Far-Right Victor Orban Wins in Hungary

JTA wrote on April 9:

“[Hungary’s] Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling Fidesz party won in a landslide, riding a wave of rhetoric and policies that have set Hungary apart from the rest of the European Union for its veneration of pro-Nazi collaborators, anti-Semitic politicians and propaganda campaigns that critics say amount to racist incitement against Jews and other minorities…

“Leaders of far-right movements in Europe – part of a rising force that since last year alone have made unprecedented gains in elections in France, Austria, Holland and Italy — celebrated Orban’s clinching of more than 49 percent as a victory for their cause.”

Der Spiegel wrote on April 9:

“It’s an historic victory for Orbán, but also for Hungary and the rest of Central and Southeastern Europe. Never before in Hungarian history and never since the end of the communist dictatorships has a party in the region scored such a commanding victory in three elections in a row.

“In an extremely divisive campaign, Orbán essentially focused on one single issue, warning against Hungary’s ‘downfall’ at the hands of ‘immigrants.’ It appears that a majority of Hungarian voters view him as the only guarantee against such a scenario.”

Skillful propagandists have always persuaded people to vote for them.

Far-Right Views All Over Europe

The Daily Mail wrote on April 4:

“Polish officials recently blamed Jewish people for their ‘own destruction’ while the Hungarian Prime Minster [Orban] declared Europeans should not ‘mix’ with Africans.

“The Croatian president on a trip to Argentina came under fire from a Holocaust survivors charity for thanking the country for taking in ‘notorious’ pro-Nazi criminals…

“Ever since WWII, such views were taboo in Europe, confined to the far-right fringes. Today they are openly expressed by mainstream political leaders in parts of Central and Eastern Europe…

“Casting himself as the savior of a white Christian Europe being overrun by Muslims and Africans, Orban has insisted that Hungarians don’t want their ‘own color, traditions and national culture to be mixed by others.’…

“Poland’s government has also been embroiled in a bitter dispute with Israel and Jewish organizations over a national law that would criminalize blaming Poland for Germany’s Holocaust crimes… The Balkans, bloodied by ethnic warfare in the 1990s, are also seeing a rise of nationalism, particularly in Serbia and Croatia…

“Meanwhile in Bulgaria, which holds the EU’s rotating presidency, the government includes a far-right alliance, the United Patriots, whose members have given Nazi salutes and slurred minorities. Deputy Prime Minister Valeri Simeonov has called the country’s Roma minority ‘ferocious humanoids’ whose women ‘have the instincts of street dogs.’…”

German Persecution of Jews Not a Thing of the Past

Deutsche Welle wrote on April 2:

“Jews were driven from their homes by Christians for almost two thousand years. In 1492 the Alhambra Edict decreed that they should be expelled from what is now Spain, after living there under Muslim rule for centuries. Many of these Jews found refuge in the Ottoman Empire… Jewish life blossomed in Ottoman cities like Thessaloniki and Sarajevo for centuries, and lasted until the Nazis arrived. Those are historical facts one should perhaps be conscious of when speaking, on the one hand, of a ‘Judeo-Christian’ tradition, and at the same time of Muslims who ‘import’ anti-Semitism…

“Anti-Semitism in Germany is not imported. Anti-Semitism is Germany’s most successful export… The Germans are a people who manage to make the security of Israel and the fight against anti-Semitism a reason of state, while at the same time devoting an entire year to celebrating the reformer Martin Luther, who called for synagogues to be burned down and rabbis banned from their work, on pain of death…

“Anti-Semitism belongs to Germany, and to Europe. It is found on the political right, the political left, and in the so-called center of society…

“Yes, we must talk about anti-Semitic attitudes among Muslims in Europe and Germany… there is the Islamic Republic of Iran, which repeatedly threatens to annihilate Israel. And there is a minority of Muslims in Europe and in Germany who approve of this… And there are prominent German politicians who… share a podium with those who seek to justify attacks on Jews…

“When Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in December, and Fatah, the supposedly moderate Palestinian party, called for ‘three days of rage,’ I didn’t need to read about it in the paper. I could see it in my neighborhood. On Sonnenallee, probably the most Arab street in Germany… you can’t venture down Sonnenallee at night in a kippah. In Germany, 2018…”

The abominable evil of anti-Semitism is not dead, but very much alive.

Doubting the Holocaust

Newsweek wrote on April 12:

“One-third of Americans think ‘substantially less’ than 6 million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust, according to a new survey that highlights a worrying lack of basic knowledge about the World War II-era genocide…

“The survey shows that 70 percent of Americans believe people care less about the Holocaust than they used to. A majority, 58 percent, said they believe something like the Holocaust could happen again…

“Around two-thirds (68 percent) of Americans believe there is anti-Semitism in the U.S. today, and a majority (51 percent) think there is either a great deal of (17 percent) or many (34 percent) neo-Nazis in the country today.”

Turkey vs. Israel… Who are the Terrorists?

The Jewish Press wrote on April 1:

“Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of being a ‘terrorist’ on Sunday, and Israel of being a ‘terrorist state’ after 16 Gazans – including 10 convicted terrorists – were killed Friday in the Hamas-driven ‘Great March of Terror’ along the Gaza border…

“In response to the epithets, Prime Minister Netanyahu blasted the Turkish leader, saying, ‘The most moral army in the world will not be preached to by someone who for years has indiscriminately bombed civilian populations. Apparently this is the way they mark April Fool’s Day in Ankara.’…

“Erdogan has long championed the rights of Gaza’s ruling Hamas terrorist organization, which was spawned by the Muslim Brotherhood, to which Turkey’s Islamist leader has for decades maintained a close affiliation.

“Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also pointed out that the so-called ‘peaceful demonstration’ was nothing of the sort, using women and children as decoys and human shields while terrorists carried out violence against Israel.”

The Bible shows that Turkey will turn completely against Israel.

Preparations for the Third Temple Worship

Breaking Israel News reported on April 2:

“On the second night of Passover, this past Saturday night, dozens of men, women and children went out to the fields to harvest barley, not so much as a reenactment but a real Temple-related Passover ceremony. The following day, the harvest was brought to Jerusalem where it was turned into flour and Kohanim (Jewish men descended from Aaron the Priest) performed a full-dress rehearsal for the Wave Offering, which will take place once again in the Third Temple.

“As are most Temple related activities, the harvesting was done with musical accompaniment…

“The Kohanim wore authentic priestly garments that conformed to the Biblical requirements. Rabbi Baruch Kahane served in the role of the Kohen Gadol (High Priest). In the Temple, a male sheep was brought as a burnt offering, but this was not done at the reenactment…”

Daily Mail added on April 2:

“Ultra-Orthodox Jews congregated at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Thursday for a mass priestly blessing on Passover – a tradition of recent decades echoing a pilgrimage from antiquity. Jewish priests wearing Talit prayer shawls took part in the Cohanim prayer in the Old City of Jerusalem…

“The Western Wall is a remnant of a supporting wall of the Second Temple complex, which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. It is accessible to non-Muslims via a ramp. Jews are allowed to visit but not pray at the compound to avoid provoking tensions…”

We know from Scripture that a third temple will be built prior to Christ’s return, and that temple worship services and animal sacrifices will resume, leading to violent confrontations in the Holy Land.

Francis: There Is No Hell!

The Guardian wrote on March 30:

“The Vatican has scrambled to clarify comments made by Pope Francis to a well-known Italian journalist that appeared to deny the existence of hell.

“The Holy See issued a terse statement saying a lengthy article published in La Repubblica on Wednesday by Eugenio Scalfari, 93, the newspaper’s founder, was ‘the fruit of his reconstruction’ and not ‘a faithful transcription of the Holy Father’s words’.

“While the Vatican conceded that Scalfari, an atheist who struck up a friendship with Francis in 2013, had held a private meeting with the pontiff before the Easter weekend, it said an interview had not been granted.

“During the meeting Scalfari asked the pope where ‘bad souls’ go, to which he was quoted as responding: ‘They are not punished. Those who repent obtain God’s forgiveness and take their place among the ranks of those who contemplate him, but those who do not repent and cannot be forgiven disappear. A hell doesn’t exist, the disappearance of sinning souls exists.’…

“Pope Benedict XVI said in 2007 that hell ‘really exists and is eternal, even if nobody talks about it much anymore’, while in 1999 Pope John Paul II announced that hell was ‘the ultimate consequence of sin itself … rather than a place, hell indicates the state of those who freely and definitively separate themselves from God, the source of all life and joy’…”

However, it was reported by the English press subsequent to 2007 that Pope Benedict had stated in a sermon that there was no hell. At that time, the Vatican chose to remain silent on the issue. In addition, Pope Francis had already declared in November 2016 that hell–or eternal damnation–was not a torture chamber, and he went on to say that the lake of fire in Revelation 20 describes the second death. But at that time, he went on to give an unbiblical explanation of the “second death” and of “the fire,” which was more in line with the official Catholic position.

CNS added on March 29:

“The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: ‘The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity. Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, ‘eternal fire’…

“As for the human soul,the Catholic Church teaches that it is eternal, immortal in countless places throughout the Catechism…”

The official teaching of the Catholic Church is clearly unbiblical.

Mainstream Media in Furor Over Francis’ Remarks

Life Site News wrote on April 4:

“Mainstream media was in a furor last week over the news of Pope Francis purportedly saying that ‘hell does not exist’ and that unrepentant souls in mortal sin simply ‘disappear.’…

“The story was highlighted in the United States by the Drudge Report… It linked to a March 29 article by Michael W. Chapman of CNS News, who called Francis’s alleged remarks ‘a denial of the 2,000-year-old teaching of the Catholic Church about the reality of Hell and the eternal existence of the soul.’…

“The New York Times led with the news that the Vatican had responded to the Repubblica piece with an assertion that Pope Francis does indeed believe in hell…

“Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh said that ‘it was easy to see, with this pope, that the left is even corrupting the Catholic Church’…

“The Wall Street Journal intimated that with his remarks, which the Vatican did not deny, Pope Francis had yet again astonished. ‘It was an extreme yet telling example of how Pope Francis has shaken up perceptions of Catholic doctrine,’ wrote Francis X. Rocca, ‘drawing widespread attention from the non-Catholic world and causing turmoil within the church… Part of Pope Francis’ strategy has been generally to play down the importance of formal teaching’…”

This could be his way of trying to unite traditional Christianity under the umbrella of the Catholic Church.

Preparing for War?

Der Spiegel wrote on April 2 (our translation):

“War, war, war… People don’t want peace. Something is lacking for them when there is no war. That is why they are preparing for it… Who demonstrates today for peace?…

“At the end of the Cold War, there was a short-lived hope that a time of peace had begun. But that was an illusion. There is no peace… People say that they hate war. But this is not true… Quite to the contrary, a person is viewed with suspicion when he speaks of peace. Because he supposedly supports “our enemies”: Russia, the Palestinians, Iran, China, North Korea…

“We still destroy cities and countries in order to liberate them. We have learned nothing since Vietnam… until now, everybody who wants to rearm has said, ‘When you want peace, prepare for war.’”

The Bible says that mankind does not know the way to peace. Satan the devil rules this world, and he is the “god” of war. Mankind, being cut off from God, follows their leader and ruler, having adopted his evil desires.

New US Tax Law a Mess!

Yahoo News, Reuters, April 2:

“The largest association of accounting professionals on Monday asked the U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to clarify whether the new Republican tax law allows continued deduction of business meals and other work expenses.

“Treasury and the IRS are the two agencies crafting rules to implement the tax overhaul passed in December. It will take effect for the 2018 tax year. The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) said taxpayers need ‘immediate guidance’ on deducting business meals and other work-related expenses, such as entertainment and membership dues, all of which are affected by the new tax legislation…

“The AICPA represents more than 418,000 accounting professionals. It asked the agencies for more information on the deductibility of client-related business meals, employer-provided business meals and other food, employer-hosted recreational events, advertising, charitable contributions, transportation expenses and membership dues. While the new law says ‘entertainment expenses’ are no longer deductible, it has caused confusion about the deductibility of business meals, the AICPA said.

“Previously, taxpayers could deduct half the cost of most business meals. The AICPA asked the agencies to affirm the deductibility of such meals, and also for business meals paid for separately that occur before or after an entertainment event.

“There is also confusionon whether costs of employer-hosted events, such as employee appreciation days or holiday parties, are still deductible, the AICPA said. The IRS said it had received the AICPA’s letter and was in the process of reviewing it.

“Tax writers in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate have acknowledged they will pursue multiple fixes to provisions of the sweeping tax bill with unintended consequences… But passing a separate bill to address other ‘technical corrections’ could be difficult, as the midterm congressional elections near in November 2018, aides have said.

“The U.S. Chamber of Commerce last month identified more than 35 portions of the tax law that need additional clarification,either in additional legislation or by agency rulemaking.”

Of course, when laws are pushed through for the purpose of political gain, without reading and analyzing them, then this is the inevitable consequence.

Pax Trumpia Threat to Germany

On March 26, former German Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister, Joschka Fischer, wrote in Project Syndicate:

“After a year in which US President Donald Trump did not follow through on his promised protectionism, he has finally done so. It is quickly becoming clear that Trump’s attacks on free tradeare not just about global commerce, but about the entire rules-based international system…

“His decision to impose $50 billion in punitive import tariffs on many Chinese goods could severely disrupt global trade. And while he made a last-minute decision to exempt EU goods from such tariffs, Europe may yet end up in the line of fire…

“Trump’s protectionist policies thus challenge the entire German economic modelas it has existed since the 1950s. The fact that Trump has repeatedly singled out Germany, one of America’s closest allies in Europe, is no small matter…

“In Germany, there should be no illusions about what a transatlantic trade war would mean… now is hardly the time for disunity. The United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU is already causing political dissonance among member states, and anti-European populists have just won a combined parliamentary majority in Italy…

“Europeans are on their own. One hopes that Europeans can act quickly to preserve their unity and salvage the international system that has provided them with peace and prosperity for generations.”

Most European nations are aware of the danger they face from the outside and from within. They will move quickly to bring about total unity, under the leadership of a charismatic ruthless and deceiving individual.

Stocks Worst Since the Great Depression

Bloomberg wrote on April 2:

“U.S. stocks had their worst April start since 1929, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The S&P 500 index slumped 2.2 percent, a rout exceeded only by its 2.5 percent decline 89 years ago, a prelude to the devastating crash later that year that brought on the Great Depression. (Back then, the index only comprised 90 stocks.)…

“The stock slide also looked pretty bad when compared to the beginning of other quarters. Equities lost more than on any other quarterly first day since October 2011, when stocks plummeted 2.8 percent, Bloomberg data show.”

These are the signs of the time, and they don’t look pretty.

USA Condemns Syria and Russia for Chemical Weapons Attack

Newsmax wrote on April 10:

“U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Monday condemned theRussia-backed regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad — as well as Moscow and Iran — for a chemical weapons attack that killed dozens of mostly women and children in strife-torn Douma.

“In an impassioned speech at the U.N., Haley declared, ‘Only a monster does this.’ She then called the ‘Russian regime whose hands are all covered in the blood of Syrian children.’ ‘We must not overlook Russian and Iran’s roles in the murderous destruction,’ she said. ‘Russia and Iran have military advisers at Assad’s air field and operations centers. Russian officials are on the ground helping direct the regimes starve and surrender campaign. And Iranian allied forces do much of the dirty work.’”

Previously, President Trump named Vladimir Putin as one of those responsible for the Syrian atrocities. The pressure is on President Trump to decide whether or not to launch a military attack on Syria. According the news reports, Israel already launched several strikes on Syria.

Russia Warns USA and Vetoes UN Resolution

The Associated Press reported on April 10:

“A retired Russian general says any clash between the U.S. and Russia in Syria would quickly escalate beyond the region… He said in televised remarks Tuesday that Russian advisers are deployed across Syria and could be hurt by a U.S. strike.

“Russia has vetoed a U.S.-drafted U.N. resolution that would have condemned last weekend’s suspected gas attack near Damascus… The vote Tuesday afternoon in the 15-member Security Council was 12 in favor, Bolivia joining Russia in voting ‘no,’ and China abstaining.”

Why anyone would have thought that Russia would approve the UN resolution is beyond comprehension. The UN is a meaningless paper tiger and incapable of bringing about any substantive change or progress.

Situation in Syria Escalates

Deutsche Welle wrote on April 11:

“A spokesman for the Russian president has dismissed Trump’s ‘Twitter-diplomacy’ in a call for caution. The US president had earlier warned Russia to ‘get ready’ for American missiles that ‘will be coming’ to Syria… Trump… wrote in a Twitter post: ‘Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and “smart!” You shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!’…

“A top official in Iran, which also backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said his country would defend its ally against ‘foreign aggression.’…

“The US has been consulting with France and Britain over a military responseto Saturday’s alleged chemical weapons attack…”

The Sun wrote on April 12:

“Trump has back-pedaled on his threat to bomb Assad… Today, he

posted: ‘Never said when an attack on Syria would take place. Could be very soon or not so soon at all! In any event, the United States, under my Administration, has done a great job of ridding the region of ISIS. Where is our ‘Thank you America?'”

President Trump also stated that the current relationship between the USA and Russia is worse than it was during the Cold War.

Fears of World War 3

Express wrote on April 12:

“World War 3: Theresa May calls EMERGENCY ‘war’ cabinet meeting as strike on Syria looms. THERESA May has called an emergency ‘war’ Cabinet meeting to discuss the crisis in Syria and the potential for imminent British military strikes against the Assad regime after US President Donald Trump signalled the US was ready to take action…

“Israel latest to back MILITARY ACTION in Syria as Netanyahu signals he is ready for WW3. ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Wednesday for action to be taken against Syria, as the UK, the US and numerous allies signalled they are gearing up for a military strike against the Assad regime following a chemical attack in Douma.”

“Australia’s Malcolm Turnbull SLAMS Russia and Syria for chemical attack as WW3 fears grow. AUSTRALIA’s Prime Minister appears to have given his backing to military action in Syria in response to the alleged chemical attack on civilians last weekend.”

Deutsche Welle wrote on April 12:

“Macron said… French and US officials were ‘working very closely, and we will have decisions to take, at the time we choose, when we consider it most useful and most effective.’…

“In Berlin, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany would not participate in any military strike on Syria.”

Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would not participate in a military strike either.

US Presidency Under Siege

The Daily Mail wrote on April 10:

“Donald Trumplashed out at his own Justice Department on Tuesday morning, following FBI raids on his longtime personal lawyer’s offices, home and hotel. ‘Attorney–client privilege is dead!’ Trump tweeted.

“The White House has yet to formulate a strategy for dealing with the fallout of an apparent criminal investigation of Michael Cohen by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Trump… is most angry about what he thought was an impenetrable barrier: the decades-old secrecy between Cohen and himself.

“Trump called Monday’s raid ordered by federal prosecutors on his personal attorney Michael Cohen’s hotel  room and offices ‘an attack on our country and what we all stand for’…

“Famed Harvard lawyer Alan Dershowitz…, a liberal who voted for Hillary Clinton, said Monday night that ‘this is a very dangerous day today for lawyer-client relations’. ‘This may be an attempt to squeeze Cohen… to get him to turn against his client,’ Dershowitz said in the clip… If this were Hillary Clinton [having her lawyer’s office raided], the ACLU would be on every TV station in America jumping up and down,’ Dershowitz protested. ‘The deafening silence of the ACLU and civil libertarians about the intrusion into the lawyer-client confidentiality is really appalling.‘

“When FBI agents swooped in on Cohen’s office Monday they seized a trove of documents related to the Stormy Daniels case and communications between the attorney and the president, in a dramatic escalation of Robert Mueller’s special counsel probe. They took his phone, personal computer and bank records – and Cohen is now under a microscope for both possible bank fraud and campaign finance violations.

“This indicates that Cohen is being investigated for using a home equity line of credit to borrow the $130,000 he paid Daniels, a porn star whose real name is Stephanie Clifford. If Cohen did in fact lie to obtain credit from a ‘federally insured financial institution,’ he could be charged with a felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison. And if the payment is found to be an ‘in-kind contribution’ to Trump’s campaign, as it came just days before the election, Cohen could be facing a second felony. Violating campaign contribution limits is punishable by up to five years in prison…

“The president on Monday also called Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators ‘the most conflicted group of people I have ever seen.’ ‘This is the most biased group of people. These people have the biggest conflicts of interest I’ve ever seen. Democrats all, just about all,’ Trump said, although Mueller himself is a Republican…”

It was also reported that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein (a Republican) personally approved Monday’s FBI raid on President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Michael Cohen.

Boehner Promotes Medical Marijuana

The Hill wrote on April 11:

“Former House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has joined the board of a top cannabis corporation to promote the use of medical marijuana, a shift in his once-adamant opposition to legalization of the substance. Boehner released a statement Wednesday on Twitter saying that his ‘thinking on cannabis has evolved… I’m convinced de-scheduling the drug is needed so we can do research, help our veterans, and reverse the opioid epidemic ravaging our communities,’ Boehner said.

“Acreage Holdings is one of the nation’s largest cannabis corporations. Boehner will also be joined on the Board of Advisors by former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, who won the Libertarian nomination for vice president in 2016. In a joint statement, the pair said they are hoping to de-schedule cannabis from a Class 1 drug at the federal level so it can be used for medical purposes…

“While dozens of states have moved to legalize marijuana in some form — either recreationally or for medicinal purposes — the substance is still prohibited at the federal level and is classified in the same category as heroin and LSD… Current Republican lawmakers said in February that they were optimistic about passing cannabis legislation in 2018.”

It’s about time. The Federal’s Class 1 drug designation of medical marijuana is totally ridiculous.

Brexit… a Managed Surrender for Britain

Politico wrote on March 23:

“Forget red lines, bellicose declarations and rhetoric about the United Kingdom taking back control — Brexit so far has been a process of managed surrender. British officials acknowledge that Prime Minister Theresa May has mostly had to accept the European Union’s terms for the divorce…

“However, the Brits insist, the real negotiation starts now and much is still to play for… Dream on! The withdrawal talks are likely to become even more lopsided as an unofficial October deadline for agreement on the framework of the future U.K.-EU relationship draws near. Any resemblance with a negotiation among equals is purely cosmetic…

“And that means the rest of the Brexit process is likely to look very much like it has thus far: a thunderous standoff masking a gradual retreat.”

Prince Charles Plans to Make Australia a Republic

Express wrote on April 2:

“Prince Charles, who is next-in-line to the throne wants Australia to become a republic… to be independent of the British Monarchy [it has been reported].

“The Prince will be in Australia this month for the start of the Commonwealth Games. The Games will kick-off with the Royal reading the Queen’s ‘secret message in a bottle.’ Prince Charles will have to remove the message from a baton that has made its way around the former British Empire nations that make up the Commonwealth.

“Commonwealth Games Federation CEO David Grevemberg said: “It all goes back to her speech to the Commonwealth on her 21st birthday in Cape Town in 1947 and dedicating her life to the Commonwealth.”

However, those former days of glory are long gone for “Great” Britain and the “British” Commonwealth.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

“Vladimir Putin’s Great Deceit”

Deutsche Welle wrote on March 18:

“It’s no surprise that Vladimir Putin was re-elected as Russian president. The outcome of this bogus election was preordained…

“The Kremlin controls every aspect of the political process in Russia and it didn’t leave anything to chance during this electoral spectacle… Many Russians undoubtedly voted for him; he is clearly popular with the public. But he is popular because the Kremlin has for years blocked other politicians from developing their own public profiles in the centrally controlled media… The president’s power rests not only on state repression, but also to the media’s portrayal of him as Russia’s only conceivable leader…

“Where will Putin lead Russia in the next few years? Many in the West fear Russia’s unpredictable and aggressive stance on the international stage, as NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg most recently put it. The poisoning of the former Russian agent Sergei Skripal in the UK with a military-grade nerve agent made it clear that Putin is prepared to further escalate confrontation with the West…

“Russia has fallen behind economically and technologically, particularly compared to China, but also compared to the US, Japan and the EU. Russians sense their incomes are falling. But the Kremlin-controlled propaganda machine drowned out the homemade causes for the economic and social stagnation with anti-Western rhetoric and messages of bogus military strength…

“Putin will not change his course during his next term. Real reforms to the Russian economy and state would inevitably undermine the foundations of his power…”

Congratulating Putin?

The Week wrote on March 21:

“President Trump defended his decision to congratulate Russian President Vladimir Putin on his re-election earlier this week, tweeting Wednesday ‘in past, Obama called him also,’ ‘getting along with Russia (and others) is a good thing, not a bad thing,’ and ‘PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH!’

“The Washington Post had reported that Trump was warned in all caps by national security advisers not to congratulate Putin, and aides told the president he needed to condemn the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in England earlier this month, widely blamed on Moscow. Trump didn’t bring this up, the Post reports…”

Bild Online commented that some of the few leaders who did NOT congratulate Putin were Theresa May from England and Justin Trudeau from Canada, congratulating them for their backbone and strength of character.

Italian Election… Putin the Real Winner

The Hill wrote on March 8:

“Within Italy, the big winners in the March 4 elections were the two populist parties, who between them pulled in roughly 50 percent of the vote.

“The 5 Star Movement, which emphasizes the ‘drain the swamp’ part of the populist message, was the leading party, with 32 percent of the vote for both chambers of the Italian parliament. The League, more akin to the anti-immigrant policies [of] Marine Le Pen’s National Front in France, pulled about 17 percent, easily topping the center-right Let’s Go Italy (Forza Italia) of Silvio Berlusconi, disappointed in his hopes of returning to the forefront of Italian politics.

“Outside Italy, though, the undisputed winner was Vladimir Putin. But the strong and public Russian connections of Italy’s populist parties could have very concrete impacts on Italian policy going forward.

“The League, for example, has regularly protested European Union sanctions against Russia. In March 2017, League chief Matteo Salvini even signed a cooperation agreement with United Russia, Putin’s political party, which holds the lion’s share of votes in the Duma. Much of the agreement reportedly deals with exchanges of information and meetings between party and parliamentary representatives, but promotion of Italy-Russia trade and economic cooperation evidently also figured… Evidence of the 5 Star Movement’s friendly ties with Russia is also abundant…

“Putin doesn’t need, and presumably does not expect, an overtly pro-Russian shift in Italy. It’s already a help to Russia that one of the largest West European countries, the fourth largest European economy (in the top ten worldwide), an active contributor to NATO, and historically close to the United States, will be effectively paralyzed.”

Sooner than expected by many, Italy will become anti-Russian, as will be all of the countries within the EU. In fact, war will break out between Europe and Far Eastern nations, including Russia and China (note our article on China below). For more information, please read our free booklet, “Biblical Prophecy… From Now until Forever.”  Also note the next article on Germany and Russia.

“Is Germany Turning on Russia?”

Handelsblatt Global wrote on March 21:

“Germany’s new foreign minister, Heiko Maas, has indicated a tougher line against the Russian bear since taking up his post a week ago. While former foreign minister and now German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier was busying congratulating President Vladimir Putin on his recent election win, Mr. Maas had far harsher words. ‘There certainly can be no claim to fair political competition in all respects,’ he said.

“… he was working on a joint statement with his EU colleagues condemning Russia for its alleged involvement in the poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal in Britain. For the Europeans, who view Russia as a threat since its invasion of Ukraine in 2014, there is only one plausible explanation: an assassination attempt ordered by the state.

“‘The first statements suggest that Maas is counting on clear opposition to Russia’s aggressive course, which violates international law,’ Norbert Röttgen, head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the German parliament, the Bundestag, told Handelsblatt. He is calling for a continuation of the ‘firm, consistent policy of non-acceptance of Russian aggression’ that Chancellor Angela Merkel has pursued alongside other European and NATO partners…

“Other members of the Bundestag take a different view, with a cross-party alliance of friends of Russia taking shape. Most recently, Bundestag Vice President Wolfgang Kubicki, from the pro-business FDP party, spoke out in favor of ending sanctions imposed against Russia following its annexation of Crimea ‘step by step.’ The policy largely reflects business interests. There are 5,000 German companies with operations in Russia, and they believe business will pick up significantly if the sanctions are lifted.

“Ms. Merkel is unlikely to shift her line. Those who set the tone in her government do not trust Mr. Putin and see his expansive foreign policy as a threat to the European security architecture…

“Beyond economic cooperation, the overlap of common interests is shrinking. Russia intervenes in neighboring countries, launching cyberattacks in Europe and the US. And in Syria it is waging a merciless bombing war against the opponents of dictator Bashar al-Assad…”

Russian Cyber Operatives Attacking the USA

The website of thenextweb wrote on March 16:

“Russian cyber operatives are attacking critical American infrastructure such as energy grids, nuclear facilities, aviation systems, and water processing plants, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

“The report details numerous attempts, since at least March of 2016, where Russian cyber operatives targeted government entities and multiple US critical infrastructure sectors.”

Russia stands also accused of having meddled through cyber-attacks in European nations.

The Threat of Cyber Attacks and Solar Storms

The Telegraph wrote on March 17:

“British cities would be uninhabitable within days and the country is only a few meals from anarchy if the National Grid was taken down in a cyber attack or solar storm, disaster and security experts have warned. Modern life is so reliant on electricity that a prolonged blackout would quickly lead to a loss of water, fuel, banking, transport and communications that would leave the country ‘in the Stone Age’.

“The warning comes weeks after the Defence Secretary, Gavin Williamson, said Russia had been spying on the UK’s energy infrastructure and could cause ‘thousands and thousands and thousands’ of deaths if it crippled the power supply…

“As well as a cyber attack, other black sky risks include extreme weather, an electromagnetic pulse caused by a nuclear detonation in the atmosphere and terrorist attacks on key substations or transformers. One of the most destructive risks would be a powerful solar storm. A previous storm in 1859, now known as the Carrington Event, caused so much geomagnetic disruption that telegraph operators reported sparks bursting out of their machines. Such a storm today could cause havoc to electrical systems.

“One of the biggest problems would be that water supplies and sewage services rely on electrical pumps… Fuel would also quickly run out because it requires electrical pumps, meaning transport and deliveries to shops, hospitals and institutions would quickly cease. As communications like the internet and phones failed, the Government would struggle to tell people what was going on…”

These predictions are by no means far-fetched, but they are of real concerns.

“Britain Has Taken Leave of its Senses”

The Daily Mail wrote on March 19:

“Not a day goes by without lunacy hitting the headlines… Take the story over the weekend about the two women who gatecrashed a men-only swimming session in South London, after telling staff they ‘self-identified’ as male… The women were feminists, making a legitimate protest against new gender equality laws that would allow people to pick their own sex, regardless of biology…

“The real problem arises when men who identify as women demand the right to use exclusively female facilities… Yet the Government is considering letting people self-certify their gender without any medical diagnosis…

“Hospitals have stopped calling mothers ‘mothers’ because it might upset the trans-fascists. A couple of weeks ago, retailers were knocking out gender-free Mother’s Day cards…

“This is the crazy world we live in, one in which a private girls’ school is thinking of installing ‘gender-neutral’ toilets, even though it has no transgender pupils… is this a serious country, or a joke …

“For instance, would any serious country give houseroom to an alleged ‘asylum-seeker’, who claims to have trained with Izal in Syria, boasts about hating the West and, after being lavished with money and kindness, attempts to blow up hundreds of people on the London Underground? No serious country would run down its Armed Forces, as successive governments in Britain have done, at a time of heightened tensions in the world… Nor would a serious country commission two expensive aircraft carriers, without bothering to provide the aircraft to use them. A serious country wouldn’t shut three-quarters of its police stations, withdraw foot patrols and expect victims to report crimes over the internet.

