We lament the current travail borne by our friends in Egypt and Jordan, and pray for them.  (NGP Photo: Nubian, Arabic teacher, upper Nile — and our guide and Facebook friend weeping for joy at a special moment.   January 2010)  -dh

Journal of Commerce by Tim Bradner (NGP Photo).  Alaska legislators say they’re frustrated with lack of progress by TransCanada Corp. in securing shipping contracts for a planned $40 billion-plus Alaska natural gas pipeline, and some are arguing for terminating the state’s contract with the pipeline company, under which Alaska is paying a $500 million subsidy to the project.

San Francisco Chronicle/AP by Becky Bohrer.  Alaska lawmakers introduced legislation Friday to abandon a centerpiece of former Gov. Sarah Palin’s (NGP Photo) administration: a state-sanctioned effort to advance a major natural gas pipeline.