-Dan Froomkin
"President Bush's unwillingness to pressure Israel to halt its military campaign in Lebanon is rooted in a view of the Middle East conflict that is sharply different from that of his predecessors."
-Post analysis
Holy War, Unholy Alliance: 'The GOP sings the Religious Right's crazy tune.'
Dana Milbank on Bush at the NAACP. Plus, BAGnewsNotes picked up on a special guest star at the speech.
NEWS AVALANCHE:
* The Lebanon-Israel War: what we do and don't know about the Hezbollah war machine. The view from the ground inside the war zone. David Ignatius explains why we have to support Israel and Lebanon. Charles Wolfson searches for answers to the many questions. Lebanese minorities speak out.
* And let's not forget about the fighting in Gaza.
* Oh, and since things are quiet, a Somali Islamist leader declared war on Ethiopian troops in his country. NPR talks about the war crimes question.
* Ron Elving on the Republican fall strategy.
* DeLay's political action committee fined for violating campaign finance laws.
* "Trust me when I say that many liberals are really ticked off at the MSM, even though the nature of their criticism is very different from their rivals on the right." -Howard Kurtz
* North Carolina's 201-year-old cohabitation ban was struck down in court.
* New report says sex ed class may get kids to delay having sex.
* How the video game industry burns out talent.
Bush's surprise back rub for German Chancellor Merkel turns out to be a big hit on YouTube.
Examining the Neanderthal genome.
