President George W. Bush’s standing continues to decline in public opinion polls . . . Six women tell of brush-ins with Arnold Schwarzenegger; Schwarzenegger “deeply sorry” . . . Washington Post “media critic” Howard Kurtz sees “enemies” at work (includes requisite Andrew Sullivan quote) . . . Columnist and habitual liar playing journalist, Robert Novak, backs off, confuses, and just all-around pitches in to help the Bush administration as best he can . . . Post columnist Richard Cohen sees hypocrisy in action on the part of the Bush White House . . . Nationally syndicated bow-tie aficionado George F. Will is all worked up over Secretary of State Colin Powell and lowers the bar for weapons inspector David Kay’s report on Iraqi WMDs . . . Remember when it was really cool and hip -- so `90s -- to say you were a libertarian? Well, if you’re still hanging your hat on that pole, pick up and move to New Hampshire, why dontcha? . . . The Senate Judiciary Committee is at it again, voting to approve the nomination of Charles Pickering, a Bush administration favorite for a federal appeals court seat . . . Economist Arthur Laffer takes to the op-ed page of The Wall Street Journal, advocating, what else, a flat tax for California. [Ed.: Subscription required.] . . . The cover story in the latest issue of Fortune (October 13): “Women in Power,” with a cover photo of two of the most overrated women in America: Condoleezza Rice and Carly Fiorina . . . South African novelist J.M. Coetzee wins the Nobel Prize for literature . . . And Philadelphia looks pretty in pink.