The New York Post is not usually one to give props to CUNY, but yesterday it ran an editorial calling for more state aid to CUNY.

You know you want to read it. Excerpts from the finalists from this year's Bad Sex literary awards.

Russia's vast oil wealth is both its blessing and its curse, explains Moisés Naim. (And for Angola and Chad too...)

In the spirit of posthumous albums from Biggie and Tupac, the Chinese Communist Party will release a rap album featuring Chairman Mao. The folks over at Fark are mighty amused.

Fly me to the moon! Yeah, we may think Dubya is a space cadet, but going back to the moon is a good idea that's long overdue.

Caveat emptor: how can consumers stop companies from nickel-and-diming us with hidden fees and overbilling? Complain, en masse.

You have the right to an attorney. Or not. No wait, you do. Err? The Pentagon has fired a bunch of recently hired military defense lawyers for Gitmo detainees.

The Library at Alexandra was the capital of learning in the Hellenistic world. Umberto Eco recently spoke at the opening of the new Library at Alexandria.

Gore Vidal wants to take us aside and tell us about how our leaders used to be great, and how they're not anymore.

Blowback: it's a nice word for the mess we left behind after instigating the 1953-54 coups in Iran and Guatamala.

Taiwan extends an olive branch to defuse the row over its new law governing national referendums: Beijing's removal of front line missiles aimed at Taiwan in exchange for a softer-worded referendum.

Stupid is as stupid does: is there a deliberateness to our destruction of the world, or are we just too dumb to realize it?

India can have the world's fastest-growing economy if it could only get serious about reform. BusinessWeek has more on the IT brain shift from the US to India.

What would Jean-Paul Sartre think about business consultants applying existentialism to corporate strategy?