News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Iraq Bomb Left Near Toys Kills 1; 4 Die in Car Blast
Lawmakers say State Department blocks Iraq info
Turkey plans incursion, PKK says ready to attack - Video
Stryker Cavalry ridding Baghdad of bombs, ‘bad guys’
Airmen ensure safety for troops, citizens

Operation Enduring Freedom
Canada picks Liberal hawk to head Afghan panel

Homeland Security / War on Terror / Hamas-Hezbollah Happenings
Olmert, Abbas narrow land gap
Chavez says close to sealing FARC hostage meeting

Troops on Trial
Canada soldier to be tried on Afghanistan shooting

Other Military News
Report: 1 Dead, 2 Injured When Navy Boat Capsizes- Navy Pilot Pulled From Ocean After Crash Off Virginia
Pentagon Mulls Collecting Power From Space

Worldwide Wackos
Hashemi Rafsanjani: Hitler Wanted to Rid World of Jews Because 'They Were a Pain in the Neck'

Homegrown Moonbats
Atheist Radio Show Goes National on Air America
Gore: Back to work on environment - Video (He gets the Nobel Peace Prize instead of a woman who saved children from the Nazis...suuuuuure, that makes sense)
Gore: Award puts focus on global warming
Richardson: US troops must leave Iraq

Politics / Government
Pols Trade Barbs Over NASCAR Vaccinations Story
'Bernie Was a Mistake' - Giuliani distances self from ex-NYC police chief
JFK Aide: Obama the New Jack, Hillary a Loser
Sen. Kennedy Treated for Partially Blocked Artery (Likely one that brings oxygen to his brain...)
Clinton Reverses, Says She Would Negotiate with Iran's Leaders
Putin to Rice, Gates: Missile Plan Risks Relations
Russia, U.S. at odds over missile shield
Obama, Edwards accuse Clinton of flip-flop on Iran
Analysis: Gore's back, but not for a bid
Lawmakers back CIA's internal critic
House panel seeks data on NFL injuries
Rumors fly in France of Sarkozy divorce
Bush: Congress should pass trade deals

Illegal Immigration / Border Control
Texan mayors threaten court to stop border fence
Report: Man Defends Burning the Mexican Flag

In the Courts / Crime and Punishment / Law and Order
Texas Police in Bloody Standoff
Airport Cops Silent on Death
California Attorney General: 'Serious Evidence' Uncovered in Anna Nicole Smith Death Probe
Docs, Druggists Probed in Anna Nicole Case - VIDEO
8 Acquitted of Manslaughter in Boot Camp Death
Pa. Mother Charged in 'Columbine-Style' Plot - VIDEO
Lawyer: 'Jena 6' Teen Mychal Bell Sent Back to Jail for Probation Violation
Dismembered Body Found in Mexican Horror Novelist's Apartment
'Made in U.S.A.' stages a comeback
Gunman's uncle: Teen upset with teachers
Foxy Brown won't get on bus for court

Adventures in Political Correctness / Intolerance on Parade
Columnist Ann Coulter Shocks Cable TV Show, Declaring 'Jews Need to Be Perfected by Becoming Christians' (NOT cool)
Law Student in Trouble After Posting Pat Robertson Photo on Facebook

U.N. News
Ailing Myanmar Prime Minister Gen. Soe Win Dies
Darfur rebels stopped on way to talks: officials
Myanmar says "deeply regrets" U.N. statement
U.S. judge jails Russian U.N. diplomat for 4 years

Media in the Media / Bloggers in the News / Watching the Web
Pol's Web Ads Run Up Against Google, MoveOn
Google Bans Ads That Criticize Far-Left MoveOn.org (Not really a surprise when you remember this is the company that agreed to censure search results in China)

Science / Medicine and Health / Technology
1 in 5 Pregnancies Worldwide Ends in Abortion, Study Says
Centuries Old Spanish Colonization Shipwreck Found Off Florida Panhandle
Former Penthouse Pet Dubbed 'Mansion Madam' Pleads Guilty to Prostitution
Lipsticks contain lead, consumer group says
Old virus causing new disease in United States
New crew and a tourist arrive at space station - Video
French explorer to measure Arctic ice from airship
Google, Random House move closer on book search
Oracle offers $6.7B for BEA Systems
Space station gets 1st female commander

Mother Nature
AP IMPACT: Calif. water is getting worse
Pets hurled off bridge in Puerto Rico (I'm for hurling THESE scumbags off a bridge!)

