I'm actually still here.

I'm still here, and alive.

Let the betting start...

on who will apologize first: Scott McClellan (White House Press Secretary) or Newsweek? The former for viciously demanding Newsweek to singlehandedly repair the U.S. image, or the latter for mistakenly apologizing in the first place?

It's out: Pentagon confirms Koran abuse at Guantanamo Bay (BBC)

US guards at the Guantanamo Bay detention centre kicked, threw water and splashed urine on copies of Koran.

The Pentagon has released details of five incidents in which the Koran was mishandled by US personnel at the camp, some intentional and others accidental ......

The Newsweek report sparked protests across the Muslim world. In Afghanistan riots resulted in the deaths of at least 15 people.

Thousands rallied in Egypt, Pakistan, Jordan, Lebanon and Malaysia, demanding apologies from the US and punishment for those involved.

The magazine withdrew its story after saying it could no longer corroborate the report. The inmate who made the original allegation about the Koran being flushed down the toilet had retracted it, said Brig Gen Hood.

The White House rounded on the magazine, saying its report had done "lasting damage" to the US image in the Muslim world.

Since Newsweek is a weekly magazine, I am not sure that I can expect anything from them until the next issue. Then again, knowing the courage of the "free" press in this nation... They may decide to ignore it completely.

This was the featured picture on the home screen of NYTimes online:

That is an incredibly ugly fish. I can't believe the media is staying quiet. They showed some mettle in standing up to McClellan when he tried to turn the media into Fox News. Many protested the strong words condemning Newsweek for pretty much every foreign policy mistake made in the last five years. Geesh, I thought the media was supposed to be the big evil monster that creates the scapegoats...

Washington Post still can't and won't get over Deep Throat revelation. I'm almost sick of the whole thing, and I'm obsessed about Watergate (ever since watching the movie with Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman).

Daily Kos diary points out the lovely timing of this news story...

Funny how this breaks on Friday after 6:00PM, huh?

That's all I will say for now. SAT Espanol tomorrow... My last one!