President Obama in Russia

The Wall Street Journal reported on July 6:

“Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev reached a framework agreement to reduce their nuclear arsenals but left open a host of vexing issues in US-Russian relations… the widely anticipated agreements reached Monday are not likely to give [Obama] a big boost…

“The Russians are continuing to say they cannot reach a final agreement on a new treaty if the U.S. insists on deploying missile defense systems on Poland and the Czech Republic…”

Obama Challenges Russia

The Wall Street Journal wrote on July 8:

“President Barack Obama challenged Russians to bolster the rule of law, recognize the sovereignty and borders of its neighbors and rejuvenate its flagging democracy, even as he reassured the former Cold War adversary that the U.S. is committed to a ‘strong, peaceful and prosperous Russia’… But he demanded that Russia accept the rights of former Soviet clients Georgia and Ukraine to sovereignty, secure borders and independent foreign policies. He reiterated that Russia’s neighbors may join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization if they meet membership criteria…

“There is little evidence of Obamamania in Russia. Although the audience was considered liberal by Russian standards, its reaction was subdued. The half-hour speech went uninterrupted by applause. The ovation at its conclusion was subdued… A poll last week found that… [three] quarters say the U.S. abuses its power to make Russia do what it wants…

“[Obama said:] ‘In 2009, a great power does not show strength by dominating or demonizing other countries.'”

Is Russia Preparing for War?

The Wall Street Journal wrote on July 3:

“… the Russian media are now abuzz with speculation about a new war in Georgia, and some Western analysts are voicing similar concerns. The idea seems insane. Nonetheless, the risk is real. One danger sign is persistent talk of so-called Georgian aggression against the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which Russia recognized as independent states after the war last August… Independent Russian commentators… note that this has the feel of a propaganda campaign to prepare the public for a second war… The expulsion of neutral observers [by Russia] seems odd if Russia is worried about Georgian aggression. But it makes sense if Russia is planning an attack.

“What would the Kremlin gain? A crushing victory in Georgia would depose the hated Mr. Saakashvili, give Russia control of vital transit routes for additional energy resources that could weaken its hold on the European oil and gas markets, humiliate the U.S., and distract Russians from their economic woes…

“Moscow’s actions are not always rational… That is why it’s essential for the United States and the EU to respond now — by increasing their non-military presence in Georgia, expressing a strong commitment to Georgian sovereignty, and reminding Russia of the consequences of aggression.”

Pope Asks for World Authority

Der Stern Online reported on July 8 that Pope Benedict XVI, in his third encyclical letter–the highest form of papal teachings–pleaded for “a real world authority,” which would need to go far beyond the present UN, in order to tackle the economic world crisis and to secure world peace.

Its publication comes on the eve of Wednesday’s G8 meeting of world leaders at L’Aquila.

Benedict’s predecessor, Pope John Paul II, had already called for such a world authority. Benedict stated that it is now absolutely necessary to establish it.

The Associated Press reported on July 7:

“Pope Benedict XVI called Tuesday for a new world financial order guided by ethics, dignity and the search for the common good in the third encyclical of his pontificate… Benedict stressed he wasn’t opposed to a globalized economy, saying that if done correctly it has an unprecedented potential to redistribute wealth around the globe. But he warned that if badly directed and if the problems aren’t fixed, globalization can increase poverty and inequality and trigger the type of crisis under way.”

Mr. Obama Turns to the Pope

Israel National News wrote on July 5:

“U.S. President Barack Obama is turning to the Pope to back his vision of a new Arab state on all of Judea and Samaria and eastern Jerusalem. The president told the Catholic Italian newspaper Avvenire, one week before a scheduled meeting with the Pope in Italy, ‘It [the Middle East] is a subject I am keen to discuss with the pope. I think he will share my approach.’

“President Obama has dug in his heels in insisting that Israel stop all building for Jews in Judea and Samaria, and the State Department has indicated that the ban should include all of Jerusalem that was restored to Israel in the Six-Day War in 1967… President Obama faces stiff opposition from Arabs to make any concessions before Israel completely surrenders all of Judea and Samaria.”

Saudi Arabia Will Allow Israel to Use Airspace in Attack on Iran…

The Sunday Times wrote on July 5:

“The head of Mossad, Israel’s overseas intelligence service, has assured Benjamin Netanyahu… that Saudi Arabia would turn a blind eye to Israeli jets flying over the kingdom during any future raid on Iran’s nuclear sites…

“Recent developments have underscored concerns among moderate Sunni Arab states about the stability of the repressive Shi’ite regime in Tehran and have increased fears that it may emerge as a belligerent nuclear power… The Israeli air force has been training for a possible attack on Iran’s nuclear site at Natanz in the centre of the country and other locations for four years.”

Der Spiegel Online reported on July 7 that Saudi Arabia vehemently denied the report of the Sunday Times.

America Won’t Stand in the Way, Either…

The Associated Press reported on July 5:

“Vice President Joe Biden signaled that the Obama administration would not stand in the way if Israel chose to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, even as the top U.S. military officer said any attack on Iran would be destabilizing.”

Haaretz reported on July 6:

“Iran is ready to take real and decisive action if Israel attacks its nuclear facilities, a senior Iranian parliamentary official said Monday. The remarks… came after U.S. Vice President Joe Biden signaled that Washington would not try to prevent any such Israeli assault.”

… Even Though It’s Denied…

AFP wrote on July 6:

“State Department spokesman Ian Kelly rebuffed suggestions from reporters that Biden could be seen as giving the Jewish state a green light to attack Iran…”

The Jerusalem Post added on July 7:

“US President Barack Obama on Tuesday strongly denied that the United States had given Israel an approval to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities. Asked by CNN whether Washington had given Israel a green light for such an attack, Obama answered: ‘Absolutely not.'”

Israel and the USA

The Washington Times wrote on July 7:

“One senior Israeli official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, told The Washington Times that Mr. Netanyahu determined that ‘it made no sense’ to press the matter after the negative response President Bush gave Mr. Netanyahu’s predecessor, Ehud Olmert, when he asked early last year for U.S. aid for possible military strikes on Iran.

“Israel is increasingly nervous that Iran is developing the capability to build a nuclear weapon, an intention Iran denies. However, Israel is unlikely to attack Iran without at least tacit U.S. approval, in part because that would require cooperation from the United States. At the very least, Israel likely would have to fly over Iraqi airspace, which is still effectively controlled by the U.S. Air Force.”

G-8 Leaders Set Deadline for Iran Resolution

Deutsche Welle reported on July 9:

“French President Nicolas Sarkozy told reporters at the summit in the central Italian city of L’Aquila that September’s meeting of the G-20 – the world’s 20 leading economies – would be the deadline for Iran to resolve its nuclear dispute with the West.

“‘We made an effort to accept that we will not reinforce sanctions immediately in order to bring everyone on board,’ Sarkozy said, in reference to Russia’s call for more time to consider fresh sanctions. ‘[The G-20 meeting in] Pittsburgh is the rendezvous. If there is no progress by then we will have to take decisions,’ he added. The G-20 combines major developing powerhouses like China with the G-8…

“The United States and Canada said the world’s main industrialized nations were growing increasingly impatient with Iran’s tactics. ‘All G-8 nations are united. There is a strong consensus at the table that unless things change soon, there will be further action,’ said Canadian spokesman Dimitri Soudas… The United States has had comprehensive sanctions in place for decades against Iran, but its European allies have been reluctant to impose sanctions, preferring to pursue diplomatic efforts…

“G-8 leaders also criticized the Iranian regime’s violent crackdown on anti-government protesters and the “unjustified” detention of journalists in Iran… Ahmadinejad himself was also the focus of G-8 concern over his frequent denials that the mass murder of Jews under Germany’s regime ever happened. ‘We condemn the declarations of President Ahmadinejad denying the Holocaust,’ the eight leaders said in another joint statement.”

Saddam Feared Iran More Than USA

The Times wrote on July 3:

“Saddam Hussein allowed the world to believe that he had weapons of mass destruction because he feared the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran more than an American strike, according to declassified documents records of his interrogation. Saddam said that the dramatic increase in Iran’s weapons capabilities had left him feeling so vulnerable to the ‘fanatic’ mullahs next door that he would have been prepared to forge a security agreement with the United States to protect Iraq from regional threats. He warned that the effects of Iran’s unchecked rise ‘will be seen and felt in the future’.

“The revelation… supports the view of many regional experts that Saddam’s weapons bluff was aimed not at the West but at his old enemy Iran. Many analysts believe that the removal of Iraq as a bulwark against Iran has merely fuelled Tehran’s rise to its current hegemony in the Middle East. Iran and Iraq fought a devastating eight-year war from 1980 to 1988, in which Saddam was supported and armed by the United States.”

Mr. Biden Admits Mistakes…

ABC News reported on July 5:

“Big admission from Vice President Joe Biden today. ‘The truth is, we and everyone else misread the economy,’ Biden [said during an ABC] exclusive ‘This Week’ interview in Iraq.

“Biden acknowledged administration officials were too optimistic earlier this year when they predicted the unemployment rate would peak at 8 percent as part of their effort to sell the stimulus package. The national unemployment rate has ballooned to 9.5 percent in June — the worst in 26 years…

“‘We misread how bad the economy was, but we are now only about 120 days into the recovery package,’ he said. ‘The truth of the matter was, no one anticipated, no one expected that that recovery package would in fact be in a position at this point of having to distribute the bulk of money.'”

These statements by Vice President Biden are ridiculous. Even though Mr. Biden and the entire Obama Administration might have misread the economy and the signs of the times, there were voices warning about the inappropriate measures of the US government and the overly optimistic assessment of the economy. The truth is, however, that those voices were ignored or even demonized.

Big Banks Won’t Accept California’s IOUs

The Wall Street Journal wrote on July 7:

“A group of the biggest U.S. banks said they would stop accepting California’s IOUs on Friday, adding pressure on the state to close its $26.3 billion annual budget gap… After state leaders failed to agree on budget solutions last week, California began issuing IOUs — or ‘individual registered warrants’ — to hundreds of thousands of creditors. State Controller John Chiang said that without IOUs, California would run out of cash by July’s end.

“But now, if California continues to issue the IOUs, creditors will be forced to hold on to them until they mature on Oct. 2… When the IOUs mature, holders will be paid back directly by the state at an annual 3.75% interest rate…

“The group of banks included Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., Wells Fargo & Co. and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., among others. The banks had previously committed to accepting state IOUs as payment. California plans to issue more than $3 billion of IOUs in July.”

Irresponsibility of Obama Administration in Light of California Debacle

Bloomberg wrote on July 6:

“With California mired in a budget crisis… Controller John Chiang said the state planned to issue $3.3 billion in IOU’s in July alone… The California morass has Democrats in Washington trembling. The reason is simple. If Obama’s health-care plan passes, then we may well end up paying for it with federal slips of paper worth less than California’s. Obama has bet everything on passing health care this year. The publicity surrounding the California debt fiasco almost assures his resounding defeat…

“California has engaged in an orgy of spending, but, compared with our federal government, its legislators should feel chaste. The California deficit this year is now [about]… $26 billion. The U.S. federal deficit will be… almost 70 times larger. The federal picture is so bleak because the Obama administration is the most fiscally irresponsible in the history of the U.S…

“The Obama administration… is willing to abandon reason altogether to achieve its short-term political goals… Nobody believes that his unprecedented expansion of the welfare state will lead to enough economic growth. Nobody believes that it will pay for itself. Everyone understands that higher spending today begets higher spending tomorrow. That means that his economic strategy simply doesn’t add up…

“Back in the 1980s, Reagan’s own economist, Martin Feldstein, spoke up when he felt that the Reagan administration was pushing the deficit too far. Where are the economists with such character today?…”

Another US Economic Crisis Looming…

The Telegraph wrote on July 6:

“The US economy is lurching towards crisis with long-term interest rates on course to double, crippling the country’s ability to pay its debts and potentially plunging it into another recession, according to a study by the US’s own central bank… Tim Congdon, founder of Lombard Street Research, called [it] a ‘debt explosion’…

“A US crisis would have implications for the rest of the world, in any case… Mr Congdon said the study illustrated the ‘horrifying’ consequences for leading western economies of bailing out their banks and attempting to stimulate markets by cutting taxes and boosting public spending… Should the cost of raising or refinancing public debt in the markets double, ‘the debt could just explode’, he said…”

Germany Faces Largest Debt Growth in Its History

The Netzeitung reported on July 2:

“Germany is threatened with the largest debt growth in its history due to a fall in tax revenue because of the recession… The German state must borrow EUR 507 billion more before 2013… It will affect public spending on a federal, state and local authority level, and could raise the national debt to EUR 2 trillion. The new debts will be spread over the next few years, beginning with EUR 112 billion this year and EUR 132 billion in 2010.

“The debt increase means that Germany will be violating the EU’s Maastricht Treaty for the entire coming legislation period… If Germany’s national debt rose to EUR 2 trillion, the state would end up paying EUR 80 billion a year in interest alone – around one sixth of the current tax revenue.”

Honduras At the Brink…

The Associated Press reported on July 6:

“Already volatile Honduras slid toward greater instability after soldiers blocked an airport runway to keep ousted President Manuel Zelaya from returning, and protests that had remained largely peaceful yielded their first death…  Zelaya’s plane, on loan from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, arrived to find the runway blocked by military vehicles and soldiers… Zelaya instead headed for El Salvador…

“Honduras’ new government has vowed to arrest Zelaya for 18 alleged criminal acts including treason and failing to implement more than 80 laws approved by Congress since taking office in 2006. Zelaya also refused to comply with a Supreme Court ruling against his planned referendum on whether to hold an assembly to consider changing the constitution.

“Critics feared Zelaya might try to extend his rule and cement presidential power in ways similar to what his ally Chavez has done in Venezuela – though Zelaya denied that. But instead of prosecuting him or trying to defeat him at the ballot box, masked soldiers flew the president out of the country at gunpoint, and Congress installed Micheletti in his place.

“The military solution drew international condemnation… no nation has recognized the new government. President Barack Obama has united with Chavez and conservative Colombian President Alvaro Uribe in insisting on Zelaya’s return.”

Venezuela Blackmails Honduras

The New York Times reported on July 8, 2009:

“Venezuela’ s oil minister, Rafael Ramírez, confirmed Wednesday that his country had halted oil exports to Honduras. Mr. Ramírez said shipments of oil, which Venezuela has sold to Honduras at preferential prices, would not resume until that country’s ousted president, Manuel Zelaya, was reinstated. Mr. Zelaya is an ally of President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela. Venezuela sends about 20,000 barrels of oil a day to Honduras…”

Is the World Supporting the Wrong Side in Honduras?

The Wall Street Journal wrote on July 6:

“Mr. Zelaya’s violations of the rule of law in recent months were numerous. But the tipping point came 10 days ago, when he led a violent mob that stormed a military base to seize and distribute Venezuelan-printed ballots for an illegal referendum…

“Hondurans have good cause for calling on divine intervention: Reason has gone AWOL in places like Turtle Bay and Foggy Bottom. Ruling the debate on Mr. Zelaya’s behavior is Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chávez, who is now the reigning international authority on ‘democracy.’ Mr. Chávez is demanding that Mr. Zelaya be reinstated and is even threatening to overthrow the new Honduran president, Roberto Micheletti. He’s leading the charge from the Organization of American States (OAS). The United Nations and the Obama administration are falling in line.

“Is this insane? You bet… Hondurans had the courage to push back. Now Chávez-supported agitators are trying to stir up violence… This is a moment when the U.S. ought to be on the side of the rule of law, which the Honduran court and Congress upheld. If Washington does not reverse course, it will be one more act of appeasement toward an ambitious and increasingly dangerous dictator.”

Egypt Furious with Germany

Der Spiegel Online wrote on July 7:

“A brutal murder in Germany last week has caused shockwaves in far-off Egypt. Thousands of mourners took to the streets of Alexandria on Monday to protest at the funeral of a pregnant Egyptian woman who was stabbed to death inside a German court in a crime that has provoked fury in her home country.

“Egyptian newspapers have given strong coverage to the death of Marwa al-Sherbini (32), describing the veiled woman as a ‘martyr in a headscarf’ and suggesting the killer was motivated by a hatred of Islam. Mourners chanted ‘Down with Germany’ and scuffled with police after prayers in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria for al-Sherbini, who was murdered on July 1 in a courtroom in Dresden, eastern Germany, by a German man of Russian origin…

“Al-Sherbini, mother to a three-year-old child and three months pregnant, was stabbed 18 times by the man she was testifying against during an appeal hearing, German prosecutors said… Her killer also stabbed her husband, who German police then mistook for the attacker and shot in the leg, prosecutors added. The husband is in hospital and has awoken from a coma…

“The killer… was appealing against a conviction for insulting Sherbini by calling her an ‘Islamist,’ ‘terrorist’ and a ‘slut’ when she asked him to make space for her son to go on the swings on a playground in Dresden, prosecutors said. He had been fined €780 and last Wednesday’s court session had been called to hear his appeal against the ruling…

“The Egyptian Pharmaceutical Association has called for a boycott of German-made drugs… Sheikh Muhammad Sayyid Tantawi, Egypt’s most senior cleric, called the attacker a murderer and said al-Sherbiny was a martyr. But he appealed for calm and said he hoped the murder wouldn’t harm the dialogue between the West and Islam. ‘It was an isolated case,’ he said.”

Ethnic Violence in China–Why?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on July 7:

“It is still not clear exactly what sparked the worst ethnic violence China has seen in years… Rioting and violence in the Chinese province of Xinjiang has left over 150 people dead, hundreds more injured and thousands under arrest… Whatever the cause, the result was extreme inter-ethnic violence, with angry Uighurs beating Han Chinese in the streets, vehicles and businesses being burned. This led to an aggressive response by Chinese authorities…

“Germany may have more of a vested interest than most in the events as Munich is home to the largest population of Uighurs outside China…

“Business daily Handelsblatt writes: ‘Almost a year ago the tanks rolled into Lhasa; last Sunday cars and businesses were burning in Urumqi. The basic problem is that Beijing has never accepted its issues with its ethnic minorities as a political problem. Peking has not tried nearly hard enough to find a mutually acceptable solution… And this terrible situation in Urumqi only shows — once again — how fragile this Chinese super power really is… there are deep rifts right across this country. And how quickly the violence can escalate…’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘… It is only too clear that ethnic integration in China is experienced differently, by different races. What is also clear is that when those differences are ignored they make for the sort of situation that can explode into violence at any provocation’…

“The conservative daily Die Welt [states]: ‘… China is notorious for not being understanding of other cultures. Ethnic minorities have equal rights here but only on paper. Many Han Chinese treat their Uighur brethren with thinly disguised contempt and racist arrogance… The proverbial spark that set this violent fire had to do with the unexplained deaths of two Uighur factory workers. The fact that such a spark could set such a blaze in Urumqi, a historically multi-ethnic city in which Chinese, Uighurs, Kazakhs, Russians and Tartars have all lived peacefully together, does not bode well.'”

Ethnic Violence Continuing in China…

The Associated Press reported on July 8:

“Thousands of Chinese troops flooded into this city Wednesday to separate feuding ethnic groups after three days of communal violence left 156 people dead, and a senior Communist Party official vowed to execute those guilty of murder in the rioting in western China.

“Long convoys of armored cars and green troop trucks with riot police rumbled through Urumqi, a city of 2.3 million people. Other security forces carrying automatic rifles with bayonets formed cordons to defend Muslim neighborhoods from marauding groups of vigilantes with sticks.

“The crisis was so severe that President Hu Jintao cut short a trip to Italy, where he was to participate in a Group of Eight summit. It was an embarrassing move for a leader who wants to show that China has a harmonious society as it prepares to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Communist rule.

“The heightened security came amid the worst spasm of ethnic violence in decades in Xinjiang… The region is home to the Uighur ethnic minority, who rioted Sunday and attacked the Han Chinese—the nation’s biggest ethnic group—after holding a protest that was ended by police.

“Officials have said 156 people were killed as the Turkic-speaking Uighurs ran amok in the city, beating and stabbing the Han Chinese. The Uighurs allege that trigger-happy security forces gunned down many of the protesters, and officials have yet to give an ethnic breakdown of those killed.

“More than 1,100 people were wounded in the violence… The ethnic hatred in Xinjiang appears to run so deep that many Uighurs won’t express sorrow for the Han Chinese who were attacked Sunday.”

Welt On Line added on July 8:

“Urumqi, Xinjiang’s regional capital, imposed an overnight curfew after thousands of Han Chinese stormed through its streets demanding redress and sometimes extracting bloody vengeance for Sunday’s violence…

“Along with Tibet, Xinjiang is one of the most politically sensitive regions in China. It is strategically located at the borders of Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, has abundant oil reserves and is China’s largest natural gas-producing region.

“Xinjiang has long been a tightly controlled hotbed of ethnic tensions, fostered by an economic gap between many Uighurs and Han Chinese, government controls on religion and culture and an influx of Han migrants who now are the majority in most key cities, including Urumqi. There were attacks in the region before and during last year’s Summer Olympics in Beijing.

“But controlling the anger on both sides of the ethnic divide will now make controlling Xinjiang, with its gas reserves and trade and energy ties to central Asia, all the more testing for the ruling Communist Party.”

 

India to Launch First Nuclear Submarine

The Financial Times wrote on July 8:

“India is expected to launch a locally built nuclear-powered submarine later this month, making it one of only a handful of countries with the technology to produce such a vessel… The deployment of a nuclear-powered submarine would be a major step for the Indian navy, which is anxious to maintain its authority in the shipping lanes of the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea. The submarine could allow New Delhi to develop a nuclear weapon strike capability from the sea.

“The submarine, the INS Chakra, has been produced at a cost of $2.9bn… and is expected to go into full service in two years’ time…

“India has plans to lease an Akula-class nuclear submarine from Moscow. It is also awaiting the delivery of a 30-year-old refitted Russian aircraft carrier, the Admiral Gorshkov. Additionally, India is building six French-designed Scorpene diesel submarines.

“The country lags behind China’s naval might in the region… Beijing [has] a fleet of eight nuclear submarines, some with ballistic missile capability, although it [lacks] an aircraft carrier. The Chinese navy has three times the number of combat vessels (about 630) as India and a personnel strength of 225,000 — five times that of the Indian navy.”

Swine Flu Pandemic Unstoppable

Bild On Line wrote on July 6:

“The head of the WHO has issued a grim warning about the swine flu pandemic gripping the world – the killer virus can’t be stopped! The UN body has revealed that the spread of the disease cannot be halted, but insisted that the majority of cases were mild and not life-threatening. Most sufferers would recover within a week without the need for any treatment, the BBC reported. But there is still a high risk, especially for pregnant women and people with existing health problems.

“World Health Organisation head Margaret Chan… paint[ed] a dark picture about the fight against the virus: ‘As we see today, with well over 100 countries reporting cases, once a fully fit pandemic virus emerges, its further international spread is unstoppable.’

“About 80,000 people have been infected so far in 100 countries, with more than 330 deaths recorded. And the future prognosis is bad – the WHO forecasts that up to two billion people will contract the H1N1 swine flu virus. In the UK alone, it is thought up to 100,000 new cases could be recorded a day by the end of the summer.”

Abuse of Copyright Law by Big Brother Society?

The Financial Times wrote on July 7:

“If you search for Elvis Presley in Wikipedia, you will find a lot of text and a few pictures that have been cleared for distribution. But you will find no music and no film clips, due to copyright restrictions. What we think of as our common cultural heritage is not ‘ours’ at all. On MySpace and YouTube, creative people post audio and video remixes for others to enjoy, until they are replaced by take-down notices handed out by big film and record companies. Technology opens up possibilities; copyright law shuts them down.

“This was never the intent. Copyright was meant to encourage culture, not restrict it. This is reason enough for reform. But the current regime has even more damaging effects. In order to uphold copyright laws, governments are beginning to restrict our right to communicate with each other in private, without being monitored.

“File-sharing occurs whenever one individual sends a file to another. The only way to even try to limit this process is to monitor all communication between ordinary people. Despite the crackdown on Napster, Kazaa and other peer-to-peer services over the past decade, the volume of file-sharing has grown exponentially. Even if the authorities closed down all other possibilities, people could still send copyrighted files as attachments to e-mails or through private networks. If people start doing that, should we give the government the right to monitor all mail and all encrypted networks? Whenever there are ways of communicating in private, they will be used to share copyrighted material. If you want to stop people doing this, you must remove the right to communicate in private…

“The world is at a crossroads. The internet and new information technologies are so powerful that no matter what we do, society will change… The technology could be used to create a Big Brother society beyond our nightmares, where governments and corporations monitor every detail of our lives. In the former East Germany, the government needed tens of thousands of employees to keep track of the citizens using typewriters, pencils and index cards. Today a computer can do the same thing a million times faster, at the push of a button. There are many politicians who want to push that button.

“… where technology opens up new possibilities, our intellectual property laws do their best to restrict them. Linux is held back by patents, the rest of the examples by copyright… Will we let our fears lead us towards a dystopian Big Brother state, or will we have the courage and wisdom to choose an exciting future in a free and open society?”

Cyber Attack on US Government

The Associated Press reported on July 8:

“A widespread computer attack that began July 4 knocked out the Web sites of the Treasury Department, the Secret Service and other U.S. government agencies… Sites in South Korea were also affected, and South Korean intelligence officials believe the attack was carried out by North Korean… forces. The U.S. government Web sites, which also included those of the Federal Trade Commission and the Transportation Department, were all down at varying points over the holiday weekend and into this week… the fact that the government Web sites were still being affected three days after it began signaled an unusually lengthy and sophisticated attack.”

The Ark of the Covenant–Lost and Found and Lost Again…

WorldNetDaily reported on June 24:

“The patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia says he will announce to the world Friday [June 26] the unveiling of the Ark of the Covenant, perhaps the world’s most prized archaeological and spiritual artifact, which he says has been hidden away in a church in his country for millennia… ‘The Ark of the Covenant is in Ethiopia for many centuries,’ said Pauolos. ‘As a patriarch I have seen it with my own eyes and only few highly qualified persons could do the same, until now.’ According to Pauolos, the actual Ark has been kept in one church, but to defend the treasure, a copy was placed in every single church in Ethiopia…

“The idea that the Ark is presently in Ethiopia is a well-documented, albeit disputed, tradition dating back to at least 642 B.C… Ethiopians believe it is destined to be delivered to the Messiah when He reigns on Mount Zion – the Temple Mount in Jerusalem… Muslim scholars say it will be found near the end of times by the Mahdi – a messianic figure in Islam.”

But, not surprisingly, it was not supposed to be.

The Ethiopian Review wrote on June 27:

“Yesterday, millions were waiting to watch eagerly the Ark of the Covenant revealed. A day passed but it was not made public. ‘No, the ark is not going to be revealed. Nobody could touch it. If you do so, God will smite you,’ Aba Gebremedhin said… [He] also talked of building a museum in Axum… within two years… [In it] could also be placed the Ark of the Covenant, but this needs to be decided by the Holy Synod, the supreme body of the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia [he said].”

Nevertheless, WorldNetDaily added the following on June 26:

“Bob Cornuke, biblical investigator, international explorer and best-selling author… said Ethiopians consider the Ark to be the ultimate holy object, and the church guards the suspected artifact from the ‘eyes and pollution of man… In Ethiopia, their whole culture is centered around worshipping this object’… But according to a statement… by the webmaster for the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, there is no chance that the religious leaders and people in the nation will give up their custody of what they believe is the Ark.”

The Apostle Paul’s Bones Found?

CNN reported on June 29:

“Scientific tests prove bones housed in the Basilica of St. Paul in Rome are those of the apostle St. Paul himself, according to Pope Benedict XVI. ‘Tiny fragments of bone’ in the sarcophagus were subjected to carbon dating, showing they ‘belong to someone who lived in the first or second century,’ the pope said in a homily carried on Italian television. ‘This seems to confirm the unanimous and undisputed tradition that these are the mortal remains of the Apostle St. Paul,’ Benedict said in Sunday’s announcement.”

As will be pointed out below, this tradition is neither “unanimous” nor “undisputed.” In fact, it is FALSE!

The Telegraph added on June 29:

“The announcement of the discovery was timed to mark the end of the ‘Pauline Year’ – 12 months in which the Roman Catholic Church has been celebrating the 2,000th anniversary of the birth of the ‘Apostle of the Gentiles’… The discovery of the bone fragments came shortly after the Vatican announced archaeologists had discovered what they believe is the oldest image in existence of Saint Paul, dating from the late 4th century, on the walls of catacomb beneath Rome.”

Der Stern wrote on June 30 that there is NO EVIDENCE that these were the bones of the Apostle Paul. Quite to the contrary, the magazine points out that the sarcophagus was only built in about 390 A.D., so that the bones could not have been placed there before. The magazine also asks how one can be sure that the bones which were found in that particular sarcophagus were the bones originally placed there, and that those bones were not later replaced.

Die Welt On Line added on June 30 that there can be no certainty that the bones are those of the Apostle Paul, and that experts DOUBT the accuracy of the Pope’s claim.

We can say that the excavated bones, allegedly belonging to a person who lived in the first or second century, are definitely NOT the bones of the Apostle Paul, even IF the age determination of the highly unreliable Carbon 14 method were correct in this case. The reason being, the Apostle Paul’s remains are NOT to be found in Rome.

Even the Catholic news agency Zenit admitted on June 28: “Despite the fact that the original tomb of St. Paul had been the object of profound devotion on the part of pilgrims from the beginning, over the centuries it disappeared from view and eventually could no longer be identified.” There are reasons for that development. For more information, please read our Q&A on the subject of the time and place of the Apostle Paul’s burial.

And Now… Unrest in Honduras

The Wall Street Journal wrote on June 29:

“Honduran soldiers rousted President Manuel Zelaya from his bed and exiled him at gunpoint Sunday to Costa Rica, halting his controversial push to redraw the constitution but spurring fresh concerns about democratic rule across Latin America… Mr. Zelaya called the action a kidnapping, and said he was still president. The U.S. and other countries condemned the coup. President Barack Obama said he was ‘deeply concerned’ and called on all political actors in Honduras to ‘respect democratic norms.’ Venezuela President Hugo Chávez, a close ally of Mr. Zelaya and nemesis of the U.S., said he would consider it an ‘act of war’ if there were hostilities against his diplomats. ‘I have put the armed forces of Venezuela on alert,’ Mr. Chávez said…

“Troops with riot shields continued to surround the presidential palace on Monday and armored military vehicles were parked in front… Honduras’s Supreme Court gave the order for the military to detain the president… Later, Honduras’s Congress formally removed Mr. Zelaya from the presidency and named congressional leader Roberto Micheletti as his successor until the end of Mr. Zelaya’s term in January…

“Mr. Micheletti is a member of Mr. Zelaya’s Liberal party. But he had opposed his plans for a referendum that could have led to overturning the constitution’s ban on re-election, allowing Mr. Zelaya to potentially stay in power past January, when his term ends…

“The Obama administration and members of the Organization of American States had worked for weeks to try to avert any moves to overthrow President Zelaya… The efforts accelerated over the weekend, as Washington grew increasingly alarmed… On Sunday, the U.S. embassy here tried repeatedly to contact the Honduran military directly, but was rebuffed. Washington called the removal of President Zelaya a coup and said it wouldn’t recognize any other leader.

“The U.S. stand was unpopular with Honduran deputies. One congressman, Toribio Aguilera, got prolonged applause from his colleagues when he urged the U.S. ambassador to reconsider. Mr. Aguilera said the U.S. didn’t understand the danger that Mr. Zelaya and his friendships with Mr. Chavez and Cuba’s Fidel Castro posed. Retired Honduran Gen. Daniel López Carballo justified the move against the president, telling CNN that if the military hadn’t acted, Mr. Chávez would eventually be running Honduras by proxy. It was a common view Sunday…

“Latin America analysts said the Honduran coup will complicate President Obama’s efforts to re-engage a region where anti-Americanism has flourished in recent years. They said Mr. Chavez is likely to seize on the crisis to depict Central America as under attack… As a result, analysts said Mr. Obama will need to aggressively call for the reinstatement of President Zelaya, despite U.S. concerns that he is seeking to mirror Mr. Chávez’s campaign to secure limitless rule…

“Mr. Casas-Zamora [Costa Rica’s former vice president and a senior fellow at Washington’s Brookings Institution] and other regional analysts said the coup raised questions about just how much influence Washington actually has in Central America, given the Obama administration’s failed effort to avert it. Honduras receives more than $200 million in development aid from Washington annually.”

Reuters wrote on June 29:

“U.S. President Barack Obama said on Monday the coup that ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was illegal and would set a ‘terrible precedent’ of transition by military force unless it was reversed… Despite Obama’s comments, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the administration was not formally designating the ouster as a military coup for now, a step that would force a cut-off of most U.S. aid to Honduras. Under U.S. law, no aid — other than for the promotion of democracy — may be provided to a country whose elected head of government has been toppled in a military coup.”

The Associated Press wrote on July 1:

“The Obama administration said Wednesday it has suspended joint military operations with Honduras to protest a coup that forced President Manuel Zelaya into exile.”

Reuters added on July 2:

“Rejecting the return of ousted President Manuel Zelaya, Honduras’ interim leaders dug in for a fight on Thursday… In the worst crisis in Central America in a decade… a standoff… is testing U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration after he promised an era of better relations with the region.”

International Community Condemns Honduras “Coup”

The left-leaning magazine, Der Spiegel Online, wrote on June 30:

“This weekend’s coup in Honduras has been met with general international condemnation. Criticism of the putsch is coming from all sides of the political spectrum… Micheletti has not been recognized, various South American states have withdrawn diplomatic staff and halted trade. The United Nations has called for ‘a reinstatement of the democratically elected representatives of the country,’ the European Union wants to see ‘a swift return to constitutional normality’ and the US, which has strong military ties with Honduras, has also weighed in…

“The financial daily Handelsblatt writes:

“‘What makes this coup particularly bad is the complicity between the Honduran parliament and the local armed forces. Only hours after Zelaya was forced to leave the country, Congress presented a blatantly false letter of resignation from him… Zelaya himself wasn’t always a good democrat — he ignored, for example, the fact that the highest judicial office in his country had ruled against the referendum he planned to hold… In any case, a coup was clearly the wrong solution…’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes:

“‘… this situation cannot be justified. It is the duty of centrist politicians everywhere to protest these actions… But they also need to take care that they are not dancing to the same tune that Zelaya’s local allies — leaders like Chavez, Ortega and Morales — are playing. Because the politics of those leaders actually have more to do with the bad old days in Latin America than any pure, new democratic order’…”

But not all are in agreement. Die Welt On Line wrote on June 30 about the “fairy tale of a coup in Honduras.” The paper stated that there was NO coup, but only the parliament-initiated removal of a president who was in the process, step-by-step, to usurp the constitution and bring about a coup himself. The paper also claimed that the violence in Honduras is perpetrated by pro-Zelaya demonstrators who were seen shooting at the police, and not vice versa.

