People in the United States have gotten used to the repulsive fact that raw chicken , meat and eggs are often contaminated with dangerous bacteria .

Scrub the cutting board , we are warned , do n't nibble the cookie dough , do n't eat burgers rare .

In other words , handle meat like a biohazard -- and then eat it .

But until recently , getting sick from salad was something that most Americans did n't even think about unless they were traveling to a poor country .

At home , fruits and vegetables have been regarded as clean and safe for as long as most people can remember .

Lately , though , produce has caused a disturbing number of disease outbreaks .

Just since September , bacteria-tainted tomatoes , spinach and lettuce have made hundreds of people sick , and killed three .

There have been 20 serious outbreaks in the past decade or so , and many have come from crops grown in California , not from imports .

Fruit juices , alfalfa sprouts and almonds have also been involved -- all of them supposedly health foods , like salad , the things we feel most virtuous about eating .

The known outbreaks are just the tip of the iceberg , health officials say .

Far more illness is never reported .

Most people do n't call the health department about a few days of gut trouble .

The government estimates that over all , food-borne microbes -- not just the ones on produce -- make 76 million people a year sick , put 325,000 in the hospital and kill 5,000 .

In a modern country , a rise in disease caused by tainted food seems like a giant step backward in public health .

But there has n't been much public outrage or even disgust at the notion of filth seeping into the food supply .

Among the nastiest bacteria is E . coli 0157 : H7 , which makes a powerful toxin that can cause severe illness and sometimes even kidney failure .

This is the germ found on spinach a few months ago , and more recently on iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell restaurants .

It comes from cow feces and was first identified in 1982 .

Feeding the animals grain instead of hay seems to promote its growth .

The strain is harmless to cows , but in people it is so dangerous , according to the Food and Drug Administration , that swallowing as few as 10 organisms may be enough to cause an infection .

About 73,000 people a year get sick from this type of bacteria , and 61 die , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports .

`` It 's gotten more attention this fall , but we 've seen these outbreaks due to lettuce and other leafy greens for a long time , `` said Dr. Christopher Braden , chief of the outbreak response and surveillance team for enteric diseases at the disease centers .

`` We are seeing this on an ongoing basis .

That 's not an acceptable outcome .

We need to find ways to interrupt that contamination . ``

Last August , the F.D.A. announced a `` lettuce safety initiative '' in response to recurring E . coli outbreaks .

It began with last fall 's lettuce harvest and included visits by inspectors to farms and cooling and packing facilities .

But the spinach and Taco Bell outbreaks happened anyway .

There are several ways that bacteria can contaminate lettuce .

Water is an obvious route , whether from unsanitary irrigation or spraying , or from flooding .

Animals can carry bacteria onto farmland , which is apparently how the spinach outbreak occurred -- feral pigs wandered from cow pastures to spinach fields , taking E . coli with them .

Sick workers who handle produce can also contaminate it , and so can dust blowing off pastures .

One bad batch can spoil others when they are mixed for chopping and bagging .

Scientists think most contamination lies on the surface of crops , but studies have shown that it is possible for bacteria to be taken up through root systems and actually wind up inside the plants , where no amount of washing could get rid of it .

In any case , E . coli 0157 : H7 tends to be sticky and is difficult or impossible to wash off , even when it 's only on the surface of produce .

Over the past 30 years , diseases linked to produce have increased , Dr. Braden said .

Increased ability to detect outbreaks may explain part of the increase , but not all of it , he added .

`` We 're convinced it 's real in large part , `` he said .

`` We 're seeing an increased number of outbreaks , an increased number of cases in outbreaks , and an increase in the number of types of produce involved . ``

The reason is not known for sure .

But , Dr. Braden said : `` The way produce is farmed and processed has changed .

It 's become more centralized , and you have these huge processors and distributors that produce tens of thousands of pounds of a particular produce in a particular day .

If something goes wrong with that produce you 've got a big problem , whereas with small farmers , if there is a problem it 's much more limited . ``

In addition , he said , bagged and prewashed produce did n't exist 25 years ago , and people today eat more raw vegetables than in the past .

`` There 's probably more susceptible people eating those things , `` Dr. Braden said .

`` We have an aging population , and more people with chronic medical conditions that might make them more susceptible . ''

The F.D.A. is responsible for produce safety , while the Agriculture Department oversees meat , poultry and eggs .

Some politicians have urged that a single new agency be formed to take charge of all food safety , but even if that is done , it still may not answer basic questions about how to clean up produce .

Dr. David W . K . Acheson , chief medical officer at the center for food safety and applied nutrition at the F.D.A. , said the agency was trying to find ways to prevent outbreaks .

But , Dr. Acheson said , it has nowhere near the resources to inspect the hundreds of thousands of facilities that handle fresh produce in the United States .

The Agriculture Department has far more inspectors and is required by law to have one in every major meat processing plant .

One question the drug agency is trying to figure out , he said , is how close is too close when it comes to cattle and produce .

`` We know that 0157 is a natural contaminant of cow feces , '' Dr. Acheson said .

`` Cow feces , if it gets on fresh produce , is not good .

Should there be some limitation as to how close cattle should be to a leafy-greens field .

Fifty feet , 5 miles , 50 miles .

What 's the science .

`` Fifty feet may be plenty if the cows are downhill and downstream of the farm , he said -- but if it 's the other way around , five miles may not be enough .

`` What 's really going to work .

`` Dr. Acheson asked .

`` At this point , there are a lot of unknowns . ''

Another approach , instead of trying to prevent contamination , is to get rid of it after the fact .

Nuts can be heat-treated and juices can be pasteurized .

Some experts have recommended irradiating lettuce .

`` People in the agency are looking at the impact of that , '' Dr. Acheson said .

`` There are two pieces : does it work , and what dose do you need .

Then , what 's the impact of that dose on the quality of the product .

You could irradiate anything and sterilize it , but you may end up with mush .

It 's not quite that easy . ``

Dr. Braden said that so far , scientists had not found any way to prevent outbreaks .

`` Not that people are n't working on it hard , `` he said , adding that the food industry itself is under pressure .

`` There may be some self-regulation from the industry , the growers themselves , '' he said .

`` They have to do something themselves , or else they 're going to lose their market . ``

SECOND OPINION .

Summary: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that E coli strain recently found on spinach from California farm is virulent enough that swallowing only 10 organisms could be enough to cause infection .

Summary: Increased number of health alerts and outbreaks related to fruits and vegetables has generated many new guidelines , such as Food and Drug Administration 's lettuce safety initiative , but researchers point to variety of causes and methods of contamination and say they are difficult to track and stop .

Summary: Some experts hold that bagged and prewashed produce is fairly new to marketplace and increased consumption of raw produce make outbreaks more widespread than anytime in past .

Summary: Many researchers are working on prevention measures , but few changes have been implemented .

Summary: Drawings .


The day 's coppery last light reflects off the backs of sea bass swimming in fish ponds lined in neat rows on this desert farm .

Fish farming in the desert may at first sound like an anomaly , but in Israel over the last decade a scientific hunch has turned into a bustling business .

Scientists here say they realized they were on to something when they found that brackish water drilled from underground desert aquifers hundreds of feet deep could be used to raise warm-water fish .

The geothermal water , less than one-tenth as saline as sea water , free of pollutants and a toasty 98 degrees on average , proved an ideal match .

`` It was not simple to convince people that growing fish in the desert makes sense , '' said Samuel Appelbaum , a professor and fish biologist at the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research at the Sede Boqer campus of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev .

`` It is important to stop with the reputation that arid land is nonfertile , useless land , '' said Professor Appelbaum , who pioneered the concept of desert aquaculture in Israel in the late 1980s .

`` We should consider arid land where subsurface water exists as land that has great opportunities , especially in food production because of the low level of competition on the land itself and because it gives opportunities to its inhabitants . ''

The next step in this country , where water is scarce and expensive , was to show farmers that they could later use the water in which the fish are raised to irrigate their crops in a system called double usage .

The organic waste produced by the cultured fish makes the water especially useful , because it acts as fertilizer for the crops .

Fields watered by brackish water dot Israel 's Negev and Arava Deserts in the south of the country , where they spread out like green blankets against a landscape of sand dunes and rocky outcrops .

At Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade in the Negev , the recycled water from the fish ponds is used to irrigate acres of olive and jojoba groves .

Elsewhere it is also used for irrigating date palms and alfalfa .

The chain of multiple users for the water is potentially a model that can be copied , especially in arid third world countries where farmers struggle to produce crops , and Israeli scientists have recently been peddling their ideas abroad .

Dry lands cover about 40 percent of the planet , and the people who live on them are often among the poorest in the world .

Scientists are working to share the desert aquaculture technology they fine-tuned here with Tanzania , India , Australia and China , among others .

-LRB- Similar methods of fish farming are also being used in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona . -RRB-

`` Each farm could run itself , which is important in the developing world , '' said Alon Tal , a leading Israeli environmental activist who recently organized a conference on desertification , with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and Ben-Gurion University , that brought policy makers and scientists from 30 countries to Israel .

`` A whole village could adopt such a system , '' Dr. Tal added .

At the conference , Gregoire de Kalbermatten , deputy secretary general of the antidesertification group at the United Nations , said , `` We need to learn from the resilience of Israel in developing dry lands . ''

Israel , long heralded for its agricultural success in the desert through innovative technologies like drip irrigation , has found ways to use low-quality water and what is considered terrible soil to grow produce like sweet cherry tomatoes , peppers , asparagus and melon , marketing much of it abroad to Europe , especially during winter .

