Croatia the 28th Member State of the EU
Deutsche Welle reported on July 1, 2013:
“Croatians are celebrating their entry into the European Union as the once war-torn nation becomes the bloc’s 28th member… At the stroke of midnight on Sunday, Croatia joined the EU, the first expansion of the bloc since 2007… The country of 4.4 million becomes just the second of the former Yugoslav states to enter the EU, following Slovenia’s entry in 2004… Serbia just learned last week that they can begin negotiations in January 2014 for their own future entry in the EU…
“Last year, Croatians voted through a referendum for EU membership, the final hurdle to Sunday’s accession to the bloc… Despite questions over timing and its economy, thousands gathered in Zagreb on Sunday to celebrate the culmination of 20 years worth of change, reform and success. Revelers were joined by 170 foreign officials, 15 heads of state, 13 prime ministers and the presidents of the European Commission and European Council. Croatia’s President Ivo Josipovic pointed to the historical significance of the occasion. ‘In the history of a nation, there are few events such as this one,’ he said.”
Der Spiegel Online wrote on July 1:
“As of midnight on Sunday, Croatia is officially the 28th member of the European Union, following a decade of overhaul aimed at casting off the remnants of war and Communist rule. The small Adriatic country briefly set aside its economic troubles to celebrate its accession with fireworks, cannon-fire and church bells… The country of 4.4 million people is only the second of seven countries carved out of Yugoslavia to join the EU, following Slovenia in 2004. ‘I look at the future with much optimism,’ Josipovic said, welcoming a group of seven other Balkan leaders ‘on the first European morning.’
“The festivities in Zagreb lasted well into the night and included concerts, dance performances, street parties and massive projections narrating the mostly Catholic country’s history. At midnight, EU flags were raised and customs posts were removed from the country’s borders with EU members Hungary and Slovenia. Several top EU officials were on hand for the celebration, including European Commission President Jose Barroso and EU Parliament President Martin Schulz, who spoke of a historic day. ‘It’s good when a family grows, especially our family, which is committed to the values of democracy, justice and rule of law,’ Schulz told the crowd… Croatia still has to fulfill more criteria before it will be allowed to join the EU’s Schengen Zone of border-free travel.”
Egyptian Carousel … Morsi Ousted… Now It’s the Military Again
Deutsche Welle reported on July 3:
“The Egyptian army has said that President Mohammed Morsi is to be removed from his post and that the constitution has been suspended. Fresh troops have been deployed around Cairo, with anti-Morsi protesters jubilant. Egyptian Armed Forces Commander in Chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi announced on national television on Wednesday evening that the head of the country’s Supreme Constitutional Court would act as president…
“One of the Islamist Egyptian president’s top advisers earlier on Wednesday had condemned action by the country’s army as a ‘military coup’ after an ultimatum for Morsi to forge a deal with opponents expired… Meanwhile, the state-run Al-Ahram newspaper reported that the military had placed several leaders of Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood under surveillance and imposed a travel ban on them. The news agency DPA reported sources at Cairo airport as saying that a travel ban on Morsi himself was related to the president’s 2011 escape from prison during the uprising that toppled former President Hosni Mubarak…
“In a last minute statement before the deadline expired between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. local time (1400 to 1500 GMT), Morsi himself criticized the military for ‘taking only one side’… Opposition spokesman Mohamed ElBaradei, along with Egypt’s top Muslim cleric and a Coptic pope had met General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi for talks on measures that the military threatened to impose on Wednesday. Those discussions came to an end on Wednesday evening…”
Der Spiegel Online wrote on July 4:
“Leaders in Europe and elsewhere have expressed dismay at the coup which saw the Egyptian military topple the country’s president on Wednesday night. Some are warning that it sets a ‘dangerous precedent’ that could happen again… German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the country must return to constitutional order as quickly as possible… In the United Kingdom, Prime Minister David Cameron called on all parties to end the violence in Egypt, where nearly 50 people have been killed in clashes between Morsi supporters and opponents since Sunday… Foreign Secretary William Hague also told the BBC: ‘We don’t support military intervention as a way to resolve disputes in a democratic system. It’s of course a dangerous precedent to do that, if one president can be deposed by the military, then of course another one can be in the future — that’s a dangerous thing.’…
“In a statement released by the White House on Wednesday evening, President Obama said Washington ‘is deeply concerned by the decision of the Egyptian Armed Forces to remove President Morsi and suspend the Egyptian constitution.’ The president called ‘on the Egyptian military to move quickly and responsibly to return full authority back to a democratically elected civilian government as soon as possible through an inclusive and transparent process, and to avoid any arbitrary arrests of President Morsi and his supporters.’