“In a serious country, the Old Bill wouldn’t fritter away millions pursuing ‘historic’ sex crimes allegations against former prime ministers and other public figures who are dead. A serious country wouldn’t turn a blind eye to the systematic rape of thousands of young girls by men of mostly Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin because coppers and so-called child protection officers were scared of being called ‘racist’…

“In a serious, mature democracy, MPs wouldn’t grant the people a binding referendum on national sovereignty and then move heaven and earth trying to undermine and overturn the result.

“…forgive me if I ignore the confected fury over Facebook data being used to target potential Donald Trump voters. The Guardian, in particular, is getting terribly excited. If Hillary Clinton had won, we’d never have heard any more about it. In fact, when Obama was elected in 2008, he was hailed as a genius for the way in which his campaign used social media.

“And in 2012, one publication carried this glowing report: ‘Barack Obama’s re-election team are building a vast digital data operation that for the first time combines a unified database on millions of Americans with the power of Facebook to target individual voters to a degree never achieved before. ‘Facebook is also being seen as a source of invaluable data on voters . . . thus allowing the campaign to access their personal data and add it to the central data store — the largest, most detailed and potentially most powerful in the history of political campaigns.’ That publication?… The Guardian.”

So it seems indeed that Britain has taken leave of its senses… but so have most countries around the world, especially in Western Europe and the USA.

Germany: “US Will Fail if It Tries to Split Europe”

AFP wrote on March 18:

“US President Donald Trump ‘will not succeed’ in dividing European nations against one another over trade, German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier warned… In the European Union ‘we are a customs union and act collectively…’

“The US leader says the shock measures are in response to ‘unfair’ trade practices, but the EU has vowed to retaliate…”

The relationship between the USA and Europe (and Germany in particular) is bound to deteriorate drastically. For more information, please read our free booklets, The Fall and Rise of Britain and America and Europe in Prophecy. 

EU Needs to Take the Lead in Maintaining Global Trade System

Euractiv wrote on March 20:

“As America retreats after Trump’s plans to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, the world is moving on. Now is the time for the EU to take the lead in maintaining the global trade system…

“The EU is right to prepare for a fight… The EU and national European governments must continue to press Washington on the folly of the tariffs…

“Across the world, countries are taking trade initiatives which sidestep the US… The EU-Japan free trade agreement is almost done… The US may not want to play ball but many other countries are ready to do so.”

In the not-too-distant future, the EU will take a leading role in economic AND military matters, while the USA will become more and more irrelevant.

EU Exempted from US Tariffs; China Being Hit Hard

CNN wrote on March 22, 2018:

“President Trump is granting more exemptions to his steel and aluminum tariffs — and dodging a trade war with key US allies. The European Union, Argentina, Brazil, South Korea and Australia will not be subject to the trade penalties when they take effect Friday… Exemptions for Canada and Mexico were previously announced…”

Newsmax wrote on March 22, 2018:

“The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 700 points on trade fears, tumbling back into correction territory as U.S. stocks plunged the most in six weeks amid the threat of an escalating trade war with China that has the potential to disrupt global growth… President Donald Trump ordered tariffs on about $50 billion in Chinese goods.”

Deutsche Welle wrote on March 22:

“US companies from Walmart to Amazon have warned that sweeping sanctions against China could raise consumer prices and hit the stock market… IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde warn[ed] of a global trade conflict that could undermine the broadest world recovery in years… According to a Bloomberg Economics estimate, a global trade conflagration could wipe $470 billion off the world economy by 2020.”

Terrible and Rotten US Budget Deal

Newsmax reported on March 22:

“Sen. Rand Paul has denounced the $1.3 trillion federal budget bill as ‘rotten, terrible’… lawmakers put together the massive spending bill [Wednesday night], which passed in the House Thursday. The Senate now needs to approve it and send it to the White House for President Donald Trump to sign [which he grudgingly declared he would do]. If it’s not approved by midnight Friday night, a government shutdown will occur.

“‘You have to know what’s in it. Really, should we be looking at 1,000-page bills with 24 hours to decide what’s in them? It’s really not a good way to run your government,’ Paul [said]. Government spending, Paul said, is out of control… ‘I’m upset that we’re spending like every Democrat that we criticized,’ Paul said… The national debt eclipsed the $21 trillion dollar mark last week.”

New National Security Adviser for Trump

The Daily Mail wrote on March 22:

“President Donald Trump will replace National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster with John Bolton on April 9, the White House announced late Thursday. Bolton, a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, is a hawkish conservativewith a pugnacious streak – and a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel. He is also a fierce opponent of the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal… Bolton will be the third person to be Trump’s chief national security aide in his 14-month presidency.

“Trump has clashed with McMaster repeatedly in recent months, telling confidants that he considers the general a long-winded bore.  His departure comes barely a week after the president dramatically ousted former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in a tweet…

“[Bolton] remains a firm believer in the wisdom of President George W. Bush’s Iraq war, which Trump has routinely cast as a colossal mistake and a waste of money that could have been spent domestically…

“McMaster was originally hired as a quick-fix replacement for Gen. Michael Flynn, who was fired after mere weeks as National Security Advisor because he hid from Vice President Mike Pence and other officials the nature and extent of his contacts with Russia’s U.S. ambassador.”

Bolton has also repeatedly advocated nuclear war with North Korea.

China’s Dangerous Dictatorship

CNN wrote on March 20:

“China is ready to fight the ‘bloody battle’ against its enemies in its determination to take its place in the world, declared President Xi Jinping in a nationalist speech Tuesday that underlined his strongman rule over the world’s most populous country… His words were a rallying cry for his second term as President, a role he looks set to hold for life after China changed its constitution to remove presidential term limits. That move ensures Xi’s place as the country’s unquestioned political supremo in a world where China’s reach is extending further than ever before and rival superpower the United States is taking a back seat.

“At many points in his televised speech he harkened back to the country’s imperial past which critics have accused him of seeking to emulate as an emperor-like figure.  Xi listed China’s historic achievements — such as the invention of paper, Confucianism, and building the Great Wall — and the country’s experience of invasion from outside and ‘defending the national independence and freedom.’ He had strong language for supporters of formal independence for Taiwan or Hong Kong, saying that ‘not a single inch of our land’ could be ceded from China…  Beijing regards the island as a breakaway province to be retaken by force if necessary…

“Xi has been accused of pursuing a cult of personality similar to Mao’s… Xi’s power is even more concentrated than Mao’s…  Xi has now assumed absolute control of the party, army and state… In his speech, Xi stressed the importance of reforming China’s military and the absolute power of the Communist Party over the country…

“Xi’s installation as China’s absolute leader comes as his ally Vladimir Putin scored a record third term as Russian President with a landslide win in an election in which no real opposition was permitted to run. While Putin is more constrained by needing to keep to at least the appearance of representative democracy, he and Xi are the most prominent of a host of world leaders rolling back voting rights and shoring up their own authority.  Putin is cleared to rule Russia for six more years, and some analysts predicted he may follow Xi’s lead and remove term limits in order to serve indefinitely, pointing to the lack of a likely successor to the presidency.”

Israel Did Destroy Nuclear Reactor in Syria!

The Times of Israel wrote on March 21:

“After more than a decade of stubborn silence, Israel has finally acknowledged that its Air Force destroyed the Syrian nuclear reactor, on the night between September 5 and 6, 2007. Built by North Korea, the reactor was designed to produce plutonium as fissile material for nuclear bombs… When Israel struck, the Syrians were only weeks away from beginning to produce highly radioactive materials…

“Plainly, the decision by [Ehud] Olmert [Prime Minister at that time] to blow up the complex — after he had unsuccessfully asked then-president George W. Bush to do so — prevented Assad from attaining nuclear weapons. Potentially, it also prevented the world’s most bloodthirsty terrorists from acquiring the world’s most lethal weapons.”

Warning for Iran

JTA added on March 21:

“It is the second time that Israel has acknowledged destroying the nuclear reactor of an enemy country. In 1981 the IDF bombed the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq, for which it immediately claimed credit. ‘The message of the attack on the reactor in 2007 is that Israel will not accept the construction of a capability that threatens the existence of the State of Israel. That was the message in ’81. That was the message in 2007. And that is the message to our enemies for the future,’ IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot said…

“Yisrael Katz, the intelligence minister, was more explicit in saying that the acknowledgment was a signal to Iran. ‘The courageous decision of the Israeli government almost 11 years ago to destroy the nuclear reactor in Syria and the successful operation following it sends a clear message: Israel will never allow nuclear weapons to countries like Iran who threaten its existence,’ he said.”

Third Temple a Growing Worldwide Phenomenon

Breaking Israel News wrote on March 5:

“A newly minted coin featuring President Trump, King Cyrus, and the Third Temple has been featured in media around the world, graphically illustrating that support for the Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount is now a global phenomenon that is transcending political and religious boundaries.

“Three weeks ago, the nascent Sanhedrin and the Mikdash (Temple) Educational Center, a non-profit organization for education about the Temple, partnered in a risky venture to mint a commemorative medallion with an image of President Donald Trump and the Persian King Cyrus. The flip side features a stylized image of the Third Temple. Both signed a contract to mint 1,000 coins in the hope that the message on the coin that calls out to the US president to support the Jewish claim to the Temple Mount, would resonate with enough people to cover the total expense of the coins. They offered the coins to the public for a minimum donation of $50, and the response has exceeded all their expectations…

“Rabbi Hillel Weiss, the spokesman for the Sanhedrin, was surprised by the overwhelming response, but the message was clear to him: Support for the Third Temple is growing…

“The source for the concept behind the coin is the Biblical silver half-shekel that was collected in Temple Times from every Jewish man. The Trump medallion does not adhere to the requirements of this Biblically mandated coin but proceeds from sales of the coin will go towards projects educating the public about the Jewish Temple…

“The next project that the two organizations will cooperate on is a reenactment of the Paschal Sacrifice on March 26. At that time, Kohanim (Jewish men of priestly descent) will recreate the Temple service in a manner resembling the Temple service as much as possible. They will be dressed in the priestly garments and using silver vessels intended for use in the Third Temple. A lamb will be sacrificed and roasted in a Biblically authentic manner.”

The Bible predicts that a third temple will be built. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of the Jewish People.” 

Pope Francis: Don’t Wear Crosses as Ornaments

Fox News wrote on March 20:

“The Pope hit out at the ‘abuse’ of the crucifix by people who wear them as fashion accessories… Pope Francis said that the crucifix is a religious sign to be ‘contemplated and understood’, rather than merchandised [and] not to be ‘abused’ by being treated as an ornament or clothing accessory.”

This won’t make many Catholics happy. In addition, the t-cross is a pagan symbol and not to be placed in Christian churches or homes. Further, it is not to be worn, worshipped or idolized by Christians at all. Note our Q&A on the cross. Also read our two Q&As on the sign of the cross. https://www.eternalgod.org/what-is-the-origin-of-the-sign-of-the-cross-should-christians-make-the-sign-of-the-cross-part-1/ and https://www.eternalgod.org/what-is-the-origin-of-the-sign-of-the-cross-should-christians-make-the-sign-of-the-cross-part-2/

Pope: “Nothing Wrong With Tattoos”

Breitbart wrote on March 20:

“There is nothing wrong with tattoos, Pope Francis told a group of young people Monday, urging them to be open to cultural expressions of ‘belonging’… the pope said that the problem is that some people exaggerate by covering their body with tattoos, but ‘the problem is the exaggeration, not the tattoos.’ …

“‘Don’t be afraid of tattoos,’ the pope [said], noting that for many years Eritrean Christians and others have gotten tattoos of the cross on their foreheads…”

The pope is dead wrong on this issue as well. Please read our Q&A on tattoos.

Polish Catholic Priest Wishes the Pope’s Death

The Associated Press reported on March 17:

“Poland’s leading archbishop deplored on Sunday comments by a senior conservative priest who had wished Pope Francis a quick death if he does not open to ‘wisdom.’ Krakow Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski said he heard about the comments with ‘great pain and regret’ and has discussed them face-to-face with Msgr. Edward Staniek, who made them in a Feb. 25 church speech in Krakow.

“Krakow was the seat of Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, the late Pope St. John Paul II. Poland’s church remains attached to John Paul’s conservative stance, which largely differs from Francis’ inclusive message. A majority of Poland’s bishops see their mission as preserving the traditional Catholic values from the pressure of secularization. In his speech, Staniek, who is a prominent theologian… said that Francis has departed from the teaching of Jesus and was wrongly interpreting mercy as opening up to Muslims and allowing communion for divorced Catholics, who, according to the church, live in mortal sin and are not allowed communion… Staniek suggested Francis was an ‘alien body’ in the Catholic Church.”

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

Trump Fires Tillerson!

The Washington Post reported on March 13:

“President Trump said Tuesday he has ousted Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and plans to nominate CIA Director Mike Pompeo to replace him as the nation’s top diplomat, orchestrating a major change to his national security team amid delicate outreach that includes possible talks with North Korea.

“Trump and Tillerson have had a fraught relationship for many months. Trump told reporters Tuesday that he ultimately decided to fire the secretary because they disagreed over strategy in key areas of foreign policy, such as the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, the approach to North Korea and the overall tone of U.S. diplomacy…

“Trump selected CIA Deputy Director Gina Haspel to succeed Pompeo as the agency’s director. She would become the first woman to run the spy agency. Both Haspel and Pompeo would need to be confirmed by the Senate at a time when the closely divided chamber has stalled on confirming dozens of Trump nominees.

“Haspel, in particular, could come under added scrutiny over her past role running one of the CIA ‘black site’ prisons where detainees were subjected to waterboarding and other interrogation methods widely denounced as torture.

“The announcement of Tillerson’s departure sent shock waves across the globe. Many U.S. diplomats and foreign leaders reacted with disbelief because they assumed Tillerson had finally begun to settle into his job after rumors of his ouster had swirled for months — even taking on a nickname, Rexit.”

Arrest Warrant for Trump’s New CIA Director?

MSN wrote on March 13:

“Federal prosecutors in Munich are currently reviewing a request to issue an arrest warrant for Gina Haspel, President Donald Trump‘s recently named director of the Central Intelligence Agency (‘CIA’).

“Haspel currently serves as the deputy director for the CIA and her nomination to head the agency must be approved by the U.S. Senate. Prior to her appointment as CIA deputy director, Haspel controversially ran a secret CIA prison in Thailand used to house, question, and allegedly torture detainees during the second Bush administration’s War on Terror.

“Haspel’s tenure as ‘Chief of Base’ at the prison–and what she did while serving in that role–is the subject of the arrest warrant request.”

Russia Denies Role in Poisoning

The Los Angeles Times wrote on March 13:

“Russia on Tuesday dismissed accusations of any involvement in the poisoning of an ex-spy and his daughter as ‘nonsense,’ saying it will only cooperate with a British investigation if it receives samples of the nerve agent believed to have been used.

“Police, meanwhile, said the investigation of who poisoned Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, will last many weeks and that they are not ready to identify any people of interest in the inquiry. The father and daughter remain in critical condition in a Salisbury hospital.

“British Prime Minister Theresa May said Russia’s involvement is ‘highly likely,’ and she gave the country a deadline of midnight Tuesday to explain its actions in the case. She is reviewing a range of economic and diplomatic measures in retaliation for the assault with what she identified as the military-grade nerve agent Novichok.

“U.S. and European officials were quick to offer words of support for Britain, which will need the backing of its allies if any new sanctions are to have any impact.”

Russia Refuses to Respond

yahoo reported on March 13:

“Britain braced for a showdown with Russia on Wednesday after a midnight deadline set by Prime Minister Theresa May expired without an explanation from Moscow about how a Soviet-era nerve toxin was used to strike down a former Russian double agent.

“The United States, European Union and NATO supported Britain after May said it was ‘highly likely’ that Russia was behind the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter with Novichok, a nerve agent developed by the Soviet military.

“Russia, which denied any involvement, said it was not responding to May’s ultimatum until it received samples of the nerve agent, effectively challenging Britain to show what sanctions it would impose against Russian interests.

“‘Moscow will not respond to London’s ultimatum until it receives samples of the chemical substance,’ Russia’s embassy in London said. ‘Any threat to take punitive measures against Russia will meet with a response.’

“Britain could call on Western allies for a coordinated response, freeze the assets of Russian business leaders and officials, limit their access to London’s financial center, expel diplomats and even launch targeted cyber attacks.”

Vladimir Putin continues to push at the West, and up to this point—with impunity!

Britain’s Response…

The Washington Post reported on March 14:

“British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday ordered the immediate expulsion of 23 Russian diplomats believed to be involved in espionage, in the first reprisals against Moscow for a chemical attack on a former double agent.

“May, speaking to Parliament, said the response would include a halt to high-level meetings between British and Russian officials and the cancellation of a planned visit to Britain by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

“She also said the royal family and government ministers would boycott this summer’s World Cup soccer tournament in Russia. More countermeasures — some clandestine — are under consideration.

“The prime minister repeated the conclusion of British investigators that Russia had either deployed or lost control of a dangerous nerve agent used in the attack targeting former spy Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter, Yulia, 33.

“May said Russia’s dismissive response to her demand for an explanation has ‘demonstrated complete disdain for the gravity of these events.’

“‘Instead, they have treated the use of a military-grade nerve agent in Europe with sarcasm, contempt and defiance,’ she told lawmakers.

“The British leader gave no further details on the Russian diplomats ordered out of the country but said they were deemed ‘undeclared intelligence officers.’ She called it the largest expulsion of Russian diplomats from Britain since Cold War-era retributions in the 1980s.”

Britain has been pre-occupied with Brexit, and it seems that Europe is only offering tepid support for any strong response to Russia. After all, Russia’s oil and gas supplies are crucial for the EU. Britain may have to look very hard for meaningful help in penalizing Russia.

Four More Years for Angela Merkel!

dw wrote on March 14:

“Merkel’s election by Germany’s lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, ends 171 days of waiting after Germany’s national popular election on September 24, 2017. Merkel was elected by deputies from her own conservative CDU-CSU and her junior coalition partners, the Social Democratic Party (SPD)…

“Merkel’s first attempt to form a coalition, with the center-right Free Democrats and the Greens, failed. But she succeeded in doing a deal with the Social Democrats after weeks of late-night negotiation and over the opposition of many regional SPD leaders and one-third of the party rank and file.

“The 63-year-old Merkel will now begin her fourth term as German chancellor and her third as the leader of a grand coalition.”

Mrs. Merkel’s challenge remains—to bring unity to a Germany that grows increasingly polarized.

Putin Suggests that Jews and Minorities be Blamed…

UPI wrote on March 12:

“Russian President Vladimir Putin is facing criticism over comments suggesting Jews and other minorities may have been responsible for meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

“During an interview with Megyn Kelly on U.S. television, Putin said he “couldn’t care less” about accusations of Russian interference in the election and 13 Russian nationals who were charged by U.S. special counsel Robert Mueller last month.

“‘I couldn’t care less because they do not represent the government, I could not care less. They do not represent the interests of the Russian state,’ Putin said.

“‘Maybe they’re not even Russians, but Ukrainians, Tatars, Jews, just with Russian citizenship. Even that needs to be checked,” Putin said when questioned about who meddled in the election. “Maybe they have dual citizenship. Or maybe a green card. Maybe it was the Americans who paid them for this work. How do you know? I don’t know.’”

France Won’t Recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s Capital

breakingisraelnews  reported on March 9:

“French President Emmanuel Macron told an audience on Wednesday that he would fight anti-Semitism online and in the streets of France in order to protect the country’s Jews.

“‘There are hatreds that are rising again; there are the worst kinds of crimes,’ Macron said at the annual dinner of the extensive Conseil Représentatif des Institutions Juives de France, or CRIF, Jewish umbrella organization.

“‘We have understood, with horror, that anti-Semitism is still alive. And on this issue our response must be unforgiving,’ said Macron. ‘France would not be itself if Jewish citizens had to leave because they were afraid.’

“Official figures show that anti-Semitic crimes increased 26 percent last year in France, with a 22 percent increase in vandalism to Jewish synagogues and cemeteries.

“Though CRIF leader Francis Kalifat encouraged Macron to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, as has U.S. President Donald Trump and Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales, Macron called the move an ‘error.’

“France, he said, ‘would lose this status of honest broker, which is the only useful one for the region,’ if it were to recognize the Jewish claim on the city.”

President Trump has indicated that the U.S. Embassy would move to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv in March of this year. This would mark the seventieth anniversary of the Jews’ declaration of the State of Israel (March 14, 1948). Along with France, most of the rest of the world is refusing to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Many of Israel’s neighbors constantly threaten a war of total annihilation, and the Bible clearly reveals that war is coming!

Pope Francis—Too Liberal?

CNN wrote on March 3:

“In the beginning, there were signs and wonder.

“Signs that Jorge Bergoglio would be different, which led 1.2 billion Catholics to wonder: What kind of Pope would this obscure archbishop from Argentina turn out to be?…

“… Five years later, Pope Francis is firmly among the most liberal, global and politically relevant Holy Fathers in modern history.

“And for some Catholics, that’s become a problem…

“’I now understand how liberals in the church felt under the pontificates of John Paul II and Benedict,’ says Benjamin Harnwell, director of the Institute for Human Dignity, a religious right-wing think tank. ‘I never got it before. I thought they were just dissenters, but they really didn’t feel as if they were truly part of the church, and that the Vatican didn’t involve or want them. Well, the pendulum has swung the other way.’

“As Harnwell strolls his new headquarters — an ancient monastery in the hills outside Rome that holds magnificent paintings of Christian persecution and the bones of St. Boniface — he explains his belief that The Vatican is a house divided.

“There are those like Pope Francis, who believe the church should be more like a field hospital, attending to the wounded — regardless of faith or denomination — while creating a more Christ-like society on earth.

“And then there is his camp, which sees the Catholic Church as a supernatural organization, here to enforce the strict rules of heavenly entry.”

Cardinal Marx—A Power Broker to the EU

Politico reported on March 12:

“With allies in Brussels and the Vatican, Cardinal Reinhard Marx has shaped the European debate.

“The German cardinal is the archbishop of one of the Continent’s richest dioceses, and he has spent the last six years serving as the head of the Roman Catholic Church’s most important presence in Brussels. Like Cardinal Richelieu, the 17th-century cleric who served as chief minister to King Louis XIII, Marx has close relations with the highest secular powers in Europe: German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker…

“As head of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community, an advocacy organization consisting of representatives of the Catholic Church from the 28 members of the European Union, Marx has waded into the European debate, in public and behind closed doors…

“Marx belongs to the Catholic Church’s more liberal wing (he was made cardinal by the conservative Pope Benedict in 2010, but his views are clearly closer to those of Pope Francis). As president of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences (known in Brussels as COMECE, an abbreviation of its French name), he has often found himself facing off on issues of theology or public policy against colleagues from more conservative Eastern European countries.

“COMECE includes members representing each of the EU28 (a single bishop represents Denmark, Sweden and Finland, while the U.K. has two: one for England and Wales, and one from Scotland). They meet regularly in Brussels to discuss EU policies that might affect them or their parishioners — making the organization a sort of religious parallel to the European Council. And it reflects many of its secular counterpart’s regional divides — especially when it comes to traditionally sensitive issues like abortion and homosexuality…

“Part of Marx’s power lies in his closeness to the Vatican, and in particular to Francis, who in 2013 asked him to serve as a counselor in a new structure outside the Roman Curia.

“Last fall, Marx helped organize a conference in Rome on ‘Re-Thinking Europe,’ which was attended by former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta and Sylvie Goulard, a confidant of French President Emmanuel Macron who is now deputy governor of the Bank of France…

“The diocese he oversees is one of the richest in the world. Thanks to the Kirchensteuer, a tax that registered Catholics have to pay every year in Germany, “it collects more than €5 billion a year, more than five times, for example, what is collected by the Italian Church,” according to the Vaticanista Sandro Magister.

“‘It has a budget higher than many small member states,’ said a Vatican official.”

Court Vindicates Couple for Refusing to Lie About the “Easter Bunny”

nationalpost reported on March 7:

“An Ontario child welfare agency placed promoting belief in the Easter Bunny above preventing possible trauma when it removed two girls from a foster home because the Christian couple refused to lie about the bunny’s existence, an Ontario judge ruled.

“In a stinging indictment of the actions of the Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton, a court judgment declared the CAS violated the foster parent’s right to freedom of religion and freedom of expression when the children were taken from their home and their fostering agreement terminated over the Easter Bunny dilemma.

“Derek and Frances Baars, who lived in Hamilton at the time but have since moved to Edmonton, sued the Children’s Aid Society last year, saying a CAS worker insisted they proactively tell two girls in their care, aged three and four, the Easter Bunny was genuine, despite the couple’s belief that all lying is wrong…

“The Baars are Christians and members of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America…

“Evidence was clear the Baars sincerely believe it is wrong to lie, including lying to promote belief in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny…”

These Current Events are compiled and commented on. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

Trump Imposes Tariffs

Reuters wrote on March 7:

“U.S. President Donald Trump pressed ahead on Thursday with import tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent for aluminum but exempted Canada and Mexico and offered the possibility of excluding other allies, backtracking from an earlier ‘no-exceptions’ stance.

“Describing the dumping of steel and aluminum in the U.S. market as ‘an assault on our country,’ Trump said in a White House announcement that the best outcome would for companies to move their mills and smelters to the United States. He insisted that domestic metals production was vital to national security.”

“A Declaration of War”

thestar reported on March 2:

“In Europe, there appears to be a growing assumption that diplomacy alone is not working in dealing with the current U.S. administration.

“European officials have not minced words in recent months regarding a U.S. president they often consider to be an obstacle rather than an ally. But President Donald Trump’s announced intention to impose punishing tariffs on imported steel and aluminum triggered an especially sharp backlash Friday from a number of countries.

“Officials in Germany, which exports more steel to the United States than any other European country, were among the most vocal critics Friday. Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel, whose criticisms of Trump have almost become routine, called the U.S. decision ‘unfathomable.’

“’We must do everything we can to avoid an international trade conflict,’ Gabriel told German daily Die Welt.

“Bernd Lange, a German Social Democrat and head of the European Parliament’s trade committee, offered a more brutal assessment. ‘With this, the declaration of war has arrived,’ Lange told German public radio Friday morning.”

From The New York Times on March 7:

“European Union officials unveiled an array of tariffs on Wednesday that they would place on American-made goods if the United States followed through on President Trump’s plan to impose penalties on imported steel and aluminum, raising the specter of a trade war…

“Such a move by the United States would ‘put thousands of European jobs in jeopardy, and it has to be met by a firm and proportionate response,’ Cecilia Malmstrom, the European Union commissioner for trade, said at a news conference in Brussels. European officials have been meeting with their counterparts in Washington, urging them to revisit the plans, she added.

“If the American tariffs are put in place, Ms. Malmstrom said, Brussels would take three steps: It would take the case to the World Trade Organization, add safeguards to protect the European Union against steel diverted from the United States, and impose tariffs on a series of American-made goods.”

President Trump: “Trade Wars are Good…”

thestar wrote on March 2:

“Trump declared on Thursday that the U.S. will impose punishing tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, escalating tensions with trading partners and raising the prospect of higher prices for American consumers and companies.

“U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday insisted ‘trade wars are good, and easy to win,’ a bold claim that will likely find many skeptics, including those on Wall Street and even some Republicans.

“Trump has declared that the U.S. will impose punishing tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, escalating tensions with China and other trading partners and raising the prospect of higher prices for American consumers and companies. After the announcement Thursday, stocks closed sharply lower on Wall Street. China has expressed ‘grave concern.’

“Early Friday, Trump took to Twitter to defend himself: ‘When a country (U.S.A.) is losing many billions of dollars on trade with virtually every country it does business with, trade wars are good, and easy to win. Example, when we are down $100 billion with a certain country and they get cute, don’t trade anymore-we win big. It’s easy!’

He later tweeted: ‘Our steel industry is in bad shape. IF YOU DON’T HAVE STEEL, YOU DON’T HAVE A COUNTRY!’

“Sen. Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican responded that trade wars are never won.

“’Kooky 18th century protectionism will jack up prices on American families — and will prompt retaliation from other countries,’ he wrote in a statement. ‘Make no mistake: If the President goes through with this, it will kill American jobs — that’s what every trade war ultimately does. So much losing.’”

Angela Merkel Prevails—But Weakened

The New York Times reported on March 4:

“Germany’s Social Democrats voted in favor of forming another government with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives, ending nearly six months of political limbo and setting Europe’s economic powerhouse on a path to the political stability it craves — at least for now.

“The results announced on Sunday clear the way for Ms. Merkel, who was long considered a de facto leader of Europe, to remain in the chancellery in Berlin for four more years. It will also allow her to work with President Emmanuel Macron of France on overhauling the European Union in what many consider a crucial year…

“But Ms. Merkel will lead a diminished coalition, and many predicted that the country, shaken by the prolonged uncertainty that followed inconclusive elections in September, would not be the same again. Both main parties received their worst postwar results in those elections.

“By now, the ‘grand coalition,’ as the tie-up is known, looks anything but grand: In polls, it no longer commands a majority. And the far-right Alternative for Germany party, AfD, now the official main opposition in Parliament, has been gaining momentum.”

Italian Elections—A Push to the Right?

The Associated Press published on March 5:

“Since the European Union’s founding treaty was signed in Rome more than 60 years ago, Italy has been an unabashed booster of increased unity and common purpose. That may have come to an end.

“Euroskeptics and populists rode a wave of hostility toward all things EU and surged to the fore in Italian elections on Sunday, turning the founding EU nation into a potential obstructionist just when the bloc was emerging from a decade of economic gloom and seemed poised to rekindle its grand ambitions.

“Beyond moving away from the EU policies in Brussels, the Italian results were the latest indication that the continent is tilting further to the right.

“Sunday’s stunning outcome came at the end of a seesaw day for the EU that started out well enough when the German Socialists finally threw their weight behind a staunchly pro-Europe grand coalition under Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“Now, it seemed, the Merkel-Emmanuel Macron partnership was on and the German-French engine was primed to push a core group of EU nations toward more unity.

“Then, Italy’s results started to come in and the message from Italian voters was clear: ‘Don’t necessarily count on us.’ Instead of a smooth ride under fair weather economic conditions, the bloc should brace for more of the chaos and havoc that anti-EU populists have spread in many member nations over the past few years.

cbcnews added on March 5:

“European leaders reacted with caution to the results.

“French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday the election result was a reminder of the challenges tied to migration.

“‘Italy has, it’s undeniable, suffered for months and months under the pressure of migration,’ Macron said in Paris.

