Geneva, Switzerland. Monday through Thursday.

I only have time for a short comment as I’m heading to the airport to fly to Europe, but Commerce Secretary nominee Bill Richardson has withdrawn from his appointment because of an ongoing grand jury investigation into whether he traded New Mexico government contracts for campaign contributions.

I have just been communicating in the last few minutes with two friends over Facebook — one a prominent Jewish American blogger now visiting family in an Orthodox community in Israel — and the other a prominent Arab Muslim blogger living in the Middle East. I don’t want to disclose the identities of either.

A number of DC insiders — including Paul Begala, Katherine Kennedy, Margaret Carlson, Peter Fenn, George Vradenburg, Winston Lord, Strobe Talbott, Grover Norquist, Jim Moran, Dana Perino, Steve Clemons, and others — shared their thoughts on movies that “tickled their fancy” for the year in Jeff Dufour and Patrick Gavin’s Yeas & Neas column today…

Over at The Century Foundation‘s blog, Taking Note, Patrick Radden Keefe highlights five books that anyone who wants to dig into the DNA of the G.W. Bush era could use as a down payment on future penetrating exposes that we can expect once the incumbent office holders get back to baseball, ranching and oil-drilling.

Feel free to add your own stories, but I think that given the number of times I (and all of us) are asked for customer feedback, I might as well make it public.

I’m just back to Washington after a fun holiday. Happy New Year to everyone — but it’s back to the real world tomorrow, and it’s a messy place.

Later today, Josh Marshall will be announcing the winners of his spoofy “Golden Duke Awards” — named for the now-in-jail scion of the corrupt fringe of America’s military industrial complex, former California Congressman Randy “Duke” Cunningham.

Greetings all. It’s quite early in the morning here in Carson City, Nevada — and am now off to Reno Airport, then to New York City where I’ll be saluting the new year with friends. Consider this an open thread. All best and more later.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy Former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski spent some time educating the nation — and Joe Scarborough — about the way to frame the current Gaza tragedy and what needs to be done to move forward.