fielded questions.

Iraq and Afghanistan wars may total $2.4 trillion  —  WASHINGTON — The cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could total $2.4 trillion through the next decade, or nearly $8,000 per man, woman and child in the country, according to a Congressional Budget Office estimate scheduled for release Wednesday.