“The response from Turkey, where mass protests have targeted Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was even stronger, not least because Morsi had been a very close ally of Ankara. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu described the military coup as ‘unacceptable.’ He said: ‘You can only be removed from duty through elections, that is, the will of the people. It is unacceptable for a government, which has come to power through democratic elections, to be toppled through illicit means and even more, a military coup,’ he told reporters.”
Egypt’s future is predestined and clearly revealed in the Bible. It won’t matter who is going to be in charge—the Muslim Brotherhood, President Morsi’s opponents or the military. All this nonsense and the West’s ill-conceived enthusiasm about the “Arab Spring” just cloud the real issues. For the truth and the clear understanding as to what is happening and going to occur in Egypt, and why, please read our free booklet, “Middle Eastern and African Nations in Bible Prophecy.”
Syria—a Foretaste of Things to Come?
The Blaze wrote on June 30:
“Syrian Catholic priest Francois Murad killed last weekend by jihadi fighters was beheaded, according to a report by Catholic Online which is linking to video purportedly showing the brutal murder. As The Blaze reported last week, Murad, 49, was setting up a monastery in Gassanieh, northern Syria. Last Sunday… extremist militants trying to topple President Bashar Assad breached the monastery and grabbed Murad. While earlier reports suggested Murad may have been shot to death, Catholic Online reported Saturday: ‘The Vatican is confirming the death by beheading of Franciscan Father, Francois Murad, who was martyred by Syrian jihadists on June 23.’
“The Catholic news service quotes local sources who report that the radical Al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra, or Al-Nusra Front, was behind the savage killing. In [a] video posted by Live Leak purporting to show the execution, dozens of men and boys are seen cheering on as three men are seated on the ground awaiting their grisly fate. The men are methodically beheaded one at a time by men holding what appears to be a simple kitchen knife after which the heads are placed on top of the bodies. According to Catholic Online, the first victim was Murad.
“A frenzy ensues, with dozens drawing out their smartphones to capture the bloody scene, as a chorus of Allahu Akbar (‘Allah is the greatest’) are (is) sung with jihadi rapture. Several observers are seen moving within inches of the bodies in an effort to capture close-up photos.
“Catholic Online is raising alarm that western nations are providing support to the rebels who have shown a proclivity toward persecuting Christians: ‘This should make it clear to Christians around the world what jihadists are about. Make no mistake. Catholics and [other] Christians around the globe are under dire threat, particularly from the spread of militant Islam. Until the threat is recognized and taken seriously, martyrdoms like this will continue.’
“Vatican Radio reports that Gassanieh, a village with a majority Christian population, had been under attack by Islamist fighters for the past few weeks, forcing most residents to flee for safety. It quotes Custos of the Holy Land, Franciscan Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa who says, ‘The world must know that the support of gunmen by the west is helping extremists in killing Syrians. With such stances, not a single Christian will remain in the East,’ he added.
“Vatican Radio writes, ‘Fr. Mourad was just one of the many men and women… putting their faith on the front line in Syria, refusing to abandon the communities they serve, Christian and Muslim. They stay because they want to be a sign of hope, light and comfort to people in the midst of destruction.’”
God is not the author of rebellion, which is as bad a sin as witchcraft, and what is happening in the Middle East is of course not godly. Rather, Satan is the god of this world and the author of rebellion, murder, religious fanaticism and anarchy. However, God allows these events to take place to bring about His purpose, as explained in our free booklet, “Biblical Prophecy–From Now Until Forever.”
Germans and Europeans Furious With Obama’s America
The Associated Press reported on June 30:
“Senior European officials expressed concern Sunday at reports that U.S. intelligence agents bugged EU offices on both sides of the Atlantic… The president of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, said he was ‘deeply worried and shocked about the allegations of U.S. authorities spying on EU offices’ made in a report published Sunday by German news weekly Der Spiegel… Schulz said that if the allegations that the NSA bugged European Union offices were confirmed ‘it would be an extremely serious matter which will have a severe impact on EU-US relations.’…
“In Germany, where criticism of the NSA’s surveillance programs has been particularly vocal, a senior government official accused the United States on Sunday of using Cold War methods against its allies by targeting EU offices in Washington, New York and Brussels… Also Sunday, German federal prosecutors said they were examining whether the reported U.S. electronic surveillance programs broke German laws… [They] said private citizens were likely to file criminal complaints on the matter, but didn’t comment on the possible legal merits of such complaints.”
