The 10 Worst Predictions for 2009, Gail Collins, Howard Zinn & Bill Moyer, US's Silence, Noughtyisms, Back in time

The 10 Worst Predictions for 2009 -

And when a failed state tried to exercise its sovereignty NYT calls it Pakistan Reported to Be Harassing U.S. Diplomats

Gail Collins: The theories about Why Joe Is Doing It abound. We cannot get enough of them! I have decided to start a rumor that it all goes back to the 2004 presidential race, when Lieberman not only failed to win any primaries, but was also bitten by either a rabid muskrat or a vampire disguised as a moose.

Howard Zinn and Bill Moyers on Right-Wing Demagogues and Progressive Resistance

US silent on Taliban's al-Qaeda offer The administration of United States President Barack Obama has made no official response to an offer from the Taliban that they would give "legal guarantees" not to allow Afghanistan to be used for attacks on other countries by outsiders - namely, al-Qaeda - in exchange for the withdrawal of all foreign forces. This silence leaves the door open for Washington to still negotiate a deal. - Gareth Porter

Noughtyisms: the best words of the decade

Taliban offer alternative justice The conviction of the mayor of Kabul on corruption charges might be a small step in Afghanistan's reinvigorated anti-graft drive, but it cannot disguise the fact that efforts to improve a judicial system plagued by inefficiency, bribery and nepotism appear to be failing to the point that many Afghans are turning to another power for justice - the Taliban. - Abubakar Siddique