Massacre: In a continuing war against education, yesterday’s Taliban attack on a Pakistani school in Peshawar resulted in the death of 141 people, 132 of them just schoolchildren. Authorities say nine Taliban gunmen assaulted the compound of the Army Public School and Degree College, where there were 1,100 students ages 5 to 17. The Taliban threw grenades, randomly shot children, and lined up some of them for execution. A Taliban spokesman said the attack was retaliation for the military campaign against the Taliban in North Waziristan.

Politix: Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush announced on social media yesterday that he “decided to actively explore the possibility of running for president of the United States.” It’s a political non-announcement that he’s running and wants to know how much money donors will give him.

His announcement, which does not come as a surprise, puts him ahead of Mitt Romney and immediately crimps plans for fellow Floridian Marco Rubio and New Jersey’s Chris Christie. The more popular Bush is likely to pull donors away from those two rivals, if they ever declare. Bush is the first Republican to almost declare his candidacy. He’s 61 and served two terms as governor of Florida.

The Ruble Crisis: The value of the ruble continues to fall and the cost of food and other goods is climbing as Russia’s financial crisis deepens. Russian shoppers are emptying the stores before prices go up. The ruble crisis is the result of economic sanctions and the falling price of oil.

The ruble has dropped 20 percent already this week. Apple Computer, for example, has stopped selling online in Russia because the value of the ruble is too unstable to set prices. To make matters worse for Russia, President Obama plans to sign a bill placing more sanctions against Russian defense, energy and banking industries.

Torture: In the wake of the Senate report on CIA interrogation tactics, most Americans think torture is just fine for squeezing information out of enemies, according to a Washington Post/ABC News poll. Fifty-eight percent of Americans say the ends justify the means.

Nation: Bradley Stone, the Pennsylvania Marine veteran suspected of killing his ex-wife and five other members of his extended family, was found dead yesterday in the woods about a half-mile from his home. He appeared to have died of self-inflicted cutting or stab wounds.

No Joke: Sony has cancelled its New York premiere for the movie The Interview after threats of attacks on theaters that show the film. Actors Seth Rogen and James Franco have cancelled promotional appearances. The two play reporters recruited to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Hackers believed to be working for North Korea are waging a campaign to kill the movie instead.

The Obit Page: Norman Bridwell, the creator of the children’s book character Clifford the Big Red Dog, has died on Martha’s Vineyard at age 86. The lunky and lovable Clifford is as big as a house. Bridwell created him as the result of his childhood fantasy to have a dog big enough to ride. A staple of bedtime reading, the Clifford books have sold nearly 130 million copies around the world. Bridwell was an out of work artist when he got the idea to create Clifford.

Martian Burps: The Mars Curiosity rover has captured what are described as “burps” of methane on the Red Planet that may be waste gas from tiny living organisms, possibly bacteria. But it could also be the result of decomposing organic material. At the moment, it’s just a teasing nugget of information that will take years of further exploration to verify Martian life. So far, no evidence of space ships.

-30-