NATION

Bush's Brigadier Of Bucks

How Jack Oliver, a little-known 34-year-old from Missouri, is managing the most formidable cash machine in American political history

A Yea For Gays

The Supreme Court scraps sodomy laws, setting off a hot debate

WORLD

Who Lost The WMD? (Iraq / Weapons)

As the weapons hunt intensifies, so does the finger pointing. A preview of the coming battle

The War That Never Ends (Iraq / Occupation)

As each day passes in Iraq, more coalition soldiers die. How much of the killing is organized, and can the U.S. stop it?

The IRS Takes On Saddam's Kin (Iraq / Money Trail)

TIME exclusive: Under interrogation, the dictator's half brother and financial mastermind, Barzan Tikriti, speaks out against the regime he served and gives U.S. investigators leads on where to find w

SCIENCE

Bzzzz...Slap!

Hot weather is mosquito weather, and this summer ought to bring a storm of the bugs-carrying a nasty virus with them

SOCIETY

What A Way To Go (Living)

DEATH-DEFYING RITES ARE MAKING FUNERALS MORE PERSONAL AND-- DARE WE SAY IT?--MORE FUN

RELIGION

A Ritual for All Ages

Once marginal, adult Bar and Bat Mitzvahs are enriching the more liberal branches of Judaism

BRIEFING

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

BUSINESS

Doing Business in a Box

Many donors to USAgain think they're giving to the poor, but the firm sells the clothes that it collects

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Trading Faces (Television)

With a snip here and a nip there, makeover shows tap into the belief that changing how you look can change who you are

Ladies Who Lunge (Movies)

Two big chick-flick sequels want to tell us about empowerment. But only one knows what to say

Beyond Nashville's Limits (Television)

With fare like country docu Lost Highway, cable channel Trio builds buzz by catering to critics

YOUR TIME

Express Divorce

Splitting up can be faster and cheaper online, but is it the right way for you?

PEOPLE

Citizen Ben's 7 Great Virtues (Ben Franklin / Revolutionary Ideals)

He was the most remarkable of the founding fathers: in his time, he was America's best scientist, inventor, diplomat, humorist and business strategist. In this second annual chapter in TIME's Making o

When Sparks Flew (Ben Franklin / The Kite Experiment)

Franklin and his son were the only witnesses to his legendary kite experiment. What really happened?

Why He Was A Babe Magnet (Ben Franklin / The Women in His Life)

Even when he was old and rotund, Ben had sex appeal. He knew the way to a woman's heart was through her head

LETTERS