USA - The birth rate in the United States hit an all-time low in 2011, according to a report released this month by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “The 2011 preliminary number of US births was 3,953,593, 1 percent less (or 45,793 fewer) births than in 2010; the general fertility rate (63.3 per 1,000 women age 15-44 years) declined to the lowest rate ever reported for the United States,” said the report. More than 40 percent of all babies born in the country last year, the report said, were born to unmarried women.

UK - The Catholic Church has accused Stonewall, the campaign for gay rights, of being intolerant of dissenting views after a Cardinal was branded 'bigot of the year' at an awards ceremony. Cardinal Keith O'Brien was named in the controversial category at Stonewall's annual award ceremony in London.

NEW YORK, USA - This year's New York City marathon has been cancelled in the aftermath of the super storm Sandy, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has announced. In a statement, he said: "We would not want a cloud to hang over the race or its participants, and so we have decided to cancel it." Plans to press ahead with Sunday's event had prompted widespread anger in cyclone-ravaged parts of the city. It had been due to start in Staten Island, the hardest-hit part of the city, where 19 people died as a result of Sandy. But before the race was cancelled, US Representative Michael Grimm, whose district covers the island, told CNN: "We're still pulling bodies out of the water and the mayor is worried about marathon runners and returning to life as normal."

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - One of the holiest sites in the Christian world, believed to be the place of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, is now under threat of being closed over unpaid water bills. Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of the Resurrection, was founded during the rule of Emperor Constantine the Great in the 4th century and withstood invasions, fires and earthquakes. But now, more than 1,600 years later, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which maintains most of the complex, may close the temple’s doors as the city’s water company Hagihon demands payment of a US$2.3 million bill dating back 15 years, including interest.

USA - The East Coast is still reeling from the devastation brought on by Superstorm Sandy. But as the mass clear-up begins, forecasters are already warning of a powerful new nor’easter storm front coming in from the Atlantic, bringing 45mph gusts of wind mixed with snow and rain. The beleaguered coast line is expected to face the storm from Tuesday to Thursday - potentially casting a shadow over Election Day. New York and New Jersey can expect frigid winds and rain as hundreds of thousands remain without power and homeless.

NEW YORK, USA - Drivers complain they are wasting fuel crawling in lines for gas stations. Many fuel tankers have been diverted to the Port of Virginia. [President]Obama has sent 250,000 gallons of gas and 500,000 gallons of diesel fuel via the Department of Defense.

NEW YORK, USA - Four days after superstorm Sandy smashed into the US Northeast, rescuers on Friday were still discovering the extent of the death and devastation in New York and the New Jersey shore, and anger mounted over gasoline shortages, power outages and waits for relief supplies.

NEW YORK, USA - Fresh off his "climate disruption"-driven endorsement of President Obama, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has chosen to divert critical food supplies and power generators from desperate residents of Staten Island to Sunday's New York City Marathon. Gothamist reports: Those urging the city to halt the run believe that the thousands of Marathon volunteers could direct their efforts towards post-Sandy relief and cleanup, "and they also argue that the event will divert thousands of police from important hurricane-related duties." But despite petitions circulating, work started up again yesterday on the Marathon route.

SCOTLAND, UK - The 2012 Church of Scotland / ACTS Autumn Conference ‘Ecumenism in an Age of Change’ was held in Augustine United Church, Edinburgh on Saturday 27 October. This was a particularly enjoyable day with over 80 ecumenical enthusiasts gathering to share fellowship, experience and good practice. The key speaker was Natasha Klukach, Programme Executive of the World Council of Churches, who spoke of ‘Belonging to a Global Network’. Natasha presented a clear eyed view of the major ecumenical issues and initiatives of our time, including preparations and hopes for the 2013 WCC Assembly in Busan, South Korea. Her presentation led to lively discussion and left the group encouraged and inspired.

UK - For many Eurosceptics, Wednesday night’s vote in Parliament was a watershed moment which unambiguously sets Britain on the road to eventual exit from the European Union. Even among pro-Europeans, there is a growing sense of resignation. On the current trajectory, it now seems more likely than not that Britain will be out of Europe by the end of the next parliament. Sooner or later, Britain’s relationship with Europe is going to have to change fundamentally if further progress is to be made. The question is whether it makes sense to pull the plug now, or whether there is more to be gained from a wait-and-see approach.

NASA - Our planet's protective magnetic bubble may not be as protective as scientists had thought. Small breaks in Earth's magnetic field almost continuously let in the solar wind — the stream of magnetic, energized plasma launched by the sun toward the planets — new research has found. "The solar wind can enter the magnetosphere at different locations and under different magnetic field conditions that we hadn't known about before," Melvyn Goldstein, an astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said in a statement. Charged particles in the solar wind can interrupt GPS signals and power systems, as well as create dazzling auroras.

USA - US military commanders have warned their Israeli counterparts that any action against Iran would severely limit the ability of American forces in the region to mount their own operations against the Iranian nuclear programme by cutting off vital logistical support from Gulf Arab allies.

US naval, air and ground forces are dependent for bases, refuelling and supplies on Gulf Arab rulers who are deeply concerned about the progress Iran has made in its nuclear programme, but also about the rising challenge to their regimes posed by the Arab spring and the galvanising impact on popular unrest of an Israeli attack on Iran.

EUROPE - Britain is deeply opposed to the draft European Union budget and is threatening to veto it. Germany too has its doubts. The two countries could torpedo the upcoming EU summit, but Chancellor Merkel is eager to find a compromise. Prime Minister David Cameron, on the other hand, has his hands tied - and a protracted battle may ensue.

EUROPE - The European debt crisis and related austerity measures continue to drive up unemployment across the euro zone. In September, according to statistics released on Wednesday, fully 18.5 million people were without work in the common currency area, more than ever before. The trend toward spiking unemployment rates was particularly strong in those countries suffering the most under the ongoing euro-zone debt crisis. Between September 2011 and the same month a year later, the unemployment rate in Spain rose from 22.4 percent to 25.8 percent and in Portugal from 13.1 to 15.7 percent. In Greece, unemployment rose from 17.8 to 25.1 percent from July 2011 to July 2012, the last figures available for the country.

USA - Russia’s Central Election Commission chief has ranked the American electoral system among the “worst in the world.” One of the main problems with the US electoral system is the lack of transparency, Vladimir Churov argues in an article published in Wednesday’s issue of Rossiyskaya Gazeta.