New York’s currently: abusing the snooze bar

 With polls pretty much in a dead heat, the election may come down to the Bush-Kerry presidential debates, which begin Thursday in Florida, and show promise of fireworks.

 James Baker, representing Bush, held out for lecterns 10 feet apart and just 50 inches high, so the 5-foot-11 Bush won’t look dwarfed by the 6-foot-4 Kerry. Preparing for the debates.

 Jeanne becomes the fourth hurricane since August 13 to hit Florida—the worst single-state frequency since Texas in 1886.

 Reports show Al Qaeda is perched on the Afghanistan border, ready to upset the upcoming elections, and the U.S. says it wants everyone to know it’s increasing security measures now to protect its elections in November.

 Tax-exempt charitable groups are producing anti-Bush and anti-Kerry ads without threat of having to expose their funding.

 Sadly, “My Boo” isn’t the supercool glow-in-the-dark wand at the bottom of the bag but the baffling slingshot/calculator that never actually works. Sasha Frere-Jones on pop music and Happy Meals, and talks with Ben Greenman about the state of pop.

 How the food really gets to your table: A profile of Erik Lopez, a kitchen steward at Daniel.

 Bush administration juggles its view of Iraq, hoping for simple stability rather than pure democracy.

 A massive cloud of interstellar sugar may offer clues to the origin of life.

 How to remember numbers.

 How the countries of the world are connected, the War of the Roses, and many more diagrams.

 Game: New Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, now with graphics.

 Daily Show viewers are more up on political issues than those who do not watch late-night comedy.

 What Kundera, Gardner, and Vargas-Llosa cited.

 How to appreciate classical music in mp3 format.

 Mommy wants a new president.

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