`` Most development is still driven by the Zionist ethos that the desert was some mistake of God that we have to correct and make the desert bloom , '' said Uriel Safriel , an ecology professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem .

The history of fish-farming in nondesert areas here , mostly in the Galilee region near the sea , dates back to the late 1920s , before Israel was established as a state .

At the time , the country was extremely poor and meat was considered a luxury .

But fish was a cheap food source , so fish farms were set up on several kibbutzim in the Galilee .

The early Jewish farmers were mostly Eastern European , and , Professor Safriel said , `` they only knew gefilte fish , so they grew carp . ''

Eventually they expanded to other varieties of fish including tilapia , striped bass and mullet , as well as ornamental fish .

The past decade has seen the establishment of about 15 fish farms producing both edible and ornamental fish in the Negev and Arava Deserts .

Fish farming , meanwhile , has become more lucrative worldwide as people seek more fish in their diet for better health , and ocean fisheries increasingly are being depleted .

The practice is not without critics , who say it can harm the environment and the fish .

In Israel there was a decision by the government to stop fish farming in the Red Sea near the southern city of Eilat by 2008 because it was deemed damaging to nearby coral reefs .

Some also argue that the industry is not sustainable in the long term because most of the fish that are farmed are carnivorous and must be fed a protein-rich diet of other fish , usually caught in the wild .

Another criticism is that large numbers of fish are kept in relatively small areas , leading to a higher risk of disease .

Professor Appelbaum said the controversy surrounding fish farming in ocean areas does not apply to desert aquaculture , which is in an isolated , controlled area , with much less competition for resources .

On Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade , Amit Ziv runs a fish farm , raising about 15,000 fish at a time .

Up to 500,000 cubic meters of water from the fish ponds is recycled for irrigation every year .

`` It 's a matter of better efficiency , `` said Mr. Ziv , who pays about 24 cents a cubic meter for water , a government-subsidized rate .

`` In an area where there is lack of water , being able to use it twice over is a huge advantage . ''

Mr. Ziv , 39 , said there are benefits to raising fish in the desert : the dryness translates to fewer insects and less mold and disease .

He also said the warm air makes it easier to keep the pools temperate .

He remembers the stories his parents , who , along with other founders of the kibbutz in 1948 , would tell of having to travel long days to get to the fields of the communal farm .

They then tilled closer to central Israel , because at the time the local arid ground was thought to be impossible to farm .

`` Now , '' he said , pointing toward the desert-grown crops , `` the fields are all here . ''

Mr. Ziv and his dog turned back toward the fish ponds stretched out under green plastic hothouse canopies .

It was time to prepare for a shipment of hatchlings that was to arrive the next day .

Summary: Desert aquaculture , which was first used in Israel , has become increasingly popular way to farm crops and fish in otherwise arid and unfertile ground .

Summary: Professor Samuel Appelbaum , Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research fish biologist and pioneer of process that pumps subsurface water up to tanks for use in fish ponds and irrigation , describes how aquaculture can transform communities .

Summary: Double usage of water is ideal as farmers use water from fish farms , which is high in organic matter , to irrigate and fertilize fields .

Summary: Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade , Israel , aquaculture discusssed .

Summary: Map . Photos .


A year after Hollywood rediscovered weighty political and social issues in movies like `` Syriana , '' `` Crash '' and `` Brokeback Mountain , '' the box office story of 2006 was that moviegoers finally said , `` Enough . ''

They showed no appetite for a critique of their eating habits in `` Fast Food Nation . ''

They were n't ready to fly along on `` United 93 , '' no matter how skilled its exposé of homeland insecurity .

They did n't care to see combat or suffer its after-effects in `` Flags of Our Fathers . ''

And even Leonardo DiCaprio could n't interest them in touring the ravaged Africa of `` Blood Diamond . ''

While Al Gore 's prophecies in `` An Inconvenient Truth '' produced a respectable $ 24 million for Paramount , it was the message-movie exception that proved the rule .

The big money was to be made making people laugh , cry and squeeze their dates ' arms -- not think .

`` What worked was classic , get-away-from-it-all entertainment , '' said Rob Moore , Paramount 's marketing and distribution chief .

`` What did n't was things that were more challenging and esoteric . ``

Comedy , animation and adventure , all with a PG-13 rating or tamer -- and for young adults , R-rated horror flicks -- were the escapist recipe for success .

Reminding moviegoers of what was on the news , and in an election year at that , only turned them off .

-LRB- Unless it was on the news nine years ago , as in `` The Queen . '' -RRB-

While Disney 's `` Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man 's Chest `` set a new opening-weekend record and topped the box office tables with $ 423 million , the winner among studios was Sony Pictures , which said it would end the year with nearly $ 1.7 billion domestically -- besting its own industry record -- and $ 3.3 billion overseas .

In an off year for its Spider-Man franchise , Sony managed to win a record 13 weekends , led by Adam Sandler -LRB- `` Click '' -RRB- .

Will Ferrell -LRB- `` Talladega Nights : The Ballad of Ricky Bobby '' -RRB- .

An animated hit -LRB- `` Open Season '' -RRB- .

James Bond -LRB- `` Casino Royale , '' which has grossed $ 155 million , a franchise record -RRB- .

And Will Smith -LRB- `` The Pursuit of Happyness '' -RRB- .

Mr. Smith 's film broke $ 100 million , and he appears to have bolstered his stature as Hollywood 's man who can do no wrong , a bankable star in dramatic , romantic , comedic or action roles .

-LRB- When actors play against type , however , it can be deadly , as Russell Crowe showed in Ridley Scott 's film `` A Good Year , '' for 20th Century Fox .

Coming after his nose dive in `` Cinderella Man , '' Mr. Crowe 's belly-flop raised questions about his status as a top box office draw . -RRB-

Then there was what Jeff Blake , Sony 's marketing and distribution czar , called `` that rare adult blockbuster , '' Ron Howard 's `` Da Vinci Code . ''

Fans of the book ignored the film 's reviews , and it grossed $ 218 million .

`` Really , we brought the adults back to the movies this year , which is part of the reason why we 're doing so much better , `` Mr. Blake said of the industry , tipping his hat to Warner Brothers ' `` Departed '' and 20th Century Fox 's `` Devil Wears Prada . ''

Sony also got a boost from its Screen Gems unit .

Four of its horror films opened at No . 1 .

Typical was `` When a Stranger Calls , '' made for just $ 15 million , which grossed $ 48 million domestically .

Over all , the top tier of the box office held its usual contours : 5 blockbusters exceeded $ 200 million , and 12 fell in the $ 100 million to $ 200 million zone .

In addition , 39 exceeded $ 50 million , 7 more than in 2005 .

Total domestic box office reached $ 9.4 billion , a shade shy of the 2004 record but 5 percent more than in 2005 , said Paul Dergarabedian , president of Media by Numbers , which tracks box office results .

Attendance was up 3.3 percent .

No . 2 Disney had its second-best year ever worldwide , with more than $ 3.27 billion internationally , and exceeded $ 1 billion domestically for the 10th time , thanks largely to `` Pirates '' and the year 's No . 2 movie , Pixar 's `` Cars , '' with $ 244 million .

Mark Zoradi , who runs marketing and distribution for Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group , said basic entertainment had proved to be the cure for the industry 's woes .

`` People love to go to the movies to laugh , to feel emotion and cry , '' he said .

`` That 's why ` Cars ' is so big .

It was n't a straight-out slapstick comedy .

At its core , it was an emotional movie with comedy in it . ``

The slate of movies at year 's end was much stronger than on the same weekend a year earlier : up 10 percent in the aggregate , and 12 percent when comparing just the top 12 grosses .

Fox 's `` Night at the Museum , '' the Ben Stiller comedy , led the field , raking in $ 38 million for a total so far of $ 117 million .

Among animated films , Fox 's `` Ice Age : The Meltdown '' came in at No . 2 , nearly hitting $ 200 million .

Bruce Snyder , president for domestic distribution , said Fox had been wise to get its movie into theaters well before the deluge of more than a dozen other computer-animated movies about animals .

One that suffered was Warner 's `` Ant Bully , '' which was sandwiched between Sony 's `` Monster House '' and Paramount 's `` Barnyard '' and came away with just $ 28 million in sales .

Paramount , too , might have regretted the title of its `` Flushed Away , '' which cost $ 150 million but grossed only $ 62 million .

`` Happy Feet '' was a much-needed big hit for Warner , which had been less than overjoyed by the $ 200 million gross of `` Superman Returns . ''

Despite the animation glut , the potential payoffs -- Paramount 's `` Over the Hedge '' grossed $ 155 million , and `` Happy Feet '' reached $ 176 million on Sunday -- are huge enough to make this a recurring phenomenon .

For Fox 2005 was a strong year .

`` X-Men : The Last Stand '' was the No . 3 movie , at $ 234 million , and Meryl Streep 's performance turned a formulaic comedy into a worldwide hit in `` Prada . ''

Fox also had the year 's most original film , `` Borat : Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan , '' which was made for less than $ 20 million and grossed more than $ 125 million .

Among thought-provoking movies , `` Flags of Our Fathers '' showed how treacherous it can be to open an Oscar contender in September or October .

