Headlines from November 18, 2009

British army recommends soldiers bribe the Taliban with gold.
Op: At best, Palin's misunderstanding of the Israeli settlement debate is alarming; at worst, it's dangerous.
Running and losing for vice president has never been a promising route to the Oval Office. History shows why Palin won't be president.
Slideshow: Insane asylums through the years.
Photos of the H1N1 pandemic--especially worth seeing are the eggs.
Due to heavy rains in the Midwest, pumpkins are in short supply and may not last beyond Thanksgiving.
For this month's "Of Recent Note," tell us: What are your nontraditional holiday traditions?
Christoph Niemann finds unusual examples of biodiversity in fallen leaves.
A blog devoted to faux obis: things that are (k)not wood.
Was the movie cheesy, tacky, or corny? English offers more words, more opportunities for nuance.
Video: Visualizing the decline of the British, French, Portuguese, and Spanish empires.
The best books for girls and young women, a companion to the best books for boys and young men.
Most subway riders will give up their seats if you just ask--though the less reason given, the higher your chance of success.
The economics of pinball.
A brief guide to the different ways to tie a scarf.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is not Magneto; a judgment in New York will remind us of the strength of our own values.
Baldwin, Alec, preference for Stephen over, 314. Index for Going Rogue.
Winning in Aghanistan means thinking like an Afghan politician, not a peacebuilder; i.e., think bribes.
The case for suspending mail on Saturdays, seeing how the U.S.P.S. may soon be eliminated entirely.
An E.U. anthem will likely need to avoid its members' own soldier-y lyrics.
Op: The occupation has eroded Israel's moral fiber, and now its leaders can slough off charges of war crimes.
Maersk Alabama attacked again by Somali pirates.
Merticus, spokesperson for the Atlanta Vampire Alliance, says vampires "are mostly like anyone else."
In Pakistan, conspiracy rumors are the currency of people completely locked out of power.
Video: Trailer for Slackistan.
Upset about noise in libraries, gasbag professor of Renaissance studies can't stop complaining.
Inside the molecular gastronomy lab of Microsoft's Myhrvold, soon-to-be cookbook author.
Op: Millions spent to market drugs yields billions for Pfizer & Co.--and this disgusting practice needs to stop.
Mega-marathoners: obsessives who run hundreds of marathons, age be damned.
The list doesn't destroy culture; it creates it. Umberto Eco on lists.
Blockbuster would like its movies back, please.