IF YOU TWIST AND TURN AWAY As I hit the road for another week, I'll leave with a link to what has got to be one of the absolute, hands-down best songs in the history of rock: U2's "Bad" from The Unforgettable Fire. The U2 site's music timeline is a phenom. "If you twist and turn away./If you tear yourself in two again./If I could, yes I would/If I could, I would let it go./Surrender, dislocate./If I could throw this lifeless life-line to the wind./Leave this heart of clay, see you walk, walk away" Have a great week. See you in December just in time for Eid.

WHAT DO THEY FEED POETS IN ROMANIA? Andrei Codrescu is at his best on the radio, when he's getting worked up about something aesthetic and strange, when he's just about to wander off the reservation. And if you're able to channel that voice in your head while you read, he works in print, too.

FOLLOWING THE TRAIL Martin Smith and his Nightline crew presented a vivid portrait of their journey through Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen in last night's "In Search of Al Qaeda." Smith follows through today with an illuminating online discussion. His keeper phrase from the transcript? "Martin Smith: I always find it healthy to spend outside of the United States, and to realize that the United States is not the center of the universe, that we sometimes fool ourselves into thinking that it is. In a sense, the interviews with people in faraway places give me insights into different and equally valid perspectives on the world we live in."

HOW I STARTED MY MODELING CAREER Really, it's not as glamorous as people make it out to be. Cheekbones and hips, that's what makes or breaks you these days.

OH, THOSE WRY BRITS (ON IRAQ) Mick Hume, editor of spiked-online, gives perhaps the best (and one of the more amusing) reads on the pro-war and anti-war arguments vis-a-vis Iraq and finds both sides to be insanely stupid and inarticulate. "Exactly what planet is Donald Rumsfeld on?" he asks in his opening, going on to share Rumsfeld's infamous NPR interview where he related his war rationale to... well, read for yourself. Hume shares the tale: ‘And of course,’ says Washington’s military hard man, ‘the advantage of not acting against the Moon would be that no one could say that you acted. They would say, “Isn’t that good? You didn’t do anything against the Moon.” The other side of the coin of not acting against the Moon in the event that the Moon posed a serious threat would be that you then suffered a serious loss and you’re sorry after that’s over.’ Hume continues, "Rumsfeld’s howling at the Moon captures the otherworldly quality of the debate about Iraq. It is a surreal affair in which nobody has offered a good reason for going to war, yet nobody has come up with a good case against it either." Hume slaps around the anti-war side, as well. Because, ultimately, any attack against Iraq is the result of many bad decisions (going back decades and shared by many smart people), a handful of reasonable arguments (yes, some even offered by Republicans), corporate greed (cheap oil, feeding the military-industrial machine), a strange dictatorial need for expansionism and power (ala Saddam Hussein), and some disingeneous interpretations of the role of the United States in a changing world. Oh, yeah, and the Man on the Moon... There's plenty of blame that can be shared.

THE CHAOS OF CAIRO Al-Ahram captures the essence of a city that captured my imagination when I spent a month there in 1999. A city of 20 million packed within 214 square kilometres -- twice the land of Richmond proper with 100 times the population. My impressions of the snarl and chaos and energy of Cairo almost all involve walking the unwalkable city expanse: paralyzed at a sidewalk crossing facing eight lanes of cars on a four lane road; elbowing my way onto a subway car packed thicker than any I've experienced in New York; choking on sand, dust and fumes crossing the Nile.

AIDS IN SOUTH AFRICA AIDS is the leading cause of death for women in one of Africa's most developed countries. The percentage of women in South Africa who died of AIDS in 2001 was 9.8 percent; a combined 41 percent of all deaths (male and female) in South Africa from 1997-2001 came from tuberculosis, flu and pneumonia -- diseases commonly associated with AIDS.

LE BEAUJOLAIS NOUVEAU EST ARRIV Big deal. That's the verdict from Slate on today's marketing-driven release of Beaujolais Nouveau in special events around the world. "The frenzy led many consumers to assume that Beaujolais was meant only to be drunk in the late autumn; that Nouveau, the cheapest Beaujolais there is, was the only one worth drinking; and that Duboeuf was the only name that mattered. The truth—that Nouveau is the lowest wine in the Beaujolais hierarchy; that Beaujolais has 10 premier growths of far superior quality; and that the region boasts a number of artisanal winemakers crafting first-rate wines—never really seeped into the marketplace." Give me good Beaujolais, certainly, but keep your Nouveau to yourself.