Time Is Running Out For Iran

The Financial Times reported on June 27:

“Iran’s nuclear programme and its post-election crisis dominated talks this weekend among Group of Eight foreign ministers meeting in Italy, with a sense that time was running out for the international community to respond, diplomats said. The ministerial discussions, preparing a wide range of global issues for next month’s G8 summit, also revealed how little they understood of what was happening inside Iran and within the regime…

“Although Israel was not directly mentioned, the diplomats said there was an unspoken understanding of a danger that Israel might take military action against Iran’s nuclear sites if the international community did not make progress on the diplomatic front. The final G8 statement expressed deep concern over the proliferation risks of Iran’s ongoing nuclear programme and called on Iran to ‘seize this opportunity to give diplomacy a chance to find a negotiated solution to the nuclear issue.’ Diplomats said the coded language conveyed a message to Iran that non-diplomatic means – including possible military action – remained a risk it should consider… There was no discussion of drawing up further economic and financial sanctions against Iran…

“Iran has defied UN resolutions demanding that it halt its uranium enrichment programme… Javier Solana, EU foreign policy chief who has led on-off nuclear negotiations with Iran, has a mandate to try to re-engage the Iranians, although it is not clear to whom he might talk. Mr Solana was prepared ‘to put more on the table,’ diplomats said, without giving details. But they did not expect Iran to re-enter talks in the near future…

“Western foreign ministers and Japan were relieved that Russia signed up to the final statement which deplored, but did not ‘condemn,’ the post-electoral violence in Iran and expressed ‘solidarity with those who have suffered repression while peacefully demonstrating’… Russia, with its close economic and military ties to Iran, was quick to congratulate Mr Ahmadi-Nejad on his re-election when he visited Russia after the vote.

“The G8 comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the UK and US.”

EU Warns Iran

Deutsche Welle reported on June 28:

“The European Union agreed on Sunday that intimidation and harassment of European diplomatic staff by Iran in Tehran would be met with a ‘strong and collective response’… At least 25 people have been killed during crackdowns by Iranian police and religious militia in recent demonstrations… On Sunday, police arrested [nine] Iranians working for the British Embassy in Tehran, claiming they played a role in the post-election riots…

“The international community continues to voice alarm at the violent crackdown on opposition protesters in the election aftermath, but the Iranian government has hit back, accusing Western nations – particularly the United States, Britain, France and Germany – of meddling in the country’s internal affairs.”

EU “Unites” Against Iran

The Financial Times wrote on June 28:

“The European Union’s 27 nations on Sunday joined forces to condemn Iran’s detention of British embassy staff in Tehran, as tensions escalated between Iran and the west in the wake of the disputed elections. After Iran arrested nine local employees working at the UK embassy in Tehran, EU foreign ministers meeting in Corfu said they would respond firmly to any further ‘harassment or intimidation [by Iran] of foreign or Iranian staff working in embassies’… The seriousness of the diplomatic stand-off was underscored by the EU statement in which foreign ministers said they were becoming ‘seriously concerned’ about developments inside Iran… as of Sunday morning four of the nine staff had been released [In the meantime, seven were released.]. The EU statement demanded all should immediately be set free.

“Iranian media said the staff had been detained because of their ‘considerable role’ in instigating riots triggered by this month’s disputed election result… Iran has repeatedly claimed UK diplomats have been interfering in the country’s domestic affairs. Last week Iran forced two British envoys to leave the country, a decision that triggered an immediate tit-for-tat response by London.

“[David] Miliband [Britain’s foreign secretary] roundly rejected Iran’s allegations about the locally hired staff on Sunday. ‘These are hard-working diplomatic staff and the idea that the British Embassy is somehow behind the demonstrations and protests that have been taking place in Tehran in recent weeks is wholly without foundation,’ he said. The UK has been the focus of Iran’s diplomatic protests, partly because the US does not have an embassy in Iran.

“But the troubled relationship between the UK and Iran also has a long history, going back to British involvement in a 1953 coup in Iran… Iran’s leaders stepped up their attacks on the west on Sunday. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, denounced what he described as ‘interfering statements’ by western officials.”

The Financial Times wrote on June 30:

“Most of the European Union’s 27 member states will recall their ambassadors from Tehran as early as this weekend if the Iranian authorities refuse to free the [two remaining “detained”] British embassy employees… Amid continuing anger across Europe over the embassy arrests, senior EU diplomats said a co-ordinated diplomatic protest would take place ‘within days.'”

The EUObserver wrote on July 2:

“Iran says Europe is no longer qualified to hold nuclear talks due to its meddling with the post-election protests in the country, with Sweden, as the new EU presidency, calling up officials from the 27-member bloc to discuss the next diplomatic move.”

German Neo-Nazis Support Ahmadinejad

Netzeitung reported on June 25:

“Neo-Nazis in Germany are applauding the repression of protests in Iran and publishing statements supporting the reelection of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his hard-line government. Two extremist parties, the NPD and DVU, have managed to contort their racist thinking to embrace the Iranian leader because Ahmadinejad openly advocates the elimination of Israel…

“Censorship in Iran, which makes listening to music a risky business, and outlaws dancing in public, is praised by the NPD, which says the music could be considered decadent and subversive.”

No Irregularities in Iran Elections?

Haaretz reported on June 29:

“Iran’s top legislative body on Monday confirmed President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s victory in the contested June 12 presidential recount. The Guardian Council’s official recount of the votes found… no irregularities in the election which brought about the largest protest on Iranian streets since the 1979 revolution. Protesters have claimed that the vote was imbued with massive fraud, but the legislative body has insisted that it was legitimate.”

The Times On Line wrote on July 2:

“Three of Iran’s most prominent opposition leaders flagrantly courted arrest yesterday by denouncing President Ahmadinejad’s Government as illegitimate, one day after the regime said that it would tolerate no more challenges to the election result… Mr Mousavi, 67, is living at home with his family in Tehran, with security and intelligence agents watching his every move. They have arrested most of his inner circle and made it progressively harder for him to communicate with his followers.

“Since Tuesday, when Iran’s Guardian Council declared that a partial recount had confirmed Mr Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election, hardliners have all but accused Mr Mousavi of treason…

“Forced from the streets by the security forces, Mr Mousavi’s supporters are also preparing a campaign of civil disobedience. They are talking of strikes, boycotting goods advertised in the state-controlled media, moving money out of government-controlled banks and giving money directly to the needy instead of government-controlled charities.

“Analysts say that anger will grow and could erupt at football matches, prayer meetings or anywhere that large numbers gather. They say that opposition supporters will go underground and stage lightning demonstrations. They also expect some elements to start launching violent attacks on government targets.

“In a possible sign of the regime’s anxiety Mr Ahmadinejad abruptly cancelled a visit to Libya for an African Union summit yesterday.”

Amidst Violence, Iraqis Happy to See US Troops Leave Cities

On June 29, USA Today wrote the following:

“It was just a week ago that two of his brothers were killed in a bombing in a crowded market, but Haider Abbas Ali put his sorrow aside Monday to celebrate the departure of most U.S. troops from the capital and other Iraqi cities. ‘Their presence has brought nothing good. It is long past the time for the Americans to leave,’ said Ali, who draped himself in an Iraqi flag as he danced with friends prior to Iraqi security forces taking control Tuesday.

“Thousands of Iraqis gathered in central Baghdad’s Zawra Park for a concert to mark the milestone that is part of a security pact that will also require all U.S. combat forces to leave Iraq by Aug. 31, 2010. A countdown clock on a state television channel ticked down at midnight. The Iraqi government has declared Tuesday National Sovereignty Day, six years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein…

“U.S. troops weren’t in sight in the capital Monday. Instead, Iraqi police and soldiers flooded the streets… Some U.S. troops will remain in the cities as trainers and advisers, but most of the 130,000 Americans in Iraq have been relocated to large bases outside urban centers.

“While Iraq celebrated the switch-over, violence continued. The U.S. military announced Monday that a soldier was killed in combat on Sunday, but his name was not released. More than 4,300 U.S. troops have died in Iraq since the war began in 2003…

“Many Iraqis at the Zawra park celebration said they are glad to see Americans out of their neighborhoods, but some remain nervous about whether the Iraqi security forces are up to the task.”

House Approves Costly Climate Change Bill

Die Welt Online wrote on June 27:

“President Barack Obama scored a major victory on Friday when the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation to slash industrial pollution that is blamed for global warming. The House narrowly passed the historic legislation to cut carbon emissions blamed for climate change, thus handing President Obama a hard-fought victory.

“The Democratic-controlled House passed the climate change bill, a top priority for Obama, by a vote of 219-212. As has become routine on major bills in Congress this year, the vote was partisan, with only eight Republicans joining Democrats for the bill. Forty-four Democrats voted against it.

“Climate change legislation still must get through the Senate. Senators were expected to try to write their own version but prospects for this year were uncertain. After the House vote, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he hoped the Senate can pass a bill ‘this fall’…

“The bill requires that large U.S. companies, including utilities, oil refiners, manufacturers and others, reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases associated with global warming by 17 percent by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050, from 2005 levels. They would do so by phasing in the use of cleaner alternative energy than high-polluting oil and coal.

“At the core of the bill, which is around 1,500 pages long, is a ‘cap and trade’ program designed to achieve the emissions reductions by industry.”

Adoption of Climate Change Bill–Politics, Politics and More Politics

Politico wrote on June 25:

“The House of Representatives passed a sweeping climate-change bill Friday – a major victory for President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that left Republicans fuming about a ‘national energy tax’ they said would exacerbate the nation’s economic woes. The vote was extremely close…  the debate leading up to it was intense…

“Republicans accused the Democrats of ramming the bill through the House. Rep. Joe Barton (R-Tex.), managing the debate for his party, asked repeatedly if there was even a copy of the current version of the bill anywhere in the House chamber. Democratic Rep. Ellen Tauscher – sitting in the speaker’s chair although she’s already been confirmed as Obama’s undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security — repeatedly dodged the question.

“Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), one of the bill’s sponsors, finally rose to say that a single copy of the current version of the bill was available at the speaker’s desk – and on the Internet, which members would have to leave the floor to access.

“That wasn’t good enough for House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio), who delayed the roll call vote by reading page-by-page through a 300-page managers’ amendment Democrats added at around 3 a.m. Friday. Boehner seemed to relish the hour-long stunt, picking out the bill’s most obscure language and then pontificating about what it might – or might not – mean. Republicans laughed along with him and roared with applause when he was done.

“Before Boehner took the floor, Republicans asked the House to observe a moment of silence for Americans who would lose their jobs as a result of the bill. Democrats objected. Pelosi argued later that the bill would mean ‘jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs.’

“Making his closing argument for the bill he co-sponsored, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) told his colleagues that they had ‘a unique historical opportunity’ to protect the nation’s national security, improve the environment and transform the economy… But in an impassioned speech of his own, House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said the cap-and-trade bill would exacerbate the recession, disproportionately hurt the poor and ‘hamstring’ U.S. industry. He was followed by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), who called the bill a ‘great contribution to human kind’ and attacked Republicans for offering nothing but ‘negative political shots’…

“Throughout the day Friday, the House chamber had the feeling of a place where history was being made… Behind the scenes, the administration worked hard to help the Democratic leadership garner support for the legislation. Obama, Energy Secretary Steven Chu and other administration officials have been calling skeptical lawmakers from both parties for weeks. Energy adviser Carol Browner met with several on-the-fence lawmakers Thursday.”

And Still More Politics…?

Fox News wrote on June 29:

“A top Republican senator has ordered an investigation into the Environmental Protection Agency’s alleged suppression of a report that questioned the science behind global warming. The 98-page report, co-authored by EPA analyst Alan Carlin… argued that the information the EPA was using was out of date, and that even as atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have increased, global temperatures have declined…

“According to internal e-mails that have been made public by the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Carlin’s boss told him in March that his material would not be incorporated into a broader EPA finding and ordered Carlin to stop working on the climate change issue… Carlin told FOXNews.com on Monday that his boss, National Center for Environmental Economics Director Al McGartland, appeared to be pressured into reassigning him.

“Carlin said he doesn’t know whether the White House intervened to suppress his report but claimed it’s clear ‘they would not be happy about it if they knew about it,’ and that McGartland seemed to be feeling pressure from somewhere up the chain of command. Carlin said McGartland told him he had to pull him off the climate change issue…

“Reps. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., and Darrell Issa, R-Calif… wrote a letter last week to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson urging the agency to reopen its comment period on the finding. The EPA has since denied the request… In a written statement, Issa said the administration is ‘actively seeking to withhold new data in order to justify a political conclusion.’

“‘I’m sure it was very inconvenient for the EPA to consider a study that contradicted the findings it wanted to reach,’ Sensenbrenner said in a statement, adding that the ‘repression’ of Carlin’s report casts doubt on the entire finding. Carlin said he’s concerned that he’s seeing ‘science being decided at the presidential level’…

“The controversy is similar to one under the Bush administration — only the administration was taking the opposite stance. In that case, scientist James Hansen claimed the administration was trying to keep him from speaking out and calling for reductions in greenhouse gases.”

Obamas Hold Gay Rights Reception

The Associated Press wrote on June 30:

“Countering criticism that he has done little to advance gay rights, President Obama commemorated the 40th anniversary yesterday of the birth of the modern movement by welcoming its leaders to the White House and reaffirming his commitment to their top priorities.

“’I will not only be your friend; I will continue to be an ally and a champion and a president who fights with you and for you,’ Obama told members of the core Democratic constituency as he and his wife Michelle hosted a cocktail-and-appetizer reception in the East Room marking the four decades since the police raid on New York City’s Stonewall Inn that spurred gay rights activism across the country.”

The Washington Post added on June 30 that Mr. Obama “also drew a parallel between the progress gays and lesbians have made in recent decades and the struggles of black Americans to win equality.”

U.S. Dollar Declines

Bloomberg reported on June 27:

“The dollar declined the most against the euro in a month and dropped versus the yen after China repeated its call for a new global currency… ‘The dollar’s status as a reserve currency is being questioned,’ said Benedikt Germanier, a foreign-exchange strategist in Stamford, Connecticut at UBS AG, the second- largest currency trader. ‘There are reasons to sell the dollar.’”

Stimulus Package Isn’t Working… Job Losses Increase…

The Financial Times reported on July 2:

“The US economy shed another 467,000 jobs last month, signalling aggressive government stimulus measures are failing to unshackle the labour force from the grips of the recession…

“The result was worse than economists predicted and pushed the unemployment rate from 9.4 per cent to 9.5 per cent… a 26-year high. Thursday’s figure shows further erosion from the previous month’s decline of a revised 322,000 drop and knocked wind from the notion that the pace of job losses might be slowing.”

Bloomberg added on July 2:

“Employers in the U.S. cut 467,000 jobs in June, the unemployment rate rose and hourly earnings stagnated, offering little evidence the Obama administration’s stimulus package is shoring up the labor market.”

“We ARE in the Middle of a Financial Crash…”

CNBC wrote on July 2:

“The financial system is crashing… Nassim Taleb, author of ‘The Black Swan,’ told CNBC Thursday… ‘So if I’m going to forecast something, it is that it’s going to get worse, not better… What makes me very pessimistic [is] not seeing any leadership or awareness on parts of government on what has to be done.'”

California–From the Richest to the Poorest…

On June 29, the Financial Times reported the following:

“California… grapples with an unprecedented cash crunch and prepares to begin its new fiscal year deep in the red. Once the US’s richest state, California now has the dubious distinction of having the worst credit rating in the country…”

The Los Angeles Times reported on July 2:

“With budget negotiators at a loggerheads and California government facing a cash crisis, the state controller’s office will start printing IOUs this afternoon for the first time in 17 years. The presses are set to start at 2 p.m., churning out 28,742 IOUs worth $53.3 million that will be dispatched mostly to residents throughout the state still awaiting their income-tax refunds.

“A panel of state finance officials will meet this morning to set the interest rate for banks and other financial institutions that decide to accept the IOUs. Some banks have agreed to honor them, including Bank of America, which will do so until July 10…

“With the California economy hobbled, tax receipts waning and the budget deficit continuing to swell, the governor Wednesday declared a fiscal emergency, and ordered state workers to take a third unpaid furlough day each month. He also issued a new list of cuts to schools and public universities to address a deficit that his finance team now says has swelled to $26.3 billion.”

UK Crime Capitol of Europe

The Telegraph wrote on July 2:

“The United Kingdom is the violent crime capital [sic] of Europe [including in respect to murder] and has one of the highest rates of violence in the world, worse even than America… Analysis of figures from the European Commission showed a 77 per cent increase in murders, robberies, assaults and sexual offences… The total number of violent offences recorded compared to population is higher than any other country in Europe, as well as America, Canada, Australia and South Africa… The figures combined crime statistics for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.”

China’s Economy in Grave Danger

The Telegraph wrote on June 28:

“China’s banks are veering out of control. The half-reformed economy of the People’s Republic cannot absorb the $1,000bn (£600bn) blitz of new lending issued since December… Fitch Ratings has been warning for some time that China’s lenders are wading into dangerous waters, but its latest report is even grimmer than… suspected… World trade… will not rebound fast in a world where the US savings rate has risen to a 15-year high of 6.9pc…

“So the [Chinese] regime is resorting to hazardous methods to keep excess factories humming: issuing a ‘Buy China’ decree: using a plethora of export subsidies; holding down the price of coke, bauxite, zinc and other resources to lower production costs (prompting a complaint from America and Europe); and suppressing the yuan, again. Protectionism is a risky game for a country that lives off global trade and runs a surplus…

“[China might be] repeating the US tariff blunder of 1930 that brought the world crashing down on Washington’s head… If the world’s biggest surplus state ($400bn) is too structurally deformed to help offset the demand shock as Western debtors retrench, we are trapped in a long deflation slump.”

Obama and Merkel Meet–“Much to Do About Nothing”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 27:

“During German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s White House visit on Friday, one thing topped the agenda: a show of friendship. US President Barack Obama praised Merkel to the hilt, while she returned the compliment. Politics were pushed into the background… The German-American agenda for the meeting was clear this time: A show of friendship — after all the reports of a cool relationship between Obama and Merkel, which have now started to appear in the US as well as the German media…

“The fact that Merkel had prevented Obama from speaking in front of the deeply symbolic Brandenburg Gate was now all forgotten. And the fact that Obama’s team had acted with some arrogance during his Dresden visit and for a long time had rejected the idea of a brief visit to the Frauenkirche was also ancient history…

“The issue that has seen the greatest tensions between the two leaders was hardly mentioned — the response to the global financial crisis and the German [skepticism] about America’s massive state spending that could culminate in an even bigger stimulus package and an even greater budget deficit… That left nothing but harmony in the East Room. The chancellor denied there were any differences with the new US president…

“However even a good natured Obama cannot dispel the worries of many Europeans that they are becoming more marginalized in Washington in the face of the many political problems and increasing number of hot spots around the world. When the German chancellor was presented with the Warburg Prize for her contribution to trans-Atlantic relations on Thursday evening in the Library of Congress, only one out of a possible 435 members of the House of Representatives bothered to turn up.”

You might want to listen to our new StandingWatch program, “America and Europe–Friends or Foes?” [posted on StandingWatch or YouTube] to learn more about the REAL relationship between Mr. Obama and Mrs. Merkel.

German Constitutional Court Gives Green Light for the Lisbon Treaty

The Financial Times wrote on June 30:

“Germany’s constitutional court gave a green light in principle to the Lisbon treaty on Tuesday but suspended its ratification until the German parliament had amended [domestic German] law governing its influence over European legislation… Despite the new hurdle, the ruling was greeted with relief by the government… Berlin is confident that the necessary amendments to its ratification laws can be expedited in the summer, fulfilling its commitment to ratify the treaty before 2010…

“The Bundestag, parliament’s lower chamber, on Tuesday revealed it had already convened an extraordinary session in August for an initial review of the legislative amendments. Final approval should take place on September 8… before the general election of September 27. The bill requires a two-thirds majority on both houses of parliament.”

The EUObserver added on June 30:

“Germany’s highest court on Tuesday ruled that the EU’s new treaty is compatible with German law, so long as the role of the national parliament in EU decision-making is strengthened. ‘The German constitution says yes to the Lisbon treaty, but on a national level the parliament has to have a stronger say in EU matters’, vice-president of the German constitutional court, Andreas Vosskuhle, said… The court in Karlsruhe also said that the treaty and the German constitution would not allow the creation of an ‘EU federal state…”

Deutsche Welle reported on June 30:

“German opponents of the Lisbon Treaty [a group of about 50 lawmakers seeking to stop the Treaty] had argued that the document undercuts German sovereignty. They say that the country’s constitution would be subject to European law… Supporters of the Lisbon Treaty dismiss such fears, and insist that Germany and Europe would become more democratic and more transparent.

“German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble… says the treaty would protect the German constitution, not undermine it. Schaeuble says the [German] constitution’s preamble, dating from 1949, states that Germany wants to be an equal member of a unified Europe which works towards world peace. ‘From the beginning, this constitution was BASED ON EUROPEAN UNITY,’ he says.”

Der Spiegel Online added on June 30:

“Chancellor Merkel welcomed the court’s decision, saying that it was ‘a good day for the Lisbon Treaty’… German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier… said that he was pleased that the court had found the treaty to be ‘completely compatible’ with the [German] constitution. He predicted that the Lisbon Treaty would come into force by early 2010 at the latest.

“If the German Constitutional Court had ruled against Lisbon, it would likely have killed the treaty. It would have given the Czech Republic and Poland a reason not to ratify it and it also could have derailed plans to hold a second referendum on the EU reform in Ireland in early October.

“European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso welcomed the German ruling. ‘I am confident we can complete the process of ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon in all countries by the autumn,’ he said.”

The Future of Europe–Back to the Core?

Der Spiegel wrote on June 29:

“In times such as these, with no end to the financial crisis in sight, the rotation of the EU Presidency makes one thing patently clear: The European Union needs clearer structures, more integration, and better foreign representation. Moreover, the Czech tenure has revealed that smaller EU countries are not up to the daunting coordination and leadership tasks that a crisis of this magnitude requires… In the financial crisis as in the gas dispute, all eyes were focused once again on the heavyweights in the European Union, namely on Germany and France, without whom no significant European contribution would have been possible at the G-20 summit in April…

“As of July it is Sweden’s obligation… Foreign Minister Carl Bildt is striving to make Georgia, and perhaps Moldova as well, into ‘model nations’ of successful EU engagement. Both countries have sunk into war and unrest in recent months and are practically demanding European intervention… Bildt… would like to position the European Union as a player in the Middle East… He would like to… represent the European Union as an international role model at the Copenhagen climate conference at the end of the year…

“Should the Lisbon Treaty be ratified, Sweden will quickly set clear priorities for the formation of the European foreign service and, accordingly, for the formulation of the responsibilities of both the High Commission for Foreign and Security Policy as well as of the future European Presidency. Both entities should be given as much space and capacity as possible within the European system…”

EU Renders Most Important Decision of the Year

Der Spiegel wrote on June 19:

“Friday’s deal in Brussels paving the way forward for a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland is the most important decision taken in Europe this year. The treaty, which will bring widespread reforms to the European Union and give its institutions greater power, could… go into effect before the end of the year… Then the EU would get a president, a foreign minister and the role of the European Parliament would be strengthened considerably.

“Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen announced the referendum would be held during the first week of October. Public opinion polls currently indicate that Irish voters would likely approve the Lisbon Treaty this time around, following their rejection in a first referendum one year ago. Cowen said the European Council had given Ireland ‘firm legal guarantees’ and that he was ‘confident we now have a solid basis to go to the Irish people and to ask them again for their approval for Ireland to ratify the treaty so that Europe can move on.’

“The EU has provided guarantees to Ireland that it will remain independent in determining tax policies, military neutrality and abortion law (Ireland has one of Europe’s most restrictive abortion policies). The sovereignty guarantees are expected to be anchored in EU law as a treaty protocol in the mid-term future…

“The history of the Lisbon Treaty is a long one. It has been five [years] since EU leaders approved the text of the European constitution in Rome. After the constitution was rejected in two referenda in France and the Netherlands, the draft landed in the waste bin. Under German leadership, however, the text was brought back to life in its current incarnation as the Treaty of Lisbon.

“The streamlined treaty was supposed to have gone into effect at the end of 2008. However, another referendum got in the way. Irish voters said ‘no’ and the EU was thrown into yet another crisis. This time the other leaders made it clear that they would not accept the ‘no’ vote. They immediately began to consider how and when a second referendum could be held in Ireland.

“One year on, it looks like that referendum will soon take place. The mood in Ireland seems to be favorable: The financial crisis has made people think much more positively about the EU. And now the guarantees of sovereignty have given Cowen further arguments in favor of the treaty.

“There were tough negotiations at the summit over those guarantees. Cowen surprised the other EU leaders on Thursday when he said he would need the guarantees entrenched in the treaty. A declaration by the Council would not suffice… It was pure blackmail — but the EU leaders had little choice but to accept those terms. No one can even consider the Lisbon Treaty failing again…

“Ireland is not alone in not having ratified the Lisbon Treaty. The Czech Republic, Poland and Germany still haven’t done so. Germany, for example, must first wait for a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court on Lisbon’s legality. However, these are regarded as much lower hurdles than Ireland.”

Merkel and Obama “Are Not Getting Any Warmer…”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 23:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel is traveling to Washington this week to discuss the financial crisis and climate change with US President Barack Obama — two issues where Germany and the US are deeply divided…

“When US President Barack Obama recently met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Dresden, he… remained true to the program at first. But then he unexpectedly asked ‘Angela’ why, exactly, she didn’t want Turkey to be accepted into the European Union. Merkel was taken aback. She had to think on her feet and quickly come up with an answer for an issue on which she had no pre-prepared comments. It became clear to her, once again, that this president is a challenge, both for Merkel and for German politics as a whole…

“A clash of cultures is raging between Berlin and the United States on the issue of financial policy… The German chancellor… considers the Americans’ offensive monetary policy to be dangerous… A few hours after the encounter between Merkel and Obama, Ben LaBolt, a White House press spokesman, told a colleague about the difficult relationship between the two leaders. ‘They are not getting any warmer,’ he said…

“Obama’s visits to Dresden and Buchenwald also ruffled some feathers in Germany. The US president’s advance team, which had been sent to help prepare for the trip, made a negative impression on the Germans through their coarse language and overbearing behavior. German officials were shouted at, treated like schoolchildren and told to wait their turns… As it is, the US president in person is by no means the charming and smiling character many have come to expect from his television appearances. He cultivates a cool style or, as one of the members of the delegation describes it, ‘an almost unfeeling style.'”

Deutsche Welle added on June 24:

“Ms Merkel arrives in Washington on Thursday and meets Mr Obama on Friday. It will be their third meeting in less than a year. Ms Merkel hosted the US president in Dresden three weeks ago. Yet in spite of frequent meetings and delight among Germans at Mr Obama’s election, the rapport between the old allies has deteriorated in recent months… ‘The chancellor is not interested in joining the competition for who gets along best with Obama,’ a senior aide said on Wednesday…

“Economic policy is not the only source of tension. While Berlin has long been critical of the prison at Guantánamo Bay, it has rejected US requests to take detainees. It has also dragged its feet on committing troops to Afghanistan… Other matters have conspired to poison the atmosphere. German officials said last month the US Treasury’s role in talks between Berlin and General Motors over the future of Opel, its German arm, had been offhand and unhelpful.

“While Mr Obama had only planned to tour the Buchenwald concentration camp during what had been billed as a private visit this month, Ms Merkel insisted he go to Dresden, the Baroque city razed by US and UK bombers in 1945. Their first clash goes back before Mr Obama’s election last summer, when Ms Merkel vetoed his plan to make a speech before the Brandenburg gate. The address was moved a mile west to the victory column.”

Europe Caught Between Rock and Hard Place on Iran

Deutsche Welle wrote on June 19:

“With mass demonstrations continuing since the announcement of the presidential election results in the Iranian capital and other cities despite a government crackdown, many observers inside and outside the country had hoped that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would make an effort of reconciliation in his traditional Friday sermon. Instead, Khamenei defended Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, declaring him the clear winner of the election and urged the opposition to end its protests.

“That puts the West in a terrible bind, says Nicola Pedde, Director of Globe Research, a Rome-based think tank focusing on the Middle East. ‘We can do nothing. If you support the reformists, the Iranian government will say that the opposition is supported by agents of foreign governments. And if you stay silent it can be interpreted negatively as support for the government.’

“Paul Luft, founder of the Center for Iranian Studies at Durham University, agrees that Western countries should stay out of what he describes as an internal conflict… If the West is perceived to be meddling in Iran’s domestic affairs, that could help unite the Islamists, says Luft…

“But other experts argue that the West can’t just stand by and let events unfold, but must make a concerted effort to support the democracy movement in Iran… ‘The West shouldn’t prematurely recognize Ahmadinejad as the winner of the election’, says Jamsheed Faroughi, Head of Deutsche Welle’s Farsi service. Instead, Western countries should demand new elections in Iran under independent, international supervision. ‘If Ahmadinejad really won the election by a landslide as the official results claim, then what is the government afraid of?’

“It is crucial that Europe doesn’t just remain on the sidelines this time, argues Bernd Kaussler, an Iran expert at James Madison University… Kaussler admits that Europe is in a difficult position, but says it could lose all of its credibility with reform-minded Iranians if it doesn’t act now… Kaussler agrees with Faroughi that the West should not recognize Ahmadinejad as the winner of the election. While the EU and the US shouldn’t endorse his opponent Mir Hossein Mousavi in order not to meddle too much in Iranian affairs, they should highlight human rights violations and demand freedom of expression in Iran. ‘It could start with the European Parliament issuing a resolution claiming solidarity with the Iranians.'”

The article also published the following chart, explaining more fully the rather complicated Iranian governmental system or power structure.

Exiled Son of Shah Warns of Nuclear War

AFP wrote on June 22:

“The exiled son of the late shah of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, warned Monday of dire consequences for the volatile Middle East and the rest of the world if the popular uprising in Iran is crushed. The defeat of the movement protesting the outcome of presidential elections… would not only threaten global stability but could lead to nuclear war, Pahlavi [said].”

Iran Plays Hardball–Attacks Britain…

USA Today reported on June 23:

“Iran’s rulers stiffened their stance against protesters Tuesday, firmly rejecting demands to annul the election over fraud allegations, setting up a special court for detained demonstrators and keeping troops in riot gear on the streets to break up any gatherings. Iran also expelled two British diplomats Tuesday after bitterly accusing Britain of meddling and spying… During Friday prayers at Tehran University, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei lashed out against Western countries he said were displaying their ‘enmity’ against the Islamic state, ‘and the most evil of them is the British government’…

“In a boost for the embattled regime, Russia said Tuesday that it respects the declared election result. But France summoned Iran’s ambassador to express concern about what it called ‘brutal repression’ of protesters in Tehran.”

The Telegraph reported on June 24 that “Britain… was throwing out two Iranian diplomats in response to Tehran’s expulsion of two British diplomats.”

The Times wrote on June 25:

“In a briefing to heads of foreign missions in Tehran this week, Manochehr Mottaki, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran… reserved his severest criticism for Britain. In what must rank as one of the most idiotic statements made by a serving Foreign Minister of an Iranian Government, Mr Mottaki charged that ‘they [the British Government] sent planes full of passengers to Iran with special intelligence and security ambitions’…

“The madness does, of course, have some method attached to it. It… plays to a particular constituency in Iran, which still sees Britain as the root of all evil.”

… and the USA

Reuters reported on June 25:

“Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accused President Barack Obama on Thursday of behaving like his predecessor toward Iran and said there is not much point in talking to Washington unless Obama apologizes. Obama said on Tuesday he was ‘appalled and outraged’ by a post-election crackdown, and Washington withdrew invitations to Iranian diplomats to attend U.S. Independence Day celebrations on July 4, stalling efforts to improve ties with Tehran…”

The Times added on June 25:

“Hugo Chavez, the President of Venezuela who is an ally of Mr Ahmadinejad, [said about the demonstrations in Iran], ‘People are in the streets, some are dead, they have snipers, and behind this is the CIA, the imperial hand of European countries and the United States.'”

The irony is that, according to Western reports, Iran might be using terrorists from Hamas and Hezbollah to brutally suppress the demonstrations in Iran.

Iran’s Turmoil Unsettles the Middle East

The Wall Street Journal wrote on June 24:

“The turmoil in Iran is threatening to reshape the balance of power in the Middle East, denting the Islamic Republic’s regional standing and spooking some Arab regimes with the specter of similar people-power uprisings. Whether or not the protests over Iran’s disputed June 12 presidential election endanger President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, or the Islamic Republic itself, the crisis — Iran’s gravest internal challenge since the 1979 Islamic revolution — has already triggered repercussions well beyond the country’s borders…

“Iran-backed movements that the U.S. considers terrorists, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in the Palestinian lands… [put] moderate Arab states such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia on the defensive. But, over the past week, the vivid TV images of Iranian security forces and Basij militias beating and killing unarmed protesters, including women, on the streets of Tehran have punctured the Islamic Republic’s carefully constructed image as a champion of the oppressed masses…

“Even Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, whose leaders used to praise Mr. Ahmadinejad’s radical views, seems dumbfounded by the upheaval. ‘People are confused about what’s happening in Iran,’ says the head of the brotherhood’s political bureau, Essam el Erian. On one hand, he explains, many Arabs share Mr. Ahmadinejad’s hostility to Israel and the U.S. Yet, he adds, they also admire the courage of Iranian protesters and can relate to their cause, because elections in most Arab countries are either falsified or not held at all…

“Arab governments seem equally at a loss over how to react to the Iranian protests. In Bahrain, a Shiite-majority country ruled by a Sunni royal family, the government, seemingly fearful of provoking Tehran, this week temporarily closed the nation’s oldest newspaper, Akhbar al Khaleej. The reason: a column, written by a government-appointed member of the country’s legislature that attacked Mr. Ahmadinejad and Iran’s theocratic system. In nearby Saudi Arabia, as well as in Egypt, state media gave relatively little prominence to Iranian protests.

“But the Saudi-backed al Arabiya satellite TV channel… was airing such sympathetic coverage of pro-democracy campaigners in Iran that the Iranian regime shut down the network’s Tehran bureau…

“In Palestine, Iran is the key supporter of Hamas, the Islamist movement that controls the Gaza Strip and fought a bloody war against Israel in January. Palestinians have long been grateful to Iran for its unflinching support against Israel… The supporters of Hamas ‘will remain sympathetic to Iran no matter what,’ estimates Ghassan Khatib, a former Palestinian Authority government minister and peace negotiator… In Lebanon, Hezbollah… has been even more defensive of the Iranian regime, and more scornful of pro-Mousavi protesters… Hezbollah remains a formidable force, and turmoil in Iran is unlikely to weaken its hold over Lebanon’s large Shiite community…”

Israel and Iran–Is Nuclear Apocalypse Inevitable?

On June 22, Der Spiegel Online published an article on Iran and Israel, with the following headline: “HEADING FOR A NUCLEAR APOCALYPSE.” It continued with the following question: “Is War between Iran and Israel Inevitable?”