While `` The Departed '' was a hit , `` All the King 's Men , `` `` Hollywoodland '' and `` Running With Scissors '' all bombed .

Back-to-school audiences much preferred Lions Gate 's `` Saw III . ''

Warner missed , meanwhile , with `` Blood Diamond , '' a big action movie that also had something to say .

Alan Horn , the studio 's president , said he thought the film had managed the feat , but audiences did n't , and the film has grossed $ 36 million so far .

`` The audience is telling us that either they want lighter fare , and they just do n't want to go there and have a movie as thematically heavy as ` Blood Diamond ' is , or it 's the quality of the movie , `` he said .

Audiences apparently were n't eager to read , either .

With directors like Clint Eastwood , Alejandro González Iñárritu and Mel Gibson pushing for authenticity , the studios wound up releasing subtitled movies that were shot largely or entirely in Japanese , Moroccan , Mexican , Mayan and Russian .

But even Brad Pitt could n't draw big crowds for `` Babel , '' and the Fox Searchlight release of the Russian blockbuster `` Night Watch '' proved that some cultural exchanges will remain a one-way street .

It remains to be seen whether `` Letters From Iwo Jima , '' Mr. Eastwood 's critically adored Japanese companion piece to `` Flags , '' could lure sizable audiences once it expands from a micro-release .

Fifth-place Paramount was cheered by the low-budget comedies `` Jackass Number Two '' and `` Nacho Libre , '' but was counting for redemption on `` Dreamgirls , '' which opened to packed houses on Christmas Day .

In just 852 theaters , the movie grossed $ 38.5 million through New Year 's weekend , and the studio was counting on Oscar attention to make it a megahit .

Universal , in a leadership transition , struggled to fill a gaping hole in its slate .

The studio has n't released a movie that it made since August , and wo n't have one till April .

-LRB- `` The Good Shepherd , '' its lone prestige release at year 's end , was financed by Morgan Creek . -RRB-

Its biggest movie was `` The Break-Up , '' at $ 118 million , but more typical were duds like `` Miami Vice , '' `` Man of the Year , '' `` Let 's Go to Prison , `` and '' The Black Dahlia . ``

New Line 's year , finally , was summed up by `` Snakes on a Plane , '' a trip you 'd want to forget , as long as you could survive it .

The studio 's standout performers were `` Final Destination 3 '' and `` The Texas Chainsaw Massacre : The Beginning . ''

New Line 's stab at exploiting the religious Christian market , `` The Nativity Story , '' cost $ 35 million , but grossed just $ 37 million .

By comparison , a tiny proselytizing football movie called `` Facing the Giants , '' made for just $ 100,000 by a Southern Baptist congregation in Georgia , grossed $ 10 million in a limited release .

Correction : January 4 , 2007 , Thursday An article in The Arts on Tuesday about the most popular movies of 2006 and others that did not do as well at the box office referred incorrectly to two languages spoken in `` Babel , '' one of the films with subtitles that did not draw big crowds .

They are Spanish and Berber , not `` Mexican '' and `` Moroccan . '' .

Summary: Moviegoers favored films that were escapist fantasies in 2006 .

Summary: Sony Pictures was winner among studios , earning nearly $ 1.7 billion domestically and $ 3.3 billion overseas .

Summary: Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man 's Chest set new opening-weekend record and topped box office tables with $ 423 million .

Summary: Other high grossing films included Click , Talladega Nights : The Ballad of Ricky Bobby , Open Season , Casino Royale and The Pursuit of Happyness .

Summary: Photos .


Within days of convening , the new Congress will return to some of the biggest battles of the last decade as House Democrats try to rush through legislation requiring the government to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries and overturning President Bush 's restrictions on embryonic stem cell research .

The Medicare proposal highlights the profound differences between Democrats and Republicans over the future of the nation 's health care system , the proper role of government and the role of private markets in securing the best value for the huge sums spent on health care .

State officials say they wish Congress would focus on a more immediate problem : money for the Children 's Health Insurance Program , which provides coverage for four million low-income children , is running out in more than a dozen states .

Dr. Rhonda M . Medows , commissioner of the Georgia Department of Community Health , said , `` Our program will run out of federal money in March , and all 260,000 children in the program will lose their health care coverage if Congress fails to act . ''

In debating the future of the children 's health program , which has broad bipartisan support , Congress will take up proposals to cover some of the 46 million people who have no health insurance .

Dr. Mark B . McClellan , former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services , said , `` Congress should consider expanding the Children 's Health Insurance Program to low-income adults . ``

Many Democrats agree .

But even modest proposals may collide with Democratic efforts to restore fiscal discipline and to reduce the federal budget deficit .

Congress convenes on Thursday .

Representative Nancy Pelosi , the California Democrat who is in line to be speaker , has said the House will , in its first 100 hours , vote on bills to authorize drug price negotiations under Medicare and to expand federal financing of stem cell research .

Representative Tom Allen , Democrat of Maine , said he was `` giddy '' at the prospect of being able to legislate on health care after toiling for 10 years in the minority .

`` People in Maine find it incomprehensible that the Medicare law has a provision that forbids negotiation of lower prices , '' said Mr. Allen , who introduced a bill to give beneficiaries access to drug discounts negotiated by the government in 1998 .

By adding a drug benefit to Medicare in 2003 , Congress authorized the biggest expansion of the program since its creation in 1965 .

The drug benefit , unlike most Medicare benefits , is delivered entirely by private insurers subsidized by the government .

The insurers negotiate with drug manufacturers to obtain discounts , often in return for promoting the use of particular drugs .

The 2003 law prohibits the government from interfering in those negotiations and stipulates that Medicare can not establish a list of preferred drugs .

Most Democrats want to repeal the ban on price negotiations .

Wendell E . Primus , an aide to Ms. Pelosi , said the Democratic proposal would require the secretary of health and human services to negotiate , but would not specify how .

`` It will be very simple language , '' Mr. Primus said .

`` We do not think that Congress needs to hammer out all the details .

There are a lot of smart people in the administration , including the secretary , who can look at how we 're buying drugs -- the Medicaid program , the Department of Defense , vaccines , et cetera -- and figure out the best way of negotiating better prices with drug companies . ``

Republicans said they welcomed the opportunity to debate the issue .

The House Republican leader , Representative John A . Boehner of Ohio , said the Democrats ' proposal would `` take a wrecking ball to a popular program that has cut drug costs for consumers through competition . ''

Such competition , he said , `` has kept prices lower than anyone expected . ''

Administration officials suggested that Mr. Bush would veto a bill calling for price negotiations .

Democrats could then exploit the issue in the 2008 campaign , as they did in the midterm elections .

Under a bill introduced in 2005 by several House Democrats , Medicare would offer a government-run drug plan , in addition to all the plans offered by private insurance companies , and federal officials would negotiate with drug manufacturers on the prices of drugs covered by the government plan .

But aides to Ms. Pelosi said House Democratic leaders now wanted to go further .

Under their proposal , the government would negotiate on behalf of all people in Medicare drug plans , more than 22.5 million people .

House Democrats assume that if the government negotiates lower drug prices , the savings will automatically be passed on to beneficiaries in the form of lower premiums .

But they could not immediately say how they would guarantee that result .

In the absence of detailed instructions from Congress , lower drug prices could mean lower costs and higher profits for the insurers that operate Medicare drug plans .

Michael O . Leavitt , the secretary of health and human services , said he did not want the power to negotiate .

`` I do n't believe I can do a better job than an efficient market , `` Mr. Leavitt said in an interview .

Leslie V . Norwalk , acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services , said that under the Democrats ' proposal her agency would have to `` hire hundreds of people to negotiate prices for 4,500 different drugs . ''

And Ms. Norwalk said the agency would be besieged by lobbyists seeking higher Medicare payments for specific drugs .

That , she said , is `` how Washington really works . ''

Senator Max Baucus , the Montana Democrat who is in line to become chairman of the Finance Committee , helped shape the 2003 law .

In March , he voted against a proposal to authorize drug price negotiations .

But Mr. Baucus , who is up for re-election in 2008 , said he had an open mind and would hold hearings on the idea .

Kate Leone , an aide to the Senate Democratic leader , Harry Reid of Nevada , said Senate Democrats had the same legislative priorities as House Democrats , but were not committed to the 100-hour schedule .

Mr. Primus said the new Congress would also `` give the president another chance to veto a stem cell bill , '' like the one he vetoed in July .

In campaign commercials in 2006 , Democrats and some Republicans boasted of their support for embryonic stem cell research as a way to find treatments for a wide range of diseases .

Advocates of such research say that , despite gains in the elections , they still do not have the votes to override a veto .

They are working with Senate allies on a plan to attach the stem cell bill to unrelated legislation that Mr. Bush would feel obliged to sign .

Lawmakers are also likely to wrestle with these issues : Many Democrats will try to reduce Medicare payments to managed care plans .

They contend such plans are overpaid by about 10 percent .

Insurers intend to fight back , with support from the Bush administration , Republican lawmakers and beneficiaries who see the plans as a way to obtain extra benefits at an affordable cost .

Congress faces a huge challenge in devising a new formula to pay doctors for treating Medicare patients .

Under the current formula , doctors ' fees would be cut more than 4 percent a year for the next decade .

Lawmakers are determined to avert such cuts , but see no easy way to pay the cost .

Democrats have drafted legislation to speed the approval of safe , low-cost versions of expensive biotechnology drugs , which account for a growing share of spending on pharmaceuticals .

