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New dawn: The war in Iraq “”officially”” ended on Wednesday (because it’s over when we say it’s over) and with it ended Operation Iraqi Freedom, the moniker for combat operations in the country since the initial U.S. invasion in 2003. Now the mission is called “”Operation New Dawn”” which, surprisingly enough, is about training Iraqi security forces and not whether Bella and Edward finally get married.   

Being the decider(s): Former state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne won his hotly contested primary race against former Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas to become the Republican nominee for Attorney General. Horne prevailed in the primary election by less than 1,000 votes. A big reason Horne prevailed? Our own Pima County, which, according to the Arizona Daily Star, Horne won by about 5,000 votes.   

Walking the walk: Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., better known as the rapper T.I., was arrested on suspicion of marijuana possession yesterday. This comes two years after he was sentenced to nine months in prison for attempting to buy three machine guns in a parking lot of an Atlanta, Ga., grocery store in 2008. Two words come to mind: thug life.

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Civility: Anyone got a hankerin’ for good, ole-fashioned political posturing? Well, if so, then you missed a prime opportunity to get your fix last night when the first (and maybe only) Arizona gubernatorial debate was held. In case you missed it, Terry Goddard doesn’t have a plan (according to Gov. Jan Brewer), Brewer doesn’t have a clue (according to Goddard), and the Libertarian and Green parties’ candidates don’t have a chance (according to voters).

Sheriff Joe Arpaio: The long-time Maricopa County sheriff is being sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for refusing to turn over records pertaining to an investigation regarding whether he and his office discriminate against Hispanics. This comes after more than a year of demands by the Justice Department for Arpaio to provide the records, which Arpaio has consistently refused to release. Not that he has anything to hide, mind you. It’s just the principle of the thing.

Gulf holes: An oil platform exploded and ignited in the Gulf of Mexico yesterday. Luckily, all 13 workers who were on the platform at the time were rescued without serious injury. More good news: no oil spill so far. The bad news? It’s an oil rig. And it exploded. I don’t think they’re supposed to do that.