It’s been mentioned that it would be a good idea to learn about the non-political interests of Swords Crossed members. I agree that it helps to foster more good-natured debate when you realize that your adversary is a real person with many interests that may coincide with your own. In that spirit, I'm starting off with a primary interest of mine that is most likely to be shared, at least on some level, with other SCers: beer.

From CNN: 

AirTran Airways apologized Friday to members of a Muslim family for kicking them off a plane and refusing to rebook them despite requests from FBI agents who had cleared them of wrongdoing. [...]

John McCain, George Bush and nearly all of the other war apologists have been saying for the last three years that a "premature" exit of U.S. forces from Iraq will result in Islamic terrorists "following us home" to attack us on U.S. soil.

While experts disagree with this premise, a story coming over the wire today may signal that, in fact, George W. Bush and John McCain may be right...

Crossposted on DailyKos

A Russian-led plan to build a land link between Russia and Alaska is going forward, Russian officials announced in a press conference earlier this week. The $65 billion project, spearheaded by Viktor Razbegin, a wealthy business tycoon who is serving as a high-ranking official in the Russian Economy Ministry, would include a tunnel under the Bering Strait containing high-speed rail, a highway, and pipelines, along with lengthy road, rail, and pipeline links in Siberia and Alaska to connect with existing infrastructure. When completed, the project would link Eurasia and Africa with North and South America, a historic achievement that would for the first time create the possibility of land transport and travel through all five major continents.