Today's edition of quick hits:
* Iranian talks: "Secretary of State John Kerry is traveling to Geneva Friday for talks with Iran and five world powers hoping to clinch a nuclear deal, State Department officials said."
* Philippines: "The death toll in the Philippines from Typhoon Haiyan has risen to over 5,000, according to Philippine officials on Friday. Interior Secretary Mar Roxas said 4,919 people were killed on Leyte, Samar and neighboring islands, and civil defense chief Eduardo del Rosario said 290 people died in the central and southern parts of the Philippine islands."
* Afghanistan: "The Afghan government on Friday dismissed calls from the Obama administration for it to sign a long-term security agreement by the end of the year, creating new doubt about whether several thousand U.S. troops will remain in Afghanistan after 2014."
* Creigh Deeds heads home: "Virginia state Sen. R. Creigh Deeds was released from the hospital Friday, three days after his son apparently stabbed him before fatally shooting himself.... In a Twitter message Friday, Deeds wrote: 'I am alive so must live. Some wounds won't heal. Your prayers and your friendship are important to me.'"
* It's just a week; don't freak out: "The Obama administration said Friday that it would give people eight more days, until Dec. 23, to sign up for health insurance coverage that takes effect on Jan. 1 under the new health care law."
* Climate talks: "The United Nations climate conference ambled toward a conclusion on Friday, with delegates saying that the meeting would produce no more than a modest set of measures toward a new international agreement two years from now. As usual, the biggest dispute was over money."
* The nuclear option could be the start, not the end: "After the Senate voted to change filibuster rules Thursday, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) called for more reforms. 'This has been escalating for a long period of time and it was time to stop it and that's what we did this morning,' Harkin said. 'Now we need to take it a step farther and change the filibuster rules on legislation.'"
* Ed Kilgore does a nice job exploring how Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) is effectively trying "to turn the Median Voter Theorem upside down."
* Why do I find it difficult to take conservative media seriously? Because outlets like the Wall Street Journal editorial page still publish piece swith claims such as this one: "ObamaCare would never have passed if Mr. Franken hadn't stolen the Minnesota recount." I might expect this from some random conservative on Twitter, but we're supposed to find Very Serious People at the Wall Street Journal editorial page.
Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.