Free Republic

The three great stories of 2008 were the financial meltdown, the turn-about in Iraq, and the Chicago Way. All of them conveyed a certain sense of the surreal — whether the vaporization of the nation’s 401(k)s in a few hours, or Harvard Law School graduate Barney Frank asking Harvard Law School graduate Franklin Rains of the soon-to-be bankrupt Fannie Mae whether he felt under-regulated, ~snip~ Quite suitably we end the war year with an Egyptian-based Iraqi journalist trying to hit the president of the United States with his two shoes — being canonized by the Arab Street and not-sot-secretly appreciated...

The year in politics 2004 By Peter Roff UPI Senior Political Analyst Published 12/30/2004 12:04 PM WASHINGTON, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- Most of the major political events for 2004 were connected to the presidential campaign. In that sense, therefore, the single biggest story is the re-election of U.S. President George W. Bush. That story, however, has many component parts worthy of specific mention -- beginning with the Democrats' presidential primaries. The first big story was the unexpected rise of former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean -- and his just as spectacular downfall. Running as the candidate of the "Democratic wing of...