Der Spiegel added on June 30:
“Europeans are furious. Revelations that the US intelligence service National Security Agency (NSA) targeted the European Union and several European countries with its far-reaching spying activities have led to angry reactions from several senior EU and German politicians… Elmar Brok, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in European Parliament added his opprobrium. ‘The spying has reached dimensions that I didn’t think were possible for a democratic country. Such behavior among allies is intolerable.’ The US… once the land of the free, ‘is suffering from a security syndrome,’ added Brok, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats. ‘They have completely lost all balance. George Orwell is nothing by comparison.’…
“A… Merkel ally in European Parliament, Markus Ferber, accused the US on Sunday of using methods akin to the feared East German secret police, the Stasi… ‘A democratic constitutional state that uses Stasi methods sacrifices all credibility as a moral authority,’ Ferber told the German daily Die Welt on Sunday. ‘It has destroyed trust.’…
“Green Party officials in Brussels are demanding far-reaching consequences. ‘This is meltdown of the constitutional state,’ said Jan Philipp Albrecht, a Green Party representative in European Parliament… and demanded that the EU open proceedings at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Green Party floor leader in European Parliament Daniel Cohn-Bendit went even further. ‘A simple note of protest is not enough anymore. The EU must immediately suspend negotiations with the US over a free trade agreement,’ he said…”
The Associated Press reported on July 1 that “French President Francois Hollande is demanding that the United States immediately stop its alleged eavesdropping of the European Union.”
The Verge wrote on July 1:
“… a new report from German news weekly Der Spiegel provides some more insight into the size of Washington’s telecommunications dragnet, claiming that US intelligence compiles metadata on half a billion German data connections (including phone calls, emails, and text messages) every day. The report points out that the NSA’s interest in Germany is much higher than that of other EU countries like France, whose communications the NSA only logs a tenth as often.
“… the report states that the NSA’s spying efforts in Germany are comparable to the attention it spends on China, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. And pointing to one top secret document, Der Spiegel writes that Germany is considered a ‘third party foreign partner’ by the NSA, unentitled to the freedom from spying exclusively granted to the most prestigious group of US partner nations: Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK.”
If all of these claims are true, the cold war between Europe and the USA is back, which could (!) even escalate into a hot war. The German mass tabloid, Bild, asked on July 1: “What do the Americans want from the Chancellor?”, in light of the alleged revelation that even Angela Merkel had been spied on by the Obama Administration. This made the German Chancellor very unhappy, as the next article shows.
Europe Threatens USA With Dire Consequences
Der Spiegel Online wrote on July 1:
“Europeans are deeply unsettled… EU diplomats, with the active involvement of German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, spent much of Monday coming up with a joint response and reaction to the possible US spying. According to a statement from the Foreign Ministry in Berlin, Westerwelle spoke at length with Catherine Ashton, chief of EU foreign affairs, on Monday. ‘Both were in agreement that such activity among partners and friends [is] unacceptable,’ the statement read… In Berlin, the German Foreign Ministry called in US Ambassador Philip Murphy on Monday for consultations. Brussels likewise called in the US ambassador to the European Union, William Kennard…
“Merkel’s unusually sharp words seem to have opened the gates for more reactions from her cabinet in Berlin… The US, meanwhile, is biding its time. US President Obama said on Monday in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania that his government is still looking at the revelations published in SPIEGEL. He said that once that examination is complete, the US will provide its allies with all of the information they are seeking.”
If one wants to believe THAT!!!
Germans Don’t Trust Obama
In an accompanying article, Der Spiegel wrote on July 1:
“Revelations that the US has spied extensively on the EU and European countries have infuriated leaders in Brussels and Berlin — and could endanger the trans-Atlantic free-trade agreement. Important American voices are demanding that Obama come clean. Leading trans-Atlantic analysts have reacted with shock and horror…
“Sources familiar with the ongoing discussion in the White House regarding the revelations say that the Obama administration will attempt to make clear that the surveillance measures were carried out in coordination with the secret services of other countries. It remains questionable, however, whether any countries will want to admit to such cooperation. European politicians, it seems certain, will have no interest in making such an admission…
“Green Party politician Malte Spitz attracted attention over the weekend with a guest editorial in the New York Times in which he reminded readers of the demonstrations in Germany against data retention for six months in accordance with a European Union directive. ‘Given our history, we Germans are not willing to trade in our liberty for potentially better security. Germans have experienced firsthand what happens when the government knows too much about someone.’ The title of his piece: ‘Germans Loved Obama. Now We Don’t Trust Him.’”
