World: During a “day of rage,” Palestinian rioters set fire to the tomb of Joseph, a holy site in Nablus where Jews go to pray. The tomb was heavily damaged. Violence is escalating with a wave of random stabbing attacks by Palestinians on Israelis. Seven Israelis and as many as 30 Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks.

Family Values: Former Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert, 73, once one of the most powerful politicians in the country, agreed yesterday to plead guilty to paying hush money to a victim of sexual misconduct and lying about it to the FBI. Hastert was accused of paying $3.5 million to a male victim of sexual abuse from the time when Hastert was a high school teacher and wrestling coach in the 1960s and 70s.

Hastert was the longest serving Republican speaker, having spent eight years in the office before leaving Congress in 2007. He was pro-gun, anti-abortion, and an evangelical Christian.

Nation: Inflation is so low that Social Security recipients will not get a cost-of-living increase next year.

>ABC News medical reporter Dr. Jamie Zimmerman, 31, drowned in Hawaii attempting to cross a river on Kauai’s north shore. She fell and was swept out to sea. Her last Facebook post was a picture of her smiling as she looked out over Kauai’s dramatic coastline.

>Former basketball star Lamar Odom is still on life support in a Nevada hospital. Reports vary on his condition. Some visitors say he’s showing signs of response, but some reports say he is brain dead. Odom is reported to have blown through $75,000 at a Nevada brothel called the “Love Ranch” taking cocaine and an herbal sexual stimulant.

Heavy Weather: Rescuers were searching for motorists who may have been trapped in their cars when rain caused mudslides and flooding in northern Los Angeles County. The 5 Freeway, California’s major north/south artery, was cut off by mud and debris that slid from a hillside.

It could be a preview. The National Weather Service predicts that a powerful El Nino weather system coming off the Pacific this winter will bring unusual amounts of rain and snow to all of drought-stricken California. January through March could be wet and snowy but it’s unlikely that one winter will end the drought and fill California’s bathtub-ring reservoirs.

Shutter Bugged: In an important verdict for journalists, a New York City police officer was convicted yesterday of lying to justify his arrest of a photographer from the NY Times. Off. Michael Ackermann, 32, was convicted of a single felony.

News photographers have been increasingly harassed in recent years by cops who claim the journalists are interfering with police work. Photographers have a legal right to take pictures.

Robert Stolarik, a freelancer for the Times, was shooting the arrest of a young woman for a story about the city’s “stop and frisk” policy when Ackermann claimed Stolarik’s camera flash blinded him and interfered with the arrest. The investigation into Stolarik’s arrest later found that he had no flash on his camera at the time.

The Obit Page: Ken Taylor, the former Canadian Ambassador to Iran who sheltered the six Americans who escaped the 1979 takeover of the US embassy in Tehran, has died at age 81. The story was portrayed in the movie Argo, which made Ben Affleck the hero, but in reality it was Taylor who convinced his government to issue six Canadian passports and airplane tickets for the six diplomats to get out of the country.

The Sports Page: The Mets beat the Dodgers last night to advance to the National League championships against the Chicago Cubs. It will be their first meeting ever in post season play.

Story Menu: MSNBC did a segment titled “What kind of sandwich is each candidate?” Tomorrow, “What kind of stew is the news business in?”

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