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Pope Francis on Saturday appointed Bishop Blase Cupich, a moderate who has called for civility in the culture wars, as the next archbishop of Chicago, signaling a shift in tone in one of the most important posts in the U.S. church.

Cupich, of Spokane, Washington, will be installed in the Archdiocese of Chicago in November, succeeding Cardinal Francis George, according to an announcement by the papal ambassador to the U.S. The archdiocese has scheduled a news conference for Saturday morning which Cupich is expected to attend. George has been battling cancer and has said he believes the disease will end his life.

George is especially admired in the church's conservative wing as an intellectual who took an aggressive stand against abortion and gay marriage. Cupich has called for a "return to civility" in conversations on divisive social issues. Francis has said he wants church leaders to focus more on mercy and compassion and less on hot-button social issues.

The choice of Cupich is Francis' first major appointment in the U.S. and the clearest indication yet of the direction he wants to steer American church leaders. The Archdiocese of Chicago is the third-largest, and one of the most important dioceses in the country, serving 2.2 million parishioners. Chicago archbishops are usually elevated to cardinal and are therefore eligible to vote for the next pope.

Cupich, 65, is a native of Omaha, Nebraska, where he was ordained a priest. He holds degrees from the Pontifical Gregorian University and The Catholic University of America. In the 1980s, he worked on the staff of the Vatican embassy in Washington. He was appointed bishop of Rapid City, South Dakota, in 1998, and served there until 2010, when he was appointed to Spokane.

In a 2012 essay in the Jesuit magazine America, Cupich said the U.S. bishops "rightly objected" to the original narrow religious exemption in President Barack Obama's requirement that employers provide health insurance that covers contraception. But Cupich called for a "return to civility" in conversations about religious liberty and society.

"While the outrage to the (government) decision was understandable, in the long run threats and condemnations have a limited impact," Cupich said. "We should never stop talking to one another."

Cupich has also defended Francis' views on the economy and emphasis on fighting poverty, which some Catholics and others have criticized as naive and against capitalism.

"Instead of approaching life from the 30-thousand-feet level of ideas, he challenges policy makers and elected officials indeed all of us to experience the life of everyday and real people," Cupich said at a conference last June on the Catholic case against libertarianism. "Much like he told religious leaders, Francis is saying that politicians and policy makers need to know the smell of the sheep."

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Pope Appoints Moderate As Archbishop Of Chicago

Southbank Undercroft

The iconic skate park has been saved from becoming yet another conclave of chain restaurants

The culture wars are over -- and skateboarding has won. London's Southbank Undercroft, one of the UK's most historically important skate areas, has been saved from being "redeveloped" into another conclave of chain restaurants and retail outlets.

The 17-month battle between the management of the Southbank Centre and Long Live Southbank (LLSB) -- an activist group comprised of the skaters, BMXers, graffiti artists and other lovers of urban culture that call the undercroft a second home -- has come to a surprising end: everyone wins. Both factions have settled and withdrawn respective legal actions, with the result being the skate park remaining as and where it is, while the Centre renovates its Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery without evicting the skaters.

"Following talks that have taken place over the last three months, Long Live Southbank and Southbank Centre are delighted to have reached an agreement that secures the Queen Elizabeth Hall undercroft as the long-term home of British skateboarding and the other urban activities for which it is famous," the Long Live Southbank campaigners announced. "The agreement has been formalised in a binding planning agreement with Lambeth Council. In the agreement, Southbank Centre agrees to keep the undercroft open for use without charge for skateboarding, BMX riding, street writing and other urban activities."

The Southbank undercroft has been the home of British skateboarding for over 40 years. The area itself is something of an accident of architecture though, the result of several surrounding developments and elevated concrete walkways birthing a space that came to be perfect for skating. Pro skateboarders including Nick Jensen and Geoff Rowley are lovers of the spot, and the location has even made its way into the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater video game series -- Hawk himself being another famour skater who called for the undercroft to be saved.

Although Southbank Centre had proposed moving the skaters 120m along the Thames, offering a purpose-built skate park under Hungerford Bridge, Lambeth Council received over 27,000 complaints at the suggestion. Even London Mayor Boris Johnson, who's likely never even gingerly placed a single foot on a skateboard, objected to the park being relocated.

