The Curse!

The Independent wrote on November 2:

“Obama’s vacillations in the Middle East have not only upset every US ally in the region, from Saudi Arabia and Turkey to Israel, but provided Vladimir Putin, no less, with a chance to lecture the US on the op-ed page of The Times, a spectacle as grotesque as it was humiliating. Meanwhile, the requisition of a score of journalists’ phone logs has paled beside the revelation that the NSA has been scooping up the internet records of about every human being on the planet, and listening into Angela Merkel’s mobile.

“On top of that, we’ve had the government shutdown (not Obama’s fault, but which did not reflect well on his ability to wheel and deal) and, most recently, the shambolic launch of his signature healthcare reform, in which he has been revealed as being, shall we say, somewhat economical with the truth. Obama’s approval rating has dropped to 42 per cent, not yet at Nixon or Bush levels, but the worst since he took office…”

Our governmental leaders ARE under a curse, because God’s laws are being violated daily, and God’s time allotted to America for the enjoyment of freedom, safety and prosperity is running out.

Israel Upset With America

The Times of Israel wrote on November 1:

“Israel is fuming with the White House for confirming that it was the Israeli Air Force that struck a military base near the Syrian port city of Latakia on Wednesday, hitting weaponry that was set to be transferred to Hezbollah. Israel has not acknowledged carrying out the strike, one of half a dozen such attacks widely ascribed to Israel in recent months, but an Obama administration official told CNN on Thursday that Israeli warplanes had indeed attacked the Syrian base, and that the target was ‘missiles and related equipment’ set for delivery to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

“Israel’s Channel 10 TV on Friday night quoted Israeli officials branding the American leak as ‘scandalous.’ For Israel’s ally to be acting in this way was ‘unthinkable,’ the officials were quoted as saying. A second TV report, on Israel’s Channel 2, said the leak ‘came directly from the White House,’ and noted that ‘this is not the first time’ that the administration has compromised Israel by leaking information on such Israeli Air Force raids on Syrian targets.

“It said some previous leaks were believed to have come from the Pentagon, and that consideration had been given at one point to establishing a panel to investigate the sources.

“Channel 2’s military analyst, Roni Daniel, said the Obama administration’s behavior in leaking the information was unfathomable. Daniel noted that by keeping silent on whether it carried out such attacks, Israel was maintaining plausible deniability, so that Syria’s President Bashar Assad did not feel pressured to respond to the attacks. But the US leaks ‘are pushing Assad closer to the point where he can’t swallow these attacks, and will respond.’ This in turn would inevitably draw further Israeli action, Daniel posited, and added bitterly: ‘Then perhaps the US will clap its hands because it will have started a very major flare-up.'”

One scandal follows another scandal, and now this one. It seems as if the USA seems to be wanting to do just about everything to make sure its allies become upset… as if it is on a suicidal trip… it is hard to recount ANYTHING that the US leadership is doing to inspire the world which is quickly passing the US by. If the present US government is meant to bring this nation to its knees, then they seem to be certainly excelling in that predestined task. We grieve for the innocent people who have to suffer because of incompetent leadership, and we hope that those who are truly looking to God for help will find it.

“German-American Relations at an Absolute Low Point”

Deutsche Welle wrote on November 2:

“The very idea that Germany is paying so much attention to whistleblower Edward Snowden is an affront to many Americans. His Moscow meeting with Green politician Hans-Christian Ströbele has caused quite a stir in the US… It would be a disaster for American-German relations if Snowden came to Germany and publicly testified before the Bundestag… What Green MP Christian Ströbele ultimately is hoping for after his surprise visit with Edward Snowden in Moscow would be a nightmare for Stephen Szabo of the German Marshall Fund, as well for the Obama administration. The relationship between the two countries is headed towards ‘a deep, downward spiral,’ says Szabo…

“… while in Germany Snowden is considered enlightened, in the eyes of many in the US – and especially President Obama – he is a traitor. Particularly sensitive is the fact that Snowden, according to Ströbele, is apparently ready to testify in Germany about NSA spying. This intention is also underscored by an open letter from Snowden. That German Interior Minister, Hans-Peter Friedrich, has even welcomed the news, saying he ‘was glad to hear it’ has left official Washington speechless…

“‘If it really happens, it would be a slap in the face to the Americans, there’s no question about that,” said Jackson Janes, Director of the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies (AICGS) at Johns Hopkins University in Washington… Janes interprets the growing interest of the German federal government and parliament in a statement from Snowden – wherever he might make it – as a no-confidence vote against the Obama administration…

“Both Janes and Szabo see German-American relations at an absolute low point. They are ‘worse than during the war in Iraq,’ says Szabo. ‘We have differences on very fundamental values, ​​such as trust and economic competition. And esteem for America in Germany has been very low for some time.’”

BBC News and the Huffington Post reported on November 3 that “the White House” and “Senior US lawmakers have rejected the idea of any clemency for the fugitive intelligence analyst Edward Snowden.” This was in response to Snowden’s offer to testify before the US Congress if he was granted clemency. With this harsh reaction, the impression is continued to be given that the USA is more interested in secretly spying on friends and allies than in repentance and the revelation of the truth.

On the other hand, the German government would love to hear more from Snowden, but it is apparently too afraid to grant him asylum, fearing a further deterioration of their relationship with the USA. But several influential German politicians as well as the mass media and celebrities are not that timid—they demand asylum for Snowden and they request his testimony to be given before the German Parliament. Newsy reported on November 3 that “In a letter to Der Spiegel, several high-ranking German officials voiced support for Snowden and said Germany should grant his request for asylum.” Apparently Snowden has stated that he was not willing to testify in Moscow; and Russia, which has granted Snowden temporary asylum until June 2014, has said that Snowden was free to testify wherever he wanted.

Der Spiegel Online explained on November 2 that “Snowden would be safe from deportation [to the USA] if he were provided with a residence permit [by the German government]. Since the withdrawal of his US passport, Snowden is officially stateless. A residence permit can be issued on the basis of international law or on humanitarian grounds as well as for the ‘protection of political interests.’”

However, Deutsche Welle reported on November 6:

“A parliamentary committee has announced that bringing NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden to Germany for questioning is not yet on the cards. Speaking after a special meeting of the Parliamentary Control Panel on Wednesday, Chairman Thomas Oppermann said the body would not try to interrogate Snowden in Germany for the time being.”

Die Welt added on November 6 that it was also announced by the German government that Snowden would not receive asylum in Germany.

The German people, the mass media, and the opposition have strongly criticized Angela Merkel for her unwillingness to confront the US government, when NSA’s massive spying activities became known, until it was revealed that her cell phone conversations had been spied upon. Bild Online reported on November 5 that 72 %  of the Germans believe that Obama is lying regarding NSA’s spying on Merkel, and only 16% believe him, while 12% are undecided.

Bild Online commented on November 6:

“It is today’s hottest debate in German politics. Should Snowden be granted asylum in Germany? Angela Merkel rejected it strongly. Now John Kerry warned against granting Snowden asylum in Germany. He said that he should be sent to the USA to be tried there in a fair procedure.”

None of that will make most Germans happy.

The Distance Between the Two Continents Has Grown Larger

On November 4, presseuropa.eu wrote the following:

“German-Russian relations are at their worst since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Things between the US and Russia are no better either. By driving a wedge between the two allies, Moscow is scoring a major achievement… Mr Snowden wasn’t planted by the Russians in the first place. He was created by the National Security Agency, obsessed with the idea of spying on everything and everyone. Worse still, the NSA gave Mr Snowden access to its secrets, which he took advantage of before fleeing through Hong Kong to Russia. No one knows what other compromising evidence he is holding up his sleeve and how long the revelations will continue to emerge and cause embarrassment to the White House…

“There’s no denying that there’s been a lot of hypocrisy in the EU’s reactions to the Snowden affair. After all, European intelligence agencies do not sit idly watching as the NSA hacks the Internet, but are instead doing exactly the same and using similar means. Moreover, they coordinate their efforts and advise each other on how to circumvent the EU’s anti-surveillance laws. Besides, Europeans too – if on a smaller scale – spy on the Americans and try to steal their secrets…

“During Mr Obama’s term, the distance between the continents has grown larger… Barack Obama hasn’t fulfilled the hopes that were pinned on him in Europe. US intelligence agencies have treated European countries like colonies. We have good reasons to hold a grudge against America…”

Secret Meeting Between Guttenberg and Merkel

Bild Online and Welt Online reported on November 6 about a secret meeting between Angela Merkel and former defense minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg. It is claimed by Bild that the meeting dealt with the NSA scandal and possible asylum for Snowden. Prior to his meeting, Guttenberg had accused Obama of inexcusable wrong conduct in the matter, according to Die Welt.

USA and Britain the Worst Offenders

CNN reported on November 3:

“Leaked classified documents show the U.S. National Security Agency and its British counterpart are among the ‘worst offenders’ of mass surveillance without oversight, according to an open letter purportedly written by Edward Snowden and published Sunday by the German magazine Der Spiegel. The publication of the letter, titled ‘A Manifesto for the Truth,’ came just days after a German lawmaker met with the former NSA contract analyst…

“‘The world has learned a lot in a short amount of time about irresponsibly operated security agencies and, at times, criminal surveillance programs. Sometimes the agencies try to avoid controls,’ Snowden wrote, according to the news magazine. ‘While the NSA and GCHQ (the British national security agency) appear to be the worst offenders — at least according to the documents that are currently public — we cannot forget that mass surveillance is a global problem and needs a global solution.’ The letter, published in German by Der Spiegel, was written on Friday in Moscow and provided to Der Spiegel through a ‘locked channel,’ the news magazine said. It was published in German and has been translated by CNN…

“The letter also accused governments of trying to squash debate about mass surveillance ‘with a never before seen witch hunt’ that threatens journalists and criminalizes the publication of details about the programs. ’The debate they wanted to avoid is now taking place in countries around the world,’ the letter said.”

Deutsche Welle added on November 5:

“The British Ambassador to Germany has been called in by the foreign ministry over spying reports. The Independent newspaper says that Britain is operating a spy post near Germany’s parliament and chancellery.”

And Now New Zealand…

The Guardian wrote on November 5:

“New Zealand’s parliament has narrowly passed new legislation compelling telecommunication companies to allow the intelligence agencies to access customers’ emails, texts and phone calls… The law, which passed by 61 votes to 59, would give GCSB powers similar to Britain’s Government Communications Headquarters… and the… NSA.

“Along with the Australian and Canadian intelligence agencies, GCSB shares large amounts of data with its US and UK counterparts through the ‘Five Eyes’ electronic espionage alliance. ‘Essentially signing up to this legislation is part of the price for membership of the Five Eyes network,’ said the Green party co-leader, Russel Norman, according to Fairfax New Zealand News. The Greens have called for an inquiry by the Independent Police Conduct Authority into GCSB spying.”

Google: NSA Spying Outrageous and Potentially Illegal, If True

Reuters reported November 4:

“Google Inc Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt said widespread U.S. government spying on its data centers would be outrageous and potentially illegal if true, the Wall Street Journal reported. ‘It’s really outrageous that the NSA was looking between the Google data centers, if that’s true,’ Schmidt said in an interview… Schmidt told the newspaper in Hong Kong that Google had registered complaints with the National Security Agency (NSA), President Barack Obama and Congress members.

“According to a Washington Post report on Wednesday, the NSA had tapped directly into communications links used by Google and Yahoo Inc to move huge amounts of email and other user information among overseas data centers… Schmidt said in the interview that the NSA allegedly collected the phone records of 320 million people in order to identify roughly 300 people who might be at risk.”

Obama: “I am Really Good at Killing People” With Drones

CBS reported on November 3:

“A new book covering the 2012 presidential campaign uncovers a series of scathing remarks from political figures, but one alleged comment has stirred controversy around President Barack Obama and his administration’s use of targeted drone strikes. Mark Halperin and John Heilemann’s book ‘Double Down: Game Change 2012’ notes President Obama commenting on drone strikes, reportedly telling his aides that he’s ‘really good at killing people’… The White House had not officially commented on the alleged remarks…

“The Bureau of Investigative Journalism estimates that a total of 2,528-3,648 people have been killed by CIA drone strikes in Pakistan since 2004, and between 416-948 of them being civilians. The group labels 326 of such events as ‘Obama strikes.’”

This newest revelation has caused another stir in Germany where drone strikes are highly unpopular and are viewed by many as illegal.

“Anti-U.S. Sentiments in Egypt at All-Time High”

Fox News reported on November 3:

“With U.S. aid to Egypt being cut in the wake of the military crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, word on the street in Egypt, along with tweets and Facebook posts, seems to indicate anti-U.S. sentiments are at an all-time high. Washington has lost friends on both sides of the Egyptian political battle, including both supporters and critics of ousted Egyptian President Mohammad Morsi.

“The anger against the U.S. is based on Egypt’s June 30 uprising that led to the July 3 ouster of Morsi. Supporters of Morsi said Obama turned his back on him while secular Egyptians say Obama sided with ‘terrorists’ instead of aligning with freedom fighters in eradicating extremism from their country…

“After a one-month review, Washington reported that it would halt the delivery of American-made tanks, fighter jets, attack helicopters and offensive missiles in reaction to the Egyptian army’s deadly crackdowns against protestors. The U.S. also suspended $260 million in cash assistance to the interim government, which has been in power since Morsi’s overthrow. Many… say Russia will make up the loss in U.S. aid, and they prefer it that way.”

Biggest Anti-American Protest in Iran in Years

The Washington Times wrote on November 4:

“Tens of thousands of protesters converged Monday at the U.S. Embassy in Iran, calling for ‘death to America’ in what’s shaping to be the largest anti-American gathering in the nation in years. The Associated Press reported that similar protests have gone forth every year since 1979, when the Islamic Revolution launched an attack and took 52 hostage for 444 days. But this year’s protest is particularly large.

“It comes as hard-liners in the country are decrying President Hassan Rouhani’s stated interest in forming peaceful relations with Washington, D.C., leaders and reaching a resolution on nuclear development, AP said. Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei supports the reach-out to America. Others, however, decry any friendly associations with the West and vow their protests will continue, AP reported.”

Iran will never be on friendly terms with the USA.

Dictatorial Russia’s “Justice”

France 24 wrote on November 5:

“Jailed Pussy Riot band member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova is on her way to a new penal colony in Siberia, her husband said Tuesday, following fears after two weeks without information about her whereabouts. Tolokonnikova, 23, who alleged major prison abuses in her previous colony in central Russia, is on her way to a new prison colony deep in the Krasnoyarsk region, her husband Pyotr Verzilov wrote on Twitter, saying the information comes from a reliable source.

“‘Essentially, she is transferred 4,500 kilometres (2,800 miles) from central Russia to the heart of Siberia as punishment for the resonance of her letter’ that alleged abuses, Verzilov added. [There are]  just months left of her two-year term for performing a ‘punk prayer’ in Russia’s main Orthodox cathedral protesting ties between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Kremlin…”

And Mr. Putin dares to condemn the Americans for spying…

Russia and Japan Getting Closer

Reuters reported on November 2:

“Japan and Russia held their first joint defense and foreign ministers’ meeting on Saturday and agreed to boost security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific… [They] have never signed a treaty to mark the end of World War Two because of a territorial dispute but they are moving to deepen ties… The foreign ministers of both countries said the meeting helped build trust…”

The Bible predicts a strong alliance of Far Eastern nations under Chinese leadership.

China’s “Superior” Nuclear Submarines

The Huffington Post wrote on November 1:

“For the first time in more than 40 years, China has given the rest of the world a view of its mysterious fleet of nuclear submarines… State-run China Daily reports that Gao particularly noted the importance of the fleet’s supposedly spotless safety record when compared to that of the United States and Russia… some characterize it as a power move as China becomes increasingly confident in its economic and military capabilities… earlier in the year, a report by the U.S. military’s National Air and Space Intelligence Center reported that the modernized arsenal includes ‘nuclear warheads capable of reaching the United States.’”

China Capable of Destroying Major American Cities?

Newsmax reported on November 1:

“China’s state-run media have revealed for the first time Beijing’s potential for attacking U.S. cities with submarine-launched nuclear missiles… The Washington Times reports an article in the Global Times features a map showing damage projections for nuclear attacks on Seattle and Los Angeles, with radiation reaching as far east as Chicago… ‘Because the Midwest states of the U.S. are sparsely populated, in order to increase the lethality, nuclear attacks should mainly target the key cities on the West Coast, such as Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego,’ the Global Times observed.

“China’s submarine fleet reportedly includes about 70 vessels, with at least four capable of launching nuclear missiles. The Global Times article also asserts that China can launch land-based ballistic missiles over the North Pole that can ‘easily destroy’ U.S. cities in the East, including New York…”

Sadly, the Bible predicts that major American cities such as the ones mentioned in the article above WILL be totally destroyed in the near future, just prior to Christ’s return—but the military attack will not be launched by China and its Far Eastern allies, but by a powerful European union. However, we also read that following Christ’s return, China and its allies will attempt to destroy the peoples of America, Britain, Canada and other English-speaking nations who have survived the terrible devastation of the Great Tribulation. For more information, please read our free booklet, titled, “Biblical Prophecy—From Now Until Forever.”

You might also want to read our free booklet, titled, “The Ten European Revivals of the Ancient Roman Empire.”

Joel Osteen’s “Gay Problem”

Salon.com wrote on November 3:

“Joel Osteen has a problem, one that all Evangelicals in the U.S. are facing. The anti-gay position of mainstream Christianity has fallen out of favor with the public. Every reputable poll currently shows uncontested majority support for gay marriage. And the cultural shift happened more quickly than the churches can follow. The Huffington Post’s Josh Zepps recently asked Osteen about this passage from his new book…: ‘It doesn’t matter who likes you or doesn’t like you, all that matters is that God likes you. He accepts you, he approves of you.’

“Zepps wanted to know if this included gay folks. ‘Absolutely,’ Osteen offered without missing a beat. Evangelicals are notoriously tricky on the subject. It’s common theology to claim that God accepts absolutely everyone because being gay is viewed as an affliction, not an identity. What makes Osteen’s statement so unusual is his claim that God ‘approves’ of gay folks.

“The Texas megachurch pastor has always been relatively soft on the issue… In the past, Osteen at the very least claimed homosexuality was unacceptable. He told Fox News’ Chris Wallace in 2012, ‘I believe that Scripture says that being gay is a sin, but every time I say that, Chris, I get people saying, “You’re a gay hater.”’

“Osteen is quite a bit more slippery on the issue than his straightforward answer to Wallace would imply. In the same interview, Osteen immediately followed his anti-gay pronouncement by saying, ‘Gays are some of the nicest, kindest, most loving people in the world.’ Osteen never says a bad word about LGBT individuals without offering some sort of olive branch afterward, often a condescending one. In a particularly weird moment with CNN’s Piers Morgan, he even professed a love of Lady Gaga while his wife prefers Madonna.”

They are all wrong, and public opinion is no guide. The Bible makes it very clear what God thinks about homosexual practices. One does not have to be “slippery” or “apologetic” or “tricky” about it, if one wants to follow the inspired Word of God. Please watch our video-taped message, “Today’s Sodom.” 

The Obamacare Curse

Business Insider wrote on November 3:

“At least 3.5 million Americans have been issued cancellations, but the exact number is unclear. Associated Press checks find that data is unavailable in… half the states… Obama said the problem is limited to fewer than 5 percent of Americans… But in a nation of more than 300 million, 5 percent is a big number — about 15 million people. Among them are Ian and Sara Hodge of Lancaster, Pa., in their early 60s and paying $1,041 a month for a policy.

“After insurer Highmark, Inc., sent the Hodges a cancellation notice, the cheapest rate they say they’ve been able to find is $1,400 for a comparable plan. Ian is worried they may not qualify for tax credits, and doesn’t trust that the federal website is secure enough to enter personal financial information in order to find out… Their policy may not have met the government’s standards, ‘but it certainly met our minimum standards,’ Hodge added. ‘The main thing that upsets us is the president … said over and over and over again: If you like your health plan, you will be able to keep your health plan, guaranteed.’

“There’s a chance the number of people getting unwanted terminations may grow. In 2015, the law’s requirement that larger companies provide health insurance will take effect. It’s expected that a small share of firms will drop coverage, deciding that it’s cheaper to pay fines imposed under the law…”

When Is a Lie a Lie?

The Daily Caller wrote on November 6:

“President Barack Obama told his enthusiastic supporters Monday night that he never promised what video recordings show him promising at least 29 times. The videos show Obama promising 300 million Americans that ‘if you like your health-care plan, you will be able to keep your health-care plan, period.’ But that’s not what he really said, Obama announced Monday…. ‘What we said was you could keep it if it hasn’t changed since the law was passed,’ he told Obamacare’s political beneficiaries and contractors.

“That claim is not supported by his videotaped statements, which don’t include any mention of his new ‘if it hasn’t changed’ exception.

“But the newly-revealed exception is justified by a higher-priority promise in Obamacare, Obama declared. ‘If we had allowed these old plans [to continue]… then we would have broken an even more important promise — making sure that Americans gain access to health care that doesn’t leave them one illness away from financial ruin,’ he announced. ‘So the bottom line is, is that we are making the insurance market better for everybody,’ he declared, prompting loud applause by supporters eager to ignore his three years of fraudulent statements. Obama’s higher promise is now causing the cancelation of insurance policies chosen by at least 3.5 million Americans…”

Pediatrics vs. Religious Beliefs

Reuters reported on October 28:

“Pediatricians and child abuse agencies should step in when parents’ religious beliefs keep kids from getting necessary medical care, doctors said Monday. In a policy statement, the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Bioethics also said states should repeal any exemptions to child abuse and neglect laws. Those exemptions mean some states don’t always consider parents negligent if they forgo medical treatment for a child because of their religious beliefs…

“People of certain faiths, including many Christian Scientists, advocate prayer before or instead of medical treatments when a person is ill. Jehovah’s Witnesses do not accept blood transfusions… In one recent case, an Ohio court ruled that a hospital could force a 10-year-old Amish girl with leukemia to resume chemotherapy. Her parents had decided to forgo the treatment in favor of ‘natural medicines.’”

These are dangerous developments, because unbelieving doctors are very quick in labeling parental conduct as child neglect if religious parents do not follow their recommended medical treatment, however erroneous or incompetent the doctor’s “advice” might be.

Spanking Harmful for Kids?—NO WAY!

Reuters wrote on October 21:

“Think spanking will help teach an out of control child to stay in line? A new study suggests the opposite may be true. Researchers found kids who were spanked as five-year-olds were slightly more likely to be aggressive and break rules later in elementary school.

“Those results are in keeping with past research, said Elizabeth Gershoff… ‘There’s just no evidence that spanking is good for kids,’ she told Reuters Health… Despite mounting evidence on the harms tied to spanking, it is ‘still a very typical experience’ for U.S. children, the study’s lead author said.”

This is just another example of a rebellious and Bible-defying society which thinks that they know it better than their Creator.

Kristallnacht in Germany—and the World Kept Silent

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 5:

“In the days surrounding Nov. 9, 1938, the Nazis committed the worst pogrom Germany had seen since the Middle Ages… the shocking events prompted little more than hollow condemnation…

“The pogroms in November 1938 lasted several days, although history books often refer to the event merely as one ‘Night of the Broken Glass’ (Kristallnacht) because Nazi propaganda chief Joseph Goebbels announced on the radio on Nov. 10 that the excesses had ended…

“The diplomats almost unanimously condemned the murders and acts of violence and destructions. The British described the pogrom as ‘Medieval barbarism,’ the Brazilians called it a ‘disgusting spectacle,’ and French diplomats wrote that the ‘scope of brutality’ was only ‘exceeded by the massacres of the Armenians,’ referring to the Turkish genocide of 1915-1916. Nevertheless, no country broke off diplomatic relations with Berlin or imposed sanctions, and only Washington recalled its ambassador. Most of all, however, the borders of almost all countries remained largely closed for the roughly 400,000 Jewish Germans…

“Most of the diplomats were well informed about the scope of the atrocities through the accounts they had heard from desperate people describing their experiences. Besides, the smashed windows and ransacked premises of Jewish businesses were clearly visible… Unfortunately for the German Jews, many international observers failed to notice how radically the Nazis now felt about their victims. If they hadn’t, perhaps some exile countries, such as the United States or Brazil, might have relaxed their rigid immigration requirements, which became a key obstacle to Jews trying to emigrate.”

Sadly, not much has changed since then…

The Real Threat of Huge Asteroids Hitting Earth

BBC News reported on November 6:

“The threat of another asteroid strike like the one that hit Russia earlier this year is much higher than was previously thought, a study suggests. Researchers have found that space rocks of a similar size to the one that exploded over Chelyabinsk are hurtling into the Earth’s atmosphere with surprising frequency… The asteroid that exploded over Russia on 15 February this year was estimated to be about 19m-wide. It hit the atmosphere with energy estimated to be equivalent to 500,000 tonnes of TNT, sending a shockwave twice around the globe. It caused widespread damage and injured more than 1,000 people.

“Now though, scientists say there could be many more space rocks like this one on a collision course with the Earth. An international team looked at the last 20 years of data collected from sensors used by the US government and infrasound sensors positioned around the globe… The researchers found that during this time about 60 asteroids up to 20m in size had smashed into the Earth’s atmosphere: far more than was previously thought. Most went undetected because they exploded over the ocean or in very remote areas… This suggests that the risk from asteroids of this scale has been underestimated. The team estimates that the strike rate of asteroids that are tens of metres in size is between two and 10 times higher than was previously thought…

“‘There are literally millions of objects in the tens-of-metres-of-size range that we suspect are near Earth asteroids, that can get close to the Earth,’ [a scientist] said. ‘We have only discovered over 1,000 of these… In another study… scientists believe they have traced the asteroid that the Chelyabinsk meteor splintered off from. They think it is a fragment of a 2km-wide rock called asteroid 86039.”

The Bible predicts that the earth will be hit by huge asteroids, just prior to Christ’s return.

Did President Obama Know and Approve NSA Spying on Merkel and Others?

BBC News wrote on 27 October 27, 2013:

“Fresh reports in German media based on leaked US intelligence documents are prompting damaging new questions about the extent of US surveillance. Der Spiegel suggests the US has been spying on German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s mobile phone since 2002. Another report says Mr Obama was told in 2010 about the surveillance and failed to stop it. The spy row has led to the worst diplomatic crisis between the two countries in living memory…

“As well as the bugging of Mrs Merkel’s phone, there are claims the NSA has monitored millions of telephone calls made by German and French citizens…

“Mrs Merkel phoned the US president when she first heard of the spying allegations on Wednesday. President Barack Obama apologised to the German chancellor and promised Mrs Merkel he knew nothing of the alleged phone monitoring and would have stopped it if he had, Der Spiegel reports.

“But on Sunday Bild newspaper quoted US intelligence sources as saying NSA head Keith Alexander personally briefed the president about the covert operation targeting Mrs Merkel in 2010. ‘Obama did not halt the operation but rather let it continue,’ the newspaper quoted a senior NSA official as saying… Germany’s Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich told Bild that running such an operation on German soil would be illegal under German law, and adds that those ‘responsible must be held accountable’.

“Similar [US] listening units [as the one in Berlin] were based in around 80 locations worldwide, according to the documents seen by Der Spiegel, 19 of them in European cities. If the existence of listening stations in US embassies were known, there would be ‘severe damage for the US’s relations with a foreign government,’ the documents said. Mrs Merkel – an Americophile who was awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011 – is said to be shocked that Washington may have engaged in the sort of spying she had to endure growing up in Communist East Germany.”

“Obama Was Aware of Merkel Spying: Report”

The Local added on October 27:

“Bild am Sonntag said that Obama wanted to be informed in detail about Merkel, who has played a decisive role in the eurozone debt crisis and is widely seen as Europe’s most powerful leader. As a result, the report said, the NSA stepped up its surveillance of her communications, targeting not only the mobile phone she uses to conduct business for her conservative Christian Democratic Union party but also her encrypted official device. It said US intelligence specialists were then able to monitor the content of her conversations as well as text messages, which Merkel sends by the dozen each day to key associates. Bild said only the specially secured land line in her office was out of the reach of US spies. The intelligence gathered was forwarded straight to the White House, without bypassing the NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland, according to the report.

“Bild and Spiegel described a hive of spy activity on the fourth floor of the US embassy in central Berlin, a stone’s throw from the government quarter, from which the United States kept tabs on Merkel and other German officials. If the spying against Merkel began as early as 2002, it would mean the United States under then president George W. Bush targeted her while she was still the country’s chief opposition leader, three years before she became chancellor. Bild said that Merkel’s predecessor Gerhard Schroeder was also in the NSA’s sights because of his vocal opposition to the US invasion of Iraq. Bush was also mistrustful of the Social Democrat because of his close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the report added.”

NSA Denies German Reports

Deutsche Welle reported on October 28:

“Barack Obama has come under intense pressure following the scandal over the bugging of Angela Merkel’s cell phone by the NSA. The intelligence agency insists the US president knew nothing, but there are contradictions.

“The White House remains silent, while the National Security Agency denies German media claims that its chief, Keith Alexander, informed President Barack Obama in 2010 that it was bugging German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s phone. Alexander neither spoke with Obama about the secret operation, ‘nor has he ever discussed alleged operations involving Chancellor Merkel,’ a statement from NSA spokeswoman Vanee Vines said.

“According to the New York Times, the eavesdropping began 10 years ago, around the time of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, while Merkel was still in opposition as chairwoman of her party, the Christian Democratic Union. ‘What is coming to light now is no surprise to me,” said Thomas Drake, an NSA operative for 18 years before becoming a whistleblower… He says the new revelations about the NSA tally with his own memories of working for the agency a decade ago. ‘Just after the September 11 attacks the word on the ground was: since many of the attackers had been to Germany, had lived in Germany, or had travelled through Germany, the NSA and the US government declared Germany as the number one target in Europe.’