“A top aide for German Chancellor Angela Merkel says that despite Italy’s election showing no faction winning a clear majority, she hopes ‘Italy will manage to build a stable government and especially a government in the spirit of Europe.’

“The general-secretary of Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, said Monday in Berlin, ‘the view across the Alps to Italy today is not an easy one, because it’s not foreseeable after this difficult result … how long it will take to get a government, whether there will be one at all, and who will lead such a government.’

“A German trade lobby group urged Italy’s next government to be ‘constructive’ about the European Union’s future course to ensure the two countries’ economies continue to thrive.

“The Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry says it is ‘of great importance for the German economy whether Italy can form a stable government and continue following the path of reform it has set out on.’

“In Brussels, a European Commission spokesperson said it was confident a stable administration could be formed, ‘and in the meantime Italy has a government with whom we are working closely.’”

Regardless of the surfacing of movements to block the unification of Europe, that process is now taking place on several fronts—especially in the area of European militarization. PESCO, The Permanent Structured Co-operation, is the recently approved (December 2017) European defense pact. Twenty-five of the EU’s current 28 members have signed up — Britain, Malta and Denmark are not involved. Note the article below…

German Industry Responds to PESCO

DefenseNews wrote on March 6:

“The leading German defense industry group is urging its members to position themselves for new business through the European Union’s Permanent Structured Cooperation mechanism ― that is, if PESCO proves to be worthwhile in the first place.

“In a new whitepaper, the Federation of German Security and Defence Industries warns that domestic firms could miss out on a expected uptick in common spending, as Germany’s role in an initial batch of 17 PESCO projects is fairly vague. The projects were approved in December.

“Berlin is on tap to lead the formation of a European Medical Command, act as a major player in military logistics, guide training-related initiatives and build a European Union Force Crisis Response Operation Core.

“In contrast, France and Italy claimed topics with a heavy industry focus. France will advance a European secure software-defined radio, while Italy heads a section devoted to armored combat vehicles.”

Trump Administration Sues California

The New York Times reported on March 6:

“The Trump administration escalated what had been a war of words over California’s immigration agenda, filing a lawsuit late Tuesday that amounted to a pre-emptive strike against the liberal state’s so-called sanctuary laws.

“The Justice Department sued California; Gov. Jerry Brown; and the state’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra, over three state laws passed in recent months, saying they made it impossible for federal immigration officials to do their jobs and deport criminals who were born outside the United States. The Justice Department called the laws unconstitutional and asked a judge to block them.

“The lawsuit was the department’s boldest attack yet against California, one of the strongest opponents of the Trump administration’s efforts to curb immigration. It also served as a warning to Democratic lawmakers and elected officials nationwide who have enacted sanctuary policies that provide protections for undocumented immigrants.

“‘The Department of Justice and the Trump administration are going to fight these unjust, unfair and unconstitutional policies that have been imposed on you,’ Attorney General Jeff Sessions planned to say on Wednesday at a law enforcement event in Sacramento, according to prepared remarks. ‘I believe that we are going to win.’”

Win or lose, this is a sad commentary on the state of these “United” States of America!

Netanyahu Compares Trump…

The Los Angeles Times wrote on March 5:

“Netanyahu offered an enthusiastic endorsement of Trump’s decision in December to recognize the divided city of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, which previous administrations had refused to do in hopes of furthering peace negotiations.

“Netanyahu compared Trump to Cyrus the Great, an ancient Persian king who conquered a vast empire and allowed the exiled Jews in Babylonia to return to their ancestral home to rebuild their temple.

“‘The Jewish people have a long memory,’ Netanyahu said. Trump’s decision, he said, will be ‘remembered by our people through the ages.’”

Shameful Hypocrisy of Gay Priests

Newsweek wrote on March 5:

“A 1,200-page dossier containing the names of 34 ‘actively gay’ priests and six seminarians in Italy has been sent to the Vatican by the archdiocese of Naples.

“The allegations were compiled by Francesco Mangiacapra, a gay male escort who told local media he couldn’t put up with the priests’ ‘hypocrisy’ any longer…

“Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, an Italian Cardinal and the current Archbishop of Naples, said in a statement that none of the priests who were named in the dossier were stationed in Naples. He claims he forwarded the document to the Vatican because ‘there remains the gravity of the cases for which those who have erred must pay the price, and be helped to repent for the harm done.’

“The large file contains explicit WhatsApp messages, erotic photos and other evidence, but none of the 40 priests and seminarians were accused of paedophilia or having sexual relations with minors. ‘We’re talking about sins, not crimes,’ Mangiacapra said.

“The dossier is the latest in a string of sex scandals that have rocked the Italian church and Vatican.”

There is simply no justification for this behavior.

Stephen Hawking’s “Belief”

Newsmax reported on March 6:

“Stephen Hawking said Sunday he believes that ‘nothing was around’ before the so-called Big Bang that led to the beginning of the universe, USA Today reported…

“‘(I use a) Euclidean approach to quantum gravity to describe the beginning of the universe,’ Hawking said on the program about the Big Bang, which he believes happened nearly 14 billion years ago, per USA Today.

“‘The Euclidean space-time is a closed surface without end, like the surface of the Earth,’ Hawking continued. ‘One can regard imaginary and real time as beginning at the South Pole, which is a smooth point of space-time where the normal laws of physics hold. There is nothing south of the South Pole so there was nothing around before the Big Bang.’

“Hawking had previously said that events that happened before the Big Bang ‘have no consequences that can be observed,’ so there is no way to measure what happened, according to Tech Times.

“‘The universe will evolve from the Big Bang, completely independently of what it was like before,’ Hawking said on his website. ‘Even the amount of matter in the universe can be different to what it was before the Big Bang, as the Law of Conservation of Matter, will break down at the Big Bang.’”

However, the Bible shows that Someone was around before the so-called Big Bang occurred—and here is what He says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). That is the truth, and we can believe it!

These Current Events are compiled and commented on. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

New US Sanctions for North Korea… What’s Next?

Fox News wrote on February 23:

“In announcing new sanctions Friday against North Korea, President Trump made it clear that the communist nation will pay a big price for stockpiling nuclear weapons and long-range missiles that pose a threat to the U.S. and other countries… these sanctions will have some bite. They apply to 27 shipping companies and 28 ships registered in North Korea, China and five other nations. The Trump administration says the companies and ships are helping North Korea evade international restrictions on fuel imports and a ban on coal exports. The sanctions are designed to cut off foreign cash that North Korea desperately needs. The action by the Trump administration blocks assets held by the sanctioned entities in the U.S. and bars U.S. citizens from dealing with those entities.

“… With reports Pyongyang could be tapped out of foreign exchange and dollar reserves come October, this is tantamount to bankruptcy for the regime. So where do things turn next?… we are closing in on a spring crisis… I would expect Kim to test at least one more nuclear weapon as well as send long-range missiles into the sky.

“The North could even decide to fire an intercontinental ballistic missile deep into the South Pacific and show off new warhead technology that can pierce the atmosphere and destroy a city. This would make clear to the world that North Korea can destroy an American city and kill millions of our own people. From here it could get worse. The North Koreans could even decide that it’s time to… prove to the world beyond the shadow of any doubt that they can start a nuclear war. Kim could decide on an atmospheric test of a nuclear bomb. If that were to happen… the Trump administration might feel it had no choice but to launch what has been called a ‘bloody nose’ strike on the regime.

“… it seems all but certain all hell is going to break loose in Northeast Asia. Again.”

Moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem in May?

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 24:

“The US will move its Israeli embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in mid-May, coinciding with the 70th anniversary of Israel’s founding [on May 14]. A top Palestinian negotiator has described the timing as a ‘blatant provocation.’… The move will come much earlier than first expected…

“The anniversary of Israel’s founding also marks the Palestinian commemoration of Nakba, the mass migration of some 700,000 Palestinians who fled their homes following the creation of Israel and the onset of the 1948 Arab-Israeli war…”

JTA added on February 23:

“The [US] spokesman said the embassy would be located in a southern Jerusalem neighborhood on the side that Israel held before 1967 but running along the seam of what was then the border. ‘The Embassy will initially be located in Arnona, on a compound that currently houses the consular operations of Consulate General Jerusalem,’ he said.

“Building a new embassy will take at least three years, and the spokesman suggested that at least for now, much of the daily operation of the embassy would remain in Tel Aviv…

“In the first phase, starting in May, Ambassador David Friedman and some staff will begin working out of the consular section… In the second phase, by the end of 2019, an annex on site will be constructed for a more permanent working space for the ambassador, staff and a classified processing site. That will cost $10 million to $15 million, and the security arrangement will cost at least $45 million. The third phase, the site selection and construction of a new embassy, will take up to nine years.”

Jared Kushner’s Security Clearance Downgraded

JTA wrote on February 27:

“Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and a top adviser, has had his security clearance downgraded from top secret to secret, which could affect his leadership in trying to bring about Israeli-Palestinian peace… It is not clear what is hindering Kushner’s full clearance. Like his father-in-law, he is a real estate developer. He is known to be in debt, and is reported to have loans out by foreign creditors.

“The Washington Post late Tuesday reported, quoting U.S. officials, that officials in four countries had discussed manipulating Kushner, in part by taking advantage of his financial difficulties. The four countries are Israel, China, Mexico and the United Arab Emirates…

“Middle East peace negotiators have traditionally had top-secret clearance, considered critical in understanding the myriad pressures facing the parties as they consider talks. Kushner’s team is believed to be almost ready to release its proposal to return the sides to talks…

“Kushner’s top spokesman, Josh Raffel, is leaving the White House in two months. [His] focus has included the Israeli-Palestinian talks…”

The White House in Turmoil

Axios (as linked by the Drudge Report) wrote on March 1:

“After a crazy 24 hours, sources close to President Trump say he is in a bad place — mad as h… about the internal chaos and the sense that things are unraveling…

“Hope Hicks leaving is obviously a huge blow to him. Every time he reads about Attorney General Jeff Sessions, his head explodes. The staff is just trying to ride out the storm.

“Everywhere you look inside this White House, top officials are fighting, fomenting, feuding or fleeing…

“Hope Hicks — without question, the aide (family aside) with whom Trump is closest — resigned one day after she admitted in closed-door Hill testimony that she told white lies for the president.

“White House Chief of Staff John Kelly cracked down on Jared Kushner, stripping his top security clearance, and watching anonymous aides leak about and trash him, while offering no public defense of the president’s son-in-law.

“Jared, Ivanka and Don Jr. let it be known to friends they are furious with Kellyand his allies…

“Trump is at war with Attorney General Sessions…

“The people he genuinely enjoys and feels close to are gone (Keith Schiller), leaving (Hope) or getting pounded in the press (Jared).

“The restraints are almost fully loosened, and what staff sees in private is more public than ever. We have never seen top officials this concerned, defeated.”

Arming Teachers?

The Guardian wrote on February 22:

“In the past 24 hours, Donald Trump has thrice backed a plan to arm teachers in US schools… Facing opposition from the country’s largest teachers’ unions, school security guards and military veterans, the president continued to endorse the plan in White House meetings and on Twitter… the president suggested offering bonuses to teachers who are trained to carry concealed weapons…

“There are few examples available of armed citizens stopping mass shootings and it is difficult to track, in part because it is difficult to know what a gunman was planning before they were stopped…

“Trump’s suggestion to arm teachers was immediately opposed by the nation’s largest teachers’ unions – the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) – as well as the teachers’ union in Florida’s Broward County, where last week’s shooting took place… The National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO), the nation’s largest school policing group, also said it opposed arming teachers. They noted law enforcement officers responding to an incident may mistake armed personnel not in uniform as the assailant. They also emphasized how law enforcement officers receive ongoing practice in high-stress and difficult shooting environments.

“… Trump also described a situation where there would simply be more armed people on campus – not just teachers. ‘They may be Marines that left the Marines, left the Army, left the Air Force,’ Trump said…  Veterans disputed this claim on Twitter. Jay Kirell, a combat veteran who served in Afghanistan, said it was ‘extremely difficult’ to shoot under stress. ‘Cops & soldiers literally get paid to do this & most of them can’t shoot accurately under stress,’ Kirell tweeted…”

Cutting Ties with the NRA

ABC News wrote on February 24:

“A growing number of companies are announcing plans to sever ties with the National Rifle Association following the shooting massacre Feb. 14 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in South Florida that left 17 students and staff dead. One of the first companies that said it would cut ties with the lobbying group was First National Bank of Omaha, which announced Thursday that it would not renew a co-branded Visa credit card with the NRA.

“A slew of other companies — including United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, MetLife Insurance Co., [Symantec which makes Norton Antivirus technology] Hertz [Enterprise, TrueCar, Wyndham Hotels] and Best Western — have followed suit, announcing plans to terminate special discounts and benefits for NRA members.”

One should ask the question as to why in the world NRA members receive special discounts from companies in the first place.

What Does the Second Amendment to the US Constitution REALLY Say?

Much is being said about the convoluted wording of the Second Amendment, allegedly giving private citizens the unrestricted right to own firearms. However, this may not be so.

The Guardian wrote on October 5, 2017:

“The right to bear arms: what does the second amendment really mean? The amendment reads: ‘A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed’… In 2008, the supreme court decided the District of Columbia v Heller, 5-4 , overturning a handgun ban in the city. The conservative justice Antonin Scalia wrote the opinion in narrow but unprecedented terms: for the first time in the country’s history, the supreme court explicitly affirmed an individual’s right to keep a weapon at home for self-defense…

“Lower courts have upheld many gun laws around the country since 2008, and the supreme court has declined to hear any second amendment cases since 2010. Attorneys and activists on both sides expect a looming fight over the right to carry guns in public, which the Heller decision does not address.”

It was also pointed out that even the US Supreme Court decision did not say that there was a right to own and carry EVERY type of weapon.

Gun Violence Rare in Israel

The Washington Post wrote on February 23:

“When students, parents and teachers pleaded with President Donald Trump this week to act against school shootings, they cited Israel, a place where guns are a familiar sight but where school shootings are virtually unheard of…There are no metal detectors or special door locks on classrooms. And, by policy, teachers are not armed…

“Israeli security experts… say that gun violence is rare in Israel because privately held guns are so rare… 3.5 percent of the population… have permits to carry firearms. Half of the permit holders are private citizens, and the others work for security firms… Israel has tight age restrictions on private gun ownership… civilians must be over 27 years old to obtain a gun license, although those recently released from military service are also eligible. Israelis serve in the military from age 18 to 21.

“… once an Israeli finishes military service, it becomes difficult to obtain a gun. Applicants must submit extensive paperwork, provide their military records and medical reports. They also must justify their need to be armed. Residents of Tel Aviv, for example, are unlikely to receive gun licenses, whereas Israelis living in border areas or in the Jewish settlements in the West Bank, places where they could be targets for Palestinian militants, are more likely to be approved for gun licenses.

“In addition, retired army officers above a certain rank, former police officers, firefighters, ambulance technicians, special forces veterans and licensed public transportation drivers can also qualify for permits.

“The requirements after permits are approved also are strict. Owners are subjected to an array of restrictions on the types of guns they can own, on the amount of ammunition they can possess, as well as guidelines on where to keep their guns – in locked safes – and a process of checking weapons in with police if leaving the country for more than a week.

“Janet Rosenbaum, an assistant professor of epidemiology at the School of Public Health at the State University of New York Downstate in Brooklyn, examined the difference in homicide rates between Israel and the United States. Writing in the New York Post, she said her research showed that Israel ranks 81st in the world for per capita firearm ownership, with fewer than 1 in 10 Israelis owning firearms. The United States, with one firearm for every person, ranks first.”

This is not a statistic to be proud of.

ISIS Defeated? Far From It!

The Sun wrote on February 24:

“Since declaring its caliphate in June 2014, the terror group has carried out or inspired more than 140 terror attacks in 29 countries outside Iraq and Syria. Those bloody attacks – including several high-profile mass murders in Europe – have left more than 2,000 people dead and injured many more. It now seems nowhere is safe from the threat of Islamic extremists. In the last two years, they made headlines for a series of atrocities in cities including London, Manchester, Barcelona, Nice, Berlin and Stockholm.

“However, away from the cameras the terror group’s bloody tentacles have quietly spread to some of the most unlikely corners of the planet…

“ISIS has made no secret of the fact it sees China as its next major global target – after securing a recruiting foothold in the country’s badlands…  Fears are growing the idyllic tourist destination of Trinidad and Tobago could face a new wave of terror attacks from returning ISIS jihadis. Incredibly, the beautiful Caribbean nation, home to just 1.3 million people, has the highest rate of ISIS foreign recruitment in the Western hemisphere…

“ISIS remains the major terrorist threat to New Zealand as spy agencies reveal the number of people with links to the extremist is rising… The kidnapping of two Brits in KwaZulu-Natal spurred the British government to issue a travel advisory‚ warning of possible terror attacks on South African soil…

“Nearly 200 ‘foreign’ jiahdis who fought alongside ISIS in Iraq and Syria are known to have returned to Canada in recent years. Terrorism now remains the most immediate threat to national security…”

The Daily Mail wrote on February 24:

“A legion of nearly 1,000 jihadi brides are set to return to the West… A report by EU border agency Frontex warns the threat is ‘evolving’ and that it is hard to assess the long-term threat of widowed wives and orphaned children… Several women were involved in a plot to attack Notre Dame cathedral in September 2016, while there have been numerous high-profile cases of British women fleeing to Syria to marry IS fighters.

“Frontex says: ‘An estimated 30 per cent of 5,000 foreign terrorist fighters who resided in Europe, and left to Syria, Iraq or Libya have come back to the Continent… former director of global counter-terrorism at MI6 Richard Barrett said last October that from the start of 2017 to May women were involved in almost a quarter of all terror plots in Europe.”

The infiltration of terrorists from foreign countries is a legitimate concern. How to handle it is another one. To prohibit entry of EVERY person from ANY particular country—including the ones mentioned in the articles above—does not seem practical, successful or even legal, nor would it be helpful to demonize ALL immigrants from particular regions.  

Trump’s Fight Against Immigrants—The Snake!

The Evening Standard wrote on February 24:

“Donald Trump has treated his supporters to yet another recital of a sinister poem comparing immigrants to treacherous snakes. On the campaign trail, the US president repeatedly read the lyrics of Al Wilson’s 1968 song ‘The Snake’ and since the election has continued to recite it at rallies. It tells the story of an ill snake that gets taken in by a kindly woman, only for it to bite her once it has recovered.”

Breitbart wrote on February 23:

“The lyrics, adapted in 1963 by songwriter Oscar Brown from Aesop’s Fable ‘The Farmer and the Viper,’ ends with an altruistic woman who saves a dying snake being fatally bitten… Trump used the poem frequently as an allegory for the Syrian Refugee Crisis and ‘generous’ immigration policy that puts the interests of foreigners above that of Americans.”

 After reading the poem, Trump said, as reported by Breitbart:

‘”And that’s what we’re doing with our country folks. We’re letting a lot of people in, and it’s gonna be a lot of trouble. It’s only getting worse.’”

Inasmuch as the poem and the way in which Trump uses it has received so much attention, we are setting it forth below in its entirety [with one abbreviation of a curse word], as it was published by Breitbart and the Evening Standard. We leave it to the reader to draw his or her own conclusions (even though it is shocking when reading some of the absolutely hateful “supportive” comments in response to President Trump’s reading of the poem):

On her way to work one morning

Down the path alongside the lake

A tender-hearted woman saw a poor half-frozen snake

His pretty colored skin had been all frosted with the dew

“Oh well,” she cried, “I’ll take you in and I’ll take care of you”

“Take me in oh tender woman

Take me in, for heaven’s sake

Take me in oh tender woman,” sighed the snake

She wrapped him up all cozy in a curvature of silk

And then laid him by the fireside with some honey and some milk

Now she hurried home from work that night as soon as she arrived

She found that pretty snake she’d taken in had been revived

“Take me in, oh tender woman

Take me in, for heaven’s sake

Take me in oh tender woman,” sighed the snake

Now she clutched him to her bosom, “You’re so beautiful,” she cried

“But if I hadn’t brought you in by now you might have died”

Now she stroked his pretty skin and then she kissed and held him tight

But instead of saying thanks, that snake gave her a vicious bite

“Take me in, oh tender woman

Take me in, for heaven’s sake

Take me in oh tender woman,” sighed the snake

“I saved you,” cried that woman

“And you’ve bit me even, why?

You know your bite is poisonous and now I’m going to die”

“Oh shut up, silly woman,” said the reptile with a grin

“You knew d… well I was a snake before you took me in.”

In addition, Donald Trump spoke out against chain immigration and the lottery system. The following article is interesting in this regard.

Chain Migration for Melania Trump’s Parents?

CNN reported in February 22:

“The Slovenian parents of first lady Melania Trump are legal permanent residents [green card holders] of the United States, according to the lawyer representing them in the process — raising questions about whether they are living in the US by the very means President Donald Trump has strongly criticized and sought to end…

“There are only a handful of ways that immigrants to the US can obtain green cards, and the largest share of them each year are given out based on familial connections [In other words, American CITIZENS can apply for or support green cards for their close relatives]. A smaller number go to immigrants based on their employment, and other categories include refugees and other special cases…

“In order to become citizens, legal permanent residents must live in the United States continuously and hold their green cards for at least five years…  The likelihood that the Knavs could have been sponsored by Melania Trump or another family member raises the issue of what the President has called ‘chain migration,’ or family-based migration.  The US allows a number of ways for US citizens and legal permanent residents to sponsor family members to come to the US permanently, including categories for parents, adult siblings and adult children, married and unmarried.  Trump and his congressional allies have fought to slash that dramatically, limiting sponsorship to spouses and minor children, including dropping the threshold for minor children from 21 to 18…”

To be clear, we in no way oppose the concept that Melania Trump’s parents might have received their green cards through “chain immigration.” What is interesting is the apparent hypocrisy behind the push to stop chain immigration altogether in the future, thereby excluding the possibility of parents joining their adult children who are American citizens, coupled with the ungodly concept of tearing families apart.

No Meeting Between Trump and Nieto

The Week wrote on February 25:

“Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto scrapped plans to visit Washington in February or March after an argumentative phone call with President Trump on Tuesday, The Washington Post reported Saturday night, citing officials from both countries.

“Trump reportedly ‘lost his temper’ in a discussion of his unrealized pledge to build an extensive wall along the United States’ southern border with Mexican funding. ‘Trump believed it was unreasonable for Peña Nieto to expect him to back off his crowd-pleasing campaign promise of forcing Mexico to pay for the wall,’ American officials reportedly told the Post.”

The Associated Press added on February 25:

“Trump and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto spoke for 50 minutes Tuesday, but reached a deadlock when Trump said he wouldn’t publicly acknowledge Mexico’s refusal to pay for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, Reuters reported.”

It is obvious that Mexico will never pay for the wall.

Trade War Coming?

Deutsche Welle reported on March 1, 2018:

“US President Donald Trump said Thursday the United States would impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and tariffs of 10 percent on inbound aluminum shipments next week… The European Commission said it would take action, should EU producers become the target of higher tariffs…

“The Federation of German Industry (BDI) said Thursday the announced tariffs were wrong. ‘Donald Trump is risking global trade conflicts and a spiral of protectionism, which in the end will also cost American jobs,’ BDI President Dieter Kempf told the DPA news agency in Brussels…

“China for its part has been investigating US imports of sorghum and is considering restricting soybean imports.

“Wall Street stocks fell sharply during midday trading, with the Dow down more than 2 percent on worries of a trade war following the announced tariffs.”

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 28:

“European Union trade ministers have agreed they may retaliate if the US slaps import tariffs on steel and aluminum. The EU is reportedly drawing up a list of US products to target, including orange juice and bourbon.”

Merkel Proposes Jens Spahn as Health Minister

AFP wrote on February 25:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to give a cabinet role to an outspoken critic within her conservative party, as she looks to quell surging discontent in the right wing of the group… Merkel is tipped to name 37-year-old Jens Spahn as health minister in her new cabinet…

“Spahn has been at the forefront of the backlash, slamming Merkel’s centrist policies, particularly on immigration, and advocating a sharp conservative shift, as the country’s major parties face pressure from the far-right AfD party which has railed against a mass influx of refugees that peaked in 2015. The potential inclusion of Spahn in her cabinet line-up could help to defuse the internal rebellion…

“The SPD still needs to approve the arrangement, with the results of a crunch membership ballot due to be announced on March 4^th…”

Deutsche Welle added on February 25:

“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. That quote, attributed alternately to the ancient Chinese general Sun Tzu and the Renaissance writer and philosopher Machiavelli, might have been on German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s mind on Sunday evening as she announced the six members of her conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) whom she would like to serve in her next cabinet…

“Of the six names on her list, the one that stood out most was Jens Spahn… The 37-year-old not only represents a new political generation. He was also heavily critical of Merkel’s welcoming policy toward refugees…

“Spahn is something of an oddball in the Merkel-led CDU. He is far more conservative than the chancellor. His nomination drew immediate criticism from the opposition Left party and Greens, who say he’s far too close to Germany’s mighty pharmaceutical industry.

“Among conservatives under 40, Spahn is seen as having the best chance to lead the party some day, and his nomination is being viewed as a concession by Merkel to the party’s youth wing, the Young Union, which hasn’t always been happy with her centrist policies. It is the first time that Spahn has been offered a job at the ministerial level, usually seen as a precondition for higher political functions such as party chair or chancellor candidate…”

Who Is Jens Spahn?

Handelsblatt Global wrote on September 2, 2017, about Jens Spahn:

“Germans have been responding to an essay published by German Deputy Finance Minister Jens Spahn, in which he complains that English-speaking hipsters in Berlin are eroding German national identity… anxiety about national identity is still alive and well in Germany, especially since the arrival of more than a million refugees since 2015. This explains why Mr. Spahn, a rising star in the governing Christian Democratic Union (CDU), could write an article for the influential German weekly Die Zeit attacking ‘elitist hipsters’ for speaking English, and bemoaning the proliferation of English-language menus in restaurants and coffee shops.

“According to Mr. Spahn, older Germans such as his parents will soon feel like ‘strangers in their own land.’ The spread of English among the cosmopolitan ‘Easyjet generation,’ he writes, will lead to a ‘parallel society’ in which ‘cultural differences’ have been negated, and German national culture has been destroyed. How can Germans demand that refugees and immigrants integrate themselves into German society, he asks, if Germans won’t even speak their own language?…

“As a 30-something, gay member of the Berlin political class, Mr. Spahn may seem like an odd mouthpiece for an attack on cosmopolitanism. But Mr. Spahn is an ambitious political strategist with an eye on his electoral future, and he is no stranger to controversy… he has been a vocal critic of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s refugee policy; and he has called for laws to regulate what can be preached in mosques, and to create a registry for Muslim clerics…”

AFP wrote on February 26:

“He’s 37 years old, openly gay yet staunchly conservative and one of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s loudest critics within her own party…A gay Roman Catholic, he played a vocal role in the fight to legalise gay marriage in Germany and tied the knot with his journalist partner Daniel Funke in December.

“With a self-belief that some observers say borders on arrogance, Spahn has never hidden his ambitions. One oft-quoted anecdote recalls how a high-school French teacher once asked a teenage Spahn what he wanted to be when he grew up. ‘Chancellor,’ he replied.”

Somebody to watch for sure.

Comeback for Italy’s Berlusconi?

Euractiv wrote on February 27:

“Silvio Berlusconi has revealed that he is ‘available” to be Italy’s prime minister in 2019 if next week’s election yields a hung parliament and a re-run of the vote… Berlusconi is banned from holding public office thanks to a tax fraud conviction in 2013. But that punishment expires next year and the Forza Italia leader would be free to reign once more as prime minister if the opportunity presented itself…

“A hung parliament is one of the outcomes that have not been ruled out, in which case a fresh vote would most likely be scheduled for next year… Voters are casting their ballots for the first time under a new electoral law, which dictates that a coalition must garner 40% of the vote in order to form a majority government. Should Forza Italia and Berlusconi get their way and receive the biggest slice of the pie in the vote, the former PM will effectively become a kingmaker and decide who should be appointed to the position.

“Berlusconi said once again… that current European Parliament President Antonio Tajani is still his number one choice for prime minister… But the Parliament chief has remained coy about his chances of getting Berlusconi’s nod or even wanting the post at all. During an interview with German newspaper Die Welt, Tajani said he would like to keep his current job.

“Tajani, a former European Commissioner, also said that Berlusconi was ‘the last great statesman’ that Italy had, praising the way he dealt with Russian President Vladimir Putin during his time in charge. He also reiterated his support for an EU reform along the lines of French President Emmanuel Macron’s ideas, saying Europe needs its own finance minister and a completed banking union.”

Rise of Racism and Fascism in Italy

The Guardian wrote on February 21:

“Many foreign observers are baffled by the return of Silvio Berlusconi to the forefront of Italy’s politics… he is busy campaigning for his Forza Italia party in the run-up to the 4 March elections…

“In the darkest period of our history, Mussolini’s regime tried to force upon the people a love for their country as defined by a totalitarian and murderous ideology. Italy’s military frenzy alongside the Nazis ultimately destroyed our cities and created massive poverty…

“Italians inherited from the war a collective sense of shame – which was, alas, quickly forgotten. The shame grew from having allowed the extermination of their Jewish fellow citizens and for having murdered Mussolini and his mistress instead of holding the pair of them to account in a court of law…

“Today, what’s most worrisome is the rise of anti-migrant racism. We’ve reached a point where even well-educated people agree with the rhetoric spread both by the right and the Five Star Movement (M5S). The latter’s capacity to spread fake news, including through links with propaganda websites connected to Russia, has been well documented. But what M5S has mostly achieved is to… rekindle a fascist mindset.

“More than 75 years on, the allure of the far right survives among parts of the population. After the horrors of war, no one could dare express fascist ideas but, over time, it seems that people forgot. Politicians started voicing hateful and intolerant views, with no shame whatsoever…”

Demonic Possession on the Rise in Italy

Newsmax wrote on February 25:

“With demonic possessions rising, even tripling in recent years, the Vatican is… setting up new training for exorcists,  according to Sicilian priest Benigno Palilla.

“… There are now 500,000 alleged cases of demonic possessions annually in Italy, according to Palilla, who claimed it was due to increased popularity of fortune tellers and tarot card readers which ‘open the door to the devil and to possession.’ ‘Spiritual or psychological problems’ are the root of many apparent possession cases, according to Palilla, Newsweek reported.

“Rome’s Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum is going to run an international course on exorcism in April ‘to offer a rich reflection and articulation on a topic that is sometimes unspoken and controversial,’ Palilla told Vatican Radio, per Newsweek.”

Satan is alive and VERY active.

Judge Takes Transgender Teen Away from Her Parents

The Washington Times wrote on February 20:

“A Hamilton County, Ohio, judge took a transgender teen away from her parents on Friday because they refused to allow the 17-year-old to undergo hormone treatments as part of a female-to-male transition.