News from My Neck of the Woods
N.Y. Cops Hunt Suspects in 2 Noose Incidents in 1 Week

Oddities
Cops Pull Over Boy, 3, Driving Along Highway in Toy Car
Applebee's-Craving Boy, 6, Swears Off Driving - VIDEO
Drunken priest punches cop, jailed
Drivers kick up stink about "WC" car plates

Other News of Note
Slain Icon Set for Miraculous Return - PHOTOS (Captain America is back...and he's pissed)
Florida Students Stop Bus After Driver Suffers Seizure
Kodak to end Olympics sponsorship after 2008 games
Dutch ban hallucinogenic mushrooms
Vatican publishes Knights Templar papers

Fox News
Toddler Run Over by Van in Supermarket Parking Lot
Pop Tarts: Witherspoon Worried: Reese Scared for Her Kids' Safety
Britney Spears' 'Blackout' Hits Internet

Reuters: Top News
Wanted: Man with sense of humor for former sex symbol
Spears reduces involvement on new album
Stocks eye earnings and "Black Monday" memories
Oil hits record $84 on supply concerns
GM shares surge on savings view
Biogen puts itself up for sale; shares surge
Tech deal news and retail spending lift stocks
"Mezz" debt a hot item
GE CFO not losing sleep over slowdown
FTSE ends positive; Northern Rock and oils buoy
Solid sales ease recession jitters
BEA rejects $6.7 billion Oracle offer, rival bids seen
CEO option grants seen harmful
SEC looks into NY pension oversight: report
Branson's Virgin plans Northern Rock rescue - Video
Home builders likely to see further downgrades

AP World News
Baltimore Orioles fire pitching coach
Flyers' Boulerice suspended for 25 games
Stocks close slightly higher, tech jumps

CENTCOM: News Releases
UPDATE: KILLED TERRORISTS RESPONSIBLE FOR IMAM’S ASSASSINATION ARE POSITIVELY IDENTIFIED
VIDEO AVAILABLE: OPERATION NETS 10, DESTROYS TWO BOOBY-TRAPPED HOUSES
COALITION FORCES TARGET AL-QAEDA IN IRAQ SENIOR LEADERS

USJFCOM
Joint Knowledge Online now available to wider audience - podcast
More about Joint Knowledge Online
Get the latest USJFCOM headlines delivered to your email inbox
Unified Endeavor 08-1 prepares soldiers for Afghanistan deployment
Senate confirms next commander
Nominee to be the next USJFCOM commander testifies before Senate Armed Services Committee
President nominates Marine general as new commander

Multi-National Force-Iraq
Coalition general notes progress in building Iraqi Air Force
Reconciliation begins in Muqdadiya
Video available: Operation nets 10, destroys two boobytrapped houses
Concerned citizens detain insurgents
Multiple caches in western Nineveh
MNC-I Soldier killed
Missing weapons recovered near Iraqi home

DefenseLink
TOP NEWS
Leaders Agree to Meet Again - Photos
Missile Defense Tops Agenda - Photos
Gates Arrives in Moscow
Photos: Gates Visits London
U.K. Talks Cover Iraq, Afghanistan
Resolution May Impact U.S., Turkey
Gates Travels to London

IRAQ
Forces Work to Halt Cycle of Violence
Local Citizens Vastly Improve Security
Air Strike Claims Terrorists, Civilians
General Notes Progress in Iraqi Air Force

AFGHANISTAN
Troops Seize Weapons, Thwart Insurgents

ON THE GROUND IN IRAQ
Soldiers Learn Basic Humvee Maintenance
New Iraqi Air Force Continues to Grow
Stryker Cavalry Sweeps Baghdad for Bombs
U.S. Airmen Help Secure Baghdad Streets
Welders Develop Up-Armored Truck for Iraqis

