Everything that is rancid and corrupt with modern journalism: The Nutshell  —  (updated below - Update II - Update III)  —  Time Magazine has done a superb service for the country by illustrating everything that is rancid and corrupt with our political media.

Exclusive: Romney Opposed Naming Muslim To Cabinet On Second Occasion, Witnesses Say  —  Presidential canidate Mitt Romney has discounted appointing Muslims to his cabinet on more than just the one occasion reported in a CSM op-ed yesterday.  —  TPM Election Central has learned …

Hillary's Secret Weapon: Colin Powell?  —  Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton has been talking for some time now about how, if she is elected president, she will ask both Democratic and Republican statesmen to hit the road on her behalf to declare that "bipartisan foreign policy is back" in post-George W. Bush America.

I was with Fred  —  Somewhere over South Carolina (CNN) — I am in a coach middle seat, flying from Washington, D.C. to Tampa, Florida on US Airways Flight 1491, destined for the CNN-YouTube GOP debate in St. Petersburg.  —  The child cooing two aisles in front of me is Samuel Thompson, potentially the nation's future first toddler.

Defining news story of the cycle?  —  We might have just found the issue and story that crystalizes the anxieties of all Americans around a protectionist message.  The story is: … Let's put the pieces together.  — We have a shadowy Middle Eastern monarch.  A King.

Chavez Threatens Opponents  —  Here's a stunner: After labeling opponents traitors last weekend, Communist goon Hugo Chavez is threatening opponents of his scheme to make himself [President] Dictator for life. … Things are going to get ugly soon with this megalomaniac, especially if his referendum goes down to defeat.

BUSH: WE ARE ALL TERRORISTS NOW  —  Bush has lost his mind and his moral compass.  This statement is an outrage.  A lie and a blood libel.  Israel has never committed any acts of terrorism.  What a tool of Islamic jihad.  Based on that, Bush is a terrorist, anyone that defends himself, his family, his country is a terrorist.

Bay State's going slap-happy  —  Pols debate ban on spanking … Parents who spank their kids - even in their own homes - would be slapped by the long arm of the law under an Arlington nurse's proposal to make Massachusetts the first state in the nation to outlaw corporal punishment.

Extreme right wing Phil Kline investigated by KCTV5  —  You may know of Phil Kline by his numerous appearances with Bill O'Reilly and his constant attacks on Planned Parenthood.  You'd think he would have won his election against Paul Morrison because of all the free publicity, but he got defeated.

An Edgy Calm in Fallujah  —  FALLUJAH, IRAQ - "You're probably safer here than you are in New York City," said Marine First Lieutenant Barry Edwards when I arrived in Fallujah.  I raised my eyebrows at him skeptically.  "How many people got shot at last night in New York City?" he said.

BOXBUX SUX AS STIX HIX NIX XMAS FLIX  —  Los Angeles - Despite critical acclaim and massive promotional budgets, a wave of anti-Santa holiday pictures floundered at the box office over the Thanksgiving opening weekend, leading some entertainment industry analysts to question whether Hollywood …

CNN pledges no Dem "gotchas" in Republican YouTube debate — so why did CNN allow partisan "gotchas" in Dem debate?  —  In a November 21 post to The New York Times' political blog, The Caucus, staff writer Ariel Alexovich purported to give a "sneak peek" at how questions for the November 28 …

The Rise of Family-Friendly Cities  —  It's lifestyle, not lattés, that our most productive workers want.  —  For much of the past decade, business recruiters, cities and urban developers have focused on the "young and restless," the "creative class," and the so-called "yuspie"—the young urban single professional.

Science Is Not Notable  —  Scott Eric Kaufman draws my attention to the fact that the New York Times has posted its Notable Books for 2007 list.  The list is divided into "Fiction & Poetry" and "Non-Fiction," and Scott correctly notes that the "Fiction & Poetry" books all have terrible blurbs …

Follow the Fundamentals  —  Lou Dobbs is winning.  He's not winning personally.  He's not going to start winning presidential awards or elite respect.  But his message is winning.  Month by month the ideas that once prevailed on the angry fringe enter the mainstream and turn into conventional wisdom.