Deal Reached to Destroy Syria's Chemical Arsenal  —  GENEVA — The United States and Russia reached a sweeping agreement on Saturday that called for Syria's arsenal of chemical weapons to be removed or destroyed by the middle of 2014 and indefinitely stalled the prospect of American airstrikes.

Bill Maher: U.S. looking like Zimmerman  —  Liberal comedian Bill Maher said Friday the U.S. is looking “more like George Zimmerman” with regards to military force and criticized arguments over intervention in Syria.  —  “Forget the Syria debate, we need a debate on why we're always debating whether to bomb someone.

Mann and Ornstein: “Brighter future for politics and policy requires a different Republican Party”  —  The Republicans have become a party beholden to zealots — with little respect for science, facts or compromise  —  From the perspective of November 7, the day after the election, change looked promising.

John Boehner Has A Little Problem With His FEC Disclosures  —  Way back in 2009 I had a look at John Boehner's FEC disclosures for his Freedom Project PAC and wondered then whether anyone would take notice of how popular he was with corporate PAC donors.  It's taken four long years …

Obama to mark anniversary of US financial crisis  —  President Obama will speak Monday from the White House Rose Garden to mark the five-year anniversary of the financial crisis and highlight his administration's response to it.  —  Although the nation's housing market began teetering as early as 2006 …

How to Make School Better for Boys  —  Start by acknowledging that boys are languishing while girls are succeeding.  —  I recently appeared on MSNBC's The Cycle to discuss the new edition of my book The War Against Boys.  The four hosts were having none of it.  A war on boys?

American Ineffectualism  —  For generations, eminent New York Times wordsmiths have swooned over foreign strongmen, from Walter Duranty's Pulitzer-winning paeans to the Stalinist utopia to Thomas L. Friedman's more recent effusions to the “enlightened” Chinese Politburo.

Obamacare D-Day becomes a soft launch  —  For months all eyes have been on October 1 — the first day people can sign up for Obamacare.  —  But as that day approaches, many people working on the nuts and bolts of the health law are tamping down any expectations of a sign-up stampede.

Arts and Letters |  Peter Ackroyd's London Calling  —  Up close and personal with Peter Ackroyd, England's insanely prolific, controversial and eccentric novelist and historian.  —  Writers write because they have no choice, the cliché goes, but if you crunch the numbers …