“Still the former agent is shocked by the level of surveillance targeting Merkel. ‘It is an unbelievable violation of the rules of international diplomacy,’ he said. ‘It affects Chancellor Merkel personally. That is her personal cell phone. How is that necessary?’… The man who once spied on East Germany from airplanes says the operations reminded him of the dictatorial state that was once in the grip of the stasi.

“The veteran Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward also criticized the NSA activities. ‘They need to review this secret world and its power in their government because you run into this rats nest of concealment and lies time and time again then and now,’ Woodward told broadcaster CBS. He said that the US was being ruled by an ‘incredibly powerful government that gets on automatic pilot and you have people with inexperience who don’t know about nuts and bolts questions.’…

“For its part, the White House has refused to add anything to its previous statements on the transatlantic bugging scandals. ‘The United States is not monitoring and will not monitor the communications of the chancellor,’ White House spokesman Jay Carney said last Wednesday (23.10.2013). Insiders now argue that may have been a straight lie… ‘The president makes the rules by which the secret services operate. The NSA and other US organizations cannot work outside the boundaries that the president sets,’ [Pete Hoekstra, former chairman of the secret services committee at the US House of Representatives] said.”

Contradictions…

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 28:

“What did President Barack Obama know? How can the crisis of confidence in the trans-Atlantic alliance be repaired? And what will really change in the end?

“That last question can already be answered: not a lot. Over the weekend, senior members of Congress strongly defended the NSA’s actions and dismissed the White House’s efforts at appeasement as nothing more than superficial politeness…

“It’s an attitude that newspaper editorialists shared…

“There is also confusion about what and when Obama knew about the operation against Merkel… Even if Obama didn’t know, it wouldn’t look good… The White House remains tight-lipped… Obama remained silent and spent his Sunday with a visit to church and a four-hour golf game.”

The Accusation and Denial Game Goes On…

Fox News reported on October 29:

“With every passing day bringing new allegations of the U.S. spying on its allies, many Israelis figure they would be naive to believe America wasn’t snooping on its closest ally in the Middle East. But instead of the indignation seen in France, Spain and Germany at the prospect that the National Security Agency listened in to the phone calls of top leaders, Israelis seem to take in stride the prospect of Uncle Sam listening in. ‘I think it is almost a universal assumption that everyone tries to spy on everyone,’ Mark Heller, of Tel Aviv’s Institute for National Security Studies told FoxNews.com… ‘It’s almost a given’ Heller continued. ‘The whole story reminds me of the scene from Casablanca when the Chief of Police is shocked to find out that there is gambling going on in the casino!’

“‘The Americans rightly see themselves as a superpower, but wrongly feel that they can do whatever they want, including the eavesdropping,’ Yatom, former head of Israel’s spy agency Mossad, told Israeli newspaper Ma’ariv. ‘I can tell you with certain knowledge that [America] has been listening in on its allies, including Israel. The U.S. doesn’t really care about anyone [but itself],’ Yatom said. ‘When the Americans think they need to listen in on someone, they’ll do just that.’…

“‘I think a lot of it [the shocked European reaction] is either hypocrisy or jealousy,’ Heller concluded. ‘After all, that is why almost everybody takes whatever counter-measures they can if they want to keep things secret. In the case of the Europeans, well, they’ve done a fair bit of their own [spying] as well.’”

The Los Angeles Times wrote on October 28:

“The White House and the State Department signed off on surveillance targeting phone conversations of friendly foreign leaders, current and former U.S. intelligence officials said Monday, pushing back against assertions that President Obama and his aides were unaware of the high-level eavesdropping…

“Intelligence officials also disputed a Wall Street Journal article Monday that said the White House had learned only this summer… about an NSA program to monitor communications of 35 world leaders.”

The New York Times wrote on October 29:

“The nation’s top spymaster said on Tuesday that the White House had long been aware in general terms of the [NSA’s] overseas eavesdropping, stoutly defending the agency’s intelligence-gathering methods and suggesting possible divisions within the Obama administration…

“General Alexander said news media reports that the N.S.A. had vacuumed up tens of millions of telephone calls in France, Spain and Italy were ‘completely false.’ That data, he said, is at least partly collected by the intelligence services of those countries and provided to the N.S.A. Still, both he and Mr. Clapper said that spying on foreign leaders — even those of allies — was a basic tenet of intelligence tradecraft and had gone on for decades. European countries, Mr. Clapper said, routinely seek to listen in on the conversations of American leaders…

“Several current and former American officials said that presidents and their senior national security advisers have long known about which foreign leaders the United States spied on…”

BBC News reported on October 29:

“The head of US intelligence has told lawmakers that discerning foreign leaders’ intentions is a key goal of the nation’s spying operations. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said such efforts were a ‘top tenet’ of US intelligence policy. But he told the intelligence panel of the House of Representatives the US did not ‘indiscriminately’ spy on nations.”

The Local wrote on October 30:

“The head of German foreign intelligence denied on Wednesday that Berlin was carrying out bugging operations from its embassy in the United States in a deepening espionage row. ‘No telecommunication-intelligence is conducted from the German embassy in Washington,’ Gerhard Schindler, head of the BND agency, was quoted by Zeit online news site as saying…”

The New York Times wrote on October 31:

“In testimony to Congress on Tuesday, the director of national intelligence… gave only the roughest sketch of the size of the N.S.A.’s surveillance program, but suggested that the leader of the United States’ most powerful European ally [Angela Merkel] was a single fish in a very big sea… ‘They suck up every phone number they can in Germany,’ said one former intelligence official.”

Spying on the Pope

AFP wrote on October 30:

“The US National Security Agency allegedly eavesdropped on cardinals before the conclave in March to elect a new pope, Italian weekly magazine Panorama claimed on Wednesday. ‘The National Security Agency wire-tapped the pope,’ the magazine said, accusing the United States of listening in to telephone calls to and from the Vatican, including cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio before he was elected Pope Francis. The allegations follow a report on surveillance website, Cryptome, which said the US intercepted 46 million telephone calls in Italy in December last year and early January this year…

“Bergoglio ‘had been a person of interest to the American secret services since 2005, according to Wikileaks’, it said… If true, the US spying would be an embarrassing blow to an institution famous for its secrecy. The goings-on of the conclave are particularly [cloak]-and-dagger, with a system installed in the Sistine chapel where the cardinals meet in order to scramble any mobile phone communications and excommunication for those who spill the beans.”

Spain Too

CNN wrote on October 28:

“The Spanish newspaper El Mundo reported Monday that the NSA collected data from 60 million phone calls in Spain in one 30-day period.”

Spying on Yahoo and Google

Deutsche Welle reported on October 30:

“The US National Security Agency has reportedly broken into links that connect Yahoo and Google data centers around the world. The latest revelations came hours after German and US officials met to discuss US spy claims… The program, operated jointly with the NSA’s British counterpart GCHQ (UK Government Communications Headquarters), allows the agencies to intercept data flows from the fiber-optic cables used by the US Internet giants.”

Brazil and Germany Request UN Resolution Against USA

Foreign Policy wrote on October 24:

“Brazil and Germany today joined forces to press for the adoption of a U.N. General Resolution that promotes the right of privacy on the internet, marking the first major international effort to restrain the National Security Agency’s intrusions into the online communications of foreigners…

“Although the U.N.’s ability to fundamentally constrain the NSA is nil, the mounting international uproar over U.S. surveillance has security experts fearful for the ramifications… Anyone who thinks this issue will only resonate in Brazil, Mexico, France, Italy, and Germany… isn’t paying attention.”

US-European Relationship – “After the Love Has Gone”

CNN wrote on October 25:

“On July 24, 2008, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama addressed tens of thousands of Germans on the avenue that leads from the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. In a pointed reference to the outgoing administration of President George W. Bush, he promised a new era of ‘allies who will listen to each other, who will learn from each other, who will, above all, trust each other’… No U.S. politician since John F. Kennedy had so captured Europeans’ imagination. Five years on, in the words of the song, it’s a case of ‘After the Love Has Gone.’…

“Even pro-U.S. newspapers like the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung are in full throttle, writing that: ‘The government in Washington has apparently not yet understood the level of damage that continues to be caused by the activities of American intelligence agencies in Europe.’… French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault commented it was ‘incredible that an allied country like the United States at this point goes as far as spying on private communications that have no strategic justification, no justification on the basis of national defense.’…

“The fall-out may be more than rhetorical. Germany’s opposition Social Democrats are asking whether the European Union can — or should — agree a free trade deal with the U.S. in the current atmosphere. Negotiations on the Transatlatic Trade and Investment Partnership were already in a fragile state and will not be helped by claims in Le Monde that large French corporations such as telecom company Alcatel-Lucent have been targeted by the NSA…

“Der Spiegel reported… that the British equivalent of the NSA was involved in a cyber-attack against Belgium’s state-run telecommunications company, Belgacom…”

All of these events are highly significant, as the Bible has prophesied—and the Church of God has proclaimed for decades—that in these end times continental Europe, under German leadership, will rise, while the USA and the UK will fall and become totally isolated in the world, and that a hostile relationship will especially develop between a European power bloc and the USA and the UK. We are clearly seeing now the beginning stages of these developments.

USA Upset with Germany

The Wall Street Journal wrote on October 30:

“The U.S. used sharp language Wednesday to criticize Germany’s economic policies in a semiannual currency report, saying the country’s export-led growth is creating problems for the euro zone and the global economy.

“The U.S. identified Germany ahead of its traditional target, China, and the most-recent problem country, Japan, in the ‘key findings’ section. The move indicates U.S. concerns about Germany’s policies have moved to the forefront while U.S. angst over the yuan and the yen is abating.”

The Local wrote on October 31:

“Germany on Thursday rejected as ‘incomprehensible’ criticism levelled by the US Treasury that Berlin should do more to increase its domestic demand and rely less on exports in order to help boost the global economy… The critical [US] report comes amid already strained German-US ties over reported US bugging of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s phone…”

One wonders whether the USA is engaging in a case of revenge against Germany’s strong attacks on American spying activities. This would not help to heal the broken relationship between the two countries.

“One ‘Oops’ Away from Armageddon”

The Independent wrote on October 26:

“In the 68 years after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, apart from scheduled nuclear tests, not a single nuclear warhead has exploded… since 1945, no nuclear weapon has gone off by accident… The US… currently has around 4,650 strategic missiles, 1,950 of which are deployed, the rest on stand-by. No figures are published, but upkeep, support and modernisation of the nuclear force reputedly costs at least $50bn (£31bn) a year…

“But never rule out the human factor. Somehow, for example, in contravention of rules set in place after North Carolina, six cruise missiles fitted with live nuclear warheads were carried on a flight in 2007 from North Dakota to Louisiana without authorisation. Apparently, loaders confused dummy warheads with the real thing…

“Back in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, at the height of the Cold War, the greatest nuclear threat to America was accidental detonation of an American weapon. That remains the case now…”

The dangers of nuclear weapons and nuclear sites worldwide should not be underestimated, as this and the following articles show.

Big Earthquake Hits Japan Near Fukushima Nuclear Site

On October 25, The Associated Press reported:

“An earthquake of magnitude 7.3 struck early Saturday off Japan’s east coast, the U.S. Geological Survey said, and Japan’s emergency agencies issued a tsunami advisory for the region that includes the crippled Fukushima nuclear site. Tsunamis of up to 15 inches were reported at four areas along the coast, but the advisory was lifted less than two hours after the quake. There were no immediate reports of damage on land…

“All but two of Japan’s 50 nuclear reactors have been offline since a March 2011 magnitude-9.0 earthquake and ensuing tsunami triggered multiple meltdowns and massive radiation leaks at the Fukushima plant, about 160 miles northeast of Tokyo. About 19,000 people were killed in the disaster. A string of mishaps this year at the Fukushima plant has raised international concerns about the operator’s ability to tackle the continuing crisis.”

Iran Almost Ready to Build a Bomb?

JTA reported on October 25:

“Iran could produce enough weapons-grade uranium to build a nuclear bomb in as little as a month, according to a new estimate by a top American think tank… The new assessment comes as the White House invited Senate staffers to a briefing on negotiations with Iran as part of its efforts to persuade Congress not to go ahead with a bill to stiffen sanctions against Iran…

“Israeli Intelligence and International Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz has said that Iran had made no concrete offer to resolve the conflict around its nuclear program during the last round of talks…”

Religious Freedom and Conviction at Stake

On October 25, The San Diego Union Tribune wrote the following:

“The U.S. Supreme Court is… likely to consider a complex legal tangle that focuses on a simple question: Are business owners free to follow their religious beliefs when they conflict with the expanding dictates of the government? The main case involves a nationwide craft store known as the Hobby Lobby, which objects to the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that it provide certain types of contraceptives as part of the health plan the company offers its 22,000 employees.

“It is owned by evangelical Christians who see their business as an extension of their religious faith. Hobby Lobby already covers contraceptives in its insurance plan, but it objects to including ‘drugs and devices (they) … believe to be abortifacients,’ explained the 10th Circuit Court of Appeal in a decision siding with the company. Federal officials and state attorney generals, including California’s Kamala Harris, urged the court to take the case and side – no surprise here – with the government…

“This case is about a question that harkens back to the nation’s founding. When the individual’s conscience collides with the government’s rules, who wins?…”

New Deadline for Obamacare’s Individual Mandate – March 31.

Newsmax wrote on October 23:

“The Obama administration is giving individuals who buy health insurance through government-run marketplaces until the end of March to enroll in a plan, an administration official said.  And the deadline for a penalty or fine? It hasn’t changed, says White House Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest… It’s still March 31. ‘Under [the Affordable Care Act], if you have access to affordable coverage but choose to be uninsured for 3 consecutive months in a calendar year, you would face a penalty. In other words, you need to have insurance by the end of March to avoid a penalty in 2014,’ Earnest said in an emailed statement.

“‘Some have asked whether consumers could face a tax penalty if they don’t enroll in coverage by Feb. 15 of next year. This is not the case. If you sign up for insurance by the end of March, you will not face a penalty. The guidance that the administration will issue soon will reinforce this,’ Earnest continued… The open enrollment period extends from Oct. 1 to March 31…”

Broken Promises and Misrepresentations

Breitbart wrote on October 30:

“In a speech at Boston’s Faneuil Hall on Wednesday afternoon, President Barack Obama discarded his now-infamous broken promise: ‘If you like your health insurance, you can keep your health insurance.’ Instead, he offered a new promise: ‘You will be getting a better deal,’ the president told health insurance consumers. He blamed insurance companies, not Obamacare, for the canceled policies:

“‘Now, if you had one of these substandard plans before the Affordable Care Act became law, and you really like that plan, you were able to keep it. That’s what I said when I was running for office. That was part of the promise we made. But ever since the law was passed, if insurers decided to downgrade or cancel the substandard plans, what we said under the law is that you have got to replace them with quality, comprehensive coverage because that, too, was a central premise of the Affordable Care Act from the very beginning… So if you’re getting one of these letters [canceling your insurance policy], just shop around in the new marketplace. That’s what it’s for…

“‘For the fewer than 5% of Americans who buy insurance on your own [sic], you will be getting a better deal. So anyone peddling the motion that insurers are canceling people’s plan without mentioning that almost all the insurers are encouraging people to join better plans with the same carrier and stronger benefits and stronger protections, while others will be able to get better plans with new carriers through the marketplace, and then many will get new help to pay for these better plans and make them actually cheaper–if you leave that stuff out, you’re being grossly misleading, to say the least.’”

“Ignoring evidence that the ‘better deal’ is often far more expensive than existing plans, the president updated his promise without apologizing for misleading voters for years about the consequences of Obamacare. He also ignored the fact that companies were compelled by the law to change their plans to comply with new rules…”

The earlier promise and the updated representations are simply false. Statements especially by Democrats during a House hearing on Wednesday, applauding the Obamacare disaster, were likewise misleading. The fact is that insurance companies are cancelling individual insurance policies by the hundreds of thousands because of Obamacare—including policies which were not substandard by any means—and that it is virtually impossible for MANY customers to find similar policies with the same or lower rates. The TRUTH is that the rates are much higher and simply not affordable for many “customers.”

There is no doubt that America’s healthcare system is in an awful state—the concept that a person who loses his or her job is forced to maintain individual healthcare through extremely expensive and largely unaffordable mechanisms (such as COBRA) is just one of the many horrible examples of a totally broken system—but sadly, Obamacare is not the solution. And of course, the ungodly greed of many insurance companies does not help to solve the problems either. The bottom line is that America’s disastrous healthcare system is just one of the many manifestations of a superpower which is descending into the abyss.

Americans More Divided Than Ever

Money Morning wrote on October 31:

“Obamacare doesn’t officially kick off until January 1st, yet millions of Americans are already at each other’s throats over it. Research from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that the country is now more divided than any other time in history since the Civil War era. In fact, 20 states including Texas, Georgia and Louisiana have threatened to secede. And despite a recent Supreme Court ruling making Obamacare the law of the land, only 24 states are moving forward with a key aspect of Obamacare- the expansion of Medicaid. Of the rest, 21 are opposed and five are deadlocked in debate.

“So far, every single southern state from Texas to Virginia has refused to widen Medicaid, a key provision of the Obamacare program. This will leave millions of Americans without coverage. That’s because they make too much money to qualify for Medicaid as it now stands, but not enough to get the subsidies to buy insurance in the new exchanges.

“The South isn’t alone in rejecting Obamacare. Liberal states such as Maine have opposed the bill. Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Ohio have yet to move forward with the expansion. Even legendary investor Warren Buffett, a one-time Obamacare supporter, said in 2010 he would scrap the healthcare bill and start over. One of the main architects of the bill, Democratic Senator Max Baucus from Montana said Obamacare is heading for a ‘train wreck’ if it’s not implemented properly.

“While even Obamacare detractors applaud the requirement that insurance companies cover pre-existing conditions and put a stop to lifetime caps on benefits, they say these laudable benefits don’t compensate for the bills high cost – especially in new taxes. According to most experts, Obamacare will create no fewer than twenty new taxes or tax hikes on the American people. In fact, the Obama administration has already given the IRS an extra $500 million to enforce the rules and regulations of Obamacare.

“The new taxes don’t bode well for millions of middle-class Americans. Incomes for the rich have soared this decade but middle class workers have seen their wages stagnate and even drop since the 2008 Great Recession. Many fear Obamacare with its high insurance costs and new taxes, could provide the middle class a fatal blow… a third of all U.S. employers could stop offering health insurance to their workers… ordinary Americans will get stuck paying for substance abuse coverage – even if they never touched a drink or drug in their life… senior citizens will get hit the hardest. Hip and knee replacements and cataract surgery will be especially hard to get from Medicare in the months ahead thanks to Obamacare…”

The Bible pronounces a curse on those who take advantage of and neglect or mistreat the elderly.

Spooky Halloween Candy Is Big Business for Careless Americans

The website of fastcodesign.com published the following article:

“Halloween has always been about the things trick-or-treating represent… For a thousand years, Halloween has been all about eating sugar to assuage our fears. Dating as far back as the ancient pagan Celtic festival called Samhain–in which the end of harvest coincided with the opening of a liminal window into the spirit world–October 31st has always been an amalgamated swirl of sweets and the supernatural… As the Celts gorged themselves on crude jellies, sweetmeats, and candies, they would mask or blacken their faces to placate evil spirits…

“In the 1950s, candy companies started realizing that this trick-or-treat thing might be a huge thing for them… Then on November 2, 1970, 5-year-old Kevin Toston from Detroit died after eating what initial reports identified as heroin-laced Halloween candy. It later turned out that the heroin never came from the candy, but by that point, no one was paying attention. The idea that sickos were poisoning candy to give to trick-or-treaters had been launched into the zeitgeist.

“In a ghoulish twist, the notion that Halloween candy might be poisoned turned out to be great for candy makers. Concerned with safety, parents started telling their kids not to take any sweets that weren’t factory-wrapped, which meant that the homemade treats or loose candy that most houses had handed out in the past became objects of suspicion…

“Buoyed by the monster fad of the 1970s, the packaging of Halloween candy got increasingly weirder and wilder… Today, Halloween candy is big business. In 2011, $2.3 billion worth of Halloween candy… ‘When it comes to the money Americans spend on the holiday, Halloween is second only to Christmas’…

“Yet if there’s anything that the history of trick-or-treating or even Halloween shows us, it’s that sugar and fear are a winning combination. Whether you’re an ancient Celt facing the long nights of winter, when the spirits of the dead are rumored to roam; a kid running through the streets in a costume with his mouth full of gummi worms; or a mom, telling her children to only accept individually wrapped chocolates from name-brand candy makers, lest they be poisoned: candy sells better when it’s spooky.”

Expensive Government Shutdown

Time and CNN reported the following on October 17, under the following headline:

“Here’s How Much The Government Shutdown Cost The Economy.”
The article continued:

“$24 billion. That’s according to an estimate from Standard & Poor’s. The financial services company said the shutdown, which ended with a deal late Wednesday night after 16 days, took $24 billion out of the U.S. economy, and reduced projected fourth-quarter GDP growth from 3 percent to 2.4 percent…

“Hundreds of thousands of federal workers bore the economic brunt of the shutdown. But small businesses also suffered from frozen government contracts and stalled business loans. Tourism suffered from closed national parks, and military families had to cope without childcare and other services. Federal workers will receive back-pay under the deal, but contractors will probably not get their lost wages…

“And with the deal only guaranteeing government funding through Jan. 15, the situation could grow worse…”

And all of this for nothing…

National Debt

AFP wrote on October 19:

“The government shutdown may have ended Wednesday, but the bipartisan deal that put workers back on the job also suspended the nation’s debt ceiling, leaving the national debt soaring at an astronomical rate that is expected to keep growing.

“The nation’s debt climbed by a record $328 billion on Thursday alone, reports The Washington Times, the first day the federal government could borrow money under the agreement. The debt is now at a record $17.075 trillion and climbing, according to the Treasury Department.”

The website http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/US-economy-politics-debt/2013/10/19/id/531938?ns_mail_uid=9650683&ns_mail_job=1542415_10192013&promo_code=153B3-1 offers up-to-date figures of the climbing national debt. Newsmax reported on October 10 that “The national debt is set to double by the time President Barack Obama leaves office, if it continues to increase at the current rate.”

Obamacare Website—Disastrous and Catastrophic

Newsmax reported on October 18:

“The disastrous rollout of the Obamacare website has taken a new turn with errors turning up for the few who successfully managed to enroll through the glitch-filled site.

“Executives at more than a dozen health plans have told The Wall Street Journal that errors include duplicate enrollments, spouses reported as children, missing data fields [sic], and suspect eligibility determinations. In one case, a customer successfully signed up on Healthcare.gov for three plans at one company. ‘The longer this takes to resolve… the harder it will be to get people to [come back and] sign up,’ Aetna Inc. Chief Executive Mark Bertolini told the Journal. ‘It’s not off to a great start.’…

“The administration initially blamed the issues on high demand, but has since admitted the site was fraught with serious flaws, though officials have withheld details. President Barack Obama this week admitted his frustration with the website… On Thursday, the Journal published an editorial labeling the Obamacare website ‘a catastrophe.’”

Newsmax reported on October 21:

“Consumer Reports, the nation’s most respected consumer watchdog, has some sobering advice for Americans attempting to sign up for Obamacare: ‘Stay away.’ The federal exchange, Healthcare.gov, which has been plagued by software glitches, should be avoided ‘for at least another month if you can… Hopefully that will be long enough for its software vendors to clean up the mess they’ve made.’”

The Weekly Standard wrote on October 23:

“While the Affordable Care Act was making its way through Congress in 2009 and 2010, President Obama famously promised the American people over and over again that if you like your health plan, you can keep it. ‘Let me be exactly clear about what health care reform means to you,’ Obama said at one rally in July 2009. ‘First of all, if you’ve got health insurance, you like your doctors, you like your plan, you can keep your doctor, you can keep your plan.  Nobody is talking about taking that away from you.’ 

“But the president’s promise is turning out to be false for millions of Americans who have had their health insurance policies canceled because they don’t meet the requirements of the Affordable Care Act.  According to health policy expert Bob Laszewski, roughly 16 million Americans will lose their current plans because of Obamacare.”

Breitbart wrote on October 23:

“The Washington Post’s Ezra Klein now admits that weeks before the disastrous ObamaCare launch, he heard ‘some very ugly things about how the system was performing[.]’ We also now know that a few hundred people were involved in a test that crashed the site days before the launch and that insurance companies were complaining about the site before the launch.  On top of all that, we are now seeing story after story about the red flags ignored by the Administration. But it isn’t just the White House claiming to be caught off guard by The Obvious, it is also a useless American media that seems incapable of breaking stories embarrassing to this president…

“Once again, despite numerous red flags, our media claims to  be as surprised by a major scandal as the rest of… America. This isn’t the first major Obama White House scandal the media failed to break. The NSA, Associated Press, IRS, and Benghazi scandals were all missed by an American mainstream media that apparently spends its days spinning for the White House instead of engaging in the kind of investigative journalism into it that might result in revelations they don’t want to know about or report.

“From what we now know, three weeks after the launch of this half-billion dollar debacle, the only thing more outrageous than the Obama administration launching a site they knew was nowhere near ready, is that our media was too lazy or partisan or incompetent or all three to have been way ahead of this scandal.”

Some even try to put their usual positive spin on these events, praising the “success” of Obamacare by pointing out that so many have (unsuccessfully) attempted to sign up for it. Beg your pardon?

Next War Inevitable

USA Today wrote on October 17:

“Budget reductions could render the Army at ‘high risk to meet even one major war,’ according to documents obtained by USA TODAY, a warning the Army is sounding because it sees another war as inevitable before long… War is likely to break out again…

“Since May, the Army, Marines and Special Operations Command have been emphasizing the importance of ground forces in future conflicts. The Strategic Landpower Task Force states that some in the defense community believe wars will be fought primarily with weapons fired from a safe distance… [But] operations on land are most effective at achieving national objectives. [Commanders] referred to the need to influence what they refer to as the ‘human domain.’ Compelling people to act in U.S. interests is best accomplished by land forces, they said.”

Sadly, America’s next war IS inevitable, but America will not win it.

U.S.-Saudi Arabia Rift Deepens

The Guardian wrote on October 22:

“A deepening diplomatic rift between Saudi Arabia and the US burst open on Tuesday after secretary of state John Kerry acknowledged that Washington’s key strategic ally had serious misgivings about US foreign policy in the Middle East.

“Kerry held urgent talks with his Saudi counterpart in Paris on Monday amid complaints from Riyadh that the US was not doing enough to help Sunni-dominated rebels in Syria following a decision not launch US military action… Kerry insisted relations remained fundamentally sound, but news of the meetings appears to confirm reports in the Wall Street Journal that the Saudis had threatened to scale back their regional co-operation with the US in protest at what it saw as a misguided Middle East strategy…

“Reuters also quoted Prince Bandar telling European diplomats that the kingdom would be making a ‘major shift’ in relations with Washington over perceived inaction towards the conflict in Syria, and a possible rapprochement with Iran over its nuclear program. Saudi Arabia is understood to be upset at perceived US weakness over Iran – and wants more aggressive steps taken to prevent Tehran’s development of nuclear weapons technology – and Egypt, where the US has severed military ties with the new government in protest at crackdowns on demonstrators…

“These are the latest signs that a US policy of rapprochement with Iran is causing friction with existing allies in the region, following similar concerns expressed by Israel. Washington is also struggling to maintain good relations with France, Brazil, and Germany over separate arguments about surveillance by the National Security Agency. But the row with Saudi Arabia threatens to destabilise one of the strongest diplomatic ties in Washington, based historically on mutual oil and security interests. Last week, Riyadh snubbed a US-backed offer to take a seat on the United Nations security council.”

Mail On Line added on October 22:

“In unusually blunt public remarks, [Saudi Arabia’s] Prince Turki al-Faisal  called Obama’s policies in Syria ‘lamentable’ and ridiculed a U.S.-Russian deal to eliminate Assad’s chemical weapons…

“Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, ploughs much of its earnings back into U.S. assets. Most of the Saudi central bank’s net foreign assets of $690 billion are thought to be denominated in dollars, much of them in U.S. Treasury bonds. ‘All options are on the table now, and for sure there will be some impact,’ the [unnamed] Saudi source said. He said there would be no further coordination with the United States over the war in Syria, where the Saudis have armed and financed rebel groups fighting Assad.”

“America’s Not in Decline… It’s on the Rise”

Believe it or not, this ridiculous article was published on October 20 by the Washington Post. The authors, Ely Ratner and Thomas Wright, begin to describe correctly the ACCURATE international reaction to the most current developments, as follows:

“It’s been a banner month for the oracles of American decline. The shutdown of the federal government, the prospect of a default on the country’s debt, and the political dysfunction that made the United States seem rudderless on Syria and forced the cancellation of President Obama’s trip to Asia seemed to confirm that the end of American preeminence is finally upon us.

“Council on Foreign Relations President Richard Haass argued that Washington was ‘hastening the emergence of a post-American world.’ The Guardian’s Timothy Garton Ash wrote that ‘the erosion of American power is happening faster than most of us predicted — while the politicians in Washington behave like rutting stags with locked antlers.’ And the financial Web site MarketWatch declared: ‘This is what decline of a superpower looks like.’…”

But then, the opinion is uttered that these concerns are baseless, and that a glorious future is ahead of the USA. NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH. But read yourself the statements in the article:

“Despite gridlock in Washington, America is recovering from the financial crisis and combining enduring strengths with new sources of influence… Meanwhile, emerging powers are running into troubles of their own. Taken together, these developments are ushering in a new era of American strategic advantage… the United States is experiencing a turnaround of fortunes. The unemployment rate has fallen to just over 7 percent from an October 2009 peak of 10 percent. By contrast, euro-zone unemployment remains stuck at around 12 percent.”