SENATOR BYRD IS IN THE HOUSE I'm not at all sorry for this admission: I find Senator Byrd of West Virginia to be one of the best orators on Capitol Hill. And I wish more Senators practiced his no-holds-barred approach to speeches; we could stand more honestly angry people in politics these days. Salon provides his whole speech. It isn't long. Here's the bit I enjoyed: "The people are being offered a bureaucratic behemoth, complete with fancy, top-heavy directorates, officious new titles and noble sounding missions instead of real tools to help protect them from death and destruction... How utterly irresponsible. How callous. How cavalier. With this debate about homeland security, politics in Washington has reached the apogee of utter cynicism and the perigee of candor... No one is telling our people the plain unvarnished truth. It is simply this: This Department is a bureaucratic behemoth cooked up by political advisors to satisfy several inside Washington agendas. 1) It is intended to protect the president from criticism and fault -- should another attack occur. 2) It is intended to eliminate large numbers of dedicated, trained federal workers, so that lucrative contracts for their services may be awarded to favored private entities. 3) It will be used to channel federal research moneys and grants to big corporate contributors without the usual federal procurement standards that ensure fair competition and best value for the tax dollar. 4) It will foster easier spying and information-gathering on ordinary citizens which may be used in ways which could have nothing whatsoever to do with homeland security... And now with this new bill, which showed up only last week on the doorstep of the Senate, insult has been added to injury by provisions that further exploit the already shamefully exploited issue of homeland security with pork for certain states and certain businesses... My, my, my, how low we have sunk... Well, the nation will have this unfortunate creature, this behemoth bureaucratic bag of tricks, this huge Department of Homeland Security, and it will hulk across the landscape of this city, touting its noble mission, shining up its new seal, and eagerly gobbling up tax dollars for all manner of things, some of which will have very little to do with protecting or saving lives... And maybe in five years or so, it will sort out its mission and shift around its desks enough to actually make some real contribution to the safety of our people. I sincerely hope so."

I SPY... A CHANGE IN DIRECTION The Wall Street Journal Online is one of those pricey subscription sites, so thanks to Howard Kurtz's media column for pointing out that the government's controversial Total Information Awareness data mining initiative is losing ground. Kurtz writes: "Are the Bushies backing off their big surveillance program? Sure sounds like it from this Wall Street Journal piece: 'The Bush administration is trying to calm fears that a planned Pentagon program to comb through large quantities of citizens' personal information will erode civil liberties. The Total Information Awareness program has been blasted by advocacy groups and in the media as a potentially serious invasion of privacy. Pentagon officials argue that the pilot program, which has yet to be put into operation, could be a useful tool in the war on terrorism. Edward 'Pete' Aldridge, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, said yesterday the program is still being tested and that criticisms of it are premature. . . '"

WOMEN PICK UP THE PIECES IN RWANDA In the aftermath of the 1994 genocide, in which 800,000 people (10% of the population) was massacred in ethnic violence, Rwanda is quietly reshaping its politics and policies. Newly created women's councils have been established in many communities -- a way to ensure that women's views on education, health and security are voiced and heard. As a result, 27 percent of the seats on local governance councils are held by women. And this quiet activity stands ready to transform Rwanda.

BOOK IT (TIMES 70) The CSMonitor pulls together their recommended reading from hundreds of books they reviewed in 2002. The end result is a list of 10 highly recommended and almost 60 noteworthy books with capsule reviews and links to the full CSMonitor review. Start cobbling that Christmas list together, kids.

