What's Most Important?

--Elena Kagan's confirmation hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee begins with Senator Sessions (R, Alabama) using his opening statement to threaten a Republican filibuster.

--Tropical Storm Alex, a very early start to the Atlantic hurricane season, is hitting land as a Category One hurricane, just south of the U.S./Mexico border.

--Oil continues to gush out of the breach at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, more oil is washing ashore wrecking the environment, and accusing fingers are flying everywhere.

--The war in Afghanistan drags on with a new commanding American general--actually a familiar face, General Petraeus--replacing deposed loose cannon General McChrystal. Depending on whom you're listening to, we're either beating the Taliban or they're taking over, with much of the government clandestinely supporting them. Sounds too much like Vietnam to me.

--The World Cup in soccer is in the quarterfinals stage; how is "your" country doing?

For most of the world's population that pays any attention to news, there is only one news story that counts: the World Cup! The planet could be on the brink of being hit by a large asteroid and Univision would still be interviewing crowds of maniacal soccer fans wearing their country's colors and waving their national flags, jumping up and down and screaming.