From Gambia Series V at the photoblog "The G8", winner of this year's Best Photography - Post Processing Award from The Photoblog Awards.

G8:

"Four eyes - one destiny.
Of the children that die under age of five:
* In Kenya 35% die of aids
* In Namibia 48% die of aids
* In South Africa 50% die of aids
* In Zimbabwe 50% die of aids
* In Botswana 64% die of aids

It is time to get angry, time to do something. We can no longer sit back and say "that is awful, somebody should do something". It is our world. It's our responsibility."

Open Thread below....

This is a wonderful piece that I actually spent a lot of time trying to play on the flute. Obviously you can't play all the sections properly, but the main themes are just riveting. Sarah Chang performs the first movement with the NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC...

Mendelssohn, Sibelius: Violin Concertos

Presidential candidate, Dennis Kucinich, has written a letter to his Iowa supporters asking them to support Barack Obama in precincts where he believes he will not be successful:

"I hope Iowans will caucus for me as their first choice this Thursday, because of my singular positions on the war, on health care, and trade. This is an opportunity for people to stand up for themselves. But in those caucus locations where my support doesn't reach the necessary threshold, I strongly encourage all of my supporters to make Barack Obama their second choice. Sen. Obama and I have one thing in common: Change." Read on...

Another endorsement that may have run a bit under the radar -- Ralph Nader is supporting John Edwards in Iowa.

In an 11th hour effort to encourage liberal Iowans to "recognize" Edwards by "giving him a victory," the activist and former presidential contender said in an interview that Clinton will "pander to corporate interest groups" if elected. Read on...

The Kucinich endorsement admittedly caught me by surprise, but should it have? Any time Ralph Nader shows up in a post here at C&L there is usually a great deal of debate about him and his past political career -- but could this signal a new direction for him? What, if anything, does his endorsement do for John Edwards at this stage of the campaign as he tries to win over voters who may still consider him a second choice candidate?

CNN and FOX Noise are delivering a ton of politics today even though it's a holiday because the Iowa caucus is in overdrive mode. I flipped on to see who MSNBC had working the network today and guess what I saw? Repeats of Lockup, Lockup, Lockup, Lockup...Holman---Alabama...

That's ground breaking political coverage for you...

Today's afternoon delight was a Mitt Romney house party at the home of Ann Warren and family. It was in a suburban neighborhood where the houses are all white or beige and look almost identical.

Jane and I were among the first to arrive, well before any other media. Ann welcomed us in and didn't seem to mind we were bloggers.

After chatting with Oscar Poale, above, a former minister who now owns a Georgia Bar-B-Q place and shows up at a lot of Romney events, I began talking to Rich, who lives a few doors down from the Warrens.

Continue reading »

Hmm...why do I feel sure that Dick Cheney is sitting in his undisclosed bunker trying to figure out if he could make this work in this country?

NYTimes (reg. req'd)

An outspoken Saudi blogger is being held for “purposes of interrogation,” the Saudi Interior Ministry confirmed on Tuesday.

Gen. Mansour al-Turki, an Interior Ministry spokesman reached by telephone, said that the blogger, Fouah al-Farhan, was “being questioned about specific violations of non-security laws.” Mr. Farhan’s blog, which discusses social issues, had become one of the most widely read in Saudi Arabia.

Mr. Farhan, a 32-year-old Jeddah resident, was arrested at his office on Dec. 10, local news sources reported. Two weeks before the arrest, Mr. Farhan wrote a letter to friends warning them that his detention was imminent.

“I was told that there is an official order from a high-ranking official in the Ministry of the Interior to investigate me,” read the letter, which is now posted in English and Arabic on Mr. Farhan’s blog.

Since his arrest, friends of Mr. Farhan have continued to blog on his behalf under a banner that reads “Free Fouad” and features his picture. The blog’s Web address is www.alfarhan.org.

“The issue that caused all of this is because I wrote about the political prisoners here in Saudi Arabia, and they think I’m running an online campaign promoting their issue,” the letter continued, noting that Mr. Farhan had been asked to sign a statement of apology.

“I’m not sure if I’m ready to do that,” Mr. Farhan wrote. “An apology for what? Apologizing because I said the government is a liar when they accused those guys to be supporting terrorism?”

Ahmad al-Omran, a fellow blogger and friend of Mr. Farhan’s, said that Mr. Farhan was the first Saudi blogger to be detained by state security. The arrest has created widespread anxiety among other Saudi bloggers and activists, he said.

I think it's important to note that many people justify their bigotry against Muslims by saying that they aren't hearing "peaceful Muslims" railing against terrorism done in their name. Farhan was just such a voice, so it's ironic that the Saudis are trying to silence him for not following their talking points.

Via CNN:

Pakistan's Interior Ministry backtracked Tuesday on its statement that Benazir Bhutto died because she hit her head on a sunroof latch during a shooting and bomb attack.

The government also published a reward offer in several national newspapers to anyone who could identify two suspects from the killing.

Interior Ministry spokesman Javed Iqbal Cheema told CNN the ministry will wait for the findings from forensic investigators before making a conclusion about her cause of death.

Cheema said he based his statement Friday about the sunroof latch "on the initial investigations and the reports by the medical doctors" who treated her at Rawalpindi General Hospital. Read on...

I won't begin to offer a theory or explanation, but it is significant that the Pakistani government has made this move. The release of the latest video of Bhutto's assassination has raised many more questions and it appears that pressure from the international community and media, as well as from Bhutto supporters has put the Pakistani Interior Ministry back on its heels.

Check this out from the Tournament of Roses Parade on KTLA5!

Way to go! I'll send this to Rep. Wexler.

Randy Newman -- A Few Words in Defense of Our Country

Rolling Stone Magazine named Newman's song the 2nd Best Song of 2007

Now in my 40s, I cheerfully cede my need to stay on top of popular music to my children and their generation. So I've never heard of M.I.A., whom Rolling Stone has placed on the top of their list of Top 50 Albums of 2007. However, I did love The White Stripes (#17), Youssou N'Dour (#30) and Maroon 5 (#32), so at least I knew a few on the list.

What music stood out to you last year?

OK, so is it a surprise to anyone that Jay Leno's first guest will be Mike Huckabee after breaking with the WGA strikers!

On the eve of the Iowa caucuses, Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee will trade jokes with Jay Leno on NBC's "Tonight Show."

While his rivals will be making a final appeal to the state's voters, Huckabee will be flying to Los Angeles to tape the show with Leno, who returns to the air Wednesday without striking writers.

A similar late-night appearance backfired on rival Fred Thompson, who irked voters in New Hampshire by skipping a Republican debate last fall at the University of New Hampshire to announce his candidacy on Leno's show.

The WGA is hoping their deal with Letterman will have a dramatic effect on Leno's ratings. United Hollywood weighs in on it. The idea of crossing the picket line will keep many celebrities off of Leno, but Jay has been a stand up for decades and his fans tune in to see him so I guess we'll see how that shakes out.

I'm not sure if Huckabee has the Secret Service guarding him yet, (I did a quick google search and came up empty) but it'll be interesting to see how his security responds to the striking writers when Huckabee shows up to Leno...Can you see any arrests coming as we've seen in the past with BushCo. for simply wearing a "Huckabee sucks t-shirt?" Have your video cameras with you if you're on the line.