More Powerful Earthquakes!

The Japan Times Online reported on April 12, 2012:

“Two powerful earthquakes struck off the western coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island on Wednesday, triggering tsunami alerts around the Indian Ocean.

“But the waves observed as of Wednesday night were minor, and there were no immediate reports of casualties or serious damage.

“Nevertheless, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said a tsunami watch was in effect around the entire Indian Ocean, including India, Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Somalia, Tanzania, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and South Africa.

“The center said that while it was not immediately known whether the strong temblor had generated massive waves, ‘earthquakes of this size have the potential to generate widespread destructive tsunami that can affect coastlines across the entire Indian Ocean basin’…

“Speaking to reporters soon after the first, 8.6-magnitude quake jolted Sumatra at 2:38 p.m., Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the country remained on alert but was unlikely to experience massive tsunami.

“The second temblor, with an estimated magnitude of 8.2, rocked Sumatra at 5:43 p.m., and Indonesia’s government immediately issued tsunami warnings for the five provinces along the island’s western coast.

“Reporters in Banda Aceh and the city of Lhokseumawe in North Aceh Regency said the earthquakes caused panic among locals, many of whom were seen fleeing their homes screaming in terror.”

Following the earthquake activity near Indonesia, a strong earthquake was experienced in Mexico and a lesser quake occurred off the Oregon coast–all within a twenty-four hour period:

USA Today wrote on April 11, 2012:

“A strong earthquake struck a sparsely populated area in the mountains of western Mexico on Wednesday, and caused tall buildings to sway more than 200 miles away in Mexico City. People evacuated some buildings in the capital, but the city government said helicopter flights detected no signs of damage.

“Authorities in Michoacan state, where the tremor was centered, also had no immediate reports of damage.

“The U.S. Geological Survey initially reported a preliminary reading of 7.0 magnitude for the quake, but later downgraded it to 6.5.

“A quake of that magnitude is capable of producing severe damage in an urban area, but this one occurred about 41 miles below the surface and a tremor’s power to cause damage is often dissipated when it is so deep.

“The USGS said the tremor was centered in Michoacan state 238 miles west-southwest of Mexico City and 88 miles northwest of the Pacific resort of Zihuantanejo.

“Manuel Ortiz Rosete, the Michoacan state civil protection director, said no damage had been reported in major cities and coastal communities of the state.

“Wednesday’s tremor was the latest in a series of strong shakes to hit Mexico City since a powerful 7.4-magnitude quake hit southern Mexico three weeks ago, but this was not an aftershock of that one , USGS geophysicist Dale Grant said.

“‘It’s a different earthquake. We are calling it an individual earthquake,’ Grant said. ‘There’s a potential for aftershocks.'”

Reuters published this additional report on April 11, 2012:

“A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck off the coast of Oregon on Wednesday and was followed a minute later by a smaller quake off the coast of central California, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

“The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the quakes were unlikely to trigger a tsunami. The Oregon quake was initially reported as a magnitude 6.2 and the California one as a 5.3. Both were later downgraded.”

CNN reported on April 12, 2012:

“A pair of strong earthquakes rocked Mexico’s Gulf of California only minutes apart early Thursday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.
 
“The quakes — magnitude 6.9 and 6.2 — were centered about 85 miles northeast of Guerrero Negro in the Mexican state of Baja California, or 325 miles south-southwest of Phoenix in the United States. Both epicenters were shallow, a little more than six miles underground.
 
“No tsunami warnings were issued and there were no immediate reports of damage, but people as far north as Tucson, Arizona, reported feeling them.”

While people all over the earth now can receive virtually instantaneous reports of major occurrences such as these, the fact remains that those who are experiencing these events are living in terror! In speaking of the time that would signal the end of this age of human government and His imminent return, Jesus said, “‘And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven'” (Luke 21:11). One must consider, are we just getting better reporting, or are events such as those prophesied to occur by Jesus actually taking place in our time?

A Worldview From the Muslim Brotherhood…

The Jerusalem Post wrote on April 10, 2012:

“The Muslim Brotherhood’s main presidential candidate seeks to fundamentally Islamicize Egyptian society if elected, according to newly uncovered footage of an extended address he gave supporters last year shortly after his release from prison.

“Egyptian activists have transcribed Khairat al-Shater’s 90- minute address into English, offering a rare glimpse into the worldview of the normally tight-lipped candidate who is a front-runner in upcoming elections to lead the Arab world’s most populous state.”

The article continues with these quotations from Khairat al-Shater:

“’Everywhere, the Brothers are working to restore Islam in its all-encompassing conception to the lives of people,’ Shater says in the address. ‘Thus the mission is clear: restoring Islam in its all-encompassing conception, subjugating people to God, instituting the religion of God, the Islamization of life, empowering of God’s religion, establishing the renaissance of the ummah [worldwide Muslim nation] on the basis of Islam… Every aspect of life is to be Islamicized.

“’We call upon God Almighty to make this transformation the beginning of a new renaissance for the ummah and the shaking off of the state of backwardness from which it has suffered for decades,” ‘Shater says in the clip.” ‘As Muslim Brothers, it is imperative that we, as well as the entirety of the ummah, God willing, take advantage of this revolution which took place in Egypt and continues in the countries surrounding us.’”

Does Syria Matter to the U.S.?

On April 10, 2012, CNN published the following:

“In between taking care of their families, working and trying to keep up with everyday life, many Americans have caught at least a couple of stories about Syria. Many probably know that clashes between government forces and protesters who want the country’s president to relinquish power have become increasingly bloody over the past several months. Much of that violence has been represented in online videos, ostensibly that Syrians have posted, suggesting the slaughter of children and families.
 
“It’s horrible. No one would argue anything else. But there is violence in many corners of the world. Why should what’s happening in Syria be especially important to Americans? It’s clear a lot of people think it’s not. Several readers reacted to Tuesday’s top story on CNN about Syria by commenting: ‘Zzzzzz not our problem’ and ‘Anyone surprised? *yawn*.'”

The reporter of this article adds several very key reasons why the upheaval in Syria should and does matter to the United States. However, this conflict may be just one revolt too many for the U.S. to take on! The seemingly endless involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan; the hard feelings with Pakistan; the unwelcomed extremist turn of the Arab Spring; and any number of other misadventures is causing Americans to–more and more–not want national involvement as peace keepers for the world!

Will Syria Boil Over?

Reported in the Washington Post, April 9, 2012:

“Conflict in Syria burst into neighboring Lebanon and Turkey on Monday, with one Lebanese cameraman killed and at least four people injured in fighting on the Syria-Turkey border.

“The attacks, on the eve of a deadline under a fading U.N.-backed deal for ­Syrian troops to withdraw from cities and cease hostilities amid a widespread uprising, risked bringing the Syrian conflict to what the Turkish government called a ‘new stage.’”

Will Europe and America be Attacked?

WND.COM posted the follow article on April 4, 2012:

“Terror cells have been placed on high alert to attack targets in the United States and Europe should Iran’s nuclear facilities be attacked, a source in the Revolutionary Guards says.

“The terror cells in the U.S. are being coordinated by Quds Force personnel operating out of the Iranian Interests Section in Washington, the source says. Because Iran and the U.S. have no diplomatic relations, Iran’s Interests Section operates under the umbrella of the Pakistani embassy.
 
“’These cells work out of safe houses where ammunition and explosives are stored, each with an operational commander who reports back to Iran,’ the source says.
 
“Analysts in Iran believe Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader, has provided two choices to the West: either accept a nuclear Iran or face all-out retaliation if its nuclear facilities are attacked.
 
“According to the source, who has served in the Guards’ intelligence apparatus, Iranian leaders have long prepared for an all-out confrontation with the West. The Guards’ commander, Hussein Babai, has openly stated that after the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon, Quds Force and Hezbollah terror cells began expanding in cities across Europe and America.”

The Bible Belt Takes a Stand…

Huffingtonpost.com reported on April 4, 2012:

‘A Tennessee bill meant to protect teachers who allow students to question and criticize ‘controversial’ subjects such as evolution and climate change became law on Tuesday after Gov. Bill Haslam (R) declined to act.
 
“The state legislature had sent the bill to Haslam earlier this month. He had until Tuesday to veto it, sign it or allow it to pass without his signature.
 
“Critics of the legislation have dubbed it the ‘Monkey Bill’ and charge that it is anti-science, backdoor approval of the teaching of religion in schools that reminds of the state’s history with the Scopes Trial.
 
“‘It would open the door to creationism, it would open the door to climate change denial, and to other sorts of pseudosciences being introduced into Tennessee classrooms,’ Josh Rosenau of the National Center for Science Education told The Huffington Post last month.

Assessing the remarkable controversy this bill has aroused speaks to just how upside-down and far-removed people really are when it comes to biblical knowledge. The sad truth is that this bill would not pass in the legislature of almost all of the other states–it certainly would be soundly rejected on the federal level!

Russia Takes a Stand…

Reported in Spiegel Online on April 6, 2012:

“For the first time, police in St. Petersburg, Russia, have made arrests on the strength of a new law banning the dissemination of information on homo-, bi- and transsexuality. Two men were arrested in the city center on Thursday after holding up a sign reading ‘Homosexuality Is Normal,’ according to the newswire Interfax.

“Russia’s second-largest city passed the controversial law on Feb. 29. The two men now face a possible maximum fine of 500,000 rubles (€12,800/$17,000). The maximum penalty is more than the average annual income in Russia.

“The law bans films, music videos, books and newspapers that contain homosexual content as well as the rainbow flag, which is a common symbol of gay pride. And the ban may soon no longer be limited to just St. Petersburg and other cities in Russia. At the end of March, Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party introduced a bill in the country’s parliament, the Duma, which would impose the ban at the national level.

“”We are trying to protect our society from homosexual propaganda,’ Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Russian radio three weeks ago.

“German Green Party parliamentarian Volker Beck — who, like German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, is openly gay — said the bill is a “hate law” and that Russia is on the ‘path to the Dark Ages.’ In the past, Beck has attended anti-homophobia rallies in Russia.

“Homophobia remains widespread in Russia, and it is an open secret in the country that many public figures have sought to hide their sexual preferences by entering into marriages of convenience. The Russian Orthodox Church views homosexuality as a sin, and it was only in 1999 that homosexuality was stricken from the list of mental illnesses in the country.

“Vitaly Milonov, the United Russia politician who is one of the initiators of the proposal for a nationwide ban in the Duma, accused the German band Rammstein of ‘gay propaganda’ earlier this spring. He also warned the American singer Madonna against transgressing the law at a planned summer concert. Madonna, for her part, has said she plans on defying it.”

In considering the preceding two articles, this profound indictment from God comes to mind: “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20).

Pesticides and Bee Collapse

Wired Science wrote on April 4, 2012

“A controversial new study of honeybee deaths has deepened a bitter dispute over whether the developed world’s most popular pesticides are causing an ecological catastrophe.

“Researchers led by biologist Chensheng Lu of Harvard University report a direct link between hive health and dietary exposure to imidacloprid, a so-called neonicotinoid pesticide linked to colony collapse disorder, the mysterious and massive die-off of bees across North America and Europe.

“The study isn’t without critics, who say doses used in the study may be unrealistically high. But the level of a realistic dose is also a matter of controversy, and even critics say the findings are troubling.

“’Our result replicates colony collapse disorder as a result of pesticide exposures,’ said Lu, who specializes in environmental exposures to pesticides. “We need to look at our agriculture policy and see if what we’re doing now is sustainable.”

“Developed in the 1990s as a relatively less-toxic alternative to pesticides that seriously harmed human health, neonicotinoids soon became the world’s fastest-growing pesticide class and an integral part of industrial agricultural strategy. In the United States alone, neonicotinoid-treated corn now covers a total area slightly smaller than the state of Montana.

“Like earlier pesticides, neonicotinoids disrupt insects’ central nervous systems. But unlike earlier pesticides, which affected insects during and immediately after spraying, neonicotinoids spread through the vascular tissues of plants. They’re toxic through entire growing seasons, including flowering times when bees consume their pollen.

“The first reports of colony collapse disorder came in the mid-2000s from commercial beekeepers, who depending on region have experienced colony losses ranging from 30 to 90 percent. Commercial pollination costs have since skyrocketed, and as wild bees are also afflicted, even naturally occurring pollination is threatened.

