October 30, 2013: Morning
- Spy chiefs say listening to foreign leaders is par for the course—and that Europeans would spy on Obama if it wasn't for his badass Blackberry.
- Former Greek foreign minister admits to eavesdropping on American diplomats.
- Haiku generator makes poetry out of NSA-flagged words.
- Our security services' long reach—to accumulate more haystacks, and find more needles—has gone way beyond their minders' grasp.
- We discovered the term 'Thermonuclear' Nachos was actually the title of a recipe and not a threat to our national security.
- Journalist invites white hat hacker—who happens to lack recognizable fingerprints—to rip through his life, with terrifying results.
- Applications for divorce in Beijing soar by 41 percent—so people can become richer.
- Nigeria plans to shrink its federal budget deficit—and its economy is about to grow 40% in one day.
- One major "rate shock" of Obamacare is that it cancels plans, and raises rates, for people who were already doing their part to keep everyone's costs low.
- "Glam scammer" busted in New Orleans before pulling off his Halloween-party hoax.
- City of Irwindale, CA files suit against Sriracha factory—complaints of headaches, burning eyes, overwhelming odor.
- Target announces it will "ban the box" and remove questions about criminal history from job applications.
- Marine describes his lovely day spent with a man who is possibly the most prolific serial killer in American history.
- Artist uses salt to develop photographs of an imaginary 1865 funeral.
- Tumblr of the day: Selfies at Funerals.
- Related: It's time to prepare ourselves for the day when a sitting American president takes a selfie in the Oval Office.
- Coates: "I came to Howard as an insecure 17-year-old boy from Maryland, with none of the confidence that oozes out of my son."