I’m jus waiting for the hate mail.

Don’t lie. You want one, too.

I’ve never bought the argument fighting terrorists creates terrorists, or that somehow the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq helped turn Muslims around the world against the United States. After all, if you look at the reactions in many Muslim countries following September 11, it doesn’t look like they needed wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to help them hate America.

But a lot of other people have been concerned about this question. So what to make of this Pew survey, which suggests that support for bin Laden and suicide bombing in general is falling in some Muslim countries?

If this is true, I suspect it’s due less to the bombings in London than to stories like this one, which show that bin Ladenism perhaps cares not so much about Muslims who like to vote.

If you click here you can be sorted into one of the Hogwarts houses.

I’m
a Slytherin!

Like that surprises anyone. More HP thoughts tomorrow.

Fairfax County, Virginia, authorities entered a second home owned by “Cat” woman Ruth Knueven, and discovered 134 additional dead cats. That has to be some sort of a record.

According to Washington Post staff writer Leef Smith, “Knueven said that she had been ‘overwhelmed’ by the cats in her two-story, cream-brick colonial in Mount Vernon. They had taken over the garage. They were embedded in the chimney and family room furniture, multiplying until the downstairs was infested…. Knueven said her involvement with stray cats began slowly as she plucked litters of kittens from the street. Many of them had been killed, she said, explaining that she put their bodies into plastic containers in her garage. She said she meant to dispose of them but never got around to it.”

But never got around to it. Ah yes, that age-old excuse. How many of us have forgotten to throw out leftovers or overripe fruit? Can’t you see yourself thinking: That reminds me, I have to throw out that dead cat stuffed inside the seat cushion. Let me just finish this episode of “Charles in Charge.”

It now appears likely that Deutsche Bank will cofinance the Washington Nationals’ new stadium to the tune of $246 million.

The new name of the stadium will be Deutsche Bank Park … und Reichpalast.

First there were the wine tastings. Then the Scotch tastings. And now, cognac–specifically Courvoisier. Formerly the drink of emperors and kings, it is now the drink of choice for P. Diddy and Busta Rhymes. And also of certain Galley Slaves, particularly when it’s free, as it was last night at the Courvoisier tasting at trendy Indebleu restaurant in downtown D.C. (The place is a fusion of Indian and, um, bleu?) But there was no confusion over the drinks, poured into four glasses denoting the four marks: VS (Very Special), VSOP (Very Superior Old Pale), Napoleon, and XO Imperial. Our guide was the glamorous Nina Shay, officially called an “ambassodrice” for Courvoisier. (Not that there is an embassy of Courvoisier, or a Republic of Courvoisier for that matter.) Contrary to my hero A.J. Liebling, I found these cognacs to be better than Calvados, his drink of choice. The VSOP was especially refined, with a smooth finish.

Interestingly, some of the tasters preferred the VSOP over the pricier varieties of Napoleon and XO. “They’re too complex!” said Galley friend M.C., at first a skeptic who, when asked if he could smell the vanilla, chocolate, citrus, and cigar aromas from his glass, replied, “I know what I smell–bullshit!” But he eventually came around and was even named an honorary ambassadrice by some of the ladies at our table. Another issue concerned the new tagline for Courvoisier, which is “Earn It.” M.C. thought a more preferable slogan would be “Sniff It.”

There was no argument, however, over our final tasting of the limited edition L’Esprit de Courvoisier, which contained blends ranging from 70 and 200 years in age. “When this is gone, it’s gone,” said Nina Shay. And so we savored our few precious ounces, knowing that unless we’re sharing bottle service with P. Diddy at Ghost Bar, this will be the last time we ever have anything like it. Each bottle runs about $5,000.

You’ll have to take my word for it that Hugh Hewitt is just about the nicest guy in politics. How nice is he? Fred Barnes nice. For serious.

That’s why this interview Hugh conducted with Dayn Perry is so particularly striking. Perry is a super-duper lefty who writes a column for FoxSports.com. (But wait, Rupert Murdoch is an evil neocon super-duper gen–no, don’t bother trying to get your head around it. If people from MoveOn were to confront Dayn Perry, their heads might explode.) Anyway, Perry wrote a column in which he said, “I’m on record as saying this: If you’ve been injured or killed by a bull at Pamplona, then I think it’s funny. Now if only Mark Steyn would go and get himself killed.”

Not very nice, is it. Compounding his mistake, Perry then agreed to go on Hugh’s show where Hugh–who’s normally so nice he makes Larry King look like Lucius Malfoy–just destroyed him. And by the way, good for Hugh. It’s a sign of good character that what gets Hugh riled up is a low-blow attack on a friend.

Those with weak stomach’s should not follow the link. Those who get an evil thrill out of this sort of thing:

Hewitt: All right. Dayn Perry gets credit for coming here and getting his head beat in. But that’s okay. It’s sort of like…Dayn, I feel like Bob Wickham throwing little league right now. I really do, but I keep it up, because it’s fun. Bob Wickham must like to strike out ten year olds, too.

Should definitely read the entire transcript.