Facilitators

There was very little sympathy for Kathy in the room although, yes, the book club members agreed, she'd gotten a raw deal. Nonetheless, if Kathy had simply bothered to open her mail and read the notices saying the government was about to snatch her house for failure to pay taxes, the entire mess could have been averted. Bottom line: Responsible people open their mail. So began the discussion about "House of Sand and Fog," last year's bestselling novel by Andre Dubus III.

The recent agreement between business and labor leaders on how to provide visas for nonagricultural workers in such industries as construction, hotels and restaurants is a surprising and welcome development. Such a breakthrough agreement would have been unthinkable a year ago, when the debate over comprehensive immigration reform was mired in anger and overheated preelection rhetoric. Fortunately, stubborn partisanship has given way to wary pragmatism. As a result, members of Congress and stakeholder groups have resumed negotiations, and deals like the one reached between the AFL-CIO and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over the weekend are possible.

Today's topic: Where can you point to the Patriot Act's success in stopping terrorists? Wednesday through Friday, Jena Baker McNeill and Julian Sanchez discuss the Patriot Act, portions of which Congress is considering reauthorizing. Point: Jena Baker McNeill Three alleged terrorist plots have been foiled in recent weeks in three U.S. cities: Dallas, New York and Springfield, Ill. Officials say the cases involved men who, in separate plots, wanted to bomb a federal building, a subway and a skyscraper.

JERUSALEM - President Obama brokered a diplomatic reconciliation between key Middle East allies Israel and Turkey at the end of his visit to the Holy Land, thawing tensions that have complicated U.S. efforts to cope with regional issues including Syria's civil war. With Obama looking on, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu formally apologized Friday to Turkey over the 2010 killing by Israeli soldiers of nine Turkish activists aboard a...

On Mother's Day we were happy to see the article "Mothers' Amends" (May 12), the story of our beautiful adopted daughter Nika. My husband and I feel it is important to share our story because adoption has received much undeserved negative press. We also hope that people who have experienced a failed adoption will take encouragement and go on to adopt again. We felt Nika's story was well-written and wonderfully presented. As an adoption professional, however, I am saddened by what seems to be a world of fear and misinformation regarding the adoption process.

There is confusion regarding my position on the participation of Venice architects and developers in the Local Coastal Plan public workshops. The article (Times, Oct. 6) states that I objected to "the presence . . . of architects and design professionals who have taken on the title of 'facilitator.' " I have never objected to the presence and full participation of any Venice architect or developer at these workshops. My complaint focuses on the special emphasis given this group by the city Planning Department.

IN the Libby trial testimony, we learned that the Bush administration considered "Meet the Press" a useful tool for getting out its political spin. Scott Collins acted surprised by this revelation, stating that "we" always thought Tim Russert was tough on the powerful ["Russert's Fault? A Lack of Outrage," Feb. 12]. Give me a break! Almost all of the TV news journalists fail in their responsibilities as truth finders. They seem to think that to ask provocative questions and then to permit their guests to spin is acceptable.

When they're working properly, electronic gadgets are truly marvelous: The same technology that allows you to hear your answering machine messages over a pay phone miles from your house can save the life of a woman who has fallen down a flight of stairs in her own home. The latter scenario is depicted (with models) in photographs in the brochure for the Lifecall alert system from Pro-Alert Response Systems, 1991 Village Park Way, Encinitas.

President Obama's decision to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan pleased many military officials, who said they believe the bolstered forces will be able to execute a more robust counterinsurgency strategy. With two decisions to increase troop levels this year, Obama has nearly doubled American combat power in Afghanistan, Pentagon officials noted Tuesday. And while Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal did not get the 40,000 additional troops he reportedly requested, one Defense official said McChrystal would not have to scale back any of his plans to take on Taliban forces in eastern and southern Afghanistan.

I am so proud of Kobe Bryant. Who said you can't teach an old superstar new tricks? He kept his elbows in, is in no danger of being suspended, and upon further review, the only thing anyone wants to look at upon closer inspection is his final three-pointer Friday night.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A man arrested in Karachi on suspicion of helping in the 2002 kidnapping of American journalist Daniel Pearl once led the militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi's operations in Sindh province, authorities said. Authorities believe Qari Abdul Hayee, who was arrested this week in a police raid, was one of the Sunni militant group's facilitators in Pearl's abduction, Pakistani news reports said. Pearl, 38, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal who grew up in Los Angeles, was abducted in January 2002 in Karachi and beheaded by his captors a month later.

