Hillary Clinton passed on Appropriations chair to become Obama's Secretary of State  —  WASHINGTON - Hillary Clinton passed on becoming boss of thesuperpowerful Senate Appropriations Committee to pursue the moreprestigious secretary of state job with President-elect Barack Obama,the Daily News has learned.

Doctors shocked at hostages's torture  —  They said that just one look at the bodies of the dead hostages as well as terrorists showed it was a battle of attrition that was fought over three days at the Oberoi and the Taj hotels in Mumbai.  —  Doctors working in a hospital where all the bodies …

Kristol's Next War  —  In addition to being a booster of the two actual wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Bill Kristol and/or his publication has, at one time or another, also called for the United States to go to war with North Korea, Syria, Iran, and Sudan.  And now he's got another war he's like to start:

I'm Still Tortured by What I Saw in Iraq  —  I should have felt triumphant when I returned from Iraq in August 2006.  Instead, I was worried and exhausted.  My team of interrogators had successfully hunted down one of the most notorious mass murderers of our generation, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi …

THE SHAGGED SHEEP  —  This is a long piece but it does have underage sex and bestiality in it.  So enjoy!  —  The other day I had an e-mail from M J Murphy, who blogs as Big City Lib, saying only this: … There followed a link to a post called Steyn Gets Punked By 28-Year Old Literary Hoax:

NBC Exec: Obama's Skin Color Gives Him More Legitimacy Than Any American Leader In History  —  The number two man at NBC News believes Barack Obama's skin color gives him more legitimacy around the world than possibly any American leader in history.  —  For those unfamiliar …

The ongoing disgrace of NBC News and Brian Williams  —  (updated below - Update II)  —  The New York Times's David Barstow, whose excellent and aggressive journalism led to the uncovering last April of the Pentagon's domestic propaganda program involving network “military analysts,” …

Laura Bush describes post-White House plans  —  (CNN) — First lady Laura Bush said Sunday she plans to continue working to advance the position of women in Afghanistan after her husband's time in office ends in January.  —  In an interview with NBC's “Meet the Press,” …

The GOP's McCarthy gene  —  Think Goldwater is the father of conservatism?  Think again.  —  Ever since the election, partisans within the Republican Party and observers outside it have been speculating wildly about what direction the GOP will take to revive itself from its disaster.

Taj Mahal hotel owner: We had warning  —  Watch the full interview with Ratan Tata on “Fareed Zakaria GPS” at 1 p.m. ET Sunday on CNN.  —  The Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai, India, temporarily increased security after being warned of a possible terrorist attack, the chairman of the company that owns the hotel said Saturday.

UFO enthusiasts call on Obama to release XFiles  —  UFO enthusiasts are pressing Barack Obama to release classified documents about sightings of alien spacecraft, encouraged by support from within the President-Elect's own White House team.  —  Desperate to see the US emulate the British Government …

Same Old New Deal?  —  Early in what became the Great Depression, John Maynard Keynes was asked if anything similar had ever happened.  “Yes,” he replied, “it was called the Dark Ages, and it lasted 400 years.”  It did take 25 years, until November 1954, for the Dow to return to the peak it reached in September 1929.

Obama followers patiently awaiting instructions  —  Defending his unbroken string of establishment/hawkish/conservative appointments, the general speaks:  —  “What we are going to do is combine experience with fresh thinking.  But I understand where the vision for change comes from.

Terror lesson in Mumbai  —  India terror offensive proves that West's war doctrine must be modified  —  The world views terror incidents as sporadic, high-profile, and one-time events.  They arouse fury, anger, and pain, yet they do not undermine the power of the state where terrorism takes place.

Deeply, Truly (but Not Physically) in Love  —  I COULD chalk it up to getting older, the fact that sex interests me these days about as much as playing checkers.  But the fact is I've never much liked sex, even though it has, on occasion, captivated me.  Says my proverbial therapist: “Sex threatens you, Lauren.