Nourooz Mubarak! That is what you are hearing these days if you run into Iranians or check out their websites, blogs or Facebook pages. Persian New Year, which marks the first day of Spring and the most celebrated and beloved holiday, is here.

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Happy Persian New Year

We are hearing a new concept these days in discussions about Iran — the zone of immunity . The idea, often explained by Ehud Barak , Israel’s defense minister, is that soon Iran will have enough nuclear capability that Israel would not be able to inflict a crippling blow to its program. Read full article > >

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How history lessons could deter Iranian aggression

Amid all the political commentary these days, Joanne Bamberger is noticing more female voices in the pundit chorus. They may not be the best known analysts or in the “Meet the Press” crowd, but these women have large followings, expansive networks and are discussing the political issues of the day. They come from the ranks of female writers often called “mommy bloggers.” Read full article > >

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PunditMom breaks down the political evolution of mommy bloggers

Feeling the cold these days? Then hurry on down to sign up for House Majority Leader John Boehner ’ s week-long fact-finding trip to Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, taking off Jan. 8. The Ohio Republican is scheduled to escape the chill with Democratic Rep. Dan Boren (Okla.) and Republican Reps. Dave Camp (Mich.), John Kline (Minn.), Doc Hastings (Wash.), Devin Nunes (Calif.) and Greg Walden (Ore.). Nunes is the only one on this congressional delegation (codel) with a chance of decent weather back home this time of year. Read full article > >

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A sunny congressional delegation

“I like to believe that people in the long run are going to do more to promote peace than our governments. Indeed, I think that people want peace so much that one of these days government had better get out of the way and let them have it.” –Dwight D. Eisenhower

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The Humanity of Crowds

With its new “I’m a Mormon” ad campaign, the Mormon Church is seeking a more fashionable face. But some of what’s deemed cool these days — beards, scruffy clothes, tattoos — raises eyebrows.

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Young Mormons Find Ways to Be Hip

SHEFFIELD, Iowa — Brett O’Donnell’s short-sleeved plaid shirts and unassuming slouch may seem out of sync with the high-gloss vibe that radiates from Rep. Michele Bachmann these days as well as the red meat of her tea party rhetoric. Bachmann’s glitzy blue bus, blaring Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash, is surrounded by advance men in earpieces. Her proxy on the cable news circuit, adviser Ed Rollins, seems to detonate more bombs than he disarms with his all-too-candid assessments of Bachmann’s falling fortunes. Read full article > >

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The candidate whisperer: The man behind Michele Bachmann

Money is talking a bit louder in the recruiting of college students these days, with more admissions officers searching for students who need no financial aid and can pay full price.

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Universities Seeking Out Students of Means

Rep. Anthony Weiner isn’t the only man behaving badly online these days: The author of a popular lesbian blog was revealed to be a man Monday, just days after the “Gay Girl in Damascus” blog was also found to have been written by a man. “Paula Brooks,”…

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Another ‘Lesbian’ Editor Is Actually Man

Washington – With love, luck and lollipops being in short supply on Capitol Hill these days, it’s highly unlikely Congress will present Sen. Jeff Bingaman with the legacy of a parting gift of even a watered-down clean energy standard. Realizing that, the outgoing New Mexico Democrat — who has announced he won’t seek a sixth term in 2012 — seems determined not to exit Washington empty-handed. read more

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Senators Chart "Clean Energy Standard" That Includes Nuclear, Coal

America’s fat cats are convinced a million dollars won’t get them very far these days, according to a survey conducted by Fidelity Investments. The investment firm found that roughly 42 percent of more than 1,000 millionaires surveyed do not consider…

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U.S. Millionaires Don’t Feel Rich

One council is shutting all but one of its public toilets, so where in the High Street can you go to the loo these days?

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Where can you go to the toilet?

Eva Golinger, a New Yorker, seems to be expounding everywhere these days on the threats to this country’s so-called “Bolivarian revolution.”

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The Saturday Profile: In Venezuela, an American Has the President’s Ear

Drug-dealing isn’t the only problem up at Columbia University these days: Political science professor David Epstein has been charged with incest. According to court papers, he carried on a relationship with a female relative over a three-year period….

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Columbia Prof Charged with Incest

If President Obama does anything these days, it seems to garner criticism from his detractors-including writing a children’s book. Several conservative media outlets, led by Fox News, have taken issue with Obama’s children’s book Of Thee I Sing: A…

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Fox Objects to Obama’s Children’s Book