The Race Card, Football and Me  —  My critics would have you believe no conservative meets NFL ‘standards.’  —  David Checketts, an investor and owner of sports teams, approached me in late May about investing in the St. Louis Rams football franchise.  As a football fan, I was intrigued.

Artist Admits Using Other Photo for ‘Hope’ Poster  —  Shepard Fairey, the controversial artist whose “Hope” poster of Barack Obama became an iconic emblem of the presidential campaign, admitted on Friday that he lied about which photograph from The Associated Press he used as his source …

Obama Threatens Insurers' Anti-Trust Exemption  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama mounted a frontal assault on the insurance industry on Saturday, accusing it of airing “deceptive and dishonest ads” to derail his health care legislation and threatening to strip the industry of its longstanding exemption from federal anti-trust laws.

How Turkey Was Lost to the West  —  Once the apotheosis of a pro-Western, dependable Muslim democracy, this week Turkey officially left the Western alliance and became a full member of the Iranian axis.  —  It isn't that Ankara's behavior changed fundamentally in recent days.

In Shift for Obama, U.S. Settles On Modulated Policy for Sudan  —  After lengthy debate, the Obama administration has settled on a policy toward Sudan that offers a dramatically softer approach than the president had advocated on the campaign trail — but steers clear of the conciliatory tone advocated …

Superfreakonomics on climate, part 1  —  OK, I'm working my way through the climate chapter — and the first five pages, by themselves, are enough to discredit the whole thing.  Why?  Because they grossly misrepresent other peoples' research, in both climate science and economics.

Brown leads poll in Houston mayor's race  —  Poll shows Brown with lead, Parker trailing closely behind  —  City Councilman Peter Brown, who has blanketed the airwaves for months with an evergreen message about his “blueprint” for Houston, has emerged as the front-runner in the Nov. 3 mayoral race …

Record-High Deficit May Dash Big Plans  —  $1.4 Trillion in Red Ink Means Less to Spend On Obama's Ambitious Jobs, Stimulus Policies  —  The federal budget deficit soared to a record $1.4 trillion in the fiscal year that ended in September, a chasm of red ink unequaled in the postwar era …

Labor chief takes on White House  —  The president of one of America's largest labor unions, Gerry McEntee, has emerged as a major obstacle to the White House's efforts to maintain a unified front in the health care debate.  —  The veteran president of the American Federation of State …

Fake but Aristotelian?  —  Actually, the great Greek philosopher probably didn't endorse ObamaCare.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Yesterday we received an email from a loyal reader who nonetheless seems to disagree with everything we write—a type of reader for whom we have a special, if slightly perverse, affection.

British High Court rejects U.S./British cover-up of torture evidence  —  (updated below)  —  There is a vital development — a new ruling from the British High Court — in a story about which I've written many times before: the extraordinary joint British/U.S. effort to cover up the brutal torture …

Bailout Helps Fuel a New Era of Wall Street Wealth  —  Even as the economy continues to struggle, much of Wall Street is minting money — and looking forward again to hefty bonuses.  —  Many Americans wonder how this can possibly be.  How can some banks be prospering so soon after a financial collapse …

Pakistan Opens Offensive in a Militant Stronghold  —  ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan moved large contingents of its troops into the militant stronghold of South Waziristan on Saturday, the army said, beginning a long-anticipated ground offensive against militants from Al Qaeda and the Taliban …