AND TO ROUND OUT THE DAY, A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR MOM Do you have a crush on Barack Obama? I know about 100 women (and at least a dozen men – some of them even straight) who do. A journalist, filmmaker and marketing guru who second that emotion produced the following mock-video that made the rounds of the blogosophere at a record clip today. For your (as my sistas at PopSugar might say) manjoyment. You can purchase your very own... Read more

NIGHT CAP: BECAUSE I PROMISED JOANNA I WOULD I give you the Swedish Chef, Animal and Beeker performing their stirring rendition of the classic Irish tearjerker, “Danny Boy.” Good night. And let’s be careful out there. GG Read more

NO COLUMN TODAY: WHAT THE SHIZZLE? Sometimes a girl just needs a day. To breathe. To sleep in. To sit in the sun and watch the baby bunny eat clover leaves. To stake the tomatoes. To go for a long walk. To get her nails did. To do nothin’. After an epic battle with the flu/food poisoning/strange virus we called a time-out to regroup. So there’s no Godstuff this week. GG will be back next week, full throttle. In the... Read more

TODAY IN GOD:RELIGION NEWS BITES FOR YOUR SNACKING PLEASURE ____________________________________________________________________________________Jihadi diary: Inside the mind Until Thursday morning, the identity of Zeeshan Siddiqui, a 26-year-old British jihadi who has escaped his control order, was a closely guarded secret. The BBC has won the right to release his name, and has been given access to his diaries. Cold, alone and suffering from terrible diarrhoea, Zeeshan Anis Siddiqui’s dream of being a heroic warrior in the name of God, was faltering. “The greatest... Read more

BREAKING NEWS: RUTH BELL GRAHAM HAS DIED This just in from Larry Ross, the Grahams’ longtime spokesman: Wife of Billy Graham Succumbs to Lingering Illness,Surrounded by Loved Ones at Her Deathbed MONTREAT, N.C. – Mrs. Ruth Bell Graham, beloved wife of world-renowned evangelist Billy Graham, died at 5:05 p.m. today, at her home at Little Piney Cove in Montreat, N.C., surrounded by her husband and all five children. She was 87. Dates and times for a family-only interment ceremony and... Read more

MUST READ DU JOUR: GOD IS IN THE DETAILS The Washington Post ran a fascinating story today by Rick Weiss about new discoveries from the Human Genome Project that indicate so-called “junk DNA” thought to be little more than genetic seat fillers are actually complex, hardworking apparati. Intricate Toiling Found In Nooks of DNA Once Believed to Stand Idle The first concerted effort to understand all the inner workings of the DNA molecule is overturning a host of long-held assumptions... Read more

DALAI LAMA TRASH TALKS A KOALA BEAR His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso the 14th Dalai Lama criticized (jokingly) the critter while visiting the late Steve Irwin’s zoo in Australia earlier this week. Irwin’s daughter Bindi is holding the bear. Read more

TODAY IN GOD:RELIGION NEWS BITES FOR YOUR SNACKING PLEASURE ____________________________________________________________________________________Ruth Graham in Coma, Near Death Ruth Graham, wife of evangelist Billy Graham, has lapsed into a coma and appears near death, a family spokesman said Wednesday (June 13). Her failing health came just as the evangelist and his wife revealed their decision to be buried together at the newly dedicated Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, N.C. “It appears she’s entering the final stages of life,” said A. Larry Ross, the... Read more

Bedtime stories: Hollywood says grace For your giggly edification. GG Read more

“The Pest” Rides Again: Is he buggin’ ya? He means to bug ya. BONO PRESSURES CANDIDATES TO FOCUS ON THE POOR WASHINGTON — The anti-poverty campaign founded by U2 rocker Bono and others is investing $30 million to pressure the presidential candidates to focus on the oft-forgotten issue, with its leaders arguing on Monday that helping the poor is a national security issue. Dubbed ONE Vote ’08, the bipartisan political push aims to get President Bush’s successor to commit to... Read more