Democratic senator: Public health insurance option dead  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — A key Senate negotiator said Sunday that President Barack Obama should drop his push for a government-funded public health insurance option because the Senate will never pass it.

Ross: I refuse to kill old people  —  When a conservative Democrat takes the time to promise that he will not “kill old people,” you really know Democrats are struggling to maintain their footing on healthcare reform.  —  So it's pretty stunning that Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) …

Maddow Battles Dick Armey In “Meet The Press” Debut (VIDEO)  —  Rachel Maddow appeared on “Meet the Press” for the first time on Sunday, August 16th.  On a panel with former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), former House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas), and Sen. Tom Coburn …

Row over Afghan wife-starving law  —  An Afghan bill allowing a husband to starve his wife if she refuses to have sex has been published in the official gazette and become law.  —  The original bill caused outrage earlier this year, forcing Afghan President Hamid Karzai to withdraw it.

Swimmers are told to wear burkinis  —  British swimming pools are imposing Muslim dress codes in a move described as divisive by Labour MPs.  —  Under the rules, swimmers - including non-Muslims - are barred from entering the pool in normal swimming attire.

Who Is Human Rights Watch's Joe Stork?  —  He is, of course, the author of last week's Human Rights Watch report, which claimed that IDF soldiers murdered white-flag-waving Palestinian civilians in cold blood.  He is also the deputy director of HRW's Middle East and North Africa programs.

MEGHAN MCCAIN, BLONDE BOMB SHELL  —  JOHN MCCAIN WOUNDED THE GOP; HIS DAUGHTER IS OUT TO FINISH THE JOB  —  I liked Meghan McCain.  In her faux hipster Urban Outfitter threads, she attempted to humanize her cantankerous, over-the-hill father during the presidential election with her “cute” bloggette.

George W. Bush-by-proxy syndrome  —  ANALYSIS/OPINION:  —  There is an extensive body of writing from both sides of the political aisle that has analyzed the extraordinary depths of hatred leveled at former President George W. Bush.  —  His birth into a wealthy and politically connected family is where a lot of the animus starts.

Sarah's Ghoulish Carousel  —  I'm not sure the man who popped off and tweeted that Sonia Sotomayor was a “Latina woman racist” is the best Henry Higgins for the Eliza Doolittle of Alaska.  —  But Newt Gingrich was a professor.  And he does know something about pulling yourself up by dragging …

K. H. Bacon, an Advocate for Refugees, Is Dead at 64  —  Kenneth H. Bacon, a former journalist and Pentagon spokesman who devoted his last years to highlighting refugees' problems and urging policymakers to find solutions, died Saturday morning at his summer home on Block Island, R.I. He was 64 and a resident of Washington.