friday reads

List of Prop Hate Protests and Rallies.


Change.gov


An Afghan investigation has found that 37 civilians were killed in US air strikes that hit a wedding party, along with 26 Taliban, the Kandahar provincial government said Friday.


U.S. jobless rate at 14-year high


The NYT has some great maps illustrating electoral shifts.


Spiegel Online: Obama Reaches Out to European and World Leaders

It was only the second day after his election, but on Thursday, United States President-elect Barack Obama was glued to his phone speaking to leaders around the world. With a global financial crisis, there was no time to waste and Obama began dialing numbers for a handful of the most important leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, with whom he discussed the global economy.

Both Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have said they want to meet with Obama soon. Sarkozy's office confirmed on Thursday night that the two European leaders had agreed to a joint meeting with Obama after a 30-minute telephone conversation. The French president congratulated Obama on his "brilliant" victory, officials at Elysee Palace said, adding that the atmosphere of the conversation had been "extremely friendly."

At the world financial summit to be held on Nov. 15 in Washington, France wants to propose a 100-day plan for international finance reform. The plan is to be based on a paper France is to distribute in its role as the rotating president of the European Union to other EU member states on Friday in preparation for the Washington summit.

Outgoing President George W. Bush is to lead the G-20 meeting in Washington, but Obama is also expected to take part in the summit.

Obama also reached out to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, with whom he discussed the financial crisis, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Middle East, as well as other world leaders including Mexican President Felipe Calderon, South Korean President Lee Myung Bak, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Japanese leader Taro Aso.

Bush officials moving fast to cut environmental protections.


Al Franken is down by only 236 votes to Norm Coleman.


The FBI amassed a dossier on the late journalist David Halberstam for more than two decades – keeping tabs on his reporting, tracking his marriage to a Polish actress and preparing background reports on the Pulitzer Prize winner for other federal agencies, documents show. (h/t Bookslut)


Broncos 34, Browns 30