Our withdrawn review “Blood cotton”  —  Apology: In our review of “The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism” by Edward Baptist, we said: “Mr Baptist has not written an objective history of slavery.  Almost all the blacks in his book are victims, almost all the whites villains.”

U.S. says forms ‘core coalition’ to counter Iraq militants  —  (Reuters) - The United States said it had created a “core coalition” on Friday to battle Islamic State militants in Iraq, calling for broad support from allies and partners around the world but ruling out committing ground forces.

The Trouble With Harvard  —  The Ivy League is broken and only standardized tests can fix it  —  The most-read article in the history of this magazine is not about war, politics, or great works of art.  It's about the admissions policies of a handful of elite universities …

More Senate Democrats urge Obama to delay immigration order  —  More top Democrats are pressuring President Barack Obama to slow down on immigration reform, further diminishing the chances that he'll take sweeping administrative action before Election Day.  —  Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) wants Obama to wait until after November.

The Obamacare train keeps not wrecking  —  President Barack Obama has not had a good couple of weeks.  His foreign policy is going badly, his legislative agenda is stalled, and his party looks likely to lose the Senate.  He's entering the traditional lame-duck years of a presidency …

Armed Militia Member Shot At By Border Patrol Agent Is A Convicted Felon  —  The armed militia member who was shot at by a border patrol agent last week is a convicted felon.  —  Rio Grande Valley TV station KRGV reported Wednesday that records show the man, John Frederick Forester …

‘Meet’ the Chuck Todd advantage  —  Todd's roundtable will feature regular contributors, including Joe Scarborough, who has been promoted to NBC News senior political analyst and a regular contributor to “Meet.”  (Todd dismisses any suggestion that Scarborough doesn't fit the bill for reported analysis …

New Book Says C.I.A. Official in Benghazi Held Up Rescue  —  CAIRO — Five commandos guarding the C.I.A. base in Benghazi, Libya, in September 2012 say that the C.I.A. station chief stopped them from interceding in time to save the lives of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and an American technician during …

Ukraine abandoned  —  At his first press briefing after the beheading of American James Foley, President Obama stunned the assembled when he admitted that he had no strategy for confronting ISIS, a.k.a. the Islamic State, in Syria.  Yet it was not nearly the most egregious, or consequential, thing he said.

Mom: Daughter made to swap short skirt for ‘shame suit’  —  ORANGE PARK, Fla. — A mother claims her daughter was forced by her school to swap her too-short skirt for what she calls a “shame suit.”  —  When 15-year-old Miranda Larkin went to Oakleaf High School in a black skirt about three …

Top CIA officer in Benghazi delayed response to terrorist attack, US security team members claim  —  A U.S. security team in Benghazi was held back from immediately responding to the attack on the American diplomatic mission on orders of the top CIA officer there, three of those involved told Fox News' Bret Baier.

Texas daycare center accused of withholding water to keep diapers dry  —  A Texas child care center accused of duct-taping children to mats at nap time also withheld water from children to avoid frequent diaper changes, according to an investigation by the state's regulatory agency for child care licensing.

Woman beheaded ‘with machete’ in north London garden  —  Palmira Silva was decapitated at her home in Edmonton in an indiscriminate rampage before armed police subdued her ‘crazed’ attacker  —  An 82-year-old woman was beheaded in a north London suburban garden by a man with a machete.

Estonian Counterintelligence Officer Abducted to Russia at Gunpoint, Foreign Ministry Summons Russian Ambassador (17)  —  According to the Internal Security Service (ISS), Estonia's national agency for counterintelligence and high-profile corruption investigations, one of their officials …

Fed: Under Obama, only the richest 10 percent saw incomes rise … Under President Obama, the richest 10 percent were the only income group of Americans to see their median incomes rise, according to a survey released this week by the Federal Reserve.  —  The Fed data covered the years 2010-2013 …

Congress Set to Bow to Obama on ISIS War  —  Congress says it wants to have a role in authorizing Obama's ongoing war against ISIS.  But the White House is using a series of maneuvers to make sure that never happens.  —  In recent days, leading lawmakers in both parties have been talking tough …

I'm Islamaphobic, Are You?  —  I confess, I'm “Islamaphobic,” but for very good reasons.  —  My fear is not an irrational fear based on uniformed prejudice; rather it's an historic, clear eyed, informed, rational fear.  ISSA is doing to America journalists what every true follower …

Man jailed for phoning and texting ex-girlfriend 21,807 times  —  French man who harassed woman demanding compensation for work on appartment admits behaviour was ‘stupid’  —  Defendant accepted responsibility for a barrage of phone calls and text messages over a 10-month period Photograph: David Brabyn/ David Brabyn/Corbis

Not Everyone Can Afford the All-American On-Campus Experience  —  Living away from home gives students a chance to immerse themselves in new academic and social worlds.  But that kind of college experience is available only to an increasingly privileged few.