THE TENSION: The Decline and Fall of Western Civ. for 25 Sep

A section of the Mona Lisa is seen on a poster in Beijing in an undated file photo. Scientists are due to unveil some of the secrets behind Western art's most enigmatic smile this week, when they present the findings of the most extensive three dimensional scan ever undertaken on the Mona Lisa.

Mel Gibson says Western Civilisation is on the decline. Reuters reports Gibson has returned to the spotlight to promote his upcoming movie "Apocalypto," and to criticize the war in Iraq, according to the Hollywood Reporter. In describing its portrait of a civilization in decline, Gibson said, "The precursors to a civilization that's going under are the same, time and time again," drawing parallels between the Mayan civilization on the brink of collapse and America's present situation. "What's human sacrifice," he asked, "if not sending guys off to Iraq for no reason?" I'm not inclined to agree with Gibson on his last remark, firmly in the belief that it's much better for the military to keep Islamic fascists outside of the country, even if the risk of soldiers being killed in theater is actually less than the risk of being killed for similarly aged individuals in many major cities in Blue States.

Bill O'Reilly's new book "Culture Warrior" is officially released today – and liberals have already launched an all-out attack on it, according to NewsMax.com. The left-wing Web site Media Matters for America led the way Monday — showcasing O'Reilly's book as its featured story with the headline: "Bill O'Reilly's enemies list, now available for $26." You can buy "Culture Warrior now from Amazon for $15.60

Crude-oil futures briefly dipped below $60 a barrel on Monday, but later jumped by more than $1 in a sign that the market free-fall may be nearing an end, reports AP.

FT reports Oil exporting countries may consider a cut in output after crude prices fell below $60 a barrel on Monday for the first time in six months.

The planet's temperature has climbed to levels not seen in thousands of years, warming that has begun to affect plants and animals, researchers report in Tuesday's issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reports AP. I guess the study doesn't take into account the Medieval Warm Period (also called the Medieval Climate Optimum), a time of unusually warm climate in Europe, lasting from about the 10th century to about the 14th century. The period ushered in the Enlightenment and the discovery of the New World. After watching Bill Clinton try to rewrite history on Fox News Sunday, perhaps other folks think they should get in their changes, too. The temperature records for the Middle Ages are at odds with what passes for the science of global warming, as comprehensive records of real data for global temperatures have only been around for say, the last 30 years. Of course, it is easy to form a hypothesis in an data-free environment.

Scientists are due to unveil some of the secrets behind Western art's most enigmatic smile this week, when they present the findings of the most extensive three dimensional scan ever undertaken on the Mona Lisa, according to Reuters.

FT reports prices of existing homes fell for the first time in 11 years and the backlog of available homes for sale was at its highest since current measures began, underlining the significant slowdown in the housing market.

On the flip side of the U.S. housing bubble burst, furniture maker Ikea plans to hire tens of thousands of new workers as the company continues to expand with dozens of new stores opening around the world, the company's chief executive said in an interview published Monday, according to AP.