Chicagoan Bruce Wexler discusses why poetry is dead (from Newsweek).

SARS is overwhelming Beijing hospitals (from Yahoo News).

Baskin and Robbins free scoop night from 6 PM to 10 PM.

Fun Flash: You too can fling the cow, at flingthecow.com.

Flash funny: Strong Bad was stood up at his Ladies Choice Awards.

The Telegraph found documents that 'provided the first evidence of a direct link between Osama bin Laden's al-Qa'eda terrorist network and Saddam Hussein's regime' (from The Telegraph).

Total Lunar Eclipse Coming May 15-16 (from space.com, via Yahoo News).

A Russian capsule docked with the International Space Station, and its crew will replace the astronauts who were stuck on the station after the Columbia Shuttle disaster February 1 (from Associated Press, via Yahoo News).

The Dixie Chics have posed nude in reponse to their critics... um, yeah; at least that'll distract 'em (from Reuters, via Yahoo News).

The new Matrix movies will be released on standard and Imax screens, though the first of the two films will show on Imax screens two or three weeks after its general release, the second of the two will release at the same time, cool (from Dow Jones, via Yahoo Finance).

'A group of Florida-based porn peddlers, penis enlargement and Viagra spammers has united to file suit against anti-spam organisations'; ah yes, from the state that couldn't vote properly ;-) (from The Register). There are possibly 180 spammers who are responsible for virtually all junk e-mail.

The BBC's William Horsley says there are two things Paris could do to regain some of its lost favour in Washington: to write off much of the debt owed to it by the ousted regime of Saddam Hussein, and to support the US call for Nato to take a key role in Iraqi peacekeeping (from the BBC).

Iraqi scientists were ordered to destroy some bacteria and equipment and hide more in their homes before visits from UN weapons inspectors in the months leading up to the war, is anyone (other than the French) surprised? (from Seattle Post-Intelligencer).

Private Manned Space Plane Unveiled

Private manned space plane was unveiled, it was built in secret, and, if functional, it will be the first private manned space program (from MSNBC).

Saddam's Secret Files, the Newsweek cover story (from MSNBC).

Chicago Cubs player Sammy Sosa was hit in the batting helmet by a pitch, the helmet saved him and he is okay (from The Washington Post).

Helen of Troy Miniseries Tonight

The Helen of Troy Miniseries show tonight at on USA, and I hope they have done a good job, because the story of the most famous war ever is quite good.

The Iraqi information minister talking doll, made by herobuilders.com, is now availible (for more on the Iraqi information minister, visit welovetheiraqiinformationminister.com, article from CNN).

There is a cool jet pack being made by Millennium Jet (if that link doesn't work, check the google cached version, from CNN).

CNN inadvertently released their prepared obituaries for famous people (who are still alive, from The Smoking Gun).

Pilots will start having guns in cockpits as early as Sunday, thanks to the Transportation Security Administartion (from AFP via Yahoo News). The Transportation Security Administartion, closing the barn door.

Mass Grave a Quarter Mile Long Found in Iraq "Captain Hawez, the police officer, walked in the graveyard this afternoon, head down, dust rising as he slowly strolled, his subordinates keeping a little distance. He seemed near to tears. His story was dark. 'I loved a Kurdish girl,' he said. 'The Iraqi regime took her when we were young.' He paused and swallowed, before explaining his reddened eyes: 'Every time I find new graves I feel like it is her in the ground.'" (from The New York Times).

Exhibit 13 is Blue Man Group's tribute to the events of September 11th.

42% of Americans still aren't using the Internet, so you are in the 58% group (from The Washington Post).

Russia is against lifting UN sanctions on Iraq, which makes sense since they were on Saddam's side (from AFP via Yahoo News, and from The Telegraph).

Protesters to pay part of Opera House cleaning bill (from ABC on-line [Australia]).

Australia's Prime Minister has suggested France should no longer be on the UN Security Council (from The Age).

Perfidious French: The French broke the rules, and as recently as last year were still suppling Iraq with weapons and other items banned by the UN in 1990; I'm shocked, amazed, and I might start to think of the French as French (from MSNBC).

Personality Identification Playing Cards, the playing cards (with Saddam's cohorts on them) that you've heard so much about (from Defense Link).

The first day-time television on-screen lesbian kiss will happen April 22 on 'All My Children' on abc (from Reuters via Yahoo News).

Russia helped Saddam Hussein by providing intelligence on Tony Blair's discussions with other Western leaders, lists of assassins available for 'hits' in the West, and agreed to help each other to 'obtain' visas for agents to go to other countries (from The Telegraph).

An update on how Afganistan is doing, it is slow, but progress on nation-building is being made (from The Washington Post).

