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At google.com/powerreaders now you can track the news sites and blogs Barack Obama and John McCain read (from Drudge to The Daily Show) and follow articles catching the eyes of leading political journalists

Those bail-out Republicans, at it again.

WASHINGTON — Alarmed by the sharply eroding confidence in the nation’s two largest mortgage finance companies, the Bush administration on Sunday asked Congress to approve a sweeping rescue package that would give officials the power to inject billions of federal dollars into the beleaguered companies through investments and loans.

On Wednesday morning, in an interview on NBC’s “Today” show, Matt Lauer asked Mr. Obama whether he had made the right call in granting interviews with the girls. Mr. Obama said: “I think we got carried away in the moment. We were having a birthday party and everybody’s laughing and I didn’t catch it quickly enough … We wouldn’t do it again, and we won’t be doing it again.”

It’s absolutely ridiculous that he should feel the need to apologize for something so innocuous.

Hillary Clinton may be poised for a big night tonight, with wins in Ohio, Texas and Rhode Island. Clinton aides say this will be the beginning of her comeback against Barack Obama. There’s only one problem with this analysis: they can’t count.

I’m no good at math either, but with the help of Slate’s Delegate Calculator I’ve scoped out the rest of the primaries, and even if you assume huge Hillary wins from here on out, the numbers don’t look good for Clinton. In order to show how deep a hole she’s in, I’ve given her the benefit of the doubt every week for the rest of the primaries.

I love definitive articles like this one. Tip of the hat to Jonathan Alter.

Figure 1.  France's overseas territories and departments

Table 1. Status and population

Table 2.  Uninhabited islands

Figure 2. Martinique 1632 (Library of Congress)

Figure 3.  Martinique (Central Intelligence Agency 2006)

Figure 4. Fort-de-France 1984  (U.S. State Department)

Figure 5.  French Guiana shaded relief 1992 (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 6.  French Guiana political 1992 (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 7.  French Guiana vegetation 1972 (Central Intelligence Agency)  The territory is mostly rainforest.

Figure 8.  French Guiana economic activity 1972 (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 9. French Polynesia 1989 (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 10. Guadeloupe (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 11.  Île Saint-Barthélemy (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 12. Île Saint-Martin (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 13. Mayotte  (Central Intelligence Agency). The Comoros Islands are to the west.

Figure 14. Location of Mayotte (WikiMedia Commons, 2008)

Figure 15.  New Caledonia (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 16.  Réunion (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 17. Réunion – the day after the volcano erupted, January 16, 2002 (NASA).  Red, indicating patches of active lava, is just barely visible at the volcanic cone on the southwestern  island.

Figure 18.  Île Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 19. Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (NASA)

Figure 20. Îles Wallis and Iles de Horne (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 23.  Île Alofi, to the southeast of Futuna (NASA).

Figure 22.  Futuna Island (NASA)

Figure 21.  Uvea, one of the Wallis Islands (NASA).

Figure 24. Île Amsterdam (WikiMedia Commons)

Figure 25. Île St. Paul (WikiMedia Commons)

Figure 26.  Bassas da India  (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 27. Bassas da India from space (NASA)

Figure 28.  Clipperton Island (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 29. Clipperton Island from space (NASA)

Figure 30.  Crozet Islands (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 31. Crozet Islands eastern group (NASA)

Figure 32. Ile Europa (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 33. Île Europa land use (WikiMedia Commons)

Figure 34. Île Europa (NASA)

Figure 35. French Antarctic and Southern Lands (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 36.  Îles Glorieuses (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 37.  Îles Glorieuses (NASA)

Figure 38.  Île Juan de Nova (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 39.  Île Juan de Nova (NASA).