It's come to this: One of the best point guards ever is now the Lakers' shooting guard and one of the best shooting guards ever is now their point guard. Somehow it's working. Perfectly. Kobe Bryant continued to ignore his score-first instinct, coming whisper-close to a triple-double for the second straight game as the Lakers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 105-96, in front of a Staples Center crowd that was relieved, exuberant and drained at the same time Sunday. Steve Nash was part of it too, putting together 17 points and five assists as the team's No. 2 ballhandler, strange as it was to say it like that.

Steve Nash finally returned, the man who was supposed to restore order and balance to the Lakers' offense, but Kobe Bryant took 41 shots. What's next in this loopy season for the sub-.500 Lakers? Bryant's 34 points were wildly inefficient Saturday against Golden State. Put it this way: He took only five more shots when he scored 81 against Toronto in that 2006 game. He made only 16 shots against the Warriors (not good accuracy) and took only one free throw (not really his fault)

British police and army agents aided in the assassination of a Belfast attorney in front of his wife and three children more than two decades ago, but there was no “overarching state conspiracy” to kill him, say the findings of an independent investigation released Wednesday. Patrick Finucane, a lawyer who defended Irish Republican Army suspects, was slain in his home by militants from an outlawed loyalist group. The 1989 killing has been one of the most bitterly disputed slayings of the Northern Ireland conflict, with questions swirling around the part played by British agents who were supposed to be foiling terrorism.

It was "team awareness" day at the Lakers' practice facility, with an NBA representative on hand to discuss issues such as drug use and money management. Point guard production presumably wasn't addressed, though the Lakers could use a few pointers in that department as well. Steve Nash and Steve Blake won't be bringing the ball up the court in the next few games, meaning the Lakers could endure more clunkers like their loss against Indiana on Tuesday unless they figure things out quickly.

Not too long ago, friending someone involved more than just clicking a button on Facebook. So in a retro twist to social networking, a wave of Web start-ups are encouraging users to get off their couches, away from their smartphones and tablets, and back into the real world. "We have an internal tagline: Use the Internet to get off the Internet," said Kathryn Fink, community manager at Meetup, an online-to-offline start-up with 11 million members. Hybrid social networks are connecting strangers with similar interests online, then directing them to meet in person for dinners, bar-hopping, bowling or biking excursions.

Homestore.com Inc. in Thousand Oaks and the National Assn. of Realtors have unveiled the first phase of a new technology that aims to help Realtors sell homes on the Internet. Called eRealtor.com, the technology will allow brokers to link to title and escrow service providers, as well as to lenders, inspection companies and others, said Homestore.com, which operates several residential real estate Web sites. Analysts have estimated the market's potential to be $100 billion.

Marsha Henry got divorced four years ago and joined a ski club. The two events are not unrelated. "I wanted to learn to ski and save money doing it, and I wanted to meet people," said Henry, who lives in Granada Hills. Ski clubs, which function as de facto travel agencies, make skiing easier and cheaper. The clubs arrange accommodations at group rates and do all the planning. All a member has to remember to do is show up before the bus pulls away.

There is no appetite among the American people - or on the part of the two men competing for the U.S. presidency in Tuesday's election - for U.S. military intervention in Syria. That reluctance is sensible. Painful as it is to observe the deaths of tens of thousands of Syrians in the war between President Bashar Assad and insurgents inspired by the Arab Spring, the deployment of U.S. troops or a campaign of airstrikes under the rubric of a no-fly zone would enmesh the United States in an unpredictable conflict with a heavily armed ally of Iran on behalf of a fractious and fragmented rebel army.

Natalia has found a family - a mother, father and little brother. She'll leave a life of foster care in Colombia to join them in suburban Orange County this fall. I wrote a column about Natalia in January, when the 11-year-old visited Los Angeles with Kidsave, a Culver City group that brings parent-less children here from Colombia and tries to link them with adoptive families. Natalia spent a month in Pacific Palisades with Rhona and Kenny Rosenblatt, Kidsave volunteers who ferried her to social events where prospective parents turned out to size up the visiting kids.