6/15: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

The White House has announced that President Bush is taking Japanese Prime Minister and big-time Elvis fan Junichiro Koizumi to Memphis for a pilgrimage to Graceland.

A Fort Lauderdale nanny who was arrested after police viewed hidden camera video recordings that appeared to show her shaking a 5-month-old baby is suing the recording system's manufacturer.

A retired farmer in Millard, Wisconsin, who says he served in a branch of a German paramilitary unit in World War II, is turning some of his property into a memorial to Adolf Hitler.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Citizen journalists post hometown news and events at Northfield.org.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

New York Times puzzle editor Will Shortz and crossword puzzle fans Jon Stewart, Bill Clinton, Indigo Girls, and Bob Dole are featured in Patrick Creadon's documentary Wordplay.

The Incredible Hulk doing his best Denny Hecker impersonation

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I find her--I wouldn't put her--well, she doesn't pass the Chris Matthews test."

-- MSNBC pundit Chris Matthews, on Hardballing with conservative pundit Ann Coulter