The movement to save Southbank has been a true example of grassroots activism, and the victory against far richer and more powerful organisations is as historical as the skate park itself. Largely guided by film maker Henry Edwards-Wood, the LLSB campaigners had publicised their plight online, produced documentaries, and gotten all walks of London's community involved in efforts to save the small but beloved patch of concrete. The result has been a win for culture over capitalism, with the Southbank Centre dropping its challenge to the registration of the undercroft as an "asset of community value", and LLSB abandoning its application for village green status for the undercroft.

Lib Peck, Leader of Lambeth Council, which has had to evaluate all the planning applications, protests, and cultural considerations on both sides, said "I'm pleased that Lambeth Council was able to work with both sides and find an imaginative solution to resolve this. Shared public space in London is precious and Southbank Centre is a great asset to the country's cultural life. This agreement is a sensible way of protecting both and we can all now look forward."

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Historic London skatepark saved from retail redevelopment

By James M. Dorsey, The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer

Iranian women cheering for the national volleyball team (Source: International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran)

A British-Iranian woman imprisoned In Tehran for attempting to watch a mens volleyball match is at the centre of Irans cultural wars that constitute the backdrop to efforts to resolve problems with Irans nuclear program and a struggle between reformists and conservatives in advance of parliamentary elections 18 months from now.

The arrest In June of 25-year old Ghoncheh Ghavami together with more than a dozen other women as they tried to enter a stadium where the Iranian national mens team was playing Italy was first disclosed earlier this month by The Guardian. Ms. Ghavamis attempt to enter Tehrans Azadi stadium was part of a protest staged by dozens of women against the fact that Brazilian women had earlier been allowed to attend a volleyball match between their countrys national team and Iran.

Ironically, volleyball, the setting for the latest phase in the battle for Iranian womens sporting rights, is also a 21stcenturys US-Iranian equivalent of Chinese-American table tennis diplomacy in the 1970s that opened the door to the establishment of diplomatic relations. We see (volleyball) as an incredible opportunity to promote goodwill and understanding between the Iranian and American people, State Department communications adviser on Iran Greg Sullivan told Al-Monitor as Irans national team played a series of friendlies in the United States. In contrast to Iran, Iranian-American women had no problem attending the friendlies.

cartoon by Mana Neyestani, Tavana

The volleyball protest followed widespread rejection by coffee shop owners and female soccer fans in Iran of restrictions on women watching publicly screened soccer matches during the recent World Cup in Brazil. They openly flaunted with no government response orders by authorities to keep television sets off during World Cup matches. The orders were intended to prevent men and women from publicly watching matches together.

Soccer features also in street art battles that are a key venue in Irans culture wars. A recent mural on one of Tehrans main thoroughfares pictured a woman wearing a national soccer team jersey as she washed dishes at home. The mural went viral on social media. In the mural, the woman raises a cup of yellowish dishwash solution as if it were the World Cup trophy in what was seen as a rejection of conservative notions that a womans place is at home.

At stake in the battle is however far more than just womens sports rights. Those rights are part of a larger struggle for Irans future as Iranian negotiators meet in New York this month with the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to reach agreement on resolving the Iranian nuclear problem before November 24 deadline. Iranian conservatives fear that a successful negotiation would strengthen the hand of supporters of reformist president Hassan Rohani in parliamentary elections scheduled for the spring of 2016.

With popular support for the nuclear talks, conservatives hope to thwart Mr. Rouhani by appealing to traditional values in their effort to undercut his efforts to reduce repression and allow for greater freedom of expression and access to information, promote gender equality, and ease cultural and educational restrictions. Mr. Rouhani like other members of his Cabinet regularly posts messages on Facebook and Twitter despite the fact that access to social media sites is frequently blocked in Iran. The president has also argued publicly that freedom is a precondition for creativity and has contradicted conservative efforts to curb fun.

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Women's right to attend sports events at centre of Iran's culture wars

It was 10 years ago that George W. Bush won a second term while campaigning on a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.

It was two years ago that the media said Barack Obama was taking a huge gamble by throwing his political weight behind same-sex marriage.

