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Quote of the day. "This is completely unacceptable. Sacrilege would not be too strong a word. It's loot, taken violently and inappropriately in the first place. A tabot is a very holy object; no one can see it apart from priests. Westminster Abbey is one of the most visited sites in London. To have it on public display there is an offence to Orthodox Ethiopian Christians. For one Christian church to refuse to return it to another seems profoundly wrong." Rev John McLuckie, a British priest, on Westminster Abbey's refusal to return a tabot, a small tablet that symbolises the Ark of the Covenant, taken by British troops in the 19th century, to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. (Guardian/Observer)
RELIGION IN THE NEWS
Interfaith leaders press Clinton, security adviser on peace talks "In meetings with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and National Security Adviser Gen. James Jones Sept. 29, more than two dozen Christian, Jewish and Muslim religious leaders voiced support for continuing peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority."
In a Computer Worm, a Possible Biblical Clue "Deep inside the computer worm that some specialists suspect is aimed at slowing Iran's race for a nuclear weapon lies what could be a fleeting reference to the Book of Esther, the Old Testament tale in which the Jews pre-empt a Persian plot to destroy them."
Immigration a moral issue (Galen Carey, CNN) "Comedian Stephen Colbert used his signature humor last week to focus the nation's attention on a very serious issue: the treatment of the hardworking people who produce our nation's food supply."
Radical individualism and the poverty rate (Editorial, National Catholic Reporter) "The U.S. poverty rate reached 14.3 percent, the largest increase in more than 30 years, according to a Census Bureau report released last month. More than 43 million Americans -- the highest number ever recorded -- are officially 'poor.'"
My Take: Getting in the way of gun violence (Shane Claiborne, CNN religion blog) "Many religious leaders in Philadelphia felt they were left with no choice but to peacefully put our bodies in the way of the trafficking of guns onto the streets, and we began holding prayer vigils outside gun shops."
Religious ignorance hurts (Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune) "A new poll finds atheist and agnostics know more about religion than believers do. Maybe the pollsters weren't asking the right questions."
NEWS AT HOME
One nation rally. Liberal groups to gather in D.C. for One Nation rally "Liberal groups hoping to revive enthusiasm before November's midterm elections are encouraging their members to come to the Mall on Saturday for a rally that they expect to draw tens of thousands of people." Liberal coalition looks for boost "D.C. march aimed at the working class Ben Jealous, president of the NAACP, one of the organizers, says the march will showcase working Americans, particularly minorities, whose voices have gone unheard in a political debate that he says has focused on the strength of the Tea Party and opinions of extreme commentators."
Foreclosures. J.P. Morgan will halt foreclosures "J.P. Morgan Chase, one of the nation's leading banks, announced Wednesday that it will freeze foreclosures in about half the country because of flawed paperwork, a move that Wall Street analysts said will pressure the rest of the industry to follow suit."
Tax cuts. Middle class tax-cut issue backfiring on Democrats "President Obama's urgent call for Congress to immediately extend tax breaks for the middle class was supposed to create a defining Democratic issue and cast Republicans as defenders of the rich on the eve of crucial midterm elections." Congress hands off tax cut issue to campaign trail "Congress prepared to leave town without voting Wednesday to extend the George W. Bush-era tax cuts, choosing to shift the fight over one of the year's biggest partisan battles from the halls of the Capitol to the campaign trail." In Tax Cut Plan, Debate Over the Definition of Rich "As the political battle drags on, however, it has also veered into a more basic matter of fairness, whether a person who earns more than $200,000 a year should be taxed at rates similar to those who make $5 million."
Consumer protection. Consumer Advocate Seeks to Reassure Bankers About Protection Agency "Elizabeth Warren, who is overseeing the creation of a federal agency charged with protecting consumers from abusive financial products, told Wall Street executives on Wednesday evening that her relationship with them need not be antagonistic, or even adversarial." Warren extends olive branch to bankers "Wednesday evening, in her first speech as an Obama administration official and the de facto leader of the new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, she extended an olive branch to the 400 bankers gathered at the swanky Mandarin Oriental Hotel."
Immigration. Immigration Problem Rages, Solution Bogs Down In Washington "Arizona may be the frontline of the immigration policy debate, but states far from the Mexican border are also busy grappling with the issue." U.N. warns states on illegal immigrant rights "The United Nations said on Thursday governments must respect the rights of all migrants, in a statement apparently targeting measures including Arizona's crackdown on illegal immigrants and French expulsions of Roma."
Military suicides. Four Suicides in a Week Take a Toll on Fort Hood "Four veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan died this week from what appeared to be self-inflicted gunshot wounds at Fort Hood in central Texas, raising the toll of soldiers who died here at their own hands to a record level and alarming Army commanders."
Child trafficking. New efforts target child sex trafficking "A crackdown on child sex trafficking is being pushed by a growing movement of women's groups, celebrities, human rights activists and state officials."
Executions postponed. Shortage of Widely Used Anesthetics Is Delaying Executions in Some States "Several states have postponed executions and others may soon do so because of the scarcity of thiopental sodium, a barbiturate that is central to the lethal injection process in most of the 35 states with the death penalty."
NEWS AROUND THE WORLD
Pakistan. Pakistan claims NATO copters killed 3 soldiers at one of its border posts "Authorities in Pakistan claimed that NATO helicopters fired on a Pakistani security post near the Afghan border Thursday and killed three of its soldiers, an accusation that is likely to inflame tensions between Washington and Islamabad following other NATO aircraft incursions in recent days." Pakistan cuts off Nato supply route "Pakistan has blocked a vital supply route for international forces in Afghanistan in apparent retaliation for an alleged cross-border helicopter raid by Nato troops that killed three Pakistani frontier soldiers." Pakistan seals off NATO supply line to Afghanistan after US air attack "A US air attack that mistakenly killed three Pakistani border troops sparked the government to close the Torkham border post, a vital NATO supply line into Afghanistan."
Baghdad attacks. Attacks on Baghdad Green Zone Surge "The heavily fortified Green Zone in Iraq's capital has in recent weeks come under an intensifying barrage of rocket attacks, and a senior American military commander suggested Wednesday that Iranian-backed militias were behind the attacks in an effort to influence the formation of a new Iraqi government."
Iran. U.S. pressures Iranian officials on rights abuses "With new international financial sanctions already taking a toll on Iran's currency, the Obama administration is stepping up pressure on the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with a fresh set of penalties against eight senior officials for alleged human rights abuses." US sanctions target Iran officials "US President Barack Obama orders sanctions against eight senior Iranian officials for "sustained and severe violations of human rights". U.S. Sanctions 8 Iran Officials for Crackdown "Opening a new front in its pressure campaign against Tehran, the Obama administration on Wednesday put eight Iranian officials on a blacklist for their role in the bloody suppression of anti-government activists after the disputed Iranian election last year."
Israel-Palestine talks. Bid to save Mid-East peace talks "US Middle East envoy George Mitchell is meeting Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas amid fears that the relaunched peace talks could collapse." Obama in personal appeal to Netanyahu: Extend settlement freeze for two months "Netanyahu is inclined to reject the offer and has not replied to the letter as of yet, though the Prime Minister's office has refused to answer questions regarding the issue."
Britain-France nukes. Britain and France may share nuclear deterrent "A politically explosive proposal for joint Franco-British nuclear-submarine patrols
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