Top Stories - The Christian Science Monitor

Washington - In pursuit of an economic recovery, President Obama has argued that we must transition from an "era of borrow-and-spend to one where we save and invest." It is an appealing concept, especially as the disappearance of surplus assets and historic levels of debt helped transform a garden-variety business cycle recession into a historic collapse. Full Story »

Kabul, Afghanistan - Mohammad Rafi Hamdard, a food importer in Kabul, puts the following prices on the United Nations decision to withdraw staff from Afghanistan: $15 more for a ton of flour, $5 more for 50 kilograms of sugar and $3 more for a carton of cooking oil. Full Story »

Paris - In France it is a tale of one and now two sons – of President Nicolas Sarkozy. Last month Mr. Sarkozy rolled eyeballs around the Republic when his son Jean, 23 and not finished with college, was tapped as a candidate to run Paris' wealthiest district, La Defense. A slightly shocked public reaction brought a withdrawal from Sarkozy the younger. Full Story »

Frankfurt, Germany - For Dana Muehlmann, the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall isn't cause to celebrate. Full Story »

Soweto, South Africa - When José Bright arrived in South Africa in 1994, he felt daunted by the task ahead. After all, as an education consultant from the Washington, D.C., public school system, his job was to help South Africa transform its schools, designed to benefit the white minority of 4 million, into a system to educate the 40 million black majority as well. Full Story »

Lake Placid, N.Y.; and Boston - Unless a Canadian court decides otherwise, the ski jumper with the longest flight on record at Vancouver's Olympic facility will not attend the winter Games in February. Full Story »

Washington - The case of Nidal Malik Hasan, the Army psychiatrist who is the primary suspect in the Fort Hood shooting spree Thursday that killed 13 people, is pointing up the enormous need to help soldiers overwhelmed by the stress – or even the prospect – of serving in wartime. Full Story »

United Nations, N.Y. - No, John Bolton, the former US ambassador to the United Nations, is not getting his wish: All the vacant floors at the UN's iconic aquamarine-glass headquarters and the trucks removing whole departments to other New York sites do not mean that the top third of the structure is about to be lopped off. Full Story »

New York - The United Nations General Assembly approved Thursday afternoon a resolution that calls on both Israel and the Palestinians to investigate the accusations of war crimes in last winter's Gaza incursion as described in a UN-commissioned report. Full Story »

San Francisco - In California, a Global Position System (GPS) device is strapped to every registered sex offender on parole. The system is supposed to keep the public safe – and make it easier for parole agents to track dangerous felons. But that system is broken, and giving the public "a false sense of security," according to a new report. Full Story »