What Caught My Eye Today

Politics - Cindy Sheehan, the slain soldier's mother whose attacks on President Bush made her a darling of the anti-war movement, said she decided to run against Hose Speaker Nancy Pelosi unless the congresswoman moves to oust Bush in the next two weeks. Sheehan said she will run as an independent against the San Francisco Democrat in 2008 if Pelosi does not file articles of impeachment against Bush by July 23. That's when Sheehan and her supporters are to arrive in Washington, D.C., after a 13-day caravan and walking tour starting from the group's war protest site near Bush's Crawford ranch. Although Sheehan has never held public office, she said she already has the name recognition and would not have to run against Pelosi in a primary. "I would give her a run for her money," Sheehan said. Yeah, okay. You go, girlfriend. Just out of curiosity, are you planning on returning to reality before or after the election?

Iraq - President Bush is not contemplating withdrawing forces from Iraq now despite an erosion of support among Republicans for his war policy. The administration also tried to lower expectations about a report due Sunday on whether the Iraqi government is meeting political, economic and security benchmarks that Bush set in January when he announced a buildup of 21,500 U.S. combat forces. The boost in troop levels in Iraq has increased the cost of war there and in Afghanistan to $12 billion a month, with the tally for Iraq alone nearing a half-trillion dollars, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, which provides research and analysis to lawmakers. The figures call into question the Pentagon's estimate that the increase in troop strength and intensifying pace of operations in Baghdad and Anbar province would cost only $5.6 billion through the end of September. Bush is under growing pressure even within his own party to shift course in Iraq as the war drags on and casualties climb. At least 3,605 members of the U.S. military have died since the war began in March 2003. Bush's approval rating in the polls has sunk to record lows. I don't want to be a naysayer, but seriously, how much lower does the White House think it can push expectations. Everyone outside of Bush's administration thinks the war is a complete and total failure. How much lower can you get than that?

Wonders of the World - Seven sites have been chosen as the new wonders of the world in an online poll that drew more than 100 million voters. The winners are Brazil's Statue of Christ Redeemer, Peru's Machu Picchu, Mexico's Chichen Itza pyramid, the Great Wall of China, Jordan's Petra, the Colosseum in Rome, and India's Taj Mahal. The seven modern wonders of the list were chosen from 20 candidates short-listed from among 77 initial ones. Losing out among the front-runners on the short-listed sites were the Acropolis in Athens and the Eiffel Tower in Paris. UNESCO, the UN's cultural body, said in a statement in June that the list of the seven new wonders will be the result of a "private initiative" that cannot contribute in any significant or lasting way to the preservation of the elected sites. Oh lighten up people. Seriously, how many of us remember any of the original seven? Click here if you have any interest the original list of wonders.

Tennis - What a set of finale's at Wimbledon. First, Venus Williams wins her fourth singles title on Saturday, then the big guns came out on Sunday. Roger Federer managed to win his fifth title in a row over Rafael Nadal in an epic 5 set match that, for my money, will go down as one of the greatest Grand Slam finals ever. Bring on the U.S. Open.

Cycling - Two stages are in the books for the 94th Tour de France. On both occasions the final moments of both stages were marred by crashes. The second stage crash occurred about a mile from the finish taking out 170 of the 189 riders. Luckily, international rules give all riders in the group that crashes the same finishing time if the crash occurs within 3 kilometers of the finish. Since all the riders were bunched together (including the 19 that eventually sprinted for the finish) at the time of the crash, everyone got the same finishing time. Whether or not all 189 riders are able to start the third stage, remains to be seen. Who knew that cycling could be such a violent sport?