This is so wrong. These figures (even though lamentable per se) are terribly misleading, as they do not include those who are self-employed and who have lost their business; who are part-time or under-employed, and who have given up on even claiming unemployment.

The article continues:

“In this dawning era of strategic advantage, the United States will confront foreign policy challenges largely associated with weakness and instability abroad… The Middle East will continue its painful and bloody revolution. And Europe appears increasingly unable to move beyond protracted stagnation, eroding its ability to play a constructive role in world affairs.”

This world view is hopelessly naïve and unrealistic. It’s mere wishful thinking. It reminds us of the false prophets of old, at the time of Jeremiah, who proclaimed peace and security, while captivity and slavery were awaiting the nation. The same is true today. Don’t listen to these false prognosticators of incorrect fantasies… they are lulling the people to sleep and don’t help them at all.

Schwarzenegger for President?

The Washington Times wrote on October 18:

“Hollywood action star and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has been quietly lobbying key politicos for a legal loophole or a constitutional change that would clear the path for him to run for president in 2016. If allowed, Mr. Schwarzenegger would face off against Hillary Rodham Clinton, The New York Post reported… ‘Schwarzenegger has been talking openly about working on getting the constitutional rules changed so he can run for president in 2016,’ a source said, The Post reported. ‘He is ready to file legal paperwork to challenge the rules.’

“The actor was born in Austria, making him ineligible to seek the high office. The Constitution states plainly that one of the requirements for a U.S. president is to be a natural born citizen. Section One Article Two states: ‘No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of president.’

“The loophole language could be the definition of ‘natural born citizen,’ legal minds have argued. Columbia University Law School professor Michael Dorf said, The Post reported: ‘The law is very clear, but it’s not 100 percent clear that the courts would enforce that law rather than leave it to the political process.’

“Meanwhile, there’s little doubt that the Hollywood icon would run if he could. Mr. Schwarzenegger became a legal U.S. citizen in 1983, and in 2010 he was asked during a ‘Tonight Show’ appearance if he would seek the presidency if the law allowed. His answer: ‘Without any doubt.’”

One has to wait and see what will develop. After all, there are still nagging doubts and many unresolved answers whether Barack Obama is a “natural born citizen” under the Constitution and therefore eligible to hold the office of President.

Obama Administration to Give Iran Billions of Dollars?

The Associated Press reported on October 18:

“The Obama administration is weighing whether to offer Iran the chance to recoup billions of dollars in frozen overseas assets if it takes steps to scale back its nuclear program, U.S. officials and congressional aides said Friday. The proposal would face a skeptical Congress determined to make the end of Tehran’s uranium enrichment activity the condition for any sanctions relief.

“The brainstorming comes after two days of nuclear negotiations between Iran and world powers ended this week in Geneva. The talks — the first since Iranian President Hassan Rouhani took office — ended on an upbeat note although it fell short of specific and concrete commitments by Iran to stop enriching uranium or ship out its stockpiles of higher-enriched uranium…

“Under the plan being weighed, Iran would be able to access money from oil sales overseas that it currently can only barter with because of U.S. and international sanctions. Senate aides put the total between $50 billion and $75 billion. It’s not clear what Iran would have to do in return to prompt the Obama administration to allow banks to release the money.”

Iran would be happy to get that money, while NEVER agreeing to forsaking their nuclear program…

USA Guilty of War Crimes?

The Guardian wrote on October 21:

“US officials responsible for the secret CIA drone campaign against suspected terrorists in Pakistan may have committed war crimes and should stand trial, a report by a leading human rights group warns. Amnesty International has highlighted the case of a grandmother who was killed while she was picking vegetables and other incidents which could have broken international laws designed to protect civilians.

“The report is issued in conjunction with an investigation by Human Rights Watch detailing missile attacks in Yemen which the group believes could contravene the laws of armed conflict, international human rights law and Barack Obama’s own guidelines on drones… The US has repeatedly claimed very few civilians have been killed by drones. It argues its campaign is conducted ‘consistent with all applicable domestic and international law’.”

Frightening Incompetency in the US Air Force

Fox News wrote on October 23:

“Four Air Force officers who were entrusted with the launch keys to nuclear-tipped missiles have been punished for leaving open blast doors intended to help prevent a terrorist or other intruder from entering their post while they were sleeping. Air Force officials confirm to Fox News that twice this year alone, Air Force officers were caught leaving open blast doors. The doors are never to be left open if one of the crew members inside is asleep — as was the case in both these instances — out of concern for the damage an intruder could cause, including the compromising of secret launch codes.

“Transgressions such as these, which were first reported by the Associated Press, are rarely revealed publicly. But officials with direct knowledge of Air Force intercontinental ballistic missile operations told the AP that such violations have happened, undetected, many more times than in the cases of the two launch crew commanders and two deputy commanders who were given administrative punishments this year. The blast door violations are another sign of serious trouble in the handling of the nation’s nuclear arsenal. The Associated Press has discovered a series of problems within the ICBM force, including a failed safety inspection, the temporary sidelining of launch officers deemed unfit for duty and the abrupt firing last week of the two-star general in charge.”

30 Million People Enslaved Today

Reuters reported on October 17:

“Some 30 million people are enslaved worldwide, trafficked into brothels, forced into manual labor, victims of debt bondage or even born into servitude, a global index on modern slavery showed on Thursday. Almost half are in India, where slavery ranges from bonded labor in quarries and kilns to commercial sex exploitation, although the scourge exists in all 162 countries surveyed by Walk Free, an Australian-based rights group… almost 21 million people are [estimated to be] victims of forced labour…

“The Global Slavery Index 2013 defines slavery as the possession or control of people to deny freedom and exploit them for profit or sex, usually through violence, coercion or deception. The definition includes indentured servitude, forced marriage and the abduction of children to serve in wars. According to the index, 10 countries alone account for three quarters of the world’s slaves.

“After India, China has the most with 2.9 million, followed by Pakistan (2.1 million), Nigeria (701,000), Ethiopia (651,000), Russia (516,000), Thailand (473,000), Democratic Republic of Congo (462,000), Myanmar (384,000) and Bangladesh (343,000)…

“At the other end of the scale, Iceland has the lowest estimated prevalence with fewer than 100 slaves. Next best are Ireland, Britain, New Zealand, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Luxembourg, Finland and Denmark, although researchers said slave numbers in such wealthy countries were higher than previously thought…”

It is interesting that the countries with the lowest percentage of slaves are all of Israelite descent, while the countries with the highest percentage are all of non-Israelite descent. Sadly, it will be many of the Israelite nations who will find themselves in slavery and captivity of war in the not-too-distant future.

France Prohibits Freedom of Conscience

AFP wrote on October 19:

“France’s Constitutional Council ruled on Friday that the country’s mayors cannot refuse to officiate at same-sex weddings, rejecting a bid by a group of mayors who claimed gay marriage went against their moral or religious beliefs.

“The Constitutional Council’s ruling followed an appeal by mayors and registrars opposed to France’s controversial bill legalising same-sex marriages, which came into effect in May this year. They argued that the same-sex marriage bill should have included a ‘freedom of conscience’ clause, giving officiators the right not to carry out same-sex marriages if it conflicts with their personal religious or moral beliefs. The lack of such a clause in the bill goes against the French constitution, they claim.

“But the Council, France’s highest legal authority, rejected this argument in its ruling on Friday morning. Jean-Michel Colo, the Mayor of Arcangues in southwest France who hit headlines in June when he became the first official to refuse to marry a gay couple, denounced the Council’s decision. ‘The Constitutional Council has been manipulated by politics. It is a political decision,’ he told AFP.

“Colo said that the group of mayors would now take their case to the European Court of Human Rights. Meanwhile, the group Manif Pour Tous, which has been at the forefront of protests against the legalisation of same-sex marriage, said it supports ‘all the mayors who courageously dare to assert their right to freedom of conscience’. The organisation says a petition it launched in defence of the right of mayors not to officiate at gay weddings has collected more than 80,000 signatures.

“In France [as well as in Germany and many other European countries], marriages can only be made official by state authorities, though many couples also celebrate religious weddings.”

France Immigration Debacle

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 21:

“French Interior Minister Manuel Valls on Sunday defended his decision to deport a 15-year-old Roma girl and her family to Kosovo after they lost their bid for asylum. The deportation has prompted calls for the minister’s resignation by students and leftist groups. Valls, the point person on immigration policy in François Hollande’s Socialist government, has been assailed in the French media ever since police detained Leonarda Dibrani in front of her classmates while on a fieldtrip on Oct. 9. Dibrani and the rest of her family, who were living in Levier in eastern France, were all flown to Kosovo that day.

“Thousands of secondary school students demonstrated in Paris and across the country last week against the government, while some politicians have backed students’ demands that Valls step down, according to French media…

“The interior minister has taken a hard line on illegal immigration, causing a rift within his own center-left party. Valls argued last month that France’s 20,000 Roma migrants were ‘different’ and not capable of integrating into French society, suggesting they should be returned to their countries of origin… Hollande was criticized on both the left and the right for the move. The leader of the center-right opposition Union for a Popular Movement accused the prime minister of undermining the ‘authority of the state,’ while the Left Party called the decision not to allow her family to join her one of ‘abject cruelty’…

“The Dibrani case appears to have further damaged the popularity of the embattled Hollande. A new poll published Sunday by the Journal de Dimanche gave him a record low approval rating of 23 percent. However, a survey conducted by French pollster BVA, published in Saturday’s Le Parisien, showed that around 77 percent of the French public support Valls’ stance on the situation, indicating continued French unease with immigration.

“Over 10,000 Roma — mostly from Romania, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslavia — were forcefully evicted from informal settlements in France during the first half of 2013, according to a recent report by Amnesty International.”

For additional information, please view our new StandingWatch program, “France in Prophecy.”

France Appalled by US Spying Activities

The Associated Press reported on October 21:

“The U.S. National Security Agency swept up 70.3 million French telephone records in a 30-day period, according to a newspaper report Monday that offered new details of the massive scope of a surveillance operation that has angered some of the country’s closest allies. The French government summoned the U.S. ambassador for an explanation on Monday and renewed demands for talks on protection of personal data, as well as pledges that the surveillance would cease…

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government canceled a Cold War-era agreement that allowed the U.S. and Britain the authority to request German authorities to conduct surveillance operations within the country to protect their troops stationed there. Privacy is especially cherished in Germany after the country’s painful history of mass surveillance of citizens of communist East Germany and Adolf Hitler’s Nazi state.

“‘I can understand the anger in France. You don’t do that among partners. You don’t do that among friends. That is why it is important that everything becomes clear what happened. That applies to France. It applies to other countries, and also for Germany,’ German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Monday…”

US Allies Outraged

Deutsche Welle reported on October 22:

“The revelations of US espionage have angered several US allies. On Sunday, the Mexican Foreign Ministry demanded answers from Washington after the publication of a separate article alleging NSA-snooping on Mexico. The latest revelations stemmed from an article published by the German news magazine Der Spiegel which said the US surveillance program had been spying on Mexico for years… Last week, Deutsche Telekom announced a plan to shield domestic Internet traffic from foreign spying. The telecommunications giant aims to strengthen data privacy in Germany by preventing it from leaving its borders and opting instead to channel it through domestic servers only.”

NPR added on October 22:

“The fallout from revelations about the National Security Agency’s spying activities continues: A key European Parliament committee approved new rules strengthening online privacy and outlawing the kind of surveillance the U.S. has been conducting. NPR’s Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson says the legislation could also have significant implications for U.S. Internet companies.”

The Associated Press added on October 23:

“European lawmakers on Wednesday called for the suspension of an agreement that grants U.S. authorities access to bank data for terror-related investigations, marking a sharp official rebuke of Washington’s surveillance programs. The European Parliament’s resolution, adopted in a 280-254 vote with 30 abstentions, is not binding. The agreement could only be suspended by a two-thirds majority of the 28-nation bloc’s member states.”

Did USA Spy on Angela Merkel?

BBC News reported on October 23:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel has called US President Barack Obama after receiving information that the US may have spied on her mobile phone. A spokesman for Mrs Merkel said the German leader ‘views such practices… as completely unacceptable’… [and calling any spying activities on Merkel “a grave breach of trust.”] The White House said President Obama had told Chancellor Merkel the US was not snooping on her communications… The US has been on the receiving end of anger from allies over spying allegations based on material said to originate from fugitive American leaker Edward Snowden… But the spokesman did not address whether Mrs Merkel’s phone had been monitored in the past.”

In an accompanying “analysis,” BBC News stated this:

“The language in the White House statement responding to allegations that the NSA monitored Angela Merkel’s private mobile phone is deliberately precise. ‘The president assured the chancellor that the United States is not monitoring and will not monitor the communications of Chancellor Merkel.’ It did not deny possible past surveillance on her phone.

“Clearly, Angela Merkel believes these allegations are plausible enough to confront directly Barack Obama, in what must have been an awkward conversation.Tonight at the White House there was supposed to be a state dinner for Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. But she cancelled the visit last month following allegations that the NSA snooped on her personal communications.

“Only on Monday, President Obama had to reassure his French counterpart, Francois Hollande, over allegations published in Le Monde of electronic eavesdropping on French political figures and business leaders on a vast scale. The diplomatic backlash is getting fiercer by the day.”

The Associated Press added on October 23:

“In Germany, opposition politicians, the media and privacy activists have been vocal in their outrage over the U.S. eavesdropping. Up until now, Merkel had worked hard to contain the damage to U.S.-German relations and refrained from saying anything bad about the Americans.”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 23, 2013:

“During her conversation with Obama, Merkel expressed her expectation that ‘US authorities would provide an explanation about the possible extent of such surveillance practices, and thus answer questions that the German government already posed months ago’…”

In possibly spying on Angela Merkel, the USA might have gone too far and might have taken too big a bite of the apple—being unable to swallow it.

Europeans Angry with the USA

Der Spiegel wrote on October 24:

“The newest allegations of US spying have unleashed a torrent of criticism and concern in Europe. If suspicions unearthed by SPIEGEL that the US tapped Chancellor Merkel’s cell phone turn out to be true, the ramifications for trans-Atlantic ties could be immense.

“Leading politicians and media commentators in Germany expressed serious concern on Thursday following allegations that US intelligence agencies had tapped Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cell phone. Merkel’s spokesman confirmed that she placed an angry call Wednesday night to United States President Barack Obama to discuss the suspicions, which arose from an inquiry by SPIEGEL. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle took the unusual step Thursday morning of summoning the US ambassador, John B. Emerson…

“The news agency Reuters reported that representatives of both Merkel and French President François Hollande said the two would have a one-on-one meeting on the US spying issue Thursday afternoon before the start of a two-day EU summit in Brussels.

“And the German Federal Prosecutor’s office in Karlsruhe is also looking into the new allegations of US spying, setting up a so-called ‘monitoring process,’ and requiring the appropriate federal agencies to supply them with relevant reliable information. The agency started a similar process at the end of June to look into possible activities by the NSA in Germany. That process is still ongoing, a spokesman said. Claudia Roth, the outgoing co-leader of the German Green Party, told SPIEGEL ONLINE that the alleged bugging of Angela Merkel’s cell phone is a ‘terrible, terrible scandal’ that will lead to a ‘meltdown’ in German-US relations… adding that the allegations, if proven, are a more extreme invasion of privacy than those imagined in George Orwell’s 1984.

“Sharp criticism also came from German Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière… De Maizière went on to say that he had assumed for years his own phone had been tapped. ‘However, I did not expect the Americans,’ he added. Asked about possible effects on US-German and US-European relations, de Maizière said: ‘We can’t simply return to business as usual. There are allegations in France, too.’ Diplomatic relations between France and the US have been strained following reports that millions of French calls had been monitored by US intelligence agencies.

 “‘The allegation shows once again that our fears have been confirmed,’ said Thomas Oppermann, chairman of the Parliamentary Control Panel, which is responsible for monitoring Germany’s federal intelligence services. ‘The NSA’s monitoring activities have gotten completely out of hand and evidently take place beyond all democratic controls,’ continued the center-left Social Democrat…

“German Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger has called for Merkel’s government to suspend the SWIFT deal between the EU and US, which governs the transfer of some bank data from the EU to anti-terror authorities in the United States. ‘The new suspicion exceeds all bounds. The NSA affair is not over,’ she said, calling for EU bodies to ‘decide quickly’ on the matter.

“German media commentators also reacted angrily on Thursday. ‘A greater affront by a friendly country is hardly conceivable,’ wrote the prominent center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung in a front-page commentary that criticized Merkel’s government for initially downplaying the US spying scandal. ‘But the new allegations also cast a new light on Obama and the US intelligence community. During his visit to Germany, the US president grandly promised a trustful cooperation. But even Merkel now seems to have lost her belief in that. It’s hard to even imagine how Obama’s intelligence services deal with hostile states when one sees how they behave toward their closest allies.’

“The conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung cautioned readers that nothing had yet been proven regarding the chancellor’s mobile phone, but it also emphasized the extent to which the US spying scandal has already damaged diplomatic relations. ‘As Obama’s cool reaction shows, the government in Washington has apparently not yet understood the level of damage that continues to be caused by the activities of American intelligence agencies in Europe. They have diminished the trans-Atlantic relationship — even to a major degree.’

“Elsewhere in Europe, other editorialists also reacted with outrage to the latest spying allegations. Conservative Paris daily Le Figaro called the news ‘a warning shot in the direction of the US and a call for a resolute response from the EU. Europe is not discovering the NSA wiretapping scandal now. But with a personal accusation from Angela Merkel, the matter takes on a spectacular new scale.’

“Even if the cell-phone allegation turns out to be false, writes right-leaning Milan daily Corriere della Sera, ‘it doesn’t change anything of the substance. … The real central issue is that a threshold has already been crossed… [The] left-wing Guardian newspaper on Wednesday evening… question[ed] what it means ‘to be an American ally in the 21st century.’”

NSA Scandal in Germany—More and More Details Come to Light

The Guardian wrote on October 24:

“Germany’s foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle, has called the US ambassador to a personal meeting to discuss allegations that US secret services bugged Angela Merkel’s mobile phone. The decision to call in John B Emerson, who has only been the US representative in Berlin since mid-August, is an unusually drastic measure. During previous upheavals in relations, such as over the Syrian crisis, conversations have taken place between diplomats.

“Allegations that the US government’s spying had reached the highest level were met with outrage and disappointment in Germany on Thursday. On Wednesday Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, made plain that the chancellor upbraided Obama unusually sharply… The sharpness of the German complaint direct[ed] to a US president strongly suggested that Berlin had no doubt about the grounds for protest…

“On Thursday Süddeutsche Zeitung conveyed a strong sense of the depth of disillusionment with the US president in Germany when it wrote that ‘Barack Obama is not a Nobel peace prize winner, he is a troublemaker’… Die Zeit wrote that Obama’s ‘half-hearted denial’ of the allegations raised more questions than it answered…”

The German press reported that the NSA spying activity on Angela Merkel might have emanated from the US Embassy in Berlin. In addition, according to an article of the Guardian, dated October 24, 2013, the “NSA monitored [the telephone] calls of 35 world leaders.”

Obama—the Isolated “Ice-Cold” President

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 24:

“US President Barack Obama… has failed to foster close relationships with other heads of state, causing much frustration around the world… The Democrat, who prefers to spend his evenings with his family or alone in front of his computer, has made it no secret in Washington that he does not want to make new friends. That maxim especially applies to his foreign diplomacy. Unlike his predecessor George W. Bush, Obama is loved by the people of the world, but much less by their heads of government. On the heels of recent revelations that US spy agencies might have monitored Chancellor Merkel’s cell phone, the complaints about Merkel’s ‘lost friend’ Obama are misplaced. Obama doesn’t want to be a friend

“During a recent visit by a European head of government to Washington, the atmosphere was described as frosty by those in the entourage from Europe. Obama didn’t find the time for even a little small talk…

“Obama angered Nicolas Sarkozy by choosing to dine with his family instead of with France’s then-president during his visit to Paris. The Polish and Czech heads of state informed the president by telephone that they would not install a long-planned missile defense system. And when it comes to Britain, traditionally America’s closest partner, Obama was initially uncomfortable with the long-held notion of a ‘special relationship’ between the two countries. He may have expressed his vision for the friendship when, on his state visit, he brought the queen an iPod as a gift. London was not amused.

“The frustration extended well beyond the typical bruised vanities of the Europeans… An African head of government said during a visit to Washington that he longed for the days of George W. Bush. At least with him, he said, one knew where one stood… Israel, one of the closest allies of the US, was irritated that Obama didn’t find time for a state visit during his first term in office. Obama let the relationships with Hamid Karzai, Afghanistan’s president, and the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki deteriorate so much that the troop withdrawals grew more difficult.

“And Obama promised the Asian diplomats that he would be the ‘Pacific president,’ but he just cancelled his trip to the continent because the budget debate was more important to him. So much non-diplomacy is new among US presidents… ‘Coolness has its price,’ Washington Post columnist Jackson Diehl wrote in 2010, adding that Obama appeared to have no genuine friend among world leaders. But what for? He has the NSA.”

The German Success Story

Deutsche Welle reported on October 19:

“The world is fascinated by Europe’s biggest economy. Despite the economic crisis, Germany has grown, created more jobs, and reduced its national debt…  Around 100,000 new engineers and scientists arrive on the job market every year – young men and women who have just received a top class education at one of the 200 engineering schools, or in the technical faculty of a university. But also uneducated, still well-qualified workers also contribute to the country’s high productivity…

“Having a good product is often no longer enough to compete with low-wage economies in Asia. The ‘Made in Germany’ now includes a number of extra services. ‘A company now doesn’t just sell a machine – it installs it, it trains the buyer’s staff in how to use it, it offers a 24-hour repairs service,’ said Röhl. ‘At the end of the day it practically goes so far as to guarantee the machine’s performance.’

“One guarantee for the success of the ‘Germany Model’ is advanced technologies. Germany is practically forced to innovate, because it doesn’t have any real natural resources. As many as 11 percent of German workers are employed in high-tech industries – far more than the EU average. Every year, around 70 billion euros ($96 billion) is spent on research – more than in any other European country…  only hard facts count when it comes to infrastructure. But here, too, Germany passes the stress test.

“Only a few countries in the world can boast such well-developed networks in energy, telecommunications, roads, rail, and aviation. Every European country is within a few hours’ journey of Berlin – and the country’s geographical location may well make up the final piece of the puzzle. That, and the moderate climate. ‘We don’t have any heat waves or tornadoes that could act as shocks to the system,’ said Brückner. ‘It is relatively moderate and cool, which has meant that through the centuries better growth and production conditions have appeared than at the edges of Europe. And Germany has profited from that too.’”

Germany is destined to lead Europe. Even though some human and natural factors might contribute to its success story, the most important reason is that Germany must fulfill its prophesied future.

Germany Undisputed Leader of Europe

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 21:

“At the beginning of her third term, Merkel has more power in Germany and Europe than any chancellor before her. There hasn’t been such a strong majority behind a government in Germany’s parliament, the Bundestag, since the first grand coalition half a century ago. In the midst of the European crisis, Germany has become the undisputed dominant power in Europe.

“The grand coalition will hand Merkel a majority she could use to shape Germany and Europe and address major issues, including constitutional reforms in Germany and the reform of European Union institutions.”

Beware of Genetically Modified Salmon

The Telegraph wrote on October 20:

“American supermarkets are being pressured to refuse to stock genetically-modified salmon, which is poised to become the first GM animal ever approved for human consumption in the coming weeks. A so-called ‘super salmon’, which has been under development in Massachusetts for 18 years, is expected to be cleared for sale soon by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“The AquAdvantage salmon, which contains genes from an eel-like fish and from another breed of salmon, grows twice as fast as its natural alternative, allowing for increased and more robust supplies… opponents claim the fish poses a risk of cancer to consumers and could destroy other breeds. They also point to polling suggesting that some 90 per cent of Americans do not want GM fish to go on sale.”

One of the many obvious problems is that the genetically-modified salmon contains genes from an eel—an unclean fish, which is not meant for human consumption.

End to Fiscal Impasse?

The New York Times wrote on October 16:

“Congressional Republicans conceded defeat on Wednesday in their bitter budget fight with President Obama over the new health care law, agreeing to end a disruptive 16-day government shutdown and extend federal borrowing power to avert a financial default with potentially worldwide economic repercussions.

“With the Treasury Department warning that it could run out of money to pay national obligations within a day, the Senate voted overwhelmingly Wednesday evening, 81 to 18, to approve a proposal hammered out by the chamber’s Republican and Democratic leaders after the House on Tuesday was unable to move forward with any resolution. [According to] the Senate plan… the government [will be funded]  through Jan. 15 and… the debt limit [will be raised] through Feb. 7.”

The House approved and the President signed the bill. And what will happen when these dates will come?

Der Spiegel Online commented on October 17:

“The United States has temporarily avoided federal default… But no one should be happy, because the debacle has exposed just how broken the American political system truly is… America’s 237-year-old democracy is approaching its limits…

“The once civil political discourse in Washington has long since turned into a fight of bitter rivals trying to inflict the worst possible wounds. One is no longer respected as a worthy opponent, but attacked like an enemy… Adding to this is the almost unlimited flow of campaign contributions… as the system limps along, the next crisis already has a deadline: Jan. 15, 2014, when the bill agreed to on Wednesday expires.”

The Losers in the Recent Developments

The Washington Post wrote on October 16:

“Everyone — and we mean everyone — acknowledges now that the rollout of Obamacare’s health-insurance exchanges on Oct. 1 has been a total disaster. But, because of the shutdown, those stories have been pushed off the front page and the lead of the newscasts.  The problems with the rollout would have been massive news — and all of it bad for the White House and Democrats — if not for the shutdown. That fact is the single greatest Republican strategic miscalculation – amid many — of the shutdown. Downside for Obamacare: With the shutdown now  – almost — over, there will be a bright light on the rollout and its problems…

“John Boehner… failed, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Time and again he tried to walk the fine line between appeasing the most conservative wing of his party and passing legislation that would have a chance of winning Senate approval. In the end, Boehner’s greatest failing might have been in hoping that he could forge consensus within a conference where that simply is not possible. Boehner survived this fight and probably even strengthened his hand among tea party Republicans. But, the political costs were too high…

“The GOP brand: By the end, nearly three-quarters of Americans disapproved of how congressional Republicans had handled the budget showdown in a Washington Post-ABC poll. Congressional Republicans hit new lows in overall approval and, according to most polls, lost the blame game for the shutdown as well. The best news for Republicans is that this all happened in the fall of 2013, not the fall of 2014, meaning they have a year to rebrand themselves in a more favorable way in the eyes of the public.

“Our system of government: Does anyone think this is how our government should work? Does anyone think we won’t be right back in this mess early next year?  The government has proven over and over in the last few years that it is simply incapable of doing big things or, if we are being honest, even medium things.”

Even though the Democrats have also lost support of the American people, the Republicans were clearly the big losers. They gained nothing. They capitulated and surrendered. There is not even a hint that would show that their “fight” was of any value or benefit to the American people.

Barack Obama Opposed Raising the Debt Ceiling… in 2006

On November 16, the Washington Times published in its editorial a speech of Senator Barack Obama to the Senate, dated March 16, 2006. Some key statements stand out: “Raising the debt ceiling is a sign of leadership failure. It shows our government’s reckless fiscal policies. It weakens us domestically and internationally”… and so on. Now President Barack Obama supports raising the debt ceiling. What has changed, Mr. President?

“The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. government can’t pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our government’s reckless fiscal policies. Over the past five years, our federal debt has increased by $3.5 trillion to $8.6 trillion. That is ‘trillion’ with a ‘T.’ That is money that we have borrowed from the Social Security trust fund, borrowed from China and Japan, borrowed from American taxpayers. And over the next five years, between now and 2011, the president’s budget will increase the debt by almost another $3.5 trillion. [Today, it is almost $ 17 trillion.] …

“If Washington were serious about honest tax relief in this country, we would see an effort to reduce our national debt by returning to responsible fiscal policies… the Senate continues to reject a return to the common-sense pay-go rules that used to apply. Previously, pay-go rules applied both to increases in mandatory spending and to tax cuts. The Senate had to abide by the common-sense budgeting principle of balancing expenses and revenues. Unfortunately, the principle was abandoned, and now the demands of budget discipline apply only to spending.

“… we must remember that the more we depend on foreign nations to lend us money, the more our economic security is tied to the whims of foreign leaders whose interests might not be aligned with ours. Increasing America’s debt weakens us domestically and internationally… America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America’s debt limit.”

Building a De-Americanized World

Fox News reported on October 13:

“China’s official news agency is calling for a ‘de-Americanized world,’ in a blistering editorial characterizing the United States as a ‘meddling’ and ‘hypocritical’ nation that introduces chaos into the world for its own ends. ‘As U.S. politicians of both political parties are still shuffling back and forth between the White House and the Capitol Hill without striking a viable deal to bring normality to the body politic they brag about, it is perhaps a good time for the befuddled world to start considering building a de-Americanized world,’ writes the Xinhua News Agency.

“‘Meanwhile, the U.S. government has gone to all lengths to appear before the world as the one that claims the moral high ground, yet covertly doing things that are as audacious as torturing prisoners of war, slaying civilians in drone attacks, and spying on world leaders…  Such alarming days when the destinies of others are in the hands of a hypocritical nation have to be terminated, and a new world order should be put in place, according to which all nations, big or small, poor or rich, can have their key interests respected and protected on an equal footing,’ writes Xinhua.”

