VATICAN - After the conclusion of their meetings, two cardinals from Pope Francis' group of eight reveal that curia reform will largely focus on service to Pope Francis and the universal Church in its various areas.
USA - President Obama used his weekly radio address to reject the latest offer from House Republicans to end the fiscal stalemate. The outline of their proposal was released Friday and would have reopened government through December and lifted the debt ceiling for six weeks.
USA - Finance officials from the world's biggest economies on Friday pressed the United States to head off a potentially devastating default and vowed to proceed carefully when the time comes to normalize monetary policy.
PORTUGAL - As austerity continues to wreak havoc for families in Portugal, people are turning to volunteer charities to provide them with food parcels. Charities are now essential in the lives of increasingly deprived sectors of the population.
UK - Austerity measures and the economic downturn in the UK have prompted the British branch of the Red Cross to begin formulating an emergency food aid plan for Britain – the first the charity has set up for the country since WWII.
USA - Travelers who crack jokes about the TSA’s ludicrous security procedures could face arrest, according to a new loudspeaker warning being broadcast at airports in the US.
MADAGASCAR - Madagascar faces a bubonic plague epidemic unless it slows the spread of the disease - with prisoners in the island's rat-infested jails particularly at risk, experts warn.
UK - Britain is becoming [a nation] of singletons, partners and co-habiters, as the number of people choosing not to marry has rocketed by 3.6 million in just a decade, according to new figures.
SPAIN - Extreme, neo-fascist groups in Spain are preparing for a show of force during this weekend’s nationalist holiday, and Spanish authorities are keeping a close eye on the situation.
USA - As Washington is struggling with debt and all its political ramifications, American companies and consumers are embracing it, running up record amounts in 2013. Whether it's corporate loans, all quality levels of bonds or simple consumer credit, the debt party is back on in the US, whether it's in the boardroom or the living room.
UK - It’s bad enough when Christian parents send their children to public schools to be “educated” by anti-Christian kooks and bigots. But when they hit their own spiritual, emotional, or psychological potholes, very often they send themselves to anti-Christian kooks and bigots.
USA - Joining six continents, 52 countries and over 500 cities, ‘March against Monsanto’ is planning its second mass rally Saturday against the biotech giant and genetically modified food. A number of Agent Orange victims are expected to join the protest.
GREECE - Should Greece have a large part of its debt waived? Absolutely, says George Soros, otherwise the country will never recover. The billionaire investor also warns about the rise of extremist parties if Germany does not change its policies towards Europe.
BERLIN, GERMANY - German foreign policy makers are playing a prominent role in the rapprochement between the West and Iran.
WASHINGTON, USA - Foreign policy analysts at home and abroad have been predicting for years the inevitable decline of American power, often with a fair amount of schadenfreude and sometimes even with glee.