THERE IS ANOTHER SERIOUS INCURSION OF AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES working its way through the Congress in the name of 9/11 and the “War on Terror.” And John Ashcroft is behind this Orwellian statute.

ALTHOUGH THERE ARE SOME EUROPEAN BLOGS HERE AND THERE, I haven’t run across many. And it’s clear from my conversations with hundreds of people in France these last couple of days, very few Europeans know that blogs and blogging exist.

“WE CAN SAY WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION, NO WEAPONS OF MASS Destruction,” Coors said.

HERE’S A FACTOID FOR JOHN KERRY ON DOMESTIC SECURITY. The New York Port Authority is cutting down on cops and overtime for police at Kennedy Airport.

DAVID HALE IS ONE OF THOSE POLYGLOT ECONOMISTS WHO MESMERIZE, exhaust, inform, and entertain all at the same time. There are a few of those types out there, and I really enjoy spending time with David and the very few others out there like him. I always learn a lot. Hale was just in D.C….

I THOUGHT THAT WATCHING THE 2ND PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE IN FRANCE might make a difference in how I saw things as compared to being inside the beltway. I certainly had no access at all to the post-debate spin here at 4:30 a.m. Caen time.

THE SECOND PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE HAS MANY IN FRANCE ON EDGE. Chirac is on a state visit to China. There are still two French journalist kidnap victims being held by Iraqi insurgents.

I AM WATCHING GEORGE W. BUSH SPEAK LIVE IN WILKES-BARRE, PA.

OK, I AM GOING TO UNINTENTIONALLY FRUSTRATE MANY OF MY READERS TONIGHT. Like Josh Marshall, I tried to stay away from the spin — assemble my thoughts fast before they became infected by others.

THE BUSH CAMPAIGN SAYS GEORGE BUSH IS FOR STEM CELL RESEARCH — BIG TIME — according to a statement titled “Embryonic Stem Cell Misinformation.” Who knew? In the roster of “facts” provided in the statement, Bush-Cheney 2004 states: President Bush delivered the first funding ever for embryonic stem cell research.