Even though China is most certainly a country which is guilty of hypocrisy, it is interesting that even those countries find the audacity to attack the US of actions which they are guilty of themselves… and worse.

“The US Is Losing Control of the Internet”

The website wired.co.uk published this article, dated October 12, with wide-reaching consequences:

“All of the major internet organisations have pledged, at a summit in Uruguay, to free themselves of the influence of the US government. The directors of ICANN, the Internet Engineering Task Force, the Internet Architecture Board, the World Wide Web Consortium, the Internet Society and all five of the regional Internet address registries have vowed to break their associations with the US government… In another part of the statement, the group ‘expressed strong concern over the undermining of the trust and confidence of Internet users globally due to recent revelations of pervasive monitoring and surveillance’.

“Meanwhile, it was announced that the next Internet Governance Summit would be held in Brazil, whose president has been extremely critical of the US over web surveillance. In a statement announcing the location of the summit, Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said: ‘The United States and its allies must urgently end their spying activities once and for all.’”

Everyone seems to be ganging up on America. And severing Internet ties from the US government could have wide-ranging and terrible consequences for the USA.

Mideast Allies Bewildered by US Policy

The Times of Israel wrote on October 15:

“Finally, a reason to celebrate. Not only because, starting Tuesday, Iran will participate in negotiations in Geneva with the P5+1 over its nuclear program, but also because Tehran agreed to hold direct talks with representatives of the American government. This stands in stark contrast to the familiar Iranian policy that shirked any official contact with representatives of the ‘Great Satan.’… The End of Days must be upon us.

“And yet, as Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi’s words Monday night made clear, there has been no substantive change in Iran’s nuclear position that would alleviate concerns over its intentions to produce a nuclear bomb or to become a ‘threshold state.’ Indeed, Araqchi made clear that Iran ‘will not agree to cease the enrichment of uranium, even for one day.’

“Regarding the enriched uranium stores Iran already possesses, including quantities enriched to 20%, Araqchi, who is also the deputy head of Tehran’s nuclear negotiating team, was adamant that ‘we will not agree to transfer even one gram of enriched uranium out of Iran.’ He added that his country would be ready to negotiate over the level of uranium enrichment in the future, but Tehran repeatedly makes clear that the talks are contingent on the partial removal of Western sanctions as a goodwill gesture.

“Why the West needs to show goodwill toward Iran is not clear. Tehran may hint that it is ready to show some flexibility on its nuclear program, but that flexibility is not enough, or shouldn’t be — not for Israel and not for other countries in the West and in the Arab world. The persistent storing of enriched uranium, even at the 3.5% level, while Iran maintains its enrichment capacity through advanced centrifuges, combined with Tehran’s dubious record regarding supervision of its nuclear facilities, leave serious suspicion that Iran will try to secretly produce a nuclear bomb in the future.

“And still, some American media outlets have evidently been mesmerized by President Hassan Rouhani’s smile. The New York Times seems to be directing a campaign against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has said sanctions on Iran must not be removed and warned about the Islamic Republic’s true intentions. Certain Western journalists are possibly driven by the hope — and, perhaps, some degree of naivety — that the crisis will not require the use of force.

“But the anti-Netanyahu campaign misses (or ignores) the fact that the wary Israeli government, not surprisingly, enjoys the support of many Arab countries — including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE — which are not naive about Iran.

“On Sunday, the Saudi-owned newspaper a-Sharq al-Awsat published an editorial calling for Iran to be barred from enriching uranium altogether. Numerous WikiLeaks documents dealing with the Gulf States suggest that, with all due respect to the Palestinian question, what truly keeps Arab rulers awake at night is the fear that Iran will acquire a nuclear weapon, and will undermine their rule with terror attacks and orchestrated demonstrations. ‘Cut off the head of the snake,’ as Saudi King Abdullah reportedly put it.

“These are not paranoid visions or the brainchild of Netanyahu. These are real concerns of past and present American allies in the region, who gaze with wonder and bewilderment upon Washington’s foreign policy and struggle to understand why the US president rushes to telephone the president of Iran while almost simultaneously announcing that military aid to Egypt will be frozen. The voices from these states express concern again and again in light of the lack of coherence from the United States and what they perceive as its lack of understanding of what is really happening in the Middle East.

“How is it possible that precisely when Egypt’s government declares war on radical Islam, on terror, Washington prefers to flirt with its enemies — Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood? For Cairo, Riyadh, Amman and other capitals, the Obama administration — in negotiating with Iran and suspending aid to Egypt — is shooting itself in the foot, and wounding its allies in the process.”

America’s foreign policy is a disaster, but so is its domestic policy. Its downfall is inevitable, as clearly prophesied in Scripture. At the same time, Iran’s ambitions will lead to a rude awakening for many Western nations.

Obamacare’s Nightmare

Breitbart wrote on October 15:

“Constant ‘glitches’ keep people from logging into the exchanges. Humiliating live video of reporters normally favorable to Obamacare simply giving up in frustration because they cannot sign up. Consumers who are lucky enough to get through the system are stunned to learn that their premiums have skyrocketed by thousands of dollars. One Pennsylvania mother says that she can either pay her increased premiums or pay for her kids to eat, but she can’t do both.

“Extremely personal information has already leaked from the system in Minnesota. Software security experts from McAfee predict millions of identity theft victims. And one of the healthcare exchanges was forced to acknowledge that information collected from patients will be shared with law enforcement…

“The rollout has been such a nightmare that it is abundantly clear now that members of Congress really did not, as then-Speaker Pelosi admitted, even read the Obamacare bill before they passed it. In fact, the program’s launch has been such an unimaginable disaster that it raises an alarming new question that would have been unthinkable amid the exaggerated claims of health utopia from three years ago: Did President Obama even read this legislation before he signed it into law?

“This is the single most complex piece of legislation in U.S. history, and we citizen-patients have a right to know. Did anyone in the notoriously cozy establishment Washington press corps even ask him this basic question? Obamacare is a disaster and the American people know it…

“Which begs the question: where are the Republicans anyway?… Why aren’t Republicans telling the very real human stories of people losing their jobs and their doctors because of Obamacare? The president guaranteed that by 2013 the average family would see premiums reduced by $2,500. In reality, the average family has seen their premiums jacked up by $2,900, an eye-popping $5,400 miscalculation. What other predictions will prove to be horribly off?…

“When this debate began, President Obama guaranteed Americans that if we like our current insurance policies, we can keep them. If we like our current doctors, we can stay with them. Since then, millions have been kicked off their company insurance. More than 750,000 New Jersey residents have been notified that their former policies no longer meet new government mandates and will be discontinued… almost one-third of doctors report their unwillingness to accept patients from newly expanded governmental programs.

“Meanwhile, Obamacare supporters continue to call it ‘universal’ coverage. And the media is totally complicit. The fact is, the massive new bureaucracy will extend coverage to only 27 million of the 56 million uninsured under current official government projections for 2020. Ultimately, Washington is going to take over 1/6 of our economy to try to fix less than half of the total uninsured problem. This is madness…”

The government’s incompetency regarding the “Affordable Care Act” is stunning, mind-boggling and truly appalling at the same time.

Politicians Have Turned Their Back on God

Newsmax reported on October 14:

“Franklin Graham tells Newsmax that the nation is ‘in a mess’ because politicians ‘have turned their backs on God.’ ‘Our country is in a mess, no question, and it seems like we’re just in an ever-tightening spiral downward, and it doesn’t seem as if anybody is listening to what is happening,’ Graham said Monday on Newsmax TV.

“‘We, as a nation, we’ve turned our back on God. Politicians have turned their backs on God. They have taken God out of our schools, out of just about everything you can imagine, and now we find ourselves in great danger,’ said Graham, son of renowned evangelist Billy Graham.”

Who should be surprised about man’s departure from the true God when “even” the pope proclaims that atheists can go to heaven, as he did recently. Also, please see the next article for more reactions to the pope’s non-traditional views.

Catholic Conservatives Question the Pope

The Washington Post wrote on October 14:

“Rattled by Pope Francis’s admonishment to Catholics not to be ‘obsessed’ by doctrine, his stated reluctance to judge gay people and his apparent willingness to engage just about anyone — including atheists — many conservative Catholics are doing what only recently seemed unthinkable: They are openly questioning the pope…

“During the previous three decades, popes John Paul II and Benedict shared a focus: Make orthodox teachings crystal clear so Catholics don’t get lost in an increasingly messy, relativistic world… Some Catholics feel Francis is resurfacing fights that followed the Second Vatican Council of the 1960s. Conservatives felt liberal Catholics misinterpreted the Council’s intention and took ‘open’ too far.

“The last two popes seemed to agree, making a priority of establishing ‘Catholic identity’ among people and institutions by emphasizing the importance of crystal-clear doctrine… Conservatives who perceive too much ambiguity in Francis’s remarks were heartened to note that the pope in recent weeks excommunicated a priest who spoke in favor of women’s ordination, gave some of his most anti-abortion comments and called a rare Synod on the Family, which they believe will be a vehicle for reinforcing orthodoxy . But so far they have not garnered the same kind of attention as the pope conversing with an atheist.”

Still, the pope will not deviate from Catholic core doctrines—and from the Catholic Church’s long-held historic position of allegedly being the “Mother Church” wanting to bring most Christian and also some non-Christian religions into its fold.

Germany’s Armed Forces

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 15:

“In Afghanistan, dangerous combat has helped post-war Germany’s reluctant armed forces gain self-confidence and expertise… The German military entered Afghanistan over a decade ago as a peacekeeping force tasked with aiding in the reconstruction and development of infrastructure and civil society. Today, it leaves the country as a combat force that engaged in deadly warfare.

“The evolving role of the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces, in the conflict has helped to dramatically reshape it as a more experienced and capable fighting operation…  ‘Afghanistan has been the most important experience for the German armed forces. It was the first time since World War II that the German military was involved in real combat action,’ says retired General Harald Kujat, the former Chief of Staff of the Bundeswehr from 2000-2002 and former Chairman of the NATO Military Committee from 2002-2005. Kujat says the Afghanistan experience has created a new generation of young officers with personal combat experience, contributing to a ‘more self-confident’ Bundeswehr. The expertise gained by many of these soldiers has made the Bundeswehr a more educated military, better able to weigh the pros and cons of war and what it is capable of contributing to a given mission, explains Kujat…

“The Bundeswehr’s development in Afghanistan into a ‘real fighting force’ has had a significant impact on recent reforms implemented by the Defense Ministry, says Christian Mölling, an international security associate with the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP). The ministry, Mölling explains, is working to streamline the Bundeswehr and make it a ‘highly deployable force.’ …

“Germany — the third-largest contributor to the US-led coalition in Afghanistan and the country responsible for Regional Command North — has lost 54 soldiers since 2002, 35 of whom died during attacks or fighting…

“Despite German reluctance to engage in future military endeavors, it is likely Germany will be called on to assist with future international armed missions, says Patrick Keller, an expert on foreign and security policy… ‘It may not be too far-fetched that we will have to be prepared to act’ in potential conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa region or in central and eastern Europe, argues Keller…

“But how much responsibility is Germany actually willing to bear? The question comes back to the broader issue of Germany’s hesitation to play a leading role in European Union and global affairs. ‘Germany has a great difficulty in taking on leadership. We don’t want to be in a leadership position,’ be it about security issues or the euro-zone crisis, says Stefani Weiss, a European foreign and security policy expert at the Bertelsmann Stiftung.  Similarly, SWP’s Mölling says Germany could play a ‘significant and positive’ role within NATO and the EU on defense issues given its central location in Europe, if it were not for a lack of political will…

“But parliamentarian Kiesewetter suggests Germany should begin to take on a greater leadership role in helping Europe develop a cohesive security policy and a shared military apparatus… ‘There is a need for leadership within the EU,’ he says. ‘Germany could be a partner to create synergy between EU states … to take over responsibility where others are not willing to.’”

And Germany will…

Powerful Cyclone Hits India

The New York Times reported on October 13, 2013:

“A powerful cyclone whose spinning arms engulfed much of the Bay of Bengal weakened Sunday morning as it crashed into India’s eastern coast, flooding homes and roads throughout the region and disrupting electricity and communications. The authorities evacuated about 800,000 people, one of the largest such evacuations in India’s history. The storm’s maximum sustained winds… were approximately 124 miles per hour when the storm made landfall about 9 p.m. Saturday…”

NBC News reported on October 14:

“A deadly cyclone which slammed into the coast of India has caused the loss of $4 billion worth of crops across an area the size of Delaware, local media reported Monday. Cyclone Phailin hit the state of Orissa on Saturday and is the most destructive to affect the subcontinent in 14 years.”

Terrible natural disasters prior to Jesus’ return are prophesied. Also note the next two articles.

Powerful Earthquake in the Philippines

NBC News reported on October 15:

“A magnitude-7.2 earthquake struck in the central Philippines on Tuesday morning, killing 82 people and severely damaging some of the country’s most hallowed churches, authorities said. The earthquake hit at 8:12 a.m. (5:12 p.m. Monday ET) less than a mile from the town of Carmen in Bohol province, the U.S. Geological Survey and Philippine emergency authorities said. Carmen is in a remote region across the Cebu Strait about 40 miles from Cebu City.”

Storm In South Dakota Kills 100,000 Cattle

Fox News reported on October 13:

“Ranchers in South Dakota fear they may lose everything after a freak storm dumped up four feet of snow in parts of the state last week, killing as many as 100,000 cattle. Matt Kammerer, a 45-year-old rancher whose family has operated in South Dakota’s Meade County since 1882, told FoxNews.com that he lost 60 cattle in the storm, or one-third of his entire herd…

“Kammerer painted a gruesome scene north of Rapid City, where a record 23 inches of snow fell… ‘There are cattle that are 8 or 9 miles away from the pasture they were in, just lying dead. And within that whole stretch, it’s just dead cow after dead cow, where they’ve gotten caught in dams, streams, fences, you name it. They’re dead everywhere.’ Carcasses of mature cows as well as calves were floating downstream local waterways in droves, Kammerer said, stoking fears of a potential outbreak of disease…

“Most ranchers in the state lost anywhere between 50 to 75 percent of their herds… Aside from the economic losses… the unprecedented storm has left an ‘incredible emotional burden’ on the state’s ranchers…”

Our Government Is Responsible to God

The Huntington Post wrote on October 3:

“One of the most depressing things I heard on the first day of the government shutdown was that it was a record fundraising day for both parties. Washington, D.C., is no longer about governing; it is just about winning and losing. But the people who will lose the most during a government shutdown — and then an impending United States government default on paying its debts — are those who live day to day on their wages, those at the lower end of the nation’s economy, and the poorest and most vulnerable who are always hurt the most in a crisis like this…

“Jeremiah, speaking of King Josiah, said, ‘He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well.’ The subsequent line is very revealing:  ‘“Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the Lord’ (Jer. 22:16). Of Solomon, the Scriptures say, through the words of the queen of Sheba, ‘Because the Lord loved Israel forever, he has made you king to execute justice and righteousness’ (1 Kings 10:9). Psalm 72 begins with a prayer for kings or political leaders: ‘Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to a king’s son. May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice. … May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor’ (Ps. 72:1-4).

“… government… needs to play the important and modest role of servant. The criteria for evaluation and judgment of civil authority is whether it is serving the people, whether it is guarding their security, whether it is maintaining a positive and peaceful social order, whether it is helping to make the lives of its citizens better, and, in particular, whether it is protecting the poor… Transparency, accountability, and service are the ethics of good government. ‘Of the people, by the people, and for the people’ is still a good measure and goal of civil authority. But people of faith will ascribe ultimate authority only to God, to whom civil authority will always be accountable.”

American Confidence in Economy and Government at Frightening Low

The Huffington Post wrote on October 8:

“The partial government shutdown has Americans nearly as freaked out about the economy as the event that triggered the 2008 financial crisis, according to a new survey by Gallup. U.S. economic confidence last week suffered its biggest one-week drop since Lehman Brothers collapsed on September 15, 2008, Gallup reported…

“If lawmakers do not increase the country’s borrowing limit by October 17, the government won’t have enough money to pay its bills and will be at risk of defaulting on some of its debt. Although it is difficult to predict what will happen if Congress does not come to an agreement by then, several experts have warned that a U.S. default would ignite an economic crisis much larger than the global disaster that followed the end of Lehman.”

In this context, the following article by Breitbart, dated October 8, is quite revealing:

“A new Fox News poll shows that a majority of American voters–58 percent–would vote ‘no’ on raising the debt ceiling. Only 37 percent of American voters would vote to raise the debt ceiling. An even bigger majority–62 percent–would only vote to raise the debt ceiling after ‘major cuts in government spending.’…”

“According to The Washington Times, dated October 10, “The number of American voters who think the country is headed in the right direction fell by 11 percentage points over the past week, placing it at its lowest level in two years, according to a new Rasmussen Reports survey. Just 17 percent of likely voters said they think the United States is on the right track, a sign that the ongoing government shutdown and fight over the debt limit is taking its toll on public confidence.”

One has to wonder on what planet the 17 percent live who believe the country is heading in the right direction…

China Warns the USA

The Independent wrote on October 8:

“China, the biggest foreign creditor of the United States, has waded into the American budget crisis, warning Congress that it must resolve the political impasse over the debt ceiling without further delay.

“The Chinese Vice Foreign Minister, Zhu Guangyao, told America’s deadlocked politicians on Monday that ‘the clock is ticking’… ‘We ask that the United States earnestly takes steps to resolve in a timely way the political issues around the debt ceiling and prevent a US debt default to ensure the safety of Chinese investments in the United States,’  Mr Zhu told reporters in Beijing. ‘This is the United States’ responsibility,’ he added…”

At the same time, President Obama and Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner, have been accusing each other publically for causing the shutdown [now in its 10th day], while the media is wading in and taking sides, making a meaningful agreement between Republicans and Democrats even more difficult. Fox News reported on October 10: “A Republican proposal to approve a short-term increase in the debt ceiling was thrown into doubt late Thursday, as Senate Democrats insisted the partial government shutdown be lifted before talks can proceed — and a White House meeting broke up with no deal announced.”

America’s Downfall

MarketWatch wrote on October 8:

“Foreign policy analysts at home and abroad have been predicting for years the inevitable decline of American power, often with a fair amount of schadenfreude and sometimes even with glee. But now that political dysfunction in Washington is accelerating, the downsizing of the world’s only remaining superpower, all you hear is whining… So what did you expect American decline to look like?

“Get used to it, folks… So sad. The end of the American gravy train really is in sight… the nightmare is likely to continue for some time, with unforeseeable consequences for us and for the rest of the world… we are in the process of destroying our democracy. Sooner or later, history tells us, the United States of America will go the way of Rome and other empires…”

Swearing in Court

The Daily Mail wrote on October 6:

“Defendants and witnesses in British courts will no longer swear on the Bible to tell the truth under controversial plans being considered by a powerful body of judges… Existing religious oaths have, for hundreds of years, required Christian witnesses to hold the Bible and state: ‘I swear by almighty God that I shall tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.’

“Followers of other faiths are given copies of their sacred texts with Muslims swearing on the Koran and Jews on the Old Testament, for instance. Those who choose instead to make an affirmation are required to ‘solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and affirm’ the truth of their evidence.

“Under [the new] proposal,  the holy books would be removed and the oath would read: ‘I promise very sincerely to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth and I understand that if I fail to do so I will be committing an offence for which I will be punished and may be sent to prison.’”

Under New Testament injunctions, Christians should indeed not swear or raise their right hand in court, but instead affirm to tell the truth. From that standpoint, a simple sincere promise to tell the truth would indeed be the preferable course of action in court settings.

Scalia: The Devil Is Alive

CNN wrote on October 7:

“As the Supreme Court begins its new term Monday, the devil is not on the docket – but the Evil One apparently is on the mind of Justice Antonin Scalia. New York magazine has published a fascinating new interview with Scalia in which the outspoken jurist tackled a number of topics. But none seemed to surprise Scalia’s interviewer, Jennifer Senior, more than his views on Satan… [Scalia] is one of a record six Catholic justices on the Supreme Court… the justice said… ‘I even believe in the devil.’…

“Scalia said the devil has gotten ‘wilier’ and convinced people that he and God don’t exist. The justice added… that disbelief in God ‘certainly favors the devil’s desires… Jesus Christ believed in the devil! It’s in the Gospels! You travel in circles that are so, so removed from mainstream America that you are appalled that anybody would believe in the devil! Most of mankind has believed in the devil, for all of history. Many more intelligent people than you or me have believed in the devil.’”

Left-liberal newspapers and websites such as CNN scoff at the idea of a devil, but the devil is real and very much alive. Please read our free booklet, “Angels, Demons and the Spirit World.”

Graham: Immoral America and Christ’s Return

Newsmax wrote on October 6:

“In an exclusive interview… Billy Graham tells Newsmax that President Obama’s ‘hope and change’ mantra is nothing more than a cliché and warns that the nation faces increasing threats to civil and religious liberties from its government. Graham… said America is drenched in a ‘sea of immorality’ and suggested that the second coming of Christ is ‘near.’ … ‘Our country is turning away from what has made it so great,’ he continued, ‘but far greater than the government knowing our every move that could lead to losing our freedom to worship God publicly, is to know that God knows our every thought; he knows our hearts need transformation.’…

“Many believing Christians believe in a coming Armageddon, a final battle between good and evil prophesied in the book of Revelation. Graham tells Newsmax it is not wise to ‘speculate’ about the dates of such a battle, but he adds that the Bible says that there ‘will be signs pointing toward the return of the Lord. I believe all of these signs are evident today,’ Graham wrote, adding that ‘the return of Christ is near. Regardless of what society says, we cannot go on much longer in the sea of immorality without judgment coming,’ he says.”

Amen.

Vatican Comes Out Strong

The Local wrote on October 10:

“The Vatican pledged on Thursday to take action against a German diocese which gives out Holy Communion to Catholic divorcees who have re-married. The Freiburg diocese in southern Germany said it would give communion to the divorcees in defiance of official Catholic policy which has upset the Vatican…

“The Vatican already condemned the decision on Tuesday with spokesman Federico Lombardi saying it risked causing ‘confusion’ and did not mean that Catholic Church policy on the issue had changed.

“Under Catholic doctrine, marriage is for life and breaking the sacrament means not being able to receive the Eucharist if the marriage is not officially annulled by an ecclesiastical court.”

The Catholic Church will remain steadfast to its hard-and-core doctrines, even though they are not in harmony with the Bible. The Vatican’s position on divorce and remarriage is clearly unbiblical.

US Guilty of Kidnapping a Libyan Citizen?

The Washington Times wrote on October 7:

“Libya’s interim government is seeking answers after U.S. special forces over the weekend captured al Qaeda operative Abu Anas al-Libi in Tripoli, calling the operation a ‘kidnapping of a Libyan citizen.’… From Indonesia where he is attending a regional summit, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said al-Libi is a ‘legal and an appropriate target for the U.S. military under the Authorization of the Use of Military Force’ enacted in September 2001.

“Libyan authorities called the raid ‘news,’ indicating they did not know about the raid before it happened. The U.S. and Libya have no status of forces agreement that would allow U.S. military operations on Libyan soil.”

CNN added on October 8:

“Libya’s General National Congress on Tuesday demanded that U.S. officials hand over al Libi, spokesman Omar Hmidan said. He also demanded that Libyan authorities and al Libi’s family have access to him in the meantime. The developments come as 200 heavily armed U.S. Marines headed to an Italian naval base, poised to fly at a moment’s notice to Libya should the U.S. Embassy come under assault from angry crowds in the wake of al Libi’s capture.”

Deutsche Welle reported on October 8:

“The US capture of a suspected al Qaeda chief from his own home in Libya once again puts the focus on the legality of Obama’s version of the ‘war on terror.’ The Libyan government’s role is also ambiguous… The Libyan government denies involvement and even fore-knowledge of the early morning commando raid, but eye-witness accounts (from al-Liby’s relatives) insist that Libyan soldiers were also involved.”

Deutsche Welle added on October 10:

“Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zidan has appealed for calm in his first comments since being freed from captivity earlier on Thursday. His abduction was in apparent retaliation for the US capture of an al Qaeda suspect.” It stated that “many militia groups accused the Libya government of colluding in the [US] operation…”

As it has been the case with other African and Middle Eastern nations, the Arab Spring will become a frosty winter for the US.

Germany to the Rescue?

BBC News wrote on October 6:

“Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has raised the possibility of Germany acting as a mediator to try to end his country’s 30-month-long civil war…

“Mr Assad said he ‘would be delighted if envoys came from Germany’. But he stressed that Damascus would not negotiate with rebels unless they laid down their weapons. Mr Assad again denied claims that his troops had used chemical weapons, blaming the rebels instead.”

However, as Deutsche Welle reported on October 8, “[current and soon former] German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle categorically rejected the offer”—that is, for now. In this context, please note the next extremely interesting article.

Germany To Lead a Holy Roman Empire in Europe

The Local wrote on October 8:

“In the last week Germany’s president Joachim Gauck has called on the country to take more responsibility in the international arena and told the Germans: ‘Our country is not an island.’… But is it time for Germany to step up on the global stage? At an event at the US Embassy in Berlin on Monday The Local asked US author and foreign policy expert Professor Walter Russell Mead for his view…

“Professor Mead argued German foreign policy has been relatively successful in Europe. Asked if Germany should play a greater global role, he said: ‘Germany is playing a larger role in the world than people appreciate… Europe is doing what it wants, in many ways led by Germany. We would hope Germany would continue to play the leading role it has played in the past.’

“Professor Mead… also praised Germany’s success in the Ukraine where the country has signed a deal with the EU, luring the country away from Russian influence… He added it was ‘quite remarkable’ that Germany had achieved this without it being perceived as some sort of German interference. This ‘quiet but very effective’ diplomacy ‘strikes me as an example that the world could use a lot more of and doesn’t appreciate enough,’ he added…

“On the subject of Europe and the Eurozone, Professor Mead… urged Germany to lead a Holy Roman Empire rather than a Prussian conquest. ‘Any discussion of Germany’s world role must begin with Europe,’ he told reporters…

“Professor Mead called for Germany to lead a Holy Roman Empire in Europe – a loose federation of states – instead of aggressively imposing austerity…  ‘Are you going to have a King of Prussia or the Holy Roman Emperor? The Holy Roman Emperor is the more sustainable…”

Those with ears to hear should listen. The Bible shows us that Germany will indeed lead another revival of the ancient Roman Empire… a final revival of ten nations or groups of nations under a “Holy Roman emperor”—the “beast.”

Fracking Produces Annual Toxic Waste Water Enough to Flood Washington DC

On October 4, the Guardian published an article with the following headline:

“Growing concerns over radiation risks as report finds widespread environmental damage on an unimaginable scale in the US.”

It continued:

“Fracking in America generated 280bn US gallons of toxic waste water last year – enough to flood all of Washington DC beneath a 22ft deep toxic lagoon, a new report out on Thursday found… The full extent of the damage posed by fracking to air and water quality had yet to emerge, the report said…

“A number of recent studies have highlighted the negative consequences of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, which have unlocked vast reservoirs of oil and natural gas from rock formations. There have been instances of contaminated wells and streams, as well as evidence of methane releases along the production chain…

“The report said the drilling industry had used 250bn gallons of fresh water since 2005. Much of that returns to the surface, however, along with naturally occurring radium and bromides, and concerns are growing about those effects on the environment.

“A study published this week by researchers at Duke University found new evidence of radiation risks from drilling waste water. The researchers said sediment samples collected downstream from a treatment plant in western Pennsylvania showed radium concentrations 200 times above normal… ‘Fracking waste-water discharged at treatment plants can cause a different problem for drinking water: when bromide in the wastewater mixes with chlorine (often used at drinking water treatment plants), it produces trihalomethanes, chemicals that cause cancer and increase the risk of reproductive or developmental health problems,’ the report said.”

The New York Times added on October 9:

“France and Bulgaria have already banned it, and in Britain the government’s attempts to promote it have led to heated demonstrations in the countryside. It is complicating Germany’s attempts to wean itself from fossil fuels and forcing Russia to recalibrate the energy-export strategy that sustains its economy.

“Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has already revolutionized the energy business in the United States, which is now 87 percent self-sufficient for gas, and it is transforming environmental policy, too. Now the temptation to follow the United States in extracting shale gas from rock on a large scale is presenting Europe with contentious trade-offs that could affect the Continent’s economic competitiveness, test its commitment to curbing climate change and determine its place in a 21st-century version of the Great Game.

“The early signs are that densely populated Europe, with citizens generally more sensitive to environmental concerns and more willing to tolerate high energy costs, is unlikely to embrace the technique as the Americans have. As an indication of the skepticism, European Union lawmakers gave initial approval on Wednesday to a measure requiring companies to conduct extensive environmental audits before fracking for shale gas.”

When Christ returns, He will “destroy” those who “destroy” the earth.

Overflowing Tank Cause of New Leak at Fukushima

The Associated Press reported on October 3:

“Another day, another radioactive-water spill. The operator of the crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant says at least 430 liters (110 gallons) spilled… The amount is tiny compared to the untold thousands of tons of radioactive water that have leaked, much of it into the Pacific Ocean, since a massive earthquake and tsunami wrecked the plant and sent it into meltdown in 2011. But the error is one of many the operator has committed as it struggles to manage a seemingly endless, tainted flow…

“The tank is one of about 1,000 erected on the grounds around the plant to hold water used to cool the melted nuclear fuel in the broken reactors… The overspill, the latest of several mishaps in less than a month, prompted the Nuclear Regulation Authority to summon the utility president and reprimand him in public… The new leak is sure to add to public concern and criticism of TEPCO and the government for their handling of the nuclear crisis. In August, the utility reported a 300-ton leak from another storage tank, one of a string of leaks in recent months. That came after the utility and the government acknowledged that contaminated groundwater was seeping into [the] ocean at a rate of 300 tons a day for some time…”

US Government Starts Shutting Down

The Los Angeles Times reported on September 31:

“U.S. government agencies were ordered to close for the first time in more than 17 years after lawmakers stalemated over Republican efforts to block President Obama’s healthcare law.

