Irving Kristol's Reality Principles  —  A great mind exposes ideological illusions, while thinking through better alternatives.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  The following are excerpts from essays that appeared in The Wall Street Journal by Irving Kristol, who died yesterday at age 89.

Tapper calls Fox ad ‘demonstrably untrue’  —  Jake Tapper, on Twitter this morning, took issue with a Fox News ad in today's Washington Post, that he says is “asserting that every other channel ‘missed’ the story of the 912 march.  Demonstrably untrue.”  —  He pointed out that Yunji de Nies …

Obama: Change, not race, heats debate  —  Fear of “big changes” and the growing role of government - but not racial prejudice - are behind much of the heated criticism that the White House faces, President Barack Obama said during a television network-sweeping series of interviews today …

Michelle Obama Says Women Are “Crushed” by Health-Care System  —  Sept. 18 (Bloomberg) — First lady Michelle Obama sought support for the administration's health-care plans from family advocacy groups and health-care professionals, saying the treatment of women under the current system is “unacceptable.”

What They Really Think  —  Former Secretary of State Madeline Albright spoke at a forum in Omsk, Siberia.  Pravda reported that her speech “surprised the audience.”  No wonder.  The Russians in attendance must have wondered how they managed to lose the cold war: … There you have it.

Papers Show Insurers Limited Coverage for Acne, Pregnancy  —  A proposal to make preexisting health conditions irrelevant in the sale of insurance policies could help not just the seriously ill but also people who might consider themselves healthy, documents released Friday by a California-based advocacy group illustrate.

Inquiry Into CIA Practices Narrows  —  Ex-Agency Directors Urge Administration To Drop Investigation  —  The Justice Department's review of detainee abuse by the CIA will focus on a very small number of cases, including at least one in which an Afghan prisoner died at a secret facility, according to two sources briefed on the matter.

Insane killer escapes on field trip to county fair  —  SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - A criminally insane killer from eastern Washington is on the run after escaping during a field trip to the county fair that his mental hospital organized.  —  Why such a dangerous person was out in public was a question many …

Source: Colo. Man in Suspected NYC Subway Plot Admits Ties to Al Qaeda  —  The Colorado man under FBI investigation into an alleged New York subway terror plot has admitted he has ties to Al Qaeda and is in negotiations to plead guilty to a terror charge, a source at the Department of Justice told FOX News.

Joe McGinniss, Palin Critic, Is Frontrunner On eBay For Dinner With Sarah [UPDATED, With Winner]  —  Earlier this month, I posted on how Ride 2 Recovery, the charity for wounded veterans, was offering one lucky person the chance to win dinner for five with Alaska Governor turned professional …

Obama's risky ‘Full Ginsburg’  —  On Sunday, President Barack Obama will execute what might be called a Modified Full Ginsburg — appearing on five Sunday morning talk shows to make a pitch for health reform.  —  It's a move few politicians have attempted.  Even fewer have been able to stick the landing.

President presses for financial regulations  —  Rejuvenating the U.S. economy will not be complete until the government enacts new rules to oversee the financial sector, President Barack Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio address.  —  A year after the financial crisis that launched …

Ex-CIA Chiefs Decry Holder Interrogator Probe in Letter to Obama  —  Seven former directors of the Central Intelligence Agency on Friday urged President Obama to reverse Attorney General Eric Holder's decision to hold a criminal investigation of CIA interrogators who used enhanced techniques on detainees

New Rule: You can't complain about health care reform if you're not willing to reform your own health.  Unlike most liberals, I'm glad all those teabaggers marched on Washington last week.  Because judging from the photos, it's the first exercise they've gotten in years.

Massachusetts Bill on Senate Succession Delayed  —  BOSTON — Republicans in the Massachusetts State Senate on Friday temporarily blocked the chamber from taking up legislation that would allow Gov. Deval Patrick to appoint an interim successor to Senator Edward M. Kennedy.