“Judge Sylvia Sieve Hendon awarded custody of the teenager to her grandparents, who will be allowed to make medical decisions for the minor and legally change her name. The parents objected to the transition procedures because of their religious beliefs and refused to call their daughter by her chosen, male name, court records show.

“‘It is unfortunate that this case required resolution by the Court as the family would have been best served if this could have been settled within the family after all parties had ample exposure to the reality of the fact that the child truly may be gender-nonconforming and has a legitimate right to pursue life with a different gender identity than the one assigned at birth,’ Judge Hendon wrote in her decision.”

Please watch our new StandingWatch program, “Sexual Relationships—Everything Goes?”

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

Storm Clouds in Munich, Germany

 Politico wrote on February 18:

“While it’s hardly a secret that the world has become increasingly unstable of late, the high-level weekend exchange between political leaders and security officials from all points of the compass put the danger from the innumerable flashpoints into stark relief. Whether discussing the reemergence of nuclear tensions between the U.S. and Russia or the dispute between longtime allies Washington and Turkey, about the only thing this year’s participants could agree on was the intensified risk of a broad conflict in a world losing its moorings… this year’s event at times veered toward outright provocation and insult…

“U.S. Senator James Risch shocked many in the crowd when he said any U.S. response to the North Korean nuclear threat would be ‘biblical’ in nature…

“In addition to the known security threats — the smoldering conflict in Ukraine, widening instability in the Middle East or the nuclear threat posed by North Korea — there was growing unease over unknown, amorphous ones such as cyber and biological warfare. The eroding position of the U.S. under President Donald Trump as the bulwark of the Western bloc has complicated efforts within the transatlantic alliance to find answers about how (and in some cases whether) to confront such challenges.

“It was clear that Trump’s repeated rhetorical swipes at partners like Germany has taken a toll… The U.S. delegation took pains to reassure their European counterparts of Washington’s enduring commitment to the region’s security.  But such reassurances proved a hard sell… European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker spoke grandly of making Europe ‘weltpolitikfähig,’ coining a German word for making the EU a true global political player…”

And so, continental Europe will indeed become a true global political player.

Germany Slams USA

The Daily Mail wrote on February 17:

“Germany’s foreign minister slammed the ‘America first’ approach of President Donald Trump’s administration… Sigmar Gabriel… told world leaders and defense officials at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that the United States was no longer the only indisputable superpower.

“Instead, he said Washington needed to count on traditional partners in Europe for help… He recommends the US to keep a good relationship with the European Union in order to thrive…

“Herbert Raymond McMaster, US National Security Advisor… added that, following Russian aggression in recent years against Georgia and Ukraine, Europe needs ‘more steel tanks and not only think tanks.’…

“[Gabriel said:] ‘… we Germans in particular are so perturbed when we look across the Atlantic – because we no longer recognize our America’… He urged a return to greater joint cooperation, saying now is not the time for ‘just pursuing individual national interests.’ Gabriel suggested the US was going in the opposite direction, drifting toward approaches taken from powers like China and Russia who are ‘constantly trying to test or undermine’ the EU.

“’It is one thing from possible rivals or competitors, but from our friends and partners we expect that they will respect the unity of the EU,’ he said. ‘No one should try to divide the EU, not Russia, not China, but also not the United States.’… He said that while Europe can’t rest simply on a military strategy, it also can’t ignore military and defense spending. ‘As the only vegetarian, we would have a problem in the world of carnivores,’ he said.”

Germany placed the world on notice as to their intentions and expectations regarding Europe… and their misgivings towards the USA.

EU Can’t Make USA Happy

Express wrote on February 17:

“The President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, said nothing Brussels did in relation to security kept Donald Trump’s administration happy… Mr Juncker said people in the USA fear the EU is becoming too independent on security… ‘Over many years we have been accused by Americans that we weren’t doing enough for our own defence, but now we do make efforts, we do more and now they’re not happy with that either…”

Europe’s disgust and disappointment with the USA is more and more obvious.

Wrong War? US Attacks EU Defense Policy…

Politico wrote on February 16:

“… it is only matter of time before the U.S. and its allies end up in a pointless fight over EU defense.

“A Pentagon official this week criticized the EU’s ‘common security and defense policy’ (CSDP) for pulling forces away from NATO, and the U.S. ambassador to the alliance warned against its provisions to protect European defense companies… The U.S. is right to suspect that Europe’s decision to build up a robust defense policy is not all good news for NATO. But it’s making its point the wrong way. Attacking Europe’s push for greater security cooperation won’t make it reverse course, and could do damage to an already frayed transatlantic relationship…

“An outright opposition from Washington is doomed to fail… the U.S. would be foolish to keep attacking Europe’s defense integration… The policy is already a reality, whether the U.S. likes it or not. Enough European members of NATO are willing to stand up for it to make it pointless for Washington to try to thwart it.”

Washington will continue to antagonize Europe, and vice versa. The relationship between these two powers will deteriorate more and more.

Europe Must Take Care of Themselves

Handelsblatt Global wrote on February 16:

“Germany and Europe must get real: Soft power is no longer sufficient in today’s troubled, Trumpian world…

“The strategic shocks of recent years have left deep and lasting wounds, and pushed Europe into new and uncharted waters. A decade ago, EU leaders talked confidently about projecting stability abroad. Today, their priority is to prevent instability from spilling over into Europe… Europe is surrounded by ongoing conflicts. Tensions are increasing from the Indus to the Nile and across North Africa, where any turmoil will have an immediate impact on European security. As Europeans well know, there is no way to build a wall in the Mediterranean.

“Moreover, it is worrying that the Trump administration hardly ever talks about upholding the post-war, liberal international order. Instead, it views the world as a zero-sum strategic competition in which the US should look out only for itself. Unfortunately, in a world without common institutions to restrain sovereign states from escalating conflicts with one another, the risks of all-out war will increase substantially…

“Europeans can no longer avoid taking responsibility for their own defense…”

And so, Europe will proceed with building their own army. Humanly speaking, they have no other choice.

Head of German Central Bank to Become President of European Central Bank (ECB)?

Handelsblatt Global wrote on February 19:

“… officials in Berlin are more optimistic than ever before that… a German banker will be seated as the head of the ECB for the first time.

“The main cause for such optimism was the decision disclosed on Monday that EU countries have coalesced around the Spanish economy minister, Luis de Guindos, to become vice president of the ECB… The complex process works like this: when the richer northern part of the EU supports a single candidate from the EU’s southern states for the vice president’s job at the ECB, the top job at the central bank is supposed to go to a candidate from a northern country. But filling that job also depends on who becomes the next head of the European Commission, a post now held by Luxembourg’s Jean-Claude Juncker, and the European Council president, a post now occupied by Poland’s Donald Tusk…

“German officials now hope that the stage has been set for Jens Weidmann, the current head of the German central bank, the Bundesbank, to succeed ECB president Mario Draghi, whose term ends in October 2019. One reason for the optimism is that even though Germany has the largest economy in Europe, a German has never been chosen as ECB president… there was a reluctance to give Germans so much power after World War II… If Mr. Draghi is a classic dove on monetary policy, then Mr. Weidmann is a hawk.

“… Officials in Brussels believe the final decision on ECB chief may depend on French President Emmanuel Macron. He is said to be keen for France to get the commission president’s job when Mr. Juncker steps down. For that to happen, Germany would have to go along, so there may be a deal in the making to enable Germany’s choice at the ECB and France’s position at the commission.”

It would be interesting to see a German banker leading the European Central Bank.

German “Rasputin of Brussels” to Become EU’s Commission Secretary-General

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 21:

“Martin Selmayr has been the shadowy figure beside EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker since 2014. His promotion to Commission secretary-general could cement his power in EU politics for years to come. Martin Selmayr, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s chief of staff, will be the Commission’s next secretary-general, Juncker said on Wednesday.

“Selmayr, an ardently pro-EU German, has been called the ‘the Rasputin of Brussels’ for his behind-the-scenes influence in European Union politics… The 47-year-old lawyer from the western German city of Bonn has been Juncker’s chief of staff since 2014. He previously worked as Juncker’s campaign manager and as a Commission spokesman. Selmayr is considered a power-broker and enforcer of Juncker’s top-down management at the Commission. Juncker has affectionately called Selmayr a ‘monster‘ for his ability to work long hours…

“Selmayr’s appointment could also renew fears among some EU countries that Germany is gaining too much influence in EU institutions. Germany is the largest and richest member state… Selmayr is set to take over as secretary-general on March 1… Spaniard Clara Martinez will replace Selmayr as Juncker’s new chief of staff.”

New German Scandal

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 15:

“The German military is under-equipped to take on its upcoming role as leader of NATO’s anti-Russian defense force… at the start of next year, but doesn’t have enough tanks…

“Mark Galeotti, senior researcher and head of the Prague-based Center for European Security [said:] ‘We must remember that European NATO, even without the Americans and the Canadians, has more ground troops than the Russians do.’”

Deutsche Welle added on February 19:

“Germany’s Defense Ministry said that combat readiness of German troops would be ensured… The authorities are set to complete the process by the end of 2018, at the latest… [It was also] said that ‘Bundeswehr is ready and able to fulfill its commitments,’ and that the missing items ‘are being procured.’…

“German parliamentarians reacted with outrage to news of the latest deficiencies. ‘We cannot and will not accept’ such supply gaps, said defense expert Fritz Felgentreu from the Social Democratic Party (SPD). The Free Democrat (FDP) politician Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann found even stronger words. ‘The fact that even basic equipment such as protective vests and winter clothing is in short supply shows what a miserable state the Bundeswehr is in as a result of cutting costs,’ she said…”

We can be certain that Germany will rectify these shortcomings very soon.

Germany’s AfD More Popular than SPD

The Local wrote on February 19:

“A poll published on Monday by the newspaper Bild put the Alternative for Germany (AfD) on 16 percent… just ahead of the SPD on 15.5 percent. The poll marks the lowest support ever achieved by the SPD, traditionally one of the two major parties of German politics.

“According to the poll Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats are the most popular party in the country and would secure 32 percent of the vote were elections to be held tomorrow… Germany‘s oldest party [the SPD] – around since the late 19th century – scored their worst post-war result in 2017 at 20.5 percent and have only haemorrhaged support since then.”

While the AfD is certainly a thorn in the flesh of the established parties, it will not play a major role in Germany to the extent that it will jeopardize the European unification process. However, the German government will be forced to act and react to the demands of the AfD. In addition, we must realize that the AfD is NOT a “Nazi” party, even though parts of the media would like to mischaracterize it as such.

Europe Rewrites History

The Washington Post wrote on February 19:

“In Poland, the president signs a law criminalizing anyone who dares suggest that the country’s citizens helped perpetrate crimes of the Holocaust. In Italy, a Mussolini-admiring neo-fascist goes on a shooting rampage targeting people with dark skin…

“… events across the continent have served as a potent reminder that Europe’s grip on its history is far from assured. In particular, the 20th century’s dark detours into Nazism, fascism and state-sponsored anti-Semitism are again being subjected to revision…

“In Poland in particular, as in much of Eastern Europe, historical revisionism is far from a new phenomenon. During decades of postwar communist rule, history was distorted freely for any number of political ends. For some, the new ‘Holocaust law’ harks back to those times, when ideology often dictated history. But the facts are the facts. Historians have documented anti-Semitic atrocities carried out by Polish citizens…”

Poland Antagonizes Israel

MSN wrote on February 19:

“Poland’s government refused to apologize on Monday for Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s comments about ‘Jewish perpetrators’ during World War II, escalating a row that’s upended the country’s relations with Israel and is alarming the U.S.

“When confronted during a conference in Munich on Saturday over Poland’s new law that criminalizes suggestions that the Polish nation bore any responsibility for the Holocaust, Morawiecki listed Jews among nations that along with Germans were ‘perpetrators’ of Nazi-era crimes. His list included Ukrainians, Russians and Poles. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the comments were ‘outrageous,’ while Yair Lapid, an opposition politician, called on Israel to recall its ambassador from Poland.

“Morawiecki’s intention was to list nations that collaborated with the Germans, Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz said on Monday, adding that use of the word ‘perpetrators’ was a ‘linguistic mistake’ for which there’s no need to apologize…’”

Schizophrenic Approach—UK Wants Defense Treaty with EU?

Euractiv wrote on February 17:

“Britain wants… a defence and security treaty with the EU before its leaves the bloc in March 2019, Theresa May told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday… But she also ruled out a second referendum on Britain’s EU membership.

“… the UK is yet to set out exactly what it would like to be included in a defence treaty, but it would be likely to cover military, intelligence and counter-terrorism cooperation. That would include provisions on common EU military missions, the continued contribution of UK troops to them, and defence capability. The UK also wants to retain close links with Europol, which coordinates police intelligence across the EU, and remain part of the European Arrest Warrant.

“The extent of this co-operation could, however, pose problems for ‘hard Brexiteers’ in May’s Conservative party. EAW membership would mean oversight by the European Court of Justice, a self-imposed red-line by the UK government. Meanwhile, the government’s negotiating paper on defence and security talks of the need to include a proposal to stay in the European Defence Fund and defence industrial programme, the core pillars of the agreements. This is likely to mean conceding defence decision-making to the EU as the structures are governed by EU institutions. That could also cause friction with Brexiteers.

“The UK’s defence industry is also anxious to remain part of the European ecosystem. On Friday, Robert Hannigan, the former head of the UK intelligence service, warned that UK defence firms would fall into a ‘steady decline’ if they lost the ability to collaborate on research and innovation with the EU defence sector…

“The UK is taking a ‘schizophrenic approach’, a Westminster defence source told EURACTIV, pointing out that its ministers publicly opposed plans for an EU ‘defence union’ in late 2016… In December, 25 member states – except Denmark, Malta and Britain – agreed to join a new ‘permanent structured cooperation’ on defence, or PESCO.”

Such a defense treaty will not happen. The opposition in Britain to such an endeavor is too overwhelming.

Israel Prepared to Attack Iran

Reuters and Allgemeiner wrote on February 18:

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel could act against Iran itself, not just its allies in the Middle East, after border incidents in Syria brought the Middle East foes closer to direct confrontation. In response, Iran mocked Netanyahu’s tough words, saying Israel’s reputation for ‘invincibility’ had crumbled after one of its jets was shot down following a bombing run in Syria. In his first address to the annual Munich Security Conference… Netanyahu held up a piece of what he said was an Iranian drone that flew into Israeli airspace this month.

“‘Israel will not allow the regime to put a noose of terror around our neck,’ he said. ‘We will act if necessary not just against Iran’s proxies but against Iran itself.’… Among Israel’s main concerns is Lebanon, where the heavily armed Iran-backed Shi’ite militia Hezbollah is part of a coalition government… Israel… has accused Tehran of planning to build missile factories in Lebanon. Lebanon’s Defense Minister… warned against intervention: ‘Watch out, we will defend ourselves … we also have friends.’”

Israel will be involved in another war in the Middle East, but this time, it will not win. The Bible speaks of a “wound” which it will receive.

Flagrant War Crimes in Syria

The Guardian wrote on February 20:

“Almost 200 civilians have been killed in dozens of airstrikes and shelling by forces loyal to Syria’s Bashar al-Assad in eastern Ghouta over two days of ‘hysterical violence’, which has led to warnings of a humanitarian catastrophe that could eclipse past atrocities in the seven-year war.

“The surge in the killing in the besieged region came amid reports of an impending regime incursion into the area outside Damascus, which is home to 400,000 civilians. More than 700 people have been killed in three months, according to local counts, not including the deaths in the last week.

“Amnesty International said ‘flagrant war crimes’ were being committed in eastern Ghouta on an ‘epic scale’… Seven hospitals have also been bombed since Monday morning in eastern Ghouta, which was once the breadbasket of Damascus…

“Elsewhere in Syria on Tuesday, pro-government fighters started entering the northern Kurdish enclave of Afrin, where Turkish troops have been on the offensive for a month. The development came a day after Turkey said it would hit back at the troops if their goal was to protect the Kurdish fighters. Syrian state media said Turkish troops fired on the pro-government militiamen, a development that risks widening an already complicated war.”

Nuclear War By Accident?

CBC wrote on February 18:

“An insistent alarm is being raised over the rising probability the world will trip into its next major conflict rather than deliberately march into it… experts believe accidents and missteps… are far more dangerous than they might have been in the past.

“Take the risk of nuclear war. It has ‘never been higher since the Cuban missile crisis,’ Ernest Moniz, former U.S. secretary of energy and now head of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, said during this weekend’s Munich Security Conference. But ‘the principal risk right now as we see it is not some planned-out, intentional initiation of nuclear use, but rather accident, miscalculation, blunder and that’s why the probability is higher.’…

“Inevitably accidents are also likely to emerge in existing battlegrounds with multiple players who complicate the picture…”

Reactions to Indictment of 13 Russians

The Associated Press and Newsmax wrote on February 18:

“President Donald Trump is undercutting a top aide again – this time national security adviser Gen. H.R. McMaster. McMaster told an international audience that the evidence of Russian meddling in the 2016 American election is beyond dispute. Trump tweeted late Saturday that McMaster left out some details. ‘General McMaster forgot to say that the results of the 2016 election were not impacted or changed by the Russians and that the only Collusion was between Russia and Crooked H, the DNC and the Dems. Remember the Dirty Dossier, Uranium, Speeches, Emails and the Podesta Company!’ Trump was continuing his efforts to pin Russian collusion on the Democrats and their nominee Hillary Clinton.

“McMaster was answering a question from a Russian delegate at a Munich Security Conference on Saturday. Referring to the indictment of 13 Russians announced Friday, McMaster says ‘with the FBI indictment, the evidence is now incontrovertible’ of Russia cyber-meddling. ‘As you can see with the FBI indictment, the evidence is now really incontrovertible and available in the public domain,’ McMaster told a Russian delegate to the conference.

“The detailed document presented the most compelling public evidence to date that the Russian operation was elaborate, expensive and real. Citing emails and conversations by the perpetrators of the plot, it also demonstrated that the ongoing probe may have access to explosive intelligence material gathered on the Russian operations…

“Just minutes before, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had dismissed the indictment as ‘just blabber’… But Lavrov did not say what he specifically disputed in the indictment…  McMaster also scoffed at the suggestion that the U.S. would work with Russia on cyber security issues… Lavrov argued that U.S. officials, including Vice President Mike Pence, have said no country influenced the U.S. election results…”

“Trump: ‘I Never Said Russia Did Not Meddle in the Election’”

The Week wrote on February 18:

“‘I never said Russia did not meddle in the election,’ President Trump tweeted early Sunday. ‘I said “it may be Russia, or China or another country or group, or it may be a 400 pound genius sitting in bed and playing with his computer,”’ he continued. ‘The Russian “hoax” was that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia – it never did!’ Trump was referring to comments he made in the first general election debate…

“Trump also said in November of 2017 he ‘really believes’ Russian President Vladimir Putin’s denial of election meddling.”

School Shooting in Florida—the Aftermath

In an astonishingly strong article by British journalist and moderator Piers Morgan, who is (was) considered otherwise to be quite sympathetic to Donald Trump, the following was published by the Daily Mail, dated February 15 (Of course, Morgan’s objection to America’s gun hysteria had been well known and documented):

“I’ll tell you what’s ‘sicko’, Mr Trump – it’s a cowardly president who turns a blind eye to children getting blown to pieces at school. Three weeks ago, I asked President Trump why he’d done nothing to stop another mass shooting after the recent horrendous massacre in Las Vegas. ‘He was a sicko,’ he replied, ‘I mean that’s the big problem – they’re sick people.’…

“Five years ago, a deranged, angry young 20-year-old man used an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and high capacity bullet magazines to murder 26 people including 20 kids at a school in Sandy Hook, Connecticut. Yesterday, a deranged, angry young 19-year-old man used an AR-15 and high capacity magazines to murder at least 17 people including many kids at a school in Parkland, Florida.

“As the US slips once more into its familiar Groundhog Day post-gun-massacre pattern of feigned shock, hand-wringing thoughts and prayers, insincere cable news blather, and pathetic inaction, I’d like to explore President Trump’s ‘sicko’ premise… Remember when a 9-year-old girl accidentally shot dead this instructor, Charles Vacca, at a range… while firing an Uzi, and it was all entirely legal? She had fired – and lost control of – an UZI sub-machine gun, one of the most dangerous high-powered weapons in the world… I mean, no rational human being could possibly think that putting such a hideous killing machine in the hands of a little girl is anything other than complete madness? Wrong. A lot of Americans, tens of millions of them in fact, think that’s perfectly OK.

“… The shooter [in Florida], former student Nikolas Cruz, was too young to be allowed to buy a beer in a state that like many in the US has ‘zero tolerance alcohol laws’. But he was legally able to buy a semi-automatic military style rifle… [To add to this, young men and woman who just turned 18 are allowed to vote. At that age, very few have a correct understanding of the complexities of human life; the seriousness of the manifold issues plaguing us;  and the deviousness of lying politicians running for office.]

“Cruz apparently passed a background check when purchasing his gun. This despite the fact he had been treated for ‘mental issues’, expelled from the school he attacked (among many concerning acts of behaviour, he sold knives out of his lunchbox and was found with bullets in his backpack), banned from returning to the school after threatening teachers, and accused of abusing a girlfriend… and despite the fact he had posted endless photos of himself on social media brandishing guns and regularly threatening to shoot people including students at the school…

“He was a monster waiting to explode, and all who knew him were very aware of exactly where he might execute that explosion… The teachers all knew, which is why an email was sent out warning them all to keep an eye out for Cruz after he was expelled, especially if he had a backpack with him…

“When I interviewed President Trump, in Davos at the World Economic Forum, I told him: ‘Only eight people were killed in America last year by Islamist terrorism. By comparison, domestic gun violence killed at least 32,000. Two of the worst mass shootings in American history have now happened on your watch in Las Vegas and at a church in Texas. People will be saying, you’re very tough on security, you want to keep Americans safe, but if you don’t do anything about gun violence at all that seems an irrational position for somebody who wants to keep Americans safe?’

“Trump then tried to deflect my question by talking about another country. ‘Take a look at Paris,’ he said, ‘where you have very tough guns controls. Take a look at that terrible slaughter where so many people were killed… by thugs with guns. So the bad guys have the guns and if you would have had somebody with a gun when they walked in so you could have bullets going in the other direction, you wouldn’t have hundreds of people killed.’ This, of course, is the same warped logic spewed so often by Trump’s paymasters at the NRA… [that] only good guys with guns can stop bad guys with guns. So the only answer to mass shootings is for everyone else to be armed too.

“What Trump didn’t say is that 130 people were killed in Paris that night; a terrible toll, but around a quarter of the number of people killed by guns in America EVERY WEEK. When I pointed out that countries like Britain, which also has very tough gun laws, average just 32 gun deaths a year, he deflected again: ‘But you have a lot of terrorism.’ Yes, it’s true Britain had a number of Islamist terror attacks in 2017. But the total death total was smaller (35) than the number murdered by guns in America EVERY DAY.

“I asked Trump specifically why he had done nothing to stop even bump stocks (an attachment that allows semi-automatic guns to fire like fully automatic guns) being sold, after it emerged the Vegas shooter had converted a dozen AR-15s by using them. I asked Trump about the Las Vegas shooter’s massive arsenal.  ‘If he didn’t have a gun, he would have had a bomb, or would have something else,’ the President answered…

“Current US gun laws are so lax even terror suspects on the no-fly list are allowed to buy firearms… Trump sighed. ‘I’m a Second Amendment person. I think you need it (guns) for security…’ In other words, he intends to do absolutely nothing to stop these massacres happening again. Well, I’m sorry Mr President, but this just isn’t acceptable. You can’t pretend to be tough on security but turn a blind eye when yet another US school (there have been over 280 school shootings since Sandy Hook) is turned into a human slaughterhouse. It’s spineless and cowardly, and you know it.

“Imagine your son Barron had been in that school yesterday – and then decide what is the right thing to do. ‘No child, teacher or anyone else should feel unsafe in an American school,’ you tweeted yesterday. Yet the tragic truth is no child, teacher or anyone else now feels SAFE in an American school. The Florida attack was the ninth biggest gun atrocity in American history. That means three of the country’s worst ever mass shootings have now happened on your watch – in just five months.

“Yet one of the only things you’ve done about guns as President was to roll back an Obama-era regulation that made it harder for people with mental illness to get guns. That’s ‘sicko’, Mr President. And anyone who thinks the only answer to this carnage is even more guns is also ‘sicko’.”

Nothing more needs to be added to this, really—except to say that Piers Morgan’s viewpoint makes a lot of sense.

Breitbart wrote on February 16:

“Barack Obama’s Social Security gun ban [which was repealed under Trump]… covered Social Security beneficiaries on [mental] disability who needed help managing their finances. On the basis of requiring help with their finances, such beneficiaries were prohibited from gun possession. That is no way applicable to the heinous attack on Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.”

It might not have been, but to repeal such a law is still very disturbing, and no spin by the gun lobby makes it right.

Improving Gun Background Checks?

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 19:

“The White House has said US President Donald Trump would back efforts to improve gun background checks. A bi-partisan bill would ensure states and agencies accurately report criminal information to the FBI… The legislation does not add new restrictions on gun purchases…

“Trump has largely tried to avoid the politically divisive gun debate, instead blaming mass shootings such as the one from last week on mental-health issues… Past efforts to advance comprehensive gun control reform have failed to move anywhere in Congress.”

Politicians avoid dealing with this controversial issue because they want and need the votes and the financial support from either side. Another reason WHY politics is such a dirty business.

Arming Teachers? – A BAD Idea!

Breitbart reported on February 22:

“President Trump suggested bonuses for [trained] teachers who carry guns to defend themselves and their students as part of his push to address school safety.”

Deutsche Welle added on February 22:

“NRA leader LaPierre backed the president on arming teachers at schools and installing armed guards, saying it was the only way to ensure students’ safety… The NRA chief described Democrat lawmakers calling for gun control as ‘European-style socialists’ and accused them of exploiting last week’s school shooting in Florida.”

To find out what is the only way to ensure students’ safety, please view our new StandingWatch program, “Will Horrific Mass Shootings Ever Stop?”

“Demon Voices”

The Daily Mail wrote on February 17:

“School gunman Nikolas Cruz, 19, faces 17 counts of premeditated murder… He told authorities that voices in his head told him how to carry out the shooting. According to his legal team he suffers from autism, depression and has other significant psychological problems.

“Police were called to his family’s home in Parkland, Florida 39 times since 2010. Calls were for a range of reasons including ‘mentally ill person,’ ‘child/elderly abuse,’ ‘domestic disturbance’ and several others.”

The media might talk about “mental problems,” but it fails to realize that Satan and his demons are behind these horrendous acts of mass murder.  

“Donald Trump, a Playboy Model, and a System for Concealing Infidelity”

The New Yorker wrote on February 16:

“In June, 2006, Donald Trump taped an episode of his reality-television show, ‘The Apprentice,’ at the Playboy Mansion, in Los Angeles. Hugh Hefner, Playboy’s publisher, threw a pool party for the show’s contestants with dozens of current and former Playmates, including Karen McDougal… At the time of the party, Trump had been married to the Slovenian model Melania Knauss for less than two years; their son, Barron, was a few months old…

“Trump and McDougal began an affair, which McDougal later memorialized in an eight-page, handwritten document… The interactions that McDougal outlines in the document share striking similarities with the stories of other women who claim to have had sexual relationships with Trump, or who have accused him of propositioning them for sex or sexually harassing them. McDougal describes their affair as entirely consensual. But her account provides a detailed look at how Trump and his allies used clandestine hotel-room meetings, payoffs, and complex legal agreements to keep affairs—sometimes multiple affairs he carried out simultaneously—out of the press.

“On November 4, 2016, four days before the election, the Wall Street Journal reported that American Media, Inc., the publisher of the National Enquirer, had paid a hundred and fifty thousand dollars for exclusive rights to McDougal’s story, which it never ran. Purchasing a story in order to bury it is a practice that many in the tabloid industry call ‘catch and kill.’ This is a favorite tactic of the C.E.O. and chairman of A.M.I., David Pecker, who describes the President as ‘a personal friend’… [Allegedly] Pecker routinely makes catch-and-kill arrangements like the one reached with McDougal… [and nothing is] printed… about Trump without his approval.”

The “shocking” news is not that Donald Trump might have had another affair with a Playboy model, but how manipulative and dishonest the media can be in suppressing reports for political reasons.

Billy Graham Died

JTA wrote on February 21, 2018:

“Billy Graham (99), the giant of American evangelism who was exalted by Jews for his championing of Israel at its hour of need and then condemned when a nasty anti-Semitic streak was revealed [saying, among other things, that Jews were responsible for pornography], has died.

“His son, Franklin, is one of President Donald Trump’s highest-profile religious supporters… In 2002, Graham apologized for the remarks, and Jewish community leaders accepted his apology — but the relationship would never again be the same. ‘We knew that Nixon was an anti-Semite,’ Abraham Foxman, then the Anti-Defamation League’s national director, told JTA at the time, whereas Graham is ‘a guy we all felt comfortable with … And he was so infected with this virulent anti-Semitism.’”

The New York Times added on February 21:

“Recognizing his influence, presidents made a point of seeking friendly relations with Mr. Graham; Lyndon B. Johnson did so assiduously. Mr. Graham was a frequent guest of Ronald Reagan, and in January 1991, George H. W. Bush invited him to spend the night at the White House the day before American-led forces began bombing Iraq. Mr. Clinton asked Mr. Graham to offer prayers at his inauguration in 1993.

“President George W. Bush said that it was after a walk with Mr. Graham at the Bush family’s compound in Kennebunkport, Me., that Mr. Bush, as a younger man, decided to become more serious about his faith and quit drinking. President Barack Obama visited Mr. Graham at his North Carolina home in 2010.

“Former President Jimmy Carter released a statement on Wednesday saying that he had counted Mr. Graham among his advisers and friends, adding that the minister had ‘had an enormous influence on my own spiritual life.’ And President Trump tweeted: ‘The GREAT Billy Graham is dead. There was nobody like him! He will be missed by Christians and all religions. A very special man.’

“Of the presidents, Mr. Graham was most closely associated with Nixon… In the 1960 presidential campaign, Mr. Graham, a registered Democrat, was strongly sympathetic to Nixon, a Republican, and offered him advice in his campaign against Senator John F. Kennedy, a Roman Catholic. At one point, concerned that a Kennedy administration would be influenced by the Vatican, Mr. Graham invited more than two dozen Protestant leaders to a meeting to discuss ways to defeat him. He went on to endorse Nixon in the 1968 presidential race and allowed that endorsement to be used in television commercials. He gave the invocation at Nixon’s 1969 inauguration and came to be described as Nixon’s unofficial White House chaplain.

“Mr. Graham said he had been ‘innocently unaware’ of the storm gathering over Watergate. But when the extent of the scandal became known — disclosures of the break-in and the subsequent cover-up orchestrated by the White House — Mr. Graham tended to look the other way, his critics said… In 1982, Mr. Graham displeased the Reagan administration when, after a visit to the Soviet Union, he spoke in favor of universal nuclear disarmament. He also visited Russian churches, and his comment that he had seen no evidence of religious repression by the Soviet authorities created a furor among conservative church members in the United States.”