“Measuring bee declines, however, proved much easier than explaining them. Among a lineup of potential culprits including fungus, mites, viruses, bacteria and pesticides, studies failed to find an obvious, smoking-gun cause — but, piece by piece, evidence against neonicotinoids has steadily accumulated…

“Some European countries, including France, Germany and Italy, have even banned neonicotinoids, though pesticide companies vehemently defend their ecological safety and say concerns are based on inconclusive and premature science.”

Continuing from the Wired Science article:

“Among Bayer’s (the chemical and pharmaceutical giant that manufactures imidacloprid) criticisms is that imidacloprid, a first-generation neonicotinoid, is little-used in the United States. It’s largely been replaced by newer formulations — but these, said pesticide expert Charles Benbrook of The Organic Center, an organic food research consultancy, are chemically similar to imidacloprid.’

“’Virtually all our corn seed has been treated with a very similar neonicotinoid,” said Benbrook. If the study had been conducted with clothianidin, another controversial neonicotinoid, ‘they’d almost certainly have found the same thing.’”

Our honey bees may just be the so-called “canary” in the mine shaft–for us! With mounting strange sicknesses and allergies, many people are beginning to question what they are eating and how their food is being prepared and brought to market.

A Balanced U.S. Budget–Maybe Never Again!

CNN.COM reported on March 29, 2012:

“The House has passed the Republican budget plan submitted by Rep. Paul Ryan, but some budget experts believe that [the] federal government is so far in the red that it may not balance the budget again in our lifetime.

“‘We may never, as a country, have a balanced budget again,’ said Marc Goldwein, policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. ‘And you know what? We don’t have to.’

“Goldwein is a bit of a budget wunderkind who was also a staffer for the Bowles-Simpson Commission, established by President Obama to address the nation’s fiscal problems, and for the congressional super committee. He and the nonpartisan think tank where he works used to push vehemently for a balanced budget.’

“But no longer. Now the bumper sticker hanging in his cubicle reads, “Stabilize the Debt”…

“The Ryan budget, despite its cuts and aggressive fiscal moves, does not balance the budget for at least 23 years, according to the House Budget Committee and the Congressional Budget Office.

“‘This just shows you how deep of a hole our country is in,’ Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican and chairman of the Budget Committee, said when asked about the 2035 budget balance date.”

This stunning admission reflects on a society that is “throwing in the towel” on all of the difficult issues–such as abortion, drug abuse, illegal immigration and now, even the future stability of the nation’s economy.

A Difficult Union

From Reuter’s, April 2, 2012:

“As the euro zone debt crisis forces the currency area to integrate more closely to survive, those outside the bloc but in the European Union are worried that they will be left as junior partners without a say.

“The euro zone’s response to its public debt crisis has created layers of new agreements and mechanisms that affect the EU’s 10 non-euro countries, who are shut out when deals are done and only learn later of the decisions of the 17.

“Strategies to bring all EU countries together on overarching economic issues have had unintended consequences by creating divisions because not everyone can agree, threatening efforts to implement policies to revive the region’s depressed economies…

“Many EU officials concede that things are getting unwieldy, even for experts who struggle to decipher the structures intended to unify the EU’s 500 million citizens.

“‘We are building a fiscal union in a complicated way,’ Germany’s Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said of the euro zone at a gathering of students in Copenhagen.”

The article concludes:

“But if an overarching integration strategy emerges, it must also go beyond monetary and economic affairs.

“‘The concurrent circles in the EU will always differ according to the subject,’ said Karel Lannoo of the Brussels-based Centre for European Policy Studies. ‘Today economic policy is most important, but tomorrow it may be defense.'”

The European Union IS uniting in spite of its difficulties! Our free booklet, “Europe In Prophecy–The Unfolding of End-Time Events“, gives real understanding about what is forming on the European continent and how that emerging super-power will change the world as we know it!

French Election Targets Immigrants

The Globe and Mail published on March 30, 2012:

“’There is an obsession with immigrants in this election,’ said Ms. Ghali, one of only three Arab members of France’s senate, ‘but there’s no talk, even within my own party, of doing anything to help them. All we have is an increase in tension directed at Muslims.’
 
“That’s because the tightly-fought presidential election, with the first round set for April 22, was upended last week when one of France’s young Arabs, Mohammed Merah of Toulouse, murdered seven people, including three Jewish children, in a calculated series of terror acts. In the week since Mr. Merah was killed in a standoff with police, President Nicolas Sarkozy made speeches across the country calling for restrictions on legal immigration, laws to make it illegal to browse Islamist websites or visit training camps, and for tougher policing and more deportations. He famously said, on the day of Mr. Merah’s first killing, that there were ‘too many foreigners’ in France…

“But on the campaign trail, he is also adopting some of the language of Marine Le Pen, the head of the ultra-right-wing National Front, a party with a history of Holocaust denial and an absolute opposition to immigration. Ms. Le Pen seized on the Merah killings, asking in a speech this week, ‘How many Mohammed Merahs are arriving on boats and planes each day, filling France with immigrants? How many Mohammed Merahs are among the children of our immigrants?'”
 
The bottom line is that the most recent terrorist attack inside of France has fueled a resurgence for Mr. Sarkozy in his attempt for re-election–all at the cost of inflaming the extreme left and far right contingents seeking to govern the nation.

The Next President of Egypt?

CNN.COM reported the following on April 2, 2012:

“The political arm of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood has announced plans to run one of its leaders in the country’s presidential elections in May, reversing an earlier pledge to stay out of the race.

“The once-banned Islamist movement will be represented by Khairat al-Shater, a longtime financial backer, the Brotherhood announced over the weekend. Al-Shater has resigned from his post as deputy chairman to join the already crowded field of presidential candidates, the group said.

“The jail terms he served under ex-Egyptian strongman Hosni Mubarak had been an obstacle that would have kept him off the ballot. But the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, which took power after the 2011 uprising that toppled Mubarak, pardoned him Sunday, his lawyer, Abdel Moneim Abdel Maqsood, told CNN.

“The Muslim Brotherhood has pledged repeatedly that it would not field a presidential candidate. But candidates from its political arm, the Freedom and Justice party, won the largest share of seats in Egypt’s parliamentary elections in December. And Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie said Saturday the new Egypt ‘is under a serious threat’ because its current, military-led government ‘has failed to represent the will of the people.'”

As we have learned in the United States, elections do have consequences, and so will, it appears, the Arab Spring.

Nuclear Israel–A Threat…

Haaretz.com reported on April 5, 2012:

“German Nobel literature laureate Guenter Grass published a poem Wednesday in which he said that Israel’s nuclear program is a threat to world peace.

“In his poem, the 85-year-old author claims that Israel’s nuclear reactor – and not Iran’s – presents a threat to world peace. Grass’ poem calls for Germany to cease supplying Israel with submarines, and warns against an Israeli strike on Iran.

“The poem, entitled ‘What must be said,’ will be published on Wednesday in the Deutsche Zeitung and La Republica. In the poem, Grass writes that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has a ‘big mouth,’ and that the intentions of the Iranian nuclear program are not proven.

“The poem drew sharp criticism in Germany, Israel and among Jewish organizations. The Israeli embassy in Germany said that the poem was in line with the ‘tradition of blood libel ahead of Passover.'”

Nationalpost.com adds on April 4, 2012:

“German Nobel literature laureate Gunter Grass touched off a firestorm of protest Wednesday with a poem accusing Israel of plotting Iran’s annihilation and threatening world peace…

“Mr. Grass, author of the renowned anti-war novel The Tin Drum, shocked his admirers in 2006 when he admitted, six decades after World War II, that he had been a member of the notorious Waffen SS — a revelation that severely undermined his until then substantial moral authority in Germany.
 
“The country’s most influential media commentators were unanimous in their criticism. The website of news weekly Der Spiegel wrote, ‘Never before in the history of the republic has a prominent intellectual waged a battle against Israel in such a cliche-ed way.’”

Israel Teams With Azerbaijan

The Algemeiner reported on April 5, 2012:

“Much has been made of Mark Perry’s recent piece in Foreign Policy Magazine, which claims that Israel has been given access to at least one Azerbaijan airfield for use during a military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities.  Azerbaijan borders Iran to the north, which would allow Israeli planes to refuel on the ground instead of in the air.
 
“Israeli-Azeri relations have developed rapidly s’nce Azerbaijan’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. This is mainly due to both countries recognizing “Iran as a major, even existential security threat’. According to Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, his country’s relationship with Israel is ‘nine-tenths … below the surface”…

“According to four anonymous U.S. senior diplomats and military intelligence officers, Israel now has access to Azeri airfields. The Sitalcay airstrip is considered to be suitable for Israeli aircraft due to its distance from Azerbaijan’s capital and its existing facilities. Israel may also have “electronic listening stations” along the border with Iran.
 
“Although Azerbaijan’s defense minister refused to allow any attack to be launched on Iran from Azerbaijan, he ‘did not explicitly bar Israeli bombers from landing in the country after a strike’ or ‘…rule out the basing of Israeli search-and-rescue units in the country.’”

North Korea Continues to Taunt

BBC.CO.UK reported on March 30, 2012:

“Japan says it will shoot down a North Korean rocket if necessary, as new satellite images appeared to show preparations for the launch next month.

“Defence Minister Naoki Tanaka issued the order to intercept the rocket if it threatened Japan’s territory.

“Pyongyang says it will launch a satellite on a rocket between 12-16 April.

“Satellite images taken on Wednesday indicate that work at the launch site is under way, says a US university.

“Mr Tanaka had issued an earlier order on Tuesday to the country’s defence forces to prepare ‘destruction measures against ballistic missiles’.

“On Friday, he told reporters in Tokyo that he had received cabinet approval to shoot down the rocket if necessary.

“The country began preparing missile defence systems last week.”

Also, from The Telegraph, April 3, 2012:

“Reconnaissance satellites have identified the huge missile at a government research and development facility in Pyongyang, South Korean government sources told the Chosun Ilbo newspaper.
 
“Analysts estimate the weapon to be around 130 feet long and, equipped with a more powerful booster unit, capable of delivering a warhead more than 6,200 miles.
 
“Unveiling the missile will raise new fears in neighbouring countries, already alarmed by Pyongyang’s insistence that it will go ahead with the launch in mid-April of a rocket to put a satellite into orbit…
 
“Tokyo is taking the threat posed by the planned launch of the North Korean rocket, announced for between April 12 and 16, seriously and is sending 450 troops to the southern island of Ishigaki to man Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missiles.
 
“The Japanese government has stated that it will shoot down the rocket if it threatens Japanese territory.
 
“Tokyo is also deploying state-of-the-art Aegis warships in the East China Sea to monitor the launch. The vessels will be protected by F-15 fighters.”

A Catholic Revival in Cuba

Caribbean 360 wrote on April 3, 2012:

“Good Friday, April 6, will be celebrated as a public holiday in Cuba for the first time since the early days of the 1959 Cuban Revolution when Fidel Castro abolished religious holidays in that country.

“This follows President Raul Castro’s granting of a request by Pope Benedict XVI during the pontiff’s three-day visit to Cuba last week.

“The government said in a communiqué that the decision was made in view of the success of Benedict’s ‘transcendental visit’, adding that the Council of Ministers, Cuba’s supreme governing body, will later determine whether to make Good Friday a permanent holiday.

“Havana’s Cardinal Jaime Ortega referred to Benedict’s visit as a ‘Springtime of faith’.  It came 14 years after Pope John Paul II’s groundbreaking trip in 1998, which many Cubans say was the beginning of the thaw in church-state relations.  During this visit, then President Fidel Castro honoured John Paul’s request to restore Christmas as a public holiday.

“While Fidel Castro received the pope warmly in 1998, his brother and current president Raul Castro was even more attentive on this latest papal visit, attending the two Masses celebrated by Benedict, seated in the front row.

“’The fact that the Cuban authorities quickly welcomed the Holy Father’s request to President Raul Castro, declaring Good Friday a non-work day, is certainly a very positive sign,’ said Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi in a statement.

“’The Holy See hopes that this will encourage participation in the religious celebrations and joyous Easter festivities, and that following the visit of the Holy Father will continue to bring the desired fruits for the good of the church and all Cubans,’ he added.”

On April 4, 2012, the Catholic News Service posted these summary comments given by Pope Benedict XVI regarding his visit to both Mexico and Cuba:

“‘I encouraged the Mexican people to let their deep Christian roots inspire their efforts to overcome violence and to work for a better future,’ he said.

“And in Cuba, ‘I prayed for a rebirth of faith, openness to God’s love and respect for the truth about our human dignity and freedom revealed in Christ,’ he said.”

