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Quote of the Day. "Culture and religion inform every decision about health, illness, disease and care, about true caring, about who can live, about the measure of quality in a life, about when suffering begins and how it ends. We bring our full selves to every bedside," Dawn Seery, head of the Methodist Healthcare System in San Antonio, on the role of hospital ethics committees in assisting families making end-of-life decisions. (USA Today)

FAITH IN THE NEWS

Supreme Court Takes Up Church and State, but Just Barely "A lone cross built to honor the dead of World War I, bolted to a desert rock on public land, raises a host of complicated issues about which religious displays violate the Constitution's ban on government establishment of religion and who may challenge them."

Blair Says Religion Should Fuel Peace, not Conflict "Former British prime minister Tony Blair said Wednesday that Muslims and Christians working to understand each other's cultural and religious beliefs could help build a global movement for peace."

Global Muslim population hits 1.57 billion "The global Muslim population stands at 1.57 billion, meaning that nearly 1 in 4 people in the world practice Islam, according to a report Wednesday billed as the most comprehensive of its kind."

NEWS AT HOME

Health Care. New Math Boosts Health Plan "The latest Senate health bill will cost $829 billion over a decade and slightly reduce the federal budget deficit, congressional budget crunchers said Wednesday." Health Care Bill Gets Green Light in Cost Analysis "The Senate Finance Committee legislation to revamp the health-care system would provide coverage to 29 million uninsured Americans but would still pare future federal deficits by slowing the growth of spending on medical care." Democrats face dilemma on taxes to pay for healthcare "As Democratic leaders prepare to bring healthcare legislation before the full House and Senate for votes this month, they soon must decide who will be taxed to pay for expanding coverage -- the wealthy or the insurance companies." Minority Groups Raise Voices on Reform "Missing from the noise so far: the voices of minorities, who are disproportionately represented among the poor and uninsured and could benefit the most from reform, and who are more likely than others to have chronic illnesses such as diabetes." Americans cutting back on health care to save money "Many Americans have been putting off doctors' visits, forgoing medical tests and taking expired medications to save money over the past year, according to a new poll by Consumers Union."

Unemployment. Obama seeks ways keep joblessness from sinking recovery "Under pressure to stop rising joblessness from sinking a fragile recovery, President Obama met Wednesday with top congressional Democratic leaders to fashion new strategies to bolster the U.S. economy." Jobless benefits run out for many Ohioans "The number of Ohioans who have exhausted their unemployment benefits has risen to levels not seen since the early 1980s."

Education. Obama Aims to Boost Pell Grant Funding by $40 Billion "After three years of major increases in federal Pell grants for needy college students, President Obama aims to boost the aid further with $40 billion in funding over the next decade. But even that influx might not ensure that the grants will recover and sustain the purchasing power they once held."

U.S. Military. US troops pay price of extended tours of duty "When soldiers talk about soaring rates of family breakdown, suicide and PTSD, there is no doubt that they describe a growing problem across the whole US military force."

Afghanistan -- U.S. Policy. Civilian, Military Officials at Odds Over Resources Needed for Afghan Counterinsurgency "In early March, after weeks of debate across a conference table in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, the participants in President Obama's strategic review of the war in Afghanistan figured that the most contentious part of their discussions was behind them." Afghan War Debate Now Leans to Focus on Al Qaeda"President Obama's national security team is moving to reframe its war strategy by emphasizing the campaign against Al Qaeda in Pakistan while arguing that the Taliban in Afghanistan do not pose a direct threat to the United States." Obama looks at Pakistan while reassessing Afghanistan strategy "President Obama shifted his focus to Pakistan on Wednesday as he continued his reassessment of his strategy for Afghanistan and approached the question of whether to further increase troop strength there." Afghan ambassador for extra forces "Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States has said that more US troops are needed in his country to help promote stability and train the domestic security forces." Taliban claim they pose no threat to west "The Taliban have issued an English-language statement claiming they pose no international threat