People who pay for health care , including state officials , employers and insurers , support such legislationas a way to slow spending on biotech drugs , which can cost more than $ 10,000 a year .

Biotech companies argue that their products , made from living organisms , are so complex that they can not be exactly duplicated by generic drug manufacturers .

As a result , they say , a `` copy '' would rarely be interchangeable with the original .

The Food and Drug Administration has approved thousands of generic drugs deemed equivalent to traditional brand-name medicines .

But the agency is unsure of its legal authority to approve such versions of biotech drugs .

Summary: There are profound differences between Democrats and Republicans over future of nation 's health care system , proper role of government and role of private markets in securing best value for huge sums spent on health care .

Summary: House Democrats , now in majority , will try to rush through legislation requiring government to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries and overturn Pres Bush 's restrictions on embryonic stem cell research .

Summary: Photo .


When the same old irksome question popped up recently at one of his final public events here , Gov . Jeb Bush , addressing Spanish-speaking reporters , gave an atypically dramatic answer : `` Yo no tengo futuro , '' or `` I have no future . ''

His words set off round-the-world buzz , with The Daily Telegraph of London going so far as to call them `` a recognition by the Bush family that their dynastic reign in American politics is drawing to a close . ''

But in fact , the question lives on .

Mr. Bush 's spokeswoman said last week that he made the comment jokingly , and when asked about it later in an e-mail message , Mr. Bush himself replied , `` I was misunderstood by a reporter . ''

He did not elaborate , leaving the world to know only this much : Half his life after he arrived in Miami as a 27-year-old real estate salesman , Governor Bush returns here this week without the title before his name and , he insists , without knowing what his future holds .

`` We 're in the preface of the new book in my life and I just do n't know yet , `` he told reporters last month in Tallahassee , a day after his official portrait , with a Bible and a BlackBerry in the background , was unveiled at the Governor 's Mansion .

`` I 'm going to take some time off , hopefully do a little fishing , golfing , resting , reading , exercising .

And I 've got to make a living , so I 'll figure it out probably in January . ``

Florida , too , has some readjusting to do .

After eight years in office , Mr. Bush , 53 , is leaving as one of the most popular and prominent governors in state history , not least because of his relationship to President Bush -LRB- brother -RRB- and former President George Bush -LRB- son -RRB- .

Succeeding him is Attorney General Charlie Crist , who is Republican like Mr. Bush but otherwise starkly different .

Despite the wishful prodding of admirers , Mr. Bush has adamantly ruled out a presidential campaign of his own next year , saying that he wants only to return to Miami with his wife , Columba , and their cat , Sugar .

Yet rumors about his future have burst forth as regularly as exotic species in the Everglades -- among them that he would be the next commissioner of the National Football League , run for Senate or become Senator John McCain 's running mate if Mr. McCain won the Republican nomination for president in 2008 .

`` The presidency is out of the question at this point because of Bush fatigue , '' said Peter Schweizer , a fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford who wrote `` The Bushes : A Dynasty '' with his wife , Rochelle .

`` But the vice presidential slot is something that 's very much in play .

He 's a successful governor of an important state , he helps shore up relations with the social conservatives and he has the Bush money machine . ``

One of Mr. Bush 's former chiefs of staff has gone to work for Mr. McCain 's exploratory committee , but several other former aides have signed up with Gov . Mitt Romney of Massachusetts , another probable Republican contender .

`` Jeb is a policy-driven guy , '' Mr. Schweizer said .

`` If he can be a vice president that plays some kind of a policy role as Cheney has , as Gore did in the Clinton administration , then Jeb Bush will be interested . ''

Many assume that for now -- at least partly at the urging of his wife , described as shy and eager to be out of the public eye -- Mr. Bush will return to the private sector .

He reported a net worth of $ 1.4 million in 2005 , down from $ 2.4 million in 1998 .

He was a partner in a major real estate development firm here until his first , unsuccessful run for governor in 1994 , but Mr. Schweizer predicted that Mr. Bush might now seek out work involving the bioscience industry or the Latin American economy , both of which `` he seems particularly animated by . ''

All indications notwithstanding , ardent admirers like Grover Norquist , the president of Americans for Tax Reform , are not giving up on the prospect of Mr. Bush jumping into the presidential race next year , especially if Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York becomes the Democratic candidate .

`` He could step in later than anybody else , '' Mr. Norquist said .

`` You can run for president with the last name of Bush , even though there is and will be Bush fatigue , in a year that you 're likely to be running against someone whose last name is Clinton . ``

For the time being , Mr. Bush bought a car , a Chrysler 300C , and rented a $ 5,500-per - month , 3,949-square - foot condominium in Segovia Tower , a luxury building overlooking a golf course in lush Coral Gables .

`` I have no idea what I will be doing next , '' he wrote by e-mail from Boca Chica , Fla . , where he was vacationing with his parents .

`` My priorities are to hang out with my beloved wife -LRB- until she ca n't take it anymore ! :

As for the continued speculation , he wrote : `` I am flattered that all sorts of people are interested in what I am going to do and many have offered advice as well .

That will all subside soon . ``

Small signs suggest , however , that he will have a hard time giving up executive powers .

He told reporters that while buying furniture recently , he had to stifle the urge to tell the store owner a better way of doing business -- a trait his adversaries say they will not miss .

`` Bush was the type that if you did not agree with him , he really did n't have time for you , `` said State Senator Frederica Wilson , Democrat of Miami .

`` He wanted you to rubber stamp every idea he had , and he would n't listen to reason . ``

While Mr. Bush is internationally famous , Mr. Crist , who will be sworn in as governor on Tuesday , is a stranger to all outside Florida and , but for his native Tampa Bay region , not particularly well known within the state either .

While Mr. Bush was ideologically driven , often making enemies in pursuit of `` big , hairy , audacious goals '' and divisive social policies , Mr. Crist seems above all a pleaser , avoiding firm opinions and promising to be `` the people 's governor . ``

Yet despite Mr. Bush 's abrasiveness and the plunging popularity of his brother the president , he has remained well liked -- or at least respected -- to the end , a feat in a state as ethnically and politically divided as Florida .

A poll last month by Quinnipiac University found that 57 percent of Floridians feel he did a `` good '' or `` great '' job as governor , compared with only 10 percent who said he had done a `` bad '' job .

Howard Simon , executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida , said the poll results reflected approval of Mr. Bush 's persona more than of his policies .

Mr. Simon pointed out that two major education initiatives during the governor 's tenure -- a costly effort to lower class size and another to provide universal prekindergarten classes -- were passed by public referendum , over the governor 's objections .

`` It needs to be said that the personal appeal and likeability of Jeb Bush has led the press and the public to overlook the extremism of many of his policies , '' he said .

Several of Mr. Bush 's pet initiatives in fact failed , including a school voucher program that the Florida Supreme Court found unconstitutional .

But Mr. Bush pushed through $ 19.3 billion in tax cuts , put an unprecedented emphasis on standardized testing in public schools , privatized thousands of government jobs and ended affirmative action in public university admissions .

He also persuaded the Scripps Research Institute and other bioscience research groups to open laboratories in Florida , which he says will makethe state economy less dependent on tourism and create more high-paying jobs .

And he has appointed more than a third of the state 's judges , assuring that his socially and fiscally conservative beliefs will continue to hold some sway .

While others have emoted about Mr. Bush 's departure -- including his father , who wept as he described his second son 's `` decency '' and `` honor '' in a speech in Tallahassee last month -- he has characteristically avoided introspection .

Asked last month what he would miss most about the Governor 's Mansion , he cited its beauty , its staff -- and its towels .

`` Fresh towels -- all you want , '' he said .

`` Here , although I 've been trained to do otherwise , it 's just any time I want I can have many towels . `` .

Summary: Jeb Bush is leaving as one of most popular and prominent governors in Florida 's history after eight years .

Summary: Despite wishful prodding , he has adamantly ruled out presidential campaign of his own next year , but rumors about his future have burst forth .

Summary: One is that he would become Sen John McCain 's running mate if McCain wins Republican nomination for president .

Summary: One of Bush 's former chiefs of staff has gone to work for McCain 's exploratory committee , but several other former aides have signed up with Gov Mitt Romney , another probable Republican contender .

Summary: Photo .


Representative John D . Dingell , a Michigan Democrat who with more than 50 years ' tenure is the senior member of the House , is not so sure about the idea of creating an independent group to enforce ethics rules .

But Gabrielle Giffords , a brand-new House Democrat from Arizona , considers it a no-brainer .

Of the longstanding approach in which lawmakers are seated on the ethics committee to police their peers , Representative-elect Giffords said , `` It is like having the fox guard the henhouse . ''

Those divergent outlooks over how best to fulfill the Democratic promise to clean up the House are just one illustration of a friction that could develop in the new Congress as the party takes control after 12 years in exile .

While most attention will be focused on the divide between Republicans and Democrats , members of the new majority have their own differing perspectives , corresponding largely to length of service , that could ultimately prove more crucial to their success or failure .

Of 233 Democrats who will be sworn in on Thursday , 147 -- 63 percent -- have been elected since Republicans won control of the House in 1994 , and have never served in the majority .

Those whose service predates the 1994 revolution , on the other hand , number only 86 , or 37 percent .

But it is this core of senior Democrats , Mr. Dingell among them , who will lead 20 of the 21 major committees and so exercise concentrated legislative power .