Admittedly, this current pope has not seen the popularity of his predecessor, John Paul II; however, Benedict’s reception in Mexico and his impact on Cuban society have been significant. With a strong Catholic revival of former Communist bloc nations, Catholicism is gaining a renewed influence in both the religious and political realms.

Germany–The Economic Model

Spiegel Online reported on March 21, 2012:

“It wasn’t so long ago that many viewed Germany’s economic model as outdated and the country as the ‘sick man of Europe.’ These days, however, even the Americans have come to praise parts of it, though they still doubt whether they would be able — or willing — to adopt it wholesale…

“…US newsweekly Time writes that the wide range of German economic and social reforms have been ‘farsighted’ and that German firms, together with those reforms, have forged ‘the most competitive industrial sector of any advanced economy.’ The New York Times, meanwhile, says that: ‘The German economy has been one of the wonders of the world over the last couple of years.’

The article continues:

“…As America groans under the aftereffects of the financial crisis and recession, Germany’s economy continues to steam ahead, even becoming an object of study. ‘Americans, including policymakers, are increasingly taking an interest in Germany’s reforms and what it managed to accomplish in the last 10 years,’ says Michael Spence, an American economist and the 2001 winner of the Nobel Prize in economics.

“‘We need to be more like Germany’ concurs GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt. And former President Clinton has praised Germany for what he described as a correct response to the crisis. More than anything, Germany is considered a role model for its successes as an exporting nation. While Germany enjoys a foreign trade surplus of €120 billion ($158 billion), America has a trade deficit of €423 billion.”

The contrast between Germany, the new economic leader, and the United States, the nation in financial crisis, is a glaring testimony to problems that have become too large to ignore; however, it appears that the U.S. will continue to do just that very thing!

German Parliament Gains Decision Role

Spiegel Online wrote on March 27, 2012:

“Chancellor Angela Merkel’s center-right coalition reached a compromise with opposition parties on Tuesday to give the Bundestag lower house of parliament a greater say in euro bailout decisions, in line with a requirement by the country’s highest court for stronger parliamentary involvement.

“According to legislation drafted by the ruling conservative Christian Democrats and Free Democrats, along with the opposition Social Democrats and Greens, the whole parliament will decide on bailouts, even in urgent cases, contrary to earlier plans for a small parliamentary panel to give swift approval.

“Only when secret steps need to be taken, such as the purchase of government bonds in the secondary market to aid troubled states, will approval be left to a small panel representing parliament. That will ensure the confidentiality required for the operation to have the desired impact on financial markets.”

The impressive aspect of this report is that opposition parties were able to come together and to forge a decisive way of handling their role in bailing out the weaker nations of the EU. This stands in stark contrast to the U.S. government’s constant quarreling and unending disagreements!

Disagreement Deepens Over EU Carbon Tax

AFP, on March 23, 2012, reported:

“India has barred its airlines from complying with the European Union carbon tax scheme, joining China in resistance to plans that have caused a backlash among the EU’s trade partners.
 
“The European Union imposed a carbon levy on air travel with effect from January 1, but no airline will face a bill until 2013 after this year’s carbon emissions have been tallied.
 
“Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh told parliament on Thursday that ‘the imposition of carbon tax does not arise’ because Indian airlines would simply refuse to hand over their emissions data.
 
“‘Though the European Union has directed Indian carriers to submit emission details of their aircraft by March 31, 2012, no Indian carrier is submitting them in view of the position of the government,’ he said.
 
“India’s resolution to boycott the scheme follows China’s decision last month to prevent its airlines from complying with the EU directive.
 
“The two Asian giants have attacked the EU scheme, calling it a unilateral trade levy disguised as an attempt to fight climate change.
 
“According to a so-called Moscow declaration adopted last month by countries opposed to the tax, governments have decided on a list of retaliatory measures to be taken if necessary, including banning their airlines from participating.
 
“It also allows governments to take tough retaliatory measures against EU carriers and aviation companies and impose their own taxes on EU airlines.”

The overview gained from this article points to tremendous influence being exerted from the European Union. In matters small and large, it appears that Europe’s growing power positions it to be the rule-maker–and not everyone is happily submitting!

Tensions Rise Over Defense Shield

The Mainichi Daily News filed the following report for March 30, 2012:

“A U.S. led NATO missile defense plan that Washington says is aimed at deflecting potential Iranian threats will break existing nuclear parity with Russia and prompt it to retaliate, President Dmitry Medvedev warned Friday.
 
“Moscow rejects Washington’s claim the plan is solely to deal with any Iranian threat and has voiced fears it will eventually become powerful enough to undermine Russia’s nuclear deterrent…

“‘I will say honestly that no matter how warm relations between me and my colleagues are, no matter how advanced relations between Russia and NATO member states are, we will have to take that into account and, under certain circumstances, respond,’ Medvedev said.
 
“Earlier this week, he told the top Russian military brass that the armed forces must prepare to counter U.S. missile defense plans even as talks between Moscow and Washington are continuing.
 
“‘By 2017-2018, we must be fully prepared, fully armed,’ Medvedev said, referring to his earlier threat to aim missiles at the U.S.-led NATO missile shield if no agreement is reached…

“Dmitry Rogozin, a deputy prime minister in charge of the military industries, was more hawkish in his remarks at the conference, saying the NATO shield has an ‘openly anti-Russian vector.’
 
“‘The system that is being developed is intended to intercept heavy intercontinental missiles blasting off from the Russian territory,’ Rogozin said.
 
“‘Missile defense isn’t the best way to ensure security,” he added. “Those who are smart know that the defensive arms race is no better than the offensive arms race. Strengthening of the shield entails strengthening of the sword.'”

In spite of ongoing dialogue, all parties continue to arm themselves and to prepare for the worst. The potential for global devastation is increasing, yet few recognize the emerging interests of a powerful and united Europe and the role destined to be played out by this growing super-power. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Europe In Prophecy–The Unfolding of End-Time Events.”

No Defense Against Hackers

From an article in The Wall Street Journal, March 28, 2012, the title sums up the status of this nation’s computer networks: “U.S. Outgunned in Hacker War”–here are some further comments reported in this article:

“The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s top cyber cop offered a grim appraisal of the nation’s efforts to keep computer hackers from plundering corporate data networks: ‘We’re not winning,’ he said.

“Shawn Henry, who is preparing to leave the FBI after more than two decades with the bureau, said in an interview that the current public and private approach to fending off hackers is ‘unsustainable.’ ‘Computer criminals are simply too talented and defensive measures too weak to stop them,’ he said.

“His comments weren’t directed at specific legislation but came as Congress considers two competing measures designed to buttress the networks for critical U.S. infrastructure, such as electrical-power plants and nuclear reactors. Though few cybersecurity experts disagree on the need for security improvements, business advocates have argued that the new regulations called for in one of the bills aren’t likely to better protect computer networks…

“‘I don’t see how we ever come out of this without changes in technology or changes in behavior, because with the status quo, it’s an unsustainable model. Unsustainable in that you never get ahead, never become secure, never have a reasonable expectation of privacy or security,’ Mr. Henry said.

“James A. Lewis, a senior fellow on cybersecurity at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that as gloomy as Mr. Henry’s assessment may sound, ‘I am actually a little bit gloomier. I think we’ve lost the opening battle [with hackers].’ Mr. Lewis said he didn’t believe there was a single secure, unclassified computer network in the U.S.”

Gun Sales Surge

The Washington Free Beacon reported on March 22, 2012:

“Despite calls for stricter guns laws in response to the shooting of Trayvon Martin, firearm stocks are soaring as gun companies struggle to keep up with high demand.
 
“Shares of Sturm Ruger & Co. (RGR) were up as high as 14 percent Thursday afternoon after CEO Michael Fifer announced the company was temporarily suspending its acceptance of new orders in an effort to meet a dramatic surge in demand for its products.
 
“’Despite the company’s continuing successful efforts to increase production rates, the incoming order rate exceeds our capacity to rapidly fulfill these orders,’ Fifer said in the statement late Wednesday.
 
“Ruger received more than a million order requests in the first quarter of 2012.
 
“Shares of rival firearm maker Smith & Wesson (SWHC) were similarly up about 13 percent Thursday — a sign, gun proponents say, that Americans are not swayed by the recent protests.”

More guns in the U.S. have not led to more safety for its citizens. While our society grows more and more violent, the real answer to peace and personal safety remains illusive. Jesus Christ warned that “‘…all who take the sword will perish by the sword'” (Matthew 26:52). Our free booklet, “Should You Fight In War,” addresses the real solution for personal safety and the promise of a true and lasting peace among all people.

Pro-abortion Training…

CNN.com posted the following report on March 21, 2012:

“A Washington advocacy group training in-the-trenches religious leaders to speak out on hot-button issues like abortion is nothing new.
 
“But a liberal beltway group training left-leaning clergy to speak out for abortion rights is.

“’Religion does support a woman’s personal decision-making about whether she is ready to become a parent,’ said Sally Steenland, director of the Faith Initiative at the Center for American Progress, a progressive group that launched its Faith and Reproductive Justice Leadership Institute on Tuesday.
 
“’We felt that the harsh anti-choice rhetoric dominating the public debate stigmatized women making these important decisions and claimed a monopoly on God, morality, and family values,’ Steenland said in an e-mail message.
 
“The Faith and Reproductive Justice Leadership Institute ‘will provide new and seasoned leaders with the resources they need to be effective faith advocates for women’s reproductive health,’ according to a Center for American Progress press release.”

So now, ungodly murder is called “progressive” Christianity!

U.S. Troops–Demons!

Newsmax wrote on March 29, 2012:

“Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai has called Americans in his country ‘demons’ and says the burning of Qurans by U.S. troops will ‘never be forgiven.’

“Karzai met on Friday with relatives of the 16 Afghan men, women and children killed allegedly by an American soldier and said the massacre ‘was not the first incident, indeed it was the 100th, the 200th and 500th incident,’ The New York Times reports.

“He also said: ‘Let’s pray for God to rescue us from these two demons. There are two demons in our country now,’ clearly referring to the United States and the Taliban, according to the Times.

“And he referred to the accidental burning of Qurans on Feb. 20 as ‘Satanic acts that will never be forgiven by apologies.'”

Preparing For the Apocalypse

The Independent wrote on March 25, 2012:

“A mountain looming over a French commune with a population of just 200 is being touted as a modern Noah’s Ark when doomsday arrives – supposedly less than nine months from now.

“A rapidly increasing stream of New Age believers – or esoterics, as locals call them – have descended in their camper van-loads on the usually picturesque and tranquil Pyrenean village of Bugarach. They believe that when apocalypse strikes on 21 December this year, the aliens waiting in their spacecraft inside Pic de Bugarach will save all the humans near by and beam them off to the next age.

“As the cataclysmic date – which, according to eschatological beliefs and predicted astrological alignments, concludes a 5,125-year cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar – nears, the goings-on around the peak have become more bizarre and ritualistic.

“For decades, there has been a belief that Pic de Bugarach, which, at 1,230 metres, is the highest in the Corbières mountain range, possesses an eery power. Often called the ‘upside-down mountain’ – geologists think that it exploded after its formation and the top landed the wrong way up – it is thought to have inspired Jules Verne’s Journey to the Centre of the Earth and Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Since the 1960s, it has attracted New Agers, who insist that it emits special magnetic waves.

These kinds of reports–like so many other false predictions—only mask the truth of what is about to happen when God intervenes in world affairs and sends His Son, Jesus Christ, back to this earth to establish the Kingdom of God. Our booklets, “The Gospel of the Kingdom of God,” and “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord,” address the true biblical facts of the end of this age and the magnificent promises God has given for mankind’s future.

A Warning To Drug Users!

The Associated Press reported on March 22, 2012:

“Whitney Houston was a chronic cocaine user who had the drug in her system when she drowned in a hotel bathtub, coroner’s officials said Thursday after releasing autopsy findings that also noted heart disease contributed to her death…

“She influenced a generation of younger singers, from Christina Aguilera to Mariah Carey, but Houston’s drug use derailed her career and took a heavy toll on her once pristine voice.

“But by the end of her career, she was a stunning cautionary tale of the toll of drug use. Her album sales plummeted and the hits stopped coming. Her once serene image was shattered by a wild demeanor and bizarre public appearances. She confessed to abusing cocaine, marijuana and pills and was eventually unable to hit the high notes as she had during her prime.”