“More than 800,000 federal workers were to spend Tuesday, the first day of the new fiscal year, on unpaid furloughs as agency managers executed contingency plans for the costly process of closing down operations indefinitely.

“The official word to shut down came from the White House just before midnight Monday. Hours earlier, the Senate, by a 54-46 party-line vote, killed a House measure that would have funded government agencies for six weeks but delayed key parts of Obamacare for a year.”

This event is prompting big headlines in Germany. Conservative Bild On Line wrote: “Can America still be saved?” Conservative Focus On Line wrote: “This is ample testimony of the downfall of American’s democracy.” Conservative Die Welt wrote: “If there is not a change soon, America will go into recession and the whole world economy might be affected.” Also, shares fell and the US dollar dropped considerably towards the Euro. Left-liberal Die Zeit wrote that a handful of radicals is responsible for the standstill ,as they are not willing to compromise but try to force their ideology on the rest and are holding the country hostage.

America’s Superpower Status Ebbs Away

The Telegraph reported on October 1, 2013:

“For a country that is supposed to be the most powerful in the world, the fact that Americans have today woken up  to find large swathes of their nation closed for business is humiliating…

“While the White House insists that essential areas of the government, such as the military, will continue to function, the shut down represents yet a further blow to the prestige of the Obama administration at a time when it is still reeling from its inept handling of the recent Syrian crisis.

“There was a time not so long ago when the world looked to America for both political and economic leadership. But now that can no longer be taken for granted thanks to Mr Obama’s inability to provide decisive leadership on either front.

“Republicans rightly argue that by pressing ahead with Obamacare before the implications of the programme have been properly assessed risks adding to America’s debt mountain at a time when the American economy is still recovering from the biggest economic crisis in recent history.

“The emergence of Russia, meanwhile, as the main power broker in the Syria crisis has severely damaged America’s standing as a major global player.”

USA Politically Bankrupt

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 2:

“As the United States government shutdown enters its second day, Washington is the target of both ridicule and concern overseas. German commentators describe the situation as a ‘specifically American problem’ with far-reaching consequences.

“The illustration on the cover of German business daily Handelsblatt on Wednesday morning fairly well encapsulates the way the US federal government shutdown is being perceived across the Atlantic. The Statue of Liberty stands bound in chains, her torch hand hanging listlessly by her side. Across it reads the headline: ‘The Blocked World Power.’

“Many Germans have found it hard to understand American lawmakers’ inability to resolve their budget disagreements in time to prevent a shutdown of all nonessential government services, which went into effect at midnight on Monday night… Yet it was clear to many that the fallout would be far-reaching. ‘The whole world pays for America’s shutdown,’ reads a headline in the right-leaning daily Die Welt above an article about the consequences on the German economy. In the article, several prominent German economists registered disapproval. ‘If the Americans shoot themselves in the foot right now, it is highly dangerous for the entire global economy, and of course for the German export economy,’ warned Anton Böner, president of the Federal Association for German Wholesalers and Foreign Trade…

“The overwhelming consensus among the German press is that the Republicans are the most to blame for the gridlock… When it came to the Tea Party wing of the Republican Party, the German press was not pulling any punches…

“Munich’s national Süddeutsche Zeitung offers a slightly more depressing take, pointing blame at all sides. ‘What has already been apparent in America for a few years now is the self-destruction of one of the world’s oldest democracies… ‘At the moment, Washington is fighting over the budget and nobody knows if the county will still be solvent in three weeks,’ the paper concludes. ‘What is clear, though, is that America is already politically bankrupt.’”

Iran and US Talk

The New York Times reported on September 29, 2013:

“Iran’s foreign minister said on Sunday that there was a ‘real chance’ to reach an agreement with the United States over his country’s nuclear program, as long as Washington was prepared to end sanctions and recognize Tehran’s right to peaceful nuclear enrichment.

“Even as the country’s American-educated foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, was making his comments on ABC’s ‘This Week,’ his deputy in Iran, seeking to reassure hard-liners there, said Tehran would never fully trust the United States.

“The dueling narratives underscored the complexity of any rapprochement between the two countries, despite a series of unexpected public and private exchanges in recent weeks culminating in a historic phone call Friday between President Obama and Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani.

“While Mr. Zarif is widely believed to have the backing of the country’s supreme leader to at least give negotiations a try, hard-liners among the Iranian leadership are watching warily and could try to derail an agreement…

“In his comments on Sunday, Mr. Zarif signaled that Iran would be prepared to allow inspections, including unannounced ones, so long as they did not come in the form of demands from the United States.

“’We are willing to engage in negotiations,’ he said. ‘Of course, the United States also needs to do certain things very rapidly.’

“His statement that Iran’s ‘right to enrich is nonnegotiable’ also pointed toward a difference with the U.S. that is more than merely semantic. So far the United States has said only that the Iranians have a right to nuclear energy. The Iranians say that implies a right to enrich uranium; the West has previously negotiated deals, which ultimately fell apart, to provide Iran with nuclear fuel in a form that would be more difficult to weaponize.

“In Tehran, Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, sought to assure conservative factions that Iran remained skeptical of Washington and would not rush headlong into a deal.

“’Definitely, a history of high tensions between Tehran and Washington will not go back to normal relations due to a phone call, meeting or negotiation,’ Mr. Araghchi was quoted as saying by the semiofficial Fars news agency.

“’We never trust America 100 percent,’ he added. ‘And, in the future, we will remain on the same path.’”

Iran Taunts Israel

The Jerusalem Post wrote on October 2, 2013:

“Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Wednesday that Israel’s military threat has little substance, referring to it as a ‘sword’ which has gone ‘blunt,’ Iran’s Fars news agency reported.

“‘Israel is upset to see that its sword has gone blunt and Iran grows more powerful day by day,’ he said after a cabinet meeting in Tehran.

“Rouhani also told reporters that Israel’s aggressive discourse with regard to Iran ‘is the cause of our happiness.’

“Iranian Chief-of-Staff Hassan Firouzabadi said Wednesday that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s threat of a unilateral Israeli military strike on Iran ‘lacks stability,’ and stems from desperation,  Fars reported.

“After Netanyahu warned Iran against advancing its nuclear program in his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, the Iranian military chief told Fars that the use of a military threat is a method which is ‘rusted, old and blunt,’ and that Tehran’s nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

“‘Such remarks stem out of desperation,’ he added.

“Firouzabadi also told Fars that Netanyahu’s remarks had only served to ‘increase the threat against the Zionists.’ Referring to Netanyahu as a ‘warmonger,’ Firouzabadi said ‘Iran will be the winner in this case for its revolutionary stance of heroic flexibility.’

“Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Netanyahu and ‘the Zionist lobby’ were trying to hinder negotiations.

“‘We will not let Netanyahu determine the future of our talks,’ Zarif wrote on his Facebook page on Wednesday.”

Israel “Will Stand Alone”

The Jerusalem Post reported on October 1, 2013:

“A steadfast Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu made clear in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday that Israel would not accept a nuclear armed Iran, and would “stand alone” if necessary to achieve that aim.

“‘Israel will not allow Iran to obtain nuclear weapons, even if we have to stand alone. Yet in standing alone, Israel will know that we will be defending many, many others,’ he said.

“The prime minister dismissed the recent so-called ‘charm offensive’ by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, charging that while his predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, had been openly aggressive towards Israel, Rouhani was concealing his true intentions. The Iranians’ goal, Netanyahu said, was an end to the sanctions that have crippled the Iranian economy and which were implemented over Teheran’s intransigence on its atomic ambitions. It was with this goal in mind, Netanyahu said, that Rouhani was elected president.

“‘When it comes to Iran’s nuclear weapons program, the only difference between them is this: Ahmadinejad was a wolf in wolf’s clothing, Rouhani is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, a wolf who thinks he can pull the wool over the eyes of the international community,’ Netanyahu said.”

More and more, Israel is finding itself alone. Under President Obama, US relations with Israel continue to deteriorate. Biblical prophecy reveals that difficult times are ahead for the State of Israel.

France Wants Sunday Work

The Times of India reported on October 1, 2013:

“When economic inequalities helped foment the French Revolution, the legendary cry from on high was, ‘Let them eat cake!’ Now, as modern France struggles economically, the cry from below is, ‘Let us work!’

“As France battles high unemployment, rising taxes and pinched pocketbooks, the Socialist government has said its main focus is job creation. Now, critics of a more-than century-old law that prevents most stores from opening on Sundays say revising it would be a good step in that direction.

“Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault appeared to respond to that call on Monday, ordering a review of the law that labour unions and Roman Catholic faithful cherish, but that consumers — and increasingly some workers decry . Under French law, Sunday is a mandatory day off to help ensure rest and the quality of life, although some retailers in tourist areas can get exemptions . Critics say the protections go too far, crimping modern lifestyles and putting France at a competitive disadvantage . A sporadic debate revived last week after a court, ruling on an unfair-competition lawsuit brought by a rival hardware vendor, ordered home improvement chains Leroy Merlin and Castorama to shut 14 Paris-area stores on Sundays. It threatened fines of 1,20,000 ($1,62,000) on each store that violated the rules.

“The stores got temporary waivers, but their employees were growling —insisting that Sunday openings give them needed extra pay and suit customers who find it hard to shop during the work week bustle.”

Italian Government Suffers Downfall… Again!

Deutsche Welle wrote on September 30, 2013:

“The resignation of all five cabinet ministers from Berlusconi’s PdL party has sparked an outcry across Italy. For Prime Minister Enrico Letta it’s a new low in an already turbulent five months in office.

“Despair across Italy’s Sunday papers: Berlusconi’s latest move was ‘insanity,’ writes La Stampa as does the business paper Il Sole 24 Ore. Like a cry for help, the Corriere della Sera asks on its front page ‘Moderates, where are you?’. And Il Fatto Quotidiano runs a headline playing on Berlusconi’s recent court sentence: ‘The convicted is taking Italy down.’

“What did go down was the governing coalition in Rome, when on Saturday, five ministers from Berlusconi’s People of Freedom (PdL) party declared their resignation. In response, Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta on Sunday announced he would seek a confidence vote from both houses of parliament on Wednesday.
 
“The official reason given by the PdL was their rejection of a raise of the country’s VAT. ‘We cannot support a government that increases the tax burden for our citizens,’ former Prime Minister Berlusconi explained the decision…

“Berlusconi too kept popping up in the headlines – although he was not part of the cabinet he still was in charge of Letta’s junior coalition partner, the PdL. So far his numerous court cases have resulted in one conviction for tax fraud with several other cases still pending.

“Italy is going through its deepest recession in post war history and is heavily in debt. It needs a strong government, ready to push reforms and get the debt problem under control. Berlusconi is hoping for new elections, the sooner the better. President Napolitano though seeks to prevent that, saying he would only dissolve parliament if there is no other option left.”

Deutsche Welle added on October 3:

“Another big show: Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi knows how to craft a good story – and, as his stage, he uses the Senate floor. After building up tension for days, the showdown between him and Prime Minister Enrico Letta was supposed to come on Wednesday (02.10.2013). But just before noon, Berlusconi stepped out of his role as the bad guy, let the pistol fall from his hand and gave the young sheriff his blessing. Letta can carry on governing – thanks to Berlusconi…

“Perhaps that’s exactly what Berlusconi had planned, and the split in his own party – between Berlusconi loyalists ready to vote no and a group of dissidents who were prepared to support Letta – was nothing but a hoax. That’s not out of the question. As an old professional and master of communication, Berlusconi knows all the tricks. Over the last few weeks, he’s dominated Italian media with his U-turns, implying to the people that the fate of Italy is indissolubly linked to his own. So now, in spite of Berlusconi’s threats, the government has not fallen.”

Pope Francis Challenges the Status Quo

Der Spiegel Online reported on September 26, 2013:

“At the Vatican, a down-to-earth Pope Francis has been preaching humility and modesty. Many bishops in Germany, however, are having a hard time embracing a more austere lifestyle.

“Last week Rudolf Voderholzer, 54, the bishop of the Bavarian city of Regensburg and one of Germany’s younger church leaders, was taken to task at the Vatican by the pope himself. In an admonishment to the German bishop and others attending a seminar for new bishops in Rome, Francis said: ‘Be close to the people and live as you preach. Always be with your flock, do not succumb to careerism and ask yourselves whether you are truly living as you preach.’

“This is a new message for German princes of the church. Many of them have long cultivated a lifestyle oriented toward strict dogmas, prestige and a career within the church, much like former Pope Benedict XVI. But now that his successor arrives at meetings in an old car, there has been a fundamental shift. Loyalty to the pope is being completely redefined, and not just in Regensburg, where Voderholzer’s predecessor Gerhard Ludwig Müller, a fervent devotee of former Pope Benedict, alienated many Roman Catholics.

“This week, German bishops have a chance to discuss what the change at the Vatican means for them, as they meet for their annual Bishops’ Conference in the central German city of Fulda. There hasn’t been this much uncertainty within their ranks in a long time…

“The spirit of optimism among ordinary churchgoers has grown with virtually every gesture coming from the new pope. In his interview with Civiltà Cattolica, published last week, Francis made it clear that he is fundamentally changing the nature of discourse in the Catholic Church. According to Francis, the church should not constantly focus on controversies surrounding gays, women and celibacy. ‘We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods. This is not possible,’ he said. ‘The dogmatic and moral teachings of the church are not all equivalent. The church’s pastoral ministry cannot be obsessed with the transmission of a disjointed multitude of doctrines to be imposed insistently.’

“For Jesuit priest Klaus Mertes, who, as principal of Berlin’s Canisius School, unleashed the abuse scandal in Germany, the position of his fellow Jesuit and now pope is still revolutionary, even if Francis hasn’t abandoned any of the church’s strict principles. ‘If there is a change in the church’s practices, as well as in the way we interact with each other and with parishioners, the theory will also change in the end, and not the other way around.’ Many others share his hope.

“In their sermons, German bishops have repeatedly called upon pastors and parishioners alike to accept the church’s doctrine without question. ‘Obedience is love and not compulsion,’ Limburg Bishop Tebartz-van Elst said at an ordination ceremony for new priests.

“Ironically Francis who, as a Jesuit, was taught to be obedient and who, as pope, is entitled to demand obedience from every Catholic, is now breaking with this doctrine. ‘People get tired of authoritarianism,’ he said in his historic interview last week. ‘I lived a time of great interior crisis,’ he noted, only to recognize that ‘my authoritarian and quick manner of making decisions led me to have serious problems and to be accused of being ultraconservative.'”

German Reunification and the Losing Protestant Church

Deutsche Welle reported on October 3:

“Despite the Protestant Church having played a major role in the collapse of former East Germany, churches there today appear to have lost out – the region remains among the most non-religious in the world… In the movement to bring down the Berlin Wall, Protestant pastors and churchwardens opened their doors to protesters in the peaceful revolution. Many church leaders sought political change, and fought for German reunification. Joachim Gauck, now president of Germany, was one such religious leader.

“But despite the church’s paramount role in Germany’s reunification, hardly any other region in world is considered as ‘godless’ and non-religious as the former German Democratic Republic. So did Christianity lose out in the peaceful revolution that led to German reunification? Some eastern German churches have sought to evolve in response.”

New Circumcision Court Case

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 27:

“The Higher Regional Court of Hamm, a city in western Germany, has concretized the law regulating culturally and religiously motivated circumcision, ruling that parents and doctors need to discuss any impending procedure with children.

“Circumcision has become a highly fraught subject in Germany since 2012, when a Higher Regional Court in Cologne decided that religious circumcision of boys constituted ‘bodily harm.’ That case involved a 4-year-old boy who, two days after being circumcised according to the wishes of his Muslim parents, was brought to the emergency room due to profuse bleeding. The prosecutor then brought charges against the doctor who had performed the circumcision.

“While the doctor was ultimately acquitted, the court decided that a child’s right to self-determination superceded his parents’ right to freedom of religion. The decision prompted widespread uproar, particularly among Jewish and Muslim groups and as far away as Turkey, Israel and the United States. Germany’s Central Council of Jews called it ‘an unprecedented and dramatic intrusion on the right to self-determination of religious communities.’ Ali Demir, the chairman of the Islamic Religious Community, argued that circumcision is a ‘harmless procedure, a tradition that is thousands of years old and highly symbolic.’

“Ultimately, the Bundestag, Germany’s parliament, passed a law allowing the religious procedure. According to the new rules, specially qualified members of religious communities can perform the operation in the first six months of a boy’s life, after which it must be performed by a physician.”

Non-Binding European Resolution Condemns Religious Circumcision

JTA added on October 2:

“A resolution that calls male ritual circumcision a ‘violation of the physical integrity of children’ was passed overwhelmingly by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

“The council, a pan-European intergovernmental organization, debated and passed the resolution on Tuesday based on a report by the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development led by German rapporteur Marlene Rupperecht. The resolution passed by a vote of 78 in favor and 13 against, with 15 abstentions.

“The resolution calls on states to ‘clearly define the medical, sanitary and other conditions to be ensured for practices such as the non-medically justified circumcision of young boys.’ It also calls on member states to ‘initiate a public debate, including intercultural and interreligious dialogue, aimed at reaching a large consensus on the rights of children to protection against violations of their physical integrity according to human rights standards’ and to ‘adopt specific legal provisions to ensure that certain operations and practices will not be carried out before a child is old enough to be consulted.’”

Killer Hornets!

BBC wrote on October 2, 2013:

“Attacks by hornets in northern China have killed 41 people since July, state-run media report.

“More than 1,600 people have also been injured by stings in Shaanxi province, according to China News Agency.

“It says 206 people are still being treated in hospital, with 37 patients remaining in a critical condition…

“The Chinese term for hornets is ‘hu feng’ – those behind the deadly attacks this summer appear to be the Asian giant hornet, or Vespa mandarinia.

“They can grow up to 5cm long with a 6mm sting.

“The area is also home to the smaller Asian hornet, Vespa velutina nigrithorax.”

The Gambia Leaves Commonwealth

BBC News reported on October 3:

“The Gambia’s decision to withdraw from the Commonwealth 48 years after joining is something to ‘very much regret’, the UK Foreign Office has said. The west African nation branded the 54-member grouping, which includes the UK and most of its former colonies, a ‘neo-colonial institution’. The withdrawal was announced on state TV but no other reasons were given…”

Pope Francis Takes a Stand

swampland.time.com wrote on September 5, 2013:

“Pope Francis has written a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, host of the G-20 summit that President Obama is attending, urging world leaders to oppose a military intervention in Syria.

“’To the leaders present, to each and every one, I make a heartfelt appeal for them to help find ways to overcome the conflicting positions and to lay aside the futile pursuit of a military solution,” the Pope urged. ‘Rather, let there be a renewed commitment to seek, with courage and determination, a peaceful solution through dialogue and negotiation of the parties, unanimously supported by the international community.’

“The move is the latest in a series of efforts by the Holy See to prevent military action in the already civil-war torn region. On Sunday, the Pope declared in his Angelus teaching that Saturday Sept. 7 would be an day of fasting and prayer for peace in Syria. The prayer rally will take place in St. Peter’s Square from 7 p.m. to midnight, on the vigil of the birth of Mary, the Queen of Peace. ‘Let us ask Mary to help us to respond to violence, to conflict and to war, with the power of dialogue, reconciliation and love,’ the Pope asked people around the world. ‘She is our mother: may she help us to find peace; all of us are her children!’

“Next Pope Francis took his views on Syria to Twitter. On Monday he tweeted, ‘War never again! Never again war!’ and ‘How much suffering, how much devastation, how much pain has the use of arms carried in its wake.’ On Tuesday, he tweeted ‘We want in our society, torn apart by divisions and conflict, that peace break out!’ and ‘With utmost firmness I condemn the use of chemical weapons.’ Today his social media message was, ‘With all my strength, I ask each party in the conflict not to close themselves in solely on their own interests. #prayforpeace.’

“Cardinal Dolan and leaders of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops followed the Pope’s lead and wrote to every member of Congress today urging them to vote against military intervention in Syria. Yesterday the USCCB also wrote to President Obama, reminding him that the Pope and Middle Eastern Bishops ‘have made it clear that a military attack will be counterproductive, will exacerbate an already deadly situation, and will have unintended negative consequences.’ Dolan also asked Catholics to urge their representatives in Washington to vote against a military strike.

“The Vatican, which almost always stops short of taking sides in international issues, historically holds to just war theory, which requires a military defense meet a set of strict qualifications, including that ‘the damage inflicted by the aggressor on the nation or community of nations must be lasting, grave, and certain,’ ‘all other means of putting an end to it must have been shown to be impractical or ineffective,’ and ‘the use of arms must not produce evils and disorders graver than the evil to be eliminated.’

“Pope Francis’ response to Syria is in line with how his predecessors handled international conflicts. Pope Benedict XVI expressed concerns over the military intervention in Libya. Pope John Paul II continually and strongly spoke out against the US-led war in Iraq. The US and the Vatican squared off during the 1989 Panama invasion when dictator Manuel Noriega took refuge in the Vatican embassy.”

The Telegraph also reported on the Pope’s intervention in the debate on the Syrian conflict on September 5, 2013:

“Foreign ambassadors were summoned to a briefing by Dominique Mamberti, the Vatican’s foreign secretary, on Thursday, on the Pope’s appeals to halt hostilities in Syria.

“The Pope’s push for a peaceful solution in Syria includes a four-hour vigil to be held in St Peter’s Square on Saturday evening. The Vatican will station 50 confessors around the square. Bishops’ conferences around the world have announced local vigils.

“An official at the Vatican’s justice and peace office warned earlier this week that military action in Syria could spark a world war. In a tweet this week, the Pope wrote: ‘War never again! Never again war!’

“The Pope, who is a Jesuit, has been backed in his criticism of a military strike on Syria by the head of the Jesuits, Father Adolfo Nicolas.

“In an interview with the Independent Catholic News, posted on September 4, Father Nicolas said a strike would be ‘an abuse of power’.

“‘I cannot understand who gave the United States or France the right to act against a country in a way that will certainly increase the suffering of the citizens of that country, who, by the way, have already suffered beyond measure,’ he said.

“In a stinging attack on the White House, he said: ‘The US has to stop acting and reacting like the big boy of the neighbourhood of the world. This leads inevitably to abuse, harassment and bullying of the weaker members of the community.

“‘We, Jesuits, support 100 per cent the Holy Father and wish with all our hearts that the threatened attack on Syria does not take place.'”

As Pope Francis begins to assert himself in world affairs, it will be interesting to note the support of the powerful Jesuits and the unifying influence this is already having on the Catholic Church. On the other hand, we might expect another power struggle to occur between the Pope and forces within the Vatican.

G-20 Leaders in Disarray

SPIEGEL ONLINE reported on September 6, 2013, on the recent summit:

“The G-20 summit ended worse than expected on Friday — with acrimony, division and name-calling over Syria. The conference, which was originally conceived as an economic forum, also failed to deliver results on global recovery.

“In the end, even a meeting between Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin failed to deliver results. Participants at the G-20 summit in St. Petersburg couldn’t manage to find a common position on Syria. The American president demanded that punitive action be taken against Syria, but his Russian counterpart stood between Obama and his allies. Now any decision on a possible military strike against Damascus will be up to the US Congress…

“One can certainly debate whether it makes sense to conduct a military strike. Critics correctly note that a limited bombing attack would do little change the situation in Syria. Besides, the European Union hasn’t even been able to agree to a common position. Countries like France and Britain support military efforts, even if the British will not be participating themselves now that the House of Commons rejected a direct role in Syria. And other European countries oppose any attempt by the United States to go it alone. A third group, which includes Germany, doesn’t want to commit…

“Though bringing Syrians to the table will be difficult, bridging the gap between Russia and the US will be equally complicated. Diplomatic relations between the two nations have hit rock bottom at this week’s G-20 summit. Not only did Putin openly call Secretary of State John Kerry a liar, Obama’s deputy national security adviser, Ben Rhodes, said that Russia had contributed nothing to a solution in Syria. Verbal disarmament is unlikely — the discussion will only become more heated.”

With the foregoing articles in mind, what has since transpired regarding Syria is simply mind-boggling–as more recent news will show.

Putin to the Rescue!

The New York Times reported on September 9, 2013:

“President Obama woke up Monday facing a Congressional defeat that many in both parties believed could hobble his presidency. And by the end of the day, he found himself in the odd position of relying on his Russian counterpart, Vladimir V. Putin, of all people, to bail him out.

“The surprise Russian proposal to defuse the American confrontation with Syria made a tenuous situation even more volatile for a president struggling to convince a deeply skeptical public of the need for the United States to respond militarily in yet another Middle Eastern country, this time in retaliation for the use of chemical weapons. It could make the situation even more precarious. Or it could give Mr. Obama an escape from a predicament partly of his own making.

“In effect, Mr. Obama is now caught between trying to work out a deal with Mr. Putin, with whom he has been feuding lately, or trying to win over Republicans in the House who have made it their mission to block his agenda. Even if he does not trust Mr. Putin, Mr. Obama will have to decide whether to treat the Russian proposal seriously or assume it is merely a means of obstructing an American military strike…

“The twists and turns in the Syria debate have whipsawed the nation’s capital and by some accounts imperiled Mr. Obama’s presidency. Democrats are mystified and in some cases livid with Mr. Obama for asking Congress to decide the matter instead of simply ordering one or two days of strikes and getting it over with.”

President Obama’s Classic Dilemma

DW wrote on September 10, 2013:

“US President Barack Obama’s zigzag course on Syria has not only strengthened his adversaries and weakened his supporters. He has failed at his most important task as president, writes DW’s Michael Knigge.

“Decisions on war and peace, over life and death, are a major part of the job description for the office of US president. President Obama made a point of pointing that out during his first term in office: ‘When a problem has a clear solution, it does not land on my desk. The only things I decide are the difficult things,’ he once said in an interview.

“However, as far as the crisis in Syria is concerned, Obama has not done that. It took months of violence before the president finally took a stand and demanded that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad step down. Military intervention and arming the opposition were excluded. The consequences: none…

“To be sure: there are cogent reasons for and against a military strike, but there is no silver bullet. The risks outweigh the possible benefits in both alternatives. It is a classic dilemma.

“But that is exactly why US presidents are elected – for just these kinds of situations, where there are only bad options.

“And when someone goes about saying he is the man for the tough decisions, as Obama did, then one expects he will live up to this standard in a time of crisis.

“Obama has not done so.

“Since the start of the Syrian crisis two and a half years ago, Obama has waited and waffled and played for time. He has not been a leader; he has not acted, but only reacted, after pressure from his own Cabinet, the opposition, the British parliament and events in Syria. A real Syria strategy is not even remotely visible.”

A Hard Sell for Mr. Obama

CNN wrote on September 11, 2013:

“President Barack Obama tried Tuesday to sell a military intervention he never wanted to an American public that opposes it, telling the nation that he needed authorization to attack Syria as leverage in a newly emerged diplomatic opening from Russia.

“Calling the United States ‘the anchor of global security,’ Obama offered moral, political and strategic arguments for being ready to launch limited military strikes while trying to negotiate a diplomatic solution to what he called Syria’s violation of a global ban on chemical weapons.

“‘Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security, are at stake in Syria, along with our leadership of a world where we seek to ensure that the worst weapons will never be used,’ Obama said in making the case that the United States must act when dictators such as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad ‘brazenly’ violate international treaties intended to protect humanity.”

At this point the second-guessing of the US President is rampant, but one inescapable fact does stand out–the United States is coming away from this misadventure with an eroded world position. The pride of our power is being broken!

Europe–the Global Player

EUObserver reported on September 4, 2013:

“Everything considered, Europe is still the most important global player in the Middle East.

“The US has armed forces and capacities. Russia and China have overt and covert interests, but Europe is the real player.

“Despite the criticism and the slowness, awkwardness and contradictory interests of its member states, it is still the only player truly changing and affecting the Middle East.

“No wonder then that most of the region’s peace initiatives have been linked to Europe, from Rhodes in 1949, via Madrid, to Oslo and the Geneva accord in 2003.

“The US is needed to close the deal, but without Europe nothing can be started. That is why, while all shallow glances are directed at US secretary of state John Kerry, well-informed observers instead look to Europe.”

The author of this article “was the speaker of the Knesset from 1999 to 2003 and is a former chairman of the Jewish Agency and the World Zionist Organisation.”

EU Military Integration Coming!

EUObserver reported on September 4, 2013:

“Europe should create a civilian and military crisis operations HQ under EU command, according to a report by centre-right MEPs.

“The proposal, contained in a policy paper published on Tuesday (3 September), by deputies from the European People’s Party, the largest group in the assembly, said EU ‘heads of state and government have to start building stand-by forces under Union command.’

“It called for EU leaders to commit themselves to defining the union’s security interests, prioritising its strategic objectives and linking these with operational deployments.

“They said this should include a definition of European defence interests and its geographical priority zones.”

This new military combine will arise much more swiftly than even its planners now conceive–especially, in light of the fading role of America!

NSA Spying–No Privacy!

News Republic posted on September 8, 2013:

“Just when it seemed the biggest NSA-related revelations were over, a new report says the U.S. intelligence agency has had direct access to private smartphone data for years.