In the short term, U.S. dollars probably will be the currency of choice in Iraq (from The Washington Post).

The Australians have noticed that US soldiers are grossly underpaid, and it isn't right (from The Sydney Morning Herald).

A ridiculous picture of Bush and Saddam (from Humor and Humour).

A former Marine wants to fast track the awarding of US Citizenship to 'Mohammed,' as well as his family, who at great risk to himself (and family) produced information which enabled the rescue of Jessica Lynch. You can sign the petition (via Blogs of War).

Some say that CNN's unwillingness to report Saddam's secret atrocities (as discussed in a New York Times article yesterday) implicates CNN in Saddam's crimes (from The Washington Times).

Gory news that could not be reported during Saddam's reign because reporting it put Iraqis and press people in danger of being tortured or killed by Saddam's secret police (from The New York Times).

An odd 'Can you hear me now...' flash parody (from killfrog.com).

Stay Dead Online

A new flash player for the short film 'Stay Dead,' [player has gone offline, please watch here] which is screening tonight at 9 PM at North Beach in Chicago (coarse humor and sexual situations, parental guidance suggested).

A funny spoof picture of what it's like driving in Iraq.

Saddam's government seems to have dissolved quickly; it remains to be seen if it is a deliberate retreat, or chaotic collapse (from The Washington Post).

A good run down of some of the events of the war yesterday, including Saddam Hussein's symbolic loss of power in Bagdad (from Blogs of War).

'The Baathist terror state in its death throws' says Dean's World in an account of spontaneous rejoicing near Detroit (via Blogs of War).

Icons of Saddam Hussein were toppled

Icons of Saddam Hussein were toppled in Iraq today, and people took cool pictures (from Yahoo News).

'Chemical Ali' may have been Found Dead in Basra (from washingtonpost.com).

Politcal cartoon of the Iraqi information minister's next broadcast (from dailybulletin.com via blogsofwar.com's AIM chattroom).

America's smart bombs now cause fewer deaths than the EU development budget, so perhaps trying consolidate Europe isn't a painless thing to do after all. The previous attempts to consolidate Europe, back in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, did set off the most violent, destructive wars the world has ever seen (from Daghtator Blog).

A first-grader became the latest kid suspended from school for having a nonweapon 'weapon' (a plastic school cafeteria knife), but his parents threatened criminal charges against the school (for arming 6-year-olds with weapons) if the suspension stood (from News of the Weird).

If you ever want any privacy in your life at all, write your congressional representative, the President and Vice President and tell them you are against the planned 'Total Information Awareness' program. With 'Total Information Awareness' Big Brother is upon us; 'Total Information Awareness' strips Americans of their privacy, all of it, permanently. Heather MacDonald told privacy advocates to sacrifice their privacy in the name of homeland security, and stop complaining about the the Pentagon's planned Total Information Awareness program, she is wrong (from Wired News).

US troops moved into Bagdad

US troops moved into Bagdad briefly (from Associated Press via Yahoo News).

Funny flash parody of intermission (from killfrog.com).

Live video from Bagdad in windows media player format (from MSNBC via blogsofwar.com).

General Tommy Franks' effective strategy briefly analyzed and compared to the German attack on the French in 1940 (from Asia Times Online).

An Iraqi man saved Jessica Lynch at great risk to himself and his family (from kansascity.com).

Record Industry Sued 4 University Students Running File-Sharing Networks. I think the students may be judgment proof, and I doubt these suits will stop music piracy at all; the RIAA is trying to intimidate all college kids everywhere into obeying authority, which if you've ever known (or been) a college kid, isn't a very effective way to get a college kid to do what you want (from washingtonpost.com).

US intelligence reports say Iran will infiltrate 5 Iraqi cities to harass American soldiers once Saddam Hussein's regime falls (from upi.com).

A CNN medical correspondent (who is also a neurosurgeon) performed emergency brain surgery in an effort to save the life of a 2-year-old Iraqi boy; the press can do the right thing (from washingtonpost.com).

Coalition forces four miles from the edge of Baghdad (from washingtonpost.com).

An LA times photographer doctored a photo that was published on the front page of the Los Angeles Times on Monday (from latimes.com).

A good run down of the day's war news (from foxnews.com).

In the last hour a US Helicopter was shot down

In the last hour, a US Helicopter was shot down by small arms fire and a US Navy F/A-18C Hornet was shot down by a surface to air missile; the fate of the soldiers aboard both the aircraft is not yet confirmed (from Yahoo News).

Coalition Is Within 30 Miles of Baghdad

Coalition Is Within 30 Miles of Baghdad (from Associated Press via Yahoo News).