This tragic death is sad testimony to the ever-increasing use of drugs throughout society. Now, states in the U.S. are relaxing the laws relating to use of drugs. Drug abuse is simply one more “war” that is being lost!

Papal Visit to Mexico and Cuba

CNN reported on Mach 29, 2012:

“In a farewell speech just before boarding the plane, he criticized the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, saying ‘restrictive economic measures, imposed from outside the country, unfairly burden its people.’

“Benedict, whose office has routinely cast the trip in the context of a spiritual pilgrimage, at times addressed political issues — often subtly, and on occasion more overtly.

“At the start of his visit, aboard a flight from Rome, he denounced violence caused by the drug war in Mexico and blasted Cuba’s Marxist political system by saying it ‘no longer corresponds to reality.’

“Later, he prayed for ‘those deprived of freedom’ while in Cuba’s southeastern city of Santiago de Cuba. And he made several references to freedom in his final sermon in Havana, addressing a nation that human rights groups have routinely denounced for its abuses.”

Benedict’s influence is clearly substantial in these predominately Catholic regions. There was abundant press coverage throughout his most recent trip, and the papal office is looked upon as being decisive among Catholics. Biblical prophecy indicates that a great world religion will appear in the not-too-distant future–one led by a religious authority who will arise with great deceptive power. This is discussed in detail in our free booklet: “Is That In the Bible? The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation.”

The USA—a Land of Limited Possibility

Deutsche Welle wrote on March 12:

“The US is a major player in world politics… But is the superpower still fully capable of acting? In view of the global financial crisis, German experts have their doubts. If the United States were a patient lying in a hospital, worried doctors would knit their brows: the frailty of the inner organs could become chronic and permanently confine the patient to bed.  The US administration in Washington faces a similar scenario, according to Josef Braml of the think tank German Council on Foreign Relations… The ongoing financial, economic and energy crises are making life difficult for the superpower, he said.

“The US has become a land of limited possibilities, as the country continues to suffer from a huge mountain of debt, a weak dollar and a growing social divide. ‘The more the tanker USA leans to its side, the more limited the government’s ability to manoeuver, domestically and internationally,’ political scientist Braml wrote in his most recent book, ‘The American Patient’. His conclusion: ‘The political powers are blocked because there’s nothing left to distribute’…

“A ‘threatened collapse of the US’ Braml describes is anything but good news for the rest of the world. A nation fighting for its economic survival will not necessarily be considerate of others, the author said, predicting fierce protectionism, for example in trade policies. Braml said the US would ‘make the dollar cheap’ in order to garner a competitive edge. ‘Not much longer, and the dollar will no longer be a key currency,’ he said… ‘We Europeans will have to make sure that we can maintain security in our own neighborhood,’ Josef Braml said. ‘America won’t support us as much anymore…’”

The description of America being a sick patient is very interesting in light of Isaiah 1:5-6.

Barack Obama’s Birth Records a Forgery?

On March 7, 2012, the English Pravda published the following article, which was linked on March 11, 2012, by the Drudge Report on March 11, 2012. The author, Dianna Cotter, was described as a “Senior at American Military University, a 4.0 Student, the recipient of the Outstanding Student Essay of 2009, a member of Delta Epsilon Tau and Epsilon Pi Phi Academic Fraternities and [having been placed] on the Dean’s and President’s Lists for academic achievement. She has published at Examiner.com, in American Thinker, Accuracy in Media, and Family Security Matters.”

The article stated the following:

“A singularly remarkable event has taken place in the United States of America. This event occurred in Arizona on March 1st and was an earth shattering revelation. A long awaited press conference was given by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio… Arpaio asserts that his investigators discovered, during a 6 month long investigation which is ongoing, not only was the ‘Long Form’ likely a digitally created forgery, but the President’s Selective Service Card (Draft Card), allegedly filed in 1980, was also a forgery. These documents are what Barack Hussein Obama relies upon to prove his constitutional eligibility to the office of President of the United States…

“The silence from the main stream media in the US is deafening… the American Press is aggressively protecting the presumed President of the United States, pushing the fraud upon both America and the world, supporting a man who may well have usurped the office… One can easily imagine the reaction of the press had this scenario been about George W. Bush in 2004…

“Years before the 2008 election, Barack Obama was involved in [unsuccessful] efforts to amend the US Constitution to allow those who were born to parents who were not citizens to become President along with those born overseas…

“His father, Barack Obama Sr. was a student from the British Commonwealth of Kenya, a British Citizen who never sought to become a US Citizen, and indeed was eventually forced to leave the country. Mr. Obama has only one parent who was an American Citizen. Obama clearly does not meet the requirements of Natural Born Citizen as defined by the Supreme Court in Minor v. Happersett.

“The state of Hawaii’s role in this cannot be neglected for several reasons… It was well known at the time, that any person could register the birth of a child in the state on a late form with only the signature of a witness… Federal laws with regard to Hawaii had been written to allow a baby receiving state documents to be declared a Citizen of the United States without being subject to the Jurisdiction of the United States… A child born in Hawaii, regardless of whether or not they were born in the state and subject to the Jurisdiction of the United States, automatically gained US Citizenship. This is the only state in the United States where this condition existed. This is why Hawaii is so vitally important to Obama, and could explain why it is important enough to forge birth documents for. It is why Obama’s birth is being alleged to have occurred there instead of somewhere like Washington State or elsewhere…

“Obama, by being born in Hawaii, got automatic citizenship status in the United States without regard for whether the United States had jurisdiction over his citizenship… And it only took a witness signature to gain it…”

CBS News added: “Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said President Barack Obama’s birth certificate is not authentic. Arpaio revealed the findings of an investigation into the president’s birth certificate at a 1 hour and 20 minute news conference Thursday, calling the certificate ‘suspect.’ Arpaio’s team of investigators said they found that the long-form birth certificate was created electronically and never existed in paper form.”

On March 9, WorldNetDaily published an article by Chelsea Schilling who joined the Army at age 17 and  received “the rare designation of expert marksman three times. In addition to WND, Schilling has worked as a news producer at USA Radio Network and as a news reporter for the Sacramento Union.”

The article stated:

“It’s a twist of irony: The Russian news website Pravda has published an accusation that the American media is ‘tame,’ afraid to publish news and is ‘deliberately hiding the evidence published on the internet about [President Obama’s] defrauding of the American public and the deliberate evisceration of the Constitution of the United States.’ In a March 7 Pravda column, ‘Arizona sheriff finds Obama presidential qualifications forged,’ Dianna Cotter, a senior at American Military University, blasts America’s mainstream media for their virtual silence about Maricopa County, Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s six-month investigation into the controversy surrounding Obama’s birth certificate and his constitutional eligibility for office…

“Cotter lays out detailed evidence of a widespread cover-up and concludes: The American Press is deliberately hiding the evidence published on the internet about this defrauding of the American public and the deliberate evisceration of the Constitution of the United States. It is hiding Barack Obama’s Fraud as it has been revealed by a Sheriff in Arizona. The silence of the American press would be unbelievable if it weren’t so blatantly obvious. It is nearly as egregious as the audacity of Obama’s fraud itself.”

Donald Trump raised the issue for a while, but after some pompous words, he decided to “chicken out.” None of the Republican presidential candidates is raising the issue. No prominent newscaster on CNN, NBC, MSNBC or Fox News wants to go anywhere near the issue. Democrats ignore it, which is to be expected. So do most Independents. The main stream press glosses over it. But the nagging issue of President Obama’s eligibility as President of the United States will not go away.

However, it is feared that due to intentional delay, it won’t be decided, if at all, until the USA has a new President. If it should be determined, after the fact, that America’s current President was in fact ineligible to be President, the reputation of the entire American political system (from a perceived deliberate cover-up through the U.S. government and a timid and fearful opposition, as well as a perceived incompetent House and Senate) as well as the perceived “bribed” ineffective and useless American main-stream media (whether left, middle or right) will be irreparably destroyed in the eyes of the world. All the presently existing conspiracy theories about all kinds of issues (September 11; moon-landing; etc. etc.) will become insignificant and pale by comparison.

The Tragedy of War

The Washington Times wrote on March 12, 2012:

“Reports of a lone solider allegedly massacring 16 Afghan civilians was a body blow to the image of U.S. troops fighting the difficult, decade-long war there. Sunday’s deadly rampage southwest of Kandahar came shortly after days of rioting following revelations that NATO forces had improperly disposed of religious writings, including Korans. It’s been a difficult few weeks in the battle for Afghan hearts and minds.

“Critics of the war have rushed to declare that this dreadful action by a lone, reportedly troubled soldier delegitimizes the entire effort. The troubling event, however, says more about the nature of war than the particulars of American policy or the need to meet our objectives in Afghanistan…

“Promoting the war has been a hard sell lately. An ABC News/Washington Post poll conducted last week shows that by 2-1 Americans think the war in Afghanistan isn’t worth fighting, and 54 percent think America should withdraw its military forces even if the Afghan army isn’t adequately trained. The same poll showed the public evenly split on President Obama’s conduct of the war; the approval bump he received in May from the death of Osama bin Laden has vanished.

“The current drama is an unfortunate propaganda victory for the Taliban. Insurgents denounced the ‘sick-minded American savages’ and called for retribution. Of course, Taliban umbrage must be kept in context. Killing noncombatants is a matter of policy for them…

“More will be revealed about the killings and why they took place, but the damage to trust and confidence has been done… Instead, this senseless incident is a reminder of the terrible costs of even the most just war – to the innocent people who can be its victims, to the men sent to fight it, and to the people on the home front who seem only to hear about it when the news is too dreadful to bear…”

When will man learn that his wars never bring lasting positive results? Christ told His followers, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword” (Matthew 26:52). Since America is calling itself a “Christian nation” (notwithstanding President Obama’s claim that it is not), why doesn’t it follow then one of the most basic and incontrovertible tenets of Christianity?

Germany Woos Afghanistan in Light of US Debacle

ABC News reported on March 12, 2012:

“President Obama said Monday that the shooting of 16 Afghan villagers, apparently by a U.S. soldier, underscores the need to withdraw U.S. combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.”

However, this is not the way Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel sees it.

The Local wrote on March 12, 2012:

“The point has not yet been reached where Germany can say ‘we can pull out today,’ Merkel said as she visited troops stationed in Mazar-i-Sharif in the north of Afghanistan… Tensions were running high in Afghanistan as Merkel arrived following the rampage by the US soldier who killed 16 villagers including women and children in their homes in the Taliban heartland of Kandahar on Sunday. In a telephone call to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Merkel vowed that everything would be done to investigate what she called ‘the dreadful act of the US soldier’. She expressed her personal condolences and those of the German people to Karzai for the outrage…

“Merkel also congratulated Karzai for progress made in building up Afghan security forces while he in turn expressed gratitude for Germany’s commitment to peace in the country. She also urged Kabul to push forward the political reconciliation process with armed groups like the Taliban.

“The massacre in the Taliban stronghold in southern Afghanistan added to roiling anti-Western sentiment in the war-ravaged country over the burning of the Koran at a US base… last month… The Koran burning ignited days of violent anti-US protests in which some 40 people died, plunging relations between foreign forces and their Afghan allies to an all-time low. Sunday’s killing spree came as the United States and Afghanistan pursue difficult talks on securing a strategic pact to govern their partnership once foreign combat troops leave Afghanistan in 2014. The proposed accord would likely cover the legal status of any US troops remaining in Afghanistan to help Kabul with intelligence, air power and logistics in the fight against Taliban insurgents…

“Germany is the third biggest supplier of troops to the 130,000-strong NATO-led International Security Assistance Force… after the United States and Britain… The German mission, the first major Bundeswehr deployment outside of Europe since World War II, has been consistently unpopular in the country. Shortly after her arrival, Merkel paid homage to the more than 50 German soldiers killed in Afghanistan since NATO-led troops first went into the country in 2001…”

Deutsche Welle added on March 14, 2012:

“German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere arrived in Afghanistan on Wednesday to visit troops after signing a military cooperation deal with neighboring Pakistan a day earlier. Arriving just two days after Chancellor Angela Merkel, the German defense minister is there to reassure Kabul and NATO that the scheduled 2014 deadline for withdrawing troops from Afghanistan is still on target. On Monday, Merkel had caused some confusion when she said on a surprise visit to Mazar-i-Sharif in the north of [the] country that reconciliation with insurgents had not made enough progress to allow foreign troops to leave…”

One will have to wait and see whose position will prevail—Merkel’s or Maiziere’s. In any event, while America’s influence in the world will diminish more and more, the influence of EU under German leadership will steadily increase.