The magazine went on to say:

“There is every indication that the coming nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran — if, indeed, they begin in the next few months with Ahmadinejad still Iranian president — will end in a stalemate by the end of the year. If that happens, US President Barack Obama will push for tougher sanctions against Tehran in early 2010, with the reluctant support of the Russians and Chinese. The leadership in Tehran will interpret this as an aggressive act and will likely speed up its uranium enrichment, meaning that Iran will only be a few months away from having the capability to build a nuclear bomb. At some point next spring, things could have proceeded so far that the Israelis could decide, even without Washington’s approval, to launch attacks against Iranian nuclear facilities. The entire Middle East would see thousands of casualties, and the consequences for the global economy would be devastating.

“To understand what motivates the Iranian president and the Israeli prime minister, and what convictions guide their policies, it is important to examine the deeply religious ideas that shape both Ahmadinejad and Netanyahu and practically destine them to clash with each other: the theology of the [fundamentalist] Islamic Haqqani school and the Jewish concept of Amalek…

“The so-called Mahdists [of the Haqqani school] around… Ahmadinejad believe that their Twelfth Imam disappeared from the face of the earth in the 9th century because Allah the Almighty hid him to put mankind to a test. They also believe that this Twelfth Imam, or Mahdi, will return to the earth… The Mahdi… will create a paradise on earth for believers and condemn blasphemers to eternal damnation. But he will only return when the world has undergone a catharsis, a whirling, gigantic, cleansing upheaval…

“In a face-to-face conversation, Ahmadinejad can be polite, even charming… But he also has a different, mystical side. He considers himself chosen. In a meeting with Iranian members of parliament, Ahmadinejad claimed that he was surrounded by a light when he addressed the United Nations General Assembly in New York, and that the light silenced the leaders of other countries in the audience during his speech…

“Benjamin Netanyahu… has repeated his mantra that the Iranian nuclear program is the greatest threat Israel has confronted ‘since its creation in 1948.’ The liberal and consistently well-informed Israeli daily Haaretz wrote: ‘Politicians in touch with Netanyahu say he has already made up his mind to destroy Iran’s nuclear installations’ — apparently without Washington’s approval.

“What could make the Israeli prime minister feel so confident that he is doing the right thing, given the potentially serious consequences of such a military strike, which could range from Iran firing missiles at Tel Aviv to a wave of Hezbollah and Hamas terrorist attacks, not to mention the damage this would do to Israel’s relations with the United States, whose backing is critical to its survival?…

“When American author and Israel expert Jeffrey Goldberg recently asked a Netanyahu confidant to explain this fixation, he simply replied: ‘Think Amalek.’… In a biblical context, Amalek was the grandson of Esau who, with his tribal warriors from Canaan, launched a treacherous and unprovoked attack on the Hebrews as they were traveling to the Holy Land, Eretz Israel. In a broader sense, the term Amalek refers to the existential threat to Judaism at all times, under all circumstances and by all enemies… Those who, like Netanyahu, see Iran’s nuclear program as Amalek’s arsenal of weapons, are not just entitled, but are in fact obligated, to take preventive measures to destroy it…

“Is a coming war virtually unavoidable?…  the signs are currently pointing to stormy weather ahead…”

The Threat of North Korea

The Associated Press reported on June 22:

“President Barack Obama assured Americans in an interview broadcast Monday that the U.S. is prepared for any move North Korea might make, amid reports that Pyongyang is planning a long-range missile test to follow up its provocative nuclear test last month. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has ordered additional protection for Hawaii as a precaution, though experts say North Korea doesn’t yet have a ballistic missile that can reach Hawaii and has not mastered mounting a nuclear bomb on a long-range missile. Still, North Korea declared itself a ‘proud nuclear power’ and warned it will strike if provoked… The U.S…. has 28,500 troops in South Korea…”

The Associated Press added on June 24:

“North Korea has said it would consider interception of its ships a declaration of war, and on Wednesday accused the U.S. of seeking to start another Korean War… The warning came on the eve of the 59th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War. The brutal fighting ended after three years in a truce in 1953, not a peace treaty, leaving the peninsula divided and in a state of war.”

No Peace in Iraq!

BBC News reported on June 25:

“At least 69 people have been killed by a bomb blast in the eastern Sadr City area of Baghdad… More than 130 people were also reported to have been injured in the blast, one of the worst in Iraq this year. It comes less than a week before US soldiers pull out of all Iraqi cities, a move the US said would not be affected by a recent surge in violence… Under an agreement with the Iraqi authorities, most of the 133,000 US troops in Iraq are due to leave the country’s cities and towns and withdraw to military bases by 30 June. Combat operations across Iraq are due to end by September 2010 and all US troops will be out of the country by the end of 2011…

“The attacks are the latest in a violent week in Iraq. On Monday, at least 29 people were killed in attacks in Baghdad and elsewhere… In the largest attack of the year, more than 70 people died in a truck bombing in Kirkuk on Saturday. But Iraq’s Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has said the violence will not delay the withdrawal which, he said, would ultimately be a triumph for the country.”

War in Afghanistan

Deutsche Welle reported on June 25:

“German Defense Minister Jung has insisted that Germany is not fighting a war in Afghanistan, rejecting calls for such an admission after three German soldiers died in the country this week. The parliamentary commissioner for the armed forces, Reinhold Robbe, on Wednesday called on the German government to recognize it was fighting a war in Afghanistan…

“Around 700 German troops are based in the Kundus region in the north of Afghanistan, a region previously considered relatively safe. Taliban fighters have become increasingly active in a region around Kundus known as Char Dara, where Tuesday’s attack took place. In June alone there were 30 Taliban attacks on German soldiers, putting the soldiers under daily fire…

“Germany has the third-largest contingent in the NATO-led force in Afghanistan, with about 3,380 troops. Despite US pressure to contribute troops to the more restive southern provinces where members of NATO and US soldiers have been fighting the Taliban since the 2001 invasion that ousted the group from power, the German army has focused on the Regional Command North…”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 25:

“Germany’s military presence in Afghanistan is deeply unpopular at home. But even after spending seven years there and losing 35 soldiers, many German politicians still refuse to call it a ‘war.’ German commentators argue Thursday that the government is afraid to tell the truth…

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘… Afghanistan is the Bundeswehr’s first wartime deployment…’

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘… There is no doubt that the number of people in Germany who disapprove of the mission in Afghanistan is very high… When the Bundeswehr is getting into firefights with Taliban militants on an almost daily basis, and when soldiers are dying in these exchanges, then that is war… The fact that the government still refuses to acknowledge this isn’t merely disrespectful to the soldiers putting their lives on the line in the Hindu Kush to defend Germany. It’s also completely useless in terms of political strategy.’

“The left-leaning Berliner Zeitung writes: ‘It would help if the Defense Ministry would just… be clear for once about why it is so adamant about not using the term “war”… the government’s insistence on using vague terminology makes it sound like it’s afraid of the truth.'”

California’s Tax Increases

SF Gate wrote on June 23:

“To help balance its budget, California has reduced the state tax credit for dependents. The change will increase a family’s California taxes for 2009 by about $210 per dependent compared with 2008… At issue is the exemption you get for each person listed on your tax return… If you are in this boat and would rather not face a big tax bill early next year, you could pay more state tax this year, either by increasing the amount withheld from your paycheck or – if you are self-employed – by making bigger estimated quarterly tax payments…

“At the same time it slashed the dependent credit, the state also raised all tax rates by one-quarter of 1 percent… The state sent new tax-withholding tables reflecting this change to employers in April. Employers should have started using them in May. Many employees will have been underwithheld for the first four months of the year. That means a slightly bigger tax bill (or smaller refund) when they file their 2009 taxes…”

Healthcare Promises Just That–Empty Words?

The Associated Press reported on June 24:

“President Barack Obama left the door open to a new tax on health care benefits Wednesday… ‘I don’t want to prejudge what they’re doing,’ the president said, referring to proposals in the Senate to tax workers who get expensive insurance policies. Obama, who campaigned against the tax when he ran for president, drew a quick rebuff from one union president… It was the latest in a series of signs of presidential flexibility…”

Is the Great Depression Coming…?

Newsmax.com wrote on June 23:

“Is Obama leading the nation into an economic train wreck? Dick Morris, one of America’s astute political observers, the person Time magazine called the most influential man in America, says, ‘Yes!’ Morris reveals that Obama’s policies and clear shift toward socialism will actually lead the country toward a 1930s-style Great Depression. In his newest blockbuster book ‘Catastrophe’ Dick lays out the shocking economic data — much of which has been hidden by the major media. Dick also reveals how Obama’s massive deficit spending will cause a tidal wave of inflation — which will shock the economy — at some point in the near future.”

Huckabee Attacks Establishment Republicans

Newsmax.com wrote on June 24:

“Signaling wider dissensions in the Republican ranks, former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is slamming the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) for endorsing Gov. Charlie Crist over another, more conservative Republican in Florida’s open Senate race… ‘I’m disgusted that they would take a position in a hotly contested race when you have a quality candidate like Marco Rubio, who was the youngest Speaker in the Florida House,’ Huckabee told The Hill. ‘This is not just some nameless, faceless guy that decided to throw his name in, who had no chance and no credibility.’

“He continued: ‘I thought that their endorsement not only was premature, but was outrageous. And they ought to get behind the guy who would do a whole lot more, in my mind, to unite and fire up Republicans, and that’s Marco Rubio. The establishment Republicans have made this endorsement for the same reason that they’re in so much trouble,’ Huckabee said. ‘They go out there and support stuff like TARP bills and stimulus packages, pork-barrel spending and huge debt, and they wring their hands and act like, “This is not good, but we don’t have a choice.”‘

Ron Paul Attacks Obama and Congress

Newsmax.com wrote on June 24:

“U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, says he was dismayed that Congress passed the war supplemental appropriations bill so easily last week. ‘An economic collapse seems to be the goal of Congress and this administration,’ Paul said during his weekly radio address Monday…

“Mocking the idea that Obama was a ‘peace candidate,’ Paul pointed out that his administration will be sending another $106 billion it doesn’t have ‘to continue the bloodshed in Afghanistan and Iraq…’ Paul noted that many of his congressional colleagues who previously voted with him in opposition to every war supplemental request under the Bush administration seem to have changed their tune…

“The emergency supplemental appropriations bill sends… $660 million to Gaza… $555 million to Israel… $310 million to Egypt… $300 million to Jordan… $420 million to Mexico… $889 million to the United Nations for so-called ‘peace-keeping’ missions… $1 billion overseas to address the global financial crisis outside U.S. borders… [and] $8 billion to address a potential pandemic flu, which [Paul] said could result in mandatory vaccinations ‘for no discernable reason other than to enrich the pharmaceutical companies’…”

Obama and Bush–Two of a Kind?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 25:

“The occupant of the White House may have changed recently. But the amount of ill-advised ideology coming from Washington has remained constant. Obama’s list of economic errors is long — and continues to grow. The president may have changed, but the excesses of American politics have remained. Barack Obama and George W. Bush, it has become clear, are more similar than they might seem at first glance.

“Ex-President Bush was nothing if not zealous in his worldwide campaign against terror, transgressing human rights and breaking international law along the way. Now, Obama is displaying the same zeal in his own war against the financial crisis — and his weapon of choice is the money-printing machine. The rules the new American president is breaking are those which govern the economy. Nobody is being killed. But the strategy comes at a price — and that price might be America’s position as a global power.

“In his fight against terrorism, Bush had the ideologue Dick Cheney at his side… Obama’s Cheney is named Larry Summers… President Barack Obama follows him like a dog does its master… Summers [said]  that the way to bring about an end to the crisis was — more confidence, more credit and more debt… Experts and non-experts alike were perplexed… Summers was unable to supply an adequate explanation for how a crisis caused by frivolous lending was going to be solved through yet more frivolity…

“Just as the US public initially rallied behind the war President Bush — even to the point of re-electing him — Americans have now thrown their support behind the debt president Obama. The mistakes of the Bush administration are now widely accepted. The mistakes of the Obama administration are still not recognized as such…

“According to conservative forecasts, Obama’s policies could end up being three times as expensive as US expenditures during World War II. If one calculates using today’s prices, America spent $3 trillion for the war. Obama’s budgetary calculations for the decade between 2010 and 2020 assume additional debt of $9 trillion.

“American borrowing in 2009 comprises about half of Obama’s budget. The country is living beyond its means — and it still would have been even if it weren’t for the economic crisis…

“Many believe that when the crisis ends, borrowing will automatically fall. The truth is that it could climb afterwards… Washington would need to spend several times more than it is now just to service current pension entitlements and the free, state-funded medical care provided to senior citizens. In addition, Obama has promised to introduce healthcare coverage for America’s close to 46 million uninsured…

“… trust in the gravitas and reliability of the United States has suffered to such a great degree that fewer and fewer foreigners are purchasing its government bonds…

“The supply of money has increased by 45 percent in the last three years and there has not been a corresponding rise in hard assets or production. That imbalance will eventually make itself felt in the form of inflation. The dollar, which has already lost 40 percent of its value against the euro since 2000, would then devaluate and its reputation would be further diminished…”

A Deeply Divided Iran

Der Spiegel wrote on June 15:

“Protesters took to the streets of Iran this weekend to vent their frustration and dismay at President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s landslide election victory… However, the 63 percent with which Ahmadinejad trounced his rival’s 34 percent — and avoided a run-off — left many questioning whether there had been irregularities in the vote and subsequent count…

“While Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, initially endorsed the result, he has now ordered an investigation into the claims of vote-rigging and has called on [main challenger] Mousavi to pursue his appeal ‘calmly and legally.’ The powerful Guardian Council said on Monday that it would rule within 10 days on the complaints it had received.

“Protests by thousands of dismayed Mousavi supporters over the weekend have marked the most blatant show of discontent in Iran in years… Ahead of the elections, the hardline Revolutionary Guard had already warned that it would not tolerate a ‘velvet revolution’ in Iran…

“German newspapers on Monday are agreed the results point to a deeply divided Iran…

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘…The Islamic Republic has become increasingly militarized in recent years. Ahmadinejad has deliberately strengthened the Revolutionary Guard and they won’t hesitate to use force if they get the order.’…

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘The Islamic Republic of Iran was never a true democracy and it didn’t want to be one. The hardliners always made sure that only candidates loyal to the regime could stand for election… The armed forces are the ones with the power… With Ahmadinejad, the Islamic Republic… is slowly becoming an authoritarian military dictatorship…'”

Not Without Cheating…

Die Welt Online wrote on June 13:

“Iranian and Western analysts abroad greeted the results with disbelief… ‘It doesn’t augur well for an early and peaceful settlement of the nuclear dispute,’ said Mark Fitzpatrick at London’s International Institute for Strategic Studies… Trita Parsi, president of the Washington-based National Iranian American Council, expressed astonishment at the wide margin in Ahmadinejad’s favour. ‘It is difficult to feel comfortable that this occurred without any cheating,’ he said…

“‘If there was a shadow of hope for a change in Iran, the renewed choice of Ahmadinejad expresses more than anything the growing Iranian threat,’ Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said in a statement. ‘The international community must stop a nuclear Iran and Iranian terror immediately.'”

Reports from Iran…

The Iranian state-run publication, Press TV, reported on June 14:

“The landslide victory of Iran’s Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the June 12 presidential elections has garnered a mixed response in the World political scene. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was among the first world leaders to congratulate his Iranian counterpart…

“Pakistan’s President, Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, and Afghan President Hamid Karzai conveyed their separate congratulatory messages to President Ahmadinejad on Sunday. In the Arab world, Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa congratulated Ahmadinejad on his historic election win, saying that he hopes his re-appointment would promote better relations between Iran and Arab countries.

“The Amir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, also lauded Ahmadinejad’s re-election as Iranian president. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad sent a congratulatory message to his Iranian counterpart on Saturday, in which he wished the prosperity and wellfare of the Iranian people… Palestine’s Hamas Resistance, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah Movement, hailed President Ahmadinejad on his victory in separate messages…

“The Israeli officialdom, however, was quick to voice concern over Ahmadinejad’s election victory… US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also responded rather cautiously to Ahmadinejad’s landslide win. The European Union… has said it is concerned about the status in Iran…”

To their credit, Press TV also published numerous critical comments from readers. We are bringing you the following interesting samples:

“Iranian Taliban stole the peoples’ vote. This is worst than the Shah regime, and you [are] talking about other cultures? You brag about how much you are better than Israel and Wahabi Arabs! This is the worst theft in the history of Iran! Shah stole money. The Taliban Ahmadi and your so-called supreme leader are stealing the future of a generation of the Iranian people! This is a sad, sad day for Iran! Poor people of Iran!

“Something isn’t adding up and the press was declaring Ahmadinejad the victor less than an hour after the polls closed. It took the Americans days to count 100 million votes, how did we manage to count 40 million in a few hours?

“As an Iranian who lives in Tehran I can see that there is a real fraud in our election. Most of the people vote for Mr Mousavi even in Tehran. Over 10 million vote for him, but look at the result.

“What [is] the Corrupt Regime… going to do next? Taking away the short wave radios from people? Or perhaps disconnecting the telephones thus Internet?

“Mousavi lost in his own hometown? That alone shows this election was a fraud.”

USA Today added on June 18:

“The Iranian government has directly accused the United States of meddling in the deepening crisis. A statement by state-run Press TV blamed Washington for ‘intolerable’ interference. The report, on Press TV, cited no evidence.”

Iran’s Attempts to Control the Media

The Associated Press reported on June 14:

“Iranian authorities have asked some foreign journalists – in Iran to cover the elections – to prepare to leave. Nabil Khatib, executive news editor for Dubai-based news network Al Arabiya, said the station’s correspondent in Tehran was given a verbal order Sunday from Iranian authorities that the office will be closed for one week. No reason was given for the order, but the station was warned several times Saturday that they need to be careful in reporting ‘chaos’ accurately.

“Iran restored cell phone service that had been down in the capitol since Saturday. But Iranians could not send text messages from their phones, and the government increased its Internet filtering in an apparent attempt to undercut liberal voices. Social networking sites including Facebook and Twitter were also not working. The restrictions were likely intended to prevent Mousavi’s supporters from organizing large-scale protests…

“Mousavi’s newspaper, Kalemeh Sabz, or the Green Word, did not appear on newsstands Sunday. An editor, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said the paper never left the printing house because authorities were upset with Mousavi’s statements. The paper’s Web site reported that more than 10 million votes in Friday’s election were missing national identification numbers similar to U.S. Social Security numbers, which make the votes ‘untraceable’…”

BBC News added on June 13:

“Riot police have used batons against a crowd of about 3,000 supporters of Mr Mousavi… The authorities had earlier sealed off Mr Mousavi’s campaign HQ, preventing his supporters from holding a news conference. Interior Minister Sadeq Mahsouli said that any demonstrations needed official permission, and none had been given… One opposition newspaper has been closed down and BBC websites also appear to have been blocked by the Iranian authorities.”

Bild Online reported on June 16:

“The Iranian government has begun clamping down on the foreign media. It has banned all foreign journalists from leaving their offices and reporting from the streets of the country. Journalists may only report from their desks and not interview members of the public or send any eyewitness accounts back home. The clampdown follows a ban on websites such as Facebook and the BBC’s Persian service.”

Violence Breaks Out in Iran

The Associated Press reported on June 15:

“In a massive outpouring reminiscent of the Islamic Revolution three decades ago, hundreds of thousands of Iranians streamed through the capital Monday, and the fist-waving protesters denounced President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s claim to victory in a disputed election. Standing on a roof, gunmen opened fire on a group of protesters who had tried to storm a pro-government militia’s compound…

“Angry men showed their bloody palms after cradling the dead and wounded who had been part of a crowd that stretched more than five miles (nearly 10 kilometers) supporting reform leader Mir Hossein Mousavi…”

Iran Orders Partial Re-Count

The Wall Street Journal reported June 16:

“Pro-government and opposition demonstrators poured into the streets of Iran’s capital Tuesday for a fourth day of sometimes-violent rallies, as the country’s religious leaders agreed to a partial recount of Friday’s disputed presidential vote. Amid the unrest, and more shooting by government-backed militia, authorities arrested prominent opposition leaders and clamped down on media covering the crisis.

“The demonstrations came hours after state media reported the top religious oversight council would examine Friday’s vote… Such a recount appears to be unprecedented, and it wasn’t immediately clear when it would begin, or how many voting sites would be included.

“Mr. Mousavi and the other two candidates announced the recount wouldn’t be acceptable to them. Representatives of the three candidates had met with the spokesperson of the Guardian Council on Tuesday morning and asked that the results be annulled and new elections be held. Alternatively, they asked that an independent committee, made of up of clerics, lawmakers and experts, review the charges of vote rigging.”

Mass Demonstrations Against Iran’s Government–While Obama “Plays It Safe”

Reuters reported on June 18:

“Tens of thousands of Iranians, wearing black and carrying candles, marched on Thursday to mourn those killed in mass protests against a presidential election they and defeated candidate Mirhossein Mousavi say was rigged… Chanting ‘Allahu Akbar’ (God is Greatest), they massed in downtown Imam Khomeini Square, responding to Mousavi’s call for people to gather in mosques or at peaceful rallies to show solidarity with the victims and their families.

“Days of public fury over the disputed election led Iran’s top legislative body, the Guardian Council, to invite Mousavi and the two other candidates beaten by hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to discuss their complaints on Saturday. The election has provoked Iran’s biggest and most violent demonstrations since the 1979 Islamic revolution, rocking the world’s fifth biggest oil exporter which is also caught up in a dispute with the West over its nuclear program.

“Iranian state media has reported seven or eight people killed in protests since the election results were published on June 13. Scores of reformists have been arrested across the country and authorities have cracked down on both foreign and domestic media… Other banners told protesters to stay home on Friday, when Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is due to lead prayers in Tehran, but to gather again the next day in the capital…

“Ahmadinejad supporters are expected to show their strength when Khamenei leads Friday prayers at Tehran University. Iran has denounced foreign criticism of the election, although U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration has muted its comments to keep the door open for possible dialogue.”

Der Spiegel Online added on June 17:

“Barack Obama is taking a cautious approach to the disputed Iranian elections and has even said there is little difference between the candidates. The US president knows the ayatollahs wield the real power in Tehran — and doesn’t want to jeopardize negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program.”

“Permission to Lie About the Election”

The Australian wrote on June 15:

“AN Israeli analyst who had predicted widespread electoral fraud in Iran says the results amounted to the appointment of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad by clerics rather than a victory at the ballot box. ‘This was planned well ahead of time,’ said Menashe Amir, who has monitored the Iranian media for more than 20 years as head of the Persian desk at Israel Radio.

“‘Ahmadinejad was chosen to erase the democratic changes that have occurred in Iran over the years and return the country to the era of the Islamic revolution 30 years ago. ‘Mr Amir quoted a leading ayatollah as saying: ‘It is permitted to lie about the election results to bring victory to Islam.'”

Germany Takes the Lead

CNN reported on June 14:

“Germany is summoning the Iranian ambassador Monday to explain the disputed presidential election in the Middle Eastern nation, particularly the ‘brutal handling’ of protesters, the German foreign minister said. The move is noteworthy because global reaction to the Iranian election has been guarded [This changed subsequently, with the notable exception of President Obama.]

“In addition, Germany is one of Iran’s biggest trading partners and has taken the lead in trying to persuade it from developing a nuclear program. ‘I have already prompted Iran, together with European colleagues today, to quickly shed light on what has happened there — if one can take the announced election results there seriously or not,’ Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told German public television station ARD on Sunday.”

No Big Difference

Der Stern Online wrote on June 17:

“U.S. President Barack Obama does obviously not have a high opinion of Iranian challenger Mir-Hussein Mussawi. The differences for a political change between Mahmud Ahmadinejad and his challenger are not as big as commonly assumed [according to Obama]. Independent from the outcome of the election, the US would have to face in both cases a regime which is hostile towards the US, which has caused some problems in its neighborhood, and which wants to produce nuclear weapons, Obama told the US channel CNBC.”

With this assessment, Barack Obama might very well be correct. For more information, please view our new StandingWatch program on YouTube, titled, “Will Iran’s 2009 Elections Change Anything?”

Is Improvement in the Middle East Possible?

The Associated Press wrote on June 15:

“The re-election of Iran’s hardline president and a tough speech by Israel’s hawkish prime minister signaled an increasingly difficult road ahead for President Barack Obama’s hopes for ending Tehran’s nuclear threat and brokering peace between Israel and the Palestinians. A setback on either foreign policy front would have been unwelcome in the Obama White House, but difficulties on both issues – which are deeply entangled – were likely to slow progress on the president’s ambition of changing the landscape across the Middle East…

“In Jerusalem, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in an unusually open dispute with Obama over the path to peace with the Palestinians, the Israeli leader gave a major speech that was bound to have found a disappointed White House audience…

“Hamas is strongly backed by Iran and, like Ahmadinejad, calls for the destruction of Israel. Netanyahu and his backers see Israel as threatened on three fronts, all of them arising in Tehran. The Islamic regime’s perceived drive to build a nuclear bomb is viewed by Netanyahu as an existential threat to Israel. Lesser but more immediate dangers are seen to lie with Hamas and Hezbollah, Iran’s other proxy organization in the region. The two groups have routinely conducted harassing rocket attacks and incursions on Israel from Gaza in the south and Lebanon to the north, respectively.

“Counterbalancing the weekend’s discouraging news, however, was Hezbollah’s major and unforeseen setback in Lebanese elections last week. There also is growing concern in the larger Arab Middle East about Iran’s nuclear program. While both the Arabs and Iranians are Muslims, the Arabs are predominantly Sunni, while the Iranians are nearly all Shiite. Beyond that, Iranians are ethnic Persians and have been historically at odds with the Arabs.”

Hillary Clinton Does Not Rule Out Pre-Emptive Israeli Strike on Iran

The Times reported on June 8:

“Hillary Clinton refused yesterday to rule out a pre-emptive Israeli military strike on Iran. It was the first time that a senior member of the Obama Administration had openly discussed such a possibility. The US Secretary of State… also warned that [Iran] would face retaliation if it launched a nuclear attack on Israel…

“Mrs Clinton appeared ready to unnerve the Iranian leadership with talk of a pre-emptive strike ‘the way that we did attack Iraq’… Mrs Clinton… said that it was US policy that a nuclear attack by Iran on Israel would be seen as an attack on the US.

“’I don’t think there is any doubt in anyone’s mind that were Israel to suffer a nuclear attack by Iran, there would be retaliation,’ she said, though she did not spell out who would retaliate.”

Netanyahu’s Speech Defied Obama’s Demands

The Times reported on June 14:

“Binyamin Netanyahu tonight endorsed the creation of a Palestinian state after weeks of pressure from Washington, but defied President Obama’s demand for a halt to all settlements. In a high-profile speech that the Palestinian administration of Mahmoud Abbas said ‘hobbles all efforts to save the peace process’, the Israeli Prime Minister said that the Palestinians must recognise Israel as a ‘Jewish state’ and that any future Palestinian state had to be demilitarised…

“Mr Netanyahu also ruled out a complete halt to settlement activity and said that Palestinian refugees dating from the 1948 creation of Israel, and their descendants, would not be resettled inside Israel’s borders…

“The former US President Jimmy Carter told the Israeli daily Haaretz on Sunday that Israel risked a head-on collision with Washington over the settlements. Washington provides Israel with $2.4 billion of annual military aid as well as diplomatic support, making the United States its most important ally. Mr Netanyahu faces a delicate balancing act in responding to American pressure, as most in his largely right-wing ten-week-old coalition oppose US demands on settlements and would probably quit the Government if he caves in to the pressure…”

Reactions to Netanyahu’s Speech

The Jerusalem Post wrote on June 15:

“Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak blasted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s speech on Sunday saying ‘Netanyahu’s demand that Palestinians recognize Israel as the Jewish state is ruining the chance for peace…’ Mubarak further added that ‘not Egypt, nor any other Arab country would support Netanyahu’s approach.’

“Earlier Monday, a Syrian government newspaper slammed Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s speech, and likened Israel’s policies towards Palestinians to those of the Apartheid government in South Africa towards black people…”

In a related article, the Jerusalem Post reported on June 15:

“Former US president Jimmy Carter, visiting in Israel, said on Monday that Binyamin Netanyahu has placed ‘several obstacles on the road to peace’, in response to the prime minister’s speech Sunday evening… ‘He insists on settlement expansion, demands that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state even though 20% of Israel’s citizens are not Jewish,’ the former US president said…

“Meanwhile, the European Union on Monday joined US President Barack Obama in expressing support for Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s ‘endorsement’ of the goal of establishing a Palestinian state alongside Israel…”

Haaretz reported on June 14:

“The Palestinian Authority on Sunday criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s highly anticipated foreign policy speech, in which he called for immediate peace talks and endorsed the creation of [a] Palestinian state without military capabilities. An aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that the speech ‘sabotages’ regional peace efforts, due to Netanyahu’s refusal to accept an influx of Palestinian refugees into Israel and his unwillingness to compromise on the status of Jerusalem…

“In the Gaza Strip, Hamas representatives vehemently rejected Netanyahu’s address. ‘In his speech, he … erased the Palestinian refugees’ right of return,’ said senior Hamas leader Ismail Radwan, adding that the prime minister also did not ‘recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the independent Palestinian state… What needs to be done immediately is to sever all ties with Israel.'”

Not Enough for EU

Haaretz reported on June 15:

“European Union foreign ministers welcomed on Monday Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s conditional endorsement of a future Palestinian state, but said it was not enough to raise EU-Israel ties to a higher level. The ministers… questioned conditions cited by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for backing a Palestinian state and also his defence of Jewish settlements on occupied land…

“‘That’s good but it’s only a first step,’ Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, whose country [takes] over the EU presidency in July, said before the talks in Luxembourg. French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said it was ‘not sufficient. Nothing was said on the settlements … but this stopping of the settlements is essential,’ said Kouchner, who in an earlier statement rejected any pre-conditions to peace negotiations.

“The EU and Israel have agreed in principle to upgrade an ‘association agreement’ defining their ties, a move that would bring trade benefits for both sides. But the 27-nation bloc has put the upgrade on ice and says it wants a firm commitment from Israel to seek a so-called two-state peace accord with the Palestinians.

“‘We must say quite clearly today there can only be talk of an upgrade when the peace process is on its way, and for that we need a few steps more,’ said Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn. Asked if Netanyahu’s move was sufficient for the EU to upgrade ties with Israel, Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb said: ‘No’…

“U.S. President Barack Obama called Netanyahu’s shift on Palestinian statehood an important step forward. But aides to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the speech sabotaged negotiations by restating Israel’s refusal to share the city of Jerusalem or accept Palestinian refugees.”

North Korea Defiant–Threatens with Nuclear War

The Guardian wrote on June 13:

“North Korea declared it would turn its plutonium stocks into weapons material and threatened military action against the US and its allies after the UN security council imposed new sanctions to punish Pyongyang for last month’s underground nuclear test.

“The country’s foreign ministry today acknowledged for the first time that North Korea was developing a uranium enrichment programme and said it would be ‘impossible’ to abandon its nuclear ambitions. [When enriched to a high degree, uranium can be used for weapons-grade material. Plutonium can be used in atomic bombs]…

“The warning came a few hours after the security council unanimously passed a resolution banning all weapons exports from North Korea and the import of all but small arms [The resolution also authorized searches of North Korean ships suspected of transporting illicit ballistic missile and nuclear materials] …

“The regime is believed to have enough plutonium for at least six nuclear bombs… ‘An attempted blockade of any kind by the US and its followers will be regarded as an act of war and met with a decisive military response,’ the regime said.

“There was no attempt to expand the sanctions to exports and imports of non-military goods. This is partly because China and Russia would have been opposed, but also because of fears a collapse of the North Korean economy would result in a flood of refugees into South Korea.”

Will North Korea Fire a Missile Toward Hawaii?

The Associated Press reported on June 18:

“North Korea may fire a long-range ballistic missile toward Hawaii in early July, a Japanese news report said Thursday, as Russia and China urged the regime to return to international disarmament talks on its rogue nuclear program. [Subsequent reports in Mail-On-Line, dated June 18, state that the missile may be fired on Independence Day, July 4, 2009].

“The missile, believed to be a Taepodong-2 with a range of up to 4,000 miles (6,500 kilometers), would be launched from North Korea’s Dongchang-ni site on the northwestern coast… The missile launch could come between July 4 and 8, the paper said. While the newspaper speculated the Taepodong-2 could fly over Japan and toward Hawaii, it said the missile would not be able to hit Hawaii’s main islands, which are about 4,500 miles (7,200 kilometers) from the Korean peninsula.”

The “Gay Rights Movement” in the USA

On June 3, 2009, Christian Today India reported the following:

“President Obama has declared June ‘Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month,’ becoming the first U.S. president to include bisexual and transgender in the proclamation’s title. In a difficult-to-find declaration posted on the White House Web site on June 1, Obama praised LGBT Americans for their continual ‘great and lasting contributions’ that ‘strengthen the fabric of American society.’

“He vowed to support measures to ‘bring the full spectrum of equal rights to LGBT Americans,’ including enhancing hate crimes laws, supporting civil unions, ensuring gay adoption rights, outlawing discrimination in the workplace, and ending the current ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy in the military…

“Obama follows in the footsteps of former President Bill Clinton who also issued a similar proclamation in 1999 and 2000. But Clinton did not use the term transgender in his version. He did, however, reference bisexuals. President George W. Bush, in contrast, did not issue any LGBT proclamation during his eight years in office.

“Several Christian leaders have criticized the proclamation, including Bob Stith of the Southern Baptist Convention. Stith told Baptist Press that the proclamation encourages ‘pride in what God clearly says is sin’…

“June is traditionally recognized by the homosexual community as ‘Gay Pride Month’ in commemoration of the Stonewall Inn incident in June 1969. On June 28, 1969, gays and lesbians fought against a police raid that took place at Stonewall Inn in New York City. The incident is widely held to be the first time that the gay community fought against a government entity in American history, and is considered the starting point of the gay rights movement in the United States and around the world.

“In the proclamation, President Obama lauded the LGBT rights movement for their determination that has allowed more LGBT Americans to live openly today than ever before. He also said he is ‘proud’ to be the first president to appoint openly LGBT candidates to Senate-confirmed positions in the first 100 days of an Administration.”

The Associated Press reported on June 16:

“President Barack Obama, under growing criticism for not seeking to end the ban on openly gay men and women in the military, is extending benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees… The decision is a political nod to a reliably Democratic voting bloc that in recent weeks has grown frustrated with the White House’s slow movement on their priorities.

“Several powerful gay fundraisers withdrew their support from a June 25 Democratic National Committee event where Vice President Joe Biden is expected to speak. Their exit came in response to a June 12 Justice Department brief that defended the Defense of Marriage Act, a prime target for gay and lesbian criticism. Justice lawyers argued that the law allowed states to reject marriages performed in other states or countries that defy their own standards.

“The legal arguments — including citing incest and sex with minors — sparked rebellion among gay and lesbian activists who had been largely biting their tongues since Obama won election…

“In the meantime, the administration has tried to make small, quiet moves to extend benefits to gays and lesbians. The State Department has promised to give partners of gay and lesbian diplomats many benefits, such as diplomatic passports and language training.”

