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Robert Fisk, one of leading journalists and commentators on the Middle East, wonders how much the West really cares about what happens to Iraqis. He speaks movingly and candidly of walking in the morgues of Baghdad, seeing the bodies of young women shot at checkpoints for not stopping in time, or ripped to pieces by suicide bombers. Why then, he asks, are the casualty figures for these civilians never released?

Just back from a tour of Iraq's Sunni Triangle, U.S. Rep. T. Timothy Holden, D-17, is both upset and encouraged. He's upset, he said, about having been tricked into supporting the war, but he still has a good feeling about the American effort. Although he is hopeful U.S. forces will establish order in Iraq, Holden said he feels he was deceived into supporting the war in the first place. "There was misleading evidence," he said. "There were no weapons of mass destruction, no link with al-Qaida, the 9/11 commission said that. "We were mislead. There are no ifs, ands or...

Maryland has won a nearly $1 million federal grant that will make it possible for poor families and the elderly to avoid a sometimes embarrassing trip to their local welfare office by signing up for food stamps and medical aid online. Applicants will be able to request food stamps, medical assistance and emergency cash. And, unlike local offices, said Margarita Maisterrena, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Food and Nutrition Service, the Web system will be "open around the clock." Some states already have computerized food stamp systems, including Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. said yesterday he would welcome a legislative investigation into the activities of a longtime aide who was fired because he circulated rumors about Baltimore Mayor O'Malley"We welcome it. We will assist. Let that investigation go where that investigation leads," Mr. Ehrlich said at a news conference.

State governments working on a national Internet sales tax system are moving ahead with plans to create the data infrastructure that they and retailers will need to manage the collection of taxes on most e-commerce transactionsTo date, 19 states -- including Florida, Michigan and Texas -- have modified their sales tax codes to make it easier for retailers to collect taxes on Internet sales. By October 2005, the states hope to have a voluntary collection system working in at least 15 states representing roughly one-fourth of the U.S. population. With that in place, they hope, Congress would be more likely...

The Virginia Transportation Research Council studied all of the state red light camera programs and found an overall increase in injury accidents. A brand new, exhaustive study of all seven Virginia red light camera programs shows an overall increase in injury accidents has occured where the devices are installed. The study was performed by The Virginia Transportation Research Council at the request of the state transportation secretary. The report also notes a fatal flaw in the Virginia's camera law -- motorists can ignore any ticket received in the mail. Only tickets that are personally served matter (the same thing happened...

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland state legislator Michael Smigiel Sr. is proposing a bill that would require all adult websites that transmit data within the state to have a “.sex” top-level domain. The bill, which will probably be introduced in the Maryland General Assembly early next week, will mandate a TLD on par with the .xxx designation currently being considered by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. According to Smigiel, a staunch civil libertarian, the new bill should answer the question of how to protect minors without inhibiting any constitutional rights

TSUNAMI-struck Thailand has been told by the European Commission that it must buy six A380 Airbus aircraft if it wants to escape the tariffs against its fishing industry. While millions of Europeans are sending aid to Thailand to help its recovery, trade authorities in Brussels are demanding that Thai Airlines, its national carrier, pays £1.3 billion to buy its double-decker aircraft.

Never (since 1908) have both the home states of Presidential candidates and World Series participants been the same.Does this mean there is no chance for a Houston Astros vs. Boston Red Sox series?And, only nine (9) times out of the twenty-four (24) times World Series & Elections coincided has even 1 team been from a candidate's State. So what are the chances that neither Houston nor Boston will be in the Series?

Maryland Comptroller William Donald Schaefer (D) yesterday called people with AIDS "a danger" and said those suffering from the disease "brought it on themselves."

BILL Clinton described himself as a "cheerleader for peace" when he and his wife Hillary visited the North yesterday. The former US president met political leaders and said he was encouraged about the prospects of the devolution process starting again. Mr Clinton also claimed that, if John Kerry were elected president, he would be "far more likely to be heavily involved" in the North's politics than George Bush. Gerry Adams said Sinn Fein had impressed on Mr Clinton its determination to approach next month's political talks positively and constructively. DUP deputy leader Peter Robinson told Mr Clinton his party was...

