The Finite World  —  Oil is back above $90 a barrel.  Copper and cotton have hit record highs.  Wheat and corn prices are way up.  Over all, world commodity prices have risen by a quarter in the past six months.  —  So what's the meaning of this surge?  —  Is it speculation run amok?

Miller says he'll keep fighting for Senate seat  —  CHALLENGE: But GOP candidate won't oppose Murkowksi certification.  —  Anchorage Daily News / adn.com  —  Republican Senate candidate Joe Miller announced late Sunday that he would continue his challenge in federal court of the write …

In ‘Daily Show’ Role on 9/11 Bill, Echoes of Murrow  —  Did the bill pledging federal funds for the health care of 9/11 responders become law in the waning hours of the 111th Congress only because a comedian took it up as a personal cause?  —  And does that make that comedian, Jon Stewart …

Bailed-Out Banks Slip Toward Failure  —  Number of Shaky Lenders Rises to 98 as Bad Loans Pile Up; Smaller Institutions Hit Hardest  —  Nearly 100 U.S. banks that got bailout funds from the federal government show signs they are in jeopardy of failing.  —  The total, based on an analysis …

Learning from HSBC  —  Last week Contentions posted an image of an HSBC Bank ad touting Iran found in an Athens airport.  The full ad creative can be found here.  It turns out that the ad is part of HSBC's current global ad campaign.  —  According to the ad, “Only 4% of American films are made by women.

Juan Williams: Palin not on same ‘intellectual stage’ as Obama  —  Fox News contributor Juan Williams said Sunday that Sarah Palin “can't stand on the intellectual stage” with President Obama.  —  Williams, in his role as an analyst on Fox News Sunday, was breaking down the Republican presidential field, which he saw as weak.

BROKAW: 'WE'LL SEE' IF OBAMA CAN LEARN ON THE JOB — HE DIDN'T HAVE HARD POLITICAL EXPERIENCE AS A GOV LIKE REAGAN DID  —  CATB  —  LOL .. all we heard was how Palin wasn't qualified .. she is much more qualified than “their” Obama!  —  Report Post »  —  Log in to Reply  —  TXPILOT

The Economy in 2011  —  After the passage of the tax cut deal, many economic forecasters raised their projections for 2011.  Recent economic indicators, including a reduction in weekly initial unemployment claims, an increase in industrial production, factory orders and consumer sentiment …

‘Lame ducks can still fly,’ Daniels says of his last 2 years  —  Lame duck?  Hardly.  —  With only two years left as governor, Gov. Mitch Daniels feels more charged up than ever.  —  The November election gave him solid Republican majorities in both the Senate and House …

Surveying the field of RNC race: Priebus out front, but it's anyone's guess  —  Uncertainty reigns in the race for the chairmanship of the Republican National Committee despite the election being less than a month away.  —  Conversations with a number of strategists close to the RNC …

Coded American Civil War message in bottle deciphered  —  A message in a bottle delivered to a Confederate general during the American Civil War has been deciphered, 147 years after it was written.  —  In the encrypted message, a commander tells Gen John Pemberton that no reinforcements …

All 10 States Losing Congressional Seats Tilt Democratic  —  Five of the eight states that are gaining seats skew Republican  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Each of the 10 states losing congressional seats as a result of the newly announced 2010 census reapportionment process is politically Democratic …

New Voters May Sway Fed Actions  —  WASHINGTON — As the Federal Reserve debates whether to scale back, continue or expand its $600 billion effort to nurse the economic recovery, four men will have a newly prominent role in influencing the central bank's path.

WikiLeaks founder baffled by sex assault claims  —  ONE of the women claiming she was sexually assaulted by Julian Assange took a “trophy photo” of him lying naked in her bed, he says.  —  The white-haired computer impresario had been invited to stay in her empty flat when he visited Stockholm …

NYT: “Bundle Up, It's Global Warming”  —  Manhattan seems to be filled with foolish people who bitterly cling to their pagan religion.  —  From the New York Times: “Bundle Up, It's Global Warming.”  —  The headline is attached to a bizarre article by Judah Cohen.

Janet Napolitano: Director Of National Intelligence Did Not “Need” To Know About London Terror Plot  —  Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano appeared on CNN's State of the Union and was eager to defend Director of National Intelligece James Clapper's embarrassing ordeal of being unaware …

Julian Assange Signs $1.3 Million Book Deal  —  WikiLeaks Founder's Deal Will Cover Legal Costs for Himself and Website  —  WikiLeaks.org founder Julian Assange has inked a $1.3 million book deal to cover legal costs relating to his arrest and any lawsuits aimed at his controversial whistle-blowing website.