Vol. 164 No. 21
COVER
Six armored columns of U.S. forces drove into the heart of the Iraqi insurgency last week. Fighting was close and fierce at times, but even as troops took control of most of the city, more violence fl
NATION
A Westerner with a tough skin and quiet savvy will take on Bush in the Senate. What fights will he pick?
Who Might Be Nominated? (The Supreme Court)
Bush may get to fill as many as three Supreme Court openings, remaking the court for a generation. Democrats have become experts at blocking nominees they oppose, but they can't stop them all
Bush's Man From Humble
Is Alberto Gonzales, a self-made Hispanic lawman, a kinder, gentler version of John Ashcroft? The Democrats aim to find out
WORLD
Who Will Lead Them Now? (Yasser Arafat*1929-2004)
Arafat's death raises hopes for a new push for peace. But much depends on who takes charge and how the U.S. responds
War by Fits and Starts
Why Fallujah won't be the last bloody battle in the race to pacify Iraq in time for its elections
An Icon's Journey (Yasser Arafat*1929-2004)
Into the Hot Zone
After weeks of preparation, the U.S. launches a full-scale assault to take back Fallujah. TIME follows one platoon as it carries out the most dangerous operation since the beginning of the war
The Eternal Agitator (Yasser Arafat*1929-2004)
He shook the world by demanding justice for the Palestinians. But Arafat's defiance ruined his chances to win them independence
SCIENCE
The Arctic is warming up even faster than scientists feared. That could spell doom for the polar bear
SOCIETY
Tough-love academies march on, despite criticism. TIME looks inside one school's techniques
NOTEBOOK
The Folklore of Election '04
Sales By Cinema
Verbatim
A New Don For The Dems?
Numbers
Aftermath Of A Murder
Bordering On Nukes?
20 Years Ago in Time
Milestones
Is It the End of the World as This Author Knows It?
The Values Gap (In the Arena)
What's a Dejected Democrat to do?
Since Nov. 2, countless Kerry supporters have been flocking to the Internet in search of a postelection pick-me-up. Here are some of the imaginative ways they are coping with sorrow and anger online.
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
If Democrats want to rebound, it's time to think outside the ballot box
Table of Contents (Table Of Contents)
BUSINESS
On the way to his vision of an "ownership society," President Bush picks a big fight over Social Security
Why Canada Won't Be Our Pharmacy
Importing cheaper drugs from up north isn't as simple as it seems
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Tom Hanks doesn't turn Polar Express into much of a thrill ride. For that you need 3-D goggles
Sex and the '50s Guy (Movies)
Kinsey turns the story of America's first bedroom statistician into a comedy of midcentury manners
An Offer You Can Refuse (Books)
A new novel tries to continue The Godfather saga
Mysterious Ways (Music)
MAKING RECORDS HAS ALWAYS BEEN MISERY FOR U2. BUT ON HOW TO DISMANTLE AN ATOMIC BOMB, THEY REDISCOVERED THE SECRET: FUSION
The Gorgeous Wreck (Books)
A superb biography looks at the exalted art and difficult life of the painter Willem de Kooning
Getting Down Deep into It (Music)
Jazz pianist Bill Charlap is breaking through as a nonpareil interpreter of American pop classics
Scorn Is the Best Medicine (Television)
And it makes for good TV, as proved by Fox's House
Still Plump. Still Pleasing (Movies)
That scrappy heroine Bridget Jones has more comically charming and romantic misadventures
On Her Time (Books)
Marilynne Robinson's second novel--finally
YOUR TIME
Support Hose For A Broken Heart (Health)
Ballad of Big Nothing (Tech)
The first years of Seinfeld, masterpiece of minutiae, finally come to DVD
Uncertain Sailing For Microsoft (Tech)
Living For The City (Tech)
To E or not to E (Health)
Going Postal (Lifestyle)
The New Family Tree (Health)
The holidays are a perfect time to gather your family's medical history
New-Look Denim (Lifestyle)
Art Of The Close Shave (Lifestyle)
Crazy For Keepsakes (Lifestyle)
An album for couples is the latest title in the growing scrapbooking market
SPECIAL SECTION
CHINA'S ENERGY CRUNCH
Quest for Crude (Time Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business / China)
The Middle Kingdom can't find enough oil to meet booming domestic demand--and the world is paying at the pump
Power Play (Time Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business / Russia)
The Kremlin clampdown on Yukos hasn't stopped the dealmaking frenzy
People to Watch in International Business (Time Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business / World Beaters)
Libya's New Face (Time Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business / Libya)
Gaddafi's son is opening his isolated country to business--and Big Oil is looking for deals
PEOPLE
10 Questions For Whoopi Goldberg (Interview)
Life in the Fast Lane Catches Up
When Stars Allegedly Attack
Hitched to a Star