Tomorrow will mark the close of dove season in the greater Phoenix Metropolitan area. The past two weeks have been a trial run for a new state law that has opened over one million acres of city-owned land to small game hunters. The relaxed regulations have allowed hunters to avoid congestion and potential accidents by spreading out, wildlife professionals say.

After taking first earlier this year at the California GOP's spring convention, Ron Paul is hoping for a repeat performance by attending the California GOP's three-day September convention in Los Angeles from the 16th - 18th, where the state party, taking a cue from Ames, is heavily promoting a presidential straw poll.

The ATF and/or the US Attorney's office in Phoenix allowed at least 1,400 guns to be smuggled from the US to drug cartels in Mexico, ostensibly so they could track the guns up the food chain and then make big arrests. Instead, and tragically, Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was murdered.

In a little-noticed move in late August, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation that would award all of California's electoral votes in presidential elections to whichever candidate wins the national popular vote, a solution that proponents say would make presidential elections more rational and fair.

Military operations in Afghanistan have cost three U.S. servicemen (icasualties.org) their lives and an additional $2.4 billion over the past week.