This debacle is bound to continue; especially if European secret services collaborated with the Americans and would now be unwilling to admit this.
How Much Did the Germans Know?
Der Spiegel Online wrote on July 3:
“While the Chancellery appears to be outraged by the NSA’s spying tactics in Germany, the opposition doubts the revelations came as a surprise to Angela Merkel. Just how much could she have known?
“German Chancellor Angela Merkel will have to be pretty clear with US President Barack Obama the next time she has him on the line. At least that’s a reasonable assumption, based on the anger she has expressed about American spying operations in the European Union and Germany… But others say that the chancellor will probably be friendly to Obama during their next talk, and not because this is what diplomatic conventions call for, even amid tensions. No, it’s because there is some question as to whether Berlin’s dismay about the espionage by the National Security Agency (NSA) is really as great as it claims. Could some of the indignation be feigned? Did the revelations really shock the chancellor? And if it did come as a surprise, has German counterintelligence failed miserably?
“The opposition doesn’t believe that Merkel was unaware of the situation. In an editorial for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung this week, Sigmar Gabriel, chairman of the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD), openly aired the suspicion that Merkel was familiar with at least some of the spying activity. The government has vehemently rejected this accusation as crude campaign bluster. This isn’t totally unjust — the opposition has seized on the opportunity to portray Merkel as a traitor to citizens’ freedoms, a strategy that could gain support among a population particularly sensitive to data protection issues.
“The election campaign aside, there are good reasons to ask critical questions of not just the Americans, but the German government too. Intelligence expert Erich Schmidt-Eenboom says that Gabriel’s suspicion is ‘at least tendentially’ correct. ‘According to my estimation, the authorities knew about this,’ he told broadcaster Deutschlandfunk.
“That’s because the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), which is responsible for protecting government networks, compiles threat analyses for the Interior Ministry. And adversaries include ‘not only China or Russia, but also the Anglo-Saxon services,’ Schmidt-Eenboom said. Additionally, Germany’s foreign intelligence agency (BND) is familiar with the capacities of allied intelligence agencies, he added. In turn, the BND briefs the Chancellery, or more precisely its chief of staff, Ronald Pofalla, who is responsible for coordinating the intelligence agencies. He then shares this information with the chancellor when he sees fit…
“The SPD, however, cannot hide behind Merkel’s conservatives. After all, it was current opposition leader Frank-Walter Steinmeier who occupied Pofalla’s post from 1999 to 2005, in the delicate time after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when US intelligence agencies were certainly not idle. One thing is obvious: No one believed that the NSA was steering clear of Germany…”
These are indeed troubling developments, and Germany’s refusal to grant asylum to fugitive Edward Snowden might have to be seen in this light. See the next article.
“Ashamed of Germany”
The Local reported on July 3:
“Michael Grosse-Brömer, of the Christian Democratic Union’s parliamentary faction [Merkel’s party], said it had been a ‘legally founded’ decision. ‘We have clear pre-conditions for an asylum process and for asylum entitlement, and those pre-conditions were not in place for Mr. Snowden,’ he said on state TV channel ARD Wednesday morning. ‘I don’t see that the man is being pursued politically,’ Social Democratic Party interior policy spokesman Dieter Wiefelspütz [Steinmeier’s party] told the Mitteldeutsche Zeitung. ‘He may have breached state secrecy for reasons of conscience. He may be a hero of freedom. But that is no protection from legal consequences.’
“The Green party, which had called for Snowden to be taken in, strongly criticized the government. Leading candidates Katrin Göring-Eckardt and Jürgen Trittin released a joint statement on Tuesday evening that said, ‘Angela Merkel’s decision to deny asylum to Edward Snowden exposes all the hypocrisy of this government. It says it is outraged, but doesn’t do anything.’
“Meanwhile Katharina Nocun of the Pirate Party accused the government of putting Snowden under threat, adding that Snowden could expect inhumane treatment or even the death penalty if deported to the US. ‘Germany is even holding the door open for these human rights abuses,’ Nocun said. ‘Today I am ashamed of our government.’”
