An exercise

I check several news sources every day I'm close to a computer, and several blogs that consistently direct me to interesting material.

It seems to me, however, that I've fallen into a pattern that overemphasizes what's happening in Washington, which is always the same thing: various people trying to deny the catastrophe that is American policy in Iraq, and efforts of various groups to avoid their share of the blame.

So I've decided to alter my reading habits, and begin each day by looking at some non-US news source first. I'm going to begin by scanning Al Jazeera's front page for a week, then go on to something else.

Why Al Jazeera? Not for its coverage of Iraq. Rather, because on today's front page, numerous countries not mentioned on the Washington Post front page or its world news page -- Bangladesh, Sierra Leone, Burma, the Philippines -- all have a prominent place.

If anyone has a suggestion for my next week's selection, I'd be glad to hear it.