A DOWNSIDE TO PRIVATIZATION This comprehensive look at how war has become a business in Africa is a stark glimpse into how companies and individuals are profiting from the instability on the continent. While nothing new, it has become more organized, and is increasingly sanctioned by governments. One of the larger, long-term issues extends outside of Africa -- the privatization of security and other military services. As the series notes, "Private military companies, or PMCs as the new world order’s mercenaries have come to be known, allow governments to pursue policies in tough corners of the world with the distance and comfort of plausible deniability. [A] investigation uncovered the existence of at least 90 private military companies that have operated in 110 countries worldwide. These corporate armies, often providing services normally carried out by a national military force, offer specialized skills in high-tech warfare, including communications and signals intelligence and aerial surveillance, as well as pilots, logistical support, battlefield planning and training. They have been hired both by governments and multinational corporations to further their policies or protect their interests." Beyond the superficial value these companies offer -- i.e. effective, well-run services -- the downside is beginning to become apparent as shaky regimes and fragmented governments begin to rely on private firms and consultants to manage their countries. Corporate colonialism runs the risk of removing any impetus for the creation of strong, democratized leadership in countries throughout the world. Why settle for less-than-perfect home-grown solutions when you can buy a strategic military plan and trained professionals to manage your country for you?

GET LOST AT FOUND If you've never perused Found Magazine's collection of, well, found stuff...

WHERE THE WAR WILL BE WON OR LOST All the databanks and security guards in the world won't stop terrorism -- or significantly diminish its appeal to some. Democratization, economic development, human rights and a few more catch-all activities that honestly work to change the rough (often miserable) state of life for much of the world's population are, in the words of editorialist Jackson Diehl, "as potent as a Predator." I'd say more potent. Last week's Community of Democracies ministerial meeting (which booted our non-democratic friends Egypt and Pakistan from the proceedings) was a step in a productive direction.

ONLY 713 MORE SHOPPING DAYS TIL THE 2004 ELECTIONS The Democrats have hit the gate. Al Gore's recent spate of interviews and a sour finish in the congressional elections has spurred a push for the Dems to find a candidate worth fielding. This week's media choice? Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. Howard Kurtz scans the headlines and provides the background analysis.

TOTAL INFORMATION AWARENESS From the virtual pages of differentstrings.info comes news that a coalition of 50 organizations are getting on the "Hmm. Maybe I am a little worried about the Defense Department hiring Admiral Poindexter to data mine the crap out of my personal life." bandwagon. And that Microsoft has launched a Homeland Security development team in order to land contracts they just know will soon be sailing down the pipeline. Iran Contra's Poindexter + the Department of Defense + Microsoft. Why do I suddenly feel like purging my personal database?

ANGRY KITTENS DO THE VINES I'm a sucker for kittens, especially kittens that like Euro garage rock.

TOON TIME I'll start your journey in the land of online comic "Nowhere Girl" with Part Two because it's a bit lighter than Part One, and kicks off with some nice ant-dominated panels. It's a sharp strip, and you scroll from page-to-page (and back to Part One) using the links in the upper right corner of the page. It's a good ride. Get on the bus.

WAR ON TERRORISM (GAYS NOT WELCOME) The Washington Post editorial board is succinct: "... in the military, at least, the desire to defeat al Qaeda has been preempted by an apparently more important priority: continuing the irrational discrimination against gay men and lesbians who would serve their country." At least seven Arabic linguists have been discharged since the September 11 attacks solely on the basis of their sexual orientation. This is not only absurd on the face of it -- language specialists are the one thing the military says it doesn't have enough of -- but it continues a bigoted policy that the previous administration closed its eyes to. But let's not give Bush a pass on this issue. The Post notes, "Steve Ralls, spokesman for the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, says that the more than 1,200 service people discharged in 2001 made up the highest yearly total since 1987." For more on the issue of gays in the military, and on the discharge of the seven linguists, check out the SLDN website.

OUTING VIRGINIA Holy crap. "1587 -- Virginia was initially called Windgancon, meaning 'what gay clothes you wear.' The names Cape Fear, Cape Hatteras, the Chowan and Neuse rivers, Chesapeake and Virginia, were all names that date to the first colony." This explains the polo shirts everyone wears.

TIME OUT This made me curiously queasy. It also made me adjust the clock in my office because it was one second off. Well, actually it didn't. Nor did I. But three cheers for Yugo Nakamura for having time on his hands. So to speak.

8-TRACKS ON A GRAVEL ROAD Lucinda Williams is wrapping up her latest musical package, scheduled for delivery sometime in 2003. It'll be interesting to see if it's as much a departure from "Essence" as "Essence" was from "Car Wheels..." And here's a li'l profile/interview to tide you over.