The Financial Times Deutschland wrote on March 13, 2012: “These are signs that the relationship between the US and Afghanistan is more damaged than ever. It is possible that it can no longer even be repaired…” Die Welt added: “The terrible shooting rampage by a US Army sergeant that targeted Afghan civilians is not the reason that the war in Afghanistan was lost. The seeds of defeat were already contained in the overambitious political goals of the original military operation… if (the US) hadn’t had naively high expectations for Operation Enduring Freedom, it would not have dragged on for over a decade — and the US soldier, who was apparently severely mentally disturbed, wouldn’t have had a chance to kill children and women in his private nocturnal rampage.”

Germany Wants an EU Constitution

Reuters reported on March 9:

“Germany wants to reignite a debate over creating an EU constitution to strengthen the bloc’s ability to fight off financial troubles and counter-balance the rising influence of emerging economies, Germany’s foreign minister said on Friday. Guido Westerwelle said the bloc’s Lisbon treaty… was not enough to keep European decision-making structures effective… ‘I think we have to reopen the debate about a European constitution again,’ he said. ‘We have a good treaty, but we need a constitution … There are new centers of power in the world.’

“German government sources said representatives of several EU member states would likely meet in the next few weeks for talks. Driven by public frustration over financial bailouts for debt-stricken states, Germany has fought hard over the last year to amend the EU’s Lisbon Treaty, a watered-down version of the 2005 constitution proposal… For example, it wanted an amendment to incorporate tighter regional oversight of government spending and allow the European Court of Justice to strike down a member’s laws if they violated fiscal discipline. But Britain vetoed the plan in December in a row over safeguards for its financial sector.”

Even though some EU member states are presently opposed to an amendment of the Lisbon Treaty, the adaptation of a European Constitution is inevitable. It is not expected that Great Britain will sign it.

Should Germany Reinstate Monarchy?

The Local reported on March 14:

“Germany should reinstate its monarchy to speak to people’s emotions, make them proud of their country and even encourage them to have babies, according to Prince Philip Kiril of Prussia, great-great grandson of the last Kaiser [and a Protestant minister]. Speaking in Thursday’s edition of Die Zeit newspaper, Philip stressed that a monarch would be financially independent – and so would not be likely to accept presents from friends, such as those which led to Christian Wulff’s resignation from the presidency… ‘Of course a king should have a happy marriage. Of course the heir to the throne should marry,’ he said.

“And even the question of royal children was a legitimate matter for the public, he said. ‘When, as now in Sweden, a member of the royal family is born, what a joy goes through the country! Even the prime minister spoke of a happy day…’ The lives of a royal family lend a country stability, he said… He suggested that German politicians would even vote for a royal family to be reinstated, if it came to a vote – nearly a century after the last Kaiser was removed from the throne in 1918. Even left-wingers would be in favour, he suggested, pointing to Sweden where he said some socialists were also royalists. But even if the German royal family were to be reinstated, Prince Philip would not sit on the throne – that honour would go to Prince Georg Friedrich von Preußen, who is the direct heir and has said he would not want to see a royal restoration.”

In an accompanying article, the Local added:

“Germany got rid of its last Kaiser nearly a century ago, but the country remains fascinated by royals. One of the Kaiser’s descendants says royalty would help the country… The Kaiser’s descendants still live aristocratic lives even though the royal family was abolished in 1918 after defeat in World War I. And last summer, the wedding of Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia attracted not only a good showing of European royal guests but also the attention of the German public. They are still excited by the royal families of nearby countries, and positively gorged themselves on last year’s wedding of British Prince William, which was broadcast live on four national television channels

“A possibly increasing acceptance and even popularity of Germany’s home grown monarchy is no doubt linked with the young, educated and affable Prince Georg. His rare public appearances, fresh-faced good looks and reticence would certainly offer a contrast to the grey-haired politicians representing the country. Germany’s presidential post has hardly been covered in glory recently, having been held by two politicians, one of whom resigned arguably too early, the other too late. The debacle over Christian Wulff’s resignation prompted one of the Kaiser’s great-great grandsons to argue this week that a monarchy would be good for the country.”

The Bible says in Revelation 17 that ten European “kings” will give their power and authority to the beast—a political and military leader—prior to the return of Jesus Christ. Whether these “kings” will be literal monarchs or just political leaders of their respective countries will have to be seen.

Europe Awakens to Iranian Nuclear Threat

Reuters reported on March 9:

“Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Ron Prosor, said on Friday that he is concerned about the slowness of the international community regarding Iran’s nuclear program but is encouraged by the fact that Arab countries are speaking out against Iran… Prosor said that Israel’s diplomatic efforts in regards to the Iranian nuclear threat are like a train ‘traveling from London to Paris at a very fast speed,’ whereas the international community’s efforts regarding Iran are like ‘a slow running train which stops at every station.’

“Prosor said, however, that he is seeing reasons for optimism in what he described as the awakening of the European countries regarding Iran, a fact which is reflected in the latest rounds of sanctions on the Iranian oil industries… ‘The recent sanctions against the Iranian central bank and its oil industry show that Europe has awakened to the Iranian nuclear threat.’ He added that recent reports by the International Agency for Atomic Energy… are a public statement of the international community that leaves no room for doubt that Iran has a military weapons program… When asked whether he has heard Arab diplomats saying behind closed doors that they support an attack on Iran, Prosor responded with ‘Yes.’”

Europe’s involvement in the affairs of the Middle East will multiply.

New EU Parliament Chief Martin Schulz on Course of Confrontation

The EUObserver wrote on March 8:

“The European Parliament can make or break laws in the EU but is considered something of an irrelevancy among the general public, something its new chief wants to change through some old-fashioned confrontation. In the job for a little under two months and finding it an ‘enormous challenge’ to be ‘prudent and impartial,’ Martin Schulz says that his institution is always at risk of disappearing in the public eye…

“A real institutional player since 2010 when the latest EU treaty gave it law-making powers in virtually all policy areas, the 736-member house suffers the inferiority complex of having an ever-decreasing vote turnout and the ignominy of being considered only a rubber-stamping institution. The only way to change the status quo and make the institution a household name is through political fisticuffs, he believes. ‘I’m a fighter. I am trying to put the European Parliament in a confrontation with the heads of government,’ said the German politician, who cemented his combative reputation during his time as leader of the socialists. In marked contrast to his more discreet predecessor, Schulz is content to be seen in disagreement with prime ministers.

“He has highlighted differences with the leaders of Hungary and the Netherlands, both on the EU’s radar over rights issues. His biggest bugbear is the European Council – the increasingly powerful forum for EU leaders. ‘The role of the European Council is the biggest problem in terms of oversight by the European Parliament – that is why I insist on being present [at EU summits].’ Schulz has just two years to put the parliament on the political map.”

The European Parliament will become more and more influential under the leadership of a charismatic figure. Ultimately, the European member states will be willing to give autocratic and dictatorial powers to a future political leader.

Russia’s and Europe’s Dubious Roles

On March 12, Stratfor Global Intelligence published a report on Germany strategy pertaining to Russia. Even though much of what is being said appears far-fetched and unreasonable, as well as outright wrong, we are quoting a few excerpts which are worthwhile considering:

“Germany was divided after World War II. Whatever the first inclinations of the victors, it became clear that a rearmed West Germany was essential if the Soviet Union was going to be contained. If Germany was to be rearmed, its economy had to be encouraged to grow, and what followed was the German economic miracle. Germany again became the most dynamic part of Europe… Germany needs the European Union to survive for both political and economic reasons.

“Germany must be considering an alternative strategy. Its relationship with Russia is such a strategy… Germany’s current strategy is to preserve the European Union and its relationship with France while drawing Russia closer into Europe…

“A German-Russian relationship would have the potential to tilt the balance of power in the world. The United States is currently the dominant power, but the combination of German technology and Russian resources — an idea dreamt of by many in the past — would become a challenge on a global basis…The Russo-German relationship already exists and is deepening. Germany thinks of it in the context of the European Union…”

The Bible shows that Germany will become the dominant leader of a united Europe, but it is also very likely that Europe, under German leadership, will enter into a temporary alliance with Russia—especially to create a challenge to the United States. However, as was the case with the German-Russian treaty under Hitler and Stalin, this alliance will not last, and Europe and Russia will become again deadly enemies. For further developments pertaining to Russia and other Far Eastern nations, please view our StandingWatch program, which was posted on YouTube about 1 year ago, and which received so far in excess of 69,000 views. It is titled, “When Will Russia Attack Israel?”

For further troubling evidence of Russia’s real intensions, note the following article by the Independent, dared March 14:

“Russia insisted yesterday that it would not halt arms shipments to Syria even as evidence mounts that the regime is committing crimes against humanity, with a rights group today releasing a sickening dossier of the torture inflicted on those who oppose President Bashar al-Assad… Despite this growing evidence that the arms it sells the regime are being used against civilians, Russia remains defiant. ‘Russia enjoys good and strong military technical co-operation with Syria, and we see no reason today to reconsider it,’ [Russia’s Deputy Defence Minister, Anatoly] Antonov said yesterday. ‘Russian-Syrian military co-operation is perfectly legitimate,’ he added. Mr Antonov admitted that Russia has military instructors on the ground in Syria training the Syrian army.”

In addition, Haaretz wrote on March 14:

“The United States has asked Russia to deliver an ultimatum to Iran, warning the Islamic Republic that it has one last chance for talks before a military strike, the Kommersant daily quoted Russian diplomats as saying on Wednesday. According to the Russian newspaper, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asked her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in New York on Monday to tell Tehran that it has one last chance to solve the conflict peacefully by making progress in the talks with the P5+1 group – United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany. Otherwise, an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities will occur within months, the diplomats said… Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a series of television interviews, said last week that an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities could take place within months…”

It will have to be seen what Russia will do in respect to the other one of its two allies in that part of the world—these two allies being Syria and Iran.

Israel and USA on Course of Confrontation

Haaretz reported on March 12:

“Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin announced Monday he is banning a delegation of MKs from attending a women’s conference in Washington this month because the United States has denied entry to MK Michael Ben Ari (National Union). MKs Zahava Gal-On (Meretz), Tzipi Hotovely (Likud) and Einat Wilf (Atzmaut) were scheduled to take part in a four-day conference on women that begins March 25 and will be hosted by the U.S. Congress. They were due to sit on a panel with U.S. congresswomen and to launch a collaborative project between the Knesset and Congress. Gal-On, Hotovely and Wilf were also scheduled to attend a reception at the Israeli Embassy in Washington.

“The U.S. refusal to grant entry to Ben Ari because of what it said are his ties to a terrorist group amounts to ‘an assault on the Knesset as a whole,’ Rivlin said Monday. ‘The United States’ allegation that an MK is a terrorist is unacceptable.’ Ben Ari is a long-time follower of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, whose Kach party is outlawed in Israel and is considered a terrorist organization in the United States.

“The National Union MK applied for an entry visa to the United States last month so he could participate in two conferences, one of which is aimed at promoting immigration to Israel. The U.S. consular staff said Ben Ari’s application was denied based on the State Department’s prerogative to ban terrorists from entering the country.”

It is amazing how diligent the USA seems to be to create repeatedly unnecessary problems for themselves and others—even with respect to close allies such as Israel. Such foolish conduct will bear bitter fruit. The Bible states that in the end time, the USA and Great Britain are ruled by “children,” and it predicts that the relationship between the USA and Israel will deteriorate and might end up in open hostility.

Obama and Cameron Meet in Once-Burned White House

USA Today reported on March 14:

“President Obama formally welcomed British Prime Minister David Cameron to the White House today — and what ceremony would be complete without some jokes about how the British army once burned the place down? ‘It’s now been (nearly) 200 years since the British came here to the White House under somewhat different circumstances,’ Obama said, referring to the attack on Washington in 1814… Cameron returned the favor, saying he was ‘a little embarrassed’ at what his ancestors wrought two centuries ago, but ‘I can see you’ve got the place a little better defended today. You’re clearly not taking any risks with the Brits this time,’ Cameron cracked…

“Of course, the United States and Great Britain made up after the War of 1812, and have remained allied in a ‘special relationship’ ever since. ‘One constant’ in an ever-changing world has been ‘a rock solid alliance between the United States and the United Kingdom,’ Obama said. Cameron said the Americans and the British can always count on each other ‘when the chips are down.’… Obama also joked that the Americans and the British ‘speak the same language — most of the time…’”

In spite of the jokes, the Bible says that the relationship between America and Great Britain will deteriorate as well.