Breitbart wrote on February 21:

“… former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR) reacted to Christian evangelist Billy Graham’s passing early today. According to Huckabee, Graham’s ‘death’ was ‘fake news’ given the belief his life extends beyond his earthly one. ‘When I heard this morning that Billy Graham had died, I said, “That’s fake news. Billy Graham’s not dead. He’s more alive right now than he’s ever been,”‘ Huckabee said.

“‘And the fact is, that’s what he preached – is [sic] that there is life beyond this one because of Jesus Christ. His message never wavered from that. If somehow Billy Graham did not inherit eternal life, and if he’s not alive right now in a life that will never end, then [sic] he stood for, everything he said is null and void. I don’t believe that’s so.'”

Even though Billy Graham was clearly a very controversial figure, people called him “the Pope to the Protestants” and “America’s Pastor.” Also, commentators keep referring to the idea that he is now in heaven with his wife and Jesus. At one time, Billy Graham called Herbert W. Armstrong and expressed to him: “Brother Herbert, you are doing a great job in preaching the gospel of the Kingdom, while I am doing a great job in preaching the gospel of salvation.” Sadly, however, true salvation has nothing to do with getting involved with the politics of this world or going to heaven when we die.

Yellowstone’s Supervolcano—Ready To Erupt?

Express wrote on February 19:

“Fears for a Yellowstone supervolcano eruption have been sparked after a swarm of 10 earthquakes struck the seismically volatile US national park yesterday following another quake the day before… While all the quakes were relatively small, it does point to an increasingly volatile geological landscape at the park…

“Yesterday’s earthquake roughly 20 miles from the supervolcano [beneath the surface of the park] will add to concerns of an imminent – and devastating – eruption… If the Wyoming volcano were to erupt an estimated 87,000 people would be killed immediately and two-thirds of the USA would immediately be made uninhabitable due to a huge ash cloud sparking rapid climate change. The large spew of ash into the atmosphere would block out sunlight and directly affect life beneath it creating a ‘nuclear winter’ for huge parts of Earth – not simply the American West.

“The massive eruption could be a staggering 6,000 times as powerful as the one from Washington’s Mount St Helens in 1980…”

The Bible does predict the occurrence of terrible natural catastrophes in our time, and it does not exclude the United States. Therefore, an eruption, as described above, is entirely possible.

Huge Earthquake in Mexico

“A 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck the Pacific coast of Mexico Friday, leaving about one million homes and businesses without power. No one was killed by the initial quake, but [thirteen] people died… when a military helicopter crashed while surveying the damage. The earthquake was unusually long, and it was followed by 225 aftershocks.

“This comes less than half a year after a September quake killed more than 300 people in Mexico City and surrounding areas…”

“Unusually Large” Earthquake Hits Wales

The Daily Mail wrote on February 17:

“An unusually large earthquake has hit Wales and south-west England. The tremor, which measured 4.4 on the Richter scale, was centered eight miles north-east Swansea in South Wales… It is the biggest earthquake to hit the UK in 10 years after a 5.2 quake was recorded in Market Rasen, Lincolnshire on February 27, 2008.

“As well as residents in Newport, Cardiff and Swansea reporting that they were affected by the earthquake, tremors were felt in Bristol and Cornwall.”

The Bible speaks of increasing earthquake activities in “diverse places.”

Sexual Travesties by Aid Workers in Africa and Haiti

Daily Mail wrote on February 19:

“Aid workers traded wheat and life-saving medicines for sex with children in crisis zones, it has emerged. Humanitarians traded ‘oil, bulgur wheat, tarpaulin or plastic sheeting, medicines, transport, ration cards, loans, education courses and skills training’ with girls aged 13 to 18. The report, written in 2001, shows officials knew of the alleged abuse in Africa a decade before the Oxfam sex scandal, where chiefs were accused of concealing findings of an inquiry into claims staff paid for prostitutes in disaster-struck Haiti in 2011.

“It added in some cases that parents encouraged their daughters to be sexually exploited by aid workers, government officials, UN peacekeepers, refugee leaders and teachers to bring income into the family. It comes as a British-funded charity supported by Meghan Markle admitted its workers traded food and cash for sex with survivors of the devastating 2010 earthquake on Haiti. World Vision, which Prince Harry’s fiancée was an ambassador for until last year, admitted that paid employees forced desperate survivors of the disaster to have sex… for World Food Programme aid…

“The investigation also found that sometimes younger girls were befriended so aid workers could gain access to their mothers or older sisters, and some teenage boys were also exploited by older women… A female agency worker in Guinea said ‘No girl will get a job without having sex with NGO workers. The girls see it as competition. It is survival of the fittest’. The study of more than 1,500 people revealed that senior staff often allowed agency workers to ‘behave with impunity’ and that aid workers were ‘most frequent sex exploiters of children, often using the very humanitarian aid and services intended to benefit the refugee population as a tool of exploitation’…

“The newly resurfaced report comes in the wake of the Oxfam sex scandal, where it has emerged prominent figures in the charity slept with prostitutes while on humanitarian missions. The report adds: ‘Peacekeepers are alleged to have sexually exploited children in exchange for money and food.’”

This is a horrible example of human degradation. Aid workers who are supposed to help people become offenders of the worst possible kind.

Parents Lose Custody over Teen’s Transgender Wish

Life Site News wrote on February 14:

“Ohio government authorities forced parents to give up legal custody of their daughter (17) after the mother and father said they opposed the girl’s decision to identify as a ‘boy’ and transition to being ‘male’…

“The minor was diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and gender dysphoria after being hospitalized in 2016. Doctors decided that because she wants to identify as a male, she should be given testosterone and sex ‘change’ drugs. But the girl’s parents objected, arguing that they did not think that such ‘treatment’ was in their daughter’s best interest.”

The “land of the free” protects the “freedom” of confused children to change their sex, while it violates the freedom of parents to prevent this. Woe to those who call good evil and evil good.

Switzerland Outlaws Cruel Treatment of Lobsters

USA Today wrote on February 18:

“A [Swiss] law goes into effect March 1 that bans the common cooking method of tossing a live lobster into a big pot of boiling water… killing the…  crustacean. That practice is being outlawed because the Swiss say it’s cruel and lobsters can sense pain. The first national legislation of its kind in the world calls for a more humane death for lobsters…

“The measure is part of the broad principle of ‘animal dignity’ enshrined in Switzerland’s constitution, the only country to have such a provision…

“The new lobster legislation that boils down to a pain-free death was driven by research, including a study by Queen’s University in Belfast that found crustaceans are sentient creatures. ‘These studies show that lobsters, like other animals, experience pain and distress,’ said… a spokesman for the Federal Office of Food Safety and Veterinary Affairs.”

We have stated many years ago that lobsters can sense pain (even though many denied this at that time). To boil a live lobster until it dies IS cruel and inhumane. It is also totally unnecessary and wrong for the additional reason that the Bible PROHIBITS the human consumption of lobsters.

First Sheep-Human Hybrid—In the Name of “Science”

Science Alert wrote on February 19:

“… scientists have created the first interspecies sheep-human chimera, introducing human stem cells into sheep embryos, resulting in a hybrid creature… the human portion of the embryos created in the experiment – before they were destroyed after 28 days – is exceedingly small, but the fact it exists at all is what generates considerable controversy… The research builds on previous experiments by some of the same team that saw scientists successfully grow human cells inside early-stage pig embryos in the lab, creating pig-human hybrids that the researchers described as interspecies chimeras.”

The Daily Mail wrote on February 17:

“[The] Stanford’s team… has already successfully transplanted pancreases into mice… Researchers have previously developed human-pig hybrids but have not yet been able to use the process to grow human organs. To create their ‘chimera’ – as hybrid animal-humans are called – the team grew embryos containing sheep and human cells, and kept the surrogate animal carrying them alive for three weeks. The team now plans to implant human stem cells into sheep embryos and hope that human DNA will be able to grow organs such as a pancreas. It would be a world first if a human organ could be grown inside a sheep.”

It seems there are no limits to science’s attempts to engage in experiments which are totally against nature. There are of course always “reasons” given why such experiments are needful, but the thought of a human-animal hybrid should wake all of us up.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

Schulz Quits…

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 9:

“The current head of Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD) Martin Schulz said on Friday that he would no longer pursue a ministerial post in the next German government, including the job of foreign minister. Schulz had come under heavy criticism in his own party for claiming the foreign minister role for himself after leaders of Germany’s largest parties agreed to form another coalition government led by Chancellor Angela Merkel…

“Schulz, the former president of the European Parliament, said he believed the internal squabble within his party risked jeopardizing a pending coalition deal with Merkel’s conservatives. The SPD reached a deal with Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), on Wednesday. The coalition deal still requires the approval of SPD party members who will vote on the deal in the coming weeks and can still reject it…

“His announcement follows days of mounting pressure from senior members of his party, including from current Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel, who criticized Schulz’s intention to take the helm at the Foreign Ministry. In an interview published on Friday, Gabriel complained about a lack of appreciation for his work as Germany’s top diplomat…  ‘It is clear, unfortunately, that the public’s regard for my work meant absolutely nothing to the new SPD leadership,’ Gabriel said…

“Directly after the September election, Schulz ruled out forming a new coalition with Merkel’s CDU/CSU bloc and had categorically ruled out joining her cabinet in the past. The backtracking by SPD leaders angered many in the party’s youth branch…”

Schulz’s Political Career Over?

The Telegraph wrote on February 9:

“Mr Schulz… was briefly talked of as Germany’s next chancellor… He was elected SPD leader with 100 per cent support in 2016 and the country was gripped by ‘Schulzmania’ in the early part of last year. But he led the party to its worst ever result in September’s election.

“His political career is now almost certainly over… His downfall comes despite negotiating a coalition deal widely regarded as very good for the SPD… Mr Gabriel has alleged they made a deal in 2016 under which he would get to stay on as foreign minister in return for stepping aside as party leader to make way for Mr Schulz…”

Whether Schulz’s political career is indeed over will have to be seen. Stranger things have happened in the dirty business of politics, and just maybe, the deadly wound which he received might be healed in the future, surprising the world. Even though Schulz had resigned as leader of the SPD and even though he will not pursue at this point the office of Foreign Minister, he remains to be a member of the German Parliament (Bundestagsabgeordneter).

Bild Online wrote on February 9 that Gabriel indicated that he wanted to remain Foreign Minister. And so, within an hour of Schulz’s “resignation,” Johannes Kahrs, the head of the SPD’s conservative wing, and others stated that Gabriel should stay as Foreign Minister. On the other hand, some of Gabriel’s’ actions against Schulz (for which he subsequently apologized) caused great concern within the SPD.

Merkel Paid High Price

Handelsblatt Global wrote on February 9:

“Ms. Merkel has paid a high price to renew a coalition with the same old partners – maybe too high. There’s plenty of rumbling in the rank and file of her party over the concessions she made to win over her rivals. Their concern: By giving away three prized ministerial portfolios to the Social Democratic Party, she may have handed the struggling party a future while robbing one for her own…

“The concessions prompted a cynical tweet from one CDU parliamentarian, Olav Gutting: ‘At least, we’ve kept the chancellorship.’”

Merkel Defies Critics

AFP wrote on February 12:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed on Sunday to serve another full four-year term despite growing criticism within her conservative ranks of the sweeping concessions she made to hold onto power. The veteran leader said that despite the sniping over a poor election result and the loss of key ministries in a fresh coalition deal, she felt no decline of her authority and wanted to stay at the helm of Europe’s biggest economy until 2021… she stressed that she… planned to stick with her pledge to stay on for four years as chancellor and party chief rather than make way for a successor before the end of the term…

“‘The transition to the post-Merkel era has begun,’ judged the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily, which added that Merkel’s power was waning and ‘a dangerous mood’ was starting to spread within her CDU. Handing over the finance ministry — long the domain of Merkel lieutenant and fiscal hawk Wolfgang Schäuble – ‘was one concession too many,’ fumed lawmaker Wolfgang Bosbach, reflecting a widely held view in the conservative party.

“An ambitious rival of Merkel, Jens Spahn, also charged that losing direct control of the public purse strings was a ‘hard blow’ that ‘hurt’ the CDU… Conservative lawmaker Christean Wagner even suggested that [the party’s] leader should ‘think about a successor.’”

Handelsblatt Global wrote on February 12:

“For 12 years, Angela Merkel was everybody’s darling. Then the chancellor stumbled over the refugee crisis. Now, after a weak coalition deal, rebellious conservatives are demanding a wide-sweeping party renewal… A revolt is simmering. Although there’s no immediate successor to Ms. Merkel in sight, her authority is clearly being questioned…”

Deutsche Welle added on February 12:

“Germany’s chancellor is reaching out to critics in her party — kind of. Angela Merkel intends to remain the top Christian Democrat, and chances are good that she will succeed.”

Second US Government Shutdown Short-Lived…

USA Today wrote on February 9:

“President Trump signed a $400 billion budget deal Friday, hours after the House passed it in a pre-dawn vote, reopening the federal government after it was partially shut down for the second time in less than a month. The House voted 240-186, with 73 Democrats and 167 Republicans voting in favor…

“House Minority leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., voted against the bill following her eight-hour marathon speech on Wednesday, protesting congressional inaction on protections for DREAMers, undocumented immigrants brought here as children. Pelosi issued a statement early Friday that criticized Ryan, saying he ‘refused to make a real commitment’ to schedule a vote to protect DREAMers…

“Pelosi and other Democrats have called on Ryan to guarantee an open debate on legislation — something Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has promised in the Senate… Ryan has said he intends to solve the problem. But he will only bring up a bill that President Trump supports… Of course, it is not entirely clear what the president will demand in an immigration bill. His public statements have embraced a wide range of policy options (from deportation to a path to citizenship, conditioned upon the erection of a “huge beautiful wall,” for which Mexico was supposed to pay)…

“The House vote followed earlier Senate approval of the budget pact that was initially delayed by a protest from Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul…  ‘We have Republicans hand-in-hand with Democrats offering us trillion-dollar deficits,’ Paul said on the Senate floor Thursday night… Fifteen other Republicans joined Paul in voting against the bill, with many expressing similar objections about the increased deficit spending.”

“Nobody Should Be Proud of the Budget Deal”

The Week wrote on February 9:

“The debt ceiling was raised or rather, in the deliberately mixed metaphor that is the official language of Washington, ‘suspended.’ Spending at the Pentagon, where single agencies routinely ‘lose’ amounts as large as $800 million, was increased by billions.

“All afternoon senators and congressmen of both parties congratulated one another… It hardly speaks to the virtues of either party or their members…”

“President Donald Trump Proposes a $4 Trillion-Plus Budget for Next Year

The Associated Press and Newsmax wrote on February 12:

“President Donald Trump is proposing a $4 trillion-plus budget for next year that projects a $1 trillion or so federal deficit and — unlike the plan he released last year — never comes close to promising a balanced federal ledger even after 10 years. And that’s before last week’s [$400] billion budget pact is added this year and next, showering both the Pentagon and domestic agencies with big increases…”

Fox News wrote on February 12:

“President Trump’s recent budget moves could complicate his relationship with the House Freedom Caucus and other fiscal conservatives… ‘The swamp won, and the American taxpayer lost,’ Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, a founding member of the caucus, said…

“Mark Meckler, co-founder of Tea Party Patriots, said Monday that ‘many hopeful-but-naive patriots believed D.C. would change under Donald Trump. Many thought he could drain the swamp without us. Friday morning painfully showed those same patriots that such a plan is nothing but fantasy.’”

One of the Wildest Weeks Since the Financial Crisis

CNBC wrote on February 9:

“The Dow Jones industrial average posted its worst week in two years. Earlier in the session, the index was on track for its worst week since October 2008, during the financial crisis.

“The stock index has traveled more than 22,000 points this week in a volatile few days that kicked off Monday with the Dow’s biggest closing point drop on record. Stocks are falling as traders worry about rising interest rates, and volatility… has jumped to its highest since the market turmoil of August 2015.”

Coming… The Next Recession, and It Will Be BAD

The Huffington Post wrote on February 10:

“It’s highly likely the next recession will occur in the coming three years, while President Donald Trump is still in office… America is ill-prepared for its next recession…

“A recession starts after economic activity has reached its peak. Right when things are better than ever is when they’re about to get worse… There have been 11 recessions since World War II. The current economic expansion began in mid-2009, making it the third longest in history, and it can’t last forever…”

“Trump Doesn’t Understand Deficits and Trade”

The National Post wrote on February 12:

“The usual story that is told about the dangers of running deficits when the economy is not in recession is that increased government borrowing increases the competition for domestic savings, pushes up interest rates and ‘crowds out’ private investment. But in an open economy, governments don’t have to depend on domestic investors to buy their bonds; they also tap into foreigners’ savings to finance their borrowing.

“Borrowing from abroad is essentially the story of how the Reagan and Bush deficits were financed: an inflow of foreign savings to the United States allowed the government to run large deficits without an increase in interest rates or a decline in private investment spending…

“But the real challenge facing the government of Canada — and the governments of all the trading partners of the United States — is that the present U.S. administration remains invincibly ignorant of balance of payments accounting. President Trump wants to increase the government deficit and reduce the trade deficit, without the pain of higher interest rates and weakened investment. It is literally impossible to meet these demands, and the challenge of explaining this point to an incurious President is only slightly less daunting.”

Another Ill-Advised Proposal by President Trump

Axios wrote on February 14:

“President Trump endorsed a 25-cent gas tax hike to pay for infrastructure at a White House meeting this morning with senior administration officials and members of Congress from both parties…

“Trump’s gas tax idea appears dead on arrival. Republicans aren’t about to hike taxes for the Trump voters driving their pickup trucks to work every day. It’s a regressive tax and in Republicans’ minds would undo some of working and middle class tax cuts they just passed.”

Second Judge Blocks Trump’s Decision to End DACA

Newsmax reported on February 13:

“A second U.S. judge on Tuesday blocked President Donald Trump’s decision to end a program that protects immigrants brought to the United States illegally as children from deportation.

“U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis in Brooklyn ruled that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, cannot end in March as planned, a victory for state attorneys general and immigrants who sued the Republican administration. The decision is similar to an earlier ruling by a federal judge in San Francisco that DACA must remain in place while litigation over Trump’s decision unfolds.”

Trump Blocks Release of Democratic Memo in Response to GOP Memo

Newsmax wrote on February 9:

“President Donald Trump on Friday returned to the House Intelligence Committee the Democratic response to the Republican memo (Nunes memo) alleging surveillance abuses by the FBI and Justice Department for revisions — citing concerns about classified information contained in the 10-page document…

“The four-page Nunes memo alleged the warrant obtained by the FBI from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act court to monitor former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page was based on an unsubstantiated dossier of negative information on the Republican presidential candidate. The dossier was prepared by former British agent Christopher Steele and was paid, in part, by the campaign of Democrat Hillary Clinton. The Clinton data were never disclosed in the application for the FISA warrant, according to the GOP memo…”

The Huffington Post added on February 9:

“Several of the allegations in the Nunes memo are already falling apart. One of the key complaints in the memo is that the FBI failed to disclose that a dossier compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele was funded by Democratic operatives looking for information on Trump during the campaign. But three days after the memo was released, Nunes conceded that the FBI had disclosed the political origins of the Steele dossier in a footnote on its application to spy on Page…”

The Telegraph wrote on February 9:

“The president’s rejection of the Democratic memo is in contrast to his enthusiastic embrace of releasing the Republican document, which he pledged before reading to make public. The president declassified the document last week, allowing its publication in full.

“The president has said the GOP memo ‘vindicates’ him in the ongoing Russian investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller. But congressional Democrats and Republicans, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, who helped draft the GOP memo, have said it shouldn’t be used to undermine the special counsel…

“Trump declassified the GOP-authored memo over the objections of the FBI, which said it had ‘grave concerns’ about the document’s accuracy…”

Newsmax wrote on February 10:

“The decision to block the Democratic memo is a political risk for Trump…”

Finally… Trump Speaks Out against Domestic Violence…

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 14:

“The US president has finally condemned domestic violence after one of his aides resigned over related charges. The Trump administration’s handling of Rob Porter’s resignation has shaken the White House’s upper echelons…

“The president’s words came days after he praised former top aide Rob Porter, who had been forced to resign last week due to allegations of assault made by his two ex-wives… Trump himself has also been accused of sexual assault and harassment by several women.

“Trump’s words also mark the end of his week-long silence on his stance towards domestic abuse… Over the weekend, however, Trump did find the words to defend the work of his former staff secretary. He told reporters on Friday, ‘[Porter] says he’s innocent, and I think you have to remember that.’ Trump also applauded Porter for his ‘good work’ in the White House. He did not express sympathy for Porter’s former wives.

“On Saturday, Trump then used a Tweet to cast doubt on the seriousness of assault accusations, describing them as ‘mere allegations.’ ‘Peoples (sic) lives are being shattered and destroyed by a mere allegation. Some are true and some are false. Some are old and some are new,’ Trump wrote on Twitter. ‘There is no recovery for someone falsely accused — life and career are gone. Is there no such thing any longer as a Due Process?’

“Porter’s resignation and the White House’s handling of the situation shook the administration at the highest level. Chief of staff John Kelly and White House lawyer Don McGahn are said to have known about the allegations against Porter. The White House insists that it only learned of the allegations shortly before Porter’s resignation, while the FBI maintains the administration had received information on the subject at various points last year.

“Congressional lawmakers have launched an investigation looking into how Porter was able to work at the White House on an interim security clearance despite the allegations of domestic violence.”

The White House’s changing and less than convincing explanations, especially in light of the FBI’s statements, which totally contradict the White House’s versions, have cast a dark cloud on the affair.

In addition, the Week reported on February 14:

“President Trump’s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, told The New York Times on Tuesday he paid $130,000 out of his own pocket to Stormy Daniels, the adult film star who told multiple media outlets ahead of the 2016 presidential election that she had an extramarital affair with Trump. In a statement, Cohen told the Times that ‘neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign … reimbursed me for the payment’ to Daniels… Daniels’ manager said Wednesday that Daniels believes by acknowledging the payment, Cohen has invalidated the non-disclosure agreement. She vowed to publicly discuss the details of her affair with Trump. The president has denied the affair.”

These threats do not sound too good for Donald Trump, apart from the fact that it would stretch the imagination to believe that his lawyer paid the adult film star out of his own pocket, without knowledge of Trump, without his consent, and without any reimbursement.

Horrific Mass School Shooting in Florida

Deutsche Welle reported on February 14:

“At least 17 people have been killed and many others injured in a school shooting in Florida. Police arrested a teenager who had previously been expelled from the school…  [The murderer] is a 19-year-old former student, who had a troubled history… [He] was found with multiple ammunition magazines and an AR-15-style rifle…

“The shooting reignited debate over gun violence in the United States that kills nearly 33,000 each year.  So far this year there have been 18 school shootings across the country…”

Every time a terrible mass shooting takes place, discussions evolve around gun violence. Soon thereafter, the topic is placed on the back burner, to give way to more “important” issues, such as, how the debt ceiling can be raised so that more sophisticated weapons can be produced for the military. The morbid fascination of the American people with their guns is very difficult to be understood by most other civilized countries.

Gun Control and Mental Illness

Breitbart reported on February 15:

“Thursday on NBC’s ‘Today,’ host Megyn Kelly offered her thoughts in a monologue about gun control and mental illness on the heels of the Parkland, FL school shooting:

“‘There have been at least 12… school shootings in America so far in 2018… We’re averaging one just about every three or four days. How we doing, America? Everyone okay with that? Apparently the answer is in fact yes because we haven’t done virtually anything to stop it… We all know what is about to happen right now, don’t we? We’re going to say how sorry and shocked and sad we are, and then we’re going to move on without doing anything. And then we’ll express how sorry and shocked and sad we are at the next one, and the one after that. Does anyone really think that we are going to do anything about these mass murders?

“‘… I don’t believe that. I don’t believe in a single one of these politicians. I don’t believe any of them have the courage it takes to push through reform…

“‘Five years ago I was live on the air and pregnant with my third child when 20 first graders were shot to death in school in Newtown, Connecticut… That was the one where we all thought now we will do something. Now we have to change. But we didn’t. In fact, since Newtown, there have been nearly 300 school shootings in America, about one a week…

“‘Are we really going to loosen the standards for involuntary commitment in this country? Even if we could pay for that, good luck convincing the ACLU that it’s legal. And then there are the guns… No gun reforms are getting through… And most of the ones that will be proposed in the wake of this shooting will be utterly meaningless and wouldn’t have even arguably prevented this killing. The NRA is too powerful, our politicians are too weak, and the guns are too ubiquitous.

“‘Guess how many guns there are in America, do you know? Over 300 million. They say 6 to 10 million AE-15s like the one reportedly used in Florida. So now we’ve seen it a million times. We’re going to debate that gun. But any semiautomatic pistol can unleash carnage. There was no AR-15 at Virginia Tech and that remains the worst school shooting in U.S. history. 32 dead and nothing changed… In the meantime… [m]y children, like yours, have to practice hiding in the bathroom to avoid an active shooter and don’t even think about letting the teacher lead a prayer to get them through that moment because the guns are perfectly legal, but the prayers are not…’”

Gun Violence Not the Same in Israel

JTA wrote on February 15:

“Mike Huckabee, the former Governor of Arkansas… reacted to the school shooting in Parkland, Florida Wednesday by comparing Israeli gun safety policy to America’s… [He tweeted:] ‘Reminded that Israel pretty much eliminated it by placing highly trained people strategically to spot the one common thread–not the weapon, but a person with intent.’

“Many, including a prominent Israeli commentator, took issue with Huckabee’s analysis, saying it isn’t tight security that protects Israel from mass shootings but laws that carefully control who can own and carry a gun, and when. Huckabee is a strict supporter of the right to bear arms.

“‘No Governor, Israel NEVER had such a problem,’ responded Alon Pinkas, a former Consul General of Israel in New York. ‘We don’t worship guns, we don’t sell assault rifles to people, we don’t have a genius creation like the NRA, we don’t regard every bunch of guys a “well regulated militia” and we’re pretty much done fighting the British.’

“… Lawyer… Jill Filipovic referred Huckabee to an article about how Israel restricts gun ownership to those who can prove that their professions or places of residence put them in danger.

“… research, including a study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, says school and other mass shootings are rare in Israel because most people do not have access to the kinds of arsenals readily available in the United States.”

Escalation of Israeli Military Action in Syria

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 10:

“An Israeli jet has been downed by Syrian anti-air fire after Israel intercepted an Iranian drone launched from Syria. The incident is one of the most serious involving Israel, Iran and Syria amid the Syrian civil war… Israeli police said the F16 crashed in the Jezreel Valley in northern Israel (the Jezreel Valley is the biblical Armageddon where Gentile armies will gather to converge from there on Jerusalem to fight against the returning Christ)…

“In a separate statement, the military said… it had carried out ‘large-scale’ attacks on at least a dozen Iranian targets in Syria in response to the drone’s intrusion into Israeli airspace. But the Syrian military denied that the drone had violated Israeli airspace, saying the aircraft was on a mission gathering intelligence on ‘Islamic State’ militants within Syria…

“Israel’s targeting of an Iranian site in Syria marks an escalation in military action involving the three countries and is one of the most serious incidents of its type since the Syrian civil conflict began eight years ago… Israeli missiles also this week targeted a Syrian military research center near Damascus.”

The Complicated Syrian Civil War

Euractiv and Reuters reported on February 11:

“Pro-government forces and Kurdish-led forces have fought each other elsewhere in Syria, and Damascus opposes the Kurds’ demands for autonomy. But in Afrin they have a common enemy and a mutual interest in blocking Turkish advances. Turkey, which regards the Kurdish YPG militia in Afrin as a threat on its southern border, launched an assault on the region last month…

“For the United States, it is yet another complication in Syria’s seven-year-old war, and a reminder of how its Syrian Kurdish ally must at times make deals with Assad even as it builds military ties with the United States. Lacking international protection, the Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria say they have reached agreements with Damascus to allow reinforcements to be sent to Afrin from other Kurdish-dominated areas…

“The United States has relied on the YPG as a vital ground component of its war against Islamic State, and has backed the group in other Kurdish-run regions in northern Syria along the border with Turkey. But US forces are not in Afrin, so have been unable to shield Afrin from the attack by Turkey, its NATO ally… The Kurds meanwhile accuse Russia of giving a green light for the Turkish attack by withdrawing observers it deployed in Afrin last year.”

With these many players involved (also note the following articles), it is difficult to perceive who is actually supporting and fighting whom… while the brutal war goes on and on…

Israel under Cyber Attack

The Jerusalem Post wrote on February 12:

“With this weekend’s events shifting the country’s attention to envisioning the next potential war risks, the cyber-war playing field may once again come front and center… Israeli adversaries could potentially hack Israel Air Force aircraft, including the new, most-advanced F-35…

“Israeli drones can also be hacked and already have been. From 2011-14, Islamic Jihad master hacker Maagad Ben Juwad Oydeh hacked IDF drones while they flew over Gaza, as well as multiple parts of Ben-Gurion Airport’s network. The US and England also had previously hacked Israeli F-16s and drones for information.

“… could Iran or Hezbollah… turn an Israeli drone against Israel?… Other potential cyber risks that have been discussed are adversaries hacking Israeli missiles, missile defense or even nuclear-attack warning systems… To date, Iran and Hezbollah have failed to hack Israel to anywhere near the same extent that Russia and China have managed to hack the US and Europe…”

Germany Should Intervene in Light of American Absence

On February 12, Deutsche Welle published the following comments by Gil Murciano, “a Middle East and Africa expert at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) think tank in Berlin”:

“In the past, the Americans were an important part in the Israelis’ policy regarding Syria and Lebanon. But today, when it comes to the Syria issue, we see a complete absence of the US. You see the Americans leaving the arena to the Russians… The Syrian issue currently is not on the radar of US policy…

“I think the EU and, specifically in this case, Germany have a unique potential. It is both a strategic ally of Israel, and at the same time it enjoys some level of access or reliability from Iran. Germany is the only actor in the Western world that has some practical experience in mediating informal agreements between Israel, Iran and Hezbollah — the relevant factors in this conflict. Here I refer to the POW swap where Germany was the main negotiator and facilitator in the past. So it has the know-how, the capacities, and a huge interest to stop this cycle of escalation. The shockwave of a third war in this region would have an impact over the Mediterranean. In Lebanon alone we have 1.5 million refugees who, in case of a war, might be knocking on Europe’s doors.”

Europe and specifically Germany will play a major role in the Middle East.

To Serve Israel’s Interests, Israel Must Ignore America

The Jewish Press wrote on February 13:

“Israel should apply Israeli sovereignty to Judea and Samaria, regardless of the United States position on the matter, Minister of Jerusalem Affairs Ze’ev Elkin said Tuesday. Elkin’s comments followed a statement by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Monday that he had been talking with the United States for some time about the sovereignty law that would extend Israeli civil jurisdiction to settlements in Judea and Samaria, and the subsequent denial of such talks by the White House.