“Snowden, a former contractor for the US National Security Agency, applied for asylum to 21 countries after releasing details of the scope of its surveillance activities. Most have denied him access.”
Is this so because all are involved; all have something to hide; and no one is without sin? Take France as another example.
Worldcrunch wrote on July 4:
“The revelations of the controversial U.S. domestic surveillance program PRISM have provoked massive indignation through much of Europe, but France has been rather quiet. There are two simple explanations: Paris was already aware — and does exactly the same. Le Monde has confirmed that the ‘Direction Générale de la Securité Extérieure’ (DGSE, the French secret service) systematically collects the electromagnetic signals transmitted by computers and phones in France, as well as the digital streams going back-and-forth between the French and abroad. All communications are being spied on: emails, SMS messages, phone records, Facebook and Twitter updates, which are all then stored for years.”
Guenther Grass in Hot Water—Again
Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 28:
“Nobel laureate Günter Grass has become a master at stepping on his tongue lately. This week, he did it again, casting aspersions about Chancellor Merkel’s East German past. Critics have blasted Grass, pointing to the author’s own prior membership in the SS.”
This was of course an incredibly stupid and incomprehensible move by Grass, which is even more regrettable, as he did say a few more things which are worth noting. The magazine went on to state:
“Grass didn’t limit his criticism to Merkel on Wednesday. Calling her elimination of conscription ‘shameful,’ he said that the German military had devolved into nothing more than an ‘army of mercenaries that gets sent on missions abroad.’ He said it threatens to become a ‘state within a state’ as did the German army during the inter-war Weimar period.”
With that statement, Grass earned criticism from Conservatives and Liberals alike. Nobody wanted to hear that.
New Information Contradicts Denials from Tech Companies
CNET wrote on June 30:
“The Washington Post has published a new set of slides regarding PRISM, revealing more details about the National Security Agency’s controversial surveillance program and how it operates. The new slides… appear to confirm that the NSA and FBI have the ability to perform real-time surveillance of e-mail and stored content.
“The slides also seem to contradict denials from tech companies such as Google, Apple, Yahoo, and Microsoft about their level of participation in the program. The program ‘uses government equipment on private company property to retrieve matching information from a participating company, such as Microsoft or Yahoo and pass[es] it without further review to the NSA,’ The Washington Post reported.”
US Postal Service Is Spying on You!
The New York Times reported on July 3:
“Postal Service computers photograph the exterior of every piece of paper mail that is processed in the United States — about 160 billion pieces last year. It is not known how long the government saves the images… postal mail is subject to the same kind of scrutiny that the National Security Agency has given to telephone calls and e-mail.
“… At the request of law enforcement officials, postal workers record information from the outside of letters and parcels before they are delivered. (Opening the mail would require a warrant.) The information is sent to the law enforcement agency that asked for it. Tens of thousands of pieces of mail each year undergo this scrutiny.”
Obamacare—Major Defeat for Obama
Newsmax, The Associated Press and Reuters reported on July 2:
“The Obama administration’s move to delay until 2015 a requirement that employers offer health insurance or else face stiff penalties is yet another indication the embattled law is a failure and should be repealed, Republicans and Conservatives said Tuesday… On Tuesday, the White House made its most significant concession on the healthcare law since President Barack Obama signed it in 2010, delaying the requirement that medium and large companies provide coverage for their workers or face heavy fines.
“The law requires companies with 50 or more workers to provide affordable coverage to their full-time employees or risk escalating tax penalties if just one worker ends up getting government-subsidized insurance. Companies would have had to pay the Internal Revenue Service $2,000 for each full-time employee who did not get health coverage, beginning Jan. 1, 2014, when the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was scheduled to take full effect. Business groups have complained that the provision was too complicated…”
Still, the injustice of the implementation of this new botched law is apparent, as correctly pointed out by humanevents.com, on July 2:
“Looks like someone finally read the bill. The Obama administration is postponing the ‘employer mandate’… until 2015. The move delays implementation of at least one component of the unpopular law until after the next mid-term elections. A coincidence, no doubt.
“Individuals? You’re still on the hook… the decision prompts several questions. Among them: 1 -Can the administration unilaterally decide when and how a law is implemented? If so, can Congress decide when and how to fund it? 2- Why is the employer mandate delayed but not the individual mandate? 3 – Why is it that the populist Obama administration acts on complaints from large companies but fights all the way to the Supreme Court to levy fines on individuals?”