The Associated Press added on June 17:

“President Barack Obama signaled to gay rights activists Wednesday that he’s listening to their priorities by extending some benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. But he didn’t give them even close to everything they want, bringing growing anger against the president to the surface.

“Obama aides urged gays and lesbians to have patience with the new White House’s slow-and-steady approach to the politically charged topic. But his critics – and there were many – saw Wednesday’s incremental move to expand gay rights as little more than pandering to a reliably Democratic voting bloc, with the primary aim not of making policy more fair but of cutting short a fundraising boycott…

“Obama has refused to take any concrete steps toward a repeal of a policy that bans gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military, even though as a candidate he pledged to scrap the Clinton-era rules. He similarly has refused to step in and block the dismissal of gays and lesbians who face courts martial for disclosing their sexual orientation.”

The “Gay Rights Movement” in Israel

Der Stern Online reported on June 13:

“The biggest gay parade in the Middle East was conducted in Tel Aviv. Ten thousands of gays, lesbians, bi-sexuals and onlookers marched through the streets of Tel Aviv. The Branch of Tourism declared Tel Aviv in its advertisements as the Gay Capital. The religious Schas Party had asked the local government to prohibit the Gay Parade…

“[Also, Interior Minister Eli Yishai had called unsuccessfully on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai to cancel the parade.] In 2001, Israel, as the only country in the region, adopted an ‘anti-discrimination’ law. Marriages of homosexual couples, which were conducted in foreign countries, can be registered and acknowledged in Israel.”  

Haaretz wrote on June 13:

“Five gay couples wed Friday in a ceremony held on the Tel Aviv beach at the end of the city’s 11th annual Gay Pride Parade which saw thousands of people from all walks of life join in celebration on the city’s streets. The… same-sex couples walked up to the Chuppah, the Jewish wedding altar, while gay Israeli pop star Ivri Lider sang.

“The ceremony was performed according to Jewish marriage rites, with each couple exchanging rings and Hebrew vows before breaking the glass as the crowd erupted in applause. MK Nitzan Horovitz (Meretz), the Knesset’s first openly gay parliamentarian attended the wedding, where he told Haaretz, ‘I hope that from this day, weddings like this can happen in every place in Israel and not just in Tel Aviv. Weddings for everyone, man and woman, man and man, and woman and woman, and this will be the end of the monopoly of the ultra-Orthodox over our lives in Israel.’

“Gay Israeli filmmaker Eytan Fox… told Haaretz, ‘It’s a very important and historic day. It’s very exciting and in the end the good guys won.'”

How Some Democrats Want to “Improve” Healthcare…

Bloomberg reported on June 13:

“Health-care overhaul legislation being drafted by House Democrats will include $600 billion in tax increases and $400 billion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid… The measure’s cost is reaching well beyond the $634 billion President Barack Obama proposed in his budget request to Congress as a 10-year down payment for the policy changes.

“Asked whether the cost of a health-care overhaul would be more than $1 trillion over a decade, [Committee Chairman Charles] Rangel said, ‘the answer is yes.’ Some Senate Republicans… say the costs will likely exceed $1.5 trillion… Democrats in the House and Senate are crafting legislation that would require all Americans to have health insurance, prohibit insurers from refusing to cover pre-existing conditions and place other restrictions on the industry…

“The legislation would establish online exchanges for individuals to purchase insurance and would require employers to provide health benefits to workers or pay a penalty… Rangel said Democrats are still considering options for tax increases that might be in the bill, including a possible end to the income tax exclusion for employer-paid health benefits…

“Rangel said that while House Democrats will likely release more details about health policy changes in their legislation next week, the package of offsetting tax increases and spending cuts likely will come later. Democrats, he said, want to put forth the more-positive aspects of an overhaul first. ‘We have a problem in not wanting to attract enough negative attention to the bill in terms of the pay-fors,’ he said.”

… While Other Democrats and Republicans Oppose Healthcare Proposals

Reuters wrote on June 14:

“President Barack Obama’s health secretary on Sunday pushed for a new government-run healthcare program, an idea facing skepticism even in his own party, and a senior Senate Democrat flatly said votes are lacking in Congress for the proposal. In addition, Vice President Joe Biden opposed proposals being discussed by some lawmakers to tax health insurance benefits provided to people by employers…”

“Doctors’ Boos Show Obama’s Tough Road”

The Associated Press reported on June 15:

“For all the young president’s popularity, the response he got Monday from doctors at an American Medical Association meeting was a sign his road is only going to get rockier as he tries to sell his plan to overhaul the nation’s health care system. The boos erupted when Obama told the doctors in Chicago he wouldn’t try to help them win their top legislative priority—limits on jury damages in medical malpractice cases… The doctors were only Obama’s first house call. He’ll be making his case to the other groups—and to the nation at large—in an increasingly energetic campaign to get a bill passed by the end of his first year in office…

“Doctors have special reasons to be wary of the president’s plans to overhaul the health care system. Not long ago, doctors’ decisions were rarely questioned. Now they are being blamed for a big part of the wasteful spending in the nation’s $2.5 trillion health care system. Studies have shown that as much as 30 cents of the U.S. health care dollar may be going for tests and procedures that are of little or no value to patients.

“The Obama administration has cited such findings as evidence that the system is broken. Since doctors are the ones responsible for ordering tests and procedures, health care costs cannot be brought under control unless they change their decision-making habits… But Obama did not blame the doctors. Instead, he tried to woo them, much as he has done with recalcitrant foreign leaders.”

That wasteful prescriptions and unnecessary tests ordered by doctors ARE partially responsible for outrageous healthcare costs is a FACT and cannot be denied. Whether President Obama’s proposals will solve this problem without creating new ones is the issue of hot debate.

No Senate Consensus on Health Care Reform

The Associated Press reported on June 17:

“Hoping to make history, the Senate set off on its major overhaul of the nation’s health care system Wednesday, but its first steps were quickly overtaken by fresh cost concerns and partisan anger. An ambitious timetable that called for completing committee action in early summer seemed in danger of slipping away…”

How ABC Plays Politics

The Drudge Report wrote on June 16:

“On the night of June 24, the media and government become one, when ABC turns its programming over to President Obama and White House officials to push government run health care — a move that has ignited an ethical firestorm…

“ABCNEWS anchor Charlie Gibson will deliver WORLD NEWS from the Blue Room of the White House. The network plans a primetime special — ‘Prescription for America’ — originating from the East Room, EXCLUDE OPPOSING VOICES ON THE DEBATE… Late Monday night, Republican National Committee Chief of Staff Ken McKay fired off a complaint to the head of ABCNEWS:

“‘…As the national debate on health care reform intensifies, I am deeply concerned and disappointed with ABC’s astonishing decision to EXCLUDE OPPOSING VOICES on this critical issue on June 24, 2009. Next Wednesday, ABC News will air a primetime health care reform ‘town hall’ at the White House with President Barack Obama. In addition, according to an ABC News report, GOOD MORNING AMERICA, WORLD NEWS, NIGHTLINE and ABC’s web news ‘will all feature special programming on the president’s health care agenda’…

“‘Today, the Republican National Committee requested an opportunity to add our Party’s views to those of the President’s to ensure that all sides of the health care reform debate are presented. OUR REQUEST WAS REJECTED… I find it OUTRAGEOUS that ABC would PROHIBIT our Party’s opposing thoughts and ideas from this national debate, which affects millions of ABC viewers.

“‘In the absence of opposition, I am concerned this event will become a glorified infomercial to PROMOTE THE DEMOCRATIC AGENDA… President Obama does not hold a monopoly on health care reform ideas or on free airtime. The President has stated time and time again that HE WANTS A BIPARTISAN DEBATE. Therefore, the Republican Party should be included in this primetime event, or the DNC should pay for your airtime…’

“ABCNEWS Senior Vice President Kerry Smith on Tuesday responded to the RNC complaint, saying it contained ‘false premises’:

“‘… ABCNEWS alone will select those who will be in the audience asking questions of the president. Like any programs we broadcast, ABC News will have complete editorial control. To suggest otherwise is quite unfair to both our journalists and our audience.'”

To add insult to injury, according to an article in the Drudge Report, dated June 16, “ABC is refusing to air paid ads during its White House health care presentation… including a paid-for alternative viewpoint!”

More Money for War

The Washington Post wrote on June 16:

“The House today passed a $106 billion bill funding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan through September, as House Democrats backed President Obama despite misgivings among the ranks about his strategy in Afghanistan.

“The 226 to 202 vote came after Obama and Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner had called some reluctant Democrats during the day imploring them to back the bill, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi… had strongly pressed her colleagues in a closed-door meeting to vote for the bill in a show of support for Obama, even if they oppose his strategy for increasing troops in Afghanistan.

“In the end, 221 Democrats voted for the bill, while 32 opposed it. All but five Republicans opposed the bill… 19 House Democrats backed the bill who had opposed it the first time, although some cited loyalty, not agreement with Obama’s plans, as their reason.”

How to Spend Stimulus Money

The Associated Press reported on June 13:

“The United States is about to spend $50 million in stimulus money on fish food… The money could provide algae to nourish clam and oyster larvae along the Pacific coast, fill the bellies of tilapia in Arizona and feed catfish, trout and gamefish in the Midwest and South…

“Much of the money is likely to end up in Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas — the nation’s largest catfish producers. Catfish accounts for one-third of the nation’s $1.4 billion aquaculture industry.”

Saving Money by Bulldozing 50 U.S. Cities

The Telegraph wrote on June 12:

“Dozens of US cities may have entire neighbourhoods bulldozed as part of drastic ‘shrink to survive’ proposals being considered by the Obama administration to tackle economic decline… The radical experiment is the brainchild of Dan Kildee, treasurer of Genesee County… Having outlined his strategy to Barack Obama during the election campaign, Mr Kildee has now been approached by the US government…

“Mr Kildee said he will concentrate on 50 cities… as potentially needing to shrink substantially… They include Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Memphis. In Detroit, shattered by the woes of the US car industry, there are already plans to split it into a collection of small urban centres separated from each other by countryside.”

This proposal is interesting in light of the fact that cities in the Millennium, under God’s rule, MIGHT be designed in this way.

British Airways in Deep Trouble

CNN reported on June 16:

“British Airways is asking thousands of its staff to work for free for up to four weeks… In an e-mail to all its staff, the airline offered workers between one and four weeks of unpaid leave — but with the option to work during this period. British Airways employs just more than 40,000 people in the United Kingdom. Last month, the company posted a record annual loss of £400 million ($656 million)…

“‘I’m 30 years in this business and I’ve never seen anything like this. This is by far the biggest crisis the industry has ever faced,’ said Willie Walsh, British Airways’ chief executive. A spokesman for one of Britain’s biggest unions said its workers could not afford to work for free for a month… Walsh said British Airways’ woes were inextricably linked to the downturn in the global economy and that there had been no sign of any ‘green shoots’ of recovery.”

Swine Flu Virus in Humans Long Before Outbreak

ScienceDaily wrote on June 13:

“A new analysis of the current swine-origin H1N1 influenza A virus suggests that transmission to humans occurred several months before recognition of the existing outbreak. The work… provides evidence that new genetic elements in swine can result in the emergence of viruses with pandemic potential in humans…

“Dr Oliver Pybus of Oxford University’s Department of Zoology [said:] ‘Our results show that this strain has been circulating among pigs, possibly among multiple continents, for many years prior to its transmission to humans.’… The team conclude that ‘despite widespread influenza surveillance in humans, the lack of systematic swine surveillance allowed for the undetected persistence and evolution of this potentially pandemic strain for many years.'”

In Spite of Obama Denial–Rift Between Germany and USA Widening

The New York Times reported on June 5 about a widening rift between Germany and the USA. Mr. Obama’s denial of this rift, when visiting Buchenwald, sounds less than credible in light of the following facts:

“A rift has quietly opened up between Germany and the United States, marked by official statements of harmony and private grumbling. It is not an outright crisis in relations, but there are underlying tensions and disagreements on matters ranging from the global economic crisis to the future of inmates held at Guantánamo Bay.

“On a more basic level, there is a sense that the Obama administration is ignoring the needs and counsel of longtime allies. Divided Germany was once at the center not only of the cold war, but of American foreign policy as well, which is no longer the case. Yet the United States can ill afford to alienate Europe’s largest economy and its most important intermediary in the strained relationship with Russia…

“Mr. Obama arrived in Dresden, in the former East Germany, on Thursday night for a visit… to Buchenwald… The German news media have questioned why Mr. Obama was not going to Berlin, suggesting the omission might have been intended as a snub to Mrs. Merkel…

“While Mr. Obama enjoys tremendous personal popularity among the German people, relations with Mrs. Merkel have been bumpy from the beginning. In Germany much symbolic weight is attached to Mrs. Merkel’s decision not to travel to Washington to meet with Mr. Obama in March, but to talk by video conference instead.

“But signs of discord were evident even last summer, when Mrs. Merkel rejected Mr. Obama’s request during the presidential campaign to speak in front of the Brandenburg Gate, saying it was not an appropriate location for a candidate’s address. Mr. Obama drew more than 200,000 people to hear his speech at a nearby monument.

“The president’s high standing with the German public adds to the strain in his relationship with Mrs. Merkel… Angela Merkel is seen as the exact opposite of a charismatic leader like Obama, and that is difficult to accept… At the same time, Mr. Obama’s popularity with the left-wing Social Democrats, rivals to Mrs. Merkel’s conservative Christian Democratic Union in parliamentary elections in September, also helps amplify his and Mrs. Merkel’s differences…

“Relations were already frosty as the economic crisis deepened and the German government and Obama administration took sharply differing views on how far to push stimulus spending… Germans remain surprised that an ambassador to their country has not been named more than four months after Mr. Obama’s inauguration. There is a sense that, with his focus split between domestic concerns and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the new president is taking his staunchest European allies for granted…

“German government officials were outraged that a low-ranking American official was sent for the negotiations to find a way to keep the traditional automaker Opel going despite the bankruptcy of its parent company, General Motors, in the United States. The potential failure of an important industrial employer before parliamentary elections is no laughing matter for German politicians, including Mrs. Merkel…”

One Way to “Spend” Money…

The Netzeitung reported on June 9:

“US President Barack Obama’s brief visit to Dresden last week cost the state of Saxony EUR 13 million… The steep price tag is mostly for heightened security measures before and after the 17-hour stay. There were a total of 6,000 policemen from across Germany in Dresden. But Obama’s Secret Service guarded the areas visited by the president.”

Obama and Merkel in Buchenwald

The Los Angeles Times wrote on June 5:

“It was one of the horrific sights of World War II, the concentration camps at Buchenwald, Germany, where more than 50,000 people, mostly Jews, were starved or gassed to death in deplorable conditions. Today, one day after a historic treach [sic] to Muslims, and with Nobel Prize laureate and camp survivor Elie Wiesel and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at his side, President Obama toured the sight that still chills the memory… Obama told NBC that he has no patience for those who deny the Holocaust, like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who again this week called the murder of 6 million Jews ‘a great deception.’… ‘He should make his own visit,’ Obama said of Ahmadinejad…

“Noting that Germans have a special burden to never forget the mass murder of 12 million during the Holocaust, Merkel, thanking America for helping restore Germany after the war, pledged that Germany would fight anti-Semitism, racism and extremism in any quarter… Obama said he would not forget what he saw there today… More than 50 years later, he said… the perpetrators were also human, reminding us to ‘stand guard’ against the evil within us.

“Then Wiesel, who was liberated from Buchenwald on April 11, 1945, spoke..”

We are setting forth below excerpts from Wiesel’s remarkable speech:

“… every war is absurd and meaningless… But the world hasn’t learned.  When I was liberated in 1945, April 11, by the American army, somehow many of us were convinced that at least one lesson will have been learned — that never again will there be war; that hatred is not an option, that racism is stupid; and the will to conquer other people’s minds or territories or aspirations, that will is meaningless… Had the world learned, there would have been no Cambodia and no Rwanda and no Darfur and no Bosnia.

“Will the world ever learn?  I think that is why Buchenwald is so important… It’s enough — enough to go to cemeteries, enough to weep for oceans.  It’s enough. There must come a moment — a moment of bringing people together.”

65th Anniversary of D-Day

Deutsche Welle reported on June 6:

“The leaders of Canada, France, the United Kingdom and the US have reminded the world of the sacrifices that World War II heroes made on the beaches of Normandy 65 years ago… Earlier in the day, the French and US presidents met privately to talk about thwarting Iran’s disputed nuclear ambitions and bringing about peace in the Middle East… Sarkozy agreed with Obama’s call for Israel to stop building settlements in the West Bank…

“The Allied attack at Normandy was the beginning of the end of Hitler’s Germany. More than 130,000 soldiers landed in Normandy and began the liberation of Nazi-occupied France. Estimates suggest that by the evening of that day more than 4,000 of the Allied troops had died. More than 110,000 soldiers are buried in the military cemeteries in Normandy…

“Britain’s Prince Charles also attended the event, defusing an embarrassing diplomatic tussle over whether Queen Elizabeth should attend or not. Amid reports that the queen had not received an invitation from France, British media lashed out at Paris for the supposed snubbing of the crown.”

Politico added on June 6:

“[President Obama] was accompanied by Michelle Obama. Also onstage were French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Britain’s Prince Charles and Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

“In Brown’s remarks, he referred to ‘Obama Beach,’ then corrected himself to ‘Omaha Beach’ a few words later, after a stir in the crowd. Brown may have been confused by the French tabloid Liberation, which marked the president’s visit by splashing an ‘Obama Beach’ on the cover of its weekend edition.”

Will US Government Control the People?

CNN reported on June 5:

“In a speech introducing Michael Reagan — the son of former President Ronald Reagan — to an audience in Anchorage, Palin warned that the government is planning to ‘bail out debt ridden states’ so it can ‘get in there and control the people. Since when can you get out of huge national debt by creating trillions of dollars of new debt?’ Palin asked.”

Newsmax added on June 9:

“Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin says the U.S. under President Obama is headed toward socialism… The problem is excess spending, she says… Others accuse Obama of leading the nation to socialism too. Newsmax columnist Dick Morris writes in TheHill.com, ‘President Obama’s vision of the future is, apparently, an economy guided, steered and — when the occasion demands — commanded by the federal government.’”

Cheney More Controversial Still

The Los Angeles Times wrote on June 2:

“Former Vice President Dick Cheney waded into another roiling public debate Monday, saying he supports same-sex marriage as long as the issue is decided by states rather than the federal government. Cheney, whose youngest daughter has a longtime lesbian partner, said at the National Press Club that ‘people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish, any kind of arrangement they wish’…

“Cheney also defended the Bush administration’s decision to invade Iraq in 2003, despite faulty intelligence about its nuclear weapons program and links to the Sept. 11 attacks. He asserted that Saddam Hussein could have helped terrorists acquire nuclear weapons. Once the U.S. invaded, it could find no evidence of an active Iraqi nuclear weapons program.

“On Monday, Cheney disavowed intelligence reports he once cited suggesting that Hussein had collaborated with Al Qaeda on Sept. 11. The information ‘turned out not to be true,’ Cheney said. He added that a long-standing relationship existed between Hussein and terrorist groups, including Al Qaeda, that justified the U.S. invasion… On whether Hussein helped Al Qaeda carry out the 2001 terrorist attacks, Cheney said, ‘I do not believe, and I have never seen any evidence, that he was involved in 9/11.'”

While US Moves Left, Most of Europe Goes Right

The Associated Press reported on June 7:

“Europe leaned to the right Sunday as tens of millions of people voted in European Parliament elections, with conservative parties leading or favored in many countries amid a global economic crisis… right-leaning governments edging the opposition in Germany, Italy, France, Belgium and elsewhere. Conservative opposition parties were tied or ahead in Britain, Spain and some smaller countries…

“In Germany, the conservatives of German Chancellor Angela Merkel were headed for a center-right majority and her center-left rivals faced a crushing defeat, exit polls showed, less than four months before a national vote.

“With most votes counted in Austria, the main rightist party gained strongly while the Social Democrats, the main party in the governing coalition, lost substantial ground. But the big winner in Austria was the rightist Freedom Party, which more than doubled its strength over the 2004 elections to 13 percent of the vote. It campaigned on an anti-Islam platform, with posters proclaiming ‘The Occident in Christian hands.’

“In the Netherlands, exit polls predicted Geert Wilders’ anti-Islamic party would win more than 15 percent of the country’s votes… Exit polls in Bulgaria showed the governing Socialist-led coalition facing defeat and the country’s right-wing opposition party winning most of the votes…

“In France, President Nicolas Sarkozy’s conservative UMP party has steadily held the lead in polls… Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s Freedom People’s Party held a two-digit lead over his main center-left rival in the most recent polling despite a deep recession and a scandal over allegations he had an inappropriate relationship with an 18-year-old model…”

Der Spiegel Online added on June 8:

“The June 4-7 European Parliament elections delivered a setback for the European left and gains for center-right and right-wing parties across the continent…

“In Denmark, the right-wing populist, anti-immigrant Danish People’s Party (DVP) led the election. The party increased its share of the vote from 6.8 percent in the last EU election to 15 percent… In Hungary, the conservative opposition won a landslide victory…

“In Ireland, the incumbent conservative Fianna Fail party of Prime Minister Brian Cowen won only 24 percent, a loss of about 6 percentage points, which means it is no longer the strongest Irish political force in Brussels. Opposition party Fine Gael managed 29 percent. Observers see the results as a condemnation of the Cowen government’s domestic policies; the financial crisis has hit Ireland hard. The head of the Libertas party, Declan Ganley, who wants to build momentum for a euroskeptic movement across the entire EU, won just over 5 percent, leaving Libertas in sixth place. The businessman has said he would end his campaign against the Lisbon Treaty if it were to fail at the polls. A referendum planned in Ireland for the fall to ratify the Lisbon Treaty now has a better chance of success…

“In Poland, the center-right incumbent parties have maintained their edge. Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s Civic Platform (PO) earned around 45 percent…

“In Spain, the conservative People’s Party won over 42 percent of the vote, gaining 23 seats…

“In Sweden the opposition Social Democrats came first, with 25 percent of the vote, while Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt’s conservative Moderate Party (MS) earned about 19 percent. The Greens doubled their support to about 11 percent. But the Pirate Party won the most spectacular victory — by earning its first seat in Brussels with an 8 percent share of the vote. The Pirate Party wants more rights for Internet users and free flow of data on the Web. Support for the party rose in polls after a court verdict against the Internet data-swap site The Pirate Bay, which is based in Sweden. The four men in charge were sentenced to a €2.7 million fine and one year in jail for abetting data piracy.

“Among the election’s biggest losers was the Labour party in the United Kingdom, which saw its support drop from 19 seats in 2004 to 11 and won just 15.3 percent of the vote — its worst post-war election result. It finished in third place behind the Conservatives (24 seats) and the euroskeptic United Kingdom Independence Party (13 seats). The vote is seen as a damning verdict on Labour, whose leader Gordon Brown is under increasing pressure to resign as prime minister amid an ongoing expense account scandal in the House of Commons…The far-right British National Party won four seats — the first time Britain has elected right-wing extremists to the European Parliament.”

Europeans Speak Out Against Big Government and Stimulus Measures

Bloomberg wrote on June 7:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy led pro-business parties in defeating socialists in European Parliament elections, lessening the pressure for more stimulus measures to fight the deepest recession since World War II.

“Amid signs the economic slump is bottoming out, the continent’s top two leaders escaped the drubbing in European Union-wide elections that was handed to U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown and socialists in smaller countries including Spain, Austria, Portugal, Hungary, Bulgaria and Slovenia.

“Overall, the center-right group known as the European People’s Party remained the strongest in the Parliament… ‘It is a very sad night for Social Democrats in Europe, we’re very disappointed, we had hoped for better results,’ Martin Schulz of Germany, the socialists’ floor leader, said. ‘It’s a very bitter evening’…

“Merkel resisted President Barack Obama’s pleas for additional pump-priming measures, criticized the European Central Bank for buying assets, and was the first to reflect publicly on rolling back the stimulus.”

These sentiments were echoed in several German papers.

Mass circulation Bild wrote: “… the majority of people don’t want more government, more taxpayers’ billions for ailing companies in this crisis. That’s the message of the European election — especially to the SPD [the Social Democrats of Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier].”

Left-wing Die Tageszeitung wrote: “In the middle of the crisis the Germans are placing their trust in parties that stand for neo-liberal ideas rather than parties that defend big government… The crisis makes people conservative…”

Depression Is Quietly Deepening…

The Telegraph wrote on June 8:

“The establishment Left had been crushed across most of Europe, just as it was in the early 1930s… I still fear that this depression is quietly deepening… we may lose three or four governments in Europe in coming days or weeks — or even worse, they may survive. The drama is unfolding… Half way through the depression, we are facing… exactly the sort of political disintegration that occurs in times of profound economic rupture.

“Remember, the dangerous phase in the Great Depression was Stage II, after the collapse of Austria’s Credit-Anstalt in mid-1931 set off a disastrous chain-reaction that Autumn (until then, most people thought they faced no more than a bad recession, like today).”

Europeans Beware!–Fines for Non-Voters?

Der Spiegel Online reported on June 9:

“Across the 27-member bloc, just 42.9 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots [in the European elections]. That marks the lowest turnout since direct voting began in 1979. In a number of Eastern European countries, the total was well below even that…

“German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble repeated an idea he has voiced before of allowing Europeans to have a direct vote for a European Union president. ‘If the campaign included a race for a person at the head of Europe, that would clearly generate attention across Europe,’ Schäuble, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union, told the tabloid Bild on Tuesday…

“Germany’s SPD parliamentarian Jörn Thiessen has an idea of his own to confront the problem: Fine voters who don’t cast their ballots. ‘We politicians are required to vote in parliament,’ he told Bild. ‘One can require the same of voters in an election. Those who don’t cast their ballots should be fined €50…’

“Thiessen’s idea is not quite as outlandish as it may sound. Australia has enforced compulsory voting since 1924 and fines people between 20 and 70 Australian dollars should they provide no good reason for not having cast their ballots. Argentina is also a member of the elite, mandatory voting club.

“There are also a few European members in that club, including Luxembourg and Belgium. Their turnouts in the European elections: 91 percent and 90.4 percent, respectively.”

Rising Tensions Between USA and Israel

The New York Times wrote on June 8:

“Under mounting American pressure to define his intentions regarding peace efforts, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said Sunday that he would make a major policy speech next week mapping out the government’s ‘principles for achieving peace and security.’

“The announcement came against the background of rising tensions with the Obama administration, which has demanded that Israel freeze all settlement construction in the West Bank. The Netanyahu government insists that construction within existing settlements should continue.

“In another point of contention, Mr. Netanyahu has refused to endorse explicitly the notion of establishing an independent Palestinian state, a cornerstone of American and European policy on the Middle East…

“Ben Caspit, a columnist, wrote Sunday in the newspaper Maariv that Mr. Netanyahu, ‘who opted to squander his period of grace on meaningless “reassessment” meetings, is now going to have to be particularly creative if he wants to renew trust between the United States and Israel.’

“Israeli officials say they expect the Obama administration to respect understandings they say were reached — some written and some oral — with the Bush administration on building within existing settlements. The Obama administration has bluntly dismissed Israel’s argument. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Friday that ‘there is no memorialization of any informal and oral agreements’ on construction in settlements. ‘If they did occur, which, of course, people say they did, they did not become part of the official position of the United States government,’ she said.”

“Supreme Leader of Iran: Muslim Nations ‘Hate America'”

The Washington Post wrote on June 4:

“Iran’s supreme leader dismissed President Obama’s speech at Cairo University Thursday, saying the Muslim world continues to ‘hate America.’… Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that ‘beautiful speeches’ could not remove the hatred felt in the Muslim world against America… ‘People of the Middle East, the Muslim region and North Africa — people of these regions — hate America from the bottom of their heart,’ Khamenei said… He added, ‘Even if [Obama] delivers hundreds of speeches and talks very sweetly, there will not be a change in how the Islamic countries perceive the United States’…

“Khamenei also denounced Israel as a ‘cancerous tumor in the heart’ of the Islamic world, and he accused the U.S. military of ‘bombing innocent civilians’ in Afghanistan…

“Regarding Iran’s nuclear program, the main issue of contention between his country and the United States, Khamenei reiterated Tehran’s assertions that it seeks only to generate electricity, and he referred to a religious edict, or fatwa, that he issued at least four years ago in which he declared that the production, stockpiling or use of nuclear weapons was prohibited under Islam…

“Khamenei, who served as president of Iran for eight years in the 1980s, succeeded Khomeini as supreme leader in 1989, becoming the nation’s highest-ranking political and religious authority. As such, he is more powerful than President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and appoints many key leaders, including the commanders of the armed forces and members of national security councils dealing with defense and foreign affairs.”

Israeli Reactions to Obama’s Cairo Speech

IsraelNationalNews.com wrote on June 4:

“As the Israeli government convenes to discuss the ramifications of U.S. President Barack Obama’s speech in Cairo, other Israeli politicians have lost no time in responding to it. Excerpts:

“MK Danny Danon (Likud): ‘The president has crossed all lines. His implied comparison between the Israeli government and the Nazi regime said everything. He has made a covenant with the Arab world and rewarded it for more than 60 years of aggression.’

“MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union): ‘Obama makes a shocking parallel between the destruction of European Jewry and the suffering that the Arabs of Israel brought upon themselves when they declared war on Israel’… Regarding Obama’s praise of Islam, Eldad said, ‘Obama spoke more from his own heart and less from genuine understanding of the direction Islam is taking around the world. Whoever thinks that the establishment of a Palestinian state will stop the war in Darfur, India, Chechnya, and Europe will apparently soon learn that Israel is not willing to be the “pound of flesh” that he wants to throw to the Muslims.’

“MK Dr. Michael Ben-Ari (National Union) said: ‘The Zionist vision of the rebuilding of the Land of Israel is stronger than any president or government. We outlasted Pharaoh, and we will outlast Obama’…

“MK Zevulun Orlev (Jewish Home): “The speech arouses fears and concerns regarding the future of American relations towards Israel. I fear an erosion of the traditional American commitment to Israel’s security needs and its very existence and independence…'”

The Source for Obama’s Cairo Speech

On June 8, Der Spiegel Online published an interview with Dalia Mogahed, a Muslim, born in Cairo, who advises Barack Obama on Muslim affairs as a member of the Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. We are bringing you the following excerpts from her statements in the interview:

“I suggested three main themes. One is to continue building on the theme of mutual respect. My recommendation was to recognize that Islam has made and makes a positive contribution to civilization. The second major theme was that of cooperation and the idea of equal partnership. A third theme that I referred to was empathy: Even if we do not share their opinion, we should try to understand their point of view…

“I really felt very satisfied, because much of what we recommended made it into his speech. The president tried to heal a deep wound that Muslims have. But at the same time, he didn’t deny what America stands for. His tone and his respect exceeded the expectations of most Muslims. He got a standing ovation in Cairo. People were yelling out: We love you, Obama. Actually, it reminded me of Obama’s inauguration in Washington. It was the same excitement… From the minute he came on stage, I knew that it was an historic moment, especially because he began the speech by saying (the Arabic greeting) ‘assalaamu alaykum.’ I knew that it has never happened before — and perhaps it won’t happen again — that an American president addresses the people like this…

“We have carried out the largest, most comprehensive survey on Muslim opinions ever and that research and the conclusions from that research were conveyed and were taken into account in the formulation of the speech. All of my recommendations were based on the polls and studies at Gallup. It was in some ways a response to what people have said. The messages and the concepts in that speech were targeted towards what people think, rather than dictating to them what we want them to think. It was very much the beginning of a dialogue with Muslims around the world.”

Iranians Vote Friday for Their New President

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 11:

“Iranians go to the polls Friday to elect a new president after an unusually heated election campaign. But even if reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi beats the incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, will it make any difference to the country’s nuclear ambitions?

“If the Israeli Air Force were to bomb Iran, it’s a safe bet that the top-secret Iranian nuclear facility near Isfahan would be at the top of its list of targets… Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hardline government are already believed to have decided to attack Iran. According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Netanyahu plans to give the new US government’s efforts to achieve a negotiated solution until the end of the year to produce results. If they are unsuccessful, the paper writes, the Israelis will strike — even without Washington’s approval, if necessary.

“Mohammed ElBaradei, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has warned that such an attack could ignite a catastrophic conflagration throughout the Middle East. US expert David Albright believes that it will be virtually impossible to wipe out Iran’s nuclear program militarily. The Israelis would have to bomb Iran for weeks, and yet would still not have eliminated a large number of facilities, according to Albright. Instead, he says, such attacks would only achieve one thing: They would unite Iranians behind their leadership and convince them, once and for all, of the need to build the bomb.

“Officials in the West are clinging to the remote hope that Holocaust denier and Israel-hater Ahmadinejad will be voted out of office in Friday’s presidential election. Nevertheless, the differences among the four candidates running for president are minimal when it comes to the nuclear issue… The Iranian economy and the morality debate — not the nuclear conflict that threatens world peace — is at the center of the challengers’ campaign platforms…”

More Hostile North Korean Moves

The Washington Post reported on June 8:

“A North Korean court sentenced two U.S. journalists to 12 years in a labor camp Monday, as the government of Kim Jong Il continued to ratchet up tension with the United States and its neighbors. Laura Ling and Euna Lee, television reporters detained in March along North Korea’s border with China, received harsher sentences than many outsiders had expected. But several experts in South Korea predicted that talks will begin soon to negotiate their release.

“The U.S. government said it was ‘deeply concerned.’ The five-day trial of Ling and Lee was held in Pyongyang’s Central Court, the top court in North Korea. Outside observers were not allowed. ‘The trial confirmed the grave crime they committed against the Korean nation and their illegal border crossing,’ the official Korean Central News Agency said… The ‘grave crime,’ however, was not explained…

“The detention and sentencing of the two journalists has coincided with — and become entangled in — a series of provocative acts by North Korea that this spring have angered its neighbors, its historical allies and much of the world. The heavily armed, secretive state — in the throes of a succession process, as the country’s ailing leader prepares to hand power over to his youngest son — launched a long-range missile in April, detonated a nuclear bomb in May and has renounced the truce that ended the Korean War.

“On Monday, North Korea warned fishermen and boat captains to stay away from the country’s east coast, Japan’s coast guard said. The North is planning to launch several medium-range missiles from the region, according to reports in the South Korean press.

“The U.S. government, which last year lifted some sanctions against North Korea and delivered large amounts of food aid, has become increasingly exasperated by the North’s behavior… Led by the United States and Japan, the U.N. Security Council is considering new sanctions against North Korea for exploding a nuclear device in defiance of a U.N. resolutions. If the sanctions are approved, North Korea threatened Monday that it would retaliate with ‘extreme’ measures…

“The long prison term given the journalists adds a new complication… Ling and Lee were working for Current TV, a cable and Web network co-founded by former vice president Al Gore, when they were detained March 17 by North Korean soldiers along the border with China… There are believed to be about 200,000 political prisoners in North Korean camps, where former inmates say conditions are often brutal, hunger is widespread and attempts to escape usually result in a public execution.”

