The yahoo article eventually stabilized into a much more coherent, objective thing--stripping away most of the outrageous innuendo and hearsay that characterized its earlier versions.

The changes were so blatant and so many, I wonder if the AP writers responsible for the story were even doing anything wrong by changing it. Maybe the internet just made it possible to read their evolving rough drafts.

Still, it's a strange experience to have the news change on you, though it's not a new phenomenon on the internet. Most often you hear about someone retracting a blog or forum post that sparked drama, because people who linked to the original are howling about finding a dead link or a rewritten opinion. You'd hope professional writers would be more, well, professional.

I've been following Ivins still, though there haven't been many new developments. No credible motive, still. No explanation on how he managed to produce and aerosolize so much anthrax without anyone noticing. No explanation for how he managed to fool his friends and coworkers for so long. Still, they supposedly have traced the anthrax samples from the 2001 letters back to batches that Ivins worked with. All other new developments have centered around Jean Duley, a counselor who has given the only testimony so far of Ivin's homicidal and obsessive tendencies. The counselor herself remains mostly mysterious. Salon.com has had some interesting stuff about the case the past few days.

But I'm weaning myself off all this for now, because the next three days are ironman time for me! Gonna draw lots of comics before this weekend.