Good questions!
Same-Sex Marriage—HOW “Law” Is Made
The International Business Times wrote on July 1:
“The Supreme Court denied a request by California opposition groups to block same-sex marriages on Sunday. Justice Anthony Kennedy, who handles petitions from the Western states, issued a brief statement that read: ‘Justice Kennedy denied the application on his own, without further comment.’…
“The Ninth Circuit [Court of Appeals] usually waits 25 days before acting on a case that was recently decided by the Supreme Court. But in a surprise move, a three-judge panel that included liberal jurist Stephen Reinhardt lifted a hold it had placed on a 2010 injunction ordering state officials to stop enforcing the gay marriage ban [in California]…
“Kennedy wrote Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling that required the federal government to recognize same-sex marriages. Kennedy’s decision means gay marriages can resume in California.”
According to the Rasmussen Report of July 1, 2013, “The U.S. Supreme Court finished its term with big decisions on voting rights, affirmative action and same-sex marriage. Following those rulings, public approval of the court has fallen to the lowest level ever recorded in more than nine years of polling.”
Same Sex Marriage—WHY “Law” Is Made
On June 28, Canada Free Press wrote the following:
“Designated by Congress as the ‘National House of Prayer’ and often identified as the church of our national leaders, the National Cathedral in Washington DC celebrated Wednesday’s Supreme Court decisions regarding same-sex marriage by ringing its bells for 45 minutes at noon ET, followed by a celebratory prayer service that evening. After being notified of the Supreme Court’s ruling, our putative president made a congratulatory call from Air Force One to the plaintiffs in California’s Proposition 8 case, a call that was also broadcast on MSNBC, the unofficial mouthpiece for the administration.
“Welcome to American Babylon, 2013.
“Those who have been paying attention to the systematic attacks on the moral fabric of our nation understand that what is taking place in America has absolutely nothing to do with ‘equal rights’ or ‘gender equality.’ This should be especially evident in light of the fact that [confessing] homosexuals comprise a mere three percent of our population, yet have somehow managed to cause an entire nation to redefine traditional marriage between a man and a woman. How is this possible? The answer lies in the larger picture.
“America has become a captured operation. Forced acceptance of same-sex unions is part of a larger plan that was outlined and detailed nearly a century ago by Antonio Gramsci, a well-known Marxist. Through his theory of cultural hegemony, a method for a Marxist takeover of a capitalist nation like the United States was only possible from within. A key component to this takeover was – and continues to be – radically changing the culture and moral sensitivities of our country. Destroy traditional and sacred moral values based on Judeo-Christian principles and replace them with immoral and un-Godly laws and evil disguised as tolerance…
“Socialism calls for government control of industry, including the nationalization of key industries and national resources. The terms Communism and Marxism are interchangeable, and are hard-core forms of socialism… Socialism, Marxism and Communism are mere stepping stones to the larger agenda of a unified world or system of global governance… Many of the… [Communist] goals have been accomplished with little to no resistance right in front of our eyes, by our own self-proclaimed moral leadership.
“A very important aspect of those goals focuses on breaking down all cultural standards of morality, including the promotion of all forms of homosexuality, promiscuity and degeneracy as ‘normal and healthy.’ To assist with this task, all religious institutions were and are to be infiltrated by those adherent to the Marxist-Communist Mindset, the Holy Bible is to be discredited, and traditional doctrine replaced by a mandate of inclusion and tolerance of behavior which was once considered abhorrent. Removal of the Judeo-Christian obstacles in America would sufficiently soften the population to the ultimate acceptance of a global Mindset and ultimately, the subjugation to a single global authority. This process, however, could not be done overnight as the Americans of the 1950’s would never accept it or allow it to happen.
