An American cattleman. Robert Gates was approved by the Senate to replace Donald Rumsfeld as the new secretary of defense; senators described themselves as “very pleased,” “very impressed,” “very enthusiastic,” “very grateful,” and “very happy” with the confirmation. Rumsfeld gave an emotional farewell speech to Pentagon employees, and had to wipe his nose.Washington PostWashington PostNew York TimesPresident George W. Bush blamed John Bolton’s departure from the U.N. on the “shallow politics” of the Senate, and Kofi Annan, who will leave the U.N. on December 31 after completing his second five-year term as secretary general, said that he and Bolton were …

A Christian martyr. Riots over blasphemous cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad broke out in India, Indonesia, Kashmir, Palestine, Thailand, the autonomous Somali region of Puntland, and Afghanistan�??where 11 demonstrators were killed, at least 4 of them by NATO troops. A Taliban commander offered 100 kilograms of gold to anyone who killed those responsible for the cartoons. Other anti-Muhammad-cartoon protests were held in London and Philadelphia. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan called on newspapers to stop re-publishing the drawings, and U.S. President George W. Bush condemned the riots but also criticized publishers. “With freedom,” said the President, “comes the responsibility to …

President George W. Bush said that allegations made by Amnesty International, claiming that the prison at Guant�namo Bay is a “gulag,” were absurd. Bush accused Amnesty of listening to “people that have been trained in some instances to disassemble–that means not tell the truth.” Whitehouse.govU.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan said that HIV and AIDS were spreading at an accelerating rate around the world,ReutersNew Jersey was planning to try six animal-rights activists on “animal enterprise terrorism” charges,Reutersand an Australian woman was arrested for attempting to bring fifty-one tropical fish into the country hidden in her skirt.APSeveral prisoners at Guant�namo Bay said …

Mahmoud Abbas was elected president of the Palestinian Authority. He dedicated his victory to “the soul of the brother martyr Yasir Arafat and to our people.”New York TimesEarlier in the week, Abbas called Israel the “Zionist Enemy” at an election rally,The Indian Expressthen announced he would pursue peace talks with it.ReutersIsrael shut the border at Gaza,Xinhuathen offered Abbas personal security in Jerusalem, which he refused.Azcentral.comKofi Annan visited the site of the South Asia tsunami disaster and said, “I have never seen such utter destruction.”CBS NewsColin Powell toured Indonesia and called it “amazing” and “heartbreaking.”ABC NewsHe also said providing disaster relief …

Pulling the Mule. Chaos continued to rule Iraq; a suicide bomber killed at least 13 people when he attacked a convoy of civilian contractors in Baghdad, whereupon a mob descended on the wreckage and set it on fire under the watchful eyes of Iraqi policemen; on the same day other bombs killed eight people.International Herald TribuneAt least 35 Iraqis were killed and 145 were wounded in a suicide car bombing at an army recruiting office in Baghdad; elsewhere six people were killed in another bombing.Chicago TribuneOil exports from Iraq’s main oil terminal were shut down because of two explosions, at …

Caught in the Web. National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice testified publicly and under oath before the commission investigating September 11; Rice acknowledged that President Bush had received a classified CIA briefing on August 6, 2001, entitled “Bin Laden Determined to Attack Inside the United States,” though she characterized the report as “historical information based on old reporting.” She also acknowledged that the report mentioned the existence of Al Qaeda sleeper cells in the United States but “there was no recommendation that we do something about this.” Rice also admitted that Richard Clarke, whose book on the Bush Administration’s antiterrorism failures …

The British government declined to prosecute Katharine Gun, the linguist who leaked a United States National Security Agency memo asking British intelligence to spy on United Nations diplomats before the invasion of Iraq; there was speculation that the government was trying to avoid another embarrassing debate about the legality of the war.New York TimesClare Short, a Labor member of parliament who resigned from the Blair cabinet over Iraq, charged that British agents had spied on United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan just before the invasion of Iraq, and said that she had seen transcripts of Annan’s conversations.IndependentAnnan was said to …

