Evening Edition

Our Chief News Editor, ek hornbeck, is off this evening. Tongight’s Evening Edition is brought to you by c’est moi. TheMomCat. ek will return tomorrow evening.

Moonlight Meteor Shower Spawned By Halley’s Comet

A junior version of the famous Perseid meteor shower thought to have originated from the remains of Halley’s Comet will hit its peak over the next week, but the light of the moon may intrude on the sky show.

This upcoming meteor display is known as the Orionids because the meteors seem to fan out from a region to the north of the Orion constellation’s second brightest star, ruddy Betelgeuse.

The annual event peaks before sunrise on Thursday (Oct. 21) but several viewing opportunities arise before then for skywatchers in North America.

1. Foreclosure problems “shameful”: Housing Secretary

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama’s housing secretary said on Sunday “it’s shameful” that financial institutions may have made the housing crisis worse by improperly processing foreclosures.

Shaun Donovan, secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, said in a column on the Huffington Post website that a comprehensive review of the foreclosure crisis was under way and that the administration would respond with “the full force of the law where problems are found.”

2.Gunman kill 29 in Pakistan’s Karachi as election held

KARACHI (Reuters) – Gunmen shot to death at least 29 people in Pakistan’s commercial hub Karachi over the weekend, deepening tensions as a by-election was held to replace a lawmaker who was murdered in August.

Violence broke out Saturday night when gunmen opened fire in several parts of the southern Pakistani city of 18 million ahead of the vote. At least 29 people have been killed since then, police said.

3.Saudis say al Qaeda targeting France: minister

PARIS (Reuters) – Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux said on Sunday that France had been warned by Saudi Arabia that al Qaeda was targeting Europe and especially France.

“Several hours or days ago, there was a new message from the Saudis that said al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was without doubt active or planning to be active in Europe, especially France,” he told French radio RTL.

4.ECB’s Trichet rejects Weber view on bond buying

RIMINI, Italy (Reuters) – European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet took issue with recent comments on ECB policy by Bundesbank chief Axel Weber, saying they did not represent the views of the central bank’s governing council.

In an interview with Italian daily La Stampa on Sunday, Trichet said the governing council as a whole did not agree with Weber’s remark last week that the ECB’s government bond-buying program had not worked and should be scrapped.

5.Two of four trapped Ecuadorean miners found dead

QUITO (Reuters) – Two of four men trapped in an Ecuadorean mine cave-in were found dead on Saturday in the latest accident to hit the industry in Latin America.

Contrasting with the jubilation at this week’s rescue of 33 miners in Chile, the two Ecuadorean miners’ bodies were brought out to disconsolate relatives and officials at the small gold mine in Portovelo near the Peruvian border.

6.American held in Iran for 30 months says to sue group

TEHRAN (Reuters) – An Iranian-American released after 30 months in a Tehran jail  said he was duped into handing money to a U.S.-based group considered a terrorist organization in Iran and that he might now sue them.

Reza Taghavi was held in May 2008 for giving $200 to Tondar, (Thunder), a group which aims to overthrow the Islamic Republic and restore the Iranian monarchy that was ousted in the 1979 revolution, according to its website.

7.Gates: No sensitive info in Wikileaks Afghan papers

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Defense Secretary Robert Gates  said the unauthorized release of some 70,000 classified documents about the Afghanistan war did not reveal sensitive information, but could endanger Afghans who helped the United States, U.S. media reported Sunday.

Gates made his assessment in an August 16 letter to Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, after the website Wikileaks released the documents in July. The New York Times and CNN both were given access to the letter.

8.Syrian, Saudi leaders met to discuss Lebanon, Iraq

RIYADH (Reuters) – Syrian President Bashar  al-Assad held on Sunday talks with Saudi King Abdullah that analysts and diplomats had expected to tackle tension in Lebanon over a U.N.-backed tribunal and the political void in Iraq.

Assad’s second trip to the world’s top oil exporting country this year is the latest sign of a thaw in bilateral relations.

9.France seeks to calm fuel fears as strike momentum builds

PARIS (AFP) – France sought Sunday to calm fears of petrol shortages, with the oil industry admitting it cannot hold on forever as strikes against pension reform intensified ahead of another wave of mass protests.

Officials tried to head off panic buying of petrol amid the rolling strikes and protests that saw hundreds of thousands take to the streets for the latest day of action against President Nicolas Sarkozy’s key reform on Saturday.

