NEWSMAX — North Korea announced Wednesday that it will reopen a cross-border communication channel with South Korea, officials in Seoul said, another sign of easing animosity between the rivals after a year that saw the North conduct nuclear bomb and missile tests and both the Koreas and Washington issue threats of war.... (more)

ALAN KEYES — A few days before Christmas, I went to Union Station in Washington, D.C., to sing Christmas carols with a group of folks organized by my friend, Jack Ames, a co-founder of the Defend Life organization. I arrived a little late, to find the group singing in a spot outside the entrance on the west side of the station, near stairs leading down to the Metro. They were gathered 'round a nativity scene, regaling passersby with infectious enthusiasm. I quickly caught their good spirit and joined in.... (more)

JOAN SWIRSKY — We're still weeks away from the day in January last year when Donald J. Trump ascended to the presidency and took his oath of office as the 45th President of the United States of America. Yet, in less than twelve months, he has already had an extraordinary presidency -- more bold, courageous, and revolutionary in many ways than any American president since the Founding Fathers almost two-and-a-half centuries ago.... (more)

TIMES OF ISRAEL — U.S. intelligence agencies have given Israel the green light to assassinate the senior Iranian responsible for coordinating military activity on behalf of the Islamic Republic in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, according to the Kuwaiti newspaper al-Jarida.... (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — President Trump tweeted his condolences to the victims of the shooting in Colorado, which took place early Sunday morning and resulted in one officer being killed. The incident took place near an apartment complex south of Denver, according to several news reports. Five officers and two civilians were wounded. One police officer has been confirmed dead.... (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — Which one of the following is true? 1. Massachusetts has passed a law requiring Alcoholics Anonymous to hang posters at their meetings to advertise where to get alcohol...... (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz says he's feeling the heat from family and friends over his defense of President Trump amid special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation. "It's caused me to lose seven pounds," Dershowitz told Politico. "My liberal friends don't invite me to dinner anymore."... (more)

VICTOR DAVIS HANSON — 1) If the FISA Court orders to explore the purported Trump-Russian collusion were predicated on phony Steele/Fusion GPS documents and suppositions that prove largely untrue (Comey himself testified under oath that he could not verify their contents), then are subsequent transcripts of court-approved surveilled conversations somewhat poisoned?... (more)

WASHINGTON EXAMINER — President Trump numbered "the very dishonest Fake News Media" among the compendium of "supporters, enemies, [and] haters" who received his best wishes for the new year.... (more)

ROBERT KNIGHT — As we stand on the threshold of a new year, a phrase from Simon and Garfunkel's song "The Boxer" sums up why America's division into two warring worldviews seems to be widening. "A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest." That's true for most folks, thanks to human nature. However, we're not on an equal playing field. The whole thing is tilted to the left. Liberal news and entertainment are everywhere, including airport lounges where thousands of travelers each day are afflicted with CNN's non-stop propaganda.... (more)

WASHINGTON TIMES — Climate change got its close-up in 2017. A gaggle of films either name-checked Al Gore's biggest fear or built their narratives around it. The timing, in theory, couldn't be better for Hollywood bean counters: Three major hurricanes. Massive fires in the West. Record-setting chills. Media reports routinely connected the disasters with a warming planet. Yet audiences stayed away from films influenced by eco-concerns. Far, far away.... (more)

JOSEPH FARAH — The last time the Iranian people rose up to challenge their fanatical mullah rulers was in 2009. You might recall President Barack Obama's reaction. He sat on his hands. Initially, he offered no protest of the massive government repression. Only when the carnage lasted more than a week did Obama offer a toothless condemnation of the violence. He never addressed the root causes -- Iran's tyrannical regime that forces all to live under an oppressive code of Shia Islam that would make the Taliban blush.... (more)