Air France Flight AF 447 — Did Terrorists Do It?

Sky News reported in June 10:

“Two passengers with names linked to Islamic terrorism were on the Air France flight which crashed with the loss of 228 lives, it has emerged. French secret servicemen established the connection while working through the list of those who boarded the doomed Airbus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on May 31. Flight AF 447 crashed in the mid-Atlantic en route to Paris during a violent storm.

“While it is certain there were computer malfunctions, terrorism has not been ruled out. Soon after news of the fatal crash broke, agents working for the DGSE (Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure)… were dispatched to Brazil. It was there that they established that two names on the passenger list are also on highly-classified documents listing the names of radical Muslims considered a threat to the French Republic… There is a possibility the name similarities are simply a ‘macabre coincidence’, the source added, but the revelation is still being ‘taken very seriously’.

“France has received numerous threats from Islamic terrorist groups in recent months, especially since French troops were sent to fight in Afghanistan. Security chiefs have been particularly worried about airborne suicide attacks similar to the ones on the US on September 11, 2001.”

The Sun added on June 10:

“An Air France long-haul pilot claims it is ‘highly likely’ the Airbus 330 was blown up as it flew from Rio de Janeiro to Paris… Four days before the crash, a flight from Buenos Aires to Paris was delayed by two hours because of a bomb threat. And a pilot claimed… the way debris was strewn over a vast area, pointed to a bomb.”

Swine Flu Has Become Global Pandemic

The Wall Street Journal wrote on June 11:

“The World Health Organization has told its member nations it is declaring an H1N1 flu pandemic — the first in 41 years. The move came Thursday as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere. In a statement sent to member countries, WHO says it decided to raise the pandemic alert level from phase 5 to 6, meaning that a global outbreak of H1N1 has begun… The pandemic declaration will require all countries, including the dozens that haven’t yet reported any cases, to launch pandemic-prevention plans…

“On Wednesday, WHO said 74 countries had reported nearly 27,737 cases of H1N1, including 141 deaths. About half the world’s confirmed cases, or 13,217, are in the U.S., including 27 deaths… In Australia, the number of the new disease, also known as swine flu, has more than tripled in the past week, reaching 1,263 on Thursday.”

Pigs Cause Sickness

Reuters wrote on June 4:

“Global health officials underestimated the risk that pig herds might be a source of new influenza strains, choosing instead to focus on the threat of bird flu, researchers in Mexico said on Thursday. They analyzed samples from people infected with the new H1N1 swine flu virus, which has been confirmed in more than 19,000 people in 64 countries, killing about 120. U.S. health officials say this number reflects only a fraction of the true number of cases.

“‘This virus most likely evolved from recent swine viruses,’ Gerardo Nava of the National Autonomous University of Mexico and colleagues wrote in their report, published in the online journal Eurosurveillance. ‘These findings indicate that domestic pigs in North America may have a central role in the generation and maintenance of this virus.’

“The global pork industry has rushed to defend pig products, saying pig meat is no danger to people. But health experts have also noted there is very little surveillance done to track influenza among pigs — even though the virus is very common in the animals and just as transmissible as it is among people. Flu viruses have also been shown to pass from pigs to people and from people to pigs. ‘These observations also reiterate the potential risk of pig populations as the source of the next influenza virus pandemic,’ Nava and colleagues wrote.”

Jehovah’s Witnesses–Ongoing Religious Discrimination in Germany

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 10:

“Several German states are trying to prevent the Jehovah’s Witnesses from gaining the same official status as the main church faiths… Followers of the religion, close to 166,000 in Germany, believe the end is near for this world of sin. But they also believe that there are only 144,000 places available in heaven for a few chosen ones who proved to be particularly pious and true to the bible in life…

“For years, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have been seeking to obtain legal recognition as a church from the German government so that they can enjoy the same rights and privileges as the Catholic and Protestant churches. They have already had success in the states of Hesse, Bavaria and Lower-Saxony. But the states of Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg have resisted the church.

“In Rhineland-Palatinate, Governor Kurt Beck of the center-left Social Democrats is dreading a situation in which the group would get church tax revenues in his state or set up businesses in which trade unions aren’t given a say. In Germany, tithing for religions recognized by the government is handled by the state in the form of a church tax.

“A few weeks ago, Beck called on all [divisions] of his state government to ‘intensively seek out arguments’ that could help hinder any official recognition of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Beck said he had ‘the most considerable doubts as to whether it could be defined as a religious community that is in keeping with Germany’s constitution.’ After all, the intellectual leaders of the centrally organized group discourage members from voting or participating in elections…

“Marc Ratajczak, an expert on sects for the conservative Christian Democratic Union party’s group in the state government in North Rhine-Westphalia, argues that the Jehovah’s Witnesses are ‘very clearly a sect’ who ‘damn’ and ‘suppress’ any other religions or attitudes about life as ‘Satan’s work’…

“Three years ago, Berlin became the first German state to be forced to award the organisation official recognition as a church…The Witnesses filed separate applications for recognition in Germany’s 15 other states immediately after that. They were able to point to the Berlin court decision as a precedent that gives the other states very little legal leeway… Recently even the government in Catholic Bavaria quietly recognized the Jehovah’s Witnesses, as did Saxony and Hamburg. In Baden-Württemberg, Culture Minister Helmut Rau had drafted a government document recognizing the church before Governor Günther Oettinger of the CDU stopped it…

“The head of the CDU parliamentary group in the Baden-Württemberg regional parliament, Stefan Mappus, went further. ‘A religious community that rejects democratic elections, looks down on individual freedoms and rejects blood transfusions for example, can’t be regarded as loyal to the constitution in our opinion.’ Oettinger now plans to discuss the matter with the big churches.

“The Jehovah’s Witnesses have so far reacted calmly to such announcements. The legal situation is ‘unambiguous,’ says Gajus Glockentin, lawyer for the German Jehovah’s Witnesses headquarters in the Hesse town of Selters… The Witnesses’ policy of abstaining from voting wasn’t an effective argument either, Glockentin says. After all, declining to vote isn’t aimed at weakening democracy, he argues. It’s simply the result of an ‘apolitical attitude to life.'”

Darwin’s Evolution Theory–a Blessing for Mankind?

Welt-On-Line wrote on June 9:

“The theory of evolution and its author are of a popularity that is rare in the world of science… At the same time, the theory implies a view of the world that remains both fascinating and controversial… That the existence of complex life forms can be explained without the agency of an omnipotent creator… is deeply disturbing for every religious person, and remains so today.
 
“But the absence of an intentional God is only the most striking side effect of Darwin’s theory… It is indeed a wonderful world that Darwin’s argument unfolds. Suddenly, the beauty of flowers is no longer God’s gift to mankind and proof of his benevolence, but a device aiming to attract those insects that support their cross-fertilization. In other words, the flower’s colorful blossoms are the stimulant of an odd, insect-based sexuality…

“In Darwin’s view, all beings belong to one family tree. Humans, animals and even plants all stemmed from one common ancestor, he speculated, and the recent advance of genetics has supported this hypothesis… It is thus that Darwin’s work questions the very core of Victorian culture – and ours…”

The hypothesis of Evolution is an unproven and improvable human fantasy–the idle attempt of agnostic or atheistic scientists and other would-be intellectuals to “prove” a creation without a Creator. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution–a Fairy Tale for Adults?”

GM Files for Bankruptcy, Costing Taxpayers $100 Billion

The Wall Street Journal wrote on June 2:

“General Motors Corp. became the second-largest industrial bankruptcy in history Monday as it filed its landmark case… The government-orchestrated shrinkage will cost taxpayers $30 billion, on top of $20 billion in U.S. funds already put into the company. In exchange, the U.S. will own 60% of the new GM. In all, the rescue of the car industry could cost taxpayers close to $100 billion.”

GM Bankruptcy Plans Would Extinguish Certain Auto Accident Claims

The Hill wrote on June 3:

“Consumer groups and trial lawyers are crying foul over the Obama administration’s bankruptcy plans for General Motors and Chrysler. Those plans would extinguish all ongoing auto accident claims that blame a death or serious injury on a defective GM or Chrysler vehicle… those claims must be made against the old GM company after bankruptcy, meaning people with the claims will need to stand in line with other unsecured creditors to seek compensation from the old company’s remains… The new GM that arises out of bankruptcy will not be liable for those claims.”

German Reactions to GM Bankruptcy–“Not Much Hope” for Obama’s America

Der Spiegel Online reported on June 2:

“The insolvency of General Motors shows America’s weakening industrial clout and poses major risks not just for the economy but for Barack Obama, write German media commentators. If the planned restructuring of the automaker fails, his economic policy will lie in ruins, they say…

“German media commentators say GM’s insolvency marks further proof of American’s waning economic influence in the world, and they express concern that Obama’s administration, despite its assurances that it won’t interfere in GM’s business, will distort competition by running the firm according to political rather than market principles.

“Business daily Handelsblatt writes: ‘America’s economy is losing power and influence in the world. It’s a creeping process… which began with the relocation of textile production to Asia and then pushed steel producers, tire plants and many other industries out of the country… [It] has plunged the country’s political leaders into increasing despair. How else can one interpret the gigantic rescue operation for GM that will end in the nationalization of the biggest auto company in a country that has always hailed itself as the paragon of capitalism?…’

“Business daily Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘The restructuring of the group will turn into a political drama. That creates considerable risks for the entire US economy, but also for international competitors operating in the American auto market. The restructuring of GM will be extremely expensive for the American taxpayer, $50 billion could disappear into a black hole…’

“Center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘If Obama fails in his attempt to save America’s automobile industry, his economic policy will lie in ruins… In the nationalized General Motors, serious conflicts of interest are unavoidable…’

“Conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘The insolvency of General Motors is a historic moment for America. June 1 also marks the day on which Barack Obama rewrote the rules of American capitalism. It’s an alarming development. The government’s insistence that it’s a reluctant shareholder which will play a largely passive role in General Motors doesn’t seem very credible. That’s already clear from the list of principles it has compiled for its handling of future stakes in private companies. The government says it will give companies leeway but at the same time cited a number of cases in which it would intervene in corporate management.

“‘In fact Barack Obama has shown in the case of General Motors and Chrysler that he’s prepared to play a very active role. He dictated very unattractive debt reduction terms for creditors and then labelled them as speculators. Who is going to lend a government-owned company money in the future if they’re treated like that?… General Motors mustn’t become a pawn of American political forces. Barack Obama’s actions so far don’t inspire much hope.'”

U.S. Nationalizations of Companies and Industries

The Associated Press reported on June 2:

“The U.S. assumption of a controlling interest in General Motors Corp. isn’t the first time the government has nationalized a company or an industry. It has taken shares in banks, railways, steel mills, coal mines and foreclosed homes. Most nationalizations were during wartime. But the current financial crisis has generated more than a few.

“Last year, the government took effective control of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It stopped short of nationalizing insurance giant American International Group, but forced a major restructuring and leadership change with a $180 billion taxpayer bailout.

“… nearly 600 banks nationwide have received a total of $199.2 billion under the government’s $700 billion bailout fund… In 2001, the airport security industry was nationalized under the Transportation Security Administration as a response to the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

“Under terms of a proposed bankruptcy agreement, the U.S. and Canadian governments will own nearly 75 percent of General Motors, with the U.S. holding a 60 percent controlling stake and Canada with 12.5 percent… Existing stockholders would be wiped out…”

Unprecedented U.S. Debt

USA Today reported on May 29:

“Taxpayers are on the hook for an extra $55,000 a household to cover rising federal commitments made just in the past year for retirement benefits, the national debt and other government promises… That’s the biggest leap in the long-term burden on taxpayers since a Medicare prescription drug benefit was added in 2003.

“The latest increase raises federal obligations to a record $546,668 per household in 2008… That’s quadruple what the average U.S. household owes for all mortgages, car loans, credit cards and other debt combined… Bottom line: The government took on $6.8 trillion in new obligations in 2008, pushing the total owed to a record $63.8 trillion.”

Chinese Laugh at Geithner

BBC News reported on June 1:

“US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner… is on his first official visit to China, the biggest foreign investor in US treasury bonds… he said the US and China must work together to fix the global economic system [and]… that the US would move swiftly to get its debt under control.

“In a speech at Beijing University… Mr Geithner reassured his Chinese hosts that they need not worry about the estimated $770bn (£475bn) they have invested in US treasuries… ‘Chinese financial assets are very safe,’ he said, drawing laughter from the audience…”

California Bankrupt

The Chronicle Sacramento Bureau reported on May 22:

“Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s finance officials, faced with a growing budget gap, Thursday unveiled more ways to cut spending by doing away with a popular health care program for children, welfare payments to poor families and grants to university students. Funding for state parks also could end up on the chopping block, the officials said.

“The cuts were proposed as additional ways to save money after the governor said he is reconsidering his plan to borrow $5.5 billion in short-term loans from Wall Street to close what he estimates will be a $21.3 billion deficit through June 2010…

“Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access, an advocacy group, called Schwarzenegger’s additional spending cuts ‘insanity’… Wright said eliminating programs such as Healthy Families, which provides health care to nearly 1 million children of poor families, would also result in California turning away billions of dollars in federal matching funds…”

British Catholic Adoption Societies Under Fire

Mail-On-Line wrote on June 3:

“Catholic adoption societies which refuse to offer children to gay couples face closure following a tribunal yesterday. Judges ruled in a test case that the charities, which find homes for hundreds of children each year, will be breaking the law if they refuse to accept same-sex couples as adoptive parents.

“The ruling means some Catholic agencies face a choice between abandoning their adoption services or their religious principles… In its appeal, the Catholic Care charity… said that the right to discriminate against homosexual couples was ‘a principle of a Catholic organisation.'”

Merkel and Obama Not Close Friends…

Der Spiegel wrote on June 3:

“Barack Obama is only passing through Germany on his trip to Europe later this week and does not plan to hold substantial talks with Angela Merkel. The White House views the chancellor as difficult and Germany is increasingly being left out of the loop…

“Even before his inauguration, Merkel made clear that Obama shouldn’t expect much by way of additional military aid from Germany for his theaters of war. Now the US is largely taking care of the deployment of troops in Afghanistan itself, and it is currently dispatching 21,000 additional soldiers… Berlin has categorically rejected missions in the dangerous south, where many British, Canadian and American soldiers are dying.

“… all the major German parties in Berlin want little to do with Pakistan, currently the hottest front in the battle against terror… In America’s view, Germany is opening up its pocketbooks in an attempt to buy its way out of the responsibilities it should be sharing with other Western countries… Nor can Obama hope for much help from Merkel in closing the controversial Guantanamo prison camp… Germany’s interior minister… is so far refusing to accept Guantanamo prisoners in Germany…

“In the eyes of the Americans, though, Merkel’s worst failure was during the early days of the financial crisis… Washington has not forgotten how [Merkel] thwarted the US Treasury’s attempts to solve the crisis within the forum of the G-20. The Chancellery instead used diplomatic channels to push for a meeting of G-8 states. The thinking in Berlin was that Germany would have had more influence over G-8 decisions. And that would have meant that China, the world’s third largest economy and the US’s biggest creditor, would not have been involved. However, the US regarded Germany’s stance as unacceptable both economically and politically. In the end Berlin had to back down.”

Germans Rediscover Sense of Patriotism–With Limits…

Welt On Line wrote on May 18:

“As Germany celebrates 60 years as a democracy and the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Germans are rediscovering a sense of patriotism and are no longer ashamed to wave their flag and sing the national anthem. They are even daring to discuss bringing back a bravery medal, unthinkable a decade ago in a country which rejected militarism and turned fiercely pacifist. This year, after six decades atoning for the crimes of the Nazis, a non-aggressive self confidence, also evident in a more assertive foreign policy, is increasingly manifesting itself as Germany…

“The nation startled itself during the 2006 soccer World Cup tournament, when millions of people painted flags on their faces, wearing red, gold and black hats and chanting the national anthem. Younger generations seem to be particularly relaxed…

“However, there are limits to the newfound pride. While Germans feel close to the fatherland, they lack a sense of duty towards it… only 14 percent of Germans are prepared to die for their country, far fewer than in such countries as the United States and Britain. And while Germans want their politicians to be more assertive, they are still nervous about flexing military muscle.”

Merkel and Sarkozy Want Strong Europe

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 1:

“The German and French leaders issued a joint plea to voters to turn out this week for the European parliamentary elections. Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy said they wanted a ‘strong Europe’ in order to weather the difficult times… The two conservative leaders emphasized the role the EU can play in regulating the financial sector…

“The pair also gave strong backing to the Lisbon Treaty… ‘Europe must play a leading role in the world,’ they wrote. ‘For that, it must have efficient institutions.’ The treaty aims to streamline Europe’s institutions and decision-making processes and could be ratified later this year if Ireland supports it in a second referendum expected to be held in the autumn.

“The two leaders, both known opponents to Turkey’s membership of the bloc, reaffirmed that stance, albeit without naming the country…”

European Elections Under Way

On June 4, Deutsche Welle reported the following:

“Voters in Britain and the Netherlands are heading to the polls on Thursday to kick off elections for the European Parliament. In four days of voting, about 375 million people will [be] eligible to cast their ballots across the 27 member states in what will be the world’s second-largest election after India’s… There are concerns however in Brussels over voters tending to focus on the performances of their national governments rather than on European issues…

“In the case of Britain this is likely to mean that the ruling Labour Party will suffer a serious setback. Prime Minister Gordon Brown is struggling to assert his authority amid a scandal over MPs’ expense claims and Labour is expected to bear the brunt of public outrage. Brown himself is under mounting pressure to step down. Several government ministers have already resigned over the issue… public outrage over the expenses scandal is also expected to boost the performance of fringe and extremist parties due to protest votes. The anti-EU UK Independence Party is expected to do well and the far-right British National Party could win its first seat in the European Parliament.

“In the Netherlands, the far right Freedom Party under Geert Wilders is also expected to increase its support. There are 736 seats up for grabs and each of the 27 EU member states sends a different number of MEPs to the parliament in Strasbourg. Germany, with the biggest population, gets the most – 99 – while Malta will have just 5. Each country is to hold its own elections for the parliament and near-complete results won’t be known until late on Sunday when the last polling stations close.

“Voter turnout has dropped steadily since the first European elections in 1979 and opinion polls suggest that this year will follow that trend with a new record low despite the increasing importance of EU legislation for the member states… Today approximately 75 percent of European Union legislation is decided by the European Parliament together with the council of ministers.”

Israel Prepares for War

CNN wrote on May 31:

“Israel started its biggest emergency drill in the nation’s history Sunday to prepare civilians, soldiers and rescue crews for the possibility of war… The five-day drill… comes amid the nation’s rising tensions with Iran…

“The Israeli government considers Iran’s nuclear program as the dominant threat facing the country… An Israeli poll released this month found that 74 percent believe that the U.S. policy of engagement with Iran will fail and 81 percent think Iran will develop a nuclear weapon capability.”

Obama’s Approach Unproductive

The Financial Times wrote on June 1:

“From North Korea to Guantánamo Bay, from Iran to Afghanistan, Mr Obama is confronting a range of vexing issues that cannot be charmed out of existence…

“In particular, there is chatter in official Washington that the Israelis may be gearing up to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities before the end of the year. The Obama administration is against any such move and it is normally assumed that Israel would not dare to pull the trigger without the go-ahead from Washington – not least because the Israelis would have to fly across US-controlled airspace to get to their targets. But the Americans do not have a complete veto over Israel’s actions. One senior US official asks rhetorically: ‘What are we going to do? Shoot down their planes?’

“A conflict between Israel and Iran would scatter the Obama administration’s carefully laid plans for Middle East peace to the winds. It would also make talk of improving American soft power around the world seem beside the point. The immediate task would be to prevent a wider regional war…

“Mr Obama’s preferred tools of diplomacy, engagement and charm do not seem to be of much use with Kim Jong-il of North Korea, either. The North Koreans have just tested a nuclear weapon – leaving the Obama administration scratching its head about what to do.”

Obama’s Muslim Roots

ABC reported on June 2:

“Given widespread unease and prejudice against Muslims among Americans, especially in the wake of 9/11, the Obama campaign was perhaps understandably very sensitive during the primaries and general election to downplay the candidate’s Muslim roots. The candidate was even offended when referred to by his initials ‘BHO,’ because he considered the use of his middle name, ‘Hussein,’ an attempt to frighten voters.

“… then-Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and his campaign did everything they could to emphasize his Christianity and de-emphasize the fact that his father, Barack Obama Sr., was born Muslim. The candidate’s comment at a Boca Raton, Florida, town hall meeting on May 22, 2008, was typical: ‘My father was basically agnostic, as far as I can tell, and I didn’t know him,’ he said…

“Back then, [Obama’s] campaign’s ‘Fight the Smears’ website addressed the candidate’s faith without mentioning his father’s religion… Since the election, however, with the threat of the rumors at least somewhat abated, the White House has been increasingly forthcoming about the president’s roots. Especially when reaching out to the Muslim world. In his April 6 address to the Turkish Parliament, President Obama referenced how many ‘Americans have Muslims in their families or have lived in a Muslim majority country. I know, because I am one of them.'”

“Obama’s Unfinished Speech in Cairo”

Der Spiegel wrote on June 4:

“With his address, US President Barack Obama offered an olive branch to the Islamic world. Whether his speech will go down in history will be determined by the mullahs in Tehran and the hardliners in Israel…

“He offered the prospect of a Palestinian state. But will he be able to convince Israel to take that step? He called for a dialogue with Islamic youth. But can the recruiting successes of the Taliban be stopped? He called on Iran to abandon its efforts to produce a nuclear bomb. But will the ayatollahs in Tehran even listen?

“The historic magnitude of a speech isn’t primarily determined by what is said. What is important is what happens after, that the words have an effect… In the Arab world… [some] want to negotiate, others want to build bombs. Some understand Obama’s speech as a prelude to peace, the others see it as a declaration of war — because they realize this peace won’t be achieved in full accordance with the word of the Prophet Muhammad.

“Obama has defined his mission but not accomplished it. The speech must now be followed up by policy proposals and everything that goes along with them — promises, deals and threats. And one can only hope that the day never comes when human lives must be lost in order to execute those threats. The road to peace has already led, many times, to war.”

Reuters added on June 4:

“U.S. President Barack Obama sought a ‘new beginning’ between the United States and Muslims in a speech on Thursday but offered no new initiative to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, an omission likely to disappoint many.”

Excerpts from President Obama’s Speech

“America and Islam are not exclusive, and need not be in competition. Instead, they overlap, and share common principles – principles of justice and progress; tolerance and the dignity of all human beings…

“I am a Christian, but my father came from a Kenyan family that includes generations of Muslims…

“It was Islam… that carried the light of learning through so many centuries, paving the way for Europe’s Renaissance and Enlightenment. It was innovation in Muslim communities that developed the order of algebra; our magnetic compass and tools of navigation; our mastery of pens and printing; our understanding of how disease spreads and how it can be healed…

“Islam has always been a part of America’s story… In signing the Treaty of Tripoli in 1796, our second President John Adams wrote, ‘The United States has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion or tranquility of Muslims.’… American Muslims have enriched the United States. They have fought in our wars, served in government, stood for civil rights, started businesses, taught at our Universities, excelled in our sports arenas, won Nobel Prizes, built our tallest building, and lit the Olympic Torch. And when the first Muslim-American was recently elected to Congress, he took the oath to defend our Constitution using the same Holy Koran that one of our Founding Fathers – Thomas Jefferson – kept in his personal library… So let there be no doubt: Islam is a part of America…

“America’s strong bonds with Israel are well known. This bond is unbreakable. It is based upon cultural and historical ties, and the recognition that the aspiration for a Jewish homeland is rooted in a tragic history that cannot be denied. Around the world, the Jewish people were persecuted for centuries, and anti-Semitism in Europe culminated in an unprecedented Holocaust. Tomorrow, I will visit Buchenwald, which was part of a network of camps where Jews were enslaved, tortured, shot and gassed to death by the Third Reich. Six million Jews were killed – more than the entire Jewish population of Israel today. Denying that fact is baseless, ignorant, and hateful. Threatening Israel with destruction – or repeating vile stereotypes about Jews – is deeply wrong, and only serves to evoke in the minds of Israelis this most painful of memories while preventing the peace that the people of this region deserve.

“On the other hand, it is also undeniable that the Palestinian people – Muslims and Christians – have suffered in pursuit of a homeland. For more than sixty years they have endured the pain of dislocation. Many wait in refugee camps in the West Bank, Gaza, and neighboring lands for a life of peace and security that they have never been able to lead. They endure the daily humiliations – large and small – that come with occupation. So let there be no doubt: the situation for the Palestinian people is intolerable. America will not turn our backs on the legitimate Palestinian aspiration for dignity, opportunity, and a state of their own… the only resolution is for the aspirations of both sides to be met through two states, where Israelis and Palestinians each live in peace and security…

“Hamas must put an end to violence, recognize past agreements, and recognize Israel’s right to exist. At the same time, Israelis must acknowledge that just as Israel’s right to exist cannot be denied, neither can Palestine’s. The United States does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements. This construction violates previous agreements and undermines efforts to achieve peace. It is time for these settlements to stop…

“Too many tears have flowed. Too much blood has been shed. All of us have a responsibility to work for the day when the mothers of Israelis and Palestinians can see their children grow up without fear; when the Holy Land of three great faiths is the place of peace that God intended it to be; when Jerusalem is a secure and lasting home for Jews and Christians and Muslims, and a place for all of the children of Abraham to mingle peacefully together as in the story of Isra, when Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed (peace be upon them) joined in prayer.

“… No single nation should pick and choose which nations hold nuclear weapons. That is why I strongly reaffirmed America’s commitment to seek a world in which no nations hold nuclear weapons. And any nation – including Iran – should have the right to access peaceful nuclear power if it complies with its responsibilities under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty…

“It is easier to start wars than to end them… We have the power to make the world we seek…

“The Holy Koran tells us, ‘O mankind! We have created you male and a female; and we have made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another.’ The Talmud tells us: ‘The whole of the Torah is for the purpose of promoting peace.’ The Holy Bible tells us, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.’ The people of the world can live together in peace. We know that is God’s vision. Now, that must be our work here on Earth. Thank you. And may God’s peace be upon you.”

North Korea’s Missile Test–“As Powerful as Hiroshima Bomb”

The Guardian wrote on May 25:

“North Korea today risked further international isolation after it claimed to have successfully tested a nuclear weapon as powerful as the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima. The test comes less than two months after the North enraged the US and its allies by test firing a long-range ballistic missile…

“Officials in South Korea said they had detected a tremor consistent with those caused by an underground nuclear explosion… [It] created an earthquake measuring magnitude 4.5…

“Today’s test will add to fears that the North is moving closer to possessing the ability to mount a nuclear warhead on long-range missiles that are capable, in theory, of reaching Hawaii and Alaska…

“Today’s test is a direct challenge to attempts by Obama to engage the North and stem the spread of nuclear weapons. Despite promising a fresh start to bilateral relations, Obama… has so far failed to persuade North Korea to enter into negotiations.

“Kim Myong-chol, executive director of the Centre for Korean-American Peace in Tokyo… said the test was a reminder that North Korea ‘is going it alone as a nuclear power. North Korea doesn’t need any talks with America. America is tricky and undesirable… We are not going to worry about sanctions. If they sanction us, we will become more powerful. Sanctions never help America; they are counter-productive … We don’t care about America and what they say.'”

North Korea Fires More Short-Range Missiles

Reuters wrote on May 26:

“North Korea, defiant in the face of international condemnation of its latest nuclear test, fired two more short-range missiles off its east coast on Tuesday and accused the United States of plotting against its government. In a move certain to compound tensions in the region, South Korea said it would join a U.S.-led initiative to intercept ships suspected of carrying weapons of mass destruction, something Pyongyang has warned it would consider a declaration of war… North Korea fired off three short-range missiles on Monday…

“The U.N. Security Council condemned the nuclear test [on Monday] and is working on a new resolution… But analysts say North Korea’s giant neighbor China, one of five permanent members of the Council, is unlikely to support anything tough.”

No Nuclear Freeze for Iran?

Reuters reported on May 25:

“Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday rejected a Western proposal for it to ‘freeze’ its nuclear work in return for no new sanctions and ruled out any talks with major powers on the issue. The comments by the conservative president, who is seeking re-election in a June 12 presidential vote, are likely to further disappoint the U.S. administration of President Barack Obama, which is seeking to engage Iran diplomatically…

“‘Our talks (with major powers) will only be in the framework of cooperation for managing global issues and nothing else…’, Ahmadinejad said. ‘The nuclear issue is a finished issue for us,’ he told a news conference.”

Iran Prepares for War

Reuters reported on May 25:

“Iran has sent six warships to international waters, including the Gulf of Aden, to show its ability to confront any foreign threats… putting Israel and U.S. bases in the area within reach…

“Iranian waters stretch along the Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman. Iran has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 40 percent of the world’s traded oil is shipped, if it were attacked over its nuclear programme… Nearly 20,000 ships pass through the Gulf of Aden each year, heading to and from the Suez Canal. Seven percent of world oil consumption passed through the Gulf of Aden in 2007…

“On May 20, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran had tested a missile that defence analysts say could hit Israel and U.S. bases in the Gulf, a move likely to fuel concern about Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.”

No Settlement Freeze in the West Bank

Reuters reported on May 24:

“Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday rebuffed U.S. calls to impose a freeze on all settlement activity in the occupied West Bank, setting the stage for friction with President Barack Obama… The note of defiance came less than a week after Netanyahu held talks in Washington with Obama, who wants Israel to halt all settlement activity, including natural growth…

“Half a million Jews live in settlement blocs and smaller outposts built in the West Bank and Arab East Jerusalem, all territory captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East War. The World Court says all are illegal. The United States and European Union regard them as obstacles to peace. Palestinians see the settlements as a land grab meant to deny them a state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.”

Russia vs. EU

BBC News reported on May 22:

“Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned the European Union not to turn a proposed partnership with former Soviet countries against Moscow. Mr Medvedev was speaking at the end of a Russia-EU summit held against a background of deep divisions over security, trade and energy supplies…

“The BBC’s Richard Galpin in Moscow says divisions between Russia and the European Union seem to be growing ever wider, and this latest summit, held in the far east of Russia, made that abundantly clear, with little sign of progress on any significant topic… Moscow has accused the 27-member bloc of creating new dividing lines in Europe by offering closer ties to six former Soviet republics…

“On the divisive issue of energy supplies, President Medvedev raised questions about whether Ukraine can afford billions of dollars to top up its gas stocks… Russia supplies 42% of EU gas imports. Its decision to cut all gas to Ukraine – a vital transit country – meant that many EU member states also lost their supplies of gas for two weeks in January… European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso warned there should be no more disruptions to gas supplies from Russia.”

The Future of Europe?

On May 25, Der Spiegel Online published the following article:

“The president of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Pöttering, of the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), spoke out against Turkish membership in the European Union on Tuesday, two weeks before EU parliamentary elections are to take place. ‘It is my deep belief that — politically, culturally, financially and geographically — it would be too much to have Turkey as a member of the European Union,’ Pöttering said… At best, he said, he could imagine a ‘privileged partnership’ on an economic, environmental and security policy level.

“With his statements, Pöttering underscored one of the central demands being made during the European election campaign in Germany by the Christian Democrats and their sister party in the state of Bavaria, the Christian Social Union (CSU). Both parties are calling for a “consolidation phase’ in the European Union and for Turkey not to be given full membership… The position puts the CDU on a direct confrontation course with its coalition partners in the German government, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD). For years, the SPD has pushed for full membership for Turkey in the EU…

“Pöttering… regretted that the EU ‘does not always have a united position in foreign and security policy… Pöttering also called on the EU to use all its strength to help promote a solution to the Middle East conflict. One of the major subjects for the EU, he said, is to promote peace on the basis of a two-state solution, ‘with Israel in safe borders and a state of Palestine in safe borders as well’…

“The CDU politician also warned against allowing the European Union to become overly dependent on Russia for its energy supplies… Russia should just be one of the sources used by the EU…

“Commenting on the Treaty of Lisbon, the successor to the failed EU constitution that still hasn’t been ratified by every member state, the 63-year-old said: ‘I am confident that the Lisbon Treaty will come into force.’ He said he believed the Irish would also approve the treaty in a second referendum. ‘Ireland has no interest in a two-speed Europe which excludes other countries,’ he said. ‘We are a Union to which all 27 countries belong.'”

Germany Unhappy with USA Over Opel and GM

Der Spiegel Online wrote on May 28:

“Despite an entire night of non-stop negotiations in Angela Merkel’s Chancellery, there is still no plan in place to save Opel from following GM into bankruptcy…

“The talks, as quickly became clear, had failed… and… the flash of anger was likewise unmistakable — anger at Germany’s negotiating partners from the US. Roland Koch, governor of the state of Hesse, which plays host to Opel headquarters, complained that the American role in the negotiations ‘was not exactly helpful’…

“With the US automobile giant General Motors facing imminent bankruptcy in the US, Berlin is doing what it can to prevent its German subsidiary Opel from going down with the ship… But on Wednesday night, General Motors made a surprise demand for an additional €300 million ($415 million), catching German negotiators off guard. To make matters worse, the US had only bothered to send a low level representative who frequently had to confer with his superiors in Washington…

“The issue has attracted massive attention in Germany, first and foremost because of the risk that thousands of jobs could be lost. Opel employs 25,000 people in Germany with many thousands more dependent on the company for their livelihoods. All of the potential investors currently courting Opel and Berlin have said that some job cuts would be unavoidable.

“And they wouldn’t just be in Germany. GM’s Europe division employs a further 25,000 people elsewhere in Europe… The sports car icon Porsche, for example, is teetering on the edge of bankruptcy and may need public help. The ball-bearing giant Schaeffler and the retail conglomerate Arcandor, both large employers in Germany, are likewise far from healthy. And with the economic crisis still in full swing, there may be more to come…

“For now, though, the US has managed to succeed where Berlin’s political elite has failed for months: getting the CDU and SPD to agree. Both parties are unified in their excoriation of America’s role in Opel negotiations thus far…”

US Economy–“Further Disaster to Come”

Haaretz wrote on May 25:

“Many Americans have been led to believe that the worst of the financial crisis is over, but last week the U.S. economy was dealt another heavy blow that may signal further disaster is still to come.

“The Financial Post reported last Wednesday that ‘…the U.S. dollar slid against most major currencies… hitting a five-month low of US $1.3775 against the euro…’ The day after, Florida’s Bank United FSB was seized by Federal regulators in the largest U.S. bank failure so far this year.

“The sudden dollar decline and seizure of Bank United is a flashback to the U.S. economic turmoil of late 2008, and a brutal reality check for many who thought the worst was over…

“As investors become more willing to play stocks again, they are taking money out of the U.S. dollar because it is losing its status as a safe-haven currency. Ashraf Laidi, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, recently cautioned that we are at the start of a ‘serious case of dollar damage,’ adding that his organization ‘long warned about the day of reckoning for the dollar emerging at the next economic recovery.’

