US Senate subcommittee approves emissions cap bill; London police found guilty in shooting death of innocent man in 2005...

3 November :: Senate subcommittee approves America's Climate Security Act, legislation aimed at capping greenhouse gas emissions, now to be voted by full Environment and Public Works committee; bill touted as milestone in US climate policy; Sen. Lieberman has said it is the "Manhattan Project" for climate change that activists have long called for, bill also supported by senators from coal-rich states... London police as a group have been found guilty in the shooting death of innocent Brazilian immigrant on London Tube in 2005; no individuals have been singled out, and punishment beyond fine has been imposed... Antiwar activist faces jury trial for raising hands in "peace sign" during Congressional hearing, in which secretary of State Condoleezza Rice testified, was confronted by another activist... Mukasey nomination facing stiff opposition, even as two key Democrats express support; Pres. Bush has defended the retired judge, along with his refusal to qualify simulated drowning as a form of torture... CSM reports 13 majority-Sunni Muslim nations have declared their ambition to gain nuclear energy, just this year, likely as response to Shi'a-dominated Iran's high-profile nuclear pursuits, which some fear are weapons program in disguise... Minuteman anti-immigrant group, which includes armed militia in border states, spreading to interior states amid lack of legislation to reform immigration process; critics call group dangerous vigilante operation, while Minutemen say they are only trying to ensure that less people "break the law" by entering without papers... Reuters reporting "A federal judge on Friday approved subpoenas for Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and White House national security adviser Stephen Hadley in the case of two former pro-Israel lobbyists accused of disclosing national defense information"... Habitat for Humanity project in Los Angeles aims to build environmentally-friendly homes, as demand for low-emissions, fuel-efficient housing models on rise...

CBS reveals key fraud in Iraq WMD intel; Bhutto leaves Pakistan, rumors of martial law; crude reaches $96/barrel record high price...

2 November :: 60 Minutes reveals WMD intel fraud, Iraqi emigré known as 'Curve Ball' by spy agencies said to have lied to officials about involvement in WMD work in Iraq in order to get asylum in Germany; US later used his false claim as support for invasion of Iraq; program to air Sunday in US... Fmr PM Benazir Bhutto, touted to be hope for democracy, stability if she regains PM post, leaves country for Dubai, rumors Musharraf to decree martial law; Pakistan's Supreme Court to rule on validity of Musharraf's latest re-election to presidency, militant Islamist attacks on rise across country, including military facilities, as Musharraf steps up efforts to bring northwestern border region under central control... Crude oil trading in New York yesterday reached $96/barrel for the first time in history; prices fell slightly by the end of trading, continuous climb attributed to continuing scarcity, projected short supplies, OPEC plans not to increase production levels... Water scarcity tensions high in Australia as man watering lawn murdered by passerby who objected to his wasting water; victim was rushed to hospital after being brutally beaten during argument, but later died; he was watering lawn by hand, on officially assigned day, was within law... 29 US senators, including Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton (NY) and Chris Dodd (CT), have signed a letter warning Pres. Bush that vote labeling Iran Revolutionary Guard a terrorist group does not authorize attack on Iran; Sen. Obama (D-IL), a campaign rival of Clinton and Dodd, has said he believes the letter is too weak, that the matter requires a binding resolution from the Senate...

Spain sentences Madrid bombing masterminds to 42,900 years for mass murder; Sen. McCain will vote against Mukasey for AG if he doesn't bar torture...

1 November :: Spain's top criminal court has sentenced masterminds of 11 March 2004 Madrid train bombings to more than 42,900 years each for mass murder; the Audiencia Nacional also ruled out definitively any involvement by Basque separatist group ETA, citing Islamist extremist conspiracy as proven by evidence... Sen. John McCain, a Republican presidential candidate, says he would vote against Mukasey's nomination to be AG if he does not take stand against torture; Mukasey refused in Congressional hearing to declare abusive interrogation techniques 'torture'; McCain rival for Republican candidacy, Giuliani, a friend of Mukasey, has said he is not sure mock drowning is torture, saying "it depends on who does it"; Sen. McCain was routinely tortured during 5 1/2 years as PoW in North Vietnam... Senate judiciary committee chair Patrick Leahy (D-VT) has called for committee vote on Mukasey for next Tuesday, as Judge Mukasey has attempted to clarify his positions by written response; committee vote decides if full Senate will debate or vote on nomination... Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) has issued campaign video claiming her opponents in party primary have engaged in "politics of pile-on" by attacking her positions, responses, Senate votes, on a number of issues, in Monday night's debate... Foreign service officers at State Dept. react angrily at plan to force them to serve in Iraq, under threat of disciplinary action, including dismissal if they refuse the assignment; one officer quoted by the AP said an Iraq assignment amounted to "a potential death sentence", with many feeling work in war zone should be discretionary based on diplomats' willingness, support for the mission... Church ordered to pay $10.9 million for staging anti-gay hate rally at fallen soldier's funeral, after soldier's father sues for defamation; signs expressed hatred for homosexuals, praised the death of troops, suggest God "hates" and attacked American tolerance...