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel announced plans to evacuate 17 Jewish settlements from the Gaza Strip. “I am working on the assumption that in the future there will be no Jews in Gaza,” he said.ReutersYasir Arafat expressed disbelief, right-wing politicians were outraged, and one political ally suggested that the prime minister was merely trying to distract attention from corruption scandals that could result in his indictment.Guardian, Ha’aretzIt was reported that David Kay, the former American arms inspector, was shocked at the huge controversy created when he simply spoke the truth about the nonexistent Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.New York …

The United States Supreme Court upheld the University of Michigan law school’s use of affirmative action in its admissions process and overturned a Texassodomy law, saying that “the state cannot demean [homosexuals'] existence or control their destiny by making their private sexual conduct a crime.”New York Times“This opens the door to bigamy, adult incest, polygamy, and prostitution,” said the head of the FamilyResearch Council.New York TimesThe court also ruled that a California law that retroactively abolished the statute of limitations on sex crimes is unconstitutional; California’s attorney general said that the ruling will lead to the release of about 800 …

American and British forces in Iraq were slowed in their advance toward Baghdad by severe dust storms and by attacks from Iraqi militias, who were harassing the long, exposed supply lines between Kuwait and the front. American commanders were forced to change their tactics because of the unexpected resistance. Lt. General William Wallace, commander of Army forces in the Persian Gulf, said that “the enemy we’re fighting is a bit different than the one we war gamed against.” American and British casualties were heavier than expected, and soldiers said they were having a hard time distinguishing Iraqi forces from civilians. …

A federal district judge in Vermont ruled that the Federal death Penalty Act of 1994 is unconstitutional because it violates the right to due process and the right to confront and cross-examine witnesses; in July, a federal judge in New York also declared the law unconstitutional, saying it was in effect the “state-sponsored murder of innocent human beings.” Texas executed a clown who murdered two young girls for playing loud music and talking back when he asked them to turn it down. Prime Minister Tony Blair finally presented his famous “dossier” on Iraq, which largely amounted to a compilation of …

The Pope apologized to victims of pedophile priests and said there was no place in the Church for priests who abuse children, but he also noted that the power of Christian conversion must not be underestimated. American cardinals indicated that they definitely wanted to have a way to get rid of “notorious” pedophiles but that pedophiles who were not “notorious” might be dealt with in some other way. Cardinal Francis George of Chicago said he thought “zero-tolerance” policies were potentially unjust and that bishops should have “a little more wiggle room.” Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia met with President …

Preparing for a potential strike against Iraq, the United States plucked Vice President Dick Cheney out of hiding and sent him touring Arabia to summon support from the region’s leaders. In the meantime, a special envoy was sent to Israel to make peace between Ariel Sharon and Yasir Arafat after a week of suicide bombings and other violence in which scores were killed, including a Palestinian woman and her four children when a bomb exploded near their donkey cart. U.N. secretary general Kofi Annan called on Israel to end its “illegal occupation” of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and …

The United Nations suspended its food convoys into Afghanistan because of the American bombing campaign. U.S. forces dropped over 100,000 yellow ration packets into Afghanistan, where there are thought to be 7.5 million people facing starvation. Each packet, decorated with an American flag, contains one day’s worth of food, a book of matches, and a Moist Towelette: “Here is your Moist Towelette,” the packet says in English. “It will clean and refresh your hands and face without soap and water. Self-dries in seconds, leaving your skin smooth and soft.” Jean Ziegler, the United Nations special rapporteur on the right to …

The Democratic Party demonstrated its seriousness of purpose by failing to mount a filibuster to block the confirmation of former senator John Ashcroft, who was defeated by a dead man in the last election; Ashcroft was sworn in as Attorney General by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas in a private ceremony. President George W. Bush, a former oil man, named Vice President Dick Cheney, a former oil man, to head a special task force to devise ways to increase the profits of oil companies. In response to the continuing energy crisis in California, President Bush continued to affirm that pollution …

The Vatican proclaimed, not for the first time, that the Roman Catholic Church was the one true Church of Christ and that worshippers of false gods were in a “gravely deficient situation” with respect to their eternal souls.A group of Jewish scholars and rabbis called on Jews to let go of their ancient fear of Christians.A Canadianpolice ship successfully navigated the Northwest Passage in about one month.President Bill Clinton shook hands with Fidel Castro at a luncheon in New York; it was the first time Castro had shaken hands with a sitting American president.The judge in the Wen Ho Lee …