“Laidi’s prediction may not be too far off. Russia has ditched the dollar in favor of the euro, Pravda reported last week… Other nations are apparently following suit. The Financial Times quotes top Brazilian officials as saying that Brazil and China are also working toward ‘using their own currencies in trade transactions rather than the U.S. dollar…’ This scenario, says economic commentator Peter Schiff, is ‘not only a possibility, it’s inevitable.'”

Obama: “We Are Out of Money Now”

The Drudge Report wrote the following on May 23:

“In a sobering holiday interview with C-SPAN, President Obama boldly told Americans: ‘We are out of money.’

“C-SPAN host Steve Scully broke from a meek Washington press corps with probing questions for the new president.

“SCULLY: You know the numbers, $1.7 trillion debt, a national deficit of $11 trillion. At what point do we run out of money?

“OBAMA: Well, we are out of money now. We are operating in deep deficits.. we have a short-term problem and we also have a long-term problem. The short-term problem is dwarfed by the long-term problem…

“SCULLY: States like California in desperate financial situation, will you be forced to bail out the states?

“OBAMA: No. I think that what you’re seeing in states is that anytime you got a severe recession like this… their demands on services are higher. So, they are sending more money out. At the same time, they’re bringing less tax revenue in. And that’s a painful adjustment, what we’re going end up seeing is lot of states making very difficult choices there…”

Two More US Banks Closed

Press TV wrote on May 24:

“Two Illinois banks have been closed by regulators, bringing to 36 the total number of US bank failures so far this year. The closure of Citizens National Bank and Strategic Capital Bank is estimated to cost the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) around $279 million… The Wall Street Journal study published on Tuesday found that more than 900 small and midsized US banks could face losses of $100 billion by the end of 2010 if the economy continues its fast freefall.”

Biggest Federal Tax Revenue Drop Since 1981

USA Today wrote on May 28:

“Federal tax revenue plunged $138 billion… the biggest April drop since 1981… 6 million people lost jobs in the 12 months ended in April — and that means far fewer dollars from income taxes. Income tax revenue dropped 44% from a year ago… Big revenue losses mean that the U.S. budget deficit may be larger than predicted this year and in future years.”

Obama Nominates Supreme Court Judge

“President Barack Obama on Tuesday moved to place his imprint on America’s judiciary by nominating Sonia Sotomayor as the next Supreme Court Justice – the first Hispanic and only the third woman to be put forward for America’s apex court… Republicans issued a guarded response to her nomination, suggesting the party has yet to decide on how hard to oppose her nomination. Any filibuster of Ms Sotomayor’s nomination would require total Republican unity to be sustained.

“’The party is deeply split on this issue between the ideologues and the pragmatists and it’s unclear yet which will prevail,’ said Frank Luntz, a leading Republican consultant. ‘The conservatives want to use her appointment to rally their base but there will be others who want to show they can cooperate with the President’…

“Wendy Long, counsel to the Judicial Confirmation Network, a conservative group which monitors judicial appointments, described Ms Sotomayor as ‘liberal judicial activist of the first order who thinks her own personal political agenda is more important than the law as written.’ Democrats have a big enough Senate majority to override Republican opposition but conservatives could make it a bruising process for the nominee…”

The Wall Street Journal wrote on May 26:

“A judge’s job, Mr. Obama said, is ‘to interpret, not make, law’… Conservatives have said Mr. Obama’s emphasis on a justice with ’empathy’ would ensure that his nominee would be an activist, seeking judgments that favor underdogs without deference to the facts and law…

“Ms. Sotomayor was nominated to the federal bench by a Republican, President George H.W. Bush, and later elevated to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York by a Democrat, President Bill Clinton. Her experience, as a lawyer, a prosecutor, a trial judge and an appellate justice, would make her more experienced in the law than any other sitting justice, the president said.

“But it is her life story – and the presence of her aging mother – that choked up much of the audience in the East Room. Her parents arrived in New York from Puerto Rico during World War II and took up residence in a public housing project in the shadow of Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. Her father, a factory worker with a third-grade education and no knowledge of English, died when Ms. Sotomayor was 9. Her mother worked two jobs as a nurse to raise her family, bought the only set of encyclopedias in the neighborhood, and helped her daughter win a scholarship to Princeton University and her son, Juan, to become a physician…

“She also acknowledged that her life experiences influence her judicial philosophy, a plus, she said, but a potential negative to Republicans…”

The Washington Times wrote on May 27:

“With Judge Sonia Sotomayor already facing questions over her 60 percent reversal rate, the Supreme Court could dump another problem into her lap next month if, as many legal analysts predict, the court overturns one of her rulings upholding a race-based employment decision…

“In 2002, in a speech in California, Judge Sotomayor said race or sex does affect a judge’s rulings, and said because of that, a minority woman is a better decider than a white man: ‘I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experience would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life.’

“Three years later, at a panel discussion at Duke Law School, she seemed to endorse judicial activism on the appeals courts, telling students considering clerkships: ‘Court of Appeals is where policy is made. And I know – I know this is on tape, and I should never say that because we don’t make law. I know.'”

On May 27, USA Today published its opinion on the matter. We are quoting the following excerpts:

“The tougher question, the one likely to define the political fight over her nomination, is the degree to which her ‘life experience’ as a 54-year-old Latina divorcée who grew up [as a Catholic] in the Bronx projects should shape her legal opinions… Republican critics — who hardly need provocation to be skeptical of any Obama nominee, particularly one likely to align with the court’s liberal wing — quickly insisted that the Senate assure itself that Sotomayor would not make rulings based on her ‘personal politics, feelings and preferences.’

“To some extent, the entire argument is overblown. People inevitably are the product of their experiences, and they can hardly shed their history and character at the courthouse door. That is why the court is enriched by having an eclectic mix of justices who can bring differing perspectives to bear on the case at hand — but always in the context of the Constitution and court precedent.

“Earlier this year, for example, the court was asked whether school officials should be allowed to strip-search students — in this case a humiliated young girl — to make sure they weren’t bringing drugs to school. After the male justices argued the case with a lack of sensitivity that bothered the court’s only female member, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg [said]… that it was obvious her colleagues ‘have never been a 13-year-old girl.’

“If experience can help illuminate legal questions, however, relying too much on life lessons risks distorting the impartial justice the court is expected to mete out. Sotomayor has given critics much to work with…”

What Could Have Happened in California…

The Wall Street Journal wrote on May 25:

“… what might have been had Arnold Schwarzenegger immediately pushed for reform upon taking office in 2003… Mr. Schwarzenegger did offer a plan to revamp state government during his honeymoon phase in 2004. But his approach — the ‘California Performance Review,’ or CPR — was a metaphor for his political failure. It involved a 275-member task force that produced a 2,500-page proposal. That report, which offered upwards of $32 billion in savings, never caught anyone’s fancy. It was dead on arrival because it was too complicated for voters to rally behind and legislators didn’t want to see it enacted…

“Instead of reform, the man who promised to ‘blow up the boxes’ of government nearly six years ago embarked on a crusade to save the planet in an attempt to win re-election in 2006. If Arnold’s political obituary were to be written today its narrative would turn on environmental issues, such as solar roof panels, hydrogen cars and curbing emissions. Missing would be the issues that got him elected in the first place — tax cuts, fiscal discipline and restoring dignity to Sacramento…

“Last year was supposed to be, according to a declaration from the governor, ‘the year of education.’ Before that, we were in the year of health reform.’ In 2005, his theme was ‘the year of reform.’ None of these slogans translated into tangible changes — 2005 culminated in a special election in which all four of the governor’s proposals… failed spectacularly…

“Where is Mr. Schwarzenegger’s core? Is he the free-market, antitax candidate of the recall? The right-of-center union buster of the 2005 special election? The humbled, bipartisan eco-warrior of the 2006 re-election campaign? The tax-and-spend-and-cut Sacramento insider?… Today, Republicans running for governor in California go out of their way to point out where they differ with Mr. Schwarzenegger. Maybe Mr. Schwarzenegger will be able to mount another political comeback. In the meantime, he must wish life could imitate art, and like the Terminator he too could go back in time.”

Religious Persecution in San Diego

WorldNetDaily reported on May 22:

“A  San Diego pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a county official and warned they will face escalating fines if they continue to hold Bible studies in their home. The couple… told their attorney a county government employee knocked on their door on Good Friday, asking a litany of questions about their Tuesday night Bible studies, which are attended by approximately 15 people. ‘Do you have a regular weekly meeting in your home? Do you sing? Do you say “amen”?’ the official reportedly asked. ‘Do you say, “Praise the Lord”?’ The pastor’s wife answered yes.

“She says she was then told, however, that she must stop holding ‘religious assemblies’ until she and her husband obtain a Major Use Permit from the county, a permit that often involves traffic and environmental studies, compliance with parking and sidewalk regulations and costs that top tens of thousands of dollars. And if they fail to pay for the MUP, the county official reportedly warned, the couple will be charged escalating fines beginning at $100, then $200, $500, $1000, ‘and then it will get ugly’…

“[Attorney] Dean Broyles… [who] has been retained to represent the couple, told WND the county’s action not only violates religious land-use laws but also assaults both the First Amendment’s freedom of assembly and freedom of religion. ‘The First Amendment, in part, reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,”‘ Broyles said. ‘And that’s the key part: “prohibiting the free exercise.” We believe this is a substantial government burden on the free exercise of religion.’

“He continued, ‘If one’s home is one’s castle, certainly you would think the free exercise of religion, of all places, could occur in the home.’ Broyles confirmed the county official followed through on his threat. The pastor and his wife received a written warning ordering the couple to ‘cease/stop religious assembly on parcel or obtain a major use permit.’

“‘The Western Center for Law and Policy is troubled by this draconian move to suppress home Bible studies,’ said the law center in a statement. ‘If the current trends in our nation continue, churches may be forced underground. If that happens, believers will once again be forced to meet in homes. If homes are already closed by the government to assembly and worship, where then will Christians meet?’

“On a personal note, Broyles added, ‘I’ve been leading Bible studies in my home for 13 years in San Diego County, and I personally believe that home fellowship Bible studies are the past and future of the church…

“Broyles also explained to WND that oppressive governments, such as communist China or Nazi Germany, worked to repress home fellowships, labeling them the ‘underground church’ or ‘subversive groups,’ legally compelling Christians to meet only in sanctioned, government-controlled ‘official’ churches. ‘Therein lies my concern,’ Broyles said. ‘If people can’t practice their religious beliefs in the privacy of their own homes with a few of their friends, that’s an egregious First Amendment violation’…

“Broyles said the WCLP is nearly ready to file a demand letter with the county to release the pastor and his wife from the requirement to obtain the expensive permit. If the county refuses, Broyles said, the WCLP will consider a lawsuit in federal court. Broyles also told WND the pastor and his wife are continuing to hold the Bible study in their home.”

Religious Persecution in France?

The Independent wrote on May 25:

“The Church of Scientology in France went on trial today on charges of organised fraud. Registered as a religion in the United States, with celebrity members such as actors Tom Cruise and John Travolta, Scientology enjoys no such legal protection in France and has faced repeated accusations of being a money-making cult. The group’s Paris headquarters and bookshop are defendants in the case. If found guilty, they could be fined €5 million ($7 million) and ordered to halt their activities in France. Seven leading French Scientology members are also in the dock. Some are charged with illegally practising as pharmacists and face up to 10 years in prison and hefty fines…

“In a trial that has revived a debate about religious freedom in secular France, the defence is expected to argue the court should not intervene in religious affairs. Scientology has faced numerous setbacks in France, with members convicted of fraud in Lyon in 1997 and Marseille in 1999. In 2002, a court fined it for violating privacy laws and said it could be dissolved if involved in similar cases.”

We don’t want to give any misimpression that we agree with much of the teaching of Scientology. Nevertheless, the issue is whether Europe’s treatment of this clearly religious group is tantamount to religious persecution. Regarding their rather weird teaching, notice the following news clip from Press TV, dated May 25:

“According to Scientology teachings, 75 million years ago, an evil galactic overlord named Xenu collected all the billions of people from 76 planets, brought them to earth and blew them up with hydrogen bombs. Their spirits now infest our bodies.”

“American Idol” Contest–Israel “More Tolerant” Than America

Haaretz wrote on May 25:

“If it had been up to Israelis, ‘American Idol’ runner-up Adam Lambert would have won. Not because he’s Jewish. Because he can sing…

“I should state at the outset that [this] is not a column about music. This is, at heart, about deviance, and how societies respond to the deviants in their midst… Seldom has a singing contest been so clear-cut a case of no contest. In a final duet alongside eventual winner Kris Allen, Adam Lambert sang him off the stage. And no one knew that better than Kris Allen.

“So what was it about Lambert that moved tens of millions of Americans to make sure that he would not win? Some, at least, decided to take a stand. It was time to cast a vote against deviant behavior… ‘The battle of good versus evil, dark versus light, played out in the context of a culture war,’ wrote Danielle Berrin in the Los Angeles Jewish Journal. ‘The nation’s conservatives changed the game by voting their conscience, not their common sense…’

“Which brings us to Israel… the mass-circulation Maariv newspaper published an extensive article detailing how ‘Over the past decade homosexuals have turned from an exotic detour… to the kings of prime-time’… Say what you will about Israel, this place has developed an exceptional tolerance for behavior traditionally deemed deviant. One of the judges on Kochav Nolad (A Star is Born), Israel’s version of American Idol, is Dana International, a post-op transsexual singing star whose unapologetic exuberance persuaded Israelis to choose her as their representative to the 1998 Eurovision Song Contest, in which she took first place…

“A recent online poll commissioned by Channel 2 Television showed that 52 percent of all Israelis (and 76 percent of secular Israelis) favor civil marriage for gays; 51 percent of all Israelis back full equal rights for gays and lesbians; and 80 percent of all Israelis would be willing to be neighbors to gays and lesbians. The military in Israel has also shown more openness to gays than its American counterpart. As one observer noted, ‘The policy in the IDF is, “Don’t ask, and nobody cares.”‘

No New Same-Sex Marriages in California–for the Time Being…

The Associated Press reported on May 26:

“The California Supreme Court upheld a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage Tuesday, but it also decided that the estimated 18,000 gay couples who tied the knot before the law took effect will stay wed. The 6-1 decision written by Chief Justice Ron George rejected an argument by gay rights activists that the ban revised the California constitution’s equal protection clause to such a dramatic degree that it first needed the Legislature’s approval. The court said the people have a right, through the ballot box, to change their constitution…

“The announcement of the decision set off an outcry among a sea of demonstrators who had gathered in front of the San Francisco courthouse awaiting the ruling… Gay rights activists immediately promised to resume their fight, saying they would go back to voters as early as next year in a bid to repeal Proposition 8…

“The state Supreme Court had ruled last May that it was unconstitutional to deny gay couples the right to wed. Many same-sex couples had rushed to get married before the November vote on Proposition 8, fearing it could be passed. When it was, gay rights activists went back to the court arguing that the ban was improperly put to voters. That was the issue justices decided Tuesday.

“‘After comparing this initiative measure to the many other constitutional changes that have been reviewed and evaluated in numerous prior decisions of this court, we conclude Proposition 8 constitutes a constitutional amendment rather than a constitutional revision,’ the ruling said.”

Church of Scotland Appoints Gay Minister

CNN reported on May 24:

“A gay minister at the center of a row about his appointment to a church in a Scottish city said he was ‘humbled’ after the Church of Scotland upheld his appointment. In a ground-breaking move, the church’s ruling body voted by 326 to 267 in support of [the appointment]… provoked opposition from traditionalist members of the church and has led to fears it could cause a damaging split…

“Papers lodged with the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly in Edinburgh claimed scriptures in the Old and New Testament describe same-sex activity as a ‘wrong choice,’ the British Press Association said. However… supporters [of the appointment] argued that the Bible does not directly address homosexual relationships, which are now ‘essentially a feature of modern society.'”

Financial Scandal in Britain and its Potential Consequences

The Financial Times wrote on May 15:

“After a week of lurid revelations, only a few brave MPs are still ready to stand up and defend the way they worked the Westminster expenses system… The mood among most MPs was one of shock and fear: a fear that the public will turn on them as individuals and against democratic politics in general… Political leaders were initially slow to realise the destructive potential of the leaked expenses data, first trying to blame the system and the Commons officials that authorised claims rather than MPs themselves…

“Nobody knows quite where the dust will settle… Labour, the party in power with the most sitting MPs, could suffer most… The June 4 local and euro-elections may give a taste of what the voters make of it all, if they can be bothered. All the signs are that many people are giving up on politics altogether.”

Reuters reported on May 18:

“The Sun said a general election due by the middle of next year should be held immediately after days of disclosures about MPs’ questionable and sometimes lavish expenses brought British politics into disrepute. ‘Voters have had enough of this Government, enough of greedy MPs, enough of a Commons Speaker who has turned the Mother of Parliaments into the mother of all shyster politicians,’ it said in an editorial headlined ‘Give Britain an election … now.’

“Prime Minister Gordon Brown is certain to resist calls for an election, with his Labour Party trailing the Conservatives in polls and the economy in its worst recession since World War Two… The support for parties beyond the main three had jumped nine points from the previous month, adding to speculation that fringe groups like the Greens, the anti-European Union UK Independence Party and far-right British National Party (BNP) will show big gains in European and local elections on June 4…

“The Daily Telegraph has got hold of a disc containing details of expense claims and has been publishing damaging reports of claims for moat cleaning, an adult film and dog food, as well as for mortgages that have been paid off. The image of all parties has suffered, but Labour has been worst hit because it has been in power for the last 12 years and was already on the ropes over the economic crisis. Labour has suspended two MPs and one of its junior ministers has stepped down pending an investigation into his finances.”

The Financial Times wrote on May 19:

“Michael Martin said on Tuesday he would resign as Commons Speaker after losing the confidence of many MPs and party leaders over his handling of the Westminster expenses furore… His announcement that he would step down on June 21 makes Mr Martin the first Speaker of the House to be publicly forced to resign since John Trevor was forced out in 1695 after being caught accepting a bribe.”

The New York Times added on May 19:

“In a terse statement, he told parliament he would step down on June 21, enabling parliament to elect a successor on June 22. He was the highest-ranking public figure to fall victim to the expenses affair. Political commentators depicted his announcement as a sign that Prime Minister Gordon Brown had caved to pressure, further damaging his political fortunes. The British leader is battling disastrous poll ratings in advance of elections that must be held within a year.

“For some, Mr. Martin was a scapegoat for the squirming embarrassment of legislators of all major political parties caught in a cascade of disclosures in The Daily Telegraph newspaper about their spending… But for others he was held responsible for blocking disclosures of financial abuse and for stonewalling reforms…

“The disclosures incensed many Britons, caught in a deep recession and angry at what they have seen as examples of their elected representatives exploiting their privileged positions to secure unwarranted financial support.

“Facing a possible no-confidence vote, Mr. Martin announced his decision Tuesday to a house he has presided over as speaker since 2000.”

Obama and Netanyahu Meet

The Associated Press reported on May 18:

“Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday he is ready to resume peace talks with the Palestinians immediately, but any agreement is contingent on their acceptance of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. Netanyahu and President Barack Obama met for more than two hours at the White House and focused on Mideast peace talks, Iran’s nuclear program and the U.S.-Israeli relationship.
 
“Obama said he expects a positive response from his diplomatic outreach to Iran on stopping its nuclear program by the end of the year. The president said the United States wanted to bring Iran into the world community, but declared ‘we’re not going to have talks forever.’

“At the same time, Obama said bluntly that it was important that Netanyahu, a hard-liner on peace negotiations with the Palestinians, get back to the negotiating table. While his language was gentle, Obama’s words were notable nonetheless for being made in public.”

Haaretz.com wrote the following on May 18:

“Their meeting proceeded according to expectations. The president displayed reserved friendship, covering over the deep differences between the two leaders’ positions. As expected, Netanyahu described the meeting as ‘very good and friendly,’ while Obama praised the prime minister publicly for his political skills and awareness of history, saying he believed Netanyahu would make ‘strategic decisions for Israel’s security’ during his term.

“What about content? The meeting focused on Iran, the Palestinians and the link between them. Netanyahu said they reached complete understanding on the goal regarding Iran – ‘to prevent Iran from developing a military nuclear capability.’ Obama promised him that if the diplomatic effort fails to get results by the end of the year, the U.S. will reevaluate the situation and perhaps impose tougher sanctions. He also said that all options are on the table… Netanyahu said he hopes ‘Obama will succeed’ in his talks with Iran, but this is a diplomatic phrase. It is doubtful that he believes the Iranians will suddenly become nice and give up their nuclear program just because Obama talks with them.

“In practice, this means that Netanyahu agreed to give Obama until the end of the year. Then, if Iran’s nuclear program is still proceeding, Israel will consider ‘other options’…

“The differences on the Palestinian issue remain. Obama wants a Palestinian state, Netanyahu refuses to say ‘two states.’ He prefers to speak about how to prevent the Palestinians from establishing a second Gaza in the West Bank, requiring them to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, and security arrangements. Obama said the settlements must stop, Netanyahu replied by demanding Palestinian ‘reciprocity.’

“Obama intends to launch a new American peace plan in his speech in Cairo on June 4. It will no doubt contain all the elements Netanyahu is uncomfortable with – two states, halting settlement construction and removing outposts.”

The Los Angeles Times added on May 18:

“Netanyahu said he was ready to resume peace talks with the Palestinians immediately but he also said any agreement depended on their acceptance of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. It was not immediately clear in the way he phrased the response whether Netanyahu was demanding that as a precondition for talks…

“The Israeli leader did not respond publicly to Obama’s demand on an end to the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and refused again to say he was ready to negotiate a so-called two-state solution to the nearly 60-year dispute with the Palestinians. The plan, endorsed by the United States and other parties pushing for peace between the historic foes, calls for establishment of a Palestinian state side by side with Israel.”

“Persisting Rift between USA, Europe and Israel”

Deutsche Welle wrote on May 19:

“Benjamin Netanyahu’s first visit to the Oval Office did not bring about the easing of tensions that the international community had hoped for. The Israeli prime minister did not endorse a two state solution while in Israel itself, a new settlement in the West Bank is on the agenda. On both of those issues US President Barack Obama had hoped to sway the Israeli leader towards compromise…

“The two leaders tried to paper over their differences but it was obvious that there was considerably less agreement than Washington had hoped for… The persisting rift in US-Israeli relations comes as a disappointment to many in the international community. European leaders had hoped that the hard-line stance of the new Israeli government might be softened somewhat by pressure from Washington…

“Europe’s own first experience with Israel’s new leadership had been somewhat sobering. Earlier this month, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman toured the EU to a much disillusioning effect. The ultranationalist Lieberman has rejected the idea of a Palestinian state and has announced that Israel was no longer bound by the so-called Annapolis peace process which formed the basis of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in 2008… The EU’s external relations commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner warned last month that a planned upgrade of bilateral relations between Israel and the EU could not come about until the government in Tel Aviv commits to the peace talks with the Palestinians.”

Welt-On-Line added on May 19:

“The two leaders tried to paper over their differences but the divisions were hard to ignore between Israel and its superpower ally… After two hours of talks, Obama offered no new remedies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has defied efforts by successive U.S. administrations. He has yet to formulate a detailed Middle East strategy… With Israeli leaders mostly skeptical of Obama’s efforts to engage Iran diplomatically, Netanyahu stressed Israel’s concerns about Tehran’s nuclear program. Israel… has not ruled out military strikes against Iran if diplomacy fails…

“If Netanyahu remains resistant to talks with the Palestinians on tough issues such as borders and settlements, it could cause friction in U.S.-Israeli relations… Netanyahu can ill afford the perception at home that he is alienating Israel’s chief ally. Neither can he be seen giving up too much if he wants to keep the right-wing core of his coalition intact.”

Further Reactions to Obama-Netanyahu Meeting

On May 19, Haaretz.com stated:

“An aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas heaped praise Monday on U.S. President Barack Obama for his ‘encouraging’ commitment to a two-state solution… while lambasting Netanyahu for his ‘disappointing’ remarks… Israeli opposition lawmakers also weighed in with criticism of Netanyahu, calling the meeting a waste of time [and ‘pointless’] and accusing the prime minister of ‘unintelligible chatter’…

“A politician on the right of the political spectrum, however, said that the meeting proved Obama was not committed to Israel’s security in the face of the threat from a nuclear Iran. ‘There is room for real concern since the U.S. is shirking its historical obligation to guarantee Israel’s safety,’ said MK Aryeh Eldad of the National Union party. ‘The U.S. is saying, in effect, that it is willing to accept a nuclear Iran, and Israel remains alone in the face of Iran. Israel will have no choice but to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities alone, using any means available, may the price be what it may’…

“Outside the White House, pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protesters drew most of the police attention even though they were far outnumbered by protesters for other causes. A human divider of police officers separated protesters holding Palestinian flags and signs condemning Israel’s roadblocks in the Palestinian territories, and others holding signs comparing Obama and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler in 1939 and urging Obama to prevent the ‘Islamic takeover of the Holy Land.'”

The Jerusalem Post wrote on May 19:

“Hamas reacted with pessimism on Tuesday to the meeting between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama, saying that while the comments made by the two leaders professed hope, they were really just meant to deceive the world.”

Iran Defies USA

The Wall Street Journal wrote on May 21: “Iran Tests Missile, Launching Pre-Election Show of Defiance.”

The article continued:

“Iran test fired what it said was its most advanced surface-to-surface missile, days after President Barack Obama laid out a rough timeline for assessing progress in diplomacy with Tehran and weeks ahead of Iranian presidential elections… Iran said the Sajjil-2 had a range of 2,000 kilometers, or about 1,200 miles. That would make it capable of reaching Israel and the Black Sea coast of European Union members Romania and Bulgaria… Iranians remain fiercely proud of their country’s technological prowess, especially amid United Nations and U.S. sanctions on the country.”

President Obama’s Unacceptable Speech at University of Notre Dame

On Sunday, May 17, President Obama gave his commencement address at the University of Notre Dame. Even though the Catholic University’s invitation to Mr. Obama and its decision to confer on him an honorary degree sparked protests by antiabortion advocates, most in attendance–reportedly overwhelmingly nominal, but not practicing Catholics–welcomed him warmly and gave him a standing ovation. The invitation to Mr. Obama amplified longstanding tensions between Catholic Church teachings — which see abortion as murder — and perceived academic freedom.

Mr. Obama spoke much about common ground, imploring all sides on the issue to “work together.” But how can this be done, if abortion is evil and the protection of life is good?–as the Bible clearly puts it. You might want to read Paul’s clear statements in 2 Corinthians 6:14-18. It is interesting that in his speech, Mr. Obama operated from the backward premise that abortion was NOT WRONG, but he then pleaded for compassion and help for those mothers who would not want to have an abortion.

Also, since the Bible teaches that it is wrong to kill life for the purpose of allegedly saving the life of another, Mr. Obama’s argument in his speech that stem cell research (which involves the killing of human life) should be allowed to make it easier for children who suffer from juvenile diabetes, is simply unacceptable (In addition, there is really no current scientific data supporting the notion that stem cell research will in any way help cure Type 1 Diabetes).

Even though President Obama was correct that we must not demonize or reduce to caricature those who hold different opinions, this polemic political statement did not in any way get to the crux of the matter–whether according to GOD’S WORD–the BIBLE–abortion and stem cell research and other related issues are wrong or right. If they are wrong, then there CANNOT BE common ground with the concept that they ALSO may be right.

We are quoting the following excerpts from Mr. Obama’s speech, which he delivered at the University, addressing abortion and other related issues (as published by the Wall Street Journal on May 17):

“The gay activist and the evangelical pastor may both deplore the ravages of HIV/AIDS, but find themselves unable to bridge the cultural divide that might unite their efforts. Those who speak out against stem cell research may be rooted in admirable conviction about the sacredness of life, but so are the parents of a child with juvenile diabetes who are convinced that their son’s or daughter’s hardships can be relieved.

“The question, then, is how do we work through these conflicts? Is it possible for us to join hands in common effort? As citizens of a vibrant and varied democracy, how do we engage in vigorous debate? How does each of us remain firm in our principles, and fight for what we consider right, without demonizing those with just as strongly held convictions on the other side? Nowhere do these questions come up more powerfully than on the issue of abortion…

“Because when we do that — when we open our hearts and our minds to those who may not think like we do or believe what we do — that’s when we discover at least the possibility of common ground. That’s when we begin to say, ‘Maybe we won’t agree on abortion, but we can still agree that this is a heart-wrenching decision for any woman to make, with both moral and spiritual dimensions. So let’s work together to reduce the number of women seeking abortions by reducing unintended pregnancies, and making adoption more available, and providing care and support for women who do carry their child to term. Let’s honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion, and draft a sensible conscience clause, and make sure that all of our health care policies are grounded in clear ethics and sound science, as well as respect for the equality of women.’

“Understand — I do not suggest that the debate surrounding abortion can or should go away. No matter how much we may want to fudge it — indeed, while we know that the views of most Americans on the subject are complex and even contradictory — the fact is that at some level, the views of the two camps are irreconcilable. Each side will continue to make its case to the public with passion and conviction. But surely we can do so without reducing those with differing views to caricature…”

Notre Dame’s Hypocritical Course of Action

The Wall Street Journal wrote on May 19:

“It was precisely the message President Obama wanted to send: How bad can he be on abortion if Notre Dame is willing to honor him? We cannot blame the president for this one. During his campaign for president, Mr. Obama spoke honestly about the aggressive pro-choice agenda he intended to pursue… and his actions have been consistent with that pledge. If only our nation’s premier Catholic university were as forthright in advancing its principles as Mr. Obama has been for his.

“In a letter to Notre Dame’s Class of 2009, the university’s president… John Jenkins, stated that the honors for Mr. Obama do not indicate any ‘ambiguity’ about Notre Dame’s commitment to Catholic teaching on the sanctity of human life. The reality is that it was this ambiguity that the White House was counting on; this ambiguity that was furthered by the adoring reaction to Mr. Obama’s visit; and this ambiguity that disheartens those working for an America that respects the dignity of life inside the womb…

“Pro-lifers are used to this. They know their stand makes them unglamorous. They find themselves a stumbling block to Democratic progressives — and unwelcome at the Republican country club… At Notre Dame today, there is no pro-life organization — in size, in funding, in prestige — that compares with the many centers, institutes and so forth dedicated to other important issues ranging from peace and justice to protecting the environment. Perhaps this explains why a number of pro-life professors tell me they must not be quoted by name, lest they face career retaliation…”

President Obama’s Flip-Flops–and Pelosi Under Fire

The Financial Times wrote on May 15:

“President Barack Obama on Friday announced that he would use military commissions to try some of the 240 prisoners detained at Guantánamo Bay, angering civil rights groups for the second time in a week…

“Human rights groups that had welcomed Mr Obama’s campaign stance on the commissions and his January decision to close Guantánamo criticised the move. The Center for Constitutional Rights, which has filed legal cases on behalf of hundreds of detainees, said it was an ‘alarming development’. ‘President Obama was elected to restore the rule of law, not continue to reinvent it,’ the CCR said. ‘It will substantiate our allies’ ongoing loss of faith in the commitment of the United States to the rule of law, and undermine their willingness to help the Obama administration close Guantánamo.’

“Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, criticised Mr Obama for ‘backtracking dangerously on his reform agenda’, saying the commissions were ‘flawed beyond repair’. ‘There is no good reason why the Guantánamo cases shouldn’t be tried in federal court,’ said Mr Roth. ‘In the more than seven years since the military commissions were announced, only three suspects have been prosecuted. The federal courts, by contrast, have tried more than 145 terrorism cases during the same period.’

“Mr Obama was condemned by civil rights advocates earlier this week when he reversed his previous decision to release hundreds of photos of US soldiers abusing detainees at detention facilities other than Abu Ghraib, the notorious Baghdad prison…

“Separately, the Central Intelligence Agency on Friday hit back at claims by Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic House speaker, that the spy agency lied to Congress during 2002 briefings about the use of harsh interrogation techniques. ‘There is a long tradition in Washington of making political hay out of our business. It predates my service with this great institution, and it will be around long after I’m gone,’ said Leon Panetta, CIA director. ‘But the political debates about interrogation reached a new decibel level yesterday [Thursday] when the CIA was accused of misleading Congress.’

“Mr Panetta said CIA records showed that its officers had accurately informed members of Congress in the 2002 briefing about the ‘enhanced interrogation techniques.’ ‘Our contemporaneous records from September 2002 indicate that CIA officers briefed truthfully on the interrogation of Abu Zubaydah, describing “the enhanced techniques that had been employed.” Ultimately, it is up to Congress to evaluate all the evidence and reach its own conclusions about what happened,’ said Mr Panetta.”

The publication, “Political Intelligence,” reported on May 18:

“The CNN/Opinion Research Corp.survey released this afternoon found that the approval of how Pelosi is doing her job as speaker has dropped from 51 percent in January to 46 percent in March to 39 percent now…”

California’s Financial Nightmare

The Los Angeles Times wrote on May 20:

“Democratic leaders say everything’s on the table as they begin studying deep, painful cuts… to close an anticipated $21.3-billion budget gap… Chastened by voters’ angry roar, the architects of California’s special election pledged today to move quickly to solve the latest state budget crisis…

“There was a rare bit of good news: …the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the state remains eligible to receive another $8 billion in stimulus money for its Medicaid program… That still leaves a huge hole in the state budget, however, and Democratic leaders in Sacramento acknowledged that closing the deficit will result in painful cuts to even some of their most cherished programs… They also said yet another push for tax or fee hikes remains an option, despite staunch opposition from Schwarzenegger and Republican lawmakers…

“Reflecting the economic slide since the governor first laid out his spending plans earlier this year, Schwarzenegger announced plans to lay off 5,000 of the state’s 235,000 workers and proposed slashing education by up to $5 billion, selling state properties, borrowing $2 billion from local governments and potentially reducing eligibility for healthcare programs. Worst-case scenarios also call for the release from state prisons of up to 19,000 illegal immigrants, who would face deportation, and the transfer of up to 23,000 other prisoners to county jails.

“The governor also wants to borrow up to $6 billion, but awaits word on whether Washington would guarantee those loans. The White House has never done so for the state, but is considering the action as Wall Street expresses concern that California could become a deadbeat borrower.”

Earthquake in Los Angeles

The Associated Press reported on May 18:

“A magnitude-4.7 earthquake [according to other reports, the magnitude was between 4.8 and 5.0] rattled the Los Angeles area Sunday night… and experts say stronger quakes are on the way.

“The initial quake, which the U.S. Geological Society reported earlier as magnitude-5.0, struck at 8:39 p.m. Its epicenter was about one mile east of Lennox… The rumbling lasted about 10 to 15 seconds. Shaking was felt throughout the Los Angeles area and as far south as North County. NBCLA.com visitors reported feeling the jolt in Burbank, Pomona, San Bernardino and other areas [It was also felt in San Diego and surrounding areas.]…

“It was the strongest quake to strike the Southland since a magnitude-5.5 earthquake hit in Chino Hills last July…

“Officials at Los Angeles International Airport, which is near the epicenter, released a statement saying, ‘Operations are normal and there are no flight delays following preliminary inspections of terminals, the airfield, Sepulveda Tunnel and other areas of the LAX Central Terminal Area’…

“Earlier this year, scientists kept close watch on an earthquake swarm near the southern end of the San Andreas Fault that shook the desert…”

Mandatory Chemo Therapy of 13-Year-Old Boy Against Parents’ Objections?

