To be accused of 'channeling' is to be dismissed as a ventriloquist's live dummy, derogated at not having a mind of one's own.

Different regions may require different strategies, as President Bush has noted, but not different basic principles. It's either collective security or selective security.

Sometimes I know the meaning of a word but am tired of it and feel the need for an unfamiliar, especially precise or poetic term, perhaps one with a nuance that flatters my readership's exquisite sensitivity.

What a joy it is to see really professional media manipulation.

Cast aside any column about two subjects. It means the pundit chickened out on the hard decision about what to write about that day.

I welcome new words, or old words used in new ways, provided the result is more precision, added color or greater expressiveness.

The most fun in breaking a rule is in knowing what rule you're breaking.