Hunting Slugs  —  I know I'm not supposed to, but I pity Michelle Malkin.  Really, I do.  Punditry is a game of incentives, encouragement, luck.  You write a hundred articles before striking paydirt with one.  That zeitgeisty dispatch activates an eruption of applause and adulation, so you try to repeat it.

Clueless Joe Wilson  —  How did the CIA's special envoy miss Zahawie's trip to Niger?  —  Nobody appears to dispute what I wrote in last week's Slate to the effect that in February 1999, Saddam Hussein dispatched his former envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency …

Two arrests made in Duke lacrosse case  —  Duke University lacrosse players Reade Seligmann and Collin Finnerty were charged today with first degree forcible rape, first degree sexual offense and kidnapping in connection with a reported rape at a Duke University lacrosse party, according to George Naylor, director of the jail.

New Chief of Staff Sends Message: The White House Exits Are Open  —  WASHINGTON, April 17 — The new White House chief of staff put the West Wing and official Washington on notice on Monday about potentially substantial changes in the way the White House is staffed and operates.

Gimme a breatk!  A Pulitzer for Robin Givhan?!  —  In the past couple of years, I've bemusedly followed the fashion stylings of the Washington Post fashion writer, Robin Givhan, as she bashed the clothes that conservatives wore while going all tiddly for John Kerry's and John Edward's coiffures.

Suicide Bombing in Israel Kills 9; Hamas Approves  —  TEL AVIV, April 17 — A Palestinian suicide bomber carried out the deadliest attack on Israel in almost two years on Monday when he detonated his explosives at a falafel restaurant in Tel Aviv — an act that Hamas, which leads the new Palestinian government, called legitimate.

U.S. Envoy to Expose 4 Sudanese in U.N. Debate About Darfur  —  UNITED NATIONS, April 17 — John R. Bolton, the United States ambassador, said Monday that he intended to offer a Security Council resolution on Tuesday that would publicly identify four Sudanese individuals responsible for atrocities …

Three Reasons Not to Bomb Iran—Yet  —  I know of no reputable expert in the United States or in Europe who trusts the constantly repeated promise of Iran's rulers that their nuclear program will be entirely peaceful and is meant only to produce electricity.  The question is what to do about this.

Reconquista! … ___  —  The Messkins are coming!  The Messkins are coming!  Hide your daughters!  Lock your doors!  —  That's the current drumbeat coming from the Sensenbrenner/Tancredo wing of the conservative movement, thrummed most prominently by such luminaries as Michelle Malkin …

Back to Iraq Part V - By Force of Sheer Will  —  This is the fifth installment in a Back to Iraq series which is basically a single long essay.  Don't miss Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four.  —  Photo copyright Sean LaFreniere  —  DOHOK, IRAQ - Sean and I walked up to the front steps …

Ruined Treasures in Babylon Await an Iraq Without Fighting  —  A Polish helicopter flies over excavated parts of Babylon.  Over the years, colonial powers took artifacts and Saddam Hussein built on Nebuchadnezzar's palace.  Then, the occupation.  —  BABYLON, Iraq — In this ancient city …

The Generals' Revolt  —  There are many reasons for Donald Rumsfeld to leave.  Finger-pointing by retired officers shouldn't be one.  —  PRESIDENT BUSH'S stubborn support for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has compounded U.S. troubles in Iraq, prevented a remedy for the criminal mistreatment …

Ticketing in Chevy Chase draws fire  —  Chevy Chase residents say they are getting more than they bargained for now that the Metropolitan Police Department is providing steady, overnight patrols in their Northwest neighborhood.  They say officers are ticketing their vehicles for everything …