The Associated Press reported on May 15:

“A Minnesota judge ruled Friday that a 13-year-old cancer patient must be evaluated by a doctor to determine if the boy [Daniel] would benefit from restarting chemotherapy over his parents’ objections. [The] District Judge… found that [Daniel] has been ‘medically neglected’ by his parents… and was in need of child protection services [and] if chemotherapy is ordered and the family still refuses, [Daniel] will be [taken away from the parents and] placed in temporary custody…

“It was unclear how the medicine would be administered if the boy fights it…

“Daniel’s court-appointed attorney, Philip Elbert, called the decision unfortunate. ‘I feel it’s a blow to families,’ he said. ‘It marginalizes the decisions that parents face every day in regard to their children’s medical care. It really affirms the role that big government is better at making our decisions for us’…

“Daniel was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma and stopped chemotherapy in February after a single treatment. He and his parents opted instead for ‘alternative medicines’ based on their religious beliefs. Child protection workers accused Daniel’s parents of medical neglect; but in court, his mother insisted the boy wouldn’t submit to chemotherapy for religious reasons and she said she wouldn’t comply if the court orders it.

“Doctors have said Daniel’s cancer had up to a 90 percent chance of being cured with chemotherapy and radiation. Without those treatments, doctors said his chances of survival are 5 percent. Daniel’s parents have been supporting what they say is their son’s decision to treat the disease with nutritional supplements and other alternative treatments favored by the Nemenhah Band. The Missouri-based religious group believes in natural healing methods advocated by some American Indians…

“Bostrom, a pediatric oncologist said Daniel’s tumor shrunk after the first chemotherapy session, but X-rays show it has grown since he stopped the chemotherapy… [The mother] told the New Ulm Journal newspaper that the family’s Catholicism and adherence to the Nemenhah Band are not in conflict, and that she has used natural remedies to treat illness.”

The Associated Press reported on May 21 about the bizarre twist of events in this case:

“A new arrest warrant was issued Thursday as the search continued for the Minnesota mother who fled with her 13-year-old cancer-stricken son to avoid chemotherapy treatments… the new warrant for the mother is for deprivation of parental rights. An earlier arrest warrant was based on a contempt of court charge. Brown County Attorney James Olson said the parental rights are those of Brown County family services, which has been granted custody of Daniel to get him to a pediatric oncologist…

“James Olson… originally asked the judge to cite the father [Anthony Hauser] for contempt of court, but later backed off and said he believed Hauser didn’t know where his wife and son had gone. An alert issued to police departments around the country said mother and son might be traveling with a California lawyer…”

France’s First Lady Criticizes the Pope

The Telegraph wrote on May 18:

“France’s First Lady… departed from her post’s traditional religious neutrality to accuse the Pope of ‘damaging’ countries like Africa with his stance on birth control. The Italian-born former supermodel risked angering believers in France and beyond by declaring that the Pontiff’s proclamations showed that the Church needed to ‘evolve’…

“Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy said: ‘I was born Catholic, I was baptised, but in my life I feel profoundly secular. I find that the controversy coming from the Pope’s message – albeit distorted by the media – is very damaging…’

“The comments will cause Mr Sarkozy embarrassment in a country where, despite the separation of Church and State, a majority of the population was born Catholic. André Roux, a constitutional historian said: ‘It’s unprecedented for a first lady to criticise the Pope. Charles de Gaulle’s wife was very Catholic and would never had taken up position, remaining very discreet. The same was true of Bernadette Chirac, who never gave her opinion on religion or international affairs. Even Danielle Mitterrand, the wife of François Mitterrand who was not a believer and aired her political views, never attacked the Pope…’

“After becoming Mr Sarkozy’s third wife last year Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy has campaigned against the spread of Aids in Africa. The Pope’s stance against the use of contraceptives in Africa was roundly criticised in France – including by many Catholics. Some 43 per cent of them wanted the Pontiff to step down, according to one poll.”

“Catholic Church Shamed by Irish Abuse Report”

The Associated Press reported on May 21:

“After a nine-year investigation, a commission published a damning report Wednesday on decades of rapes, humiliation and beatings at Catholic Church-run reform schools for Ireland’s castaway children. The 2,600-page report painted the most detailed and damning portrait yet of church-administered abuse in a country grown weary of revelations about child molestation by priests.

“The investigation of the tax-supported schools uncovered previously secret Vatican records that demonstrated church knowledge of pedophiles in their ranks all the way back to the 1930s. Wednesday’s five-volume report on the probe — which was resisted by Catholic religious orders — concluded that church officials shielded their orders’ pedophiles from arrest amid a culture of self-serving secrecy…

“Ireland’s myriad religious orders, much like their mother church, have been devastated by 15 years of scandals involving past cover-ups of abusers in their ranks… A government-appointed panel has paid 12,000 survivors of the schools, orphanages and other church-run residences an average of $90,000 each — on condition they surrender their right to sue either the church or state. About 2,000 more claims are pending. Irish Catholic leaders cut a controversial deal with the government in 2001 that capped the church’s contribution at $175 million — a fraction of the final cost.”

Germany in Worst Post-War Recession

Bild Online wrote on May 19:

“The German economy is in its worst post-war recession… Gross domestic product (GDP) has crashed 3.8 per cent since the start of the year and 6.7 per cent since the beginning of 2008, with economic growth decreasing in every quarter. The decline from January to March is by far the biggest since 1970… Germany is considered as one of the strongest countries in the world in terms of exports – but investment has also declined compared with the last quarter…

“Economists are shocked – even the experts predicted a decline of just 3.2 percent… Jürgen Michels, the chief economist at Citigroup, said: ‘It is a dramatic crash and a poor start to the year. It can only get a little bit worse, but not much better. Whether the economy will grow this year is questionable.’”

Spread of Swine Flu on the Rise…

Reuters reported on May 18:

“The new influenza strain circulating around most of the United States is putting a worrying number of young adults and children into the hospital and hitting more schools than usual… The H1N1 swine flu virus killed a vice principal at a New York City school over the weekend and has spread to 48 states…

“‘We are now experiencing levels of influenza-like illness that are higher than usual for this time of year,’ [Dr. Anne Schuchat of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] added. ‘We are also seeing outbreaks in schools, which is extremely unusual for this time of year’…

“About half of all cases of influenza are being diagnosed as the new H1N1 strain, while the rest are influenza B, or the seasonal H1N1 and H3N2 strains. Flu season in the United States is usually almost over by May. CDC officials say around 100,000 people are likely infected with the new flu strain in the United States…

“Influenza is a factor in 36,000 deaths a year in the United States and 250,000 to 500,000 deaths globally, the CDC says.”

Swine Flu Created by Scientists in Lab?

Bild Online wrote on May 19:

“The deadly swine flu virus was created by scientists in a lab, according to a shock claim from one expert. Adrian Gibbs (75) believes the disease… may have been made accidentally in laboratories where vaccines were being developed.

“The Australian virologist was one of the first to analyse the genetic construction of the swine flu virus, and he was part of the team which developed anti-flu vaccines Tamiflu and Relenza. Gibbs has no concrete evidence, but he believes that scientists accidentally created the H1N1 virus while trying to create flu vaccines: ‘It is the simplest explanation.’

“He has not ruled out other possible explanations, but has handed over his research to state health organisations where it is being checked out by experts. But Nancy Cox, head of the Influenca Division in South America and Africa, believes swine flu probably originated in areas where it was was first discovered: ‘There is no proof that the virus comes from a lab.'”

Not Again–Scientists Believe “Missing Link” Between Man and Apes Found!

The Wall Street Journal reported on May 15 about the preposterous claims by scientists that they might have found the missing link between apes and men. The paper wrote:

“In what could prove to be a landmark discovery, a leading paleontologist said scientists have dug up the 47 million-year-old fossil of an ancient primate whose features suggest it could be the common ancestor of all later monkeys, apes and humans. Anthropologists have long believed that humans evolved from ancient ape-like ancestors…

“The discovery has little bearing on a separate paleontological debate centering on the identity of a common ancestor of chimps and humans, which could have lived about six million years ago and still hasn’t been found. That gap in the evolution story is colloquially referred to as the ‘missing link’ controversy. In reality, though, all gaps in the fossil record are technically ‘missing links’ until filled in…

“Nonetheless, the latest fossil find is likely to ignite further the debate between evolutionists who draw conclusions based on a limited fossil record, and creationists who don’t believe that humans, monkeys and apes evolved from a common ancestor…”

In typical spectacular fashion of the boulevard press and mass media, Sky News Online wrote on May 19:

“Scientists have unveiled a 47-million-year-old fossilised skeleton of a monkey hailed as the missing link in human evolution… The search for a direct connection between humans and the rest of the animal kingdom has taken 200 years – but it was presented to the world today at a special news conference in New York. The discovery of the 95%-complete ‘lemur monkey’ – dubbed Ida – is described by experts as the ‘eighth wonder of the world’… Researchers say proof of this transitional species finally confirms Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution…

“With her human-like nails instead of claws, and opposable big toes, she is placed at the very root of human evolution when early primates first developed features that would eventually develop into our own…

“Up until now, the most famous fossil primate in the world has been Lucy, a 3.18-million-year-old hominid found in Ethiopia in 1974. She was then our earliest known ancestor, and only 40% complete…”

If you want to learn more about this matter, including the truth regarding “Lucy,” please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution–A Fairy Tale for Adults?”

In addition, in spite of the “Ida Fossil Hype,” several scientists have voiced concern and dismiss the idea of Ida being a missing link. Der Stern Online reported on critical voices, seriously questioning the entire “interpretation” of the “discovery.” And as Live Science reported on May 20, “the public could be left with the impression that Ida is a rock-solid missing link in the human evolutionary chain… ‘It’s not a missing link, it’s not even a terribly close relative to monkeys, apes and humans, which is the point they’re trying to make,’ said Chris Beard, a curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh.”

The article continued:

“The debacle started to unfold when the finding, cloaked in secrecy while a media engine was being primed, leaked out in The Wall Street Journal, and then in London’s Daily Mail. Then The New York Times wrote about the media circus that was to ensue. All this was published before anyone but the research team (and its tightly controlled media team) knew the details of the finding… Ida’s unveiling was highly scripted (with some ‘Barnum and Bailey aspects,’ said paleontologist Richard Kay of Duke University). More important, it can now be said the findings may well have been significantly overstated… if this event causes the public to distrust science and media, that distrust is well placed.”

Amen to that!!!

The “Greatest Depression” Will Hit

The Trends Research Institute wrote on May 7:

“Field Marshall Ben Bernanke and his Green Shoot Brigade have fertilized the economic landscape with trillions of sweat equity dollars extorted from today’s public and the public of generations to come… But the fundamentals of the economy remain unsound…

“‘The Greatest Depression’… may have been postponed, but it has not been averted. When it does set in, it will do so with enhanced intensity and at a pace accelerated by complex financial finagling … all under the guise of nation-saving action. Rather than let the failing industries fail and the failed banks go bankrupt, the government is deliberately bankrupting the nation. The lesson to be learned from the financial crisis that began in the summer of 2007, is that nothing succeeds like failure. The greater their failure, the bolder they become… The greater the chaos, the more control they exact. The bigger they fail, the harder we fall.

“No act is too unthinkable or measure too draconian for… Washington-Wall Street… to concoct in order to maintain power, make money and cover their losses. While it is impossible to second-guess what the government will do next, it is absolutely certain that they will stop at nothing. The ‘green shoots’ will wither and conditions will deteriorate. Those who are prepared for the worst will not have been taken by surprise.”

New Unprecedented Deficit Figures of US Budget

The Associated Press wrote on May 12:

“The government will have to borrow nearly 50 cents for every dollar it spends this year, exploding the record federal deficit past $1.8 trillion under new White House estimates…

“The unprecedented deficit figures flow from the deep recession, the Wall Street bailout and the cost of President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus bill — as well as a seemingly embedded structural imbalance between what the government spends and what it takes in. As the economy performs worse than expected, the deficit for the 2010 budget year beginning in October will worsen by $87 billion to $1.3 trillion…

“Just a few days ago, Obama touted an administration plan to cut $17 billion in wasteful or duplicative programs from the budget next year. The erosion in the deficit announced Monday is five times the size of those savings… The developments come as the White House completes the official release of its $3.6 trillion budget for 2010…

“A… poll last month gave Obama relatively poor grades on the deficit, with just 49 percent of respondents approving of the president’s handling of the issue and 41 percent disapproving… ‘Even using their February economic assumptions — which now appear to be out of date and overly optimistic — the administration never puts us on a stable path,’ said Marc Goldwein of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a bipartisan group that advocates budget discipline…

“[Under] Obama’s ‘cap-and-trade’ proposal… the government would auction permits to emit heat-trapping gases, with the costs being passed on to consumers via higher gasoline and electric bills.”

Taxpayer-Funded Abortions?

LifeNews.com wrote on May 7:

“President Barack Obama’s new federal budget calls for taxpayer funded abortions in the nation’s capital. Although Obama has promised Americans he wants to reduce the number of abortions, one pro-life group says he is violating that promise by calling for taxpayer-financed abortions in the District of Columbia. The budget Obama submitted to Congress urges the House and Senate to repeal a law sometimes called the Dornan amendment that has prevented tax-funded abortion in the District of Columbia for many years…

“Douglas Johnson, the legislative director of the National Right to Life Committee, told LifeNews.com on Thursday that the Obama budget makes it clear that the president has little interest in reducing abortions.

“‘Some wide-eyed journalists and various political shills for the Obama Administration continue to write fairy tales about how President Obama wants to pursue policies that would reduce abortions,’ he said. ‘That is a political scam. In reality, President Obama is pursuing a step-by-step strategy to expand access to abortion… Today’s White House action is one more evidence that President Obama is trying to pull off a massive policy scam — he generates a smokescreen of soothing rhetoric about seeking “common ground” and “abortion reduction,” while step by step advancing concrete policies that will substantially increase the number of abortions — and pay for abortion on demand with everyone’s taxes,’ Johnson concluded.”

We Know It’s Bad When the U.S. Mail Is In Financial Trouble…

The Pasadena Star News wrote on May 11:

“The post office wants two more pennies for your thoughts. The price of a first-class stamp for mailing a letter – or paying a bill – climbed to 44 cents Monday, though folks who planned ahead and stocked up on Forever stamps will still be paying the lower rate.

“It’s the third straight year rates have gone up in May under a new system that allows annual increases as long as they don’t exceed the rate of inflation for the year before. While the increase will bring in added income, the post office continues to struggle financially… The Postal Service… lost $2.8 billion last year and is already $2.3 billion in the hole just halfway through this year… the rate increase is unlikely to cover the ongoing losses and the possibility remains that the post office could run out of money before the end of the fiscal year…

“While the new 44-cent rate covers the first ounce of first-class mail, the price for each additional ounce will remain unchanged at 17-cents… Other changes taking effect May 11: The postcard stamp increases 1 cent to 28 cents. The first ounce of a large envelope increases 5 cents to 88 cents. The first ounce of a parcel increases 5 cents to $1.22. New international postcard and letter prices are, for one ounce, 75 cents to Canada; 79 cents to Mexico; and 98 cents elsewhere.”

More Bad Developments

The Los Angeles Times reported on May 14:

“Bankrupt automaker Chrysler told a quarter of its car dealers this morning that it would sever its franchise contracts with them, effectively putting them out of business by June 9. The decision, which had been expected, will eliminate thousands of jobs and likely reduce tax revenue at municipalities around the nation.”

In a related article, the paper wrote on May 14:

“New jobless claims rose more than expected last week due partly to an increase in layoffs by the automobile industry, while the number of people continuing to receive unemployment benefits set a record for the 15th straight week.”

Obama Gay Activist Attacks Pope

On May 8, the Catholic News Agency, CNSNews, reported the following:

“A homosexual-rights activist whom President Obama appointed last month to a White House advisory council had–just three weeks before his appointment–posted a statement on the Web site of the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s most prominent homosexual-rights organization, accusing Pope Benedict XVI… of ‘hurting people in the name of Jesus’… President Obama appointed the HRC activist, Harry Knox, to his Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships on April 6. Knox was then, and remains, director of the HRC’s Religion and Faith Program. The HRC describes itself as ‘America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality’…
 
“‘The Pope’s statement that condoms don’t help control the spread of HIV, but rather condoms increase infection rates, is hurting people in the name of Jesus,’ said Knox…
 
“Knox told the Bay Area Reporter on March 17 that the pope was a ‘discredited leader’… Knox was speaking… about efforts by the Catholic Church and the Knights of Columbus to enact California’s Proposition 8, which prohibited same-sex marriage in the state… Rep. Mike Pence (R.-Ind.) called on President Obama to withdraw Knox’s appointment in light of his comments to the Bay Area Reporter…

“Last month, CNSNews.com White House Correspondent Fred Lucas asked the White House in writing whether the president would withdraw the appointment as Pence requested, and whether President Obama agreed with Knox’s statement that the pope is a ‘discredited leader’ and, if not, did he believe Knox should apologize. On April 15, White House Spokeswoman Jen Psaki told CNSNews.com, ‘We don’t have a response to that. You can say we declined to comment,’ she added.

“At her press conference on Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D.-Calif.) said she was ‘unaware’ that Knox had called the pope a ‘discredited leader. ‘I’m so sorry. I’m just totally unaware of that statement… I really don’t know about that. But certainly, his Holiness is the head of an organization that has done more to alleviate poverty, eradicate disease, and is now addressing climate change issue and the rest. I am just not familiar with the statement and the circumstance.'”

Nancy Pelosi also claimed during Thursday’s press conference (May 14) that she was not informed about the use of waterboarding, “accus[ing] the CIA and Bush administration of misleading her about waterboarding detainees in the war on terror and sharply rebutted claims she was complicit in the method’s use” (compare The Associated Press). But subsequent comments made by CNN reporters shed serious doubts on Pelosi’s representations.

Hate Crime Legislation

WorldNetDaily wrote on May 10:

“The Senate Judiciary Committee will consider Tuesday a hate crimes bill already approved by the House that, critics say, provides special protections for pedophiles and others with alternative ‘gender identities’ such as voyeurism and exhibitionism…

“[Rep. Louis Gohmert, R-Texas] pointed out that if an exhibitionist flashes a woman, and she responds by slapping him with her purse, he has probably committed a misdemeanor while she has committed a federal felony hate crime… Critics also have expressed alarm because in committee hearings Democrats admitted that a Christian pastor could be prosecuted under the law if he spoke biblically against homosexuality, someone heard the comments and then committed a crime.”

Outrageous Jury Duty Debacle–“Only in Texas”?

The San Diego Union Tribune reported on May 10:

“A [Texas] man arrested for allegedly failing to appear for jury duty was released yesterday after spending 83 days in jail… Maupin, a masonry contractor, was arrested Feb. 15 after police pulled him over for speeding. Police then detained him on a 2003 warrant for failure to appear for jury duty. He wrote a letter to the newspaper about his lengthy jail stay, then said in a jailhouse interview that he, his friends and family could not afford his $1,500 bail.

“Maupin said his attempt to get a public defender was rebuffed by a jail clerk. District Judge Chris Oldner said he was unaware of Maupin’s detention until Friday, even though the case was assigned to his court. The judge who signed the original 2003 warrant had retired, and officials said the case was assigned to the court of his replacement but that the offense didn’t fall under that court’s responsibility.”

What Was Obama Thinking…?

Toby Harnden, U.S. Editor of the News Telegraph, wrote the following in that British paper, on May 10:

“What was Wanda Sykes thinking? Perhaps more to the point, what was President Barack Obama thinking when he laughed and smiled as the comedienne wished Rush Limbaugh dead? Although the Left is reporting her White House Correspondents’ Dinner speech as ‘taking shots’ at Limbaugh and mocking everyone, that’s a gross misrepresentation of what turned into a hateful and disgusting diatribe. I was at the dinner… There’s not much room for differing interpretations of what Sykes said. She called Limbaugh a terrorist and a traitor, suggested that he be tortured and wished him dead…

“Obama’s reaction to it was astonishing… Obama laughing when someone wishes Limbaugh dead? Hard to take from the man who promised a new era of civility and elevated debate in Washington.”

How Russia Sees It–Israel Without Jerusalem

The Russian paper, Pravda, wrote the following on May 8:

“The world’s leading countries are trying to solve the crisis in the Middle East against the background of yet another conflict between Palestine and Israel. Arab countries are about to convince Israel’s major ally – the USA – to approve the Saudi initiative, in accordance with which Israel will no longer have Jerusalem… No one expects any miracle to happen, of course. It is absolutely impossible to solve all problems, which Arabs and Jews have.

“Saudi Arabia suggests Israel should give the holy city of Jerusalem under external control and set its state borders in accordance with the map of 1967. The Arab districts of Jerusalem – the eastern part of the city – will have to become the capital of the Palestinian State, Arabian officials suggest…

“The Israelis traditionally believe that their capital is the city of Jerusalem, not Tel Aviv. Making the holy city become the capital of Palestine would be a disaster for the national mindset of Israel. In other words, it would mean a capitulation.”

US and Europe in Discreet Talks with Hamas?

Time On Line wrote on May 8:

“The idea that there can be no Israeli-Palestinian peace that bypasses Hamas has lately emerged as conventional wisdom among a broad range of Washington foreign policy experts — and it appears that the U.S. and some of its key European allies may be quietly in agreement. A senior Hamas official has told TIME that Western powers publicly committed to boycotting Hamas, which is officially designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and European Union, have nonetheless initiated discreet contacts with his organization. Osama Hamdan, the organization’s top leader in Lebanon, said in an interview in Beirut that Hamas had in recent weeks established ‘solid, direct contacts’ with four European Union countries, and that there had been unofficial talks between Hamas and the team of President Barack Obama’s Middle East special envoy, George Mitchell…

“Hamdan declined to identify the European countries with which he claimed Hamas has held talks, but said they were ‘significant’ nations, and described the discussions as substantial. ‘I think there is a shift in [the Europeans’] position [on boycotting Hamas],’ said Hamdan…

“While U.S. officials insist their stance on Hamas has not changed, hawkish pro-Israel legislators in Washington are concerned over what they see as the Administration’s eagerness to do business with elements officially designated as terrorists.”

President Obama vs. Israel?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on May 11:

“The Obama Administration is hoping to revive the peace process in the Middle East. Part of the strategy is to distance Washington from Israel… Obama makes repeated allusions to his own biography, which is not only rooted in the Christian world. ‘I have Muslims in my family. I have lived in a Muslim-majority country,’ is something he has said many times. His core message to the Muslim world, which he reiterated on his recent visit to Turkey, is that the US ‘is not at war with Islam’…

“The White House had already made it clear that it would be making demands on the Israelis… relations between the US and Israel have become decidedly frosty. Israeli Environment Minister Gilad Erdan even went so far as to say that ‘Israel does not take orders from Obama.’ The old friends have never seemed so far apart.

“Obama’s Middle East policy at the moment is much more focused on Iran than on Israel… Obama is offering the Tehran regime talks without any preconditions… There are, however, many who find it difficult to understand the harsh tone toward Jerusalem and the more indulgent one toward Tehran. US historian Jeffrey Herf, who has close ties to the US Democrats, says that the policy the White House is pursuing is both ‘naïve and potentially dangerous.'”

Haaretz added on May 14:

“U.S. President Barack Obama has sent a message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demanding that Israel not surprise the U.S. with an Israeli military operation against Iran… The message from the American envoy to the prime minister reveals U.S. concern that Israel could lose patience and act against Iran. It is important to the Americans that they not be caught off guard and find themselves facing facts on the ground at the last minute.”

“The Last Opportunity”–“All Eyes Look to Washington…”

The Times reported on May 11:

“President Obama’s critical meeting with Binyamin Netanyahu next [Monday] has become the acid test for the Administration’s commitment to peace in the Middle East, King Abdullah of Jordan said yesterday. The monarch does not conceal his feelings about the Israeli leader. He described their last encounter – 10 years ago when he had just come to the throne – as the ‘least pleasant’ of his reign… ‘All eyes will be looking to Washington,’ he said. ‘If there are no clear signals and no clear directives to all of us, there will be a feeling that this is just another American Government that is going to let us all down.’

“If Israel procrastinated on a two-state solution, or if there was no clear American vision on what should happen this year, the ‘tremendous credibility’ that Mr Obama had built up in the Arab world would evaporate overnight. And if peace negotiations were delayed, there would be another conflict between Arabs or Muslims and Israel in the next 12-18 months, with implications far beyond the Middle East.

“‘If the call is in May that this is not the right time or we are not interested, then the world is going to be sucked into another conflict in the Middle East,’ the King said… Emphasising again the urgency now felt by all Arab governments of making the most of Mr Obama’s commitment to a settlement, he said this was a final opportunity… The alternative was bleak — war, death and destruction. The King added: ‘This is a critical moment.'”

No Hostility Between U.S. and Iran?

The New York Times wrote on May 12:

“An Iranian-American journalist who was sentenced to eight years in jail on charges of spying for Washington was released Monday after an appeals court… turned down the original jail term and issued a two-year suspended prison term in its place… The court ruling meant that she can leave the country immediately if she decides to…

“Ms. Saberi, 32, has lived in Iran since 2003 and worked as a freelance journalist for National Public Radio and the BBC. She was arrested in late January for buying a bottle of wine, which is illegal in Iran. But the charges against her escalated to working without a press card and then spying for Washington. Her press card had been revoked in 2006.

“The sentencing had threatened to complicate political maneuvering between Iranian and American leaders over Iran’s nuclear program… The State Department called the charges against Ms. Saberi baseless and asked for her release… In the appeal, Mr. Nikbakht [one of Mrs. Saberi’s defense attorneys] argued that the espionage charge should be lifted because the foreign ministry and the judiciary had previously said that there was ‘no hostility between Iran and the United States.’ The judges accepted the defense, he said.”

Iran Prepares for Nuclear Attack

The Jerusalem Post reported on May 12:

“Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have begun deploying mobile launchers for surface-to-air and surface-to-sea missiles in the Strait of Hormuz and other areas in the Gulf… following secret reports that the United States and Israel were working on a military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“… the missiles were deployed a few weeks ago. Iran is said to have informed Arab countries in the region of its activities and reassured its neighbors that the missiles were not aimed at states in the region, a reference to Sunni Arab states such as Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, which has a Shi’ite majority but Sunni government…

“The US has not ruled out the possibility of a military strike on Iran. Iran has threatened to retaliate to any aggression on its soil by closing down the strategic Strait of Hormuz, which will disrupt global oil supplies… Gulf countries, including Iran, hold more than half of the world’s crude oil reserves and more than 40 percent of the world’s proven gas reserves.”

The Power of the Catholic Church in the Middle East

The Associated Press reported on May 8:

“Pope Benedict XVI said Friday he hopes the Catholic church can play a role in the Middle East peace process as he began his first trip to the region with a stop in Jordan, where he hopes to improve frayed ties with Muslims… Benedict expressed hope his visit and the power of the Catholic church could help further peace efforts between Israelis and Palestinians…

“‘We are not a political power but a spiritual power that can contribute,’ Benedict told reporters on the plane before he landed in Amman. The pope was met at the airport by Jordan’s King Abdullah, Queen Rania and Muslim and Christian leaders. A Jordanian army band equipped with bagpipes and drums played the Vatican and Jordanian national anthems before the pope and the king inspected the honor guard.”

That the Catholic Church is NOT just a spiritual power was belied by the fact that the NATIONAL ANTHEM of the Vatican was played in Jordan upon the Pope’s arrival. The Vatican State is a POLITICAL state, sending its ambassadors to, and receiving ambassadors from the entire world. And the Bible predicts that the Catholic Church will play a POLITICAL role, as well as a spiritual role in the Middle East in the Church’s attempts to bring “peace” to that region. For more information, please read our free booklets, “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord,” and “Is That in the Bible?–The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation.”

The Pope in Israel–At Odds With Netanyahu

The Los Angeles Times wrote on May 11:

“Pope Benedict XVI, arriving in Israel on a pilgrimage across the Holy Land, put himself at odds with the country’s new government today by calling for an independent Palestinian homeland alongside the Jewish state… The Roman Catholic leader did not mention the word ‘state,’ something Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pointedly resisted promising the Palestinians. But the pope’s reference to two homelands within international borders was a clear assertion of the Holy See’s longstanding position in favor of a Palestinian state.

“By reaffirming that position in Netanyahu’s presence, at a welcoming ceremony televised in Israel and across the world, Benedict added to pressure from the United States and other allies on the Israeli leader to endorse a two-state solution as the goal of talks with the Palestinians.”

The Pope in Israel–“Disappointing” Speech at the Holocaust Memorial

The Associated Press reported on May 12:

“The Vatican defended the pope Tuesday from a growing chorus of Israeli critics who accused the German-born Benedict XVI of failing to express enough remorse for the Holocaust — a controversy that threatened to eclipse a papal pilgrimage aimed at building bridges between faiths… On Tuesday, the pope delivered messages of peace while visiting the holiest Muslim and Jewish sites in Jerusalem — the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall.

“But his speech Monday at Israel’s national Holocaust memorial attracted the most attention in Israel, with the parliament speaker accusing Benedict of glossing over the Nazi genocide. Newspapers lambasted him for failing to apologize for what many in Israel see as Catholic indifference during World War II and the pope’s own wartime actions — he served in the Hitler Youth corps and Nazi army — have also cast a shadow…

“Israeli newspapers Tuesday were filled with criticism. ‘One would have expected the Vatican’s cardinals to prepare a more intelligent text for their boss,’ columnist Tom Segev said.”

The Pope in Israel–His Speech Fell Flat

Der Spiegel Online reported on May 12:

“In the past, Pope Benedict XVI’s speeches have gotten him in trouble. Visiting the Holocaust memorial Yad Vashem on Monday, it was what he didn’t say that irked his audience. Israel is disappointed, as are Jews in Germany… The pope’s speech… fell flat. Immediately following his visit, the Yad Vashem Council released a statement expressing disappointment with the pope’s comments at the monument. ‘He did not mention that it was the Nazis who did the murdering, nor a word of his personal participation in the feelings of pain and sorrow,’ said Yad Vashem Council Chairman Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau immediately after the speech. ‘Even the phrase “6 million” wasn’t there. Not to mention that he didn’t say “I apologize.”‘

“Criticism didn’t just come from Israel, either. In Germany, the Central Council of Jews in Germany blasted the pope for failing to more clearly distance himself from the Society of St. Pius X and the Holocaust denial of SSPX Bishop Richard Williamson. ‘What should one think of a public call to fight against anti-Semitism when he himself doesn’t act and doesn’t take consequences,’ said Stephan Kramer, general secretary of the Central Council. Council President Charlotte Knobloch said ‘I expected clearer words from the pope at Yad Vashem’…

“[The pope’s speech included] powerful sentences, appearing in a manuscript that had been released in advance. Benedict remained true to his manuscript, reading it, word for word, in a quiet voice. But at the same time, he rattled off the sentences as if unaware of the impact of his words, swallowing and mumbling important words, as if he were reading a manuscript meant for someone else or, even more distressingly, as if he were unaware of what he was reading. It was not a powerful moment. There were no sparks…

“When Pope John Paul II spoke at Yad Vashem in 2000, he promised that ‘never again’ would the church permit the persecution of Jews. His successor has renewed the promise, but in a far more generalized form: ‘As Bishop of Rome and Successor of the Apostle Peter, I reaffirm — like my predecessors — that the Church is committed to praying and working tirelessly to ensure that hatred will never reign in the hearts of men again.'”

The Pope in Bethlehem–Understands Suffering of Palestinians

On May 13, The Associated Press reported the following:

“Standing in the cradle of Christianity [in Bethlehem], Pope Benedict XVI told Palestinians on Wednesday that he understands their suffering and offered his strongest public backing yet for an independent Palestinian state… It was the third day of Benedict’s Holy Land pilgrimage meant largely to boost interfaith relations. But so far, it has been fraught with political land mines. Israelis have criticized the German-born pope for failing to adequately express remorse for the Holocaust, while the Palestinians are pressing him to draw attention to the difficult conditions of life under Israeli rule… In Bethlehem, Benedict delivered a special message of solidarity to the 1.4 million Palestinians isolated in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. He has no plans to visit Gaza.”

Deutsche Welle added on May 13:

“Speaking in Bethlehem after holding a mass in Manger Square, the pope pressed calls to remove the wall and watch towers that seal Bethlehem off from Jerusalem…

“The German-born pope’s week-long trip to the Middle East, his first visit to the region, has not been without controversy. On Tuesday, a row erupted over the pope’s membership as a teenager of the Hitler Youth, as he paid a historic visit to holy sites in Jerusalem. Vatican spokesman, Federico Lombardi, said the pontiff had ‘never, never, never’ belonged to the organization, but later changed his version, saying that he had been a member but his membership was compulsory. In his own 1997 memoirs, Pope Benedict had said he had been registered with the Hitler Youth while he was at a seminary.”

Lisbon Treaty Needed For Freedom of Religion in Europe?

The EUObserver wrote on May 12:

“Securing a stronger consultative role for European religions in EU policy making is another good reason to support the Lisbon Treaty, say two of the EU’s most senior officials. Speaking after a meeting with European religious leaders on Monday (11 May), European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering said such discussions in the future could not be guaranteed without the full ratification of the Lisbon Treaty… He added that it is the ‘responsibility of Ireland’ to ensure the treaty comes into effect…

“European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, who co-chaired the meeting with Mr Poettering, told journalists the Lisbon Treaty would also re-inforce dialogue between non-confessional organisations. ‘One of the purposes of these meetings is to highlight how it is important in Europe to keep freedom of religion [and] also the freedom not to have a religion,’ he said. ‘[The Lisbon Treaty] is the first time ever that our churches and our religious communities are included in the law of the European union,’ Mr Pottering said…

“Also attending Monday’s meeting was the Catholic archbishop for Dublin, Diarmuid Martin. Mr Martin has increasingly voiced his support for the Lisbon treaty in recent months ahead of a second Irish referendum on the document this autumn… One issue of concern to Irish religious groups is the possibility that Ireland could be forced to accept abortion under European law if the Lisbon Treaty is ratified. Abortion is not currently allowed under Irish legislation…”

The Fourth Reich–A Warning from the Past

On May 9, The Daily Mail published an article about the attempts of Nazis, at the end of World War II, to prepare for a FOURTH REICH, and how current developments in Europe might lead to a repeat of history. We are bringing you the following excerpts:

“The document, also known as the Red House Report, is a detailed account of a secret meeting… in Strasbourg on August 10, 1944. There, Nazi officials ordered an elite group of German industrialists to plan for Germany’s post-war recovery, prepare for the Nazis’ return to power and work for a ‘strong German empire’. In other words: the Fourth Reich… The industrialists included representatives of Volkswagen, Krupp and Messerschmitt. Officials from the Navy and Ministry of Armaments were also at the meeting and, with incredible foresight, they decided together that the Fourth German Reich, unlike its predecessor, would be an economic rather than a military empire – but not just German…

“The Third Reich was defeated militarily, but powerful Nazi-era bankers, industrialists and civil servants, reborn as democrats, soon prospered in the new West Germany. There they worked for a new cause: European economic and political integration…

“War had been extraordinarily profitable for the German economy. By 1948 – despite six years of conflict, Allied bombing and post-war reparations payments – the capital stock of assets such as equipment and buildings was larger than in 1936, thanks mainly to the armaments boom. [German Chancellor Ludwig] Erhard pondered how German industry could expand its reach across the shattered European continent. The answer was through supranationalism – the voluntary surrender of national sovereignty to an international body.