“Germany’s Spiegel Online claims it has seen documents that detail the NSA’s ability to tap into leading smartphone platforms, including Apple’s iOS, Google’s Android and BlackBerry. In fact, based on the documents referenced, the agency has even set up separate teams dedicated to working on each operating system.”

The growing sense that the US is operating outside of its own laws–without our normal “checks and balances”–is proving to be a profound shock to Americans and to the rest of the world.

The Goal–A Third Temple in Jerusalem

JTA wrote on August 27, 2013:

“No praying. No kneeling. No bowing. No prostrating. No dancing. No singing. No ripping clothes.

“These are the rules that Jews must abide by when visiting the Temple Mount, the site where the First and Second Holy Temples once stood, located above and behind the Western Wall in the heart of Jerusalem’s Old City.

“Although the area is under Israeli sovereignty, the mount — known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif — is controlled by the Islamic Wakf, a joint Palestinian-Jordanian religious body. As the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, whose golden dome overlooks the city, the Temple Mount attracts daily crowds of Muslim worshipers.

“Under Wakf regulations, Jews may only access the mount for 4 1/2 hours per day and are forbidden from praying there…

“Ahead of Tisha b’Av, the fast day next week that commemorates the destruction of the First and Second Temples, the institute released a video showing Jewish children donning tool belts and leading their fathers out of synagogue to begin construction of the Holy Temple.

“’Our goal is to fulfill the commandment of “They shall make a Temple for me and I will dwell among them,” ‘ Richman says, quoting Exodus. ‘”The basis of a Torah life is action.”’

“Following the Second Temple’s destruction in 70 C.E., most rabbis adopted the position that Jewish law prohibits reconstructing the Holy Temple prior to the age of messianic redemption, or that the law is too ambiguous and that the messiah must come first”…

“The institute isn’t shy about advocating what many see as a radical goal: replacing the mosque at the Dome of the Rock with a new Jewish Holy Temple. A painting in the institute’s exhibition depicts this scenario, with the city’s light rail line taking residents to the Temple Mount. The Temple Institute is dedicated to laying the groundwork for this vision.

“The organization has formulated a program for where the temple will stand and what its vessels will look like, aided by 20 men who study Temple law full-time. The products of this research — 40 ritual objects — are on display in Plexiglas cases at the institute’s headquarters in the Old City.

“Silver trumpets to be blown by priests and a wooden lyre are perched next to two deep pans with long handles — one for collecting blood from small sacrificial offerings and another for large sacrifices like the Passover lamb.

“In another room, mannequins with beards wear the respective vestments for deputy priests and the high priest. The high priest’s outfit, with azure weaves, gold thread and a breastplate with 12 precious stones, took 11 years of research and $150,000 to complete. Next to it stands a massive 12-spigot sink with electric faucets — technology that Richman says will be permitted in the Third Temple.

“The institute’s crowning achievement — the Temple’s golden, 200-pound, seven-branch menorah — stands outside in a case overlooking the Western Wall. Unlike art or history museums, the institute’s goal is to remove the objects from their cases and bring them to the mount for use as soon as possible.

“Many Israelis view the goal as a danger to the status quo that has kept this site holy to Muslims and Jews from turning into a tinderbox.”

As improbable as this “goal” might seem in present circumstances, the Bible strongly indicates that the Jews will somehow be able to build a “third Temple”–including on the location where previous Temples have stood!

Arctic Ice cap Has Grown

MailOnline reported on September 7, 2013:

“A chilly Arctic summer has left nearly a million more square miles of ocean covered with ice than at the same time last year – an increase of 60 per cent.

“The rebound from 2012’s record low comes six years after the BBC reported that global warming would leave the Arctic ice-free in summer by 2013.

“Instead, days before the annual autumn re-freeze is due to begin, an unbroken ice sheet more than half the size of Europe already stretches from the Canadian islands to Russia’s northern shores.

“The Northwest Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific has remained blocked by pack-ice all year. More than 20 yachts that had planned to sail it have been left ice-bound and a cruise ship attempting the route was forced to turn back.

“Some eminent scientists now believe the world is heading for a period of cooling that will not end until the middle of this century – a process that would expose computer forecasts of imminent catastrophic warming as dangerously misleading.”

Persecution of German Homeschoolers, while America Refuses Asylum

Breitbart wrote on August 31:

“A team of 20 social workers, police officers, and special agents raided a homeschooling family’s residence near Darmstadt, Germany Thursday, forcibly removing the family’s four children, aged 7-14. Law enforcement raided the home and seized the children solely because the parents homeschool them—in defiance of a German ban on home education. According to the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), the children of Dirk and Petra Wunderlich were taken to unknown locations. Officials reportedly told the parents they would not be seeing their children ‘anytime soon.’

“HSLDA states that it obtained and translated court documents that authorized the use of force to seize the children and remove them from their parents’ custody. The documents indicated that the only legal grounds for removal were the family’s continuation of homeschooling. Though nothing indicated that the parents were failing to provide an adequate education, the law in Germany ignores the educational progress of the child. Attendance in government schools—not learning—is the object of the German law.

“According to HSLDA, Judge Koenig, a Darmstadt family court judge, signed the order to seize the children on Wednesday. Koenig cited the parents’ failure to cooperate ‘with the authorities to send the children to school.’ In addition, the judge authorized the use of force ‘against the children’ if necessary, indicating that such force might be needed because the children had ‘adopted the parents’ opinion’ regarding homeschooling, and ‘no cooperation could be expected’ from either the parents or their children… Returning to Germany after Dirk was unable to find work in other European Union countries, the Wunderlich family was hit with a criminal truancy case within days after registering in their town. After several months, the ‘Youth Welfare Office’ was granted legal custody of the children. A court allowed the children to remain in the parents’ home, however, since they were well-treated otherwise and cared for by their parents.

“According to HSLDA, German authorities even seized the children’s passports, making it impossible for the family to flee. ‘The right to homeschool is a human right,’ said Michael Farris, HSLDA chairman and founder. ‘So is the right to freely move and to leave a country. Germany has grossly violated these rights of this family. This latest act of seizing these four beautiful, innocent children is an outrageous act of a rogue nation… The United States Constitution is not alone in upholding the right of parents to decide how to educate their children. Germany is a party to numerous human rights treaties that recognize the right of parents to provide an education distinct from the public schools so that children may be educated according to the parents’ religious convictions. Germany has simply not met its obligations under these treaties or as a liberal democracy’…

“HSLDA is also representing the Romeike family, a German homeschooling family that was granted legal asylum in the United States in 2010 by a U.S. immigration judge. The Obama administration, however, successfully appealed that decision. When the Romeikes appealed to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, but were denied asylum, HSLDA decided to ask the Supreme Court to hear the case. If denied asylum by the Supreme Court, the Romeike family faces thousands of dollars in fines and possible jail time in Germany because they have homeschooled their children.
 
“‘No one can understand why the White House is showing so much leniency to millions of immigrants who have come here illegally in hopes of securing better jobs, but is so determined to deport this one family who has come to America in search of freedom for themselves and their children,’ said Farris. ‘The Obama administration has argued before our federal courts that Germany’s policy is legitimate and does not violate either human rights principles generally or religious freedom specifically,’ Farris said. ‘Academic success may be present, but governments are justified in banning homeschooling for the purpose of suppressing religious minorities. That is the full position of this administration. And it is unacceptable.’”

This is somewhat reminiscent of America’s shameful days when persecuted German Jews tried to find asylum in the USA, only to be rejected and turned away.

Germany Condemns Russia While Refusing to Fight with the USA

Deutsche Welle reported on August 31:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel has criticized Russia and China for failing to cooperate with the West in efforts to bring an end to the bloodshed in Syria… The two permanent members of the United Nations Security Council have used their veto powers to block three separate resolutions on Syria since the conflict broke out more than two years ago. Now they are expected to block any resolution that the US, Britain and France manage to put before the Council, that would authorize the use of force against the Syrian government, following an alleged chemical weapons attack 10 days ago… 

“Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, meanwhile, used an interview… call on Russia to work with the West. ‘Those who look away despite the use of chemical weapons … encourage their use. That is why we are calling on Russia to send a signal along with the international community,’ he said… the chancellor also noted that while the alleged use of chemical weapons resulting in hundreds of deaths ‘cannot remain without consequence,’ Germany’s armed forces could not take part in any military action under the current circumstances. ‘Germany cannot participate in any military intervention without a mandate from the United Nations, NATO or the EU,’ Merkel said. ‘Therefore, there is no question of any participation by the Bundeswehr at the moment.’

“This stance appears to be in keeping with the sentiment of a majority of Germany. An opinion poll released on Thursday found that 60 percent of those asked said they were opposed to launching military strikes on Syria, while only about 33 percent supported the idea. Germans are set to go to the polls in a general election on September 22.”

Germany’s position seems to be terribly hypocritical, but it shows again how isolated America has become.

Putin Attacks Obama

The Washington Post wrote on August 31:

“Russia dramatically escalated its denunciations of American threats to attack Syrian military targets on Saturday, with President Vladimir Putin saying it would have been ‘utter nonsense’ for the Syrian government to use chemical weapons as the Obama administration alleges. The Foreign Ministry, in a statement issued before President Obama said he would seek congressional authorization before ordering strikes on Syria, said a U.S. attack would be a ‘gross violation’ of international law. Speaking out for the first time since an apparent chemical weapons attack near Damascus on Aug. 21, Putin called on President Obama to find a nonviolent way out of the crisis. ‘I would like to address Obama as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate: Before using force in Syria, it would be good to think about future casualties,’ Putin told Russian news agencies in Vladivostok during a tour of the country’s flood-stricken Far East…

“Putin said he was sure the attack was the work of rebels trying to provoke international — and especially American — involvement in the Syrian conflict. The government of Bashar al-Assad, he said, would have had no reason to use chemical weapons at a time when it had gained the upper hand in the fighting… Putin said he was surprised by the vote in Britain’s Parliament on Thursday not to join a U.S. attack on Syrian military targets. ‘It shows that there are people guided by common sense there,’ he said…

“Obama arrives in St. Petersburg for the G-20 meeting on Thursday and leaves on Friday. The purpose of the gathering is to discuss economic growth, but the White House acknowledges there will be plenty of conversation about Syria on the side. There are currently no plans for a one-on-one meeting between Putin and Obama, who earlier this month decided not to attend a Moscow summit with the Russian president. On Friday, the head of the foreign affairs committee of the lower house of parliament, Alexei Pushkov, said the Nobel committee should strip Obama of his 2009 Peace Prize if he launches an attack on Syria.”

Putin’s question as to why Assad would have used chemical weapons in the given situation does make some sense. One is terribly reminded of the false US claim of the existence of weapons of mass destruction to justify an ill-conceived and unsuccessful war against Iraq. Note the next article.

Russia Unconvinced

The Associated Press reported on September 2:

“The information the U.S. showed Moscow trying to prove that the Syrian regime was behind an alleged chemical weapons attack is ‘absolutely unconvincing,’ Russia’s foreign minister said Monday. The United States insists Syrian President Bashar Assad’s troops were behind the chemical attack on Aug. 21, which they say killed over 1,400 people, and is considering strikes against his regime. Moscow is Assad’s key ally and weapons supplier, and its protector at the United Nations.

“… Sergey Lavrov said the evidence Washington presented was not detailed. ‘Yes, they showed us some findings but there was nothing specific there: no geographic coordinates, no names, no proof that the tests were carried out by the professionals,’ Lavrov said. He did not say what tests he was referring to. ‘What our American, British and French partners showed us in the past and have showed just recently is absolutely unconvincing,’ Lavrov said. ‘And when you ask for more detailed proof they say all of this is classified so we cannot show this to you.’”

Obviously, Russia, the ancient “bear” which—in collaboration with Persia–was asked to “arise” and “devour much flesh” (Daniel 7:5), is acting because of self-serving political, military and pecuniary motives, but the questions raised still deserve scrutiny and a convincing answer.

Putin Warns—While the West Is Divided

The EUObserver wrote on September 4:

“Russian leader Vladimir Putin has warned against Western strikes on Syria on the eve of the G20 summit in St Petersburg on Thursday… he compared Syria to the Iraq war in 2003, which was based on false intelligence on weapons of mass destruction, and hinted he will deliver modern anti-air defences to the region… He added that a strike must be authorised by the UN Security Council, where he has a veto, on the basis of hard information…

“He said if Western powers go ahead, ‘we [Russia] shall think how we should act in the future, in particular regarding supplies of … sensitive weapons to certain regions of the world.’…

“The EU itself is also divided on Syria… German forces will not take part. France has said it backs the US, while also ruling out ground troops. But Italy says any strike without UN approval would be illegal. Meanwhile, the rejection of joint UK-US strikes by British MPs last week is causing political problems for French leader Francois Hollande…”

Russia’s Plan for a Eurasion Union

The following was reported by the EUObserver on September 3:

“[Armenia] wants to join a trade and political union with Russia instead of an EU alternative… The news came as a surprise to EU officials… If Armenia does become a full member of the Russian-led customs bloc, along with Belarus and Kazakhstan, it cannot sign the EU pact at the same time… Russia is Armenia’s main security guarantor in its frozen conflict with Azerbaijan over the breakaway territory…

“Russia in recent weeks has also threatened Moldova and Ukraine, two other former Soviet states which are seeking deeper ties with the EU… Putin has said he wants all former Soviet republics, except the Baltic states, which are EU members, to join his customs bloc. He plans to transform it into a political union, the Eurasian Union, in 2015.”

None of this is good news for the West.

Unusual Isolation of the USA

The New York Times wrote on August 30:

“… when Prime Minister David Cameron was unable to muster the votes in Parliament for support for a strike in Syria — even one limited to stopping the future use of chemical weapons — shock could be heard in the voices of senior White House officials who never saw the British rejection coming… Now Mr. Obama is left to cope with miscalculations on both sides of the Atlantic. If he goes ahead with the strike… he will look more isolated than any president in recent memory entering a conflict…

“Mr. Obama has done comparatively little to explain his longer-term strategy for changing the course of events in Syria without getting sucked into a war. In fact, he has argued the opposite — that a brief strike will do the trick of teaching the Syrians a lesson… The British Parliament, however, fears it will be something else: the beginning of another conflict in which the West will inevitably get sucked in.”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 30:

“For United States President Barack Obama, this is a disaster. He’s been left in the lurch by Britain, Washington’s most loyal ally. What happened on Thursday in London was a historical decision.”

President Obama’s About-Face or Humiliating Retreat?

Deutsche Welle wrote on September 1:

“Even to the president’s allies, it looked like an abrupt about-face. To his enemies, Obama’s announcement at the White House on Saturday… that he would seek Congress’ approval for a missile strike on Syria was a humiliating retreat… John Pike, director of Washington think tank GlobalSecurity.org,… called Obama’s implied constitutional innovation ‘amazing.’ ‘There is simply no precedent in American history for that doctrine. [US presidents have] authorized the use of force on their own account over a hundred times.’…

“On Sunday, more than one media outlet pointed out that when Obama’s first election campaign was starting in 2007, the Illinois senator and former constitutional law professor told a reporter: ‘The president does not have power under the constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation.’ So is Obama simply staying true to a campaign pledge, or at least worrying that statements like this might be flung in his face? This is unlikely considering the president was not shy of using his executive power in Libya in 2011. Then, Obama went to war against Moammar Gadhafi’s regime even though the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly against taking action.”

Kerry’s Struggle to Defend the President’s Actions

Breitbart reported on September 1:

“Secretary of State John Kerry struggled to defend President Obama’s plan for Syria when he appeared on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace. On Saturday, Obama said he would seek Congressional approval for military strikes on Syria. Wallace asked Kerry why Obama decided not to call back Congress to debate on Syria. Lawmakers will not reconvene until September 9 from their August recess. Kerry could not provide a simple answer…

“To make matters worse, Obama’s speech completely contradicted Kerry’s Friday speech where he said action should be taken now against Syria. Wallace told Kerry it appears that Obama’s plan of action was the direction from the beginning and nothing like the points Kerry made on Friday. Kerry responded by reminding that the President can throw out the advice of his advisers entirely…

“Kerry insisted America’s credibility is on the line and he hopes Congress will vote with Obama… Kerry stated that tests from hair and blood samples prove sarin gas was used against civilians in the August 21 attack. The chemical weapons attack killed 1,400 people, including almost 500 children.”

As we pointed out in previous Updates, even though John Kerry might want to take a stronger and more decisive stance in certain international matters, he won’t be supported in this by the President and his administration. But it’s not only the Obama administration which puts on some breaks, as the next article shows.

US Congress–Will Britain Repeat Itself?

The Los Angeles Times wrote on September 1:

“Members of Congress from across the political spectrum reacted with deep skepticism Sunday to President Obama’s bid for approval of strikes against Syria, with lawmakers raising doubts about whether a vote would succeed. Few of the approximately 100 members of Congress who returned to Washington for a classified intelligence briefing Sunday said they would support the administration’s request to authorize the use of force, even though they showed little doubt that Syrian President Basher Assad’s government was behind the alleged chemical weapons attack on Aug. 21.

“The administration now appears to face a two-front battle to win the support of Congress, needing to convince skeptical representatives of a war-weary public on the one hand and more hawkish lawmakers seeking an even tougher response on the other. And it has just more than a week to do so… Assad has joined Saddam Hussein and Adolf Hitler as the only individuals to have used chemical weapons against their own people, Kerry said as he made the case for Congress to support a resolution authorizing force…”

In the meantime, House Speaker John Boehner said Tuesday that he would support President Barack Obama’s call for a limited military strike against Syria. On the other hand, Senator John McCain (who was caught playing a phone game of poker at a Senate hearing about Syria) and former Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, stated that such a limited strike would not be sufficient, while others are opposed to any strike, including former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Senator Rand Paul. So, the division could not be any greater. In addition, to save face, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and later President Obama presented the new and rather concocted idea that the President had not drawn a red line in the sand regarding Syria’s use of chemical weapons, but that Congress and the world community had done so, by outlawing chemical warfare, and that “the credibility of Congress, the United States and the international community as a whole is at stake” (Washington Post and Washington Times, September 4).

Even Syrian Opposition Critical of US Strike

Deutsche Welle reported on September 4:

“The West is fretting about whether to intervene in the Syrian war, and the opposition is also split…

“Omar Hossino, a Syrian-American researcher based in Washington, says the split in the opposition is identifiable: ‘The al-Qaeda-linked groups and other radical Salafist groups are very much opposed to the strike, because they want to be the ones that save the Syrian people, and they are assuming the strikes will target them,’ he said. ‘The more mainstream rebel groups seem to mostly favor strikes, although they’ve been saying that this strike is not really going to do anything.’…

“Another question – the nature and size of a potential strike – is just as much of a controversy…  In a statement released on Sunday (01.09.2013), the Syrian opposition’s ‘Local Coordination Committees in Syria,’ condemned a minimal approach. ‘A limited strike to merely warn Assad will lead to nothing but increase in his violence, as well as to his complete confidence that no one would prevent him from killing.’

“Echoing the view of many analysts, the statement continued, ‘Apparently, the main concern of the West in this regard is based on international balance and interests, not on the serious attempt to rescue a people who are striving for freedom and dignity, and dying for that, every day.’ In other words, Obama’s cruise missile attack was simply saving face to back up his ‘red line’ warning about chemical weapons. ‘Most of the mainstream groups are against a strike unless it can actually be a game-changer and change the dynamic on the ground against Assad,’ said Hossino, before adding that he doubted whether CIA training operations would have any effect, and if they do, they would take months.”

Now the Pope Speaks…

JTA reported on September 2:

“Pope Francis in a meeting with Jewish leaders sent Rosh Hashanah greetings to Jews worldwide and expressed ‘concern’ at the ban on kosher slaughter in Poland… Francis met with a WJC [World Jewish Congress] delegation headed by the organization’s president, Ronald Lauder…

“A WJC statement said the pontiff and Lauder spoke about the situation in Syria ‘and agreed to speak out against attacks on religious minorities, such as Coptic Christians in Egypt and against trends to restrict well-established religious practices such as circumcision.’… Referring to the conflict in Syria, ‘the pope called the killing of human beings unacceptable and said world leaders must do everything to avoid war,’ according to the WJC.”

Zenit added on September 4 that “Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Pope’s secretary of state, has scheduled a special briefing for ambassadors accredited to the Holy See to speak with them about the importance of the Day of Prayer and Fasting for Syria, which the Pope has called for Saturday.”

The Associated Press added on September 5 that “Pope Francis urged the Group of 20 leaders on Thursday to abandon the ‘futile pursuit’ of a military solution in Syria as the Vatican laid out its case for a negotiated settlement that guarantees rights for all Syrians, including minority Christians.”

The Humanitarian Catastrophe of Syrian Refugees

Deutsche Welle wrote on September 4:

“As Obama contemplates a military strike against Assad, more than 5,000 Syrians are fleeing the country every day. Many, including the UN, are calling the situation a ‘humanitarian catastrophe.’…

“Syria’s 20-million citizens are so distressed that many of them have decided to flee the country regardless of the hardship and risks. Ever since President Bashar al-Assad and his opponents engaged in a relentless, bloody war, more than 2 million people have fled Syria, according to the United Nations. Every tenth Syrian is currently on the run…

“Lebanon alone registered more than 700,000 Syrian refugees by the end of August. Jordan has accepted slightly more than half a million and Turkey slightly less than half a million. Around 160,000 Syrians are now living in Iraq and more than 100,000 have managed to flee to Egypt. According to the UN, countries in the region have accepted 97 percent of Syrian refugees… Housing, employment, medical care and, ideally, education are among the services these countries are expected to provide. But the refugee numbers are so large that they pose a challenge to local social structures. For example, Lebanon’s population has grown by nearly 20 percent as a result of the refugees. This increase has led to social tension and rising rents…

“The EU also warns of a destabilization of Syria’s neighboring countries… The prospects for the millions of refugees to return to their homes are difficult to assess, given the rising violence in Syria. And there are no signs of an imminent solution to end the war between the Assad regime and the Syrian opposition…”

What Will Happen After Assad?

The Huffington Post wrote on September 1:

“Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Sunday portrayed the current conflict in Syria as one between the government of President Bashar Al Assad, who Paul said ‘has protected Christians for a number of decades,’ and ‘Islamic rebels,’ who Paul said ‘have been attacking Christians’ and are aligned with Al Qaeda. ‘I think the Islamic rebels winning is a bad idea for the Christians, and all of a sudden we’ll have another Islamic state where Christians are persecuted,’ Paul said on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press.’

“Paul was likely referring to a string of incidents in Egypt in recent weeks, where supporters of the deposed government of former president Mohamed Morsi have burned Coptic Christian churches to protest what they see as Christian backing for the military overthrow of Morsi’s government…

“Paul, a first-term senator and vocal opponent of U.S. intervention overseas… said the U.S. should pursue a negotiated settlement where ‘Assad is gone, but some of the same people [from Assad’s regime] remain stable,’ because, he said, ‘that would also be good for the Christians.’… Paul also said that U.S. intervention would imperil U.S. allies in the region, including Jordan and Israel…”

It is a fact that Christians were somewhat protected or at least tolerated in Egypt under Mubarak, in Iraq under Saddam Hussein, and in Syria under Bashar Al Assad. With new Islamic governments taking over, violent hostility and persecution against Christians have been increasing.

Our Hypocritical Media

Breitbart wrote on September 1:

“In the years since the United States first went to war in Iraq, liberal groups and commentators have accused many media outlets of not asking the right or critical questions of the Bush administration…This time around, under President Obama, as the US has engaged in military action in Libya, launched an unprecedented number of unmanned aerial drone strikes around the world and threatened military ‘punishment’ in Syria… [is] the media… completely falling asleep on the job?” 

This appears to be the case.

Now it’s Morsi’s Turn…

The Associated Press reported on September 1:

“Egypt’s top prosecutor… ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi to trial on charges of inciting the killing of opponents protesting outside his palace while he was in office, the state news agency said… No date was announced for the trial. Morsi will be tried, along with 14 members of his Muslim Brotherhood, in a criminal court for allegedly committing acts of violence, and inciting the killing of at least 10 people…

“Those referred to trial with Morsi include the deputy leader of the Brotherhood’s political party, Essam el-Erian, currently in hiding. They also include leading Brotherhood member Mohammed el-Beltagy, arrested this week, as well as leading pro-Brotherhood youth leaders who were video-taped during the street clashes on the front lines.

“Since Morsi’s ouster, authorities have waged an intensive security crackdown on members of his group. The crackdown followed a violent breakup of a sit-in held by Morsi supporters for weeks demanding his reinstatement that left hundreds killed.”

First Mubarak is charged, now it’s Morsi, and when is it going to be the military and the present government of Egypt, which is purportedly guilty of committing similar atrocities? And while all of this is going on, America supports first Mubarak, then Morsi, and now the military. And the people of Egypt don’t like it a bit. And “Leviathan,” the “fleeing [and] twisted serpent” of Egypt—“the reptile that is in the sea” or river, will turn around and bite America (compare Isaiah 27:1).

Fukushima Radiation Set to Hit the U.S. by 2014

Salon reported on August 29:

“Unless you were one of the 160,000 thousand people in the near vicinity of the Fukushima disaster who evacuated their homes in 2011, the ongoing nuclear crisis on Japan’s shore can seem awfully far away. It’s worth remembering, though, that the radioactive waste leaking from the plant has been making its way into the Pacific Ocean, and from there, to the rest of the world. According to new research from the Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science, the radioactive ocean plume from the original disaster will reach the west coast of the U.S. by 2014, 3 years after it was first released.

“… it’s important to understand how pollutants are carried throughout the world’s oceans, especially since Japan is still trying to figure out what to do with its 132 Olympic pools worth of radioactive water.. [It will] hit Oregon first, and then California by 2016… its 30-year half-life means it’s not just going to disappear anytime soon.”

We are being assured that the radioactive fallout will pose no health risk or dangers to Americans. The same false assurances were given years ago to Europeans when the disaster of Chernobyl wiped out entire regions and killed many people.

BBC News added on September 4 that “Radiation levels around tanks storing contaminated water at Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear plant have risen by a fifth to a new high, officials say.”

Fukushima Radiation—“Much Worse Than You Think”

CNN wrote on August 30:

“While the amount of radioactivity released into the environment in March 2011 has been estimated as between 10 percent and 50 percent of the fallout from the Chernobyl accident, the 400,000 tons of contaminated water stored on the Fukushima site contain more than 2.5 times the amount of radioactive cesium dispersed during the 1986 catastrophe in Ukraine. So, where has this huge amount of highly contaminated water – enough to fill 160 Olympic-size swimming pools – come from? In the aftermath of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, the reactor cores of units 1, 2 and 3 melted through the reactor vessels into the concrete. Nobody knows how far the molten fuel went through the containment – radiation levels in the reactor buildings are lethal, while robots got stuck in the rubble and some never came back out.

“The molten fuel still needs to be cooled constantly and the operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), injects about 400 tons of water into the perforated reactor vessels every day. That water washes out radioactive elements and runs straight through into the basements that were flooded during the tsunami. By 2015, over 600,000 tons of highly radioactive liquid are expected to have accumulated in temporary tanks, some underground, many bolted rather than welded together, and none ever conceived to hold this kind of liquid over the long term. The dangerous fluid is pumped around in four kilometer long makeshift tubes, many of them made of vinyl rather than steel, and plagued with numerous leaks in the winter when the above ground lines get hit by frost.

“TEPCO’s account of the discovery this month of the leak of 300 tons of highly radioactive water showed a frightening level of amateurism… The tank leak is just the latest in a long list of signs that things are going fundamentally wrong at the site of what could still turn out to be the most serious radiological event in history. And the situation could still get a lot worse. A massive spent fuel fire would likely dwarf the current dimensions of the catastrophe and could exceed the radioactivity releases of Chernobyl dozens of times. First, the pool walls could leak beyond the capacity to deliver cooling water or a reactor building could collapse following one of the hundreds of aftershocks. Then, the fuel cladding could ignite spontaneously releasing its entire radioactive inventory…

“The fact is that the Fukushima Daiichi site represents challenges of unprecedented complexity. Maintaining the cooling of three molten reactor cores and five spent fuel pools in a disaster zone is a job of titanic proportions…”

Merkel: Trust Between USA and Germany Lost

The EUObserver wrote on September 2:

“A 90-minute TV debate between Chancellor Angela Merkel and her Social Democrat rival Peer Steinbrueck on Sunday (1 September) mostly revolved around domestic topics, with some tense exchanges on the US spying scandal and the eurozone crisis.  Seen by 12 million Germans, the debate was the first and last before the 22 September elections and the only chance for Steinbrueck, who trails Merkel in the polls, to score some points. If anything, the debate put Steinbrueck on an even footing with Merkel… ‘If I would have been chancellor, I wouldn’t have called a press conference about the US mass surveillance of Germans only to say: “Let’s wait”’,  Steinbrueck said.