I'LL TAKE BUSH TO PLACE Taking the guesswork out of war. That's the goal of Slate's "Saddameter," which tracks the odds of a U.S. invasion of Iraq. Today's odds (expressed as a percentage): 58%.

NORWAY TRUMPS SWEDEN Another review of Cato Salsa Experience (aka Norway's Hottest Rock Band of the Week) started off with an old Norwegian adage: "A thousand Swedes run through the weeds, chased by one Norwegian." Point being: Norway's rock scene is playing catch up. Because it's not like many of us sit down and wonder which band from Norway's going to break next. But the kids love the garage rock in these modern days, and Norway's Cato Salsa Experience has got a lot of bounce mixed in with their fuzz. Like a kitten with a wool sweater.

GOING UP, UP, UP Encouraging news from the world of corporate research -- women now hold 15.7 percent of corporate officer positions at large public companies in the U.S. -- almost double the numbers reported in 1995.

THE RISE OF DOT.HOLYWAR This Wall Street Journal glimpse into al Qaeda's use of technology shows how the Internet's strengths and weaknesses have played out in the world of Islamic terrorism. An overview of the efforts that went into building the "Milestones of Holy War" website shows how "al Qaeda operatives struggled with some of the same tech headaches as ordinary people: servers that crashed, outdated software and files that wouldn’t open. Their Web venture followed a classic dot-com trajectory. It began with excitement, faced a cash crunch, had trouble with accountants and ultimately fizzled." They should have used a Mac.

WAR BY THE TONNE William Arkin makes an appearance at Gulf News Online with a glimpse at military logistics -- how they were utilized in Afghanistan, and how the same system might make conflict in Iraq easier. What does it take to wage war against Iraq? "...the requirement for airfields and seaports has risen to 18 and 13 respectively. OPLAN 1003-98 calls for more than 60,000 short tonnes in supplies a day, the equivalent of 3,500 tractor-trailers driving the distance from Tampa, Florida, to Savannah, Georgia, every day - or 5,000 flights by C-130 Hercules cargo planes. It is the logistical equivalent of loading up, moving and unloading everyone and everything in the city of Norfolk, Virginia - population 230,000 - including all the automobiles, to the Middle East," Arkin observes. More tellingly, Arkin points out that the U.S. military has been using the old Russian rail system through the former Soviet republics in southern Asia, and bases in the region and throughout the Middle East and Indian Ocean, to position itself for war.

NOT GONE, NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN World AIDS Day is December 1, and since it appears I'll be roaming the northern hills then I'll do my linking early. Link & Think is a site encouraging webloggers and online publishers to publish links to resources and news articles about HIV/AIDS on December 1.

"The Snow Man" I thought of Wallace Stevenns this weekend, as I was coming down the mountainside listening to the rattle of sleet on the glass window, and feeling the push of cold wind through the half-open window, and gazing at the wrapping of clouds about the tree tops.

GOING GENTLE INTO THE NIGHT Not true, actually. There's an increasing amount of raging taking place in Afghanistan these days, as well as a growing sense that the fledgling government of Hamid Karzai might just be the Kabul mayoral office, not a national government. Quick synopsis: increasing hit-and-run attacks on U.S. troops, increasing factional power struggles, a slowing of aid and reconstruction activity. The L.A. Times echoes one of my favorite diplomatic figures in their assessment: "American statesman George Kennan foresaw the problem during World War II, when he was assigned one summer to Baghdad. 'Our government is technically incapable of conceiving and promulgating a long-term consistent policy toward areas remote from its own territory,' he wrote. The problem, he added, is that 'our actions in the field of foreign affairs are the convulsive reactions of politicians to an internal political life dominated by vocal minorities.'" The people of Afghanistan are going to pay for our short attention span.

DISPATCHES FROM THE FRONT Frontline producers Martin Smith and Marcela Gavira spent August and September combing the various ports of call -- inland and seaside -- frequented by al Qaeda to develop "In Search of al Qaeda," which airs November 21 (this Thursday) on PBS. Regardless of your interest in al Qaeda, the daily email dispatches from Smith and Gavira as they poke and prod in Karachi and Yemen and Saudi Arabia and a dozen less-known places provide a fascinating glimpse into a world we only half-know. The dispatches, especially once they leave London, are curious snapshots, tattered and faded at the edges, but sharply defined at the center.