10 things you need to know today: September 3, 2012

In Plaquemines Parish, La., birds fly on Sept. 2 above flooding caused by Hurricane Isaac: Hundreds of thousands of Pelican State residents are still without power.

(Image credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

last updated 8 January 2015

1. U.S. CONSULATE CAR ATTACKED IN PAKISTAN

At least four U.S. consulate workers are seriously wounded and five other people are dead after a suicide bomber brazenly rammed a vehicle into a U.S. government car in Peshawar, Pakistan. Two of the wounded consulate workers are American, and the other two are Pakistani. No one has taken responsibility for Monday's attack, which took place near the Afghan border in an area of the city that is home to several foreign organizations, including the United Nations. The names of the injured and dead have not been released. [NBC News]

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Five days after Hurricane Isaac began pummeling Louisiana, more than 200,000 people across the state are still without power, while thousands of evacuees are still residing at shelters or with friends and family. And Louisiana authorities warn that the West Pearl River could crest at five feet past the flood point — to 19.5 feet — by evening. "It's going to be a long couple of days," said one local official. [Times-Picayune]

Reverend Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the controversial but popular Unification Church, died Monday from complications of pneumonia in South Korea. Moon, 92, had been very active until recently, officiating a mass wedding for 2,500 in the spring and leading a church service with more than 15,000 parishioners in July. Critics have long attacked the church as a fringe organization, and questioned its finances. Today, Moon's church has 3 million followers, including 100,000 in the U.S. The church has a number of holdings, including the Washington Times newspaper and the iconic New Yorker Hotel. [Associated Press]

About 800 protesters marched through Charlotte's business district on Sunday, just two days before the start of the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday. Many were protesting against corporate America and big money's influence in politics. "Banks got bailed out. We got sold out," read several signs. The two-hour protest in 92-degree heat was mostly civil. Still, two people were arrested, one for having a concealed knife and another for disorderly conduct. [UPI]

Several U.S. companies are bracing for the worst in the event that debt-stricken Greece is forced to abandon the euro. Bank of America Merrill Lynch has reportedly looked into stuffing vehicles with cash to be sent over the Greek border so ensure their clients can still be paid if money becomes unavailable. Ford has rejiggered its computer systems in the event of a new Greek currency. And JP Morgan Chase has created new accounts for mega-companies. The contingency plans come as the small European country tries to avoid defaulting on its debt. [New York Times]

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said western powers are coming up with a game plan in the event that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime uses chemical or biological weapons in its civil war. "We are discussing this notably with our American and English partners," he said in a radio interview on Monday, adding that if Syria deploys such weapons "our response...would be massive and blistering." President Obama recently called it a "red line" for the U.S. if Assad uses chemical or biological weapons. Activist groups, meanwhile, said Sunday that a jaw-dropping 5,000 people were killed in Syria's civil war in August alone. [Associated Press]

The head of the hotel chain conglomerate Marriott sang Mitt Romney's praises during a Mormon church service, saying the Republican had changed changing Americans' perceptions about the religion. J.W. Marriott Junior, a Mormon, spoke at a Wolfeboro, N.H., branch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints, where the Republican presidential nominee and his wife were attending services. Marriott thanked the couple for lifting the church "out of obscurity," adding that "there has never been as much positive attention...thanks to the wonderful campaign of Mitt Romney and his family." [CNN]

At least 13 police officers were wounded in clashes between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. A fight broke out over the rights of the two rival communities to hold parades in north Belfast. It started when a Catholic Irish nationalist band marched through an area where pro-British Protestants had already been banned from marching. Police fired water cannons at rioters while both sides threw bottles and stones at the officers. Since a peace agreement was signed 14 years ago, violence between the two groups, which has been going on and off for three decades, has largely subsided. [Reuters]

Actor Russell Crowe and his buddy were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after the duo got lost while kayaking just off of Long Island. The Coast Guard personnel were on routine patrol in Cold Spring Harbor on Saturday night when one of the two men called for help. Crowe and his friend hitched a ride back with the Coast Guard to Huntington Bay, nearly 10 miles away. On Twitter, the Oscar-winning actor thanked "the boys from the U.S. Coast Guard for guiding the way." The short-tempered Aussie also insisted: "Not lost, we knew where exactly where we were...we ran out of day." [CNN]

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