IHT Quick Read: Jan. 3 NEWS With the resolution of the U.S. fiscal crisis barely a day old, the next confrontation is already taking shape as Washington braces for a fight in February over raising the nation's borrowing limit. But it is a debate President Barack Obama says he will have nothing more to do with. Michael D. Shear and Jackie Calmes report from Washington. Thailand's favorite topic of conversation is probably food. But a close second is the underground lottery, an illegal yet tolerated black market numbers game played by nearly one third of the population. And the search for lucky numbers to play can be confusing to outsiders -- calamity can beget good fortune; tragedy can give rise to powerful ghosts who offer guidance on winning numbers. There is nothing too horrible to be a source of good luck: plane crashes, massacres or murders. Thomas Fuller reports from Bangkok. President Vladimir V. Putin has ordered a major change in the rules for parliamentary elections, a move that could help solidify his power and influence toward the end of his current term and insulate him from dwindling public support for United Russia, the party that nominated him and currently holds a majority in Parliament. David M. Herszenhorn reports from Moscow. A commission that has been pursuing the assets of the late Philippine dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos should be abolished, despite the fact that much of his allegedly ill-gotten wealth has not been recovered, the panel's chairman said on Wednesday. Floyd Whaley reports from Manila. Many of Spain's 170,000 Chinese immigrants have managed not only to weather a tough economy but indeed to thrive, buoyed by an intense work ethic and a strong Confucian model of family loyalty, even as joblessness and cuts to government services have left other Spaniards struggling. Dan Bilefsky reports from Barcelona. ARTS Between 1964 and 1968, Henry Grossman took more than 7,000 photos of the Beatles, though only a few dozen - whatever magazine editors needed for the articles at hand - were published at the time. His new book, "Places I Remember," goes a long way toward remedying that; a boxed, 528-page, silver-edged brick of a volume, it weighs 15 pounds, includes about 1,000 photographs and costs $495. Allan Kozinn reports. SPORTS After Stanford's first Rose Bowl win since 1972 - and Wisconsin's third Rose Bowl loss in three years - the grass was worn, marked with fresh divots, and the ground was lumpy, somewhat like Play-Doh. For Stanford, at least, it had been fun. Tim Rohan reports from Pasadena, California.