INSIDE AFGHANISTAN
Reaper Aids Commanders on Battlefield - Video

MILITARY NEWS
Guard Works to Bring Back Soldiers
Crash Victims Buried Together in Arlington
Roughead Becomes Chief of Naval Ops
Plan to Help Balance Active Army, Guard

WHY WE SERVE
Medic Saves Lives

FACE OF DEFENSE
Officer Makes Big Splash

AMERICA SUPPORTS YOU
Troops to Get Thank Yous
Group to Send Goodies
'Neighbors' Affect Troops

DefendAmerica
BLOGGERS' ROUNDTABLE with U.S. Army Col. John RisCassi
Soldiers Sweep Baghdad for Bombs - Story

NEWS UPDATES
Missile Defense Tops Agenda - Story

ON THE GROUND
More Than 70 Graduate From Air Force School - Story
Iraqi Soldiers Learn Basic Humvee Maintenance - Story
Reapers Aid Commanders in Afghanistan - Story
Welders Develop Up-Armored Iraqi Police Truck - Story

IN IRAQ
Airmen Help Secure Law and Order in Baghdad
Soldiers Continue Fight Against Insurgents
Cluster Pump Stations to Boost Oil Production
Marines, Iraqis Work to Disrupt Enemy Activity
Program Molds Elite Iraqi Warfighters
Hospital Renovation Nears Completion

IN AFGHANISTAN
Mentor Team Helps Train Afghan Police Officers
RED HORSE Team Beats Construction Odds

IN SOUTHWEST ASIA
Maintenance Workers Keep Aircraft Flying

BACKGROUND
IRAQ
Renewal In Iraq
Iraq: Security, Stability
Fact Sheet: Progress and Work Ahead
Report: Strategy for Victory in Iraq
Iraq Daily Update
This Week in Iraq
Multinational Force Iraq
State Dept. Weekly Iraq Report
'Boots on the Ground' Audio Archive
War on Terror Reconstruction Report
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps

AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
Fact Sheet: Budget Request
Fact Sheet: Terror Plots Disrupted
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

Weather
Afghanistan
Bost/Laskar Ghurian Herat Kabul Qandahar

Germany
Ansbach Aschaffenburg Berlin Berlin-Tempelhof Berlin/Schonefeld Bremerhaven
Darmstadt Frankfurt Frankfurt/Main Freiburg/Breisgau Garmisch
Garmisch-Partenkirchen Geilenkirchen Gelnhausen Giessen Kitzingen
Hanau Am Main Heidelberg Mainz Mannheim Nurnberg Stuttgart Trier
Wiesbaden Wurzburg

Gitmo

Guam
Agana Agana Heights Agat Andersen AFB Asan Barrigada

Iraq
Al Azamiyah Al Basrah Al Hillah Al Karkh Al Kazimiyah Al Kut
An Nasiriyah Baghdad Baqubah Mosul Najaf Nineveh Tall Kayf

