Headlines from Democracynow.org, a daily TV/radio news program, hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, airing on over 650 stations, pioneering the largest community media collaboration in the US.

Rise in Staple Prices Outpacing Luxury Goods

A new analysis shows inflation has led to a greater increase in prices of staples needed for basic daily life than it has on luxury goods. According to the Washington Post, prices for basics including groceries, gasoline, and health care have risen more than nine percent over two years ago. By contrast, prices for luxuries including restaurant meals, alcoholic beverages, new cars, furniture, and clothing have risen just two point four percent. Meanwhile increases in earnings for non-managerial workers were just over half the increase in staple costs, at five percent. The rise in staple prices is attributed to increasing demand for oil but also ethanol--which drives up food prices by making food crops more scarce.

Gov. Richardson to Endorse Obama

On the campaign trail, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has announced he's endorsing Senator Barack Obama. Both Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton have actively courted Richardson since he dropped out of the Democratic presidential race in January. Richardson is to appear alongside Obama today at a rally in Portland, Oregon.

State Dept. Employees Fired for Obama File Breach

Meanwhile two State Department officials have been fired and another disciplined for inappropriately accessing Obama's passport file. The Bureau of Consular Affairs says the officials acted out of "curiosity" rather than political motivation. But Obama's campaign is calling for an investigation.

Obama, Clinton, McCain Address War

On Thursday, both candidates continued to focus on the five-year mark of the Iraq war. Clinton addressed supporters in Indiana.

Sen. Hillary Clinton: "This is the week of the fifth year of the Iraq war. And we are about to go into the sixth year and I believe passionately that we should begin to bring our troops home and I outlined the policy that I would follow as president to do that. We have to do it carefully and responsibly, it is very difficult to withdraw troops, you can't just wake up in the morning and say let's start bringing them home. It has to be planned for."

Obama meanwhile was in South Carolina, where he linked the nation's economic woes to the Iraq war.

Sen. Barack Obama: "We also have to understand that the more than 10 billion dollars we're spending each month in Iraq is money we could be investing here at home. Just think, just think what battles we can be fighting instead of fighting this misguided war. Instead of fighting this war we can be fighting the terrorists that attacked us on 9/11 and who are plotting against us in Afghanistan, in Pakistan."

On the Republican side, Senator John McCain was in London Thursday on his way back from a Middle East tour. McCain said the Iraq war would be a key issue in the upcoming presidential election.

Sen. John McCain: "We are now succeeding in Iraq and Americans, at least, I believe are in significant numbers agreeing that the present strategy of the Surge is succeeding. And they want us to succeed and that will be, frankly, a very big issue in this campaign."

Iraqi Families Turn Down Blackwater Compensation Offer for Nisour Slayings

In Iraq, at least two Iraqi families say they've turned down a compensation offer from the private military firm Blackwater for killing their loved ones. Seventeen Iraqi civilians died when Blackwater guards opened fire in Baghdad's Nisour square on September 16th. The father of a slain nine-year old boy told ABC News he's rejected a twenty-thousand dollar offer for his son's murder. The man says he plans to take Blackwater to court. Another Iraqi who lost his wife and son says he has also turned down an identical offer. Adel Jabur Shamma, who was bed-ridden for six months, says he accepted a ten thousand dollar payment because he had no other choice. No charges have yet to be filed in the Blackwater case amidst ongoing legal uncertainty over whether anyone involved can even be brought to trial.

Soldier Deaths Lead to Probe of KBR

The Pentagon has announced a probe of whether more than a dozen fatal electrocutions of U.S. soldiers in Iraq can be linked to faulty construction at U.S. military bases. Vice President Dick Cheney's former firm KBR could find itself at the center of the investigation. KBR builds and maintains bases and housing for US troops. Investigators say the company may have improperly grounded electrical wires which could have caused the deaths. Earlier this month KBR came under scrutiny after it was revealed the company supplied unmonitored and unsafe water that led dozens of U.S. soldiers to fall sick.

U.S. Toll in Iraq Approaches 4,000

Meanwhile the U.S. military death toll in Iraq continues to approach the four 4,000 mark with 3,992 U.S. troops killed. In Washington, Iraq war veteran Phil Aliff said the military is being demoralized by repeated tours.

Phil Aliff: "I think it's incredibly demoralising to be asked to go back to Iraq for your third, fourth, fifth deployment and have to watch more friends die, more casualties being mounted up on a war that we were given false pretenses to go in the first place. And so I think that to honour the memory of those that have died in Iraq and to honour our soldiers that are still over there, I think we have to bring our brothers and sisters home immediately."

Dalai Lama Calls for China Talks on Tibet Crisis

The Dalai Lama has announced he's prepared to travel to China to negotiate an end to a wave of Tibetan protests against Chinese rule. The Tibetan spiritual leader spoke Thursday from his base in northern India.

The Dalai Lama: "Chinese leaders and particularly with Hu Jintao only happy to meet. And so then as I mentioned earlier go to Peking and meet leader and of course that will be big news isn't it."

The protests erupted last week when Buddhist monks took to the streets of Lhasa to mark the anniversary of the 1959 uprising against China. Human rights groups say dozens of people have been killed and hundreds arrested. The Dalai Lama also said he believes Chinese society has been corrupted by turning its back on welfare government.

The Dalai Lama: "During Mao's time there was believe, there was ideology. Selfless ideology. Serving working class people, serving dedicate needy people, that's spirit selfless spirit--now gone. Everybody think money, money, money, money. So corruption, immense corruption."

Italian Judge Orders Resumption of CIA Kidnap Trial

In Italy, a judge has ordered the resumption of the trial of twenty-six Americans and five Italians accused of kidnapping a Muslim cleric from the streets of Milan. Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, known as Abu Omar, was taken to U.S. bases in Italy and Germany before being sent to Egypt. There he says he was tortured during a four-year imprisonment. All twenty-six Americans are being tried in absentia. The case marks the first criminal trial over the CIA's extraordinary rendition program. The trial was suspended last June pending a state secrecy ruling that has yet to be handed down.

Ex-SLA Member Released from Jail

Back in the United States, a former radical turned fugitive has been released from prison after a seven-year term. Sara Jane Olson, formerly known as Kathleen Soliah, was a member of the Symbionese Liberation Army, the group best known for kidnapping the newspaper heiress Patty Hearst. Olson was arrested in 1999 after living underground for 25 years. She pleaded guilty to taking part in two attempts to bomb the Los Angeles Police Department in 1975, but later proclaimed her innocence.

Fruit Giant Chiquita Sued for Colombia Deaths

The spouses of five missionaries killed by FARC rebels are suing fruit giant Chiquita Brands International for its role in financing the paramilitary group in the 1990s. The victims were working along the Panama-Columbia border for a Florida missionary group. Last year Chiquita admitted to paying millions of dollars to a right-wing Colombian paramilitary group on the U.S. terrorist watch list and agreed to pay $25 million in fines.

U.S. Immigration Agent Arrested for Sexual Blackmail

And here in New York, a U.S. immigration agent has been arrested after he was caught demanding sexual acts from a Colombian woman in return for granting her a green card. The agent, Isaac Baichu, has handled more than eight thousand immigrant applications during his career. The woman recorded Baichu making his demands, which included performing oral sex on the spot so he could know quote that she was "serious." The case is among several known instances of sexual blackmail in the immigration process in recent years. Analysts say the actual number of cases could be far higher. Baichu faces seven years in prison.