Michael Brown Spent Last Weeks Grappling With Problems and Promise  —  FERGUSON, Mo. — It was 1 a.m. and Michael Brown Jr. called his father, his voice trembling.  He had seen something overpowering.  In the thick gray clouds that lingered from a passing storm this past June, he made out an angel.

Who Should Be Banned as Panelists For the New “Meet?”  —  So the “vision” NBC president Deborah Turness has (according to an interview with the New York Times' Bill Carter) for the new, Chuck-Todd-moderated Meet the Press could just as easily be interpreted as a blast from the past:

Journalist Foley's Killer Appears In GOP Senate Candidate's Ad (VIDEO)  —  The masked man who beheaded journalist James Foley appears in a web video created in support of New Mexico Republican Senate candidate Allen Weh.  —  The ad, released by the New Mexico Republican Party …

More White House officials at Michael Brown's funeral than Thatcher's  —  People begin to line up to attend the funeral for Michael Brown, Monday, Aug. 25, 2014, in St. Louis.AP  —  The White House sent three officials to attend Monday's funeral for Michael Brown in St. Louis …

Why Rape Prevention Activists Don't Like The New Nail Polish That Can Detect Roofies  —  A manicure isn't the solution to rape on college campuses.  —  CREDIT: Shutterstock  —  A group of four college students is taking the media by storm with the development of an innovative nail polish …

Egypt and United Arab Emirates Said to Have Secretly Carried Out Libya Airstrikes  —  CAIRO — Twice in the last seven days, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates have secretly teamed up to launch airstrikes against Islamist-allied militias battling for control of Tripoli, Libya …

News Feed FYI: Click-baiting  —  Today we're announcing some improvements to News Feed to help people find the posts and links from publishers that are most interesting and relevant, and to continue to weed out stories that people frequently tell us are spammy and that they don't want to see.

Reid calls legislators ‘cowards’ over prostitution  —  U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., speaks during the Asian Chamber of Commerce's monthly lunch at the Gold Coast casino-hotel in Las Vegas Thursday, Aug. 21, 2014.  (Erik Verduzco/Las vegas Review-Journal)  —  U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. …

France thrown into political turmoil after government dissolved  —  Manuel Valls told to form new government after crisis triggered by minister calling for end to austerity policies imposed by Germany  —  France has entered uncharted political waters after the prime minister, Manuel Valls …

Cornel West: “He posed as a progressive and turned out to be counterfeit.  We ended up with a Wall Street presidency, a drone presidency"  —  Exclusive: Cornel West talks Ferguson, Hillary, MSNBC — and unloads on the failed promise of Barack Obama  —  Cornel West is a professor …

How the Napa Earthquake affected Bay Area sleepers  —  The South Napa Earthquake was the strongest to hit Northern California in 25 years.  Our data science team wanted to quantify its effect on sleep by looking at the data recorded by Jawbone UP wearers in the Bay Area who track their sleep patterns.

The Problem With Bombing ISIS  —  Striking the jihadists in Syria is reckless without allies on the ground.  —  In my heart, I'd love to see the Obama administration pursue ISIS into Syria.  First, because stopping genocide is a good justification for war.

A LETTER FROM JIM: All letters Jim wrote to his family during his captivity were confiscated by the jailers.  So, Jim devised a better approach this last June: he asked a fellow hostage about to be released to commit a letter to memory.  Very soon after his release, this hostage called Diane and dictated what follows.

DesJarlais Wins by 38 Votes, Jim Tracy Concedes  —  Rep. Scott DesJarlais has officially won his primary, barely squeaking past state Sen. Jim Tracy, who conceded Monday after more than two tense weeks following Tennessee's Republican primary in the 4th District.

‘Enraged’ soldier who shot herself at Fort Lee has died  —  FORT LEE, Va. -The solider who shot herself while barricaded inside an office in a command headquarters building Monday morning at Fort Lee has died.  —  Officials said the soldier was pronounced dead at VCU Medical Center after an early morning incident.

The Surveillance Engine: How the NSA Built Its Own Secret Google  —  The National Security Agency is secretly providing data to nearly two dozen U.S. government agencies with a “Google-like” search engine built to share more than 850 billion records about phone calls, emails, cellphone locations …

Wrong Way Nation  —  Gov. Rick Perry of Texas is running for president again.  What are his chances?  Will he once again become a punch line?  I have absolutely no idea.  This isn't a horse-race column.  —  What I'd like to do, instead, is take advantage of Mr. Perry's ambitions to talk …

Quinn nixes Uber bill, says it would be a disservice to consumers  —  SPRINGFIELD - Inviting a likely override attempt, Gov. Pat Quinn Monday vetoed legislation pushed by the state's clout-heavy taxi industry to impose a new, statewide regulatory framework on commercial ridesharing services like Uber.

In search of libertarians  —  The question of whether libertarianism is gaining public support has received increased attention, with talk of a Rand Paul run for president and a recent New York Times magazine story asking if the “Libertarian Moment” has finally arrived.