“Merkel… said she has ‘no reason not to trust the National Security Agency’ – the US secret service behind the mass surveillance of online users. But a few minutes later she appeared to contradict herself. When pressed by one of the moderators, Merkel said: ‘Of course trust was lost between Germany and the US.’…”

Germany Awards Whistleblower Prize to Snowden

rt.com reported on September 1:

“Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden has been awarded the biennial ‘whistleblower prize’ in Germany, worth some $3,900, in recognition of his ‘bold efforts’ to expose the monitoring of communications data by his former employer. The prize, last awarded in 2011, was officially bestowed upon the 30-year-old at a ceremony in Berlin which took place Friday, prompting a nine-minute congratulatory video message from Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald on Saturday… The organizers of the prize commended Snowden’s work, stating that he had uncovered ‘massive and unsuspecting monitoring and storage of communication data, which cannot be accepted in democratic societies.’ … ‘Not only did [German Chancellor Angela Merkel], it seems, allow the US to spy on Germany, but it seems she also helped the US to spy on Germany. So this is one of the reasons why Edward Snowden has received this award,’ RT correspondent Peter Oliver said from the ceremony in Berlin…

“The whistleblower award was first awarded in 1999 under the auspices of the Association of German Scientists and the German chapter of the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms (IALANA)… It was revealed in June that for seven years, the US National Security Agency (NSA) has been using PRISM, a warrantless web surveillance system with a near-limitless ability to spy on anyone’s phone calls, e-mails, video chats, search history and more, with major Internet giants Google, Apple and Facebook being complicit in the scheme.”

What a slap in the face for the USA.

Update on Yosemite Fire

The Associated Press reported on September 4:

“Officials said they still are investigating the cause of the fire, which started 18 days ago in an isolated area of the Stanislaus National Forest and has burned nearly 370 square miles – the fourth biggest recorded wildfire in California. With higher humidity and lower temperatures, the fire reached 80 percent containment… Officials said 111 structures, including 11 homes, have been destroyed. More than 4,300 firefighters are still battling the blaze.”

San Diego In Danger of Tsunami

U-T San Diego reported on September 4:

“Federal and state researchers came up with a hypothetical magnitude 9.1 earthquake [erupting off Alaska] that produces a tsunami severe enough to force the evacuation of 750,000 people along the California coast while sinking or damaging one-third of all boats in the state’s marinas. Such a tsunami could cause $1.2 billion in damages… at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach…

“The report also says the tsunami would produce waves up to 6-feet high locally, inundating and damaging some areas… ‘The good news is that three-quarters of California’s coastline is cliffs, and thus immune to the harsher and more devastating impacts tsunamis could pose. The bad news is that the one-quarter at risk is some of the most economically valuable property in California.’…

“The state has not been hit by the sort of tsunami that occurred off Japan following a 9.0 quake in March 2011. But California has felt the impact of such events. The 9.2 earthquake that broke in Alaska in 1964 created a tsunami that killed 11 people in Crescent City, California, and destroyed most of the city’s business district. Crescent City was slammed again in March 2011 when a tsunami from the Japan quake produced 8-foot waves that heavily damaged the city’s harbor.”

Do Vaccines Cause Autism?

Natural News wrote on September 3, 2013:

“You won’t hear anything about it from the mainstream media, but the federal government’s kangaroo ‘vaccine court’ has once again conceded, albeit quietly, that the combination measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine does, indeed, cause autism. In a recently published ruling, part of which was censored from public view, a young boy was awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars after it was determined that the MMR vaccine led to a confirmed diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

“Ten-year-old Ryan Mojabi’s parents say he first suffered an encephalopathy after being vaccinated for MMR on December 19, 2003. Known as a ‘table injury,’ encephalopathy is a recognized, compensable adverse reaction to vaccines… According to Ryan’s parents, the MMR vaccine caused their son’s encephalopathy, which manifested… in the form of asthma and ASD.’

“After being bumped around from court to court, Ryan’s case was eventually heard by the vaccine court’s Autism Omnibus Proceedings, according to The Huffington Post. And in the end, the federal government agreed that Ryan’s encephalopathy had been caused by the MMR vaccine, a landmark ruling that confirms what Dr. Andrew Wakefield found more than 15 years ago when studying gut disorders in children given the MMR vaccine. ‘Ryan suffered a Table injury under the Vaccine Act — namely, an encephalitis within five to fifteen days following receipt (of MMR),’ admitted the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regarding the case. ‘This case is appropriate for compensation,’ it added, in full agreement with the court’s decision.

“Of particular note in the case is the fact that concession documents by the government remain under seal. While the court and the government at large openly admitted that the MMR vaccine caused Ryan’s encephalitis, it did not make public its opinion on whether or not that encephalitis led to Ryan’s other injuries, including those that fall into the category of ASD. But the fact that these documents remain censored shows that the government is hiding something of importance from the public, which most definitely has to do with the connection between the MMR vaccine and autism.

“In a similar case heard during the same month, young Emily Moller from Houston, Texas, was also awarded massive compensation for injuries resulting from the MMR vaccine. According to reports, Emily experienced a severe reaction after receiving not only the MMR vaccine but also the DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis), HiB, and Prevnar vaccines. Like with Ryan’s case, the government conceded that these vaccines led to Emily’s autism and other developmental problems.

“These two cases, combined with numerous published studies out of the U.S., South America, and Europe, prove that the MMR vaccine is not the harmless vaccine that the conventional medical industry claims it is. In fact, everything that Dr. Wakefield found back in the late 1990s concerning the MMR vaccine — findings that cost him his career and reputation, by the way — are proving to be undeniably true.

“‘There can be very little doubt that vaccines can and do cause autism,’ Dr. Wakefield recently stated from his home in Austin, Texas. ‘In these children, the evidence for an adverse reaction involving brain injury following the MMR that progresses to an autism diagnosis is compelling. It’s now a question of the body count. The parents’ story was right all along. Governments must stop playing with words while children continue to be damaged. My hope is that recognition of the intestinal disease in these children will lead to the relief of their suffering. This is long, long overdue.’”

Of course, most doctors and medical scientists would deny Wakefield’s findings, as they do not fit into the paradigm of routinely wanting to administer vaccines to little (and helpless) babies—while, at the same time, many of them advocate and endorse the murder of unborn children through abortions.

Will America Attack Syria?

The Independent wrote on August 25:

“Options for a military strike [against Syria] drawn up by the Pentagon are already on President Barack Obama’s desk. However as he contemplated them last night – most likely a strike by cruise missiles launched from the Mediterranean – he was on the receiving end of strong warnings to desist from both Moscow and some leaders of his own party at home…

“President Obama just a few days ago made clear his preference for winning support for any military intervention from the UN Security Council first. That, however, would assume the backing of both Russia and China, which each have veto power. Hardly encouraging therefore was a statement issued by the Russian foreign ministry that sought to remind the US of events 10 years ago when it began its invasion of Iraq without a UN resolution…

“The dilemma is vivid for Mr Obama who has made no secret of his own misgivings about involving the US directly in the conflict… Polls show that most Americans [are] strongly opposed to US intervention. Harry Reed, leader of the Democrat majority in the Senate, publicly fretted about being sucked into a longer commitment in Syria…”

“We are Going to War”

Fox News added on August 26:

“Steve Hayes, a columnist for The Weekly Standard and Fox News contributor, told viewers Monday… that ‘we’re going to war’ with Syria, adding that it is only a matter of when and what type of strike will be launched against the country…

“Hayes’ comments came after Secretary of State John Kerry earlier Monday told reporters at the State Department  there was undeniable evidence of a large-scale chemical weapons attack in Syria and called the killing of civilians a ‘moral obscenity’ that must carry consequences.  Hayes called Kerry’s remarks a dramatic shift in rhetoric by the Obama administration despite the fact that intelligence has previously been available tying the Assad regime to chemical weapons use.”

America’s Credibility at Stake

Deutsche Welle wrote on August 26:

“European editorial writers ponder the international community’s options for action – and agree the US faces a dilemma… Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung… warned that Obama faces the question of ‘what his word is worth if he threatens consequences but does not act. The President’s credibility and the role of the United States as a global political regulatory force are at stake.’…

“Obama faces difficult decisions, Holland’s de Volkskrant agrees. ‘If Assad gets away with this, anyone can, and US threats of reprisal are empty – with all manner of consequences for the proliferation weapons of mass destruction,’ the paper said. It concluded: ‘The logic of deterrent forces Obama to act.’…

“Vienna’s Der Standard also agreed that Obama must find a way to put the Assad regime in its place and ‘confirm US credibility without leading the country into a conflict where neither a victory nor peace are possible.’ However, the Austrian paper says, ‘no one knows the magic formula.’…”

US, Britain and France Ready for War?

Deutsche Welle reported on August 26:

“The US, along with its allies Britain and France, is apparently gearing up for yet another military intervention in the Middle East. But the consequences of even the most minor attack in Syria are very unclear…

“The US, along with its allies Britain and France, already has plenty of military hardware within striking distance of Syria. The US has three destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean, which it has now bolstered with a fourth, while Britain is also thought to have four warships nearby. The US, Britain, and France, also have fighter jets within range of Damascus – based in the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, and Cyprus.”

Great Britain has declared its support and participation in an American military attack against Syria, and France has called for military intervention as well. Germany wants to be cautious, as the next article shows. In fact, the majority of Germans (58%) is opposing any military actions against Damascus, while only 33% would support it (The Local, August 29, 2013).

Germany Asserting Itself

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 23:

“Germany started deviating from French leadership in March 2011, when its diplomats ruled out participation in Libya regardless of UN Security Council resolutions. The following year, Germans long refused the French assessment that the occupation of northern Mali by al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) presented a threat against Western interests. France has continued to raise international pressure on the Assad regime over German objections…

“But something different is at work here. Contrary to appearances, Germany is not simply receding ever deeper into itself. In fact, the Berlin Republic is quietly asserting itself and fleshing out its foreign policy. The unwillingness to act as France’s cheerleader in the greater Mediterranean comes with the creeping recovery of self-confidence, and a desire to reposition itself vis-à-vis this historically French sphere of influence…

“German obstructionism also reveals the consensus across the German political spectrum that an Islamist regime in Syria is to be avoided… The deputy leader of Merkel’s Christian Democrats has said orthodox Christian populations risk ethnic cleansing or worse if the French-allied Islamists come to power… In addition to the 50 years of the Elysée Treaty, this October also marks the 200th anniversary of the war liberating Prussia from Napoleonic occupation.”

Washington Expects More Leadership from Germany on Global Matters

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 23:

“Angela Merkel’s conservatives are well ahead in the polls and the chancellor herself likewise remains extremely popular… Washington is hoping that, once the campaign is history, Germany will take on a greater global leadership role on issues like trade, the euro crisis and international security…

“Conley, from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, says there is some ‘uncertainty’ in Washington about how strong a partner Germany is on military and security issues in the Middle East. She says she would like to see the new government ‘articulate its foreign and national security views and strategies’ following the election.”

How Will Germany Lead?

The Economist wrote on August 22:

“One month from now, on September 22nd, Germans will elect a new parliament. Perhaps more than at any time since reunification in 1990, the world will watch the results with great interest. That is, first, because the current chancellor, Angela Merkel, as Germany’s first woman and first Ossi (Easterner) in the job, has become something of a global celebrity and is now fighting to stay in power…

“The second reason why the world, and you, will care about this election is that Germany has become so important. The euro crisis has now been going on for three years. Currently, it seems to be stable, but it could return with fury at any time. This has led to an old question being asked anew. This ‘German question’ has changed over the centuries—whether the Holy Roman Empire would centralise or stay fragmented, whether and how Germany in the 19th century would unify, et cetera. But always it was about how this central land (‘too big for Europe, too small for the world,’ as Henry Kissinger once put it) would relate to its neighbours and continent. Today, with demands for Germany to play a new and unfamiliar role as ‘hegemon’ over the euro system, that question is suddenly relevant again.”

The Reluctant Giant—“Germany Has No Other Choice but to Lead”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 29:

“The world admires Germany and would like to see more active engagement from the country… The rest of the world is waiting for Germany. But instead of feeling pleased about Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski’s historic statement that he fears Germany’s power less than its inactivity, we cringe anxiously over such sentiments. When US President Barack Obama calls Germany a leading global power, we hope that he doesn’t really mean it. And when politicians in Israel say that Germany should wield its power more actively, we don’t interpret it as a mandate to become more committed, but are puzzled instead.

“We Germans? Exercise power? Take action? Lead?…  [But] ‘history’ has given us reformed Germans in the 21st century the mandate to play an influential role in all of the world’s affairs… Who, if not we Germans, is as well versed in emerging from the swamp of overthrown dictators? Who, if not we Germans, could advise war-torn countries on how to find their way back to peace? Who, if not Germany, whose path to liberal democracy was long and rocky, could help other countries along this path? And who, if not we Germans, would be destined to warn the Americans, for example, that absolute national security doesn’t protect freedom but instead destroys it? Seen in the cold light of day, we have no other choice…

“For a country as important as Germany, getting involved is a duty, not a choice. The role of being an active player falls on us, whether we want it or not…

“We… want to dream again, of a better Germany in a better world. Germany is being administered, not governed. It could be a soft giant, but when it looks in the mirror, it still sees itself as a gray mouse. But that’s just an optical illusion.”

Syria and Iran Threaten Israel

The Times of Israel wrote on August 26:

“A senior Syrian official on Monday issued a first direct warning that if attacked, his country would retaliate against Israel. Khalaf Muftah, a senior Baath Party official who used to serve as Syria’s assistant information minister, said in a radio interview that Damascus would consider Israel ‘behind the [Western] aggression and [it] will therefore come under fire… If the US or Israel make the mistake of taking advantage of the chemical issue… the region will go up in flames… that will affect security not only in the region but across the world.’

“His words were echoed by Iranian officials, who on Monday shrugged off the threat of a US attack on its close ally Syria, but said that if such a strike were to take place, Israel would suffer…

“The Syrian and Iranian statements Monday came as Britain reportedly pushed for US action on Syria in the wake of a horrific alleged chemical weapons attack on civilians outside Damascus. According to a report from the Times of London, British Prime Minister David Cameron wants a strike in the coming days while outrage over the alleged attack is still fresh. British Foreign Minister William Hague said in an interview with the BBC on Monday that action could be taken even without the full support of the UN Security Council.”

Russia Warns the USA

USA Today wrote on August 26:

“Russia warned again Tuesday that any military intervention in Syria would have ‘catastrophic consequences’ for the region… Russia has vowed to veto any Security Council attempts to approve a military attack on Syria, and it is arming Syria as well, which is why the United States is considering a unilateral attack with the help of the United Kingdom and other nations… The Russians have already promised to send Syria S-300 long-range anti-aircraft missiles that have a range of almost 100 miles and would reach deep inside Israel…

“The Russians could also send Assad their supersonic P800 long-range anti-ship missile, which is capable of sinking NATO ships with a single strike… The Russians could expand sales to Iran of weapons and nuclear technology that has both nuclear and civilian functions…”

Arab League Rejects Attack Against Syria

The New York Times wrote on August 27:

“The leaders of the Arab world on Tuesday blamed the Syrian government for a chemical weapons attack that killed hundreds of people last week, but declined to back a retaliatory military strike, leaving President Obama without the broad regional support he had for his last military intervention in the Middle East, in Libya in 2011.

“While the Obama administration has robust European backing and more muted Arab support for a strike on Syria, the position of the Arab League and the unlikelihood of securing authorization from the United Nations Security Council complicate the legal and diplomatic case for the White House.”

Jordan—No Attack on Syria From Our Soil

The Associated Press reported on August 28:

“Jordan will not be used as a launching pad for attacks on Syria and the kingdom favors a diplomatic solution to the crisis… A U.S.-led strike on Syria in response to the alleged use of chemical weapons by President Bashar Assad’s regime likely would involve cruise missile attacks from the sea, which would not need to cross or make use of Jordanian territory… Hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled into Jordan from Syria.”

Further Setback for USA

The Los Angeles Times wrote on August 28:

“The Obama administration’s move to punish Syria’s government for allegedly using chemical weapons in a deadly attack last week appeared to suffer a setback Wednesday when the U.S. failed to get United Nations approval for use of force [over Russia’s objection] and British support was thrown into question. The collapse of diplomatic efforts aimed at securing a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Syria was expected. The British impediment was not…

“How soon such strikes might occur remained unclear after British Prime Minister David Cameron, who has repeatedly called for strong action on Syria, was unable to muster enough support from lawmakers to push ahead with a vote to approve military intervention. Members of Parliament from both his Conservative Party and the opposition Labor Party insisted that a vote be delayed until U.N. chemical experts now in Syria issue a report…”

Will US, Britain and France Fight with Al-Qa’ida Against Assad?

The Independent wrote on August 27:

“If Barack Obama decides to attack the Syrian regime, he has ensured – for the very first time in history – that the United States will be on the same side as al-Qa’ida… The men who destroyed so many thousands on 9/11 will then be fighting alongside the very nation whose innocents they so cruelly murdered almost exactly 12 years ago. Quite an achievement for Obama, Cameron, Hollande and the rest of the miniature warlords.

“This, of course, will not be trumpeted by the Pentagon or the White House – nor, I suppose, by al-Qa’ida… While the Americans drone al-Qa’ida to death in Yemen and Pakistan – along, of course, with the usual flock of civilians – they will be giving them, with the help of Messrs Cameron, Hollande and the other Little General-politicians, material assistance in Syria by hitting al-Qa’ida’s enemies. Indeed, you can bet your bottom dollar that the one target the Americans will not strike in Syria will be al-Qa’ida or the Nusra front.

“And our own Prime Minister will applaud whatever the Americans do, thus allying himself with al-Qa’ida, whose London bombings may have slipped his mind…”

Britain may not fight at all, and Mr. Hollande has also begun to back-paddle. The BBC reported on August 29, 2013:

“British MPs have voted to reject possible military action against the Assad regime in Syria to deter the use of chemical weapons. A government motion was defeated by 285 to 272, a majority of 13 votes. Prime Minster David Cameron said it was clear Parliament does not want action and ‘the government will act accordingly’. It effectively rules out British involvement in any US-led strikes against the Assad regime.”

Turkey Against Israel

IB Times wrote on August 25:

“As a NATO member, Turkey is seen by the U.S. as a strategic ally to the West and a crucial liaison to the Arab and Muslim world… Sometimes, though, statements by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan and officials of his Justice and Development Party (AK Party) call into question the notion that the West and Turkey have ‘common hopes and … common dreams.”

“Here is a sample of some of the more provocative statements that have come out of Ankara recently…

“‘There are some circles that are jealous of Turkey’s growth … They are all uniting, and on one side is the Jewish Diaspora…’ Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay, July 2, 2013. Invoking the spectre of Jewish domination of the global media may be unseemly in the West, but it’s standard fare among Turkish leaders.

“‘Israel cannot do whatever it wants in the eastern Mediterranean. They will see what our decisions will be on this subject. Our navy attack ships can be there at any moment.’ — Recep Tayyip Erdoðan September 15, 2011. Erdoðan was responding to the recent discovery of an offshore natural gas find in the Eastern Mediterranean that Israel discovered and is working on in cooperation with Cyprus and Greece, two nations that also happen to have problems with Turkey.

“‘The press wants to throw mud to see if it sticks. The Times is renting out its own pages for money. This is the Times’ failing. We will pursue legal channels regarding the Times.’ — Recep Tayyip Erdoðan, August 22, 2013. Erdoðan was threatening the prestigious British newspaper The London Times for publishing an open letter criticizing the Turkish government for excessive use of force against protesters. Erdoðan said, ‘If they truly believed in democracy, they couldn’t have displayed such a lack of character to call the leader of a party that won 50 percent of the vote a dictator.’ Erdoðan’s distinctly non-Western view of journalism and press freedoms was further illustrated when he jailed 64 journalists.”

The Bible shows that Turkey—modern Edom—will turn against Israel… the Jewish state as well as countries like the USA and Great Britain.

Israel Attacks Lebanon

The Associated Press reported on August 23:

“Israeli warplanes struck a target south of Beirut early Friday, a day after militants fired four rockets into northern Israel… It was the first air raid on the area since the 2006 war between Israel and Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group…

“On Thursday, militants in Lebanon fired four rockets into Israel, setting off air raid sirens and startling a nation already on edge over turmoil along its northern and southern borders… the rockets added to the nation’s fears at a time it is nervously watching unrest in neighboring Syria, where the government has been accused of using chemical weapons against rebels and civilians this week. It’s also worried about Egypt to the south, where Islamic militants have stepped up their activities near the Israeli border in the wake of a military coup…

“Israel fears that Syria will transfer sophisticated weapons to Hezbollah and has carried out several airstrikes in Syria in recent months on suspected Iranian weapons shipments believed to be bound for the militant group… Netanyahu… also accused Iran, the key backer of Syria and Hezbollah, of using… Syria as a ‘testing ground’…  ‘Iran is closely watching whether and how the world responds to the atrocities committed by Iran’s client state Syria and by Iran’s proxy Hezbollah against innocent civilians in Syria,’ he said. ‘These events prove yet again that we simply cannot allow the world’s most dangerous regimes to acquire the world’s most dangerous weapons.’”

Israel is indeed surrounded by enemies… Syria, Iran, Egypt, Turkey, etc.

Less and Less Christians in the Middle East

CNN wrote on August 22:

“Islamist thugs have attacked dozens of churches across Egypt in the past few days, burning many of them down… Today there are more than 10 million Christians in the Middle East and they make up an estimated 5% of the Middle East’s population. A century ago they made up an estimated 20%…

“Take Syria. Many Syrian Christians have tacitly supported the regime of President Bashar al-Assad… As a result, the jihadists who have come to dominate a significant portion of the Syrian rebel movement have supplemented their war against the government with attacks that target Christians…

“Meanwhile, in March in Benghazi, Libya, where a militant attack on a U.S. government complex left four Americans dead in September 2012, around 60 Christians were rounded up by extremists and handed over to the government on suspicion of immigrating from Egypt illegally. The militants tortured several of their captives, killing one of them. That bout of vigilantism followed the arrest in February of four Christians accused of proselytizing to Muslim Libyans. The consequence of such attacks and harassment has been an exodus of Christians from the region…

“This kind of homogenization has happened before in the Middle East, which boasted a sizable Jewish population in the ’50s. But with the creation of the state of Israel and the rise of Arab nationalism and then Islamism, the region has become more hostile to non-Muslims. Around World War II there were 100,000 Jews in Egypt, a community that had existed in Egypt since the time of the pharaohs. Now, there are a handful of synagogues operating in Cairo…”

Church Bylaws on Marriage

The Associated Press reported on August 24:

“Worried they could be sued by gay couples, some churches are changing their bylaws to reflect their view that the Bible allows only marriage between one man and one woman… ‘I thought marriage was always between one man and one woman, but the Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision said no,’ said Gregory S. Erwin, an attorney for the Louisiana Baptist Convention…

“Kevin Snider is an attorney with the Pacific Justice Institute… [He]  said some religious leaders have been threatened with lawsuits for declining to perform same-sex wedding ceremonies.

“Dean Inserra, head pastor of the 1,000-member City Church Tallahassee, based in Florida,… said he already has had to say no to gay friends who wanted him to perform a wedding ceremony. ‘We have some gay couples that attend our church. What happens when they ask us to do their wedding?’ Inserra said. ‘What happens when we say no? Is it going to be treated like a civil rights thing?’…

“Some Christian denominations, such as the United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations, accept gay marriage. The Episcopal Church recently approved a blessing for same-sex couples, but each bishop must decide whether to allow the ceremony in his or her local diocese. The majority of Christian denominations, however, view homosexual relationships as sinful…”

For the doctrine and teaching of the Church of the Eternal God and its corporate affiliates in matters of marriage and homosexuality, and that marriages which are officiated by ministers of the church are strictly between a “believing” man and a “believing” woman, see our booklet on “Keys to Happy Marriages and Families,” as well as our numerous Q&As, including  http://www.eternalgod.org/qapdf/3683 ; http://www.eternalgod.org/qapdf/13060 and http://www.eternalgod.org/qapdf/771.

Another Ridiculous Court Decision

The Los Angeles Times wrote on August 29:

“A federal appeals court Thursday upheld a state law that prohibits licensed mental health therapists from trying to change the sexual orientation of minors. The unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel said the never-enforced law does not violate the free speech rights of patients or professionals, or the fundamental rights of parents. The state has the right to prohibit treatment it deems harmful, the court said…

“The California law… subjects licensed professionals to discipline if they try to change a minor’s sexual orientation. California was the first state to ban the therapy, and New Jersey followed this year. ‘The 1st Amendment does not prevent a state from regulating treatment even when that treatment is performed through speech alone,’ the panel concluded.”

The Dark Alliance Between Homosexuals and Pedophiles

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 29:

“In the 1980s, gay rights groups in Germany formed an alliance with pedophiles who advocated the legalization of sex with minors. It’s a dark period few care to talk about now.

“In July 1981, the gay interest magazine ‘Rosa Flieder’ published an interview with Olaf Stüben. Stüben was one of the most infamous pedophiles in Germany at the time. As a writer for the leftist newspaper Die Tageszeitung, he openly advocated for people to accept pedophilia as healthy and moral… in the 1970s and 80s, numerous gay-oriented magazines brazenly promoted sex with children…

“Anyone who searches through archives can find ample evidence of the alliance between gay rights organizations and pedophile activists. If pedophiles got into trouble with the law, they could rely on legal advice from a group called ‘Gay Lawyers’…  there was the remarkable idea that underage boys should not be denied the chance to have sexual experiences with grown men… The gay movement helped pedophiles in entirely practical ways..

“Beginning in the mid-1980s, the gay movement in Germany began to distance itself from pedophiles… The gay rights movement also began to notice how much damage the alliance with pedophiles was causing…”

Rim Fire Reaches California’s Yosemite National Park

BBC wrote on August 26:

“A huge fire in and around California’s Yosemite National Park has continued to spread and now covers almost 230 sq miles (600 sq km), officials say. The Rim Fire is now raining ash on a key reservoir that supplies water and hydro-electric power to San Francisco… The blaze is also threatening thousands of homes and some of California’s renowned giant sequoia trees.

“On Monday officials said the fire was 15% contained after burning for more than a week – up from 2% containment on Friday. Strong winds are making the fires more difficult to control. ‘This fire has continued to pose every challenge that there can be on a fire,’ said Daniel Berlant of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection… The blaze began on 17 August in the Stanislaus National Forest but the cause is still unknown…

“Ash is said to be falling like snow on the Hetch Hetchy reservoir, which supplies San Francisco with 85% of its water… Two of three hydroelectric power stations serving the city were shut down, forcing the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission to spend $600,000 (£385,000) buying power on the open market…

“The Rim Fire is one of 50 major wildfires burning in the western US. Lack of rain and snow have made it a bad year, with 5,700 fires being tackled so far. The Beaver Creek fire in Idaho has destroyed some 45,000 hectares near the ski resort of Sun Valley…”

By Wednesday night, August 28, the flames had scorched over 300 square miles, making it the 6th largest fire in state history. Officials said Wednesday evening that the fire was 30 percent contained.

Egypt Does Not Know the Way to Peace

Newsmax reported on August 16:

“The National Salvation Front, a coalition of pro-democratic and secular parties in Egypt, set out its objections to remarks made by President Barack Obama Thursday on the escalating violence in Egypt. Led by Ahmed Said of the Free Egyptians Party, the group issued the following letter:

“‘Let us first inform you about who the Muslim brothers are: They’re an unlawful organization operating outside the realm of Egyptian law, receiving foreign funding and laundering money in a flagrant breech of international law. Their aim is to rule the world through a so-called Islamic Caliphate as they believe in their absolute supremacy. They pretend they are God’s emissaries and they will not rest until they have forced the whole world into submission. For them, Egypt is the launching pad to achieve their fascist dream. Their international reach spans the globe and they command the hearts and minds of many unsuspecting politicians. They have used deceit, soft speeches, international funds and whenever required, violence,  to impose their will…

“‘The rule of (deposed President Mohammed) Morsi showed how in less than a year they abused the people, reneged on their promises and overturned the rule of law by issuing constitutional diktats monopolizing the judiciary as well as the legislative arms of the state. This was enough to impeach any president in a democratic nation. Unfortunately, Egyptians couldn’t refer to their Supreme Court as it was besieged by thugs for over 60 days back in November of 2012. So finally, Egyptians took to the streets and this century’s second Egyptian ‘peaceful unarmed’ revolution took place in June 2013 to recall the president and reject the rule of the Brotherhood. Egyptians deposed their president not because he was not inclusive, as you so kindly represented, but because he broke his constitutional oath and became another dictator reminiscent of the previous dictator this same great people of Egypt removed in January 2011. This was the will of the people that the West is now trying to bend pretending they are doing so in the name of democracy with no intention of interfering in Egyptian affairs!…

“Since July 3, 2013, the day deposed President Morsi was ousted by popular demand of millions of Egyptians, the Western media and prominent emissaries from the U.S. and Europe have consistently described the sit-ins that paralyzed a large part of Cairo as ‘peaceful demonstrations.’ They chose to ignore what was happening across Egypt from torching churches and killing randomly and destroying private and public properties… Peaceful demonstrators do not attack a police station with RPG and kill the police chief and his deputies, strip them of their clothes and drag their naked bodies down the street. Peaceful demonstrators do not threaten Christians with genocide as many of the Muslim Brotherhood declared in hate speeches from the sit-in stage. Peaceful demonstrators do not raise the black flags of al-Qaida while marching with pictures of bin Laden and al Zawahri on their chests…”

This may all be very true, but still, the military coup with ITS mass murders is equally deplorable. Both sides in Egypt are terribly wrong, and the bloodshed of innocent people is bound to continue. Egypt does not know the way to peace, nor does man in general. Man’s ways do not bring peace. Man will never achieve peace through propaganda, selective news “reporting” and violence, including the possession and use of weapons and the means of strife and war, rebellion, revolution, uprisings, military coups, or the mass murders of opponents. ONLY the return of Jesus Christ will establish true and lasting peace for this sick, violent, war-stricken and deceived world.