Smoking Bans Work

The Local wrote on March 13:

“The smoking ban in German pubs and cafes, even patchily implemented, has clearly reduced the number of heart attacks over the last few years, a report published on Tuesday says. The study, conducted by the DAK-Gesundheit statutory health insurer showed a reduction in heart attacks by eight percent since 2007, while angina attacks – often a precursor to heart attacks – were down by 13 percent.

“The insurer said it had evaluated hospital data of more than three million patients across Germany over the last five years – the biggest study in the world on the effects of a smoking ban. The first year of the smoking ban had resulted in 1,880 fewer hospital treatments, and saved the health care system €7.7 million, said Herbert Rebsche, CEO of DAK-Gesundheit.

“He said the state of Bavaria had imposed the most significant smoking ban in Germany, and its example should be followed by other states.  Carola Reimann, chairwoman of the parliamentary health committee called for the states – which determine health policy – to be more consistent over smoking bans. ‘I wish that all states would act like Bavaria and uniformly reject exceptions,’ she said on Tuesday.”

Pink Slime for School Lunches

Northesthio.com reported on March 6:

“Just a little over a month after McDonald’s announced they would stop using ‘pink slime’ in their hamburger patties, the ammonia treated meat has found a new home. According to the Huffington Post, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is purchasing seven million pounds of the slime for school lunches. The product officially termed ‘Lean Beef Trimmings’ is a ground-up combination of beef scraps, cow connective tissues and other beef trimmings that are treated with ammonium hydroxide to kill pathogens like salmonella and E. coli. It’s then blended into traditional meat products like ground beef and hamburger patties.

“The controversy surrounding the ‘pink slime’ stems from the fact that it… is not nutritionally equivalent to ground beef. The ammonium hydroxide also has the potential to turn into ammonium nitrate—which is a common component of homemade bombs. The USDA’s plan to buy the meat comes only weeks after the government announced new guidelines to ensure students get healthier options for school lunches.”

It is a shame that the US government is willing to feed American students with “pink slime,” while stating at the same time that they should be given healthier options. How political all of this is, can also be seen in the next article.

“Pepsi Next” Uses Cells Derived from Aborted Fetus

LifeSite.net reported on March 5:

“The Pepsi Company, which is set to release the new product Pepsi Next in the coming weeks, is facing a more robust boycott as pro-life activists protest the company’s use of cells derived from an aborted fetus in flavor-enhancing research. But Pepsi has succeeded, with help from the Obama Administration, in keeping its controversial operations from consideration by its shareholders.

“In a decision delivered Feb 28th, President Obama’s Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) ruled that PepsiCo’s use of cells derived from aborted fetal remains in their research and development agreement with Senomyx to produce flavor enhancers falls under ‘ordinary business operations.’

“The letter signed by Attorney Brian Pitko of the SEC Office of Chief Counsel was sent in response to a 36-page document submitted by PepsiCo attorneys in January, 2012. In that filing, PepsiCo pleaded with the SEC to reject the Shareholder’s Resolution filed in October 2011 that the company ‘adopt a corporate policy that recognizes human rights and employs ethical standards which do not involve using the remains of aborted human beings in both private and collaborative research and development agreements.’

“PepsiCo lead attorney George A. Schieren noted that the resolution should be excluded because it ‘deals with matters related to the company’s ordinary business operations’ and that ‘certain tasks are so fundamental to run a company on a day-to-day basis that they could not be subject to stockholder oversight.’ Debi Vinnedge, Executive Director of Children of God for Life, the organization that exposed the PepsiCo-Senomyx collaboration last year was ‘appalled by the apathy and insensitivity’ of both PepsiCo executives and the Obama administration. ‘We’re not talking about what kind of pencils PepsiCo wants to use – we are talking about exploiting the remains of an aborted child for profit,’ she said. ‘Using human embryonic kidney (HEK-293) to produce flavor enhancers for their beverages is a far cry from routine operations!’

“PepsiCo also requested the resolution be excluded because it ‘probed too deeply into matters of a complex nature upon which shareholders cannot make an informed judgment.’ ‘In other words, PepsiCo thinks its stockholders are too stupid to understand what they are doing with the remains of aborted children,’ Vinnedge stated. ‘Well they are about to find out just how smart the public really is when they turn up the heat on the world-wide boycott!’ Oklahoma Senator Ralph Shortey has proposed a bill SB1418 banning the sale of products that are developed with or contain aborted fetal remains. In the case of Pepsi products, the cells derived from the aborted fetus do not end up in the final product… To date, the world-wide boycott has expanded to include Canada, Germany, Poland, UK, Ireland, Scotland, Spain, Portugal, Australia and New Zealand.”

For the US government and the Pepsi Company to say that the “use of cells derived from aborted fetal” to “produce flavor enhancers” for soft drinks deals with “the company’s ordinary business operations,” is sickening and also tragic evidence for the amoral state of affairs in the USA.

Putin Is Back… Now What?

The New York Times wrote on March 5:

“A day after claiming an overwhelming victory in Russia’s presidential election, Vladimir V. Putin on Monday faced a range of challenges to his legitimacy, including charges of fraud from international observers and a defiant opposition that vowed to keep him from serving his full six-year term.  While Mr. Putin was still celebrating his win, he received a slap in the face from observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe… the observers said Mr. Putin had faced no real competition and unfairly benefited from lavish government spending on his behalf.

“Mr. Putin received milder responses from the European Union and from the United States, which called for an ‘independent, credible’ investigation of fraud allegations but said it was ready to work with him in his new role…

“In Washington, the reaction to the election was strikingly muted, even restrained. The White House did not comment, and the State Department put out a written statement congratulating the Russian people and saying the United States ‘looks forward to working with the president-elect after the results are certified and he is sworn in….’”

And so, repression will continue in Russia, while the leaders of the big world powers are quick to congratulate Putin and, hypocritically, the “Russian people.” But things will change. In this regard, you may want to view our StandingWatch program on the topic of Russia, which was posted on YouTube about 1 year ago, and which received so far in excess of 64,000 views. It is titled, “When Will Russia Attack Israel?”

Don’t Trust Putin… But Does Anyone Really Care?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on March 6:

“Following Vladimir Putin’s election victory amid accusations of ballot-box manipulation, Russia’s opposition took to the streets on Monday evening. With hundreds of arrests reported and protesters accusing Putin of a crackdown, German commentators say that Putin needs to watch his step…

“The center-right daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘Putin masquerades as the sole politician powerful enough to bring about the shift to democracy that only he allegedly desires. That Putin actually wants to allow more democracy is questionable because too much… indicates that he’s not particularly serious…

“Another matter is whether Putin’s unending accusations that America wants to destabilize Russia will disrupt the relationship between the two countries in the long run… This would affect Europe too…’

“Conservative daily Die Welt writes: ‘… Stability has turned into despotism…’

“The left-leaning daily Die Tageszeitung writes:

“‘Should leading representatives of the German business community rejoice over Putin’s… reelection? They don’t even know the answer to that question themselves… The fact that, after coming to power in 2000, Russia developed into an autocratic system in which human rights violations are part of everyday life, the opposition is pressured and even deactivated, and in which rule of law has no application, is only of marginal interest to German businessmen and women. What they care about most is that the [rubles] and euros continue to flow…’”

Economic advantages seem to be more important than the liberty and freedom of a repressed people. Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is no exception when he made shameful comments in support of “his old pal” Vladimir Putin.

The Local reported on March 7 that Schroeder “defended… Putin against accusations of election fraud, standing by his notorious description of his former ally as a ‘democrat through and through.’… The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which sent observers to the Russian presidential election on Sunday, has accused the Kremlin of systematic election fraud… Activists have also alleged there was evidence of widespread ballot box stuffing and other forms of election manipulation, but Schröder remained unimpressed…”

Of course, as the Local continues to explain, Schroeder’s disgraceful defense of former KGB spy Vladimir Putin might be strongly motivated by his financial interests: 

“After he left office in 2005, Schröder became board chairman at German-Russian operating company Nord Stream, which operates a natural gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany. Gazprom, a Russian company in which the Russian government holds a controlling stake, is Nord Stream’s majority shareholder.”

Syria’s Weapons of Mass Destruction

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists wrote on March 1:

“As possible military action against Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons program looms large in the public arena, far more international concern should be directed toward Syria and its weapons of mass destruction…

“…Syria likely has one of the largest and most sophisticated chemical weapon programs in the world. Moreover, Syria may also possess an offensive biological weapons capability… Syrian insurgents… are increasingly sectarian and radicalized; indeed, many observers fear the uprising is being ‘hijacked’ by jihadists…

“Syria has a chemical arsenal that includes several hundred tons of blistering agents along with likely large stockpiles of deadly nerve agents, including VX, the most toxic of all chemical weapons. At least four large chemical weapon production facilities exist. Additionally, Syria likely stores its deadly chemical weapons at dozens of facilities throughout the fractious country… Syrian chemical agents are weaponized and deliverable…

“Global Security Newswire recently asserted that ‘[t]he Assad regime is thought to possess between 100 and 200 Scud missiles carrying warheads loaded with sarin nerve agent. The government is also believed to have several hundred tons of sarin agent and mustard gas stockpiled that could be used in air-dropped bombs and artillery shells…’

“Should centralized authority crumble in Syria, it seems highly unlikely that the country’s 50 chemical storage and manufacturing facilities — and, possibly, biological weapon repositories — can be secured. The US Defense Department recently estimated that it would take more than 75,000 US military personnel to guard Syria’s chemical weapons. This is, of course, if they could arrive before any WMD were transferred or looted — a highly unlikely prospect…  it is plausible that stolen chemical or biological weapons could find their way across the Syrian border into Iraq. Similarly, Syrian WMD could be smuggled into southern Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, the West Bank, Israel, and, potentially, the United States and Europe.

“At least six formal terrorist organizations have long maintained personnel within Syria. Three of these groups — Hamas, Hizbollah, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad — have already attempted to acquire or use chemical or biological agents, or both. Perhaps more troubling, Al Qaeda-affiliated fighters from Iraq have streamed into Syria, acting, in part, on orders from Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri…

“The situation in Syria is unprecedented. Never before has a WMD-armed country fallen into civil war. All states in the region stand poised to lose if these weapons find their way outside of Syria. The best possible outcome, in terms of controlling Syria’s enormous WMD arsenal, would be for Assad to maintain power, but such an outcome seems increasingly implausible. And there is painfully little evidence that democratic forces are likely to take over in Syria. Even if they do eventually triumph, it will take months or years to consolidate control over the entire country…”

Syria is heading for disaster. The Bible prophesies the ultimate destruction of Syria. Please read our Q&A on the issue, where we stated: “… it is certain that Syria will fall in the next world war. Damascus will be destroyed, and the Syrian people will go into captivity.” The next article on McCain’s call for an American attack on Syria is quite interesting in the context.

McCain Calls for Airstrike on Syria

The Associated Press reported on March 6:

“A leading Republican senator [McCain] on Monday urged the United States to launch airstrikes against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime to force him out of power – a call for dramatic military intervention against the growing violence that was not supported by the Obama administration or its European or Arab partners… McCain’s proposal will likely divide American lawmakers…

“‘I hope that Russia now, after the elections and with a clear view, will see that it stands on the wrong side of history,’ said German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle. ‘The people in Syria who are standing up for democracy and their freedom need solidarity from the international community.’”

Iran Becomes Even More Radical

The Boston Globe wrote on March 4:

“Conservative rivals of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad appeared on course yesterday to gain firm control of Parliament after elections that could embolden Iran’s nuclear defiance and give the ruling clerics a clear path to ensure that a loyalist succeeds Ahmadinejad next year… Reformists were virtually absent from the ballot, showing the crushing force of crackdowns on the opposition.

“Instead, Friday’s elections became a referendum on Ahmadinejad’s political stature after he tried to challenge the near-total authority of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to decide critical government policies such as intelligence and foreign affairs. The apparent setbacks for Ahmadinejad’s backers… could… give hard-liners an even stronger voice in Iran’s showdowns over its nuclear program.”

… which means, clearly, that Iran’s fanatical leadership will NOT give up their controversial nuclear program.