“Elkin told the 15th annual Jerusalem Conference that the issue of whether or not talks on annexation have taken place between Netanyahu and the Trump administration is not important, and that the focus should be whether or not applying sovereignty to Judea and Samaria is an Israeli interest…

“Elkin gave Israel’s annexation of the Golan Heights in 1981 as an example that ultimately, Israel should do what it thinks serves its interests best, regardless of the American position. ‘The annexation of the Golan Heights was against the position of President [Ronald] Reagan, who was a very pro-Israel president, and he even imposed sanctions on Israel as a result,’ Elkin said. ‘Today, nobody remembers President Reagan’s sanctions, but we are left with full Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.’

“When asked if Israel should ignore the Trump administration’s position, Elkin said: ‘If what is right for the State of Israel is against the American stance, then we must do what is right for Israel and against the American stance.’”

And so, the relationship between the USA and Israel is prophesied to deteriorate.

USA Worried over European Defense Agreement

Defense News reported on February 14:

“The U.S. is keeping a close eye on a newly formed European Union joint defense agreement [called, the Permanent Structured Cooperation on Security and Defence (PESCO)] to ensure that European members are not distracted from their NATO commitments… ‘We don’t want to see E.U. efforts pulling requirements or forces away from NATO and into the E.U.’, [Katie Wheelbarger, principal deputy assistant secretary for international security affairs, said.]

“… The countries involved ― Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden ― overlap with the NATO nations, with some key differences.

“Austria, Cyprus, Finland, Ireland and Sweden are non-NATO countries, while PESCO excludes Canada, the U.S. and the U.K., three members of NATO not based on the continent that often drive the alliance conversation; instead, PESCO is being driven by France, Germany, Italy and Spain.

“Roberta Pinotti, Italy’s defense minister, wrote…  that PESCO ‘might represent the best and, right now, the only possible response to the challenges to international security and Europe’s defense… We need new joint investment in which the EU has a key financial but also political role — new programs must reflect European needs and must be seen by all as intrinsically European…’

“The list of potential PESCO projects [is] still being created, but the creation of a new defense funding mechanism ― under which NATO countries could pool resources for, as Pinotti put it, “intrinsically European” needs and not necessarily spend that funding how NATO would like them to ― has the U.S. keeping a close eye on proceedings… the U.S. is worried about creating two sets of rules that could complicate the issue.”

Without specifically saying or admitting it, PESCO has of course been created to counteract the USA which it correctly felt to have become totally unreliable under President Trump.  Also note the next article.

Need for the EU Army

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 15:

“Early plans for a European army failed in the wake of World War II. EU states have since taken numerous small steps to integrate their armed forces, bringing the idea of a Europe-wide military ever-closer to reality… After the end of the European Defense Community (EDC) in 1954, plans for a European army were put on the back burner for decades, until recent events revived the idea…

“The first major step was late last year, when 25 EU member states agreed to the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) on the integration of national militaries into an EU force…

“Founded in 1989, the Franco-German Brigade is the only bi-national military organization in the world…

“In 1995… Germany and the Netherlands established the German/Netherlands Corps… German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen called it a ‘prime example of how to build a European defense union’…

“EU countries are increasingly recognizing the need to accelerate closer military cooperation within the bloc. This not only applies to smaller nations like the Netherlands, but also to EU heavyweights like France and Germany…

“During France’s Mali intervention in 2013, military leaders in Paris were shocked to discover that the country lacked the resources to run such extensive combat operations on its own for long periods of time. French military partners had to help with transport and reconnaissance missions shortly after the operation was launched…

“Last year it was reported that Germany’s navy had no submarines at the ready… The country’s military, the third-largest in the EU, is not expected to have an operational submarine at its disposal again until mid-2018 at the earliest…”

Polish Government Orders Poles to Denounce “Anti-Polish” Compatriots

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 15:

“Senate leader Stanislaw Karczewski has ordered Poles living abroad to inform authorities of [‘harmful’] ‘anti-Polish comments’ made by other Poles. A report [by German public broadcaster NDR] claims an official letter has been sent to embassies and consulates…worldwide asking Poles to ‘document all anti-Polish comments and opinions that could hurt us.’

“The letter orders Poles to ‘inform embassies, consulates of any defamation that could harm the good reputation of Poland.’ NDR says the letter has already been distributed by the general consulate in Munich and that Hamburg’s consulate would follow suit…

“The move comes after Poland passed a controversial Holocaust law that makes it an offense to state that Poles or Poland had any part in Nazi-era atrocities… The law was immediately condemned by the US and Israel. German Chancellor Angela Merkel as well as Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel avoided wading into the diplomatic spat, stressing that Germany alone was responsible for the Holocaust…

“According to senate leader Karczewski, who penned the letter, Poles have been exposed to the painful, unjust and, most of all, factually wrong expression‘Polish death camps’ as well as ‘claims that Poles were involved in the Holocaust,’ stressing that both were an ‘insult to our national dignity and pride.’”

There can be NO question that Poles were involved in the Holocaust. It is absolutely ludicrous to suggest otherwise. The order of the Polish government to denounce Poles who dare to tell the truth is shameful and reminds us of Gestapo activities under Hitler, East-Germany’s Stasi and other dictatorial countries.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

U.S. Dow Industrial’s Biggest Intraday Decline in History

Reuters wrote on February 5:

“U.S. stocks plunged in highly volatile trading on Monday, with the Dow industrials falling nearly 1,600 points during the session, its biggest intraday decline in history [it closed down Monday with a drop of about 1,170 points]…  the Dow suffered their biggest percentage drops since August 2011 as a long-awaited pullback from record highs deepened…”

The Week added on February 5:

“The Dow’s decline follows a rocky week that culminated in a 666-point drop last Friday…”

Deutsche Welle added on February 5:

“Banks fell the most as bond yields and interest rates all plunged. Health care, technology and industrial companies all dropped steeply while energy companies and oil prices sank…”

Dow Jones Rallies Back, and Drops Again

CNBC wrote on February 6:

“After two huge sell-offs in a row, U.S. stocks are all over the map on Tuesday. Investors blamed the wild moves on a combination of interest-rate fears, computer-driven trading [note the next article] and the obscure volatility funds that use leverage.

“The Dow Jones industrial average opened with a big whoosh lower, then rallied all the way back. As of 3:08 p.m. ET, the Dow is 500 points higher [later that day, it climbed to 568 points] and trading at a new session high…”

However, on February 7, CNBC reported:

“Dow is headed for a more than 100-point drop at the open, following Tuesday’s wild ride. U.S. stock index futures dropped deep into the red ahead of Wednesday’s open, pulling back from the roller coaster ride seen on Wall Street in the previous session.”

In addition to Wednesday’s drop, the Dow plunged more than 1,000 points on Thursday (cp. Bloomberg, February 8, 2018).

These roller coaster rides are not very reassuring. And we can expect much worse developments. Note the next articles.

Wall Street Victim of Trading Machines

CNN wrote on February 6:

“On a typical trading day, computers account for 50% to 60% of market trades… When the markets are extremely volatile, they can make up 90% of trades… It’s not that humans didn’t play any role in the stock market’s moves. A stronger-than-expected wage increase in Friday’s jobs report led investors to make trades based on the assumptions about what that might mean for inflation and the Federal Reserve’s actions going forward. But once they gave the stock and bond markets that initial push, the computers took those initial moves and ran with them…

“The program trading that sends stocks down so quickly can send them up just as fast. That’s one reason why the market came off its lows and rebounded more than 400 points late Monday. It’s also probably why markets opened down more than 500 points Tuesday, only to jump several hundred points in the first hour of trading.”

This is not very comforting. Being a helpless victim to machines sounds like a horror scenario of a science fiction movie.

European and Asian Markets Plunge

Deutsche Welle reported on February 6:

“European markets took a big hit as Tuesday’s trading began, following major losses across Asia and particularly in Japan… European markets [are still] down as Tuesday trading closes.”

As the USA will be blamed, Europe and Asia won’t be very happy.

America’s Crazy Borrowing Politics

CNBC wrote on February 5:

“Last week… the Treasury Department quietly released data estimating its 2018 borrowing needs would check in at $955 billion, then top $1 trillion in the next two fiscal years… Given the turmoil in markets and the broad-based tax cut just signed into law, the Treasury’s timing arguably couldn’t come at a worse time…

“Conventional economic wisdom suggests that in the long term, Uncle Sam’s burgeoning debt load will put upward pressure on interest rates and hammer the dollar… While printing money to erase debt seems like an easy solution, most economists warn it would put the world’s largest economy on a fast track to hyperinflation and a devalued currency…

“As for the U.S. and its relentless borrowing needs, the stakes are high.”

Why there are relentless borrowing needs for the USA is very hard to comprehend.

UK Unprepared for a Global Financial Crisis

Express wrote on February 5:

“[The] WORLD ‘is due’ an economic crash that would cause chaos…

“Any financial crash caused by the collapse of the US stock market would likely have a massive knock-on effect in Britain [and around the world] with growth slowing in recent months… Figures from the Insolvency Service also reveal that in 2017 the number of people who declared themselves bankrupt [in the UK] reached its highest level since the financial crisis… the UK has dropped to the 13th fastest growing economy in the world because companies are unsure of Britain’s plan after it leaves the EU.

“Meanwhile, the Office for Budget Responsibility has declared it overstated the UK’s economic performance over the past seven years, meaning the British economy is weaker than previously thought. Speaking in Davos a fortnight ago Barclays Chief Executive Jes Staley gave a stark warning that the world is unprepared to deal with the next global financial crisis… Also speaking in Davos the Professor of Public Policy and Professor of Economics at Harvard University, Kenneth Rogoff, said: ‘If we have another financial crisis, there isn’t even a plan A.’”

Worldwide Market a Casino on Steroids

CNBC wrote on February 6:

“Billionaire Carl Icahn told CNBC on Tuesday there are too many exotic, leveraged products for investors to trade, and one day these securities are going to blow up the market… The billionaire investor says, ‘The market itself is way over-leveraged,’ and at some point could ‘implode.’…

“The market is a ‘casino on steroids’ with all these exchange-traded funds and exchange-traded notes, he said. ‘These funds, especially the leveraged ones, are the “fault lines” that will eventually lead to an earthquake on Wall Street, he said. ‘These are just the beginnings of a rumbling.’”

Even though he and many others feel that the latest crisis was only temporary, there can be no doubt that there are warning signs for worse developments to occur very soon.

Turkey and Pope Francis United Against Israel

The Jewish Press wrote on February 5:

“Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday was the first Turkish head of state to visit the Vatican since 1959, and given the tense relations between the Sultan wannabe from Istanbul and the Pope, some wondered how the two leaders would be able to conduct a peaceful meeting. Turns out they had nothing to worry about, they both can’t stand the fact that Israel still insists Jerusalem is its capital, and now a US president is backing them up…

“Three years ago, in April 2015, Pope Francis and the Turkish leader were entangled in a fierce dispute over Turkey’s refusal to accept its responsibility for the 1915 Armenian genocide. Aware that conceding responsibility for the death of a million and a half innocent civilians would put modern Turkey’s Ottoman ancestors in the same category as Nazi Germany, Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot, Ankara denies that there even was an Armenian genocide, never mind who did it…

“So, to be clear, that whole Armenian genocide thing is put aside, so that everybody can concentrate on getting the Jews to give up their crazy idea about Jerusalem belonging to them.”

The Battle for Mount Zion

Breaking Israel News reported on February 1:

“Mount Zion, a site of great importance to the Jewish people, is almost entirely owned by the Vatican. It happens to also be a focal point of a political battle being fought, oddly enough, underground. Harry Moskoff is an executive producer and writer of The A.R.K. Report, an account of his research into the location of the lost Ark of the Covenant.

“One segment of his documentary will focus on Mount Zion specifically, located directly west of the Old City outside of the ancient walls. Moskoff notes that when the Bible refers to Mount Zion, it is actually using one of the names for the Temple Mount, which is also known as Mount Moriah. In that regard, he will investigate a theory of his that King David moved from his palace in the City of David, located on the southern slopes of the Temple Mount, to Mount Zion in the latter parts of his life. While some archaeologists believe that King David is buried near the City of David, Moskoff contends that his tomb is in fact located on Mount Zion…

“Eli Dan, who served as assistant director of the Diaspora Yeshiva, a Torah institution on Mount Zion, which was charged with running the compound of King David’s Tomb after the Six-Day War in 1967, has witnessed what he describes as a ‘long and complicated war’ with the Vatican. ‘The Vatican fought for years to gain control of Mount Zion,’ Dan told Breaking Israel News.

“‘Their main interest lies in the room where the Christians believe the Last Supper was held… The previous Pope promoted a political agenda that advanced the Palestinian cause because he wanted to gain control of the site,’ he elaborated. ‘But that room is in a building adjacent to the Tomb of King David.’

“Dan explained that King Solomon, King Hezekiah, and several high priests are also believed to be buried at the site. ‘The battle going on now for Mount Zion goes much deeper,’ Dan added. ‘The battle is for the identity of the site: whether it is a Jewish religious site, a Catholic site,  or whether it is simply a tourist attraction with no religious significance.’”

For more information, please view our new StandingWatch program, “The Vatican’s Fight for Mount Zion and Jerusalem,” and read our free booklets, “The Fall and Rise of the Jewish People,” and “The Ten European Revivals of the Ancient Roman Empire.”

Former Pope Benedict in Last Phase of His Life?

Reuters wrote on February 7:

“Former pope Benedict said in a letter published in an Italian newspaper on Wednesday that he is in the last phase of life and on a ‘pilgrimage towards home’. Benedict… in February 2013 became the first pope in six centuries to resign… Since his resignation, the 90-year-old Benedict, a conservative German whose seven-year papacy was marked by mismanagement and financial scandals, has been living in a former convent in the Vatican gardens.

“He has made only a handful of public appearances, mostly at major Church events but has received friends. Those close to him say he is still sharp mentally but has mobility problems and needs a walker to get around.”

Israel to Deport African Migrants

Newsmax reported on February 4:

“Israel began warning thousands of African migrants Sunday that they must leave by the end of March, officials said, under a plan that could see them jailed if they refuse. On January 3, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced implementation of a plan to deport about 38,000 migrants who had entered the country illegally, mainly Eritreans and Sudanese…

“For now, the notices are being given only to men without families, officials said. Israeli newspaper Haaretz said ‘anyone recognised as a victim of slavery or human trafficking, and those who had requested asylum by the end of 2017 but haven’t gotten a response’ would also be exempt for now…

“Israel refers to the tens of thousands of African migrants who entered the country illegally from neighbouring Egypt as ‘infiltrators’. Israeli officials tacitly recognise that it is too dangerous to return Sudanese and Eritreans to their troubled homelands, but local media say the notices do not specify where departing migrants would be sent. Aid workers and media have named Uganda and Rwanda, although both countries deny being a destination for migrants being expelled involuntarily.

“Public opposition to the plan has been slow to build, but some Israeli airline pilots have reportedly said they will not fly forced deportees. Academics have published a petition and Israeli Holocaust survivors wrote an open letter to Netanyahu last month pleading with him to reconsider. The UN refugee agency has called on Israel to scrap the plan, calling it incoherent and unsafe.

“A 2016 UN commission of inquiry into Eritrea’s regime found ‘widespread and systematic’ crimes against humanity, and said an estimated 5,000 people flee the country each month. The International Criminal Court has indicted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide linked to his regime’s counter-insurgency tactics in the Darfur conflict.”

These developments are just terrible, and no country seems to be without guilt when reviewing their immigration practices. Please view Norbert Link’s recent message, “What If Ruth Had Lived Today?”

Poland Denies Responsibility for Holocaust in World War II

Reuters reported on February 5:

“Israel’s education minister said on Monday he was ‘honored’ Poland had canceled his visit to Warsaw this week because he refused to back off of condemnation of a bill that would outlaw suggesting Poland was complicit in the Holocaust. ‘The blood of Polish Jews cries from the ground, and no law will silence it,’ Bennett later said in a statement. ‘The government of Poland canceled my visit, because I mentioned the crimes of its people. I am honored.’

“…Israel has denounced the Polish Holocaust bill, which passed in parliament last week and is awaiting a decision by President Andrzej Duda over whether to sign it. The Polish measure would impose prison sentences of up to three years for mentioning the term ‘Polish death camps’ and for suggesting ‘publicly and against the facts’ that the Polish nation or state was complicit in Nazi Germany’s crimes.

“Poland’s rightwing nationalist government says the bill is necessary to protect the reputation of Poles as victims of Nazi aggression. Israel says the law would ban true statements about the role that some Poles played in Nazi crimes. The bill has drawn criticism from the United States and condemnation from a number of international organizations as well as Polish minority groups.

“Poland, which had Europe’s biggest Jewish population when it was invaded by both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union at the start of World War Two, became ground zero for the ‘final solution’, Hitler’s plan to exterminate the Jews of Europe. More than three million of Poland’s 3.2 million Jews were murdered by the Nazis, accounting for about half of the Jews killed in the Holocaust. Jews from across the continent were sent to be killed at death camps built and operated by Germans in Poland, including Auschwitz, Treblinka, Belzec and Sobibor.

“According to figures from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Nazis also killed at least 1.9 million non-Jewish Polish civilians. ‘The death camps in Poland were built and operated by the Germans, and we cannot allow them to evade responsibility for these actions,’ Bennett said. ‘However, many Polish people, all over the country, chased, informed or actively took part in the murder of over 200,000 Jews during, and after, the Holocaust. Only a few thousand people… risked themselves to save Jews.’”

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 4:

“Germany alone carried out the Holocaust, Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has said amid a row over Poland’s bill about Holocaust terminology… ‘Individual collaborators’ in Nazi-occupied regions during World War II did not change the fact that Germany was responsible for the Holocaust, Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said in a Foreign Office statement on Saturday. Poland could be assured that ‘every form of historical falsification such as the term ‘Polish concentration camps’ runs into clear rejection on our part and will be sharply condemned,’ Gabriel added.”

However, Gabriel’s statements were clearly political. Note the following dated but still very relevant article:

The Jerusalem Post wrote on January 2, 2018:

“Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan blasted German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel on Tuesday for comparing the Jewish State’s policies in the disputed West Bank territory to the former racist apartheid system in South Africa… Gabriel, who frequently boasts about his anti-fascist credentials because he rejected his father’s hardcore Nazism, has been engulfed in a number of anti-Jewish and anti-Israel scandals…

“‘There are two central narratives to Jewish history in the 20th century – the Holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel. Sigmar Gabriel has already tried to undermine the core of each of them,’ Dr. Efraim Zuroff, head of the Jerusalem Office of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, told the Post in December… ‘In the past, Gabriel claimed that Social Democrats suffered the same fate as Jews during the Third Reich, a ridiculous assertion with no basis in fact, that undermines the uniqueness of the Holocaust and falsely relativizes the uniquely horrific fate of European Jewry at the hands of the Nazis and their helpers.’”

To deny the Holocaust is nonsense. To deny that Poles collaborated with the Nazis is equally nonsense. To criminalize those who deny the Holocaust is nonsense. To criminalize those who use the term “Polish death camps” is equally nonsense. In all these examples, a sound mind is lacking, while deceitful politics wins. In addition, JTA reported on February 6 that “Poland isn’t the only country to police what can be said about the Holocaust. Countries such as Ukraine, Lithuania and Latvia have also been accused of whitewashing the past. But they haven’t received the widespread condemnation that Poland has.”

Germany’s Far-Right AfD Climbs and Climbs

DPA/The Local wrote on February 6:

“A poll published by INSA on Monday predicts that the Social Democrats and Christian Union would no longer be able to form a majority government, if elections were held now.

“The poll also puts the anti-Islam Alternative for Germany (AfD) party on 15 percent, just two percent behind the Social Democrats (SPD) on 17 percent. Merkel’s Christian Union (CDU/CSU) would win 30.5 percent of the vote, the poll predicts.

“As the CDU/CSU enter the final stages of trying to thrash out a new deal for a grand coalition government with the SPD [which was finally entered into on Wednesday, see articles below], the poll makes worrying reading for the main parties. Their proposed government has already been dubbed a ‘coalition of losers’ due to the fact that both parties leaked millions of votes at the ballot box in September’s national election. The SPD’s vote share of 20.5 percent was their worst result since the Second World War.

“The popularity of the far-right AfD has been creeping up in recent weeks, with several polls putting them on 14 percent or above. They entered the Bundestag for the first time in September after winning 12.6 percent of the vote. The party was set up in 2013 and fought the election of that year on an anti-Euro platform, but failed to make it over the 5 percent hurdle needed to make it into parliament.

“Last year they ran a campaign fiercely critical of the government’s refugee policy, which had led to over a million people applying for asylum in Germany since 2015.

“The leadership of the AfD rejects the label of far-right, preferring to describe themselves as conservative. However, they remain highly controversial due to various statements by senior party members… Björn Höcke, the AfD leader in Thuringia, has lambasted Germany’s culture of remembrance of the Holocaust, labelling the Holocaust Memorial in central Berlin a ‘memorial of shame.’ Party leader Alexander Gauland, meanwhile, said during election campaigning last year that Germany should be proud of the service of its soldiers in two world wars.

“The party has also been sharply criticized for its attitude to Islam, which it describes as “not belonging to Germany.” There are roughly 4.7 million Muslims in the Bundesrepublik, making up 5 percent of the population.”

Merkel (CDU) and Schulz (SPD) Reach Coalition Deal to Form New German Government

On February 7, the Local published the following article in collaboration with AFP and DPA:

“… the coalition deal has been struck. Now it will be put to a vote of the membership of the SPD…

“The SPD managed to wangel the Foreign Ministry, the Finance Ministry and the Labour Ministry out of the talks. They appear to have done pretty well for themselves there. While they held the foreign and labour posts during the last administration, they have added the powerful finance ministry to their portfolio. The centre-left party will also hold onto the justice, family and environment ministries, all of which they held in the last government…

“The CSU, meanwhile, have been given a role at the Interior Ministry which appears to be something of a novelty as it will include responsibility for Heimat (home) – that rather untranslatable German word is a nod to conservatism and its current obsession with ‘German values.’ [Very conservative] CSU leader Horst Seehofer is coming to Berlin to take on the role of interior minister. At the end of last year it seemed like his career was over, but he appears to have rescued it to some degree…

“The only question is – with so many key ministries going to the other parties – what have the CDU kept for themselves? One assumes they have kept defence, but there is not much going other than that.”

Deutsche Welle added on February 7:

“If the [SPD] voters approve the deal — and it could well be close — Merkel could then appoint a Cabinet and the parties could sign the coalition contract. Then, if all goes to plan, Germany would have a new government by Easter…

“The two sides have agreed to tighten Germany’s arms export controls — last updated in 2000 — and will specifically exclude all countries taking part in the war in Yemen. This would be a significant change, as it would mean that Saudi Arabia, historically one of the best customers for German arms outside the EU and NATO, will no longer be receiving German weapons…

“The parties also promised a special focus on… ‘fair taxation of companies — especially the internet giants Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon in Europe.’… the two parties agreed to a ‘billion-euro program’ to extend Germany’s broadband reach to close gaps in a country where many rural areas do not have adequate online access. There will… be ‘a right to a fast internet by 2025’ — in other words, a law guaranteeing all Germans broadband internet connection…”

Bloomberg wrote on February 7:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s bloc has concluded a coalition agreement that hands a half-dozen ministries — including the key foreign and finance portfolios — to her Social Democratic allies, a move that will likely bolster the country’s commitment to greater European integration… Martin Schulz will serve as foreign minister…

“While Merkel sets policy guidelines for the government as chancellor, SPD-led finance and foreign ministries will allow Schulz to make good on his pledge to deepen euro-area cooperation and reach out to France’s Emmanuel Macron, who says the 19-country currency bloc should have a joint budget and finance minister…

“The deal was worked out by a core of about 15 leaders and must now be approved by a broader group of roughly 90. While the pact clears a key hurdle to a fourth term for Merkel, the SPD’s pledge to let its 464,000 members vote on the agreement augurs several more weeks of uncertainty… If SPD members reject the pact, Merkel would have to choose whether to pursue a minority government reliant on opposition votes to pass legislation, or to return to the ballot box for an election that polls suggest would resolve nothing.

“Another alliance between Merkel’s Christian Democratic-led bloc and the SPD, a ‘grand coalition’ between the two biggest parties, appeared almost impossible after the Sept. 24 election, when the SPD suffered its worst defeat since World War II. Schulz initially vowed he wouldn’t again enter a cabinet with the chancellor who’s led Germany for 12 years. He changed position after Merkel’s bid to form a multi-party government with the Greens and the pro-market Free Democrats collapsed in November. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier helped prod the CDU and SPD to the negotiating table, saying the country needs a stable government rather than a repeat election.”

The Washington Post wrote on February 7:

“If the SPD members vote in support of the final coalition treaty next month [on March 3], a new government will go into effect late March or early April. If they don’t, Merkel will likely be forced to form a minority government, and it could mean the end of SPD leader Martin Schulz’s career, and even Merkel’s…”

As we predicted that Merkel and Schulz would be successful in striking a deal, so we predict that the SPD membership will vote for the grand coalition. German papers commented that in order to stay in power, Merkel has given up almost everything else. Bild Online wrote: “The operation was successful, but the patient (Merkel and the CDU) is almost dead” [“Operation gelungen, Patient (fast) tot.”]. Der Spiegel wrote about a “clear defeat for Merkel” [“eindeutige Niederlage”]. At the same time, die Welt commented about the “powerful political ‘master-accomplishment’ [‘machtpolitische Meisterleistung’] of Martin Schulz.” Also note the next article.

Schulz: “Germany Will Lead Europe Again!”

Express wrote on February 7:

“Martin Schulz has promised Germany will lead ‘fundamental EU change’ after forcing his way into Angela Merkel’s cabinet as part of the controversial coalition agreement. The former European Union president suffered a disastrous election, but Mrs Merkel’s poor results insured he would be a key part of the coalition, which was finally agreed today. And Mr Schulz hailed the deal with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives as a watershed moment for European policy.

“… Mr Schulz said: “You’ll forgive me for thanking Mrs Merkel and Mr Seehofer, especially regarding the European policy chapter of this deal, because what we wrote down in this coalition agreement about the European Union and its future will be a fundamental change of direction in Europe. With this coalition agreement, Germany will take an active and leading role in the European Union again.’…

“Alice Weidel, leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the biggest opposition party, tweeted: ‘Things could not get worse for Germany,’ calling the coalition deal ‘insane’ as it did not contain an upper limit for migration.

“Speaking in December, Mr Schulz called on EU member states to sign up to a ‘United States of Europe’ by 2025 or risk being kicked out of the bloc. He called for a new treaty to formally convert the EU into the United States of Europe, along the lines of the United States…”

“Germany Is the Leading Breaker of EU Rules”

Handelsblatt Global wrote on February 6:

“No other country seems to lecture EU states as much as Germany. But, embarrassingly, Angela Merkel’s government is in breach of European regulations more than anyone else…

“New figures from Germany’s Economics Ministry reveal that Angela Merkel’s government currently faces no less than 74 infringement proceedings for failing to adequately and timely convert EU rules into German law…

“The violations cover key issues affecting health and safety, including air pollution, traffic noise, fire protection measures and water quality, according to the ministry’s figures…

“To a certain degree, the new revelations are a deja-vu of 2003, when Germany was the first country to break deficit rules that apply to all 19 euro-zone countries. Frugal European countries, especially Germany, had been pushing for strict regulations to limit budget deficits and debt levels. When Germany failed to reign in its deficit… it agreed with France the rules didn’t apply.

“The new figures also show that Germany sometimes simply doesn’t bother to create the necessary corresponding laws.”

Christians Immune from the Flu?

Politico reported on February 6:

“An evangelical minister [Gloria Copeland]… sparked an uproar Tuesday by suggesting that Christian faith makes people immune from the flu…

“Public health experts immediately panned the remarks… John Auerbach, president and CEO of Trust for America’s Health and a former Centers for Disease Control associate director for policy, said people are best protected against the flu by getting a flu shot…

“Copeland and her husband co-founded Kenneth Copeland Ministries in Fort Worth, Texas. Both were members of Trump’s evangelical advisory board, which disbanded after Trump took office. Other members included former Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann and Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr.”

While Christians are not immune from sickness, asking God for healing is always important, and flu shots have proven not to be as helpful as doctors would want us to believe.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

The State of the Union

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 31:

“Key passages of President Trump’s first State of the Union harkened back to the dark imagery and tone of his presidential campaign. Those hoping for a reset of his presidency should take note…

“In his first official State of the Union address, President Trump did not disparage anyone by name. He did not attack Hillary Clinton or the media, two of his favorite targets. He did not encourage divisions between Republicans and Democrats – in fact, he paid lip service to bipartisanship, calling on lawmakers to work together for the American people. So much for the good news.

“But while the beginning – and to some extent the end – of his very long speech could still be characterized as having a somewhat upbeat theme, with its focus on the economy and American pride, the tone of Trump’s remarks in the middle of the speech became increasingly dark and menacing.

“The immigration-themed passages, in particular, painted a frightening picture of an America supposedly victimized by both legal and illegal immigration. Trump’s depiction of immigrants wreaking havoc on ordinary Americans reached its low point when he exploited pain for political purpose. Just like during the presidential campaign, he drew attention to parents in the audience whose children were killed by gang members who were also undocumented immigrants.

“Interestingly, the immigration part of the speech was also the most detailed passage of what was otherwise an address lacking in specifics. Trump reiterated what he called the four pillars of immigration reform: a path to citizenship for the so-called Dreamers; a border wall; ending the diversity visa lottery; and a drastic reduction in family migration.

“He said immigrants can bring in an unlimited number of distant relatives. This is false. Only immediate family members – not distant relatives – can be sponsored by citizens or  green card holders. Importantly and ominously, Trump not only linked undocumented immigration to gang violence, he also linked two key paths to legal immigration – the diversity visa lottery and family migration – to terrorism.

“While Trump used the word ‘compromise’ to describe his offer of a path towards citizenship for the Dreamers coupled with a drastic reduction in legal migration, his depiction of America as a nation threatened by immigration actually seems to leave little room for compromise with the Democrats on that issue…

“While Trump’s first State of the Union speech will surely be well-received by his political base and will also resonate with a good part of the Republican Party, its deeply nativist and beleaguered tone are anathema to anyone who considers the United States a nation of immigrants… Having said that, the speech does have at least one useful effect: It should finally end any futile talk about Trump as a potential ‘uniter’…”

The Washington Post wrote on January 30:

“[In his State of the Union address,] President Trump claimed that a single immigrant can bring in virtually unlimited numbers of relatives and said he would end what he calls ‘chain migration,’ which refers to the practice of immigrants bringing other members of their families to the United States. His administration has said immigration should be based on skills and merit and less on family ties.

