World Markets Roiled by Credit, Mortgage Crisis

Federal Reserve adds $38 billion in temporary funds to the banking system; Bush attempts to dismiss lawsuit challenging NSA spy program, using a four-day-old law; Giuliani draws outrage from 9/11 workers; model predicts slowing, speedup in global warming temperatures; clean coal a focus for Montana's governor; interfaith leaders support water as a public right in face of privatization; AFL-CIO's member unions to make individual presidential endorsements; spread of HIV-AIDS linked to female genital mutilation; reproductive health champions file suit in Colorado Supreme Court against anti-abortion initiative; stem cell amendment in Missouri runs into political and financial roadblocks; and more ... Browse our continually updating front page at http://www.truthout.org

t r u t h o u t | 08.10

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World Markets Roiled by Credit, Mortgage Crisis
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/081007R.shtml
Ye Xie for Bloomberg.com reports that "the Federal Reserve added $38 billion in temporary funds to the banking system through the purchase of securities, including mortgage-backed debt, to meet demand for cash amid a rout in bonds backed by home loans to riskier borrowers."

Using New FISA Law, Bush Challenges NSA Spying Suit
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/081007S.shtml
David Kravets for Wired Magazine reports that "four days after President Bush signed controversial legislation legalizing some warrantless surveillance of Americans, the administration is citing the law in a surprise motion today urging a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the NSA spy program."

9/11 Workers Outraged by New Giuliani Claim
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/081007T.shtml
Celest Katz reports for The New York Daily News that "Rudy Giuliani drew outrage and indignation from September 11 first-responders yesterday by saying he spent as much time - or more - exposed to the site's dangers as workers who dug through the debris for the missing and the dead."

Model Predicts Warming Lull, Then New Records
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/081007EA.shtml
MSNBC News reports, "Global warming will slow during the next few years but then speed up again, and at least half of the years after 2009 will be warmer than 1998, the warmest year on record, scientists predicted in a study published Thursday."

Clean Coal: Why Is Nobody Buying It?
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/081007EB.shtml
John S. Adams for The Missoula Independent says Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer is traveling across the country pitching "clean coal" technology based on carbon sequestration, but Adams reports that not everyone is sold on the wonders of integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC).

Malaysia: Interfaith Leaders Affirm Water Is a Sacred Gift
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/081007EC.shtml
Anil Netto for Inter Press Service reports that "When religious leaders from different faiths sought to jointly affirm the sacredness of water as the source of life but were shooed away by authorities, it was seen as a move to scuttle interfaith harmony as well as support plans to privatize a common resource."

AFL-CIO Decides Not to Endorse Presidential Candidate for Now
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/081007LA.shtml
Steven Greenhouse reports for The New York Times that "the AFL-CIO's executive council voted on Wednesday against endorsing any presidential candidate, reflecting divisions over which Democrat to support and setting the stage for its 55 member unions to make individual endorsements."

Scrambling Colorado's Egg-As-Person Initiative
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/081007WA.shtml
Wendy Norris for RH Reality Check writes, "a veritable who's who of reproductive health champions filed a legal challenge with the Colorado Supreme Court late yesterday to stem a proposed ballot measure that would advance anti-abortion law and limit access to some contraception methods."

Health Activists Link Spread of HIV-AIDS to Female Genital Mutilation
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/081007HA.shtml
Mary Katherine Keown for Women's eNews reports: "Female genital mutilation and the feminization of HIV-AIDS are slowly being linked, especially in the three African countries - Somalia, Djibouti and Sudan - where the most extreme FGM is predominant."

Stem Cell Amendment Changes Little in Missouri
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/081007HB.shtml
Monica Davey for The New York Times writes that "when Missouri voters approved a constitutional amendment last November protecting human embryonic stem cell research, it was viewed as a key endorsement of the research even in states with deep religious roots and strong anti-abortion forces like this one." However, Davey says, "the expected expansion of stem cell research in Missouri has since run into political and financial roadblocks, putting the future of the research in doubt."

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