“The children of the United States were and are considered to be one of the most important ‘resources’ for the takeover of America. Accordingly, schools had to be infiltrated by the agents of the Marxists-Communist Mindset, today called the Progressives, and the minds of the children ‘prepared’ or educated in accordance with a tolerance and blind acceptance toward Marxism and Communism…
“It is no wonder that the U.S. Educational system from the 1960’s forward has promoted immorality under the guise of tolerance, and has not only allowed, but forced parents to accept curriculums of abhorrent behavior be permitted to pollute the minds of our young people. At the same time curriculums of moral corruption are being taught in our schools, the removal of God was necessary as it is antithetical to the debauchery of tolerance and acceptance. Like a cancer, this process has spread not only through our public elementary and secondary schools, but exponentially into our colleges and universities… As we are busy working multiple jobs just to put food on the table, we have been deliberately distracted away from what is being taught to our children…
“The normalization of homosexual marriage is a sin against God and nature and historically, one that does not go unpunished. We did not, however, arrive here overnight. It was in 1986, a mere 27 years ago, that the U.S. Supreme Court upheld state’s rights to enact sodomy laws in the landmark case of Bowers v. Hardwick. Citing then Chief Justice Warren Burger, ‘To hold that the act of homosexual sodomy is somehow protected as a fundamental right would be to cast aside millennia of moral teaching.’ That fragile thread of morality lasted only 17 years. In 2003, the Bowers v. Hardwick was overturned by the Supreme Court decision in Lawrence v. Texas, which struck down the sodomy law in Texas and, by extension, invalidated sodomy laws in other states.
“Although it was contended at the time that the latter case had nothing to do with same-sex marriage, Supreme Court Justice Antonion Scalia astutely saw through the smoke screen and during oral arguments, flatly admonished anyone who would listen that the decision would open the floodgates toward the recognition of same-sex marriage. And so it did. Legalizing same-sex sexual activity and marriage is but one of numerous attacks against America from within…”
It is so very true that before the United States of America can be destroyed by an enemy from without, it will have permitted its destruction from within. Notice the next article as well.
Altered Attitudes
Der Spiegel Online wrote on July 2:
“Two US Supreme Court rulings last week bolstering same-sex marriage are symptomatic of shifting public opinion in the West in favor of gay rights. Attitudes have changed so fast in recent years that politicians can hardly keep up…
“As of this August, 585 million people in the world will live in regions where true gay marriage exists… roughly twice as many as in August 2012. And just 12 years before that, at the turn of the millennium, gay marriage didn’t exist anywhere in the world…
“Several countries have changed their laws just in the last half year. One example is France… Three American states, as well as New Zealand and Uruguay, have also joined the ranks in 2013. But it is Brazil’s over 190 million inhabitants who account for the largest segment of that number…
“The losers in this trend, in every country, are religious forces. In France, it was conservative Catholic circles… But the resistance in France was directed at far more than just gay marriage — it was also about fundamentally questioning the legitimacy of the country’s Socialist president…
“Baptist minister and former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee met the Supreme Court’s ruling with the words, ‘Jesus wept.’ But even… radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh conceded earlier this year that the gay marriage movement would no longer be stopped, saying, ‘This issue is lost.’”
Historic Pride Sabbath?
JTA wrote on July 1:
“At 5:00 P.M. this past Friday, a line of visibly excited people, many decked out in rainbow regalia, gathered outside Congregation Beit Simchat Torah Shabbat [CBST] services. Synagogues generally don’t garner lines for services, especially lines that wrap around the block. But then again, it’s not every Shabbat that you can celebrate Pride weekend with Edith Windsor and Roberta Kaplan.
“Windsor, of course, is the lesbian woman whose Supreme Court petition resulted in the historic overturn last week of the Defense of Marriage Act. Kaplan is her lawyer. Both women are CBST members. Over 600 people — including mayoral candidate Christine Quinn — came to the synagogue to celebrate the ruling; some stood outside listening in through speakers. The services were extended and included the recitation of the Hallel prayer normally reserved for holidays. Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum dedicated the night to Thea Speyer, Windsor’s deceased partner, and said that, while there may be reasons not to fully celebrate the court’s decisions last week, we should still celebrate this momentous occasion. And celebrate they did. With a full choir, the synagogue was full of joy, music, and hugs.
“Kaplan and Windsor spoke together at the end of the service, comparing their efforts in securing equal rights for same-sex marriages to the efforts of the biblical daughters of Zelophehad, who fought for their inheritance rights and won. The high point of the night came at an unexpected moment. As the services started, a diminutive, elegantly dressed woman walked in slowly. No one noticed her at first, but then one person recognized the smiling [woman] as Edith Windsor, and the cheering and clapping turned into a sustained standing ovation. Her entrance felt like the triumphant return of a battle-worn hero waving to the crowd.”
It might come as a surprise to some, but many American Jews have manifested an incredible amount of liberalism and anti-biblical standards (as this can also be observed for many American Catholics and Protestants). But this is of course not true for all. Notice the next insightful article.