The differences in tenure tend to manifest themselves geographically as well .

The makeup of the senior membership has a more urban flavor , while those more recently elected tend to come from the suburbs and exurbs .

These newer members have faced tougher electoral opposition than their older counterparts , who in many cases represent overwhelmingly safe Democratic districts .

A majority of new chairmen have traditional liberal roots .

Lawmakers , senior aides and analysts say the institutional gulf is not necessarily problematic and could even prove beneficial if Democratic leaders are able to harness the experience and skill of the chairmen to the enthusiasm and drive for reform exhibited by the newcomers .

But they worry that it could become a distraction if the `` old bulls , '' as they are sometimes called , believe that less seasoned lawmakers are demanding too much too fast or if the newer members see the veterans as representative of Congressional inertia .

`` The guys who have been there for a while and built up seniority saw an abuse of the system , so they know firsthand why it has to change , '' said Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois , who will be chairman of the Democratic caucus .

`` The new members ran on an agenda of why it has to be changed .

`` If managed correctly , you have the experience and energy to make changes .

If not managed correctly , it has the potential to be a fault line . ``

Leading House Democrats say the long-tenured members and those sent to Congress in recent elections broadly agree on a desire to move ahead on social programs , ethics , energy , national security and fiscal responsibility .

The differences , they say , are subtler .

Do issues studied in the previous Congress , for instance , need a full further examination in committee , in deference to the new chairmen .

Is there need for a separate commission to scrutinize war contracting , or should this too be the province of the committees .

In any event , it is clear that the lower classmen , particularly the large and celebrated group of 30 freshmen , want to move quickly .

`` The new class coming in and some of the other newer members are absolutely committed to delivering on the agenda we talked about during the election , '' said Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland , who will lead the House Democratic campaign effort for 2008 .

`` Now that we are in power , we want to make sure that we are changing direction in Washington , and that means following through not just on the big print but the fine print , a break with business as usual . ''

Representative-elect Ed Perlmutter , Democrat of Colorado , agreed .

`` I do n't think the chairs are not looking to be aggressive , `` Mr. Perlmutter said , '' but I do see in this freshman class a real desire to make changes and move things along quickly , because I think that was the direction we were given by our voters . ``

Senior Democrats say that as the lawmakers who endured minority status for so long , they are the ones most painfully aware of a need for new direction .

Their stake in holding on to a majority , they say , means protecting and advancing the careers of new lawmakers , who in many cases were elected with fund-raising and other help from senior Democrats .

`` It is not like we are just now meeting for the first time , '' said Representative Barney Frank , Democrat of Massachusetts , who will be chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and can tick off the names of junior committee members he has worked with , as well as several freshmen he personally supported .

`` We all campaigned for these guys . ''

Mr. Dingell said an urge to remake the House was hardly anything new .

`` This is a normal phenomenon which occurs in this place every two years , '' he said , `` and I have seen no class come in that could be described as different .

We all come here just dying to do something .

But the smart ones of us know how to get it done by working within the system .

I have no fears they are out to burn the place down . ``

But Norman Ornstein , a longtime Congressional observer at the American Enterprise Institute , said he saw competing drives among members of the new majority .

`` You have a significant number of Democrats who think the major change is that the whip is now in their hands and it is the Republicans taking the lash , '' Mr. Ornstein said .

`` A number of others want to keep the spigots running , but just into their own pockets .

Those who genuinely want to change the House -- the way it operates , the culture of Washington -- have their work cut out for them . ``

The Democrats ' leader , Representative Nancy Pelosi of California , the incoming speaker , has been in the House since 1987 but has never been chairwoman of a committee , and so in some respects her role may be that of an outsider free to pursue transformation .

In one of her first tests , however , some seven weeks ago , many of those headed for chairmanships opposed her push to install Representative John P . Murtha of Pennsylvania as majority leader .

Instead , they backed Representative Steny H . Hoyer of Maryland , at least partly because they saw him as a check on Mrs. Pelosi 's power .

Mr. Hoyer went on to win .

Mrs. Pelosi has told allies that while she respects the authority of the new chairmen , she will not allow them to dominate the party agenda or stall legislative initiatives that have broad support .

And she has already indicated that she does not intend to send the party 's early legislative initiatives back through the committee process , but will instead bring a minimum-wage increase and energy and health bills , among others , straight to the floor .

Democrats senior and junior say they are watching to see whether their ideals merge or collide .

But they view party differences as just another factor they will have to take into account as they assume control .

`` I think people understand it is a little bit of a bump and we have to deal with it , '' Mr. Frank said .

Michael Arcuri , a moderate Democrat from upstate New York who won a Republican-held seat in November , said the combination of exuberance and experience should prove an advantage for the party .

`` If we strike the balance between the two , '' Mr. Arcuri said , `` we are going to accomplish some pretty incredible things . ''

Correction : January 9 , 2007 , Tuesday An article last Tuesday about possible divisions among Democrats in Congress misstated the number of Democratic freshmen in the House .

It is 42 , not 30 .

-LRB- Democrats took over 30 Republican-held seats and 12 seats that had been vacated by Democrats . -RRB- .

Summary: Divergent outlooks are part of friction that may develop in new Congress as Democratic party takes control after 12 years .

Summary: Democrats have differing perspectives , corresponding largely to length of service , that could ultimately prove crucial to their success or failure .

Summary: Photos .

Summary: Graph shows composition of House Democrats .


A FEW years back , while traveling in the Sierra Madre Occidental of northern Mexico , I came upon a canyon packed with cliff dwellings no one had lived in since before the time of Christopher Columbus .

On the ground were discarded artifacts , pieces of frayed baskets , broken pottery and hundreds of desiccated corn cobs -- the ruins of an ancient civilization .

I reached down to pick up what I thought was a dry gourd , and instead found myself cradling the skull of a human child .

As I turned it in my hands , I noticed a deliberate hole in the back of the skull , directly above the spine .

The skull was not cracked around the hole , which means the child had most likely been alive when a spike or some other implement had been slammed into his or her head from behind .

This is not the only skull like this .

Excavations from elsewhere in northern Mexico have turned up other children killed the same way , human sacrifices to an ancient water deity , their bodies buried under pre-Columbian ball courts or at the foot of pillars in important rooms .

With knowledge of such widespread ferocity , I recently saw Mel Gibson 's movie `` Apocalypto , '' which deals with the gore of the Mayan civilization .

I had heard that the movie 's violence was wildly out of control .

But even as I winced at many of the scenes , as a writer and researcher in ancient American archaeology , I found little technical fault with the film other than ridiculous Hollywood ploys and niggling archaeological details .

Indeed , parts of the archaeological record of the Americas read like a war-crimes indictment , with charred skeletons stacked like cordwood and innumerable human remains missing heads , legs and arms .

In the American Southwest , which is my area of research , human tissue has been found cooked to the insides of kitchen jars and stained into a ceramic serving ladle .

A grinding stone was found full of crushed human finger bones .

A sample of human feces came up containing the remains of a cannibal 's meal .

It could be argued that `` Apocalypto '' dehumanizes Native Americans , turning their ancestors into savage monsters , but I think it does the opposite .

Oppressed hunter-gatherers in the movie are presented as people with the same , universal emotions all humans share .

And urban Mayans are portrayed as politically and religiously savvy , having made of themselves a monumental , Neolithic empire , something more akin to ancient Egypt than the trouble-free agrarians who come to most people 's minds when they think of native America .

To further shatter that popular notion of Native Americans , there 's the scene in which a turquoise-jeweled priest stands atop a staggering temple yanking out one beating human heart after the next .

That 's an image that nearly every archaeologist working in Central America has played in his or her head many times , only now it 's on the big screen for everyone to see .

Being told by screenwriters and archaeologists that their ancestors engaged in death cults tends to make many Native Americans uneasy .

In Arizona , Hopi elders turn their eyes to the ground when they hear about their own past stained with overt brutality .

The name Hopi means people of peace , which is what they strive to be .

Meanwhile , excavators keep digging up evidence of cannibalism and ritualized violence among their ancestors .

How do we rectify the age-old perception of noble and peaceful native America with the reality that at times violence was coordinated on a scale never before witnessed by humanity .

The answer is simple .

We do n't .

Prior to 1492 it was a complex cultural landscape with civilization ebbing and flowing , the spaces in between traversed by ancient lineages of hunters and gatherers .

To the religious core of pre-Columbian Mayans , a beating heart ripped from someone 's chest was a thing of supreme sacredness and not prosaic violence .

If `` Apocalypto '' has a fault , it is not with its brutality , but with us in the audience who cringe , thinking the Mayans little more than a barbaric people .

The fault lies in our misunderstanding of a complicated history , thinking we can lump a whole civilization into a single response and walk out of the movie saying , `` That was disgusting . ''

Op-Ed Contributor Craig Childs is the author of the forthcoming `` House of Rain : Tracking a Vanished Civilization Across the American Southwest . '' .

Summary: Craig Childs Op-Ed disagrees with those who argue that Mel Gibson movie Apocalypto dehumanizes Native Americans , turning their Mayan ancestors into savagely violent people .

Summary: Says oppressed Mayans in movie are presented as people with universal emotions shared by all humans .

Summary: Says problem with movie is with audience who finds Mayans barbaric .

Summary: Says fault lies in misunderstanding of complicated history that lumps entire civilization into simplistic response .


