Syria: World leaders are meeting today at the G-20 summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, with Syria a hot topic for discussion. President Obama is looking for international support. Russian President Vladimir Putin remains opposed to a strike on Syria and said Secretary of State John Kerry is “lying” about Al Qaeda involvement in the Syrian opposition.

  Kerry and two other administration officers faced hours of questions yesterday from a House committee about the justification, potential backlash, and scope of a unilateral American attack. Rep. Tom Marino, R-Pa., said a military strike “will not stop the butchering and the killing that takes place over there. So what is the purpose?” Kerry and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel argued that the unpunished use of chemical weapons anywhere could encourage their use in future conflicts.

Also yesterday, the Senate Foreign relations Committee approved a resolution to let President Obama strike Syria for a maximum of 90 days with no use of ground troops. The vote was 10-7 with three Republicans in favor and two Democrats opposed. The President might face serious opposition within his own party by members of Congress responding to voters who are reluctant to enter another conflict.

E-T, Phone: Samsung yesterday unveiled its new $299 “Gear” smartwatch, which makes calls through your phone, gives the weather, checks messages, and is also smart enough to tell time. The smartwatch is the next battleground for electronics makers with Apple expected to release one soon. Microsoft entered the electronics fight this week by buying out Nokia phones. If they only had a smartwatch, they would know they are late to the game.

City Hall: NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg sued his own city council to overturn a recent law that makes it easier for people targeted by the police “stop and frisk” campaign to sue the city. The council’s law expands the definition of “profiling” to include age, gender, and housing status.

• The Boston Globe reports that the city’s constituent service hotline is swamped, partly because of a smartphone app. Citizens don’t have to fight City Hall, they can just text it. The city is receiving about 150,000 messages a year about everything from car alarms to trash removal. The system tracks complaints and solutions. The award for brevity goes to one man who sent a picture with the message, “fell in this hole.”

Fake News: Jon Stewart returned to The Daily Show this week after taking 12 weeks off to direct a movie in Jordan. He said, “You don’t know what it’s like out there in the real world. Nobody applauds every stupid little thing you do.”  

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