US fears catastrophic dam collapse in Iraq could kill 500,000; UK power Grid officials warn of possible energy crisis this winter...

31 October :: US authorities fear catastrophic dam failure in Iraq: "A catastrophic failure of the largest dam in Iraq would send a wave 65ft high hurtling down the valley of the river Tigris, killing up to 500,000 people, US engineers warned yesterday" reports UK's Independent; Army Corps of Engineers warns failure of the two-mile-across earth-filled dam could flood Mosul —with 1.7 million residents— with 60 feet of water... UK officials warn of possible energy crisis this winter, as natural gas prices are 40% above continental Europe; supplies likely to be undercut by plant outage, shortages could lead to electricity cuts if 300 extra megawatts are not generated for peak home-usage hours; officials moderated warning, saying reports are precautionary requests, aimed at increasing elasticit of overall system to face shortages... HRW reports Burmese military junta enslaving children as young as 10 years old to prop up its unpopular regime, finding that "Military recruiters are literally buying and selling children to fill the ranks of the Burmese armed forces"; the 135-page report 'Sold to be Soldiers' is available free online... On an intensifying crackdown against press by Azerbaijan authorities, HRW reports "On October 30, Azerbaijan’s Grave Crimes Court convicted Fatullayev, the outspoken editor-in-chief of the independent Realni Azerbaijan and Gundelik Azerbaijan newspapers, for terrorism, inciting ethnic hatred, and tax evasion. The conviction is a culmination of a concerted effort by the Azerbaijani authorities to silence Fatuallyev and his newspapers"... NY Times reporting "All State Department security convoys in Iraq will now fall under military control, the latest step taken by government officials to bring Blackwater Worldwide and other armed contractors under tighter supervision"; Pentagon authority asserted could protentially bring contractors under Uniform Code of Military Justice, after State Dept. officials without authorization offered immunity to Blackwater guards accused of murder, Iraq gov't has approved draft law to revoke immunity granted to foreign contractors by Coalition Provisional Authority...

DHS detains UK cabinet minister, Muslim, 2nd time in 2 yrs; US hands Karbala to Iraqi forces; UN says Gaza fuel cuts unacceptable...

30 October :: US Dept. of Homeland Security has for 2nd time in 2 years detained, searched and interrogated Shahid Malik, the UK's international development minister and its first Muslim cabinet minister; on both occasions, he had been in the US to meet with members of the Dept. of Homeland Security itself... Bloomberg reporting "Karbala province, scene of some of the worst sectarian attacks since the fall of Saddam Hussein, was handed over to Iraqi forces after the U.S. judged them ready to take responsibility for security in the Shiite Muslim area"... UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon has said Israel's fuel, electricity cuts to Gaza Strip are unacceptable collective punishment of entire population for actions of radical group; Israel gov't says cuts —limited to 15% or less— are a nonviolent means of pressuring Hamas leadership... Two competing philosophies on patent law go head to head in pushing for changes to federal law governing damages for infringement, strength of patent protections; each side says their way would protect intellectual property, innovation, while the other would hurt it... Adriana Cortes, of Bajio Community Foundation seeking to create job opportunities in small rural towns in Mexico, as incentive to promote economic development, prevent emigration to the north; Cortes says motivation is to prevent long-term social and economic hardships that result from damaging, sometimes hellish process of migration... Violence erupts as Spanish authorities attempt to clear Canada Real shanty outside Madrid, Europe's largest shanty-town, home to 30,000 people; residents are mostly immigrants, who say they have nowhere else to go, Spanish authorities have initiated an audacious plan to raze all shanty-towns across country, relocate families affected... Budget tussle between Bush, Democrats intensifies as president says Congress has "worst record" in years for pushing appropriations bills —which specify funding priorities—, Congress pushes "$9 billion more than [Bush] wants for various domestic social programs, from cancer research and early childhood education to helping the poor heat their homes this winter", as reported by Reuters news service... The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has found that funding for the war in Iraq could reach $2.4 trillion by 2017, accounting for interest, because administration has funded war with borrowed money; CBO calculates interest alone will cost over $700 for the period from 2001 through 2017; $604 billion has been spent so far, with $11 billion in Iraq, per month, and costs on the rise; Pres. Bush is currently seeking an additional $196 billion for the two wars, funding to take the military campaign only through 30 September 2008...