“Under current law, citizens can sponsor their spouses, children, parents and siblings. Trump would restrict family migration – ‘chain migration’ as he puts it – to spouses and minor children…”

“Long, Uneasy Love Affair of Israel and U.S. Evangelicals May Have Peaked”

The Washington Post wrote on January 28:

“Over the past half-century, many American evangelicals came to support Israel through an end-of-days theology… Many Jews, for their part, have long viewed the missionary work of evangelicals and their messianic, prophetic beliefs with suspicion. Christian proselytizing… is frowned upon by many Israelis, and Messianic Jews, who believe in Jesus, are largely shunned…

“[Vice President Mike] Pence’s speech to the Knesset last week, deeply steeped in biblical references, was a testament to the spiritually rooted support for Israel in President Trump’s White House. Pence himself has said he is ‘an evangelical Catholic.’…

“Israel’s ties to evangelicals date to before the state was established, when British evangelical leader William Hechler worked with Theodor Herzl — known as the father of Zionism — to advocate for a Jewish homeland. But it has been a conflicted relationship… younger evangelicals [are] increasingly exploring the Palestinian perspective…

“Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, an American Israeli who played a key role in fostering the relationship between American evangelicals and Israel… said:  ‘You have evangelicals in the White House, you have Trump who is susceptible to their influence and their constituency, you have a right-wing prime minister in government in Israel, and everything is good… But… that can change tomorrow, literally, in both cases…’”

The relationship between the USA and the State of Israel, as well as the Jewish people in general, will drastically deteriorate.

Netanyahu: Israel Will Retain Jerusalem’s Holy Sites

The Algemeiner wrote on January 26:

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Israel would retain Jerusalem’s holy sites in any peace deal during a public interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday… ‘Our position is that Jerusalem should remain united under Israel’s sovereignty with complete religious rights for those of all faiths.’…”

Europe, and especially the Catholic Church, will not accept that position, and changes are forthcoming.

America Fails in Afghanistan

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 29:

“It seems as if there is no end in sight to the spate of deadly attacks occurring relentlessly in Afghanistan, killing scores and throwing lives in disarray… A string of brutal attacks over the past several years, killing and injuring hundreds of innocent Afghans, have shown the world the fragile and worsening state of security in Afghanistan and made it once again a staple of international headlines… Both the Taliban and the so-called ‘Islamic State’ (IS) have claimed responsibility for the violence.

“… Many Afghans believe the attacks they have witnessed in January mark only the beginning in the latest bout of violence. Fears abound about the number of casualties rising in the coming months. The alleged peace talks that were mentioned only a few weeks ago are now but a distant memory.

“… The latest attacks can be regarded as a response to the recent US military offensive in the Afghan provinces Helmand, Nangarhar, Kunduz and others, said A.D. Mohammad Arif, an Afghan security expert. ‘The Taliban usually start their offensive after the winter (as a spring offensive), but they have now brought it forward in response to the US’ new Afghanistan strategy. They want to show that they are far from being defeated,’ Arif told DW.

“Unlike in previous years, the US, along with Afghan security forces, began its offensive against the insurgents in the winter this year. The move is part of the US’ new Afghan strategy, unveiled by President Donald Trump in August 2017. Trump then affirmed that he would increase the number of US troops in Afghanistan and remain engaged in the country until it no longer needed them…

“Nicole Birtsch, an Afghanistan expert at the Berlin-based German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), is also of the view that the recent attacks could be a reaction to the air strikes and anti-insurgent operations the US military and Afghan security forces have been jointly carrying out against the Taliban…”

It appears that America’s foreign policy is doomed to failure in just about every respect.

Taliban Controls 70 Percent of Afghanistan

The Week wrote on January 31:

“A BBC study found that Taliban fighters are openly active in 70 percent of Afghanistan and have full control of 14 districts… since 2014, when foreign combat troops left the country, the Taliban has taken control of places like Sangin, Musa Qala, and Nad-e Ali in Helmand province, where from 2001 to 2014, hundreds of U.S. and British troops died while trying to get it back under government control.

“The BBC says that in addition to being in full control of 14 districts, the Taliban is open and active in 263 districts, meaning 15 million people, or half of Afghanistan’s population, live in areas where the Taliban has a regular presence.”

Hawaii Debacle… Worse than Originally Believed

The Associated Press wrote on January 31:

“Hawaii emergency management officials knew for years that an employee had problems performing his job. Then, he sent a false alert warning of an imminent missile attack earlier this month. The worker had mistakenly believed drills for tsunami and fire warnings were actual events, and colleagues were not comfortable working with him, the state said Tuesday. His supervisors counseled him but kept him for a decade in a position that had to be renewed each year.

“The problems in the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency went beyond one troubled employee. The agency had a vague checklist for missile alerts, allowing workers to interpret the steps they should follow differently. Managers didn’t require a second person to sign off on alerts before they were sent, and the agency lacked any preparation on how to correct a false warning.

“Those details emerged Tuesday in federal and state reports investigating how the agency mistakenly blasted cellphones and broadcast stations Jan. 13 with a warning that led hundreds of thousands of people to believe they were about to die in a nuclear attack. It took nearly 40 minutes to retract it.

“Hawaii Emergency Management Agency Administrator Vern Miyagi resigned as the reports were released. Officials revealed that the employee who sent the alert was fired Friday. His name has not been revealed. A second worker quit before disciplinary action was taken, and another was being suspended without pay, officials said…

“Compounding the issue was that the state Emergency Management Agency had no prepared message for a false alarm… In addition, software at the Hawaii agency used the same prompts for both test and actual alerts, and it generally used prepared text that made it easy for a staffer to click through the alerting process without focusing enough on the text of the warning that would be sent…”

America on the Wrong Track

Newsmax wrote on January 29:

“Sixty-three percent of millennials say things in the U.S. are off on the wrong track while just 18 percent say the nation is headed in the right direction…

“19 percent approve of the job President Donald Trump is doing, while 17 percent neither approve nor disapprove and 63 percent disapprove. 12 percent approve of the way Congress is handling its job, 25 percent neither approve nor disapprove and 61 percent disapprove. 24 percent have a favorable impression of the Republican Party, while 62 percent have an unfavorable view. 44 percent have a favorable view of the Democratic Party, compared to 43 percent who have an unfavorable impression… 85 percent said they believe the government is run by a few big interests looking out for themselves and their friends, while 14 percent disagreed.

“The survey, conducted Jan. 2-16, polled 1,844 adults ages 18-34. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.95 percentage points.”

America is clearly on the wrong track, and only heart-rending repentance of the American people and a return to the TRUE God of the BIBLE would change this.. .which is not expected to happen. In this context, note the next article.

Trump’s Approval Rating Way Up

Newsmax wrote on January 31:

“President Donald Trump’s approval rating has jumped 10 points in a month and now stands at 42 percent, according to a new Monmouth University Poll. Fifty percent disapprove of his job performance. Overall, it is a marked improvement for Trump, who had a 32 percent approval rating last month, while 56 percent disapproved of his job performance.”

What Will Trump Do in 2018?

On January 26, Project Syndicate published the following article by Joschka Fischer, former German Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor from 1998-2005:

“There is still a big question mark hovering over US foreign policy in the form of Trump himself. It is entirely unclear what the president wants, what he actually knows, and what his advisers are and are not telling him. A coherent foreign policy may not withstand Trump’s mood swings and spontaneous decisions…

“So, looking back at 2017, one gets the impression that while US foreign policy remained largely intact, it has also become completely unpredictable. To that extent, 2018 seems likely to be a year of substantially increased risks, especially given the tensions in the Persian Gulf and Lebanon, the war in Syria, the hegemonic struggle between Saudi Arabia and Iran, and the nuclear brinkmanship on the Korean Peninsula…

“In the case of North Korea, which is quickly working toward an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the mainland US, such a conflict could even entail the use of nuclear weapons. Nothing about this situation inspires optimism, especially now that the US is led by a president whom few can trust, and whose policies must be divined from the muddle of his tweets.

“In fact, the Trump factor could be the single most significant source of uncertainty in international politics this year. The US is still the world’s foremost power, and it plays an indispensable role in preserving global norms. If America’s policies are difficult to predict, and if Trump’s behavior undermines the reliability of the US government, the international order will be vulnerable to immense turmoil.

“As the US approaches its midterm elections in November, it will be important to consider how domestic political events might shape the country’s foreign policy. If the Republicans lose their majorities in either or both houses of Congress, and if Robert Mueller, the Special Counsel in the Russia investigation, presents his findings around the same time, then Trump will feel his power quickly eroding.

“The critical question for 2018, then, is what Trump will do if he finds himself threatened domestically at the same time that a foreign-policy crisis erupts… One need not be a doomsayer to regard the coming months with considerable skepticism and concern.”

As there is little or no international trust in Donald Trump’s intentions and his predictability, the explosiveness of worldwide reactions in 2018 will indeed be manifold and wide-spread.

Trump Will Come After the EU

The Sun wrote on January 28:

“DONALD TRUMP has threatened to confront the EU over ‘unfair’ trade in a warning shot for European leaders. The US President told Piers Morgan he would be ‘coming after’ EU states, according to the TV presenter… The US President filmed the interview with Piers in Davos, where he made a speech to world leaders telling them his ‘America First’ policy will end up helping the whole world…

“[Morgan said:] ‘He was very scathing about the EU – he said his own dealing with the EU had been pretty problematic and he actually gave a stark warning that he is coming after them on trade. I would not be surprised – the biggest trading partner of America in the world is the EU, 650-odd billion dollars a year.’”

Europe Ready to Hit Back at Trump

The Guardian wrote on January 29:

“Brussels has warned that it stands ready to retaliate and potentially open up a transatlantic trade war if the US delivers on apparent threats to restrict European imports… a spokesman for the European commission told reporters in Brussels that the EU was ready to hit back if its importers were made to suffer.

“[Trump’s] comments [in the interview with Piers Morgan, see previous article] appeared to bring closer the possibility of a clash over trade between the EU and the US. Last summer, the EU commissioner for trade, Cecilia Malmström, warned that, should such a ‘trade war’ between the US and the EU be waged, it would be ‘extremely unfortunate’ for the whole world.

“In a formal submission last month to the US steel investigation, the European commission had said any ‘sweeping measure targeting many steel products and all countries for national security reasons is not justified’.

“On Saturday, there was great relief in Belfast after a surprise ruling preventing the US from imposing a 292% import tariffs on planes partly made by British workers. The US commerce department said in December that the UK and Canada had given aerospace firm Bombardier, which employs over a thousand people in Northern Ireland, unfair subsidies. However, the case, which centred on a complaint by US rival Boeing, was dismissed by the US International Trade Commission (ITC), in a move which was also warmly welcomed in Downing Street.”

Further alienation between the US and the EU can be expected for 2018 and beyond.

“Youth Movement to Create United States of Europe Party”

Express wrote on January 26:

“A GRASSROOTS movement across European Union nations who back a United States of Europe is preparing to announce continent-wide candidatesfor the European Parliament elections as they vow to change politics across the bloc towards a closer union of member states…

“Volt’s goals appear similar to the vision set out by key EU figures such as French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and the European Parliament’s Brexit spokesman Guy Verhofstadt. Mr Juncker has been particularly forthright in his calls for a United States of Europe that will tie the member states ever more tightly together… Although Volt would be the first continent-wide party, the idea of MEPs representing the whole bloc has also been put forward before by Brussels chiefs. In September, a proposal was put forward to transform the European Parliament after Brexit, with 51 seats being handed to a pan-European group of MEPs…”

The strong and powerful unification of continental Europe is ongoing and inevitable. Note the next articles.

Macron: EU Must Pull Together to Compete with US and China

The South China Morning Post, AP, AFP and Bloomberg wrote on January 25:

“French President Emmanuel Macron told the world’s business elite in Davos Wednesday that the European Union must pull together to compete with China and the US – and called on the ‘less ambitious’ EU countries not to ‘block the more ambitious in the room’. Macron said that those using the euro currency must be able to agree on a ‘much stronger’ and ‘fair’ system…

“Macron, a former Rothschild investment banker, is the darling of this year’s World Economic Forum… The French leader last came to the forum as a government minister in 2016. He used that visit to make contact with global big bosses, helping build his international credentials 18 months before the French elections that brought him to power.”

Germany’s Grand Coalition Negotiations… Time is Running Out

The Local wrote on January 26:

“Chancellor Angela Merkel called on Friday for a quick end to the last stretch of tortuous negotiations to forge a government for Germany, in a race against time to stop her power slipping away at home and abroad.  As she arrived for the final round of talks with potential partners in her fourth government, the Social Democrats, (SPD) she said the country and Europe could not afford to wait much longer…

“A leading member of her Christian Democrats, Michael Grosse-Brömer, later said the parties hoped to wrap up the negotiations by February 4th, although he allowed for an additional two-day grace period. That timetable is even more ambitious than one Merkel had previously laid out, which had set a deadline of February 11^th… In Germany, there is talk about the autumn of her reign, even if no serious candidate has emerged to rival her…

“SPD leader Martin Schulz said as he headed to the talks with Merkel that ‘given the challenges coming from China, from the United States, we need a strong, pro-European Germany’… Not only are the stakes high for Merkel, but also for Schulz and the SPD… Polls this week showed… both [parties are] apparently losing ground from September.”

Deutsche Welle added on January 29:

“Six hours of nighttime talks between German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives and the Social Democrats led by Martin Schulz were adjourned early Monday morning with ‘all sides’ ostensibly still working toward a February 4 deadline… In what was portrayed as a joint statement, Grosse-Brömer said ‘all sides’ were ‘determined to find solutions.’

“… the three parties [are] still at odds on a SPD call to allow relatives abroad to join refugees granted subsidiary protection status… Alongside refugee policy, however, key disagreements also remained on labor policy and health insurance…”

Sticking Points Remain

Handelsblatt Global wrote on January 31:

“By the end of this week, Angela Merkel’s conservatives and the Social Democrats hope to agree on a long list of issues to renew their ‘grand coalition.’…

“More than four months since Germans voted in a federal election, they’re still waiting for a new government. That’s a post-war first. No one can say with any certainty whether the political deadlock will end with another ‘grand coalition’ between Angela Merkel’s conservative party alliance and the center-left Social Democrats, a minority government (another first), or even with new elections (yet another first)…

“All three parties are pro-Europe and favor more integration, but differ over how much more. The SPD’s Mr. Schulz, who used to be president of the European Parliament, would love to create a ‘United States of Europe.’ Ms. Merkel isn’t ready to go that far. But she does support most of the EU reforms proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron. His ideas are to create a euro-zone budget and finance minister, and to transform the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) – a bailout fund – into a European Monetary Fund. Ms. Merkel’s Bavarian partner, CSU leader Horst Seehofer, is more critical of a mighty Brussels…

“If there’s one issue that could blow up the negotiations, it’s how to deal with the influx of migrants… In the exploratory talks so far, the conservatives pushed through a tentative agreement to cap refugee numbers at between 180,000 and 220,000 per year, and to let only 1,000 family members a month join their relatives who are already in Germany. The Social Democrats have since challenged that compromise, and now want to let in more family members…

“The military budget is another sticking point. Ms. Merkel’s conservatives want defense spending to reach NATO’s target of 2 percent of national output by 2024… How the conservatives intend to convince the Social Democrats to aim for the 2-percent target is a mystery. But they will try…

“The three parties have also been wrangling over Germany’s role in supplying weapons to troops in foreign conflicts. The Social Democrats have long been pushing for tighter restrictions to countries fueling the conflict in Yemen, and got a plan to ban arms sales to that region into the preliminary document. But don’t expect Ms. Merkel’s conservatives to throttle sales much. Germany’s is the world’s fifth-largest arms exporter; many jobs depend on the sector… defense spending could be a mine field.”

But still: We dare to say with certainty that the CDU/CSU and SPD will hammer out a grand coalition, under Merkel and Schulz.

Subsequently, Deutsche Welle wrote on February 1, 2018:

“German lawmakers have agreed to lift the suspension of family reunifications for migrants with so-called ‘subsidiary’ status. The reunifications bill is a breakthrough in Angela Merkel’s bid to forge a new government…

“From August 1, a maximum of 1,000 additional migrants will be allowed to settle in Germany per month, provided they are direct relatives of refugees already living in the country… The new migration law forms crucial part of the Union and SPD’s grand coalition policy blueprint.”

Abominable Testing of German Carmakers on Humans and Monkeys

The Telegraph wrote on January 29:

“German carmakers were engulfed in a new scandal on Monday after it emerged they had tested potentially dangerous exhaust fumes on human subjects.

“A research group set up by Volkswagen, BMW and Daimler, the maker of Mercedes, deliberately exposed human test subjects to toxic exhaust chemicals for hours at a time in an attempt to prove they were not carcinogenic between 2012 and 2015. Details of the human testing were exposed only days after it emerged that the carmakers had carried out similar tests on monkeys.

“The revelations sent shockwaves through the German establishment. Barbara Hendricks, the German environment minister, described the experiments as ‘abominable’. ‘These tests on monkeys and humans cannot be justified ethically in any way,’ a spokesman for Angela Merkel said. ‘The outrage felt by many people is completely understandable.’…

“The same group was responsible for a similar 2014 test in the US in which ten monkeys were exposed to diesel fumes for several hours, details of which emerged over the weekend… Car manufacturers were yesterday scrambling to condemn the tests and contain the damage…”

Deutsche Welle added on January 29:

“German Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks…[stated] that the auto industry and the scientific community must explain their role. ‘The fact that an entire industry has apparently tried to conceal brazen and dubious methods of scientific research makes it even more monstrous.’”

Handelsblatt Global added on January 29 that these “experiments elicit references to Germany’s Nazi past.”

It is terrible what people are willing to do in the name of science and profitmaking. Also note articles below, discussing cloning of monkeys and attempts of creating human-animal hybrids. 

Austria—the Bridge-builder

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 30:

“The EU migrant redistribution scheme ‘isn’t working,’ Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said while welcoming Hungary’s Viktor Orban in Vienna. The two leaders called for opposition to illegal migration to Europe…

“The countries of the Visegrad Group — Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic — have repeatedly clashed with other EU states over a policy of refugee relocation since unprecedented numbers of displaced people began arriving in 2015. Orban has been especially vocal in his rejection of EU migrant quotas, which would see some people relocated to Central Europe…

“Orban said that migration was the biggest danger today to the hopeful future of central Europe.’ ‘When I say that the future needs to be protected I mean that we have a culture, a Christian culture… We have a way of life, and we want to protect this way of life,’ Orban said.

“Both leaders called for more protection on the EU’s external borders… ‘Our great aim in Austria is to be a bridge-builder in this respect between the Visegrad states and the countries in Western Europe,’ Kurz said.”

The UK’s Failing Army 

The Guardian wrote on January 29:

“The argument over the UK’s defence budget and the shape of the armed forces has been raging for a while but the debate has reached boiling point this month. Newly appointed secretary of state for defence, Gavin Williamson, and the chief of the general staff, General Sir Nicholas Carter, have been arguing for an increase in spending to meet a £20bn funding shortfall and stave off cuts to key capabilities and personnel numbers…

“Even if Williamson makes a series of sweeping changes, the results will take years or even decades to be implemented…”

By then, it will be too late for the UK.

Free Movement for EU Citizens Will End

The Telegraph wrote on January 31:

“Theresa May has promised that freedom of movement for EU citizens coming to Britain will end on Brexit day in March 2019. Brussels had insisted free movement must continue to the last day of any transition period, meaning EU citizens would be free to settle in Britain until at least the end of 2020.

“But the Prime Minister has made it clear that changing the rules on migration as soon as Britain leaves the EU is a must for her in negotiations over the transition period, which begin next week.”

“Inevitable 9.0 Earthquake, Tsunami Will Hit Canada’s West Coast”

Global News Canada wrote on January 24:

“The threat of the ‘big one’ hitting Western Canada has been looming for years. Experts say a powerful magnitude 9.0 earthquake could rip through the Pacific Coast, killing thousands and causing tsunami waves up to 20 metres high. The last destructive earthquake like this happened on Jan. 27, 1700, and experts say it is ‘inevitable’ that another one will hit the coast… [Some] experts believe the chance of it happening in the next five decades are actually one in three… The west coast of Vancouver Island and the U.S. states along the Pacific Coast will be hit the hardest…

“An example is the magnitude 9.0 earthquake that rattled northeastern Japan in 2011, claiming at least 15,000 lives and leaving more than half a million people homeless. This earthquake triggered a powerful tsunami — sending waves reaching up to 40 metres high into the coastline, destroying entire towns and triggering one of the world’s worst nuclear disasters. And there was the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 that killed more than a quarter of a million people — making it one of the most deadly natural disasters in modern history… the scale of these disasters are examples of what ‘we can expect’ from the Cascadia earthquake…”

The Bible shows that in these end-times, terrible earthquakes and huge tsunamis will occur all over the world, and much earlier than in 50 years.

Ireland’s Demon Problems

Christian Today wrote on January 25:

“Ireland urgently needs more exorcists to tackle an ‘exponential’ rise in demand for help with ‘demon possession’, a Catholic priest has said… He is ‘baffled’ Church leaders are not doing more and accused them of being ‘out of touch with reality’ if they do not see the need for more priests to drive out demons… ‘What I’m finding out desperately, is people who in their own minds believe – rightly or wrongly – that they’re afflicted by an evil spirit… I think in many cases they wrongly think it…’

“Collins’ remarks comes after the International Association of Exorcists (IAE), a group of 400 Catholic leaders and priests, reported a dramatic increase in demonic activity in recent years… The Church’s guidelines recommend that each diocese has at least one priest who is trained to recognise the difference between demonic activity and mental illness.”

It is very true that people might believe that they are directly influenced or even possessed by demons, while this is not true at all. On the other hand, there can be no denial that demonic activities are on the rise. Note the next article.

Invite Mary into your Home to Defeat the Devil?

Vatican News reported on January 28:

“Pope Francis celebrated the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on Sunday… on the occasion of the translation of the Icon of Mary ‘Salus Populi Romani’, Salvation of the Roman People… the Icon was returned to its home in the Borghese Chapel in the Basilica after it was restored…

“The image of Mary Salus Populi Romani is an object of particular devotion for people of Rome, and for Pope Francis as well, who routinely comes to the Basilica to venerate the Icon, especially before and after his Apostolic journeys throughout the world. In his homily during the Mass, the Pope focused especially on the idea of Mary as Mother…

“Pope Francis recalled that our ancestors have taught us, in the difficult moments of life, to always turn to Mary, to gather together ‘under the mantle of the Holy Mother of God.’ Mary, he said, ‘guards our faith, protects relationships, saves us in stormy weather, and preserves us from evil.’ When Mary our Mother is in the home, ‘the devil does not enter.’… Christians cannot be ‘neutral or detached’ from Mary, our Mother, he said, or we will lose our identity as children.”

These are very dangerous concepts. The true Mary of the Bible is dead and in her grave, waiting for the first resurrection from the dead. When we invite “Mary” as a living being into our homes, asking her to help us, we are inviting someone who is not associated at all with the true God.

Successful Cloning of Monkeys… Are Humans Next?

The Associated Press and Fox News reported on January 26:

“For the first time, researchers have used the cloning technique that produced Dolly the sheep to create healthy monkeys, bringing science an important step closer to being able to do the same with humans. Since Dolly’s birth in 1996, scientists have cloned nearly two dozen kinds of mammals, including dogs, cats, pigs, cows and polo ponies, and have also created human embryos with this method. But until now, they have been unable to make babies this way in primates, the category that includes monkeys, apes and people. ‘The barrier of cloning primate species is now overcome,’ declared Muming Poo of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shanghai… Poo said the feat shows that the cloning of humans is theoretically possible. But he said his team has no intention of doing that…

“Instead, he said, the goal is to create lots of genetically identical monkeys for use in medical research, where they would be particularly valuable because they are more like humans than other lab animals such as mice or rats. The process is still very inefficient – it took 127 eggs to get the two babies – and so far it has succeeded only by starting with a monkey fetus. The scientists failed to produce healthy babies from an adult monkey, though they are still trying and are awaiting the outcome of some pregnancies. Dolly caused a sensation because she was the first mammal cloned from an adult…

“At the moment, because of safety concerns, federal regulators in the U.S. would not allow making a human baby by cloning, and international scientific groups also oppose it… People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals condemned the monkey-cloning experiments. ‘Cloning is a horror show: a waste of lives, time and money – and the suffering that such experiments cause is unimaginable,’ PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo said in a statement.”

Scientific experiments with animals are, for the most part, terrible reflections of man’s inquisitive cruel mind. In most cases, animals are subjected to unspeakable suffering, as the article points out correctly. 

Humanzees Next—Or Already There?

The Sun wrote on January 18:

“A HUMAN-chimpanzee hybrid was born in a Florida lab 100 years ago before being killed by panicked doctors, claims a renowned scientist. Evolutionary psychologist Gordon Gallup coined the term ‘humanzee’ which refers to a human-chimp crossbreed – a scientifically possible hybridisation which was attempted throughout the 20th century… Gallup, who developed the famous mirror ‘self-recognition’ test which proved primates could acknowledge their own reflection, claims his former university professor told him that a humanzee baby was born at a research facility where he used to work… ‘They inseminated a female chimpanzee with human semen from an undisclosed donor and claimed not only that pregnancy occurred but the pregnancy went full term and resulted in a live birth. ‘But in the matter of days, or a few weeks, they began to consider the moral and ethical considerations and the infant was euthanised’…

“The most infamous humanzee project was conducted by Russia biologist Ilya Ivanov, also in the 1920s, who tried and failed to create a Soviet super-soldier using human sperm and female chimps. Another reported case happened in Maoist China in 1967 where a female primate became pregnant with a human-hybrid only to die from neglect after the lab’s scientists were forced to abandon the project following the outbreak of the Cultural Revolution.

“Gallup’s term humanzee became well known in the 1970s after the emergence of a creature known as Oliver – a bald chimp who walked on his hind legs. But tests conducted on Oliver in 1996 proved once and for all that the animal had 48 chromosomes and was therefore not a human-hybrid…

“Gallup, who teaches biopsychology at the University at Albany in New York, insists that humans can be crossbred with all the great apes – not just chimpanzees… ‘I’ve also coined what would be the appropriate terms to refer to human-gorilla hybrids and human-orangutan hybrids which would be a “hurilla” and a “hurang.”’”

The Nazis under Hitler also tried, unsuccessfully, to create “humanzees.” God created animals after the animal kind, and man after the God kind. Man is not an animal. Animals only reproduce according to their kind, and the same is true for man. This shows the total impossibility of the Evolution Theory. HOWEVER, what would not be possible in nature (man would not interbreed with animals and produce offspring), could theoretically be possible in the Satan-inspired laboratories of man and man’s artificial and unnatural “experimentations.” God said at the famous incident regarding the tower of Babel, that if He were not to intervene and confuse the languages, nothing would be impossible for man at that time. We might have reached that time now, and Christ will have to intervene very soon to stop man’s dangerously mad ideas and endeavors.

Scientific Study on the Universe Proves Existence of God

Christian Headlines wrote on January 26:

“Astrophysicists at the Université de Montréal studied 909 planets and 355 stars and discovered that, unlike our solar system, planets in other systems are similar in size with regular spacing between their orbits…

“In our solar system, Jupiter, the biggest planet, is 28.5 times larger in diameter than the smallest planet, Mercury, and the inner planets have surprisingly large spaces between their orbits. The researchers noted that the variations could suggest our solar system formed differently than others in the universe. Weiss said these disparities ‘would not occur if the planet sizes or spacings were drawn at random’…

“…the study certainly shows something highly unusual about our planetary arrangement: Our oddball solar system, made up of a few rocky planets in the inner part, with one right in the habitable zone, and a couple of big gas giants in the outer part protecting the rocky planets, is exactly what life requires…”

The scientific study does not, of course, reflect on the fact that these findings point at a Creator, but that is exactly what they do. And since GOD created the universe and all life forms on earth, including humans, He has the unique right to demand of us to live by His standards.. and not the ungodly, sick and immoral abominations of man’s inventions.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

2018 Shutdown of the US Government

Newsmax wrote on January 20:

“A procedural vote to advance legislation passed by the House to fund the federal government through next month failed in the Senate on Friday, less than two hours before a midnight deadline passed to avert a shutdown. The vote… failed 50-49…

“Most Democrats rejected the continuing resolution that would have kept the government open until Feb. 16 to try to force Republicans to negotiate a permanent solution for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program [the “Dreamers”]. Only five Democrats voted to advance the resolution… However, four Republicans voted against the measure… Arizona Sen. John McCain, who is battling brain cancer, was absent for the vote…”

Since 1976, there have been 18 shutdowns. But this is the first shutdown ever to occur while a single party controls both the White House and Congress (House and Senate).

The Daily Mail wrote on January 20:

“The federal government shut down at the stroke of midnight Friday… marring the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration in a striking display of Washington dysfunction…”

On Monday, the shutdown was lifted for three weeks after votes in the Senate and the House. The Democrats are blamed for giving in to President Trump and the Republicans.

Media Blames Democrats for Betraying Dreamers

The Washington Post wrote on January 23:

“In exchange for reopening the government through Feb. 8, the majority leader promised that the Senate will consider the status of ‘dreamers’…  the undocumented immigrants who were brought to this country illegally as children… [Senate Republican Majority Leader Mitch] McConnell delivered a carefully worded speech on the Senate floor, saying it was his ‘intention’ to address the dreamer issue, whether in the next spending bill or thereafter. He did not offer a specific promise to protect dreamers, and he suggested that he would offer nothing if the government shut down again, but he said he would follow an evenhanded process…

“The deal that reopened the government did nothing to ensure the House will act on a bill that the Senate passes, and conservatives aligned with the Freedom Caucus predicted that the bipartisan proposals currently being considered would be dead on arrival in their chamber… House leaders said they’re still acting as if the deadline to deal with DACA is March 6, which is when Trump announced last year that he would end the program…

“Keeping the president as contained as possible and largely hidden from view deprived Democrats of the boogeyman they expected when they decided to force the shutdown… Over the weekend, aides like [Mick] Mulvaney, [John] Kelly and [Marc] Short warned Trump to stay out of the fight and let it play out on Capitol Hill. … McConnell and [Ryan] also believed that the Democrats were in a politically tricky position, and called Trump multiple times to ensure he remained locked into the approach…

“This morning’s clips are brutal for Senate Democrats, especially [Senate Democratic Leader Chuck] Schumer. The mainstream media coverage is portraying them, almost universally, as weak-kneed and hapless. They’re getting mocked on the right and hammered even harder from left-leaning outlets… The consensus on the left side of the media is that Schumer made a fool’s bargain… He could prove skeptics wrong over the next two weeks, of course, but for now he is not getting the benefit of the doubt…”

It appears that Schumer tries to placate his critics by changing positions, but in doing so, matters will only get worse. Note the next article:

Politico wrote on January 23:

“The Senate minority leader, through an aide, informed the White House on Monday that he was retracting the offer he made last week to give Trump well north of the $1.6 billion in wall funding Trump had asked for this year, according to two Democrats. And now they say Trump will simply not get a better deal than that on his signature campaign promise…

“In the now-infamous cheeseburger summit last Friday with Trump, Schumer offered a large increase in border wall spending as a condition for a broader deal to help Dreamers. But after that offer was rebuffed — prompting the three-day government shutdown — the president has now ‘missed an opportunity to get the wall,’ one Democratic aide said…

“Republicans aligned with Trump are unlikely to go for any bill that does not offer a major boost in border wall funding, given the president’s strong feelings about the issue…”

This does not sound to be great news. Trump already declared that if there is no wall, then there is no DACA.

