FBI thwarts terrorist bombing attempt at Portland holiday tree lighting, authorities say  —  The FBI thwarted an attempted terrorist bombing in Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square before the city's annual tree-lighting Friday night, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Oregon.

The obligatory “Obama elbowed in the face during pick-up game” post; Update: Elbower identified  —  First he gets pounded in the midterms, then Kim Jong-il starts shelling South Korea, now he's getting flagrantly fouled while shooting hoops with friends and family.  What's next?

U.S. Government Seizes BitTorrent Search Engine Domain and More  —  Following on the heels of this week's domain seizure of a large hiphop file-sharing links forum, it's clear today that the U.S. Government has been very busy.  Without any need for COICA, ICE has just seized the domain …

FoxNation.com Reposts Anti-Obama Article From The Onion, Doesn't Mention It's A Joke  —  Most people recognize The Onion as the Peabody Award-winning satire machine that it is.  Some people, however, don't.  Which is why we get a story like this every few months.

Qaeda the enemy - not TSA screeners  —  Tweet  —  The debate over security scanning and pat-downs has reached such a fever pitch, it seems that people are forgetting that the enemy isn't the Transportation Security Administration — it's al Qaeda.  —  I don't want my children …

Health Law Faces Threat of Undercut From Courts  —  WASHINGTON — As the Obama administration presses ahead with the health care law, officials are bracing for the possibility that a federal judge in Virginia will soon reject its central provision as unconstitutional and …

Iraq's Troubles Drive Out Refugees Who Came Back  —  The mother and daughters of Abu Maream in a cramped Baghdad apartment.  The family fled to Syria in 2005 and returned last year.  But Mr. Maream is unable to find a job and worried about safety, so he is sending some of his relatives back to Syria.

Winning the Class War  —  The class war that no one wants to talk about continues unabated.  —  Even as millions of out-of-work and otherwise struggling Americans are tightening their belts for the holidays, the nation's elite are lacing up their dancing shoes and partying like royalty as the millions and billions keep rolling in.

Report: ‘Issues of Culture, Ethnicity and Identity’ Raised in U.K. Rape-Gang Case  —  A report on the sexual exploitation of British girls as young as 12 by a gang led by two 28-year-old Muslim men found that cultural issues were “a critical factor in making [the victims] easy targets for abusers.”

Barack Obama to Barbara Walters: ‘Extraordinarily proud’ of health care reform  —  President Barack Obama, in a wide-ranging, reflective interview with Barbara Walters, staunchly defends his controversial policies - including sweeping health care reforms and the massive economic stimulus package …

Doctors say Medicare cuts force painful decision about elderly patients  —  Want an appointment with kidney specialist Adam Weinstein of Easton, Md.?  If you're a senior covered by Medicare, the wait is eight weeks.  —  How about a checkup from geriatric specialist Michael Trahos?