“Israel Can’t Wait Much Longer”

The Jerusalem Post wrote on March 6:

“Netanyahu tells [the] AIPAC [convention in Washington] Israel has waited for sanctions and diplomacy to stop Iran’s nuclear program, but they have not worked. [He] warns Israel cannot wait much longer… vowing to never let Israel live under the shadow of annihilation or gamble with its security.”

The Washington Free Beacon wrote on March 5:

“Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told President Obama that Israel would decide for itself whether to strike Iran. ‘My supreme responsibility as prime minister of Israel is to ensure that Israel remains the master of its fate,’ Netanyahu told Obama.”

The Algemeiner reported on March 5:

“Channel 2 in Israel, sourcing a ‘senior American official’, says that the decision has already been made by the Israeli government to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities.”

It appears more and more certain that a war will be launched against Iran—with terrible consequences for all involved.

Inconclusive Meeting between Obama and Netanyahu

The Los Angeles Times wrote on March 5:

“After their meeting, President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continue to disagree on what should trigger military action against Iran… Israeli officials say military action is justified if Iran is seen to approach the capability to build a bomb, or if Tehran moves enough of its uranium enrichment program underground to make it less vulnerable to bombing.

“The Obama administration says it does not believe military force is necessary unless Iran is building a nuclear bomb. The administration believes Iran would need about a year to develop and build its first nuclear weapon should it decide to do so…

“A senior White House official said that during the meeting Monday, Netanyahu gave Obama a copy of the biblical Book of Esther, which tells the story… of the foiling of a plot to kill all the Jews in the ancient Persian empire. The official would not say what Netanyahu told Obama about the gift, but did not deny reports in the Israeli media that the prime minister said, ‘Then, too, they wanted to wipe us out.’”

The disagreements between Israel and the USA are continuing. The Bible says that ultimately, the alliance between the USA and the state of Israel will crumble. The next article seems to confirm this prophecy.

“It’s Just a Matter of Time Before U.S. Tires of Israel”

On March 4, Haaretz published the following commentary by Gideon Levy. According to Haaretz, “Levy is a Haaretz columnist and a member of the newspaper’s editorial board. Levy was the recipient of the Euro-Med Journalist Prize for 2008; the Leipzig Freedom Prize in 2001; the Israeli Journalists’ Union Prize in 1997; and The Association of Human Rights in Israel Award for 1996.”

The article stated the following:

“A new chapter is being written in the history of nations. Never before has a small country dictated to a superpower; never before has the chirp of the cricket sounded like a roar; never has the elephant resembled the ant – and vice versa. No Roman province dared tell Julius Caesar what to do, no tribe ever dreamed of forcing Genghis Khan to act in accordance with its own tribal interests. Only Israel does this…

“It isn’t that Iran is only an Israeli problem, but North Korea could endanger Japan just as much as Iran endangers Israel – and the world has not come running to Japan’s side… Israel features in the American presidential campaign as no other foreign country does… If last week a British member of the House of Lords was forced to resign from Parliament after daring to criticize Israel, in the United States she would never have even considered making her views known…

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also taught the world that it’s possible to tell the American president ‘No,’ bluntly and explicitly, and not only remain alive but even to gain in strength. This would appear to be a good thing, a reason to marvel at the prime minister. A cat may look at a king, but it doesn’t always end well. One day, perhaps, even in brainwashed America the questions may begin: another war? Is it right to put more American soldiers in harm’s way for an interest that is more Israeli than it is American?…

“For now, Obama may be unable to prohibit Israel from a military adventure in Iran… But one day the rope could snap and the whole thing could blow up in the face of power-drunk Israel: Israel doesn’t know when to stop, and it could pay dearly as a result.”

Iran Plays with UN

On March 6, 2012, Der Spiegel Online reported:

“European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton announced that the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council — the US, China, Russia, France and Great Britain — plus Germany had agreed to restart talks with Iran. Ashton said she had responded positively to a letter from Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili in which he had offered new talks.”

And so, Iran continues to play the delay game in an effort to buy more time. Nobody should expect that Iran will truly and honestly cooperate with the UN. And so, gullible Western countries are again being taken for a ride—perhaps willingly, and perhaps even with the tacit approval, if not instigation, of Russia and China.

Notice, too, the report of the Washington Post, dated March 8:

“The United States and five other world powers pressed Iran on Thursday to grant U.N. inspectors access to alleged nuclear research sites inside the country, amid reports that Iranian officials are moving to clean up a key military installation outside Tehran… Iranian officials on Tuesday said IAEA inspectors would be allowed to visit the site, but later amended their statement to say that no visit would be permitted until all outstanding disputes between Iran and the U.N. agency had been resolved…”

Plans for Political and Military Europe

EuropeanVoice.com reported on March 3:

“Nicolas Sarkozy, France’s president, has made an impassioned plea for greater European political and social integration, setting out a list of European Union priorities that he would promote if he is re-elected. Sarkozy… said he believed that only closer co-operation in the areas of defence, taxation and immigration could ‘keep up the momentum’ of closer European unity… He said that he wanted to ban companies from Asia from winning contracts to run public services in EU member states because European companies were prohibited from entering Asian markets…

“He wants strengthened ‘anti-dumping’ measures, where non-EU countries flood the European market with cheap goods. He singled out the steel market as a particular problem… [He] said… that it was the duty of Europe first and foremost to sort out problems in Syria and Libya because the Mediterranean was the ‘core of European civilisation’. There was a need for… a strong European defence policy…”

The Bible prophesies the strong political and military unification of Europe—under German leadership, as the next article confirms as well. AND, as suggested by Sarkozy, Europe WILL intervene militarily in Middle Eastern countries to bring “peace” to the region.

EU Agrees With Germany’s Vision

The EUObserver wrote on March 2:

“Germany’s vision of an EU of fiscally prudent states held in check by tight budgetary laws and the threat of legal action came a step closer on Friday (2 March) when 25 leaders signed a new treaty on fiscal discipline…  all countries except the UK and the Czech Republic became signatories to the 16-article pact… ‘Its effects will be deep and long-lasting,’ said EU council president Herman Van Rompuy ahead of the signing, adding that it will help prevent a ‘repetition of the debt crisis.’

“In line with Berlin’s wishes, the text includes an article obliging those that ratify it to enshrine a balanced budget into national law, while a country breaching the budget deficit rules will be subject to intense surveillance, with curbed discretionary spending powers, and obliged to carry out an agreed list of structural reforms…

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the treaty represented a ‘strong signal’ on how the EU is dealing with the eurozone crisis and spoke of a ‘politically unified Europe’ of the future… The treaty will go into force once 12 of the 17 euro countries have ratified it, and only those that have done so will have access to the eurozone’s permanent bail-out fund, the ESM – a provision pushed by Berlin.”

Germany—a Model Democracy?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on March 6:

“After World War II, West Germany rapidly made the transition from murderous dictatorship to model democracy. Or did it? New documents reveal just how many officials from the Nazi regime found new jobs in Bonn. A surprising number were chosen for senior government positions… Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger, a member of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who governed Germany from 1966 to 1969, had been a member of the Nazi Party ever since Adolf Hitler seized power… German President Walter Scheel, a member of the business-friendly Free Democratic Party (FDP) who was in office from 1974 to 1979, had been a Nazi Party member from 1941 or 1942…

“The self-righteousness of the German postwar judiciary stands in sharp contrast to the calamity that the profession inflicted on Germany. Indeed, its crimes are at the very top of the list of disgraceful deeds. Between 1933 and 1945, German judges, both civilian and military, handed down an estimated 50,000 death sentences, most of which were carried out… Roughly 80 percent of the judges and prosecutors who had served Hitler’s regime of terror until May 8 were soon dispensing justice once again — but this time in the young Federal Republic…

“Between 1939 and 1945, wartime judges sentenced an estimated 30,000 soldiers to death, often for minor offences and, as some said, ‘as a deterrent.’ Up to 90 percent of these sentences were carried out by firing squads or executioners. Despite their horrific pasts, the expertise of these judges was soon in demand at the Federal Ministry of Justice.

“…the Allies were unable to thoroughly cleanse Nazi-contaminated Germany. The plan to ‘de-Nazify’ the conquered country… failed…In the end the Americans… abandoned their ambitious cleansing plan. The Germans — all Germans — were needed as the Cold War intensified…”

This sad story exemplifies what is normally happening after a won war: The conquering and defeated powers will arrange themselves, especially in the light of a new perceived common enemy. And so, the powers of this world which will fight each other in the future will combine forces in their attempt to defeat a new common enemy—the returning Jesus Christ.

US and Europe Dominate Arms-Producing Companies

The New York Times wrote on March 5:

“Many E.U. countries had been exporting weapons to dictatorships and authoritarian regimes… European companies and governments are seeking markets for their weapons outside Europe more eagerly than ever… the Middle East region and further afield in Central Asia will remain a lucrative market for European arms companies…

“The United States and Europe continue to dominate the arms-producing and military-services companies. Forty-four U.S. companies accounted for more than 60 percent of all arms sales… 30 European companies… account for 29 percent of total sales… The majority are French, German and British companies.”

This is a shameful report regarding countries which pretend that they stand up for peace and liberty. But as the Bible says, “And the way of peace they have not known” (Romans 3:17). Note the next article as well.

More than 300 Banks and Other Institutions Finance Nuclear Weapons

The Los Angeles Times wrote on March 7:

“More than 300 banks, insurance companies and other institutions are helping to finance nuclear weapons around the world… The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons is pushing the banks and other financial institutions to stop financing companies that design, manufacture or maintain nuclear weapons, their parts or the missiles, submarines or bombers to deliver them. More than half of the companies singled out by the group are based in the United States… ‘Banks and other financial institutions should be called upon to do the right thing … by divesting from the immoral nuclear arms industry,’ retired Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu wrote…”

Super Tuesday Not That Super…

USA Today wrote on March 7:

“Mitt Romney’s prize of 212 delegates out of the Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses still leaves him less than halfway to the 1,144 delegates he needs to lock up the GOP presidential nomination… Romney has won 56% of the delegates awarded so far, and needs to garner 47% of the remaining delegates to reach the magic number… His challengers have a higher bar: Rick Santorum would need 63% of the remaining delegates. Newt Gingrich needs 67%. And Ron Paul needs 71%… Super Tuesday’s results may only prolong the nomination battle into June or beyond…”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on March 7:

“Mitt Romney was supposed to waltz to the Republican nomination this year. That script, though, has long since been discarded with arch-conservative challenger Rick Santorum refusing to go away. Indeed, the underdog has become a dangerous opponent — and that isn’t necessarily good news for the Republicans…

“Santorum and Gingrich are staging a David and Goliath campaign battle, pitting themselves, both financially weak candidates, against the wealthy Romney. Gingrich, who on Tuesday evening managed only a victory in Georgia, will no longer pose much of a threat to Romney. But Santorum, with his three victories and a near-win in Ohio, has become a real risk. The already dirty campaign will only get more bruising in the coming weeks. There’s no end in sight either… A stalemate looms and the final decision could ultimately be made behind closed doors at the party convention in late summer. It is a horrific scenario for the Republicans… the longer the… battle lasts, the smaller the chance that the Republicans will land in the White House in November 2012…

“Among independent voters, who could be critical this autumn, Romney is favored by a meager 32 percent, with 48 percent of independents viewing him unfavorably. Santorum is viewed favorably by only 30 percent, with Gingrich at a mere 21 percent. At 38 percent, Ron Paul is the most popular among these swing voters. Following weeks of debate over contraception and abortion, all the candidates have seen their support slide among female voters. When pitted directly against Obama in a poll of women by The Wall Street Journal published this week, Romney only scored the support 37 percent of females, compared to 55 percent for Obama.

“To make matters worse for Romney, a CNN reporter managed to catch Tea Party icon Sarah Palin…the reporter asked whether, in the event of brokered convention, Palin would present herself as a compromise candidate. ‘Anything’s possible,’ she replied…”

Rush Limbaugh at His Worst…

The Washington Post wrote on March 2:

“Conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh’s description of a Georgetown Law school student… as a ‘slut’ and a ‘prostitute’ for her position on employer-funded birth control has Republican strategists concerned that their party and its candidates will experience political blowback — particularly among independent women…

“Republican politicians are doing the [most] to distance themselves from Limbaugh. House Speaker John Boehner called Limbaugh’s comments ‘inappropriate’.  Carly Fiorina, a 2010 candidate for Senate in California and now the vice chairwoman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, described Limbaugh’s remark as ‘insulting’. Of Limbaugh, former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum said: ‘He’s being absurd…’

“While Limbaugh has no formal capacity within the GOP, he is clearly one of the most prominent spokespeople for conservatism in the country… Any erosion among women is dangerous for Republicans as they look to take back the White House and Senate — and hold onto the House — in November…”

Due to pressure, public outcry and loss of sponsors, Rush Limbaugh decided to apologize for his inappropriate and offensive comments. On March 3, he posted the following on his website:

“For over 20 years, I have illustrated the absurd with absurdity, three hours a day, five days a week. In this instance, I chose the wrong words in my analogy of the situation. I did not mean a personal attack… I think it is absolutely absurd that during these very serious political times, we are discussing personal sexual recreational activities before members of Congress… My choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir. I sincerely apologize… for the insulting word choices.”

