In chaotic Somalia, economic stimulus packages come in the form of pirate booty. The country's weak central government cannot stop rogue seamen from hijacking huge commercial ships and demanding millions of dollars in ransom. Right now, these pirates are asking for a record $10 million in exchange for a Saudi oil tanker carrying over $100 million worth of cargo.

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• A giant Saudi oil tanker seized by Somali pirates Saturday has been anchored off the coast of Somalia. The cargo in the biggest tanker ever hijacked is estimated to be worth $100 million. — BBC News
• US officials warned lawmakers that more economic aid is urgently needed, even though the Bush administration has decided not to spend more of the $700 billion bailout funds approved in October.
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• The ex-president of Taiwan was detained by his country's police on charges of corruption and money laundering today. The defiant Chen Shui-bian raised his handcuffed hands above his head while shouting “Long live Taiwanese independence."— New York Times
• In his White House meeting with Barack Obama, President Bush indicated that he would support another economic stimulus package, which includes aid to the auto industry, if the Democrats stopped opposing the Colombian free-trade agreement. — International Herald Tribune
• Somalian pirates captured a Philippines chemical tanker, carrying 23 crew members, marking the 83rd hijack in Somalian waters this year.
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An exaggerated fear of "Islamofascism" ignores a complex reality, causing the US to overreact and damage its own interests. So says columnist Nicholas D. Krsitof, who argues that the situation in Somalia is one of the least-known Bush administration failures.

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• Foreclosures Grow by 70%: The number of homes in a state of foreclosure grew 70 percent in the third quarter of this year, compared with the same time last year. Almost 766,000 homes received at least one foreclosure related notice between July and September. By the end of the year it's thought there will be a million bank-owned properties for sale, or a third of all houses on the market.
• US Hands Province to Iraqis: Iraqis have been given control of security of the province of Babil by the US military.
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