After Somalia 's Islamist forces abandoned their final outpost on Monday , the transitional government moved aggressively to assert control , setting a three-day deadline for all weapons to be turned in and calling for international peacekeeping troops to be sent immediately .

Somalia was already a place where military-grade weaponry was casually flaunted on its streets , but the Islamists ' swift collapse has created such a surplus of guns that the average price of a Kalashnikov assault rifle , one of the world 's most popular killing machines , has dropped to $ 15 .

Ali Mohammed Gedi , the former veterinarian who is the transitional prime minister , said at his daily news conference that he would not tolerate the situation and gave instructions for turning in the weapons .

`` Individuals or groups of people who have trucks mounted with antiaircraft guns , known as ' technicals , ' should bring those battlewagons to Mogadishu 's old port , `` he said .

Clan leaders were skeptical about whether he would succeed , and many Somalis seemed dead set against it .

`` They 're trying to neuter us , `` said Muhammad Duudo , an unemployed car mechanic .

`` And it 's not going to happen .

Just wait until the full moon passes and the darkness comes . ``

Whatever lies ahead , encouraging or ominous , most Somalis seemed to agree that after a week of fast-moving events , the rough outlines of a new reality were emerging .

For the first time since the former dictator , Mohamed Siad Barre , fled the country in 1991 , casting Somalia into 15 years of anarchy , there is a credible government based in Mogadishu , the capital , with serious outside support and no organized military threat from within .

True , countless gunmen still roam the streets , heavily armed warlords still command authority and the seeds of a possible guerrilla movement may be taking root .

But so far no major force has emerged to challenge the authority of the transitional government .

The only rival , the Islamists , lost their last conventional military battle on Monday .

The Islamists had steadily lost ground since Dec . 24 , when Ethiopia unleashed a punishing series of airstrikes and pushed ground troops deep into Somali territory .

Ethiopian officials justified their intervention in Somalia 's messy , violent internal politics by saying the Islamist movement was a regional threat with terrorist connections and ambitions to invade their country .

Ethiopia commands one of the most powerful militaries in Africa , and within days of its entrance into the war , Burhakaba , a pivotal inland town , fell from Islamist control -- then Jowhar , another key town , and then Mogadishu , the Islamists ' former stronghold .

By Sunday , the last remnants of the Islamist forces , which just a few weeks ago controlled a large swath of Somalia , were cornered in Kismayo , a port city on the south Somali coast .

Thousands of Ethiopian and transitional government troops were closing in on them , and on Sunday night , the Ethiopians began pounding away with heavy artillery .

At the same time , Kismayo clan elders were pleading with the Islamists to leave .

The elders said the Islamists did not stand a chance , and they were worried that their city was about to be flattened .

Clan elders in Mogadishu similarly decided last week that the Islamists were a losing cause and pulled their troops and weapons out of the movement .

As in Mogadishu , the Islamists in Kismayo , after many fiery speeches about fighting to the death , simply fled .

By Monday morning , many of the Islamists ' fighters in Kismayo had shed their uniforms and melted back into the population while others headed south toward a thickly forested area along the Kenyan border .

`` I ca n't tell you how happy people were that they disappeared , `` said Adam Ragay , a businessman in Kismayo .

As soon as the Islamists left , looters rushed into the streets and smashed up stores and ran away with televisions and cellphones .

But by midafternoon , the brief burst of anarchy was over and transitional government troops had arrived on the outskirts of town .

Residents of Kismayo said the remaining Islamists were heading toward Ras Kamboni , a small town in an isolated area on the Kenyan border that the Islamists had used before as a hide-out .

Ethiopian intelligence officials say operatives of Al Qaeda , invited by the Islamists , planned the 1998 attacks on American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania from Ras Kamboni .

Kenyan officials say they have increased border security to keep the Islamists from escaping .

`` Anyone who ventures to enter Kenya will have to go through a very serious vetting process , '' Alfred N . Mutua , a Kenyan spokesman , said in a statement on Monday .

Mr. Gedi has acknowledged that he needs a lot of outside help .

Security in Mogadishu is still uncertain , with just a light presence of soldiers .

Mogadishu 's ports and airport remain closed , strangling the flow of goods and sending prices for rice , sugar , oil and gasoline through the roof .

The schools remain closed .

One of the Islamists ' first steps after beginning their ill-fated attack on the transitional government was to close all schools to funnel more teenagers to the front .

Their move backfired both militarily and politically after countless teenage soldiers were summarily mowed down by better-trained Ethiopian troops .

Abdi Sallah , a pharmacist in Mogadishu , said he thought that the new government was heading in the right direction but that it needed to step gingerly .

`` So , we ask all the militia to turn in their weapons and then what happens .

`` he said .

`` Do they become part of a national army or do they become unemployed .

Have these guys thought all this through .

Summary: Transitional government in Somalia moves aggressively to assert control after Islamist forces abandon their final outpost .

Summary: Transitional prime minister Ali Mohammed Gedi sets three-day deadline for all weapons to be turned in and calls for international peacekeeping troops to be sent immediately .

Summary: Clan leaders are skeptical about whether he would succeed , and many Somalis are dead set against order to surrender firearms .

Summary: Photo .


Having enjoyed a year that was better than average in the stock market and a much weaker one in housing , home owners and investors appear neither exuberant nor glum about 2007 .

In fact , they are decidedly ambivalent , according to a recent New York Times / CBS News poll .

They are split , for instance , almost evenly on whether it is a good time to buy a new home or better to wait , even though a sizable majority expects home prices to stay steady or rise , especially in their neighborhoods .

The poll also showed that Americans had regained some faith in stocks as a safe investment since the market 's crash in 2000 , but they were less confident that stocks would rise next year than they were during the depths of the last bear market , in 2002 .

The telephone survey was conducted from Dec . 8 to 10 and included 922 adults nationwide and has a sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points .

The seeming confusion and anxiety is not entirely new or limited to average Americans .

Similar worries abounded in late 2005 , when some economists and market experts predicted the nation 's long housing boom would come to a screeching halt and inflict damage on the economy and the stock market .

While home sales did plummet from record levels , the stock market rebounded to new heights after a brief stumble last summer .

The Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index posted a 14 percent gain last year , its best showing since 2003 .

The American economy also put up stronger-than-expected performance as job growth and business investment made up for the faltering real estate market .

Still , in follow-up interviews , several of those polled last month said that while they were confident about their personal financial positions , they were preparing themselves for tougher times by either changing their spending and investment patterns or by not taking as many risks .

Christopher J . Pujol , an account manager at a pharmacy benefits company in Texas , said he planned to shift some of the assets in his 401 -LRB- k -RRB- account to cash from stock-based mutual funds because he did not think the market would match its 2006 performance .

`` The good times ca n't go on forever , `` he said .

`` I take a conservative approach and take money off the table . ''

Mr. Pujol is not alone .

Skeptical market experts have raised concerns about the durability of the recent rally .

More broadly , economists are significantly divided about the outlook for the year , from the most pessimistic among them predicting a recession and the most optimistic saying economic growth could be so strong that it may force policy makers to resume raising interest rates to fight inflation .

`` People seem to have a fairly balanced view about things , '' said Robert T . McGee , chief economist at U.S. Trust , who reviewed results of the poll .

`` We have had a relatively strong housing boom and people recognize that is over , but at the same time the disappointment in stocks that occurred after 2000 and 2001 is dissipating some . ''

The poll is in line with other recent surveys that show Americans are slightly more cautious , even though most of them have stable employment and are seeing their paychecks increase , said Lynn Franco , director of the consumer research center at the Conference Board , which produces a widely followed consumer confidence index .

`` Over all , it 's this glass half-full / half-empty scenario , `` she said .

Mr. Pujol , who lives in Keller , Tex . , near Fort Worth , with his wife and their two young sons , thinks that the economy will moderate in 2007 .

The family bought a new home four years ago and is not planning to move but Mr. Pujol and his wife have other real estate investments in Texas that he thinks will fare better than property on the coasts .

Mr. Pujol reflected the view of most Southerners , 57 percent of whom said local housing prices would increase in the coming year and the same number said it was a good time to buy a house .

Only 47 percent of people surveyed nationally said it was a good time to buy a house and 45 percent said local prices would increase .

The difference may reflect the relative strength of housing in Texas , on the Gulf Coast and in the Carolinas .

Not surprisingly , home owners were also more upbeat on housing -- 52 percent said it was a good time to buy a home -- than renters , 60 percent of whom felt it would be better to wait .

-LRB- Similarly , 65 percent of people who owned stocks or mutual funds said the stock market would go up next year compared with 39 percent of people who did not have investments . -RRB-

Laura Koepnick , a lawyer for the state of Massachusetts , said she and her partner would like to move to a bigger home from their condo in Boston but think home prices may fall further still .

`` It 's more of a buyers market , but it has been so up and down that I am not comfortable making a huge investment at this time , `` said Ms. Koepnick , 36 , who is still paying off law school loans and owns a mutual fund in a retirement account .

Darla K . Bundy , who works for the state of Pennsylvania , would also like to move but she faces an entirely different set of challenges .

So many homes are on sale in Ridgway , the small industrial town two and a half hours northeast of Pittsburgh where she lives , that Ms. Bundy said she could not make as much as she and her husband , a welder , owe on the property .

In 2001 , Ms. Bundy lost an $ 18-an-hour job making specialty light bulbs for Sylvania when the company moved some production to Mexico .