Now, with gay marriage legal in 19 states and the District of Columbia, you barely hear Republicans talking about it. While many nominally oppose it, they have effectively conceded the issue.

Does this mean cultural issues are now working to the Democrats advantage? A New York Times piece says yes, but I think that somewhat overstates the case.

There is no question that demographic shifts in America have transformed the political landscape. Younger voters who are coming of age barely understand the fuss about same-sex marriage.

But other social issues are definitely working against the Demsnot to mention that foreign policy has flared up in importance during the ISIS crisis and the mess in Ukraine, and President Obama is getting low marks for handling national security.

The Times piece, by the savvy Jonathan Martin, flatly declares that Democrats are now on the offensive in the culture wars.

Democrats see social issues as potent for the same reasons Republicans once did, using them as a tool to both stoke concerns among moderate voters, especially women, and motivate their base.

But when it comes to womenand the Democrats have been pushing the War on Women argument for some timeabortion remains a divisive issue. More states have been adopting restrictions on the procedure. A Gallup poll found that 47 percent of those surveyed call themselves pro-choice and 46 percent pro-lifea far cry from 1996, when 56 percent said they were pro-choice and 33 percent pro-life.

On issues like gun control, drugs, the environment, race and even national security, this demographic shift has substantially weakened the rights ability to portray Democrats as out of the social mainstream, the Times says.

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KURTZ: Have Dems won the culture war? Not so fast

In multiple Senate races, Democrats are hammering Republican candidates over contraception and Personhood, a development that many observers interpret as a sign that Dems are now the ones on offense in the culture wars.

A new ad blitz from Karl Roves Crossroads GPS nicely captures the emerging dynamic. Colorado GOP Senate candidate Cory Gardner has been treated to the most direct and sustained assault over Personhood of any GOP candidate, and a new Crossroads ad appears designed to defend Gardner against it with an appeal to female voters.

Yet the ad does this only by changing the subject. Heres the spot, which is part of a new, $6 million campaign on Gardners behalf:

The ad never mentions Personhood or contraception. Instead, it obliquely refers to Dem attacks as political scare tactics, even as the featured women declare they want a real conversation about issues that matter, such as the economy. But, as Rebecca Berg writes, this ad actually underscores the challenge Republicans have faced this year appealing to women voters.

Now, its true that the economy is the top concern. But its obvious the Personhood movement (which declares that full human rights begin at the moment of fertilization) has, in fact, dogged Gardner. Last spring he disavowed his support for a previous state Personhood effort, admitting it restricts contraception. But Dems have pointed out that Gardner still supports a federal Personhood measure that would raise the same possibility of restrictions to some forms of contraception. Gardner has tried coming out for over-the-counter contraception, but he currently trails Dem Senator Mark Udall by double digits among women.

The broader story here, as Jonathan Martin details, is that after decades in which Republicans successfully exploited cultural wedge issues, Democrats are now on the offensive in the culture wars. Dems are now using social issues to stoke concerns among moderate voters, especially women, and motivate their base. As one conservative concedes, it is Republicans who are now out of touch with the countrys cultural center and must deal with the fact that the center has shifted.

To be clear, Republicans could still win the Senate in spite of this, thanks to the makeup of the map. But over the long term, as Ron Brownstein has explained, even if Dems are struggling to hold red state Senate seats, their embrace of cultural issues will continue to place the party on the side of an expanding majority of public opinion and a younger, more urbanized, diverse, and secular coalition that will give it an advantage in national elections. Meanwhile, these battles continue to reaffirm the GOPs identity as the champion of the forces most resistant to the profound demographic and cultural dynamics reshaping American life. Its not clear that simply changing the subject will cut it for much longer.

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* REPUBLICANS WILL GREEN-LIGHT OBAMAS ISIS PLAN: The Post reports that House GOP leaders have settled on their strategy to give Obama what he wants on ISIS. They will hold separate votes on arming the Syrian rebels and on funding the government:

Rather than inserting the military plan into the government funding bill, it will be offered as an amendment. That will enable conservative hawks who oppose the spending bill to separately back the military plan, and some Republicans and Democrats to support the spending bill. Either way, both proposals pass with a handful of dissenting Republican voices.

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Sargent: Morning Plum: Are Dems now winning the culture wars?