• Win some, lose some: Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi got quite the housewarming gift today. Her preferred choice for Majority Leader, Rep. John Murtha, lost to Maryland's amusingly named Steny Hoyer by a 149-86 count.
• Convicted: Former garbageman Christopher McCowen was convicted in the 2002 rape and murder of fashion writer Christa Worthington in Massachusetts. McCowen will serve life in prison without the possibility of parole.
• Opening China—online: The main page of China's Wikipedia page became accessible today after being blocked for more than a year. Pranksters looking to change Mao Zedong to Mao ZeGong will have to wait, though—only apolitical searches are currently allowed.
• Still at risk: Yesterday's reports out of Baghdad that all 150 hostages in the Higher Education Ministry were released unharmed may have been premature: Reports today show that as many as 80 might still be in captivity, and that the 70 already released were tortured.