ABA recommends freeze on all execution, nationwide; Cristina Fernández de Kirchner wins Argentine presidency; Exxon seeks to reduce Valdez judgment...

29 October :: American Bar Association finds irregularities throughout death-penalty system in US, says moratorium should be imposed by all states until thorough examination, correction of systemic flaws is carried out; "After carefully studying the way states across the spectrum handle executions, it has become crystal clear that the process is deeply flawed" an ABA panel found, after reviews of procedures used in 8 states; DNA evidence has been used in recent years to demonstrate conclusively the innocence of over 200 inmates awaiting execution... First Lady Cristina Fernández de Kirchner elected president of Argentina, will succeed her husband when his first term expires; many have said the popular senator's victory in yesterday's election was essentially a "referendum" on her husband's economic reforms... Democrats in Iowa move primary caucuses to 3 January 2008, matching Republicans, maintaining tradition by which both parties meet on same night across state; NH has indicated it will hold its primary balloting no later than 8 January, but no change to the originally scheduled date of 22 January has yet been made... Thousands of civilians have fled Mingora, in the Swat region of northwestern Pakistan, fearing bloodshed in clashes between gov't forces and Taliban-style fundamentalist militia... US Supreme Court agrees to hear Exxon-Mobil appeal of $2.5 billion punitive damages ruling for 1989 Exxon-Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, in Alaska; the most profitable corporation in US history says the damages, which have already been reduced twice in favor of Exxon-Mobil appeals, is too high; the spill devastated over 1,200 miles of pristine coastline, destroying commercial fisheries and jeopardizing local ecosystems; in July, Exxon announced quarterly profits of $10.36 billion, its record —for all corporations, globally— being $10.71 billion in the 4th quarter of 2005, its next best being Q3 2006, at $10.49 billion; in that quarter, its gross revenues of $99.59 billion exceeded the entire economic output of major oil producers like Kuwait (which it nearly doubled) and the United Arab Emirates...

US southeast in tri-state water-scarcity conflict; coal becoming increasingly popular as petroleum costs escalate...

28 October :: US southeast caught up in political conflict over scarce water resources; PhysOrg reports "Hoping to guarantee no one will go thirsty, Georgia authorities want to drastically reduce the outflow from a reservoir that supplies drinking water to three million people. But neighboring Alabama claims that would have devastating economic effects on its population, while Florida says a reduced flow would threaten fragile ecosystems"... Sky-high oil and natural gas prices driving coal boom, making dirtiest fossil fuel a fashion for future development, major threat to climate stability, with new track being laid in Wyoming and Montana, and mining operations across Africa expanding; "An average of 13 Chinese miners die every day in explosions, floods, fires and cave-ins. Toxic clouds of mercury and other chemicals from mining are poisoning the air and water far beyond China's borders and polluting the food chain"... A study from Sept. 2006, available at PhysOrg.com found babies born via elective Caesarian in women considered "low-risk" for infant mortality 3 times more likely to die within 1st month of life as babies born via vaginal delivery with low-risk mothers... Antarctic krill is being overfished in order to feed growing demand for farmed salmon; krill scarcity could harm penguin populations, endanger fragile ecosystems... Assassination of reggae star Lucky Dube in alleged car-jacking incident has brought issue of crime-reduction to forefront of South African politics and popular debate; Dube killing seen as "emotional tipping-point" in society nursing still young democracy with twin problems of mass street crime, HIV-epidemic; trade union leader has said "This atrocity highlights the grim reality of the daily carnage on our streets, the main victims of which are working people and the poor"... CSM reports al-Qaeda-linked groups from Iraq to Lebanon appear to be showing "signs of weakness", less able to mount guerrilla attacks, even as sectarian violence, civilian deaths spread in Iraq, that al-Qaeda-of-Mesopotamia —group commonly referred to as "al-Qaeda-in-Iraq"— "simply is gone" from Sunni-controlled Anbar province, other hotspots...