■"For Mongolians, E Is for English, F Is for Future," by James Brooke, New York Times, 15 February 2005, p. A1.

Great story on how Mongolia is pushing English as dominant second language. It wants to join the Core and that seems like the best direct-route bet.

The models are Singapore and South Korea, but the future is Muslim societies that see the writing on the wall, like Turkey and even Iraq. In Latin America, itís Chile thatís lead goose.

This is a huge advantage for us, a connectivity to be exploited and encouraged. And what have we done since 9/11? Weíve made this country a much less friendly place. Why? Out of fear and misplaced attention. We donít need interdiction, we need identification.