The latest news on Hurricane Ike, Wall Street Crisis, Afghanistan, Unemployed Women, Education, Urban Gleaning, Religion, Arms Sales, Zimbabwe, Canadian Election, Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Bolivia, India, and Select Op-eds.

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Hurricane Ike. Millions struggle to cope with property losses, shortages "Just a day after Hurricane Ike humbled America's high-flying energy capital, millions of people across southeast Texas wearily confronted a stunning reality Sunday: Millions of lives have been dismantled indefinitely by the loss of everything from power and water, to property and even people." Along Texas Coast, 'Monumental' Damage "The devastated Texas Gulf Coast began Sunday to assess the scope of the impact of Hurricane Ike, finding that the massive storm washed away homes and knocked out power to millions, but did not cause the catastrophic loss of life that federal and state authorities had feared." Texans mired in Hurricane Ike's aftermath "Weary residents of the Texas coast foraged Sunday for water, ice, generators and gasoline as rescuers continued to save people trapped by widespread floodwaters a day after Hurricane Ike flooded roads, destroyed homes and businesses, and knocked out power to nearly 4 million people." Remnants of Ike batter Midwest, forcing thousands to evacuate, extending summer of floods "As Ike faded and headed off toward the northeast, it dumped as much as 6 to 8 inches of rain on parts of Indiana, Illinois and Missouri, spawned a tornado in Arkansas that damaged several buildings, and delivered hurricane-force wind to Ohio, temporarily shutting down Cincinnati's main airport during the weekend. Missouri had widespread flooding, and high water on the Mississippi River was expected to close a riverfront street later this week in front of St. Louis' famed Gateway Arch."

Wall Street crisis. 2 storied Wall Street firms fall as US financial markets roiled by further shock waves "When Wall Street woke up Monday morning, two more of its storied firms had fallen." After Frantic Day, Wall Street Banks Falter "In one of the most dramatic days in Wall Street history, Lehman Brothers said it will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, while Merrill Lynch agreed to sell itself to Bank of America for about $50 billion." Jittery Road Ahead "Wall Street and the federal government faced off over the weekend, raising worries of a sell-off when markets open on Monday." A New Architecture For the Financial World "The U.S. financial system this weekend faced its gravest crisis in modern times, as regulators resorted to triage on Wall Street to contain the spreading damage from a meltdown in the housing and mortgage market."

Unemployed women. Spike in jobless rate for women is worst in more than 33 years "A sharp monthly rise in unemployment for women could be a sign that the economic slowdown has begun to hit working women with a force not seen in decades."

Education. In Rush to White House, 'No Child' Is Left Behind "For the next president, one of the first domestic challenges will be to reshape the No Child Left Behind law, hailed six years ago as a bipartisan solution to America's education troubles. But in their race for the White House, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.) are distancing themselves from what has become a tainted brand."

Urban gleaning. Food Banks Finding Aid in Bounty of Backyard "A renewed emphasis on locally grown organic foods, along with higher food prices and increased demand at food banks, has inspired a new generation of community harvesters to search for solutions in their backyards."

Religion. Divided Landmark Church Picks 'Progressive Evangelical' as New Leader "A divided congregation voted on Sunday to affirm the Rev. Dr. Brad R. Braxton, a Baptist minister and former Rhodes scholar, as the sixth senior pastor of Riverside Church, the soaring Gothic cathedral on the Upper West Side of Manhattan."

Arms Sales. U.S. Arms Sales Climbing Rapidly "The Bush administration is pushing through a broad array of foreign weapons deals as it seeks to rearm Iraq and Afghanistan, contain North Korea and Iran, and solidify ties with onetime Russian allies."

Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe: Leaders Sign Historic Unity Pact "Zimbabwe's three principal political leaders signed a power-sharing agreement in Harare on Monday, bringing to an end nearly 30 years of exclusive rule by the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu-PF)." Zimbabwe rivals in historic pact "Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe signs a historic power-sharing deal with the opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai." Will Robert Mugabe wriggle out of deal? "Insiders in both parties remain split over whether the agreement -- reached after weeks of negotiations -- can end the country's long decline, or whether it will simply open a new chapter in its misery."

Canadian election. Campaigns head into 2nd week with new targets "Stephen Harper may be setting his sights on a new target, as the federal election campaign enters its second week, but Liberal Leader Stephane Dion went after a familiar one -- the prime minister." Conservative lead narrows "The Canadian Press Harris-Decima poll of at least 1,343 voters across Canada gave the Conservatives 38 per cent support across Canada, followed by the Liberals at 27 per cent."

Iraq. Sunni Proponent of Reconciliation Is Killed "A Sunni Arab leader of a citizen patrol group in Baghdad who had been a proponent of reconciliation in his neighborhood was assassinated over the weekend."

Afghanistan. Afghanistan Is in Its Worst Shape Since 2001, European Diplomat Says  "One of the most experienced Western envoys in Afghanistan said Sunday that conditions there had become the worst since 2001." Doctors die after U.N. becomes Taliban target "Two United Nations doctors working on a polio vaccination campaign for children were killed by a suicide bomber yesterday in the first significant Taliban attack against the organization in Afghanistan."

Iran. U.N. nuclear agency criticizes Iran "The International Atomic Energy Agency says it has not resolved questions about a possible military dimension to Iran's nuclear program. In its latest report, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said it had failed to make meaningful progress in assessing Iran's past nuclear activities."

Sudan. Former rebels say government offensive has reached their base in central Darfur "Sudanese government forces waging an offensive in northern Darfur have attacked rebel-held areas farther south, including a base belonging to a group that signed a peace deal with the government, rebels said Sunday."

Bolivia. Bolivia death toll rises "The death toll in last week's violence in a remote northern province rose to more than two dozen, Bolivia's government said Sunday, as it held frantic talks with opponents to avert further bloodshed." A Crisis Highlights Divisions in Bolivia"President Evo Morales is facing the most acute crisis of his presidency as deaths from violence in rebellious northern Bolivia increased to almost 30 over the weekend. Supporters of Mr. Morales said Sunday that the death toll could rise with dozens of people caught up in the violence and still unaccounted for."

India. Christians Face Hindus' Wrath "Babita Nayak was cooking lunch for her pregnant sister when a mob of Hindu extremists wielding swords, hammers and long sticks rampaged through their village, chanting 'India is for Hindus! Convert or leave!'" Arrests over India church attacks "Police in the southern Indian state of Karnataka have arrested over 60 people in connection with attacks on churches and clergymen over the weekend. More than a dozen churches were ransacked by alleged activists of the radical Hindu group Bajrang Dal."

Op-Ed. How we measure poverty (Rebecca M. Blank, Los Angeles Times) "Who is poor in America? It turns out that's a hard question to answer. The federal government's badly outdated method of measuring poverty provides an inaccurate picture. New York found the official numbers so useless that the city recently developed its own poverty measure. Other cities, including Los Angeles, are considering doing the same thing, and those efforts are expected to be high on the agenda when the U.S. Conference of Mayors meets in Los Angeles on Sept. 23-24."