The biggest Shiite party in Iraq once appeared to hold all the political sway: control of the heartland, the backing of influential clerics and a foot in the government with ambitions to take full control. ...more

February 2, 2009

When Brian Beck looks at downtown Clearwater, he sees Denver. Not Denver 2008, but Denver 20 years ago, before merchants, investors and the city fashioned the "LoDo" district of nightclubs, restaurants and loft-style condominiums from an aging collection of old warehouses. ...more

November 17, 2008

Brian Beck harbors no illusions that Clearwater, the junior partner in the Tampa metropolitan area, can be Denver, the center of the Mountain West. But he stands by the comparison as the city gains traction in its decades-long quest to redevelop its downtown core. ...more

November 13, 2008

It was President Bush who introduced the ghost of Neville Chamberlain into the 2008 presidential election. ...more

May 29, 2008