Figure 40. Île Kerguelen (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 41. Île Kerguelen (NASA)

Figure 42. Landsat infrared image of Kerguelen (NASA)

Figure 43.  Baie du Morbihan, Kerguelen Islands (NASA)

Figure 44. Map of Kerguelen drawn during the expedition of Captain James Cook (WikiMedia Commons)

Figure 45. Île Tromelin (Central Intelligence Agency)

Figure 46. Île Tromelin (NASA)

• Cool Maps for Curious Kids #2: Afghanistan, an Unauthorized Tour of the Land of A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS and THE KITE RUNNER (Cool Maps for Curious Kids) 
• Cool Maps of Baghdad: the Emerald City and other cities of Iraq 
• Cool Maps of Cuba: An Atlas of History, Population, Resources Before and After Fidel Castro 
• Cool Maps of Indonesia: An Unauthorized View of the Land of EAT, PRAY, LOVE 
• Cool Maps of Iran: Persian History, Oil Wealth, Politics, Population, Religion, Satellite, WMD and More 
• Cool Maps of Iraq: History, Oil Wealth, Politics, Population, Religion, Satellite, and More

Welcome to the COOL MAPS series! this has been a strong-selling title and I am proud of it.   this beautifully printed volume contains 24 high-resolution color maps and images of Afghanistan, ranging from historical maps to satellite photos and covering every dimension of the land and its people.  If you or your kids enjoy flipping through beautiful picture books, as I do, and you believe that a map can be worth ten thousand words, this is the book for you.

In the interest of setting expectations accurately, here is a list of the maps included here:

• Afghanistan and Persia in 1856.
• Afghanistan during the Second Anglo-Afghan War, 1878
• The Durand Line.
• An Ethnolinguistic Map of Afghanistan.
• Land Use and Economic Activity.
• Greenness.
• Topography.
• Color Topography.
• Afghanistan from Space.
• Afghanistan provinces.
• Kabul
• Kabul and Environs.
• Herat Area, 1942.
• Soviet Invasion 1979.
• Clinton Strikes at Al Qaeda in 1998
• Operation Enduring Freedom
• Provincial Reconstruction Teams.
• Opium Production
• Oil and Gas Wells in Afghanistan.
• Dust Storm over Afghanistan.
• Dust Storm over Afghanistan (Surface Temperature)
• The Flag of Afghanistan
• Afghan Currency
• Afghanistan at night

Gee, I have say that's a pretty interesting list.  You do have to bear in mind that this  book is printed in a 8.5 x 8.5 inch paperback format,  so the images are reduced in size  from their original  form.  These images are  meant to provide interesting  synoptic views of the whole country of Afghanistan, and I have to say that I am satisfied that they do just that.   By all means, take a look at Search Inside the Book and judge for yourself.

Cordially,

Fred Zimmerman

Publisher, Nimble Books LLC

• Cool Maps of Baghdad: the Emerald City and other cities of Iraq 
• Cool Maps of Cuba: An Atlas of History, Population, Resources Before and After Fidel Castro 
• Cool Maps of Indonesia: An Unauthorized View of the Land of EAT, PRAY, LOVE
• Cool Maps of Iran: Persian History, Oil Wealth, Politics, Population, Religion, Satellite, WMD and More
• Cool Maps of Iraq: History, Oil Wealth, Politics, Population, Religion, Satellite, and More

 .

Armitage says he was ‘foolish’ to leak CIA agent’s name - CNN.com

However, that doesn’t take away from what Mrs. Plame said. It was foolish, yes.”

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As the oldest son, Tagg Romney commandeered the way-back of the wagon, keeping his eyes fixed out the rear window, where he glimpsed the first sign of trouble. ”Dad!” he yelled. ”Gross!” A brown liquid was dripping down the back window, payback from an Irish setter who’d been riding on the roof in the wind for hours.
As the rest of the boys joined in the howls of disgust, [Mitt] Romney coolly pulled off the highway and into a service station. There, he borrowed a hose, washed down Seamus and the car, then hopped back onto the highway. It was a tiny preview of a trait he would grow famous for in business: emotion-free crisis management.

And veritably Bush 43-like powers of self-criticism and error correction.

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