US ambassador to Libya murdered: "The United States ambassador to Libya, J. Christopher Stevens, was killed along with three of his staff members in a fiery and furious attack on the American Consulate in Benghazi on Tuesday night by an armed mob angry over a short American-made video mocking Islam’s founding prophet, the White House and Libyan officials said on Wednesday... Mr. Stevens, a veteran of American diplomatic missions in Libya, served in Benghazi during the uprising against Colonel Qaddafi, and he was widely admired by the Libyan rebels for his support of their struggle."

Some more disturbing details: "An unconfirmed photograph posted on Facebook appears to show a mob dragging a lifeless Stevens along the ground, his shirt off. Some reports say he suffocated to death... There are reports in Tripoli that Stevens was not killed in the Tuesday night assault, but was attacked by a second mob when he arrived close to the scene early on Wednesday."

Islamist Egyptians raid the US embassy over the same film: "In Egypt, protesters scaled the walls of the U.S. embassy in Cairo and replaced an American flag with an Islamic banner."

So... where's this fatal film? It looks like a skimpy Life of Brian knockoff, features some seriously minstrel show-style makeup (brownface?), and currently has 683 "likes" and 1,364 "dislikes."

But, as you already know, the film isn't that important—countries dealing with the aftershocks of revolution, Islamist factions who've been itching to show off their significance, the anniversary of 9/11, etc. are more to the point than the dumb movie.

Netanyahu says the US has no "moral right" to stop Israel from attacking Iran: He's saber rattling, but even his saber-rattling is bogus. Israel has long supported US military intervention in the Middle East—as long as it's in Israel's interest.

The vice president vanishes: "China’s silence on Vice President Xi Jinping’s 11-day absence from public view contrasts with past rebuttals of speculation about top officials and is escalating concern over the nation’s leadership succession... The vacuum of news on Xi, weeks before the 59-year-old is forecast to be anointed China’s next president, may be a sign of the severity of his condition, or divisions over how to present his absence. The public remains uninformed even of the date for the congress where the new generation of leaders, including Xi, is set to be announced."

Guy from Chelan County allegedly led a group of former military men who wanted to overthrow the US government: "A Liberty County grand jury indicted the five on charges of illegal gang activity and various counts involving theft, burglary and auto break-ins. Those crimes were committed to help fund the militia group, called F.E.A.R., short for Forever Enduring Always Ready, District Attorney Tom Durden said Tuesday. 'The burglaries and entering autos, they were committed in an effort to fund F.E.A.R. and what F.E.A.R. was at least advocating they wanted to accomplish,' said Durden, the top prosecutor for Southeast Georgia's Atlantic Judicial Circuit. Their plans included bombing a Savannah park fountain and poisoning apple crops in Washington, prosecutors say... Four are soldiers serving at neighboring Fort Stewart and are charged with murder in the December slayings of former soldier Michael Roark and his teenage girlfriend, Tiffany York. Authorities say that after Roark left the Army, he was killed, along with York, to protect the group and its plots."

More details on the ninth prisoner death at Guantanamo Bay: "The latest prisoner to die at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility for terrorism suspects was a young Yemeni imprisoned there for more than a decade despite a 2010 federal court order that he be freed and the military’s judgment three years earlier that he could be safely released... The Pentagon concluded after Latif’s 2004 Combatant Status Review Tribunal that he had not participated in terrorist training and cleared him for release three years later, according to documents obtained and made public by the WikiLeaks website."

Germany reluctantly decides to help with the Euro "rescue fund": "Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court on Wednesday gave Chancellor Angela Merkel a significant victory in her bid to master the debt crisis that has buffeted the continent for years and endangered its common currency, granting approval to one of the key pillars of her strategy."

According to polls, a Romney election would "sink" US relations with Europe: "But while Europeans had a strongly negative reaction to Romney, the prospect of him winning the White House was greeted with less dismay in Pakistan, where about 13% of respondents said it would make them more favourable to the US, compared to just 9% who said it would make them less favourable. This is possibly a reflection of the anger towards the Obama administration over drone attacks which have led to civilian deaths and are viewed as an infringement of Pakistani sovereignty."