After taking a two-year computer training course paid for by the government , she has a $ 12-an-hour clerical job at the state transportation department .

`` My husband and I would love to make financial investments to prepare for retirement , '' Ms. Bundy , 42 , said .

`` But to even take $ 20 out of our budget and put it somewhere else is unthinkable . ''

Like several other people , Ms. Bundy pointed to Sept . 11 , 2001 , as a critical turning point for her family -- she lost her job shortly before the attacks of that day and her husband has had a hard time finding work ever since .

The brief recession that followed the technology bust in 2000 ended before the attacks of 2001 , but many Americans view the attacks as an important historical marker in the nation 's and their personal economic lives .

That may be a function of the weak employment and wage growth that characterized the economic recovery from 2002 to 2004 .

The economy was `` pretty good until 9/11 , and then it took a major dive , '' said Dawn E . Owsley , a 33-year-old who owns a spa business in Olympia , Wash .

`` And then it picked up a little .

But I feel that we have not yet caught up . ``

Over all , a majority , 52 percent , said they were making enough to pay bills and obligations and a sizable minority , 35 percent , said they earned enough to save and buy extras , while 12 percent said they did not make enough to meet their household expenses .

By comparison , 17 percent of those who answered that question in early 2005 said they did not make enough , 48 percent said they did and 33 percent said they could save and buy extras .

Most Americans , 71 percent , said if they had extra money to invest they would put it in real estate rather than stocks , which were favored by 22 percent of the respondents .

By comparison , during the peak of the housing boom in the spring of 2005 , an NBC News / Wall Street Journal poll found that 80 percent preferred real estate and 13 percent stocks .

Of those polled , 77 percent said they owned their own home and 21 percent said they rented .

But only 44 percent said they owned stocks or mutual funds , down from 56 percent in the first half of 2000 .

That shift away from stock ownership is not surprising given that many investors are still smarting from the technology-led crash of 2000 and the two-year bear market that followed .

And in spite of the recent rally , mutual fund flows indicate that investors remain skeptical of American stocks .

As of Dec . 27 , investors poured $ 15 billion into domestic equity funds in 2006 , compared with $ 134 billion in nondomestic funds and $ 305 billion in money market funds , according to AMG Data Services .

Edward A . Kellerhals , a retired municipal electrical inspector who lives near Fresno , Calif . , said his investments in stocks and real estate had provided a comfortable retirement for him and his wife .

Though he has long thought that land is a better investment than stocks , he became convinced that real estate prices in California had become outlandish when he and his wife were looking to buy a home at the end of 2005 .

`` This piece of junk we saw was selling for $ 300,000 , '' Mr. Kellerhals , 76 , said .

`` The roof was leaking all over the place and there was a trailer with a caved-in roof in the back . ''

He has become more bullish on stocks , but says that at their age he and his wife `` do n't buy much stock anymore . ``

`` We are just slowly going to sell it all , '' he said .

How the Poll Was Conducted The latest New York Times / CBS News poll is based on telephone interviews conducted Dec . 8 through Dec . 10 with 922 adults throughout the United States .

The sample of telephone exchanges called was randomly selected by a computer from a complete list of more than 42,000 active residential exchanges across the country .

Within each exchange , random digits were added to form a complete telephone number , thus permitting access to listed and unlisted numbers alike .

Within each household , one adult was designated by a random procedure to be the respondent for the survey .

The results have been weighted to take account of household size and number of telephone lines into the residence and to adjust for variation in the sample relating to geographic region , sex , race , marital status , age and education .

In theory , in 19 cases out of 20 , overall results based on such samples will differ by no more than three percentage points in either direction from what would have been obtained by seeking out all American adults .

For smaller subgroups , the margin of sampling error is larger .

Shifts in results between polls also have a larger sampling error .

In addition to sampling error , the practical difficulties of conducting any survey of public opinion may introduce other sources of error into the poll .

Variation in the wording and order of questions , for example , may lead to somewhat different results .

Complete questions and results are available at nytimes.com/ polls .

THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS .

Summary: New York Times / CBS News poll shows that home owners and investors are ambivalent about 2007 .

Summary: They are split almost evenly on whether it is good time to buy new home or better to wait , even though sizable majority expects home prices to stay or rise .

Summary: Poll shows also that Americans had regained some faith in stocks as safe investment since market 's crash in 2000 , but they are less confident that stocks will rise in 2007 than they were during last bear market in 2002 .

Summary: Also shows that those interviewed are preparing themselves for tougher times by either changing their spending and investment patterns or by not taking as many risks .

Summary: 52 percent say they are making enough to pay bills and obligations and 35 percent say they earn enough to save and buy extras , while 12 percent say they do not make enough to meet household expenses .

Summary: Graphs .

Summary: Photo .


Five years ago , the United States economy went through a recession that did virtually no damage to the housing market .

In 2007 , the question is whether the economy can emerge unscathed from a housing recession .

As 2006 ended , the opinion of stock market investors could not have been clearer : there are blue skies ahead .

The Dow Jones industrial average , which was up 16.3 percent for 2006 , was setting new highs in the final week of the year , and even the shares of home builders had rallied sharply from their midyear lows .

In the bond market , however , the outlook was cloudy at best .

Prices in the futures market showed that investors expected that the next move by the Federal Reserve would be to reduce the interest rate it has raised 17 times since mid-2004 .

That indicates worry about a slowing economy .

And another traditional indicator -- the yield curve -- says the same thing .

When short-term interest rates exceed long-term rates , as they do now , a recession often follows .

Nonetheless , there are other indicators in the bond market to show a complete lack of worry .

In a recession , less creditworthy borrowers are more likely to default as business turns bad , so investors who fear a downturn are expected to demand higher interest rates from them .

But investors are not doing that .

The spread between Treasury bonds and BB-rated bonds -- the best level of junk -- has shrunk to historic lows of less than two percentage points .

And while very bad junk bonds -- those rated CCC or lower -- pay much more , spreads there fell to their lowest ever in 2006 , although they drifted up a bit late in the year .

So the stock market says a boom is here and is going to stay , housing notwithstanding .

And the bond market expects a recession -- but one that does not damage those who are financially stretched before it begins .

`` We think of markets as forecasters , '' said Robert J . Barbera , the chief economist of ITG .

`` But it is very hard to come up with a model '' that makes sense of the current forecasts .

The answer to that conundrum is probably to look at markets from a different perspective .

They move because money comes in or goes out , and money now is easier and more plentiful than ever .

So most asset prices have risen , whether stocks or long-term bonds or commodities .

An exception is short-term debt .

There is no upside to a Treasury bill that matures in a few months , and thus little attraction to it .

There is a perception that central banks tightened in 2006 , and that was true of the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank .

But it is anything but accurate about the central banks that matter the most now .

`` We are in a global market , with the central banks of Japan and China very , very easy , '' Mr. Barbera said .

`` Two central banks are pumping it out hand over fist . ''

Where is the money going .

Into consumption in many countries , and into a bidding war for assets as well .

The Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index , which generally contains the largest public companies in the United States , now has eight companies in it that have announced plans to go private , often with a lot of borrowed money involved .

And companies that are awash with cash are putting a lot of that money into dividends and even more into stock buybacks , at least among S . & P . 500 companies , reports Howard Silverblatt , an analyst with Standard & Poor 's .

He estimates that those 500 companies spent $ 425 billion on capital in 2006 , up 3 percent from the prior year , and spent $ 437 billion on stock buybacks , up 25 percent .

It was the first year ever that more money was spent on buybacks than capital spending .

Dividends climbed 11 percent , to $ 224 billion .

Stock of Exxon Mobil , the largest company in the country by market value , rose 36 percent , but because of share buybacks the company 's market value climbed only 28 percent , leaving it at $ 447 billion .

That is still well below the record year-end value for an American company , the $ 603 billion valuation for Microsoft at the end of 1999 .

Microsoft , its stock up 14 percent in 2006 , ended the year as the fourth-largest company , with a market value of $ 258 billion , trailing General Electric and Citigroup .

Among all companies , not just those in the index , S . & P . counted 221 special dividends in December , the most for a single month since 1978 .

Some stocks went down , of course , but not that many .

All of the 10 sectors in the S . & P . 500 showed gains , with the best performance coming from telecommunications services , which rose 32 percent , and the worst from health care , which managed a gain of 6 percent .

The overall index managed a gain in 11 of the 12 months , the exception being May .

The last time the index managed that was in 1958 .

For what it 's worth , the year that followed , 1959 , was a respectable year with a rise of more than 8 percent .

But as good as the market was in the United States , it was better almost everywhere else .

The S . & P . 500 rose 13.6 percent .

But in dollar terms , virtually every major market in Europe was up at least 20 percent , and some grew much more .

The Asian performance was more mixed , with Japan 's leading index rising just 5.7 percent , but many of those markets did much better than the United States did .

The vast majority of American stocks have surpassed the highs they set in the great bull market that ended in 2000 , but that is not true of many of the most prominent stocks .

That bull market was kindest to technology stocks .

Many of them have not come close to recovering to their old peaks , and may never do so .

It was also kind to large stocks in general , as a lot of money poured into index funds that tracked the S . & P . 500 index , and some of the largest , such as General Electric and Merck , are well below where they were .

That index , calculated the traditional way that gives the highest weight to the largest companies , ended the year at 1,418.30 , still 7.1 percent below its 2000 high of 1,527.48 .