The Week added on January 25:

“The White House delivered an outline of its proposal on immigration to members of Congress on Thursday, which includes a pathway to citizenship for up to 1.8 million undocumented young people brought to the United States as children…

“The proposal also calls for $25 billion for border security, including building parts of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border; the end of a diversity visa lottery system; and the scaling back of family-based immigration.”

Trump Lawyer Reportedly Created Shell Company to Pay Off Porn Star

The Week wrote on January 19:

“A month before the 2016 presidential election, President Trump’s attorney Michael Cohen set up a private company in Delaware to pay former adult film star Stephanie ‘Stormy Daniels’ Clifford $130,000 to keep quiet about alleged sexual encounters with Trump, The Wall Street Journal reports.

“On Oct. 17, 2016, Cohen established Essential Consultants LLC, then used a bank account linked to the company to send $130,000 to the client-trust account of an attorney representing Daniels. Pseudonyms were reportedly used to conduct the business, with Clifford referred to as ‘Peggy Peterson.’ Records also show that on Sept. 30, 2016, Cohen started an entity in Delaware called Resolution Consultants LLC, but on Oct. 17, just two minutes after creating Essential Consultants, he dissolved Resolution Consultants. Cohen denies paying off Daniels.’”

What is remarkable about this story is that it was reported by a highly respected conservative publication. While a denial of payment in this case seems highly dubious and while a settlement, per se, is not evidence of guilt, the reported underlying circumstances seem to amply support the conclusion that money was paid for highly inappropriate sexual behavior.

According to The Daily Mail, dated January 19, Daniels “told In Touch that they had slept together on a previous occasion, shortly after the birth of his youngest son… she described the alleged 2006 sexual encounter with the future president in a hotel room at the Harrah’s Casino in Lake Tahoe following a celebrity charity golf tournament… Daniels, now 39, told ‘In Touch’ that Trump, then a reality TV star, lured her into conversations and sex with a promise that he would get her a role on his show, ‘The Apprentice.’… Daniels said that Trump deflected questions about his wife, the future first lady, despite the fact that she was at home with an infant son while he was making publicity appearances…”

Daily Mail added:

“Daniels has previously denied that she engaged in any type of sexual relationship with Trump, in a statement released by the president’s longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen. Trump has also denied having an affair with her.”

Even though Sodom and Gomorrah describes homosexual conduct rather than adultery, the principle of God’s anger with inappropriate sexual behavior by American Presidents (such as Kennedy, Clinton and now Trump, if true) certainly applies.

How the Most Unpopular President in US History Could Be Reelected in 2020

Express wrote on January 19:

“DONALD TRUMP ended his first year in office as the most unpopular US President on record and the past year since his inauguration has been filled with surprises, controversy and disagreements but… he could win a second term…

“The past year has been eventful for Mr Trump as he fights continued allegations over connections with Russia, escalated the rhetoric with North Korea, fought the battle at home over healthcare and fired the head of the FBI, amongst taking swipes at the media and announcing plans to move the US embassy to Jerusalem. He is the only US President since Harry Truman to have a negative net approval rating after a year in the White House and finds himself an unbelievable 24 points below where Barack Obama was at the same time in his presidency.

“Mr Trump’s honeymoon period did not last long, as eight days after his inauguration he had managed to achieve a majority disapproval rating. The Republican businessman managed to win the presidency despite being extremely unpopular in many parts of America and was only the fifth US President in history to win despite losing the popular vote, the previous being George W Bush in 2000… Despite the overall drop in public opinion, Mr Trump’s approval ratings have remained stable since July. He had a positive net approval rating in 17 states during 2017 – all of which he won in the 2016 presidential election and has regularly outperformed the polls, suggesting he could potentially win another election… Mr Trump defied many experts and polling figuring in the last election and with US politics so divided, if he retains the support of his core base he could win a second term in 2020.”

As our long-time readers and listeners know, we stated our belief that Donald Trump would become the Republican presidential candidate when he announced his run for presidency, and also, that he would become the next US President. Many scoffed at our stance at the time, claiming this would never happen (Subsequently, of course, once he became President, some self-appointed lying “prophets” came forward stating that they “always” knew that he would be President). We have also stated our firm belief that Donald Trump WILL be reelected in 2020, IF the USA will have elections in 2020. All of this is based on our understanding of biblical prophecy… and NOT on opinion polls or human reasoning.

Is US Quietly Preparing for War with North Korea?

Business Insider wrote on January 19:

“While much of the world has celebrated the progress in talks between North Korea and South Korea ahead of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang next month… the US has taken steps to move heavy firepower to the region. And though the US says it will delay its yearly military exercises with South Korea until the end of the Paralympics in March, it has elsewhere trained for scenarios that seem tailor-made for fighting North Korea…

“Besides the exercises, the US has for the second time ever positioned both its nuclear-capable bombers in its territory of Guam, just a short flight from North Korea…

“At a meeting of foreign ministers from 20 countries this week in Vancouver, British Columbia, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson discussed sanctions implementation for North Korea, while Secretary of Defense James Mattis briefed them on the US’s plan for military strikes.”

Mike Pence Speaks to Israel’s Parliament

JTA wrote on January 22:

“Vice President Mike Pence said the U.S. Embassy would move to Jerusalem by no later than the end of next year during an address to Israel’s parliament. In his address Monday, the first by a U.S. vice president to the Knesset, Pence also called the Iran nuclear deal a ‘disaster’ and said ‘the United States of America will no longer certify this ill-conceived agreement.’

“As he began to speak, Arab-Israeli lawmakers from the Joint Arab List party began waving signs protesting the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, leading to their expulsion from the Knesset chamber… Pence cited passages from the Bible and alluded to biblical history, as well as the parallels between the founding of the United States and Israel, many times during his 30-minute address…”

However, as our Q&A in this issue points out, the friendly relationship between the state of Israel and the USA will not continue.

EU Opposes USA and Sides with Palestinians against Israel

The EUObserver wrote on January 22:

“The EU has restated its opposition to US plans on Jerusalem during a visit to Brussels by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas. ‘I want to reassure president Abbas of the firm commitment of the European Union to the two-state solution with Jerusalem as the shared capital of two states,’ EU foreign relations chief Federica Mogherini said on Monday… She spoke alongside the Palestinian leader, who urged the EU to ‘swiftly recognise the state of Palestine’…

“The meeting came in the wake of US president Donald Trump’s decision, last year, to unilaterally recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Mogherini referred to Trump’s decision with disdain on two occasions on Monday… France, on Monday, said the EU should open talks on an association treaty with Palestine as an ‘interim accord’ ahead of its future statehood…”

Ultimately, the EU, under German leadership, will enter into an accord or a confederacy with Arab countries against the State of Israel.

Initial Win for Schulz… SPD Approves Coalition Talks with Merkel

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 21:

“Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD) on Sunday voted to begin coalition talks with Angela Merkel’s conservatives in a bid to end the country’s political limbo following September 24 elections. The vote in favor of going ahead with talks, taken at an SPD conference in the former capital, Bonn, attended by some 600 delegates from various state party organizations, came despite considerable rifts within the party. Of the votes, 362 were in favor of talks compared with 279 against.

“The contract that emerges at the end of the coalition negotiations will then be voted on by the SPD’s full 440,000-strong membership, which will thus decide whether the so-called ‘grand coalition’ of Germany’s main parties is finally established…

“Merkel has said that she wants to conclude the negotiations by February 12. If they are successful and Merkel receives the necessary absolute majority in the Bundestag to retain her position as chancellor, she could possibly begin her fourth term in office before Easter…

“In a speech at the congress, SPD leader Martin Schulz… spoke of the blueprint for coalition talks agreed at the preliminary talks as a ‘manifesto of a European Germany that is conscious of its responsibility for liberty, democracy, cohesion and solidarity in Europe.’ He said French President Emmanuel Macron had told him in a telephone conversation on Saturday that France was afraid that the extreme right could come to power in Germany if the German government did not work with its neighbor to support the European idea…”

Handelsblatt Global wrote on January 21:

“Germany’s political class is breathing a sigh of relief, at least for now… Following an emotional debate that seemed to split much of the party’s membership, delegates narrowly voted 362-279 in favor of a blueprint haggled out last week for another so-called grand coalition… The hard work, however, is only just beginning…

“The onus now falls to SPD party leader Martin Schulz, a man who just three months ago had vowed to lead his party into opposition following a huge defeat for his party in September’s elections. But the failure of coalition talks between Ms. Merkel and two other smaller parties, the Free Democrats and Greens, forced the SPD into a rethink… Still, it is hardly a given that the party’s base will vote in favor of a final coalition agreement. The SPD’s debate before Sunday’s vote exposed a wide generational gap in the center-left party, as younger members have led opposition to another grand coalition with Angela Merkel. In other words, the SPD’s more pragmatic wing has won a key battle, but it has yet to win the war…”

We take it for granted that there will be a grand coalition between Merkel and Schulz… something which we have pronounced for months. We also take it for granted that Angela Merkel will be the next German Chancellor, to push forward the European unification project, and that Martin Schulz will play a key role within the new German government regarding European developments. We state this in spite of movements within the SPD to isolate Schulz, asking for his resignation.

AfD’s Immigration Proposals

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 18:

“Thursday marked a historical moment for the Reichstag. It was the first time since the old parliament building burned down in 1933 that a far-right party has been able to present a draft law in the venerable Prussian-era edifice, a building revamped and reopened for the new democratic age in reunified Germany during the 1990s.

“Unsurprisingly, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) chose to present a bill to the chamber that reflected the key policy that has elevated them to the third-largest political force in the Bundestag: stopping immigration. Specifically, their bill was an alteration to Germany’s Residence Act that would permanently ban refugees with ‘subsidiary protection’ status from bringing over their close relatives from war-torn countries.

“Subsidiary protection is an intermediate status defined under European law, which ‘applies when neither refugee protection nor an entitlement to asylum can be granted and yet serious harm is threatened in the country of origin’… Once granted, it entitles the asylum seeker to a one-year residence permit, which can be extended on reapplication, as well as the right to work…

“The AfD went on to add that any relatives of refugees who might be in danger back home in Syria or Afghanistan should instead move to ‘pacified, or uncontested zones in their home country, or else in protective camps in a neighboring country.’”

This sounds pretty much like the position held by President Trump.

AfD Secures Chair of Powerful Budget Committee

The Local wrote on January 23:

“The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party secured the chair of the country’s powerful budget committee on Tuesday, after being repeatedly shunned for top parliamentary jobs which were shared out among more established parties. The move comes after the Social Democratic Party (SPD) agreed Sunday to open coalition talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives, leaving AfD lawmakers as potentially the largest opposition grouping — traditionally called on to head up scrutiny of government finances. MPs from the eurosceptic party will also chair the committees on law and consumer protection and of tourism.”

Italy’s Persecution of the Jews under Mussolini

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 23:

“The Italian parliament on Tuesday held a session recalling the 80th anniversary of the 1938 racial laws it approved under the rule of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini… The 1938 racial laws allowed Italy’s fascist authorities to deprive Jews of fundamental rights, including expelling them from public life by stripping them of their jobs or expelling them from schools. The laws were later expanded to ban marriage between Jews and non-Jews, and strip them of citizenship if they had arrived in Italy after 1919…

“Over the past four years, Italy has witnessed a resurgence of far-right activity…”

One should not forget the collaboration between Mussolini and the Pope; as well as the Italian Catholic Church’s strong support of the racial laws against the Jews.

Germany and Poland Close on Europe

Euraktiv Poland wrote on January 18:

“On Wednesday (17 January), Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz met with his German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel in Berlin… ‘We have many common issues, problems on the European and world agenda, we should coordinate activities between the main countries in the EU that are France, Germany and Poland,’ said Czaputowicz, expressing hope for a quick meeting within the framework of the Weimar Triangle.

“‘We are close to Germany’s position on the most important issues concerning the vision for and the role of the EU’, but noted that Poland has a ‘slightly different’ position than France. Warsaw was open to dialogue with Paris, expressing hope that soon also a meeting at the highest level will take place. He added that Poland has always been in favour of strengthening ‘this traditional form of cooperation’ between Germany, France and Poland.”

It is hardly imaginable that Poland will not play an important role in the process of unifying Europe.

German-French Collaboration

Euractiv France wrote on January 23:

“On the 55th anniversary of the 1963 [Élysée Treaty], the French National Assembly and the German Bundestag both adopted, on the same day [Monday, January 22], a resolution calling for the strengthening of Franco-German relations.

“The presidents of the National Assembly and of the Bundestag, invited respectively to their counterpart’s institutions, have reaffirmed the importance of Franco-German relations. ‘France and Germany are not simply a couple: our two countries form a family!’ stated the President of the French National Assembly Francois de Rugy, while Bundestag President Wolfgang Schaüble called for ‘further developing together the basis of our close relations.’”

UK Loses EU Satellite Centre to Spain Amid Post-Brexit Security Concerns

Politico wrote on January 18:

“Spain was picked Thursday as the new host of a data center that protects military information gathered by the EU’s satellite program, which must move from the U.K. after Brexit. The secure facility helps ensure the security of the Galileo satellite program — used by government defense programs as well as for civilian uses. The center, currently located in Swanwick, England, is a backup for the main infrastructure in Paris. The European GNSS Program Committee voted today ‘by a large majority’ in favor of relocating the U.K. center to Spain, said a Commission spokesperson.

“The move comes amid concerns over such a facility being located in a non-EU country. Even if the U.K. stays in the Galileo program, like Norway or Switzerland, non-EU member countries are excluded from participating in security aspects. ‘Given the overriding importance for the Galileo program of maintaining the business continuity of the backup site, it is necessary that the U.K. backup site … is transferred to a location in the EU27,’ the spokesperson said.

“The technical infrastructure is the latest facility that has to move from the U.K., following the relocation of two EU agencies: the European Medicines Agency and the European Banking Authority.”

Turkey Attacks Syria

Euractic wrote on January 22:

“The Turkish military on Saturday launched operation ‘Olive Branch’, its second major incursion into Syrian territory during the seven-year civil war. The operation, where Turkish war planes and artillery are backing a major ground incursion launched with Ankara-backed Syrian rebels and Turkish tanks, aims to oust the People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia from its enclave of Afrin…

“But the operation is hugely sensitive as Washington relied on the YPG to oust Islamic State (IS) jihadists from their Syrian strongholds and the Kurdish militia now holds much of Syria’s north… US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said yesterday he was ‘concerned’ about the offensive, saying the United States was in Syria with the aim of defeating the jihadists. But Erdoğan expressed impatience with US demands to set a clear timetable for the operation, saying the campaign would be over ‘when the target is achieved’… Erdoğan insisted Turkey had discussed the operation in advance with Russia, and Moscow was in ‘agreement.’”

Pope Accuses Clergy Sex Abuse Victims Of Slander

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 19:

“Pope Francis had hoped to help repair the wounds of decades of sexual abuse in the church during his trip to South America this week, but his parting comments in Chile have left Catholics there stunned. Victims have accused a local bishop of covering up the crimes of Chile’s most notorious child abuser and allowing them to continue. But on Thursday, Pope Francis criticized the allegations against the bishop, saying they amounted to ‘slander’ due to lack of evidence…

“Francis told Chilean reporters it was slanderous that the victims of pedophile priest Fernando Karadima were accusing Bishop Juan Barros of covering up the abuse. ‘The day they bring me proof against Bishop Barros, I’ll speak out,’ Francis said. ‘There is not one shred of proof against him. It’s slander.’ Barros was invited to several events with Francis.

“‘As if I could have taken a selfie or a photo while Karadima abused me and others and Juan Barros stood by watching it all,’ tweeted Barros’ most vocal accuser, Juan Carlos Cruz. ‘These people are truly crazy, and the pontiff talks about atonement to the victims. Nothing has changed, and his plea for forgiveness is empty’…

“Patricio Navia, political science professor at Diego Portales University in Santiago, said Chileans appreciated that Francis had gone much further than Chilean bishops in acknowledging sexual abuse, but his apparent U-turn on Barros would erase any good will. Anne Barrett Doyle, of the online database BishopAccountability.org, said in that statement Francis ‘has just turned back the clock to the darkest days of this crisis.’ ‘Who knows how many victims now will decide to stay hidden, for fear they will not be believed?’”

The Huffington Post wrote on January 19:

“The church is losing its influence in the nation… A new poll… showed that the number of Chileans calling themselves Catholics fell from 74 percent in 1995 to 45 percent last year…”

The End of Bitcoin? Dictatorships Would Like to Think So!

The Week wrote on January 19:

“The bitcoin boom may be over. And the death of the cryptocurrency craze may well come at the hands of government regulators. Earlier this week, Bloomberg reported that Chinese authorities plan to block domestic access to central cryptocurrency trading platforms and related services. Subsequent stories suggested officials in Russia and South Korea might pull similar moves.

“In response, the price of a single bitcoin — the world’s premiere digital currency — has plummeted. Over the weekend, bitcoins were valued at nearly $14,500. That price tag plunged below $9,500 on Wednesday, before bouncing back Thursday — though still only to $12,000. Worse still, bitcoin has been on a slow slide since December, when it topped out at almost $20,000 per coin.

“Is the bubble really bursting? Only time will tell… China’s government actually already banned official cryptocurrency exchanges late last year…

“On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that ‘legislative regulation [of cryptocurrencies] will be definitely required in [the] future.’ And on Thursday, South Korean officials said they were considering following China’s lead, and shutting down crypotcurrency trading via exchanges. Some of the resulting selloff was clearly a news-induced panic…”

Authoritarian governments (including China and Russia) are anxious to destroy bitcoin, as they see it as a threat which they have a hard time managing or controlling. Similar comments to that effect have been made in Europe (see article below). It reminds one of the biblical warning that a time will come when no one can buy or sell unless he has accepted the mark of the beast. But this time has not quite arrived. To therefore conclude that bitcoin is failing now is premature. Apart from continuing stories of irresponsible conduct of established banks, such as Wells Fargo’s ongoing problems, and governmental shutdowns and failing governments due to bickering and/or incompetent politicians, note the following article:

Express added on January 19:

“Bitaccess co-founder Mo Adam… dismissed concerns, claiming it would be impossible to completely ban bitcoin… Speaking to CBC, he said: ‘This is a very recurring theme in the bitcoin world: when more governments become aware of bitcoin, they get scared but then eventually come around it. And then business as usual continues.’…

“Forecast [from] a panel of experts predict bitcoin will remain top dog, with a market cap of $597.95 billion… This comes as Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel are set to launch a joint clampdown on trading cryptocurrencies. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said yesterday that the two countries will make joint proposals to regulate the bitcoin cryptocurrency at the next summit of the G20 group. The European Union has previously proposed treating‎ cryptocurrency markets as a security threat linked to criminal ‎laundering and terrorists.”

Bitcoin will prove to be a thorn in the flesh of many autocratic governments, the banking system, and the world economy. Drastic measures are to be expected, under the disguise of a security threat, and as far-fetched as it may sound, phenomena like bitcoin MIGHT contribute to the rise of a dictatorship in Europe.

Berlin Bitcoin Capital of Europe

The Local wrote on January 23:

“The German capital was first dubbed the ‘Bitcoin Capital of Europe’ by the Guardian in 2013 and since then a number of other businesses have been keen to accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment. Nowadays people can buy an apartment, book holidays, eat and drink in a number of trendy bars and even pay for further education using the controversial cryptocurrency Bitcoin…

“One of the first universities in Germany to accept Bitcoin as a means of payment is the European School of Management and Technology (ESMT). The ESMT Berlin EMBA is ranked highly in the world for career progress and first started accepting Bitcoin payments in December 2016… Niels Göttsch is the owner of Leuchtstoff Kaffeebar in Berlin which introduced Bitcoin payments in 2012 and has been fascinated by cryptocurrencies for a very long time…”

The Drive to Remove “Offensive” Material from the Internet

The EUObserver wrote on January 19:

“Social media outlets Instagram and Google Plus are joining ranks with other IT firms as part of a broader European Commission effort to remove online hate speech… [in addition to] Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Microsoft… Facebook had recently hired another 3,000 people, on top of an existing staff 4,500, all tasked to remove the material. Out of a sample of just under 3,000 notifications of hate speech over a six-week period for all the platforms, Facebook performed the best and had removed 89.3 percent of the content in under 24 hours. YouTube managed 62.7 percent and Twitter 80.2 percent.

“Racist comments against ethnic minorities, anti-muslin hatred, and xenophobia dominated the take downs… Similar national efforts in Germany, where companies risk a €50 million fine, saw a satirical magazine Twitter account shut down within days of the law being enacted.”

We should realize that Satan is behind this move in an attempt to prevent God’s servants from proclaiming powerfully the Godly teaching and condemnation of ungodly conduct, which has been labeled by liberals as “hate speech.”

Unprecedented Snow and Dark Weather vs. Global Warming

nbc15 wrote on January 17:

“The latest blast of wintry weather brought accumulations as far south as the Gulf Coast! Wednesday morning started off with snow cover in all 50 states and 52.3 percent of the country covered in the white stuff. To have snow on the ground in all 50 states at the same time, is a fairly rare feat. The last time all 50 states had snowfall on the ground at the same time was on February 12th, 2010… Typically, the hardest state to get accumulating snowfall is Florida. This season has already featured three snowfall events in northern Florida!”

The Guardian wrote on January 18:

“Sunshine is in short supply across a swathe of north-west Europe, shrouded in heavy cloud from a seemingly never-ending series of low pressure systems since late November and suffering one of its darkest winters since records began. If you live in Brussels, 10 hours and 31 minutes was your lot for the entire month of December. The all but benighted inhabitants of Lille in France got just two hours, 42 minutes through the first half of January… Belgium’s Royal Meteorological Institute has declared December 2017 ‘the second darkest month since 1887’, when it began measuring, after the 10.5 hours of sun recorded at its Uccle weather station last month were beaten only by a bare 9.3 hours in 1934…

“Rouen in Normandy had an even more depressing first half of the month, with just 2.5 hours of sunshine compared with a full-month norm of 58.6, Météo France said, while Paris’s 10 hours were also a far cry from the 62.5 hours the capital usually averages in January.  Even southern French sun-traps such as Bordeaux and Marseille fell a very long way short of their usual ray quota in the first half of the month, basking in just 10.3 and 26.9 hours respectively against monthly averages of 96 and 92.5.

“Health experts say a shortage of sunshine can lead to seasonal depression, whose symptoms include a lack of energy, a desire to sleep and a perceived need to consume greater quantities of sugar and fat…

“The inhabitants of north-west Europe, however, can count themselves lucky. Moscow recorded just six paltry minutes of direct sunshine in the whole of December, shattering the previous record low of three hours, set in 2000. The Russian capital normally averages a bleak 18 hours of sunshine in the last month of the year… Roman Vilfond of Moscow State University’s meteorological unit [said:] ‘The darkest month in the history of our weather observations…’ The daily Moskovsky Komsomolets reported a surge in visits to psychiatrists.”

Daily Mail wrote on January 20:

“Snowfall of the decade! The heaviest snow in EIGHT YEARS falls on Scotland as hordes of skiers create SIX MILE traffic jams in the hills – and there is more on the way in England too. A yellow warning remains in place across the midlands, northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It follows up to a foot of snow falling yesterday, with temperatures expected to sink as low as -11C last night.

“More snow is expected today, adding up to 6in to the 14in already blanketing parts of the Scottish highlands… forecasters have warned snow could make it as far south as London on Saturday night into Sunday.”

All of this does not quite fit with the concept of man-made global warming or climate change.

5 ½-Foot-Tapeworm in Person Shocks Hospital

Newsmax reported on January 20:

“Public health specialists are warning about the dangers of hidden parasites after media reports of a 30-year-old Fresno, Calif., man who showed up at a hospital emergency room with a 5 ½-foot-long tapeworm he may have acquired from improperly prepared sushi.

“Dr. Kenny Banh… said the man showed up in the emergency room of UCSF Fresno’s Community Regional Medical Center last August and told him he was stricken with stomach cramps and bloody diarrhea after eating sushi. Then, while using the bathroom, he noticed something hanging from his rear end, which he was able to remove… He said the patient was convinced he got the tapeworm from eating raw fish because he ate sushi or sashimi almost daily…

“Concerns about sushi-related parasites have been rising in recent years. U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released guidelines for controlling parasites in seafood by cooking the food or freezing it for certain amounts of time. Last January 2017, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases that wild salmon caught in Alaska’s icy waters were found to be infected by a Japanese tapeworm known as Diphyllobothrium nihonkaiense… [They are] among the most common tapeworms and can grow up to 30 feet, and live for years in the human body…

“Last May, researchers reported in the British Medical Journal Case Reports that sushi’s growing popularity may be driving an increase in parasite infections. In one case, doctors found parasite larvae in the gut lining of a 32-year-old man who had recently eaten sushi. The man had been vomiting with stomach pain and a fever, but doctors did not suspect the parasite until the man mentioned recently eating sushi. According to The Guardian, the worm was from the genus Anisakis, which causes the condition known as anisakiasis. ‘When humans eat raw or undercooked infected fish or squid, they ingest nematode larvae,’ the CDC reports. ‘Once inside the human body, the larvae can invade the gastrointestinal tract. Eventually, the parasite dies and produces an inflamed mass in the esophagus, stomach, or intestine.’

“According to the CDC, some people will experience a tingling sensation after or while eating raw or undercooked fish or squid, which could actually be the parasite moving in the mouth or throat.

“Tapeworms are only one type of parasite that can infect the human body. Others that can enter the human body through food and water include:

“Giardia — a protozoan that causes giardiasis in humans. This parasite is ingested via contaminated food and water, and affects the small intestine as it begins to multiply and colonize. Symptoms: Flatulence, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fatigue, weakness, and weight loss. Giardiasis symptoms are frequently found in travelers but resolve in a few weeks without treatment.

“E. vermicularis — a nematode parasite that strikes 209 million adults and 30 percent of children worldwide, according to a study published in the American Family Physician journal reports. This parasite is also present in the intestine and the infection may last four to six weeks. Symptoms: Perianal and vaginal itching, urinary tract infection, appendicitis, and weight loss.

“Filarial worms — a roundworm that causes filariasis. This parasite circulates in the blood and, upon maturing, enters the lymphatic system and develops while it lives there for more than five years. It affects the lymphatic nodes and causes retention of fluids resulting in swelling. Symptoms: Swollen feet and lower limbs, skin hardening and thickening.

“Hookworm — also known as necator americanus is found widely in the Americas and Caribbean. The hookworm attaches itself to the intestinal walls and feeds on human blood. Symptoms: Anemia, physical and mental retardation in children.

“Guinea worm — a roundworm that causes Guinea worm disease by entering the stomach and intestine from untreated water. Symptoms: There are no significant visible symptoms when the parasite enters the body. But a year later, the worm ruptures the skin surface, often near the lower limbs, causing painful wounds that can lead to bacterial infections and blood poisoning.”

Terrible Side Effects of Anti-Influenza Drug

CBS DFW (CBS 11) wrote on January 18:

“More families have come forward with stories about frightening side effects in children who took Tamiflu. CBS11 first broke the news of a 6-year-old Allen girl who tried to jump out of a window after taking the anti-influenza drug. She is now back to normal, but her family wasn’t alone…

“Lindsay Ellis of Indianapolis was a healthy 11-year-old before she had the flu last year. Then she began hallucinating bugs on her body and the devil’s voice in her ear… Ellis says doctors believe it was a reaction to Tamiflu. Lindsay was hospitalized for nearly two months, had a feeding tube and was incoherent and unable to move her hands or feet for several weeks… A year later, she still suffers tremors…

“[Japan] banned Tamiflu for youth ages 10 to 19 in 2007 after several dozen instances of neuropsychiatric events… The FDA has listed 559 cases of hallucinations from Tamiflu since 2009.”

Before one falls into the trap of taking drugs and receiving vaccinations against the flu, one should surely research the facts and consider the potential consequences. And one should not just trust the assertions of doctors depending on the pharmaceutical industry… note the next article.

Medical Marijuana in Germany… Legal, but Difficult to Get

Handelsblatt Global wrote on January 19:

“Chronically and terminally ill patients in Germany can’t get enough cannabis. Demand for medical marijuana has far outstripped supply since becoming legally available early last year to patients suffering from debilitating pain… Prior to legalization, only some one thousand people suffering from certain diseases such as cancer or chronic pain had permission from Germany’s federal drug institute (BfArM) to use cannabis for medical purposes…

“Within 10 months, more than 13,000 people had applied, according to a survey of three large health insurers by the Rheinische Post newspaper. Nearly two-thirds of the applications were approved, and some of the remainder are pending further information from patients and their physicians…

“Cannabis is also being used to treat people with multiple sclerosis (MS), an incurable disease that prevents the brain from sending signals correctly through the body…

“The dilemma now facing Germany, which has some of the strictest narcotic drug laws in Europe, is how to get more weed, which is currently imported from countries with legalized operations, like Canada and the Netherlands. A program to produce its own medical marijuana is underway: Last year, Germany’s federal drug institute issued 10 tenders for companies to grow up to 2 tons per year through 2021 and 6 tons from 2022 onward. The first harvest is scheduled for next year. There’s just one hitch: The law requires companies to have previous experience with medical marijuana, which German companies don’t have…

“Growing your own is not an option, which Mr. Weiglein learned the hard way. With a prescription to purchase cannabis since 2009, he saw the monthly cost for his daily 3-gram dose soar from €900 to €2,400 under the new law last year. Apart from the price (one dose of 5 grams of medical marijuana costs €30 in the Netherlands, compared to €125 in Germany), he also had trouble finding his preferred varietal or sometimes any of the 16 varieties at all in local pharmacies. So he grew his own from seeds purchased in the US, got caught, went to court and lost.

“Another hurdle for German patients to clear in obtaining medical marijuana is finding physicians willing to prescribe it…”

“Swimming Bacteria Defy Darwin’s Theory”

Christian Headlines wrote on January 19:

“Tiny biological motors that give bacteria the power to swim possess a complexity that baffles scientists and undercuts Darwin’s theory of evolution… Each of the proteins involved in the bacterial motor’s function is essential…

“Charles Darwin himself admitted that the discovery of such irreducible complexity would destroy his assumptions. ‘If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down,’ he wrote in On the Origin of Species.

“Nevertheless, the researchers said a biological ‘quantum leap’ spurred the evolution of bacterial motors. Lead researcher Morgan Beeby likened the quantum leap to what would happen if the necks of giraffes suddenly increased in length because a giraffe gave birth to offspring with necks a meter longer, rather than because an extended series of random mutations over many years favored longer-necked giraffes.”

The Theory of Evolution is one of the most ridiculous fairy tales ever invented by man, under Satan’s influence.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.