Shutdown Throwdown: Day 8. President Obama challenged House Speaker John Boehner to hold an open up or down vote on whether to fund the federal government. “Let every member of Congress vote their conscience and they can determine whether or not they want to shut the government down,” the President said during a visit to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. “My suspicion is, my very strong suspicion is, that there are enough votes there.” Mr. Obama visited FEMA to call attention to how short-staffed the agency is with 86% of its employees on furlough.

  Disapproval of how the Republicans are handling the federal budget negotiations is now 70% according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Afghanistan: Afghan President Hamid Karzai told the BBC he’s disappointed with NATO’s performance after 12 years of war. “On the security front, the entire NATO exercise was one that caused Afghanistan a lot of suffering, a lot of loss of life, and no gains because the country is not secure,” he said. With six months left in office, Karzai has become increasingly contentious with western countries that have fought the Taliban. Unable to reach a deal for its military role after 2014, the US is considering pulling out all its troops.

At Sea: The Associated Press reports that the Obama administration is avoiding sending terrorist suspects to secret prisons or Guantanamo Bay by questioning them aboard navy ships in international waters. Abu Anas al-Libi, the suspect in the 2008 embassy bombings in Africa, who was snatched in Libya, is being interrogated aboard the amphibious warship USS San Antonio. The intent is to question suspects under laws of war while preserving the ability to prosecute them in civilian courts.

Matter: Two physicists whose 1964 theory led to discovery of the Higgs boson, known as “the God particle”, have been awarded the Nobel Prize. Peter Higgs, 84, of Scotland, and François Englert, 80, of Belgium, will split the  $1.2 million prize. Unlike other particles, the Higgs does not spin. It gives mass to other elementary particles hence, “The God particle.”

Boeing, Boeing, Gone: In a blow to the US Boeing aircraft company, Japan Airlines has ordered $10 billion worth of European Airbus jets. JAL has bought Boeing planes almost exclusively for the past 50 years. The deal might have been influenced by delivery delays and battery trouble with Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner.

What’s In A Name: The Oneida Indian Nation has emerged as the leading force urging the Washington Redskins football team to change its 80-year-old name. A meeting with NFL representatives is scheduled for later in November. The Redskins have shrugged off criticism of their name but the Oneidas say they are not going away. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said, “If one person’s offended, we have to listen.”

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