But the index is also calculated on an equal-weighted basis , in which each of the 500 stocks counts as much as any other .

For the year , that index did only a little better than the regular S . & P . , but it ended the year 52 percent above its 2000 high .

The Dow , of course , set records in the year .

But just 8 of the 30 Dow stocks -- Boeing , Exxon Mobil , Altria , American Express , Procter & Gamble , United Technologies , Caterpillar and Citigroup -- set new highs in 2006 .

Two of them , Eastman Kodak and International Paper , have never risen above the highs they set in 1997 .

The dollar , widely forecast to weaken , did so against the euro , and the Chinese yuan was allowed to float upward against the dollar , gaining 3.4 percent during the year .

But the dollar actually showed a small gain against the Japanese yen .

That the dollar held up as well as it did in the face of growing trade deficits reflects that people around the world continue to be happy to hold dollar-denominated assets , including Treasury securities .

That willingness has also helped to hold down interest rates in this country .

Those low interest rates helped support home prices .

As home prices rose , lenders became more willing to lend on homes with little equity , or to people whose ability to repay seemed suspect , and that lending also provided money to keep consumption strong .

Mortgage defaults were few and far between , which was hardly a surprise given that virtually any home could be sold for more than had been borrowed against it .

But that started to change in 2006 .

Some subprime loans -- a polite way of saying loans to people with poor credit -- defaulted soon after they were issued .

The banking regulators , who had watched without action as the mortgage market heated up , finally put out guidelines aimed at restricting risky borrowing just as the market was turning lower .

That could make it hard for homeowners under financial stress to refinance their existing home loans .

With prices falling in some regions , home builders reported a surge of cancellations of purchase contracts .

Housing starts plunged , and although starts showed a reassuring increase in November , newly issued permits to build new homes continued to decline .

Oddly enough , rising home sales could be a bad sign in 2007 , particularly if prices continue to sag .

A surge in sales of existing homes could be an indication that people were being forced to sell , and that could have a depressing effect on purchases of other things .

In the past , when home prices fell , the number of homes sold also fell , as homeowners hung on to wait for good times to return .

That could be harder this time , at least for those with mortgages that allow large increases in monthly payments .

But even with housing in many areas of the United States on the ropes , much of the rest of the world seems to be humming along .

There is strong economic growth in most of the developing world , and many commodities prices continue to be strong .

Still , it was in commodities that the perils of a liquidity-driven market were exposed .

Crude oil ended the year at virtually the same level as a year earlier , but spot natural gas was down 44 percent .

It is no coincidence that a bet on natural gas led to the most notable hedge fund blowup of the year .

Reality , in the form of warmer weather and higher inventories than expected , sent prices plunging .

No such disasters have befallen most other markets , and with earnings strong , perhaps they will be averted .

Easy money is driving up asset prices , and that could continue in 2007 .

THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS .

Summary: Whether economy can emerge unscathed from housing recession in 2007 is unclear .

Summary: Investors expect stock market to continue to rally as it did in 2006 .

Summary: Outlook for bond market is cloudy because investors expect Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates as economy slows .

Summary: Spread between Treasury bonds and BB-rated bonds -- best level of junk -- has shrunk to historic lows of less than two percentage points .

Summary: Stock market says boom is going to stay , housing notwithstading .

Summary: Graphs .


The United States and its allies in Europe , in a tacit acknowledgment that sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council in late December are too weak to force Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions , have embarked on a new strategy to increase the financial and psychological pressure .

The plan is to use the language of the resolution to help persuade foreign governments and financial institutions to cut ties with Iranian businesses , individuals in its nuclear and missile programs and , by extension , the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps , said Stuart Levey , under secretary of the treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence .

The Guard and its military wing are identified as a power base for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad .

Under his administration , American officials said , the Guard has moved increasingly into commercial operations , earning profits and extending its influence in Iran in areas involving big government contracts -- including building airports and other infrastructure , oil production and the providing of cellphones .

Bush administration officials , who asked not to be identified because they were discussing diplomatic plans , said envoys would soon head abroad to press officials of foreign governments and banks to interpret the Security Council resolution equally aggressively .

The new strategy builds on the Treasury Department 's efforts over the past few months to get Western banks to scale back business with Iran or risk running afoul of American laws .

In 2006 , the European banks Credit Suisse First Boston and UBS said they would not do any new business with Iran .

It is hard to assess how deeply the financial actions may cut , since the most willing parties to the effort -- the United States and Europe -- have few business dealings with Iran .

The United States does have laws that give it considerable leeway to impose financial restrictions on banks and companies doing business in Iran , while European law does not .

That said , Britain is also backing the new push , as is France , although to a lesser extent .

Germany , with far more business interests in Iran , is not quite as eager .

Japan is not a member of the Security Council , and the country is heavily dependent on the Persian Gulf for oil .

But Japanese government officials have recently indicated their willingness to limit some of their business dealings with Iran .

Last month , the Japan Bank for International Cooperation announced that it would not issue any new loans for Iranian projects until Iran resolved the nuclear impasse with the West .

In addition , Japan has reduced its stake in an initial $ 2 billion deal to develop Iran 's largest onshore oil field at Azadegan to 10 percent from the originally agreed 75 percent , citing concern about Iran 's nuclear program .

While United States officials have discussed what they are trying to do with their Russian and Chinese counterparts , the belief is that they have gone about as far as they are willing to go with the Security Council resolution that passed Dec . 23 .

Russia fought to keep certain entities off the list and to keep the list as narrow as possible .

Mr. Levey noted that the resolution cited three people as off limits to outside commercial transactions , and , in another section , prohibited transactions with agencies `` owned or controlled '' by them .

The three , he said , are Maj . Gen . Yahya Rahim Safavi , commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps .

Gen . Hosein Salimi , who is in charge of the air force branch of the corps .

And Ahmad Vahid Dastjerdi , who runs the Aerospace Industries Organization .

Thus , an effort to bar future foreign commercial or government involvement , including bank transactions , affecting missile programs and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard is authorized by the resolution , Mr. Levey said .

`` This resolution will be a big step forward in getting governments and financial institutions to pay more attention to Iran 's use of deceptive financial practices to facilitate its dangerous conduct and to stop doing business with the I.R.G.C. , `` Mr. Levey said , referring to the Revolutionary Guard .

The resolution says that `` all states '' will `` take the necessary measures '' to bar `` financial assistance '' and `` financial resources or services '' related to nuclear and ballistic missile programs .

The resolution 's appendix cites several government and private groups and 12 people as involved in those programs .

Interrupting foreign involvement with those groups and individuals is also part of the new campaign .

But American officials have no figures on the value of international business done with those cited in the resolution .

The United States and European officials said they had also begun trying maneuvers aimed at undermining the self-assurance of Iranian officials , especially those who travel abroad .

The recent arrests of four Iranian diplomats by American troops in Iraq , the officials said , played into that strategy .

Pentagon officials said the Iranians were suspected of transferring improvised explosive devices from Iran to Iraq .

Iran complained loudly that the men were diplomats and that their arrest violated accepted diplomatic rules .

The diplomats , two of whom American officials said were probably members of the Revolutionary Guard , were eventually released .

But their arrests are `` precisely the type of thing that will chip away at their confidence , '' one European official said .

Most of the Western officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the issue .

Even before the new effort began , the slowdown in international business was already emerging as a problem for Iran , which has vast oil fields but relatively little refining capacity .

It imports 43 percent of its gasoline , according to the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security , a Washington-based nonprofit group that follows energy issues .

In a rare acknowledgment of difficulty , the Iranian oil minister , Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh , told the ministry 's news agency , Shana , recently that Iran was encountering obstacles in financing oil projects .

`` Currently , overseas banks and financiers have decreased their cooperation , '' Mr. Vaziri-Hamaneh told the agency .

Iran is already seeking to secure gasoline imports from its allies , including Venezuela , and shifting some dependency from gasoline to natural gas .

`` Definitely , the Iranian economy is suffering a great deal as a result of the economic punishment , '' said Gal Luft , the executive director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security .

But he added that Mr. Ahmadinejad `` is not just sitting on his hands and waiting . ''

The new strategy comes in part because few believe that the sanctions resolution that passed Dec . 23 has the muscle to sway Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions , which it insists are focused on energy production , not weapons .

The road to sanctions was a tortuous one , filled with wrangling between the United States , which pushed for tough measures , and Russia , which advocated weaker measures .

United States and European officials said they might still try to include tougher sanctions through the United Nations in the months ahead .

But they say the West will need to use other measures as well .

Specifically , the United States will press France , Germany , Italy and other European countries to halt credits that encourage doing business in Iran .

The German Ministry of Economics , in a credit program called Hermes , says on a Web site that Iran is among `` risky markets , which are also growth markets , '' identified for such credits .

Summary: United States and allies in Europe embark on new strategy to increase financial and psychological pressure on Iran , in tacit acknowledgment that sanctions imposed by United Nations Security Council in late Dec are too weak to force Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions .

Summary: Plan is to use language of resolution to help persuade foreign governments and financial institutions to cut ties with Iranian businesses , individuals in its nuclear and missile programs and , by extension , Iranian Revolutionary Guard , which is identified as power base for Pres Mahmoud Ahmadinejad .

Summary: It is hard to assess how deeply financial actions may cut , since most willing parties to effort -- US and Europe -- have few business dealings with Iran .

Summary: Photo .