“Rabbi: Only Messiah Can Straighten Out Gay Ruling”
JTA wrote on June 28:
“The National Council of Young Israel wasn’t quite as eloquent as the Orthodox Union, nor as elegiac as Agudath Israel of America, but the essential view is the same. ‘We oppose homosexual marriage and are disappointed that the U.S. Supreme Court rendered a decision that strikes down portions of the Defense of Marriage Act. Pursuant to the tenets of the Jewish faith and in accordance with Torah law, we believe that marriage should only be recognized as a union between a man and a woman, just as it always has been throughout history.’…
“Orthodox rabbi… Yoel Schoenfeld… the Young Israel of Kew Garden Hills in Queens [said] that this decision… has brought humanity so low that it can only herald the End of Days. Maybe, the rabbi says… the messiah will soon come and ‘straighten us out.’”
Indeed, He will have to…
Deadly Arizona Fire
Fox News reported on July 1:
“Eighteen members of an elite Hotshots firefighting crew and one other person who were killed Sunday in an Arizona wildfire tried to protect themselves by deploying tent-like structures before they were overtaken, a state forestry spokesman says. The lightning-sparked fire, which spread to more than 8,000 acres amid triple-digit temperatures, destroyed at least 50 structures and threatened 500 people in Yarnell, a town of about 700 residents that sits 85 miles northwest of Phoenix, the Yavapai County Emergency Management said Monday… It was zero percent contained as of Monday morning local time.
“The fire killed 18 members of the 20-member of the Prescott Granite Mountain Hotshots crew, which were known for battling the region’s worst fires. The average age of the men in the crew was 22-years-old… It was the most firefighters killed battling a wildfire in the U.S. in decades.”
This tragedy is truly heart-breaking, and our condolences go out to the families of these brave young men who gave their lives to protect others.
The Atlantic Wire wrote on July 1:
“It’s hard to process yesterday’s deaths of 19 firefighters in Arizona… But there is one worrisome trend: fires are getting bigger and often deadlier… The number of acres burned per fire reached a new high last year… One reason for last year’s devastation was last year’s massive drought. The Southwest has been consistently dry for several years, but last year — and into this year — the drought reached levels not seen since the Dust Bowl era.
“The wildfires seen so far in 2013 largely track with the drought… As New York City’s Firemen’s Memorial says, the lost firefighters are ‘soldiers in a war that never ends.’ Yesterday’s loss is a reminder that even with our modern advantages, the war is still a struggle.”
Discovery of Australia’s East Coast
AFP wrote on July 1:
“The centuries-old skull of a white man found in Australia is raising questions about whether Captain James Cook really was the first European to land on the country’s east coast. The skull was found in northern New South Wales in late 2011, and police initially prepared themselves for a gruesome murder investigation. But scientific testing revealed that not only was it much older than expected, but possibly belonged to a white man born around 1650, well before Englishman Cook reached the eastern seaboard on the Endeavour in 1770…
“Australian National University expert Stewart Fallon, who carbon-dated the skull… said the test used was quite accurate for dates after 1950 but for earlier samples it was more difficult, and the two samples yielded different dates…
“Historians were cautious. ‘Before we rewrite the history of European settlement we have to consider a number of issues, particularly the circumstances of the discovery,’ archaeologist Adam Ford told the Telegraph. ‘The fact the skull is in good condition and found alone could easily point to it coming from a private collection and skulls were very popular with collectors in the 19th century.’… Dutch explorers made the earliest European landings in Cape York in Australia’s far north and western Australia in the 1600s.”
We need to be cautious with reports like these, as especially the radio-carbon method is indeed very unreliable to determine the age of a fossil.
Belgium’s Future King
The Associated Press reported on July 3:
“Belgium’s King Albert announced Wednesday that he will abdicate in favor of Crown Prince Philippe on July 21… Frail at 79, King Albert will be handing over the throne to his son Philippe, who is 53… Belgium has had six kings since it came into being in 1830; Albert is the first to voluntarily abdicate from the throne… The nation celebrates independence day on July 21 and many have said that could be an ideal day to hand over the largely ceremonial post…
“After he succeeded his devoutly Roman Catholic brother Baudouin in 1993, Albert became embroiled in a major royal scandal when he had to acknowledge the existence of an out-of-wedlock daughter… and suffered a major crisis in his marriage with Queen Paola… ‘He is not alone. Many royals around the world have extramarital children,’ [one commentator said].”