U.S. Slow to Learn of Mexico Flu  —  Canadian Officials Knew of Rare Strain Before Americans Did  —  U.S. public health officials did not know about a growing outbreak of swine flu in Mexico until nearly a week after that country started invoking protective measures, and didn't learn …

The Banality of Bush White House Evil  —  WE don't like our evil to be banal.  Ten years after Columbine, it only now may be sinking in that the psychopathic killers were not jock-hating dorks from a “Trench Coat Mafia,” or, as ABC News maintained at the time, “part of a dark …

Obama Off to Solid Start, Poll Finds  —  But Release of Memos on Detainee Interrogations Reveals Deep Partisan Split  —  Barack Obama's performance in the first 100 days of his presidency draws strong public approval in a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, but there is decidedly less support …

Slouching Towards Oblivion  —  Maybe it's because I'm staying at the Sunset Tower on Sunset Boulevard, but I keep thinking of newspapers as Norma Desmond.  —  Papers are still big.  It's the screens that got small.  —  Now that everybody can check their iPhones and laptops for news …

Obama Administration's Assault on the American Warrior Commences  —  The assault is relentless.  It is enraging.  And today, the Obama administration's assault on those who dare to defend America from terrorist thugs who rejoice in publicizing beheadings, mass murder, and pure evil are on notice: “You will be punished.

Freed Pirate Hostage Accuses Limbaugh Of ‘Hate Speech’  —  SEEKONK, Mass. — Shane Murphy, the second-in-command aboard the American merchant ship seized by pirates, lashed out at Rush Limbaugh for the talk show host's racial characterization in discussing the rescue of the ship's captain by the Navy.

CIA reportedly declined to closely evaluate harsh interrogations  —  Current and former U.S. officials say the failure to carefully examine the value of ‘enhanced’ methods such as waterboarding — despite calls to do so as early as 2003 — was part of a broader trend.

58% Oppose Further Investigation of U.S. Torture Allegations  —  President Obama and Senate Democratic leaders are opposed to more investigations of how the Bush administration treated terrorism suspects, and 58% of U.S. voters agree with them.  A number of congressional Democrats …

After an Off Year, Wall Street Pay Is Bouncing Back  —  The rest of the nation may be getting back to basics, but on Wall Street, paychecks still come with a golden promise.  —  Workers at the largest financial institutions are on track to earn as much money this year as they did before the …

The Final Triumph of Chiang Kai-shek  —  Chiang Kai-Shek and the Struggle for Modern China  —  Belknap.  —  722 pp.  $35  —  Chiang Kai-shek ranks as one of the most despised leaders of the 20th century.  Famously derided as “Peanut” and “General Cash-My-Check,” the leader …

Who will lead the ‘post-American era’?  —  Obama crew sees U.S. as just the same as 190 other countries.  —  Recommend  —  According to an Earth Day survey, one-third of schoolchildren between the ages of 6 and 11 think the Earth will have been destroyed by the time they grow up.