10.Super typhoon roars towards Philippines

MANILA (AFP) – Typhoon Megi gathered strength as it barrelled towards the northern Philippines on Monday, with authorities evacuating thousands of villagers to safer ground hours before it was to hit land.

State weather forecasters said Megi has developed into a super typhoon and was expected to slam into the extreme northern Philippines by Monday and then cut westwards towards the South China Sea.

11.Obama on nationwide blitz with vote two weeks off

WASHINGTON (AFP) – US President Barack Obama on Sunday pursued a coast-to-coast campaign blitz through key battlegrounds, looking to energize Democrats and stave off a likely drubbing in looming midterm elections.

“This is a tough political environment,” he told a cheering crowd during a campaign trip on Friday in Delaware, home patch of Vice President Joe Biden. “I need you all to keep on fighting.”

12.Privacy a Facebook priority, says director Randi Zuckerberg

DUBAI (AFP) – User privacy is the priority for Internet social networking site  Facebook, which has come under fire from users for its privacy settings, the company’s director of market development said on Sunday in Dubai.

“Privacy, I would say, is the number one most important thing for our company, and we’re always listening to feedback,” Randi Zuckerberg, the sister of Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, said on the first day of the GITEX information and communication technology exhibition.

13.Chile heroes return to mine for emotional mass

COPIAPO, Chile (AFP) – Chile’s mining heroes returned to the scene of their record-breaking survival for an emotional celebratory mass on Sunday, announcing plans for a foundation dedicated to better mine safety.

Thirteen survivors, accompanied by partners and children, took part in a private service after visiting the tent city where relatives refused to give up hope, waiting anxiously for 10 long weeks for their safe return.

14.Top 400 charities see billions less in donations

WASHINGTON – A new ranking of the nation’s 400 biggest charities shows donations dropped by 11 percent overall last year as the Great Recession ended – the worst decline in 20 years since the Chronicle of Philanthropy began keeping a tally.

The Philanthropy 400 report to be released Monday shows such familiar names as the United Way and the Salvation Army, both based near Washington, continue to dominate the ranking, despite the 2009 declines. The survey accounts for $68.6 billion in charitable contributions.

15.Navajo closer than ever to electing woman leader

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. – Lynda Lovejoy walks past throngs of parade-goers in her traditional, crushed velvet dress and moccassins, her campaign button on the sleeve. Speaking through a microphone, she says she’ll bring fresh perspective to the Navajo government if elected president.

Her supporters shout, “You go girl!

16.Sports fans ensnared in Fox, Cablevision rate duel

NEW YORK – For the fourth time this year, Cablevision’s 3 million subscribers in New York and Philadelphia are at the mercy of one of its disputes with networks, and caught in the middle are sports fans who missed playoff baseball and Sunday’s New York Giants game.

Negotiators for Cablevision and Fox parent News Corp. failed to reach an agreement over rates Sunday, more than a day after their deal expired amid negotiations for a new one. Cablevision has blacked out Fox’s channels and programming while they discuss how much Cablevision will pay to carry them.

17.More intellectually disabled youths go to college

WARRENSBURG, Mo. – Zach Neff is all high-fives as he walks through his college campus in western Missouri. The 27-year-old with Down syndrome hugs most everybody, repeatedly. He tells teachers he loves them.

“I told Zach we are putting him on a hug diet – one to say hello and one to say goodbye,” said Joyce Downing, who helped start a new program at the University of Central Missouri that serves students with disabilities.

18.Discovery of GPS tracker becomes privacy issue

SAN FRANCISCO – Yasir Afifi, a 20-year-old computer salesman and community college student, took his car in for an oil change earlier this month and his mechanic spotted an odd wire hanging from the undercarriage.

The wire was attached to a strange magnetic device that puzzled Afifi and the mechanic. They freed it from the car and posted images of it online, asking for help in identifying it.

19.Lincecum sparks Giants over Phillies

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – Tim Lincecum outdueled Roy Halladay in one of the most highly anticipated pitching match-ups in years as the San Francisco Giants beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 in the opening game of the National League Championship Series on Saturday.

San Francisco outfielder Cody Ross provided the offensive fireworks with two solo home runs off Halladay, who surrendered four runs over seven innings and took the loss.

Game 2 tonight at 8 PM. Live Blog in Prime Time