A mountain-sized asteroid will make its closest approach to Earth at 6:35 a.m. Pacific Time (9:35 a.m. Eastern Time) today.

Although asteroid 4179 Toutatis will come no closer than four times the distance between Earth and the Moon (approximately 1.5 million kilometers or 961,000 miles), this will be the closest approach of any known asteroid of comparable size this century.

"This is the closest Toutatis will come for another 500 years, and its orbit is very well known," said Dr. Don Yeomans of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manager of NASA's Near Earth Objects Program Office.  "What this fly-by provides is an opportunity to study one of our closest solar system neighbors."

To view a computer model of asteroid Toutatis on the Internet, visit http://reason.jpl.nasa.gov/~ostro/ToutatisHires.mov

"The evidence about Saddam having actual biological and chemical weapons ... has turned out to be wrong" (article here)

Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, is one of the harshest critics of the Iraq policies. "The president has frequently described Iraq as, quote, 'the central front of the war on terror,' " Mr. Biden went on. "Well by that definition, success in Iraq is a key standard by which to measure the war on terror. And by that measure, I think the war on terror is in trouble." (more)

Here's a critical analysis of George W. Bush's military record. (PDF format)

Paul on his bout with depression and anxiety:

"I'm far enough on the side of depression and anxiety that they really can't treat me without me having to suffer an episode of one of the two almost all the time. ... But whenever I see my son, my mood brightens and if he wants me to come to the Christmas play, and I feel like killing myself, it's like, dammit, I'll go to the play and watch it and enjoy it. So he's been a great addition to my life, I think."

entire interview