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The Rock is just one part of the complicated balancing of government, military and private interests all across Iraq every day. On one side are U.S. intelligence officers warily declassifying information. On the other are contractors seeking access to sensitive data to do jobs once done by soldiers: protecting VIPs, transporting goods and guarding vulnerable targets.

William Taylor, a U.S. diplomat who oversees Iraqi reconstruction efforts, said the Iraq's violent insurgency creates a "security premium," gobbling up money that otherwise would have been spent to provide clean water, electricity and sanitation for Iraqis.

Some 40 organizations launched an international campaign aimed at pressuring the French oil giant Total to pull out of Myanmar, where they said the company's activities support a military dictatorship, a French activist collective announced.

The $2.9 billion plant that bankrupt U.S. energy giant Enron built was a technological breakthrough and still represents the largest single foreign investment in India. But since shutting down almost four years ago, it has proven more of an embarrassment than a showcase.

Traders are gearing up for a new futures market. These new carbon exchanges promise billions in potential profit, but will they save the planet?

Are World Bank-funded efforts to compensate for corporate emissions sustainable? Or will they affect poor communities disproportionately?

The Justice Department is in a difficult position because identifying the Coalition Provisional Authority as a U.S. entity could make the government legally responsible for the CPA's actions. On the other hand, "it's not a very attractive position to say, 'If you stole U.S. money, you're liable. But if you stole Iraqi money, the U.S. government just doesn't care.' "

With the U.S. Army stretched by the continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Pentagon plans to spend $100 million to hire private security guards to protect its bases in Germany.

Former Boeing official, Michael Sears, was sentenced to four months in prison for deceiving the government by offering a job to a Pentagon official while negotiating a $23 billion defense contract. Sears, 57, also was ordered to pay a $250,000 fine and perform 200 hours of community service.

Rep. Waxman, D-Calif., Asks Questions about Role of Ambassador Richard Jones in Controversial Halliburton Contract