Japan
Kadena Air Base Okinawa Tokyo Yokohama

National Hurricane Center

Today in History
1285 - In Munich, 180 Jews are set on fire after refusing baptism.
1492 - Columbus arrives in the Bahamas.
1776 - The British begin guarding Throgg's Neck Road (Bronx, NY).
1822 - The second eruption of Galunggung (Java) destroys the mountain's summit.
1823 - Charles Macintosh of Scotland begins selling raincoats (Macs).
1860 - British and French troops capture Peking.
1861 - On the Mississippi, the Confederate ironclad Manassas attacks the Union's sloop Richmond, causing severe damage below the waterline.
1862 - JEB Stuart completes his second ride around McClellan; Major General Earl Van Dorn assumes command of Conferate troops in Missisippi.
1886 - A hurricane and its resulting storm surge kill 250 in Indianola, TX.
1915 - In Belgium, English nurse Edith Cavell is executed by the Germans; Theodore Roosevelt criticizes dual citizenship.
1918 - At Boston's Childrens' Hospital, the Iron Lung is first used; Cloquet, MN, and 25 other communities are destroyed by a forest fire that kills 559.
1933 - Alcatraz unofficially becomes a Federal prison; John Dillinger escapes from the Allen County, OH, jail.
1941 - The Russian government moves from Moscow to Volga as the Nazis close in.
1942 - The U.S. Navy defeats the Japanese in the Battle of Cape Esperance.
1949 - Eugenie Anderson becomes the first woman ambassador nominated in the U.S.
1957 - The first commercial flight between CA and Antartica takes place.
1960 - Nikita Khrushchev pounds his shoe on the desk during a U.N. General Assembly session. 1962 - The U.S. and U.S.S.R. sign a joint telecommunications/meteorology space effort.
1963 - Archaeological digs begin at Masada, Israel.
1964 - The Voskhod-1 is launched with a three man crew (Komarov, Feokistov, Yegorov).
1968 - Equatorial Guinea gains independence from Spain; at the Olympic opening ceremonies in Mexico City, Norma Enriqueta Basilio Satelo is first woman to light the Olympic flame.
1969 - Soyuz-7 is launched.
1972 - 46 sailors are injured in a race riot on the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Kitty Hawk; Mariner-9 takes pictures of the Martian north pole.
1973 - Nixon nominates Gerald Ford to replace Spiro Agnew as VP.
1975 - Archbishop Oliver Plunkett becomes the first Irish-born saint in seven centuries; NASA launches the space vehicle S-195.
1976 - Hua Guo-feng succeeds Mao Tse-tung as chairman of China's Communist Party.
1977 - Psychic Romark attempts to drive blindfolded, fails, and smashes into a police van (Guess he didn't see that one coming); the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in the "reverse discrimination" case of Allan Bakke, a white student denied admission to the University of California Medical School.
1978 - Representatives of Israel and Egypt open talks in Washington.
1984 - The IRA bombs a hotel where Margaret Thatcher is staying.
1985 - The International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War receive the Nobel Prize.
1988 - Israel and China sign a trade deal, plan diplomatic relations.

Birthdays
1537 - King Edward VI of England (1547-53)
1798 - Pedro I, first emperor of Brazil (1822-31), King of Portugal
1860 - Elmer A. Sperry, inventor (gyrocompass)
1866 - Ramsay MacDonald, British PM (1924, 1929-35)
1923 - Jean Nidetch, founder of Weight Watchers
1932 - Dick Gregory, comedian/political activist/dietician (Bahamian Diet); Jake Garn (Sen-UT) / astronaut (STS 51D)
1935 - Luciano Pavarotti, operatic tenor
1947 - Chris Wallace, newscaster (NBC Weekend News)
1950 - Susan Anton, actress (Golden Girl, Spring Fever)
1969 - Kimberly Ann Grimm, Miss Maryland-America (1991)
1970 - Kimberly Hoskins, Miss Arizona-America (1991)

Passings
1694 - Matsuo Basho, greatest Japanese haiku poet
1860 - Sir Henry G. W. Smith, leader of British-Indian forces
1864 - Roger Taney, Supreme Court Chief Justice
1870 - Robert E. Lee, General of the Confederate Army
1945 - Jesse James Payne, lynched in Madison County, Florida
1985 - Johnny Olsen, TV announcer (Price is Right)
1987 - Alfred M. Landon, former Kansas Governor; Philleo Nash, US Bureau of Indian Affairs (1961-67)

Reported Missing in Action
1966
Elkins, Frank C., USN (NC); A4E shot down, remains ID'd February, 1990

Woods, Robert D., USN (MO); A1H shot down, released March, 1973 - retired as a Commander - alive as of 1998

1967
Derrickson, Thomas G., USAF (CA); F4C shot down (pilot, w/Hardy)

Hardy, John K., USAF (CA); F4C shot down (w/Derrickson)

1972
Brunson, Cecil H., USAF (TN); F4E shot down (w/Young), released by DRV March, 1973 - alive as of 1998

Price, William M., USMC (IL); A6A disappeared during combat mission (co-pilot, w/Peacock)

Peacock, John R. II, USMC (HI); A6A disappeared during combat mission (pilot, w/Price)

Young, Myron A., USAF (CA); F4E shot down (pilot, w/Brunson), released by DRV March, 1973 - retired as a Lt. Colonel - R.I.P. July, 1999

Labels: Headlines, History