coercive methods

Slate: a veteran's take on the drop in violence in Iraq, the surge, and what it all might mean for the future.

NYT, LAT, and WP: all lead with Schumer and Feinstein announcing they'll support Mukasey, most likely clearing the way for him to become the next AG, despite his vacillations on what counts as torture. (here's Jon Stewart's take.) the LAT goes into an explanation for Schumer's support -- Mukasey assured him that if Congress passes legislation banning "coercive methods," the president will not be able to sidestep the law.

WP: the Total Intelligence Solutions: for the second day in a row, a creepily named intelligence group in the news (this time it's an affiliate of everyone's favorite contractor, Blackwater)

GDN: Italian police crack down on Romanians after a murder, tear down shanty town outside of Rome

GDN: how an attack on Iran might affect Bahrain's sectarian cleavage

GDN: Fatah targets clerics who support Hamas

GDN: stabilizing Haiti. for now.

Slate: oh, henry. how Kissinger boxed out the State Dept.

misc.
WP: technology and proselytizing: how Christian missionaries are innovating in Cambodia (featuring best phrase of the day: "Farther north in the Cambodian hinterlands, Elijah Lok zoomed down dirt paths across the rice paddies to the village of Trapain Ampil with the "Jesus" film strapped to his motorbike.")

GDN: coffee-flavored condoms for public health in Ethiopia
"The dark brown condoms are made to smell like Ethiopia's popular macchiato, an espresso with a generous amount of cream and sugar." Not everyone is a fan, though: "I hate coffee-flavoured condoms," said Tadesse Teferi, 37, a mechanic. "But I use ordinary condoms when I have sex with ladies other than my wife."

NYT magazine: Pierre Bayard talks about not reading books to really live with them

McSweeney's: on the concept of community