The Daily Broadside - 10/30

Big Hollywood: CAIR Seeks HBO Apology for ‘Curb’ Episode Mocking Jesus

A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization today called on HBO to apologize for an episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” in which the main character splattered urine on a painting of Jesus.

Honduras interim government touts agreement on coup

Interim President Roberto Micheletti has ordered his negotiators to sign an agreement that could lead to the reinstatement of ousted President Manuel Zelaya, but that leaves the decision in the hands of the Supreme Court and Congress.

Micheletti says the agreement would create a power-sharing government and bind both sides to recognize the Nov. 29 presidential elections.

Zelaya's team is not saying whether it intends to sign the agreement, which Micheletti called a "significant concession" on his part.

So-Called 'Death Panel' Measure Survives in House Health Bill

The Medicare end-of-life planning provision that 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin said was tantamount to "death panels" for seniors is staying in the latest Democratic health care bill unveiled Thursday.

The provision allows Medicare to pay for voluntary counseling to help beneficiaries deal with the complex and painful decisions families face when a loved one is approaching death.

Passports Linked to 9/11 Found in Pakistan

Soldiers displayed passports seized in the operation, among them a German document belonging to a man named Said Bahaji. That matches the name of a man thought to have been a member of the Hamburg cell that conceived the 9/11 attacks. Bahaji is believed to have fled Germany shortly before the attacks in New York and Washington.

The passport included a tourist visa for Pakistan and a stamp indicating he'd arrived in the southern city of Karachi on Sept. 4, 2001.

Another passport, from Spain, bears the name of Raquel Burgos Garcia. Spanish media have reported that a woman with the same name is married to Amer Azizi, an alleged Al Qaeda member from Morocco suspected in both the 9/11 attacks and the Madrid train bombings in 2004.

(H/T: JCM)

Congressman Flake Releases Statement Regarding His Vote Against Honoring the 2560th Birthday of Confucius (H/T: Pi Guy)

Washington, D.C., Oct 28 - Republican Congressman Jeff Flake, who represents Arizona’s Sixth District, today released the following statement regarding his vote against H.Res.784, a bill “honoring the 2560th anniversary of the birth of Confucius and recognizing his invaluable contributions to philosophy and social and political thought.”

“He who spends time passing trivial legislation may find himself out of time to read healthcare bill,” said Flake.