Israel Supports Egypt’s Military

On August 19, the New York Times wrote the following:

“The Israeli government is pressing its efforts to convince the United States and the European Union to support the military-backed government in Egypt. The New York Times reported late Sunday that Israeli ambassadors in Washington and the European capitals will lobby foreign ministers, and that Israeli leaders will urge diplomats to see the Israeli viewpoint that the Egyptian military will prevent a further deterioration of the situation in Cairo.

“The newspaper cited an unnamed ‘senior Israeli official involved in the effort.’ ‘If you insist on big principles, then you will miss the essential — the essential being putting Egypt back on track at whatever cost,’ the official told the Times. ‘First, save what you can, and then deal with democracy and freedom and so on. At this point it’s army or anarchy.’

“Israel reportedly has been lobbying American officials hard to sustain the annual $1.5 billion in U.S. aid to Egypt… Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who led the military coup that ousted Morsi, developed close ties with Israel when he headed Egypt’s military intelligence, according to the Times, and has remained in close contact with Israel throughout the recent violence and bloodshed.”

The Associated Press reported on August 19 that Israel is quietly maintaining close contacts with the Egyptian military, hoping that their rule and fight against Islamists will maintain Israel’s historic 1979 peace treaty with Egypt. As so often during its history, Israel is betting on the wrong horse. Its attempt to buy allies is condemned by God, and the Bible prophecies that Europe and Egypt will become allies to fight against Israel.

Egypt Key Partner to Europe– the Conscience of the World

The EUObserver wrote on August 19:

“The EU’s envoy to north Africa, Bernardino Leon, has said events in Egypt are ‘more complex’ than a simple story of the army killing Muslim protesters… [He said:] ‘There are two sides. There is violence coming from all sides … We have seen attacks on Coptic churches and on public buildings. We’ve been saying very clearly that violence from both sides, from all sides, has to stop.’…

“Leon underlined the importance of Egypt in terms of regional stability. ‘Egypt is a key partner [for the EU], probably the most important partner in the Mediterranean,’ he said… Egypt’s ambassador to the UK, Ashraf ElKholy, told The Telegraph newspaper that: ‘Europe is the conscience of the world.” He added: ‘I think we are beginning to see recognition that the Muslim Brotherhood is involved in the violence from Europe’s governments.'”

It is remarkable that Europe—not the USA—is perceived as being the conscience and therefore the leader of the world. The revelations of the terrible spying activities of the NSA and the witch-hunt like prosecutions of whistleblowers (see below) did little to establish America as having a conscience which others should follow.

Further Egyptian Complications—Mubarak to Be Released…

The New York Times reported on August 19:

“A court in Egypt has ordered that former President Hosni Mubarak, who has been detained on a variety of charges since his ouster in 2011, should be set free [The court acquitted Mubarak on a charge of corruption]…

“The development threatened to inject a volatile new element into the standoff between the country’s military and the Islamist supporters of the deposed President Mohamed Morsi… It was unclear how Egyptians… would respond to the release of a despised autocrat whose downfall united Mr. Mubarak’s secular and Islamist foes. News of the legal maneuvers came at a time of sustained bloodletting.”

The New York Times added on August 21:

“An Egyptian court on Wednesday ordered former President Hosni Mubarak released from prison, saying all appeals by prosecutors to keep him behind bars had been exhausted… The juxtaposition of freedom for Mr. Mubarak while Mr. Morsi remains in custody would dramatically test the level of support for the military-led government among the many anti-Mubarak people who later sided with the decision to depose Mr. Morsi and crack down on the Muslim Brotherhood…

“His ouster, and the disgrace of public trial in courtrooms full of opponents and television cameras, was deeply unpopular among some of Egypt’s allies, particularly Saudi Arabia, which helped put together a $12 billion aid package for Egypt after Mr. Morsi was deposed last month. The money will help offset threats of aid cutoffs from the United States and European countries over the huge numbers of deaths in pro-Morsi protests.”

Obama’s Half-Brother Overseer of Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt?

WorldNetDaily wrote on August 21 (this article was also posted by the Drudge Report on August 21):

“President Obama’s half-brother in Kenya could cause the White House more headaches over new evidence linking him to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and establishing that controversial IRS supervisor Lois Lerner signed his tax-exempt approval letter.

“Malik Obama’s oversight of the Muslim Brotherhood’s international investments is one reason for the Obama administration’s support of the Muslim Brotherhood, according to an Egyptian report citing the vice president of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt, Tehani al-Gebali. In a news report on Egyptian television of a Gebali speech… said she would like ‘to inform the American people that their president’s brother Obama is one of the architects of the major investments of the Muslim Brotherhood.’”

Rand Paul Slams Congress

The cable.foreignpolicy.com wrote on August 15:

“Sen. Rand Paul is hammering his fellow senators for keeping billions in financial aid flowing to Egypt’s military — even as Cairo’s security forces massacre anti-government activists. ‘This is something that those who voted in Congress are going to have to live with,’ Paul told The Cable on Thursday. ‘The question is: How does their conscience feel now as they see photographs of tanks rolling over Egyptian civilians?’

“…  the legislation the Kentucky libertarian is referring to was an amendment to suspend aid to Egypt until the country holds free and fair elections. Two weeks ago, Republicans and Democrats rejected it by an overwhelming 86-13 vote — and top lawmakers in both parties protested it loudly… ‘It would be a terrific mistake for the United States to send a message to Egypt: you’re on your own,’ Republican Senator John McCain added back then. ‘I urge my colleagues to vote to table the Paul amendment.’

“The vote has already come back to haunt some lawmakers, such as McCain, who is now advocating a cancellation of aid to Egypt and criticizing White House policies as a ‘colossal failure.’… ‘For those who think more weapons is engaging us with the Egyptian people, ask an Egyptian,’ [Paul] continued.  “When you’re protesting in the streets and you’re run over by an American tank, you’re not going to be appreciative of American engagement.’”

How the Political Tides Turn

Newsmax reported on August 18:

“Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte and Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison joined the call to suspend aid to Egypt on Sunday following the crackdown by the military last week that left hundreds dead… ‘I would cut off aid,’ Ellison said… ‘In my mind, there’s no way to say that this was not a coup. It is. We should say so. And then we should follow our own law, which says we cannot fund the coup leaders.’

“Ellison said the administration needs to engage in ‘intense diplomacy’ with Egypt, and Congress needs to ‘suspend aid’ to the country until its leaders establish a set of Democratic protocols and stop the violence. Ellison and Ayottte joined with the call being made by influential Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina to end the aid to Egypt… [John] McCain renewed his call on Sunday to stop the aid. ‘For us to sit by and watch this happen is a violation of everything that we stood for,’ said McCain… ‘We’re not sticking with our values.’

“Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul said… that U.S. aid to Egypt was more likely to ‘buy a chateau in Paris’ for an Egyptian military leader than ‘bread in Cairo’ for the poor. ‘I don’t think we’re buying any friendship with the Egyptian people,’ Paul said, especially when people see tanks supplied by the U.S. to the Egyptian military on the streets of Cairo….”

Rand Paul was one of the very few senators who asked for the aid to stop right after the military coup in Egypt. Most politicians, INCLUDING John McCain, rejected Paul’s plea and insisted that aid had to continue, and that in clear violation of American law. Now, suddenly, the political tides are turning, and some senators, INCLUDING McCain, advocate to stop the aid, but the question is, what is the underlying and true motivation? No wonder that the Bible says, Don’t put your trust in ANY political leader and ANY of the rulers of this world, but strictly in God. Please view our recent StandingWatch program, “We Told You So—America’s Sickness and Egypt’s Turmoil.”

Lebanon the New Battle Ground?

The Washington Post wrote on August 16:

“Hezbollah’s leader said Friday that he is prepared to go to Syria personally to fight extremist Sunni Muslims whom he blamed for the deadliest bombing in Beirut in at least eight years, an attack that analysts said could herald a new ‘dark era’ of sectarian bombings targeting Lebanese civilians. The car bomb, which killed at least 21 people, was the second in a little more than a month to hit the militant Shiite movement’s staunch support base in the Lebanese capital’s southern suburbs. But unlike the first, which caused no deaths, the explosives-packed car that detonated Thursday evening outside a shoe store and a pastry shop appeared intended to cause maximum civilian casualties.

“While Lebanon is no stranger to explosions, since the country’s 15-year civil war ended in 1990 they have largely taken the form of targeted assassinations, with the civilian lives lost as tragic collateral. But since Hezbollah has begun sending fighters to Syria to help President Bashar al-Assad battle a largely Sunni opposition, the civil war there has taken an increasingly sectarian turn and reprisal attacks on the Shiite movement in Lebanon have multiplied. Analysts cited Thursday’s bombing as evidence that Iraq-style sectarian bombings have now reached Lebanon as Sunni-Shiite divisions widen. ‘This is no longer targeted assassinations of political and militant figures with clear political ends. It’s actually targeting the civilian population,’ said Imad Salamey, an associate professor of political science at Lebanese American University. ‘We are seeing the Iraqization of Lebanon, a spillover from Iraq to Syria to Lebanon. This is massive, a potentially dark era, and God knows how it can be limited.’”

The entire Middle East is a powder keg, ready to explode. Very soon, Europe will intervene militarily to try to restore “peace,” but that attempt is doomed to fail as well.

Iran—A Problem of US Making

The Huffington Post wrote on August 20:

“Sixty years ago this week, on Aug. 19, 1953, the United States, in collaboration with Britain, successfully staged a coup in Iran to overthrow democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh that a newly declassified CIA document reveals was designed to preserve the control of Western companies over Iran’s rich oil fields. The U.S. government at the time of the coup easily had manipulated Western media into denigrating Mossadegh as intemperate, unstable and an otherwise unreliable ally in the Cold War, but the real motivation for hijacking Iran’s history was Mossadegh’s move to nationalize Western-controlled oil assets in Iran…

“Tragically, the coup that overthrew Mossadegh also crushed Iran’s brief experiment in democracy and ushered in six decades of brutal dictatorship followed by religious oppression and regional instability. If Iran is a problem, as the United States persistently and loudly insists, it is a problem of our making…”

Fear of Terror Attacks in Coming Weeks—Israelis Ordered to Avoid Certain Countries or Leave Them

The Times of Israel reported on August 19:

“Israeli and Jewish targets all over the world are likely to be sought out by terrorist organizations in the coming weeks, the Israeli government’s Counter-Terrorism Bureau warned in strikingly strident tones on Monday, listing dozens of countries where it said it had ‘concrete’ indications of a terrorist threat.

“It cited concerns about terrorist acts timed to coincide with the forthcoming Rosh Hashana (New Year), Yom Kippur and Succot festivals, and also said that the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US was likely to be ‘a favored period’ for al-Qaeda and other global jihadist groups to attempt to carry out acts of terrorism…

“Israelis are barred altogether from travel to Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Yemen, where the ‘concrete’ terror threat was ‘very high.’ In addition, [the Israeli government] ordered Israelis not to travel to Sudan, Somalia, Algeria, Djibouti, Mauritania, Libya and Tunisia, and to leave these countries immediately if they were there, because of a similarly ‘very high’ terror threat…

“The unusually shrill and widespread alert included an order to Israelis not to travel to the Sinai Peninsula, because of the chaotic situation in Egypt. The Sinai’s Red Sea resorts are a traditionally popular holiday destination for Israelis, especially at this time of year…

“Using only slightly less urgent language, the bureau… ordered Israelis to ‘avoid visiting’ the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Egypt and Qatar, where it cited what it called a ‘basic’ terrorist threat… The bureau also told Israelis to postpone nonessential visits to Turkey, Oman and Morocco, because of ‘ongoing potential threats.’

“Slightly further afield, it cited ‘very high’ terror threats in Afghanistan, parts of southern Thailand, parts of the southern Philippines, east Senegal, India’s Kashmir province, northern Nigeria, parts of Kenya, and Chechnya. Israel[is] were not to travel to any of those areas, and to leave immediately if they were there, it ordered.

“The advisory also specified a ‘high’ terror threat in Indonesia, Burkina-Faso, Ivory Coast, Togo, Mali, Malaysia and Pakistan, telling Israelis not to go there and urging them to leave as soon as possible if they were there now…”

That terror attacks are feared to strike during the upcoming annual Holy Days of God—the Feast of Trumpets (“Rosh Hashana”), the Days of Atonement (“Yom Kippur”) and the Feast of Tabernacles (“Sukkoth”)—is ample evidence for the fact as to who would be behind such violence—obviously none other than Satan the devil, the god of this world and the prince of darkness, whose declared goal it is to fight against God and everything that He stands for.

Germany’s Sad Leadership in Europe

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 16:

“The option of selecting ‘blank’, in addition to the standard choices of ‘male’ or ‘female’ on birth certificates will become available in Germany from November 1. The legislative change allows parents to opt out of determining their baby’s gender, thereby allowing those born with characteristics of both sexes to choose whether to become male or female in later life. Under the new law, individuals can also opt to remain outside the gender binary altogether.

“Germany is the first country in Europe to introduce this option — Munich-based newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung is referring to the change as a ‘legal revolution’. It remains unclear, however, how the change will affect gender assignment in other personal documents, such as passports, which still require people to choose between two categories – ‘F’ for female and ‘M’ for male. German family law publication FamRZ has called for the introduction of a third category, designated by the letter ‘X’.

“The law was passed back in May, but has only now been reported on, following an article this month in FamRZ — just six weeks after Australia became the first country in the world to introduce legal guidelines on gender recognition. Under the Australian system, which applies to all personal documents, individuals can select the third category irrespective of whether or not they have undergone sex reassignment surgery or hormone therapy…

“Finland is the only EU member state aside from Germany to have made significant progress in the area of third gender recognition. Despite its efforts, bureaucratic hurdles in the Nordic country have meant that there is still no concrete legislative change in sight.”

The Local added on August 16:

“The new law will apply to intersexuals, or hermaphrodites – people born with gender-indeterminate bodies, rather than transsexuals, who are born with a specific sex but feel they are members of the other gender. Brussels-based lawyer Wolf Sieberich told the FamRZ transsexuals should also get the right to determine their own legally recognized gender.

“Marriage law may also have to be altered as a result he said. Currently a marriage in Germany is only allowed between a man and a woman and a legally recognized life partnership is allowed for members of the same gender. Sieberich questioned what that would mean for someone whose gender is not specified.”

This is the opening of a Pandora’s box. Where will it end? Our world is drifting further and further away from God’s standards.

Christie vs. the Bible

Newsmax reported on August 19:

“New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican who has opposed same-sex marriage, said that gay people are born that way and it is not a sin.  The statement was released as he signed a bill banning therapy that tries to change a minor’s sexual orientation. Christie said such efforts pose ‘critical health risks including, but not limited to, depression, substance abuse, social withdrawal, decreased self-esteem and suicidal thoughts.’

“Christie, who is seeking re-election for governor in November and appears to be positioning himself to run for president in 2016, has walked a fine line on issues surrounding homosexuality as polls show a majority of Republicans oppose gay marriage amid broader acceptance of the practice… Christie told CNN’s Piers Morgan in 2011 that while he is Catholic and his church believes homosexuality is a sin, he doesn’t share the view…

“New Jersey becomes the second state, after California, to ban gay-conversion therapy. The law… prohibits licensed professional counselors — including psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists, and social workers — from engaging in practices designed to change the sexual orientation of anyone under age 18.”

Such appalling laws and opinions of high-ranking and influential politicians, which are in total contradiction to the godly revelation of the Holy Bible, help to explain WHY America is in such a terrible mess.

Former Marijuana Enthusiast Barack Obama’s Ongoing War on Medical Marijuana

The Huffington Post wrote on August 20:

“The White House declined to weigh in Tuesday on whether President Barack Obama has changed his position on medical marijuana use after the president’s onetime choice for surgeon general, Sanjay Gupta, reversed his stance and apologized for misleading the public on the drug’s effects.

“During the daily press briefing, CQ-Roll Call reporter Steve Dennis asked White House spokesman Josh Earnest if the administration had any reaction to Gupta’s Aug. 9 column, ‘Why I changed my mind on weed,’ in which Gupta explores the discrepancy between the Drug Enforcement Administration’s classification of marijuana as a Schedule I drug and scientific research demonstrating its benefits. Gupta, who serves as CNN’s chief medical expert, not only apologized for dismissing the evidence from medical marijuana patients, but said he had concluded that marijuana has a low potential for abuse and ‘very legitimate medical applications.’

“Dennis also asked if Obama had personally been looking at the issue, given that national polls show rising support for marijuana legalization since he took office. Earnest ducked the question, responding, ‘I have to confess I did not see the Sanjay Gupta column you’re referring to, so it’s hard for me to comment at this point.’

“The Obama administration has cracked down hard on medical marijuana, even in states that have legalized its use. A recent report found that this administration spent nearly $300 million on medical marijuana intervention through lawsuits, indictments and asset forfeiture attempts by the Justice Department. Over the past few years, the Internal Revenue Service has also targeted medical marijuana dispensaries, forcing many of them to the brink of closure, and largely ignoring the fact that many such businesses were in compliance with state laws.

“But as the White House continues to wage war on pot, public opinion has shifted in the opposite direction. A HuffPost/YouGov poll conducted in April found that 51 percent of Americans said marijuana should be ‘legalized, taxed and regulated like alcohol.’ An earlier Pew Research Center survey also found majority support among Americans for marijuana legalization.

“‘It’s baffling that the White House still seems so afraid to embrace this issue, particularly for an administration headed by a former marijuana enthusiast who repeatedly pledged during the 2008 campaign to put a stop to federal raids on state-legal providers,’ Tom Angell, co-founder of the pro-legalization website Marijuana Majority, told The Huffington Post in a statement. ‘Polls show that legalizing marijuana is a mainstream issue and that a super-majority of voters wants the feds to let states implement their own marijuana laws without harassment. There’s almost no one clamoring for a continued federal crackdown, so I can’t imagine why the president hasn’t put a stop to it yet.’

“Obama has previously shown significant confidence in Gupta’s medical expertise: As many observers recalled, the president reportedly offered him the post of surgeon general in 2009. Gupta then withdrew his name from consideration, citing his reluctance to give up his medical practice and be away from his family.”

Bradley Manning Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison

The Washington Post wrote on August 21:

“A military judge on Wednesday morning sentenced Army Pfc. Bradley Manning to 35 years in prison for leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks… [The prosecution had asked for 60 years in prison, while the maximum sentence would have been 90 years in prison.] Manning is required to serve one-third of the sentence, minus three and half years of time served, before he is eligible for parole. That will be in eight years when he is 33… Manning was dishonorably discharged. He was also reduced in rank and forfeits all pay…

“The decision was immediately condemned by the American Civil Liberties Union. ‘When a soldier who shared information with the press and public is punished far more harshly than others who tortured prisoners and killed civilians, something is seriously wrong with our justice system,’ said Ben Wizner, director of the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy and Technology Project…

“Manning’s lawyers said he had become disillusioned by what he was seeing in Iraq and hoped that the public release of the secret material would prompt greater public understanding of the wars…”

Deutsche Welle added on August 21:

“Activist groups Amnesty International and the Bradley Manning Support Network have announced an online petition asking President Barack Obama to pardon Manning. He has also been nominated several times for the Nobel Peace Prize and a number of other awards.”

The Huffington Post wrote on August 21:

“Yochai Benkler, a Harvard professor who has studied WikiLeaks and testified in Manning’s defense [said:] ‘Basically the decision has done more damage to the American Constitutional order than all of the disclosures put together did to any other kind of American interest.’…

“‘Bradley Manning acted on the belief that he could spark a meaningful public debate on the costs of war, and specifically on the conduct of the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan,’ Widney Brown, senior director of international law and policy at Amnesty International, said in a statement. ‘The US government should turn its attention to investigating and delivering justice for the serious human rights abuses committed by its officials in the name of countering terror.’

“The sentencing phase of Manning’s trial revealed that contrary to the claims of pundits and politicians, Manning had no blood on his hands —  the Departments of Defense and State were unable to tie his releases to the deaths of any U.S. informants… [The judge] acquitted Manning of aiding the enemy but gave little explanation as to why…

“UN special rapporteur on torture Juan Mendez found after a 14-month investigation that Manning’s treatment at Quantico was cruel, inhuman, and degrading. [The Judge] said the conditions had been ‘excessive’ in relation to the government’s legitimate interest in holding Manning. She granted the soldier an additional 112 days credit for enduring those conditions, which will also be applied to shorten his sentence…

“Andrea Prasow, senior counterterrorism counsel and advocate in Human Rights Watch’s U.S. Program, told HuffPost that the massive investigation involving hundreds of State and Defense Department employees into Manning’s leaks stood in stark contrast to the government’s unwillingness to prosecute those involved in torture and abuse at places like Abu Ghraib. ‘It’s hard to look at the aggressive prosecution of someone so young, who is clearly troubled, and probably did have a fair bit of concern about the public interest … and compare that to people who authorized a regime of torture and abuse and will remain free,’ Prasow said.”

The Incredible Scope of US Government Spying Activities on Its Citizens

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 16:

“Spy on US citizens? We don’t do that, the American government claimed. But new NSA documents published by the Washington Post show that the intelligence service violates the law in thousands of instances. Analysts with the agency are free to pick targets as they choose. With each new publication of documents provided by whistleblower Edward Snowden, the scope of the United States’ spying system becomes ever clearer. And each piece of the puzzle reveals yet more lies and half-truths that those who are supposed to be providing oversight for the NSA have used to defend the practices…”

CNet added on August 16:

“The National Security Agency exceeded its legal authority and broke agency rules thousands of times since it was granted broader powers in 2008… Most violations involved unauthorized surveillance of Americans or foreign intelligence targets in the U.S…. infractions ranging from serious legal violations to typographical errors that resulted in unintended data collection…”

America’s reputation as a country of freedom and liberty is suffering tremendously because of the appalling revelations of improper spying conduct and the government’s disproportionate prosecution of whistleblowers, while refusing to prosecute those guilty of torture and abuse.

Britain’s Newest Scandal

The Huffington Post wrote on August 20:

“British prime minister David Cameron was placed at the center of the controversy surrounding his government’s actions towards the Guardian newspaper on Tuesday, as it was revealed that he was informed about the imminent detention of David Miranda… and that he approved the decision to try to force the paper to hand over materials given to it by NSA leaker Edward Snowden.

“Downing Street told the media that Cameron was personally ‘kept abreast in the usual way’ about Miranda’s detention at Heathrow airport. Miranda, who was traveling from Berlin to Brazil, was held for nine hours and quizzed aggressively about Greenwald’s work. His electronic equipment was confiscated. On Tuesday, lawyers for Miranda said they were set to take legal action against the British government over the detention.”

Reuters wrote on August 21:

“Two of British Prime Minister David Cameron’s most senior aides pressed the Guardian newspaper to hand over or destroy intelligence secrets leaked by Edward Snowden, political sources said on Wednesday. News that Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood and National Security Adviser Kim Darroch were involved drags Cameron into a storm over Britain’s response to coverage of leaks from the fugitive U.S. intelligence contractor – a response that left even its U.S. ally talking of the importance of media freedom.”

The Guardian wrote on August 20:

“The Metropolitan police had no legal basis to detain David Miranda under the Terrorism Act 2000, Tony Blair’s former lord chancellor has claimed. Lord Falconer of Thoroton, who helped introduce the bill in the House of Lords, said that the act makes clear that police can only detain someone to assess whether they are involved in the commission, preparation or instigation of terrorism… The peer, who served as solicitor general from 1997-98 and as lord chancellor from 2003-07, was highly critical of the home secretary, Theresa May, who praised the police action at Heathrow on the grounds that the partner of the Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald possessed sensitive documents which could help terrorists and ‘lead to a loss of lives’. May also said that police had acted within the law…”

In an accompanying article of August 20, the Guardian wrote:

“Two great forces are now in fierce but unresolved contention. The material revealed by Edward Snowden through the Guardian and the Washington Post… indicates not just that the modern state is gathering, storing and processing for its own ends electronic communication from around the world; far more serious, it reveals that this power has so corrupted those wielding it as to put them beyond effective democratic control. It was not the scope of NSA surveillance that led to Snowden’s defection. It was hearing his boss lie to Congress about it for hours on end…

“But it remains worrying that many otherwise liberal-minded Britons seem reluctant to take seriously the abuses revealed in the nature and growth of state surveillance. The arrogance of this abuse is now widespread…

“I hesitate to draw parallels with history, but I wonder how those now running the surveillance state – and their appeasers – would have behaved under the totalitarian regimes of the 20th century. We hear today so many phrases we have heard before. The innocent have nothing to fear. Our critics merely comfort the enemy. You cannot be too safe. Loyalty is all. As one official said in wielding his legal stick over the Guardian: ‘You have had your debate. There’s no need to write any more.’”

Germany Condemns British Action

The Local wrote on August 21:

“Markus Löning, the human rights chief at Germany’s foreign ministry, said on Wednesday the British government had crossed ‘the red line’ and had their actions… left him ‘truly appalled’. He expressed ‘great concern’ about media freedom in Britain after the Guardian said it was forced to destroy files linked to US surveillance practices or face a court battle.

“Löning also slammed the detention and questioning at a London airport on Sunday of the partner of US journalist Glenn Greenwald who has written extensively about Snowden’s revelations for the Guardian. ‘The United Kingdom has a long and proud tradition of freedom but the way the authorities detained David Miranda at Heathrow airport I see as unacceptable,’ he told the newspaper Berliner Zeitung. ‘That took place on the basis of an anti-terror law but I cannot see any connection to terrorism…’

“The detention of Miranda and treatment of the Guardian by the British government has also been met with horror by the German press with newspapers running editorials expressing their dismay at the action. And Sigmar Gabriel, chairman of Germany’s biggest opposition party, the SPD, said that the European Union could intervene. He told newspaper Kölner Stadt Anzeiger that Britain should think about the consequences of its action… Gabriel added: ‘Eroding freedom and fundamental rights under the guise of fighting terrorism can’t be allowed to happen in Europe.’”

Der Spiegel Online commented on August 20:

“The abuses against The Guardian prove that the British government has lost all restraint in its fight against terrorism… It’s astonishing to see how many Britons blindly and uncritically trust the work of their intelligence service.”

Indeed, Ephraim—partially describing the modern UK—is like a cake unturned and a silly dove, without sense… and it does not even know it (Hosea 7:8-11).

Pope Benedict Explains Why He Resigned

The Guardian wrote on August 21:

“The former pope Benedict has claimed that his resignation in February was prompted by God, who told him to do it during a ‘mystical experience’. Breaking his silence for the first time since he became the first pope to step down in 600 years, the 86-year-old reportedly said: ‘God told me to’ when asked what had pushed him to retire to a secluded residence in the Vatican gardens.

“Benedict denied he had been visited by an apparition or had heard God’s voice, but said he had undergone a ‘mystical experience’ during which God had inspired in him an ‘absolute desire’ to dedicate his life to prayer rather than push on as pope… Benedict said his mystical experience had lasted months, building his desire to create a direct and exclusive relationship with God. Now, after witnessing the ‘charisma’ of his successor, Pope Francis, Benedict said he understood to a greater extent how his stepping aside was the ‘will of God’.

“Benedict’s reported remarks contrast with the explanation he gave to cardinals when he announced his resignation on 11 February. ‘My strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry,’ he said then… Speculation also grew that he was depressed after his trusted butler, Paolo Gabriele, was caught leaking his personal correspondence. Italian press reports have recently claimed he was frustrated by a network of influence built up at the Vatican by a pro-gay lobby of prelates.”

Radioactive Water Leaks at Nuclear Plant in Fukushima

AFP wrote on August 21:

“Japan’s nuclear regulator on Wednesday upgraded its evaluation of a radioactive water leak at the crippled nuclear plant in Fukushima to a level three ‘serious incident.’ The assessment, on an international scale of zero to seven with seven being the worst, came after operator Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) said some 300 tonnes of radioactive water was believed to have leaked from a tank at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, the worst such leak since the crisis began.”

BBC News added to explain:

“Events are classified at seven levels: Levels 1-3 are ‘incidents’ and Levels 4-7 ‘accidents’. In order, the levels are classified as: anomaly; incident; serious incident; accident with local consequences; accident with wider consequences; serious accident; major accident. To date, two incidents have been classified as level 7 – Chernobyl and Fukushima. The severity of an event is about 10 times greater for each increase in level on the scale.”

Terrible Flooding in China, Russia and the Philippines

Deutsche Welle reported on August 19:

“Flooding is continuing to cause death and destruction in parts of China, Russia and the Philippines. Thousands of people have been forced to flee or have been evacuated by rescue workers. More than 70 people have been killed and 100 others are missing after China was hit by the worst flooding in more than a decade, the government said on Monday. The Ministry of Civil Affairs reported that around 360,000 people had been evacuated over the weekend.

“In the far east of Russia, more than 17,000 people have been evacuated and the authorities have declared a state of disaster in the hardest-hit regions of Amur and Khabarovsk… In the Philippines, torrential rains brought the capital, Manila, to a standstill on Monday, with flooding forcing schools, offices and the stock exchange to close.”

Dolphins Die in Alarming Numbers

The website of npr wrote on August 17:

“Dead dolphins have been washing up in alarming numbers on mid-Atlantic beaches since July as scientists struggle to find a cause for the largest such die-off in a quarter-century. More than 160 Atlantic bottlenose dolphins have turned up dead from New York to Virginia, says Charley Potter, a marine mammal collection manager…

“While no definitive cause for the dolphin deaths has been determined, Potter says one possibility is the morbillivirus, a member of the same family of virus that causes measles and canine distemper. Morbillivirus was pinpointed as a cause in a 1987 dolphin die-off that killed some 2,500 animals… Scientists must now determine ‘whether or not the [morbillivirus] infection is something that’s always been there and that we’re picking it up because of increased surveillance, or in fact it’s the smoking gun,’ he says…”