With a monument to slavery's legacy as a backdrop, civic leaders yesterday denounced racist fliers left on Annapolis front lawns and doorsteps by a white supremacist group opposed to an upcoming attempt at racial reconciliation.The coalition urged the community to stand up against the National Alliance, which late last week peppered local households with literature opposing the Lifeline Expedition Walk scheduled for Sept. 29 at City Dock. "The legacy of slavery is still alive in America," said Leonard A. Blackshear, president of the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation based in Annapolis. "Is it alive in Annapolis? The answer is yes." Mr....

The first strike this summer in a much-anticipated “carpet-bombing” campaign to restore native oysters in the Chesapeake Bay has turned out to be a big dud. One million baby oysters, costing about $78,000, were scattered on an artificial reef in June in the Great Wicomico River , near the Virginia-Maryland border, and almost all of the transplants were devoured in one day by a school of cow-nosed rays. The kite-shaped cousins of sting rays, also known as skates or bullfish, are found commonly in the Bay during summer months. “We didn’t really know anything about the cow-nosed ray,” said Doug...

Anne Arundel County police say they believe a group of women stole nearly three-thousand dollars' worth of push-up bras from the Victoria's Secret store at Westfield Shoppingtown Annapolis. An employee told police she noticed four women behaving suspiciously between 2 pm and 3 pm on Wednesday. But when the women left, no one saw them take anything. Around 6 pm, employees noticed 70 push-up bras, worth 42 dollars each, were missing. Police have no suspects, and say there's no detailed description of the four "suspicious" women.

<p>WASHINGTON BUREAU; Tom Frank contributed to this article from Baghdad. February 15, 2004 Washington - U.S. authorities in Iraq have awarded more than $400 million in contracts to a start-up company that has extensive family and, according to court documents, business ties to Ahmed Chalabi, the Pentagon favorite on the Iraqi Governing Council.</p>

A 'FLOATING atomic bomb' dramatically seized by Greek forces is managed by an Irish company, it was revealed last night. Acting on a tip-off from international intelligence agencies, Greek special forces stormed the Baltic Sky and made the largest ever seizure of illegal explosives. Senior Greek government officials last night claimed to have foiled a major terrorist plot. The ship, described as a "rust bucket", had a cargo of 680 tonnes of TNT and 8,000 detonators. It flew the flag of Comoros, a state off Africa's southeast coast, commonly used by shipping companies as a so-called flag of convenience to...

Former soldier, stepson may be traveling in car with New Jersey plates; One seen in Baltimore recently; Authorities make link through Ala. shooting, Tacoma, Wash., tip Click on Sourse for rest

The authorities in Afghanistan say they have foiled an assassination attempt on the country's leadership. Reports say a car, driven by one man was involved in a traffic accident in the centre of Kabul. It was then discovered to be loaded with explosives. Officials say the man planned to crash his vehicle into a vehicle carrying key members of the new Government. It is not yet clear if the man was working alone, or was part of a group

CHELSEA Clinton yesterday caused a flurry of excitement when she visited the flower show which shares her name. The Oxford University student said the visit was especially significant as she was named after the central London area from which the Chelsea Flower Show took its name. The 22-year-old said: "My parents were here during Christmas in 1978. They were hoping to have a child and if it was a girl they said it would be called Chelsea. "They also loved the song Chelsea Morning by Joni Mitchell, which is great because I love my name." The former US president's daughter,...

Click at your own riskKUTZTOWN - Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright accused the Bush administration Wednesday of taking a "hands-off approach" to the Middle East. Speaking at Kutztown University, Albright said the United States must take a more proactive role in Mideast peace in the wake of the Palestinian suicide bombers and Israeli retaliation in the past few weeks. In her remarks, Albright was also quick to criticize the Bush administration for not picking up the peace process where the Clinton administration had left off. "I think it requires a higher level (of involvement) than the president...