“Germany and France were the drivers behind the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the precursor to the European Union. The ECSC was the first supranational organisation, established in April 1951 by six European states… This set a vital precedent for the steady erosion of national sovereignty, a process that continues today.

“But before the common market could be set up, the Nazi industrialists had to be pardoned, and Nazi bankers and officials reintegrated. In 1957, John J. McCloy, the American High Commissioner for Germany, issued an amnesty for industrialists convicted of war crimes. The two most powerful Nazi industrialists, Alfried Krupp of Krupp Industries and Friedrich Flick, whose Flick Group eventually owned a 40 per cent stake in Daimler-Benz, were released from prison after serving barely three years…

“Like Krupp and Flick, Hermann Abs, post-war Germany’s most powerful banker, had prospered in the Third Reich… Abs joined the board of Deutsche Bank, Germany’s biggest bank, in 1937… Abs was one of the most important figures in Germany’s post-war reconstruction. It was largely thanks to him that, just as the Red House Report exhorted, a ‘strong German empire’ was indeed rebuilt, one which formed the basis of today’s European Union… By 1948 he was effectively managing Germany’s economic recovery. Crucially, Abs was also a member of the European League for Economic Co-operation, an elite intellectual pressure group set up in 1946. The league was dedicated to the establishment of a common market, the precursor of the European Union… When Konrad Adenauer, the first Chancellor of West Germany, took power in 1949, Abs was his most important financial adviser…

“Next month, 27 European Union member states vote in the biggest transnational election in history. Europe now enjoys peace and stability. Germany is a democracy, once again home to a substantial Jewish community. The Holocaust is seared into national memory. But the Red House Report is a bridge from a sunny present to a dark past. Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s propaganda chief, once said: ‘In 50 years’ time nobody will think of nation states.’ For now, the nation state endures. But these three typewritten pages are a reminder that today’s drive towards a European federal state is inexorably tangled up with the plans of the SS and German industrialists for a Fourth Reich…”

Human Infects Pig with Swine Flu

The New York Times wrote on May 3:

“On Saturday, Canadian health officials said that the virus had been found in sick pigs on one farm in Alberta… Previously, there had been heated debate about whether the virus could infect pigs, even though its genetic makeup clearly points to its having originated in swine at some point.

“But people were infecting each other, and until Saturday, no pigs had been found with the virus… But researchers, busy with human cases, were not really looking for the disease in pigs.

“The news from Canada changes things. But it has a somewhat unexpected twist: a person appears to have spread the disease to the pigs, and not the other way around. A worker at the farm had traveled to Mexico, fallen ill there and unknowingly brought the disease back to Canada last month…

“’One of the reasons for watching this very closely is the potential for the virus passing back from the pigs to human beings,’ David Butler-Jones, the chief public health officer of Canada, said…

“Despite assurances from the Public Health Agency of Canada and Canadian agriculture officials [that eating pork is allegedly safe], some countries banned imports of pork and pork products from Canada even before Saturday’s announcement.”

The Associated Press added on May 3:

“Now that the swine flu virus has passed from a farmworker to pigs, could it jump back to people? The question is important, because crossing species again could make it more deadly.

“The never-before-seen virus was created when genes from pig, bird and human viruses mixed together inside a pig. Experts fear the virus that has gone from humans back into pigs in at least one case could mutate further before crossing back into humans again. But no one can predict what will happen…

“Canadian officials announced Saturday that the virus had infected about 200 pigs on a farm — the first evidence that it had jumped to another species… Experts say pork — even from infected pigs — is safe to eat…”

 

Will HIV and Swine Flu Virus Mix?

Reuters reported on May 2:

“People with HIV are at high risk from the new flu strain that the World Health Organisation said is on the verge of a pandemic… HIV and the new flu strain could also mix together in a dangerous way, as has occurred with HIV and tuberculosis, the WHO said… According to WHO estimates, there are 33 million people infected with immune-weakening HIV worldwide.”

Has Swine Flu Mutated More?

Reuters reported on May 6:

“A second strain of influenza, one of the seasonal strains, may have mutated and may be complicating the picture in Mexico, Canadian researchers reported on Wednesday. They have found a strain of the H3N2 virus that appears to have made a shift and could have complicated the flu picture in Mexico, epicenter of an outbreak of a new strain of the H1N1 swine flu virus.”

Beware of Politically Motivated Mass Immunizations Against Swine Flu

On April 28, 2009, salon.com published an interesting article about the governmental and pharmaceutical reaction to a perceived swine flu outbreak in 1976 (That outbreak never happened). It warns that we must not rush into producing vaccinations and advocate mass immunizations, which might do more harm than good. We are quoting the following excerpts:

“1976 was the year of the U.S. Bicentennial. 1976 was a presidential election year. 1976 was two years after Watergate caused Nixon’s resignation, and one year after the fall of Saigon. The U.S. government, both Republicans and Democrats, had never been held in such low esteem. Practically every elected official felt an overwhelming itch that patriotic year to do something to get the public thinking of them as good guys again. A swine flu pandemic was an opportunity on a plate. What better way to get into the good graces of the voters than to save them from a plague?

“Between March 13 and March 24, the U.S. government dealt with the perceived flu emergency at fever pitch. The vaccine request… reached the president’s desk in less than a week. On March 24, the day after he lost the North Carolina primary to Ronald Reagan, President Gerald Ford welcomed the top virologists in the nation to a meeting in the White House and asked them if the nation was facing a swine flu epidemic. Would mass vaccinations be necessary? The doctors all said yes…
 
“The president heralded the impending flu plague and asked Congress for $135 million to investigate the development of a swine flu vaccine, with the goal of vaccinating the citizenry… Congress, with few exceptions, raced to support the bill. Knowing the Republican president would not, could not veto a bill he requested, the Democratically controlled House attached $1.8 billion dollars in welfare and environmental spending to the flu bill. President Ford signed the bill on April 15, 1976, and incorrectly remarked to the press that the Fort Dix swine flu was identical to the deadly 1918 variety. He announced the immunization program would begin in October…

“The scientists began to come to their senses. By July, they were pretty much agreed that a flu pandemic in 1976 would not lead to 1 million U.S. dead… But the U.S. government was unstoppable. Congress began to pressure the drug companies to work faster toward development of a swine flu vaccine. The drug companies insisted that proper vaccine development required years of experimentation and clinical trials…

“President Ford went on television [on August 5] and delivered a speech to the nation, telling Americans that Congress will be to blame for your deaths when the flu season begins in October. Congress caved in, and on Aug. 15, President Ford signed the National Influenza Immunization Program (NIIP). This set as a goal the immunization of at least 80 percent of the U.S. population [and] indemnified the drug companies…

“On Oct. 1, 1976, the immunization program began. By Oct. 11, approximately 40 million people had received swine flu immunizations, mostly through the new compressed air vaccination guns… Three senior citizens died soon after receiving their swine flu shots [in Pittsburgh]… The government had long feared mass panic about swine flu — now they feared mass panic about the swine flu vaccinations.

“The deaths in Pittsburgh… were a strong setback to the program. The death blow came a few weeks later when reports appeared of Guillain-Barré syndrome, a paralyzing neuromuscular disorder, among some people who had received swine flu immunizations. The public refused to trust a government-operated health program that killed old people and crippled young people; as a result, less than 33 percent of the population had been immunized by the end of 1976. The National Influenza Immunization Program was effectively halted on Dec. 16.

“Gerald Ford’s attempt to gain credit for keeping America safe was busted. He lost the presidential election to Jimmy Carter that November. The 1976 to 1977 flu season was the most flu-free since records had been kept; a condition that was apparently unrelated to the vaccination program. The Great Swine Flu Epidemic of 1976 never took place.”

Many Americans Think Abortion Should Be Illegal in Most or All Cases

The Catholic News Agency (CNA) reported the following on May 1:

“In August 2008 only 41 percent [in the USA] believed abortion should be illegal in most or all cases, while 54 percent [now] thought it should be illegal in most or all circumstances… In August 2008 53 percent of men generally supported legal abortion, while in April 2009 only 43 percent did. About 46 percent of men said abortion should generally be illegal… The percentage of women who believed abortion should be illegal in most or all cases remained steady at 42 percent, but the number of women supporting legal abortion declined from 54 to 49 percent…”

Unconstitutional Hate Crime Legislation–Is One Life More Valuable Than Another?

CNA reported on April 30:

“By a vote of 249-175, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to expand federal ‘hate crime’ laws to include sexual orientation, gender identity, or mental or physical disability. Current law limits federal jurisdiction over hate crimes to assaults based on race, color, religion or national origin. President Barack Obama asked Congress to pass the Federal Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, saying it would ‘protect all of our citizens from violent acts of intolerance’…

“During debate on the bill, Rep. Lamar Smith argued the bill was discriminatory. ‘All violent crimes must be vigorously prosecuted,’ Rep. Smith said. ‘Unfortunately, this bill undermines one of the most basic principles of our criminal justice system — “equal justice for all.” Justice will now depend on the race, gender, sexual orientation, disability or other protected status of the victim… It will allow different penalties to be imposed for the same crime’…

“House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio said that all violent crimes should be prosecuted vigorously, but argued the legislation ‘places a higher value on some lives compared to others. That is unconstitutional, and that is wrong. Republicans believe that all life was created equally, and all life should be defended equally.’

“He said he was particularly concerned about the implications the legislation would have on religious groups expressing their beliefs. ‘Simply put, this bill is not only a threat to the constitutional principle of equal justice under the law, but to religious freedom of speech as well,’ he added.”

Responsibility Has Shifted to President Obama

The Los Angeles Times wrote on May 3:

“In the span of a single week — from the day Arlen Specter turned Democratic to the moment Congress passed the White House’s budget blueprint and on through the opening of a spot on the Supreme Court — President Obama crossed a fateful line: From now on, it’s his country. Every president inherits a tangle of problems from his predecessor. War and recession, natural disaster and foreign crises. And for some undefined interval, new presidents argue that they should not be accountable for the troubles that arose on another’s watch.

“But inevitably, responsibility shifts. And for Obama, that time came last week, bringing both greater opportunities and greater risks. On the economy, Obama won approval Wednesday of a $3.5-trillion budget plan that aims to help pull the country out of the worst recession in decades. It also smoothes the way for one of the president’s signature domestic priorities — overhauling the nation’s healthcare system. At the same time, the budget projects a whopping $1.2-trillion deficit in 2010, undercutting Obama’s ability to bemoan Bush-era red ink… As Obama’s imprint on the economy grows, so does his ownership of the issue.

“That ownership became almost literal as Obama moved more deeply into the banking and auto industry crises… on Thursday, Obama announced he was pushing Chrysler into bankruptcy. He may take another corporate icon, General Motors, down the same path. As a kind of shareholder in chief, the president now is responsible for guiding companies with thousands of union workers and investors — firms that remain vital to the economies of states that stretch across the nation’s industrial heartland, from Pennsylvania to Illinois and south into Kentucky and Tennessee. Though the auto industry was in crisis before Obama reached the White House, his team has been in charge of the rescue effort for the last four months…

“On the political front, the decision by Pennsylvania’s senior senator to join the Democrats moved Obama to the brink of a 60-vote majority in the Senate, which could prevent Republicans from blocking his initiatives by filibuster. One of the people instrumental in persuading Specter to abandon the GOP was Vice President Joe Biden, reinforcing the appearance of White House influence on Capitol Hill. All that raised expectations that Obama should be able to win congressional approval of his core agenda. Yet Specter insisted he would not be a rubber stamp for the president. He promptly voted against the Obama budget. And although Democrats have a strong majority in the House, their control of the Senate is still far from absolute…

“As for the Supreme Court, David H. Souter’s announcement Friday that he was stepping down gives Obama a chance to start putting his mark on the court, one of the most lasting elements in a president’s legacy… No matter whom he chooses, Obama will be judged by the selection. And there is no guarantee that his pick will turn out as planned. Souter was chosen by Republican President George H.W. Bush, and in the end he disappointed the GOP base.

“Throughout last week, Obama also had to cope with fears of a global swine flu pandemic…

“The public’s reaction to Obama’s assertive steps points up the potential gains and risks of being seen as clearly in charge… An NBC-Wall Street Journal poll showed that 47% of those surveyed believe ‘government should do more,’ compared with 46% who believe ‘government is doing too many things.'”

Will President Obama Give in to Gay Activists?

The New York Times wrote on May 7:

“President Obama was noticeably silent last month when the Iowa Supreme Court overturned the state’s ban on same-sex marriage. But now Mr. Obama — who has said he opposes same-sex marriage as a Christian but describes himself as a ‘fierce advocate of equality’ for gay men and lesbians — is under pressure to engage on a variety of gay issues that are coming to the fore amid a dizzying pace of social, political, legal and legislative change.

“Two of Mr. Obama’s potential Supreme Court nominees are openly gay; some advocates, irked that there are no gay men or lesbians in his cabinet, are mounting a campaign to influence his choice to replace Justice David H. Souter, who is retiring. Same-sex marriage is advancing in states — the latest to allow it is Maine — and a new flare-up in the District of Columbia could ultimately put the controversy in the lap of the president.

“Mr. Obama’s new global health initiative has infuriated activists who say he is not financing AIDS programs generously enough. And while the president has urged Congress to pass a hate crimes bill, a high priority for gay groups, he has delayed action on one of his key campaign promises, repealing the military’s ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ rule…

“Many [gay activists] are still seething over [President Obama’s] choice of… Rick Warren, the evangelical pastor who opposes same-sex marriage, to deliver the invocation at his inaugural, and remain suspicious of Mr. Obama’s commitment to their cause…

“The White House, aware of the discontent, invited leaders of some prominent gay rights organizations to meet Monday with top officials, including Jim Messina, Mr. Obama’s deputy chief of staff, to plot legislative strategy on the hate crimes bill as well as ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.’ Among those attending was Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, who said afterward that while the gay rights agenda might not be ‘unfolding exactly as we thought,’ he was pleased. ‘They have a vision,’ Mr. Solmonese said. ‘They have a plan’…

“If Mr. Obama were to embrace same-sex marriage, he would be seen as reversing a campaign position and alienating some moderate and religious voters he has courted. And if he appoints a gay person to the Supreme Court, he would be viewed by social conservatives — including many black ministers, another of his core constituency groups — as putting a vote for same-sex marriage on the highest court in the land. Two gay women, Kathleen M. Sullivan and Pamela S. Karlan, both of Stanford Law School, have been suggested as potential nominees…

“Mr. Obama has chosen a number of openly gay people for prominent jobs, including Fred P. Hochberg as chairman of the Export-Import Bank and John Berry to run the Office of Personnel Management. And he is the first president to set aside tickets for gay families to attend the White House Easter Egg Roll…

“In addition to calling for the repeal of the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy in the military, Mr. Obama supports a legislative repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, the 1996 law that said states need not recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states…”

President Obama’s Questionable Nomination of Liberal Judge to 7th Circuit Court of Appeals

On May 7, Newsmax published the following comments:

“Breaking tradition with President George W. Bush, the Obama administration declined to host an event celebrating the National Day of Prayer this year. This adds another snub to the pro-faith community, since President Obama continues to push his recent nomination of the anti-Christian, anti-Life Judge David Hamilton, the same judge who issued controversial rulings banning public prayers offered ‘in Jesus name,’ and hastening the abortion of unborn children. If confirmed by the Senate, Hamilton will soon be promoted to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, the same court that overruled his… liberal decisions for years…

“Judge Hamilton ruled in 2005 to ban the practice of opening the Indiana legislature with prayers mentioning Jesus Christ or using terms such as ‘Savior.’ He said that amounted to state endorsement of a religion… Judge Hamilton wrote: ‘The injunction orders the Speaker… that the prayers should not use Christ’s name or title or any other denominational appeal… If those offering prayers in the Indiana House of Representatives choose to use the Arabic “Allah” …the court sees little risk that the choice of language would advance a particular religion or disparage others’… [In 2007, the] Indiana Attorney General… appealed to the 7th Circuit Court [which issued a] 2-1 decision overruling Hamilton, restoring the right to pray ‘in Jesus name’ in Indiana…

“In 2003, Judge Hamilton struck down part of an Indiana law on abortion [which…] had required abortion clinics to… give women information about alternatives to abortion in the presence of a physician or nurse, 18 hours before the procedure… [The] 7th Circuit Court… reversed Hamilton’s… decision in that case…
 
“Judge Hamilton is [one] of Obama’s 15 new liberal appeals court appointees. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals covers Wisconsin, Indiana and Illinois. Since most cases never reach the Supreme Court, the federal appellate circuits often provide the last word on cases affecting life and liberty.

“The Judicial Confirmation Network quickly opposed Hamilton’s nomination… He was nominated to the district court bench by President Clinton even though he had no judicial experience and was rated as ‘not qualified’ by the American Bar Association.

“On April 1st and… on April 29th, Senator Orrin Hatch led all Republicans to walk out of the Senate Judiciary Committee, in protest against the Democrats’ ‘rush job’ to confirm Judge Hamilton.”

German Commentators Disappointed With President Obama

Der Spiegel Online reported on May 4:

“Many had hoped that US President Barack Obama would undo all the damage done by his predecessor. Now, it looks like he might continue the Bush-era practice of trying terror suspects in military tribunals. German commentators are disappointed.

“When US President Barack Obama entered office in January and promptly pledged to shut down the US prison at Guantanamo and suspended all further military tribunals of the kind used by his predecessor George W. Bush, human rights groups across the country and the world were relieved. Finally, they thought, America would cease locking away terror suspects without recourse to the justice system… Any return to using such military commissions would be a major disappointment to human rights groups who were hoping that Obama’s election signalled a new era in America’s handling of terror suspects. As German editorials show on Monday, frustration across the Atlantic is equally high.

“In an editorial entitled ‘Obama’s Great Mistake,’ the center-left daily Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘… Obama is… discrediting both himself and the US…’

“The left-leaning daily Die Tageszeitung writes:

“‘The US government has asked Germany to accept former Guantanamo prisoners. Exactly the same government is apparently planning to continue the military commissions to try those prisoners. One could hardly be more contradictory. It is the same tactic that President Barack Obama has already used when it came to the torturers from the CIA — punish with one hand, stroke with the other. Whenever he takes a step forward, he stumbles backwards as well.

“That will likely be enough to disappoint all those Europeans who had expectations that Obama would be an almost messiah-like healer. It was expected that he would demolish all of the ugly monuments from the Bush era and then, together with Al Gore, plant a Garden of Eden over the top, through which he would drive fuel-efficient compacts from Chrysler. And now… [he] is no longer floating above the political lowlands, the swamps of compromise. He is walking directly through them and getting dirty in the process.'”

Highly Secretive Globalist Bilderbergers Meet

WorldNetDaily wrote on May 5:

“The 57th meeting of representatives from Western European and North American countries known as Bilderberg Group will be held next week at a five-star hotel in Greece, reports Daniel Estulin, an investigative author who has written a defining book on the secretive annual gathering. Estulin says his sources in Greece have confirmed the meeting will be held at the Nafsika Astir Palace Hotel in Vouliagmeni from May 14-17.

“The Bilderberg Group is an elite invitation-only conference of influential members of the business, media and political community. Past attendees have included Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton, former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Tony Blair.

“While the group claims its purpose is to facilitate discussion amongst western powers, many see the group as a means toward globalization. This year, according to Estulin’s sources, the meeting’s talking points will focus on finances, namely the future of the U.S. dollar, the economy and unemployment levels.

“Estulin also claims in a statement to have obtained a pre-meeting booklet sent out to attendees that presents a discussion of two economic options: ‘Either a prolonged, agonizing depression that dooms the world to decades of stagnation, decline and poverty … or an intense-but-shorter depression that paves the way for a new sustainable economic world order, with less sovereignty but more efficiency.’

“The Bilderberg Group meets at luxury hotels and resorts throughout the world. Last year’s conference was held at the Westfields Marriott in Chantilly, Va. Every four years the conference is held in the U.S. or Canada. The group has an office located in Leiden, South Holland, Netherlands. The highly secretive meeting is off limits to press, but past reports from sources that have managed to penetrate the high-security meetings have stated that the meetings emphasize a globalist agenda and dismiss national sovereignty as regressive.

“The BBC declared it to be one of the most influential organizations in the world. ‘It’s officially described as a private gathering,’ BBC reported, ‘but with a guest list including the heads of European and American corporations, political leaders and a few intellectuals, it’s one of the most influential organizations on the planet.’

“Attendees of the Bilderberg conference are not allowed to speak a word of what was discussed in the meeting outside of the group. The group has no website and no minutes are kept of the meetings to ensure secrecy. Last year, however, the Bilderberg Group made a press release available listing topics of discussion and providing a general overview of the gathering. ‘Approximately 140 participants will attend, of whom about two-thirds come from Europe and the balance from North America,’ the release stated. ‘About one-third is from government and politics, and two-thirds are from finance, industry, labor, education and communications. The meeting is private in order to encourage frank and open discussion.'”

“How the German Catholic Church Protected a Pedophile Priest” for Years

Der Spiegel Online reported on April 24:

“The German Catholic Church has been sheltering a priest convicted of child abuse for years. Now the pedophile, who refuses to undergo therapy, has hired private detectives to try to get his former victims to retract their testimony… This is not just a surprisingly audacious course of action for a servant of God, whose sentence was most recently upheld by Germany’s Federal Court of Justice in 2001, but it also highlights a culture of looking the other way that still prevents the Catholic Church from effectively addressing the problem of child abuse within its ranks — and apparently even encourages a number of pedophiles to act out their proclivities under the protective cloak of the church.
 
“Until recently, Father Weiss could depend on the support of his fellow priests. Even though the Archdiocese of Würzburg had to assure the court that Weiss would never be allowed to come into contact with children again, he recently delivered sermons and celebrated mass with other Franconian priests who are friends of his — in services that included altar boys. Despite reports to the police, parents’ complaints and more convictions, Weiss was merely quietly transferred from one place to another…”

Violent “Demonstrations” in Germany

Welt Online wrote on May 2:

“Riot police fought with stone-throwing left-wing militants in Berlin for more than five hours in May Day clashes that stretched into the early pre-dawn hours on Saturday. The rioting in Berlin and Hamburg came after a long day of protests and scattered violence across Germany as thousands vented anger on the Labor Day holiday over the global financial crisis…

“Authorities had braced for violence with tension running high over the economic crisis and rising unemployment. More than 5,000 riot police from across Germany were deployed in Berlin…

“Rioting on the May 1 Labor Day holiday had been on the wane in the past three years… However, the economic crisis has aggravated public anger at the growing disparity in wages. Germany is facing its worst recession since World War Two with the economy forecast to contract by 6 percent in 2009.”

Czech Senate Approves Lisbon Treaty–“No More Concessions for Ireland”

The EUObserver wrote on May 6:

“The Czech Senate on Wednesday (6 May) approved the EU’s Treaty of Lisbon, a move that was greeted with relief in Brussels and that ups the pressure on Ireland, facing its second referendum on the document. Fifty-four of the 79 senators voted in favour of the new institutional rules, which introduce an EU foreign minister, a permanent president of the European Council and widely extend the powers of the European Parliament. The lower house passed the document in February. The vote, which was preceded by six hours of debate, opens up the possibility that the treaty could come into force by the beginning of next year, a timetable pushed by France and Germany…

“For the ratification process to be completed, the treaty still has to be signed by the country’s eurosceptic president, Vaclav Klaus. He has previously indicated he would not sign it no matter what the outcome of the parliamentary votes. In a reference to Mr Klaus, the commission president said he hoped the remaining ‘constitutional requirements’ would be completed as quickly as possible…

“The Czech move significantly ups the pressure on the Irish government, which is hoping to secure a Yes vote in a referendum in the autumn after Irish voters rejected the treaty last summer. Speaking earlier on Wednesday, European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering said: ‘We’ve gone as far in our concessions to Ireland as we can…’ He indicated that member states’ ‘solidarity’ would run out if Ireland voted ‘no’ for a second time.

“Germany and Poland have also not finished ratification of the treaty, with the presidents in both countries not having signed the document. Germany’s Horst Koehler is waiting for the outcome of a legal challenge to the treaty, while Poland’s Lech Kaczynski has said he wants to await the outcome of the Irish vote before putting pen to paper.”

The German paper, “Süddeutsche Zeitung,” added the following remarks on or about May 6:

“Now it is up to the other member states of the EU to give the Irish a concrete plan, rather than just promises. The EU cannot wait until the cows come home. To be precise, the treaty must be approved by the end of October when the period of service of the current commission ends. The Irish vote will need to happen by mid-October. If that doesn’t materialize then the reforms will be put off for at least another five years — and that would mean the end of the treaty.”

The German financial daily, “Handelsblatt,” stated the following in its article, on or about May 6:

“Curiously, this breakthrough [in the Czech Republic] is partly due to the financial crisis. When a major storm rattles the global markets it becomes clear just how much security the EU offers its smaller members. The euro has protected Ireland from a powerful speculative attack on its currency. Hungary, Romania and Latvia, meanwhile, have benefited from extensive help from Brussels to deal with their balance of payments problems.

“This successful development does not mean, however, that the EU has won its battle against its opponents. In the forthcoming European elections, parties from both the right and the left are campaigning to push Europe’s emphasis back towards individual nations. They will not fail to criticize EU institutions in any way possible. In this light it is more important than ever that the national political elites stop their polemic tirades against Brussels and stand behind Europe.”

Israel Threatens the EU

Haaretz wrote on April 30:

“A Foreign Ministry official has been warning European countries that unless they curtail criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, Israel will block the European Union from participating in the diplomatic process with the Palestinians. The main target of the offensive is EU External Affairs Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner…

“Several days ago, the deputy director for Europe at the Foreign Ministry, Rafi Barak, began calling European ambassadors in Israel regarding the attitude toward the new government… Barak sharply protested the criticism by European ministers and senior EU officials about Israel’s government… Barak concluded by ‘warning’ that Europe’s influence in the area would be undermined by such behavior. ‘Israel is asking Europe to lower the tone and conduct a discreet dialog,’ he said. ‘However, if these declarations continue, Europe will not be able to be part of the diplomatic process, and both sides will lose’…

“A political source in Jerusalem noted that Ferrero-Waldner was sharply criticized by European officials, and one European foreign minister said in a private conversation that she ‘is causing damage to European foreign policy in her attacks on Israel.'”

War in the Gaza Strip

Press TV wrote on May 2:

“Israeli ground forces have launched an incursion into the Gaza Strip after the military jets bombed ‘tunnels’ beneath the border between the beleaguered sliver and Egypt… Earlier, Israeli warplanes bombed Gaza’s southern border with Egypt on Saturday after resistance fighters fired rockets at Israel in response to Israeli bombings of Gaza on Friday, Reuters reported.”

Peres Willing to Hand Over “Holy Sites” to the Vatican

The Irish Times wrote on May 5:

“A week before Pope Benedict arrives on a pilgrimage, President Shimon Peres urged Israel to relinquish control of six Christian holy sites to the Vatican… Interior minister Eli Yishai opposed the idea…

“Israeli and Vatican officials have been arguing about ownership of key holy sites since diplomatic relations were established in 1993 and the dispute is one of the obstacles preventing the upgrading of ties.”

Haaretz added on May 6:

“The Vatican’s longstanding demand that Israel transfer sovereignty of key Christian sites to the Holy See has created dissension among senior officials in Jerusalem. The Interior Ministry has vowed to retain control of the sites, calling relinquishment a ‘sacrifice’ of Israeli sovereignty… The dispute between Jerusalem and the Holy See threatens to cast a pall over next week’s visit to the Holy Land by Pope Benedict XVI. Vatican officials have made clear they intend to reiterate their demand during the visit that Israel hand over control of the Coenaculum, Army Radio reported.”

Could the Taliban Get the Bomb Before Iran Does?

Haaretz reported on May 2:

“Just when you thought you knew the unthinkable – now there’s this: ‘If the worst, the unthinkable, were to happen, and this advancing Taliban encouraged and supported by Al Qaeda and other extremists were to essentially topple the government [of Pakistan] for failure to beat them back,’ Hillary Clinton said at the weekend, ‘then they would have the keys to the nuclear arsenal of Pakistan’…

“The nightmare scenario of a nuclear Taliban was much in evidence in a Sunday editorial in The New York Times regarding the Pakistani military. ‘And – most frightening of all – if the army cannot or will not defend its own territory against the militants, how can anyone be sure it will protect Pakistan’s 60 or so nuclear weapons?’ the Times asked. Clinton was right, the Times continued, when she warned last week that Pakistan was ‘abdicating to the Taliban.'”

Most Israelis Support Attack on Iran

The Jerusalem Post reported on May 4:

“A vast majority (66%) of Israelis said they would support military action if diplomatic and economic efforts failed to get Iran to stop uranium enrichment, and of that number, 75% would support this action even if the Obama administration were opposed… Regarding the US president, most respondents have an overall favorable opinion of Barack Obama, but are skeptical about his Middle East policies… While a 60% approval rating for Obama among Israeli Jews is high, it is still significantly below the president’s popularity rating among American Jews, where tracking polls conducted through the new president’s first 100 days in office showed that 79% of Jews approved of Obama’s performance so far.”

Russia vs. NATO

The EUObserver wrote on May 1:

“Russia has taken official control of the borders of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in a 10-year deal with the two Georgian breakaway regions. The move, made in a formal ceremony at the Kremlin on Thursday (30 April), comes as Nato moves forward with planned exercises in Georgia next week and only a day after Russia and Nato resumed official contacts following the Georgian war last August.

“The European Union alongside Nato and the United States have condemned the development as a breach of the 2008 Russia-Georgia peace agreement brokered by the EU. Under the new deal, Moscow extends its responsibility for patrolling the two republics’ effective borders with Georgia proper.

“The Czech Republic, which currently sits at the helm of the EU’s six-month rotating presidency, immediately criticised Russia’s actions… Nato called the move a ‘clear contravention’ of the ceasefire agreement, a characterisation echoed by the US… US State Department spokesman Robert Wood [said] that the deal ‘violates Georgia’s territorial integrity.’

“Russia, for its part, accuses Nato of its own provocation in the region for planning military exercises in Georgia next week. ‘The planned Nato exercises in Georgia, no matter how our Western partners try to convince us otherwise, are an overt provocation,’ said Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. ‘One cannot carry out exercises in a place where there was just a war,’ he added.”

Will Russia Start Another War?

The Los Angeles Times wrote on May 1:

“Officials in Moscow lashed out bitterly at the West on Thursday, excoriating NATO for expelling two Russians suspected of spying and for pushing ahead with planned military exercises in Georgia. In sharp contrast to the Obama administration’s call for a ‘reset’ of U.S.-Russian relations and the recent thaw in Russian-NATO ties, it was a day of acrimony and veiled threats as Russian officials resorted to some of their toughest talk in weeks.

“Two high-ranking members of Russia’s permanent mission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization were stripped of their credentials and expelled from Belgium on accusations of espionage… The Russian Foreign Ministry called the expulsions ‘provocative,’ and issued a statement warning NATO to ‘think about the consequences of what happened. We will certainly make our own conclusions from this provocation…’

“Last summer’s war revolved around the fate of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, another republic that has broken with Georgia. Moscow has since recognized the two areas as newly formed, independent countries. Only Nicaragua and the Islamic militant faction Hamas joined Russia in recognizing the rebel territories, but an undeterred Moscow continues to treat the two republics as independent, albeit client, states…

“The deals could further destabilize the already fragile cease-fire in the Caucasus, some Russian analysts warned. Skirmishes have already broken out between Georgian and rebel forces. ‘Now if there are any incidents on the cease-fire lines, it will be a direct confrontation between Russia and Georgia,’ Russian military analyst Pavel Felgengauer said. ‘Which, of course, would be a good pretext for resuming the war.'”

Is Russia Trying to Annex Georgia?

Press TV wrote on May 2:

“Russia might take provocative action when NATO war games start in Georgia next week, Georgian ambassador to the US, Batou Koutelia, has said.

“‘When we see at the highest political level, the president of the Russian federation (Dmitry Medvedev) declares that he views these exercises as a provocation directed against Russian interests and they are prepared to act, it raises concerns that there might be some provocations,’ Koutelia told a couple of journalists…

“Georgia launched a military operation in August 2008 against the breakaway region of South Ossetia to bring it back under Georgia’s control. This prompted Russia to send its troops to South Ossetia, where most of the residents hold Russian citizenship. The Georgian diplomat… said this time the Georgian reaction would be different.

“‘If it happens, we are determined to have reactions together with our partners and allies, NATO member countries, United States. And we will have a joint reaction on this,’ he said.”

Die Welt Online reported on May 5:

“Georgia sent tanks to a military base near the capital Tbilisi where it said a rebellion was under way on Tuesday and accused Russia of financing a coup. There was no official reaction from Moscow and it was unclear how many were involved in the uprising at the Mukhrovani base, home to several hundred soldiers, or what its aims were… A Reuters reporter saw around 30 tanks and armoured personnel carriers moving along the main road from Tbilisi towards the base. Police would not allow correspondents to get near the facility…

“Defence Minister David Sikharulidze said the plotters wanted to undermine NATO exercises beginning this week in Georgia… [He]said the commanders of the military base 19 km (12 miles) from the capital had been dismissed and the soldiers ordered to stay in barracks. He told Rustavi 2 television that the rebellion was also ‘an attempt at a military coup.'”

Cigarette Butts Toxic to Marine Life

This week, SDSU posted the following article, dated May 1, on their website:

“Everyone knows smoking cigarettes is hazardous to their health, but a new study shows that cigarette butts can be just as dangerous for the environment. SDSU public health researcher Richard Gersberg evaluated the effects left-over cigarette butts have on marine life and found that the chemicals from just one filtered cigarette butt had the ability to kill fish living in a one-liter bucket of water…

“‘Each year, billions of cigarette butts end up on our beaches, and in our oceans, lakes and rivers,’ said Tom Novotny, chair of CBAG and professor of public health at SDSU. ‘Based on this new research, we believe that cigarettes should be considered toxic waste and new requirements need to be established for how they are disposed.’ According to Novotny’s recent article in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, an estimated 1.69 billion pounds (845,000 tons) of butts wind up as litter worldwide per year…”