What Caught My Eye Today

France - France's Foreign Minister said a nuclear-armed Iran would pose "a real danger to the whole world. We have to prepare for the worst, and the worst is war." The official Iranian news agency called the comments "inflammatory" and "illogical," and accused France of becoming "the executors for the will of the White House." Iran's military warned that if the U.S. or France bombed targets in Iran, U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan "are within our range." I suppose anything is possible but France condemning Iran on our orders? I think that's a bit of a stretch. And another thing. If France bombs Iran (and we don't), would Iran only retaliate against Americans? That's not cool.

Iran - Speaking of Iran, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that the American people are eager for different opinions about the world, and he is looking forward to providing them with "correct and clear information," state media reported. The hardline Iranian leader left today for New York to address the U.N. General Assembly and speak to students and teachers during a forum at Columbia University. Tensions are high between Washington and Tehran over U.S. accusations that Iran is secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons and helping Shiite militias in Iraq that target U.S. troops — claims Iran denies. Ahmadinejad said his visit will give Americans a chance to hear a different voice. "The United States is a big and important country with a population of 300 million. Due to certain issues, the American people in the past years have been denied correct and clear information about global developments and are eager to hear different opinions," Ahmadinejad said. Gee, I wonder what (or who) Ahmadinejad could be referring to when he says 'certain issues?'

Why not go for the rare tri-fecta. Here's some more dish on Iran, courtesy of our distinguished Vice President, Dick Cheney.

Israel - Vice President Dick Cheney had at one point considered asking Israel to launch limited missile strikes at an Iranian nuclear site to provoke a retaliation. The news comes amid reports that Israel launched an air strike against Syria this month over a suspected nuclear site. Cheney was considering asking Israel to strike the Iranian nuclear site at Natanz. A military response by Iran could give Washington an excuse to then launch airstrikes of its own. Washington has been pursuing diplomatic efforts to persuade Iran to alter its nuclear program. It has refused to take military options off the table, even U.S. resources are taxed by having 169,000 troops in Iraq. Although some intelligence sources say Iran is years away from nuclear capability, Israel believes that military action may be necessary as early as 2008. Israel has declined to comment on the reported air strike, while Syria has denied receiving North Korean nuclear aid and said it could retaliate for the September 6 violation of its territory. The White House should put a muzzle on this guy before he ends up getting someone hurt. Oops, too late. We're already up to 3,798 U.S. deaths (not counting the 27,753 wounded in the line of duty) in Iraq.

Dubai - The Dubai Tower this week was declared the world's tallest free-standing structure, when it reached 1,822 feet, topping Toronto's CN Tower which has held the record since 1976. The Dubai Tower, which is still under construction, will stand at 2,684 feet when it is complete in 2008. That celebration might be short-lived. Another Dubai skyscraper, scheduled for completion in 2009, is reportedly aiming for at least 3,937 feet. Oh, for goodness sake. This is starting to get out of control. Listen up all you vertically obsessed building developers--how about dialing back the testosterone treatments just a tad?

Sports - Here's a rundown of some of the headlines that caught my attention.

Soccer - At the Women's World Cup in China, the U.S. defeated England 3-0 Saturday on second-half goals from Wambach, Shannon Boxx and Lilly during a 12-minute span. The No. 1-ranked Americans advanced to Thursday's semifinal in Hangzhou. The final is Sept. 30 in Shanghai, with the U.S. seeking a third title to go with the ones from 1991 and '99. They will match up against Brazil, a 3-2 winner over Australia. This is Brazil's first berth in the semifinals of the women's World Cup. In the other semifinal, Germany (3-0 winners over North Korea) will face Norway (1-0 winners over China).

NASCAR - Carl Edwards battled through seven late cautions to win the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Dodge Dealers 400 at Dover International Speedway. On a day where several "Chase for the Championship" contenders struggled, Edwards drove a Ford Fusion to his third win of the season and seventh career to move up to third in the standings, three points behind leader Jeff Gordon. Gordon was 11th in a Chevrolet Impala and took the lead atop the standings from teammate Jimmie Johnson who finished 14th. Tony Stewart ran ninth in a Chevrolet and moved into second place, just two points behind Gordon. See this is why I love the Chase for the Nextel Cup--after 2 of 10 races, the top 6 drivers are separated by 18 points. I bet the PGA wishes they had this kind of drama for the Fed Ex Cup.

College Football - The Kentucky Wildcats (4-0), who climbed to No. 14 in the latest Associated Press poll. Southern California (4-0) and Louisiana State (4-0) remained the top two teams in the country with Oklahoma and Florida swapping placed at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively. West Virginia (4-0), California (4-0), Texas (4-0), Ohio State (4-0), Wisconsin (4-0) and Rutgers (3-0) - who entered the Top 10 for the first time this season - finished out the rest of the first ten. Georgia (3-1) skyrocketed seven spots to No. 15 this week after an overtime victory over previously unbeaten Alabama on the road Saturday. The Crimson Tide (3-1) dropped six spots to No. 22.
No. 11 Oregon (4-0) started the second ten, followed by Kentucky (4-0), Georgia (3-1), South Carolina (3-1) and Virginia Tech (3-1). South Florida (3-0), Hawaii and Missouri (4-0) finished out the top 20. Completing the poll are Penn State (3-1), Alabama (3-1), Arizona State (4-0), Cincinnati (4-0) and Nebraska (3-1).

Baseball - With just over a week to go in the regular season, the post season contenders is taking shape. In the American League, it looks like Boston in the East (though the New York Yankees could overtake them in the last week), Cleveland in the Central and the Los Angeles Angels in the West. The wild card is currently held by the Yankees. Over in the National League, apparently no one is interested in making it to the post season. The New York Mets' magic number to clinch the East is 5 games, the Chicago Cubs need 4 to win the Central, and in the West the Arizona Diamondbacks need 6 to make it into the playoffs. Bear in mind that there are only 6 or 7 games left for all these teams. The San Diego Padres, Philadelphia Phillies and Colorado Rockies all still have a shot at either winning their divisions or getting the wild card.