Of course, the debate involving the use of contraceptives involves much more than “personal sexual recreational activities.” Maybe, Mr. Limbaugh should consider apologizing for his apology? In addition, Rush Limbaugh is well known for making controversial and offensive, sometimes insulting statements, and subsequent “apologies.” But talk show hosts such as Rush Limbaugh- and many others on the right or on the left–do not help to solve this county’s many problems. Note the next article:

CNN wrote on March 5:

“Once again, Rush Limbaugh — the conservative provocateur with the self-described ‘talent on loan from God’ — is in hot water… His remarks set off a major outcry, prompting top Republicans and Democrats alike to denounce the famed talk show host. Limbaugh apologized Saturday… The damage, however, has been done. Eight companies, including AOL, Quicken Loans and ProFlowers, have announced they will pull ads from Limbaugh’s show, the No. 1 radio show in America. What effect this will have on Limbaugh — and the 600-plus radio stations his show airs on — is anyone’s guess.

“The [recent] controversy is far from the first time Rush Hudson Limbaugh III has made controversial statements — or backtracked. In 2006, Limbaugh mocked Parkinson’s-afflicted actor Michael J. Fox after Fox appeared in a political commercial for Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill. He later offered a conditional apology…Three years earlier, Limbaugh resigned from ESPN’s ‘Sunday NFL Countdown’ after igniting a controversy with statements about African-American quarterback Donovan McNabb… Limbaugh has also mocked presidential children Amy Carter (‘the most unattractive presidential daughter in the history of the country’) and Chelsea Clinton (comparing her to a dog). Both times, he apologized, though some critics questioned the spirit of his regret.”

One word summarizes all of this: Tasteless.

Asteroid on Collision Course with Earth

Rt.com wrote on March 3:

“NASA’s data shows [a] 60-meter asteroid… will whistle by Earth in 11 months. Its trajectory will bring it within a hair’s breadth of our planet, raising fears of a possible collision. The asteroid, known as DA14, will pass by our planet in February 2013 at a distance of under 27,000 km (16,700 miles). This is closer than the geosynchronous orbit of some satellites.

“‘There is a possibility the asteroid will collide with Earth, but further calculation is required to estimate the potential threat and work out how to avert possible disaster,’ NASA expert Dr. David Dunham told students at Moscow’s University of Electronics and Mathematics (MIEM). In the event of a collision, scientists have calculated that the energy released would equate to the destructive power of a thermo-nuclear bomb…

“The asteroid has proven a bitter discovery. It has been circling in orbit for three years already, crossing Earth’s path several times… It seems that spotting danger from outer space is still the area where mere chance reigns, while asteroid defense systems exist only in drafts. ‘The asteroid may split into pieces entering the atmosphere. In this case, most part of it will never reach the planet’s surface,’ remarks Dunham. But if the entire asteroid is to crash into the planet, the impact will be as hard as in the Tunguska blast, which in 1908 knocked down trees over a total area of 2,150 sq km (830 sq miles) in Siberia. This is almost the size of Luxembourg…”

This is not mere science fiction. The Bible warns that such crashes with asteroids and meteorites will occur. Please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution—a Fairy Tale for Adults?” See also the next article.

Solar Storms Ramp Up

The Washington Post wrote on March 7, 2012:

“Since Sunday, the sun has launched a barrage of flares, particle radiation and blobs of plasma that have disrupted some radio communications and forced airlines to reroute northern flights… The stormy space weather started with a potent sunspot that unleashed X-class solar flares — the strongest variety — on Sunday and again Tuesday evening…

“After a years-long quiet period, solar activity is ramping up and is expected to peak in May 2013…”

BBC News added on March 8:

“… this episode of solar activity is a preview of what is to come in the broader, 11-year solar cycle. Dr Craig Underwood, from the Surrey Space Centre, UK, said: ‘The event is the largest for several years, but it is not in the most severe class. We may expect more storms of this kind and perhaps much more severe ones in the next year or so as we approach solar maximum. Such events act as a wake-up call as to how our modern western lifestyles are utterly dependent on space technology and national power grid infrastructure.’

“… the strongest storms can have… significant effects. In 1972, a geomagnetic storm provoked by a solar flare knocked out long-distance telephone communication across the US state of Illinois. And in 1989, another disturbance plunged six million people into darkness across the Canadian province of Quebec.”

Killing Babies… Where Does It Stop?

The Daily Mail wrote on March 1:

“Doctors should have the right to kill newborn babies because they are disabled, too expensive or simply unwanted by their mothers… [Two doctors argue] a young baby is not a real person and so killing it in the first days after birth is little different to aborting it in the womb. Even a healthy baby could have its life snuffed out if the mother decides she can’t afford to look after it, the article published by the British Medical Journal group states. The journal’s editor has defended the piece, saying the publication’s role is to present well-reasoned arguments, rather than promote one particular moral view.

“[The doctors] argue that ‘after-birth abortion’ should be permissible in all cases in which abortion is. They state that like an unborn child, a newborn has yet to develop hopes, goals and dreams and so, while clearly human, is not a person – someone with a moral right to life… The article, After-birth abortion: why should the baby live? first addresses scenarios in which parents are unaware their child is disabled until after it is born… The ethicists are also in favour of the infanticide of a healthy baby when the woman’s circumstances have changed and she no longer has the time, money or energy to care for it…

“… the journal’s editor said that the article’s argument has been made before by eminent figures. He added: ‘I’m not defending practising infanticide. I’m defending academic and intellectual freedom.’”

But academic and intellectual “freedom” did many times lay the groundwork for horrible and despicable crimes, such as mass murders of Jews and other “undesired” people in the Third Reich. Sadly, there is nothing new under the sun. When one allows the killing of the unborn child, why not the killing of a born child? Where does it stop? Our societies have rejected godly injunctions and replaced them with their intellectual foolish concepts.  In an accompanying article, the Daily Mail wrote:

“In Roman culture, disabled infants were often abandoned after birth by parents who did not want or could not afford the financial burden. The child would simply be left outside to die from starvation and the elements in a practice known as ‘exposure’. It was an established and acceptable procedure… Archaeologists believe Romans did not consider infants to be ‘full’ human beings until about the age of two, and babies who died before that age were not buried in cemeteries, but instead in public or domestic areas…

“Many parents in ancient [Greece]  would also expose their newborns because of sickness, financial pressure, or simply for being the ‘wrong’ sex in the male-dominated society… there are references to infanticide in many cultures in every historical era, and is believed to still take place in certain parts of India, Africa, and China. China’s controversial ‘one-child’ policy leads to many children being abandoned after birth.”

Kirk Cameron Attacked for His Biblical View on Marriage

WorldNetDaily reported on March 6, 2012:

“Christian actor Kirk Cameron was a guest on ‘Piers Morgan Tonight’ over the weekend to discuss ‘Monumental,’ his new project on the roots of America coming to theaters later this month, when the British host of the program suddenly turned subject and asked Cameron his views on homosexual marriage.

“Cameron’s calm answer explaining his view that marriage ‘was defined by God a long time ago … one man, one woman for life’ has drawn a firestorm of criticism from fellow celebrities, homosexual organizations… and Roseanne Barr, who called Cameron ‘an accomplice to murder with his hate speech.’

“‘I was asked to share my views on homosexuality, gay marriage and abortion,’ Cameron says. ‘I spoke as honestly as I could, but some people believe my responses were not loving toward those in the gay community. That is not true. I can assuredly say that it’s my life’s mission to love all people. The only way to properly answer these kind of questions is to begin the discussion with another question: Is life and sexuality sacred or are they not?… If they are, then God has something to say about these things. If not, then everyone is entitled to their own opinion on the matter.

“‘I believe that freedom of speech and freedom of religion go hand-in-hand in America… I should be able to express moral views on social issues – especially those that have been the underpinning of Western civilization for 2,000 years – without being slandered, accused of hate speech and told from those who preach “tolerance” that I need to either bend my beliefs to their moral standards or be silent when I’m in the public square…’

“When Morgan asked Cameron… ‘Do you think homosexuality is a sin?,’ Cameron responded, ‘I think it’s unnatural, that it’s detrimental and ultimately destructive to so many of the foundations of civilization.’… In a TMZ interview afterward… Morgan defended Cameron. ‘He was honest to what he believed, and I don’t think he was expecting the kind of fury it created,’ Morgan said. ‘He was pretty brave to say what he said.’”

It is truly telling and sad at the same time that one must be afraid of repercussions and persecution in a “Christian” country for stating the plain and simple truth of the Bible. Note also the next article.

Same-Sex Marriages in Great Britain?

Zenit wrote on March 7:

“The issue of same-sex marriage has been in the headlines in recent days in Britain. Responding to Prime Minister David Cameron’s proposal to legalize same-sex marriage, Edinburgh’s archbishop, Cardinal Keith O’Brien, wrote an article in last Sunday’s edition of the Telegraph newspaper on the topic. ‘Since all the legal rights of marriage are already available to homosexual couples, it is clear that this proposal is not about rights, but rather is an attempt to redefine marriage for the whole of society at the behest of a small minority of activists,’ he said… ‘Can a word whose meaning has been clearly understood in every society throughout history suddenly be changed to mean something else?,’ he asked. The institution of marriage predates any state or government, he explained. ‘It was not created by governments and should not be changed by them’…

“A number of press reports say that this Sunday a pastoral letter will be read out in all churches in England and Wales on the topic of same-sex marriage. It is reportedly authored by the Archbishop of Westminster, Vincent Nichols, and the Archbishop of Southwark, Peter Smith. Redefining marriage to include homosexuals would be a ‘profoundly radical step’ stripping it of its ‘distinctive nature,’ according to copies of the letter published by the press. The definition of marriage is much more than a matter of public opinion, the letter affirms… ‘neither the Church nor the State has the power to change this fundamental understanding of marriage itself.’

“The government has shown no signs of backing down from its commitment to legalizing same-sex marriage… Prime Minister David Cameron’s government will, however, face determined opposition from the Catholic Church… Scotland’s local government is also considering introducing same-sex marriage. In September last year it opened up a process of consultation on same-sex civil partnerships and marriage… Cardinal Keith O’Brien and Bishop Philip Tartaglia wrote to Scotland’s First Minister and the Deputy First Minister seeking clarification on the government’s consultation…

 “As the opinion pages and editorials of the press in Britain fill with contrary views on same-sex marriage, the coming months promise to be a tense time indeed for the future of marriage and the family.”

Pork Is Hazardous to Your Health

Mercola.com reported on March 1:

“Levitical guidelines label the pig an ‘unclean’ animal, and prohibit the consumption of pork. Regardless of your spiritual beliefs, there may be good reason to carefully consider your decision to include pork as part of your diet, as despite advertising campaigns trying to paint pork as a ‘healthy’ alternative to beef, research suggests it may be hazardous to your health on multiple levels. Pork consumption has a strong epidemiological association with cirrhosis of the liver… Other studies also show an association between pork consumption and liver cancer as well as multiple sclerosis.

“… there is enough scientific evidence to justify the reservations or outright prohibitions in many cultures against consuming it. Pigs are scavenger animals and will eat just about anything, alive, sick or dead. Their appetite for less-than-wholesome foods makes pigs a breeding ground for potentially dangerous infections. Even cooking pork for long periods is not enough to kill many of the retroviruses and other parasites that many of them harbor.”

The Bible had it right from the outset… but man’s foolishness wants to ignore or reject everything that God commands.

Utter US Failure in Afghanistan

Foreign Policy wrote on February 23:

“If observers had any doubts about the failure of the U.S. counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan, the past several days should have put them to rest. Since Feb. 21, anti-U.S. protests have erupted in virtually every major Afghan city over the revelation that American personnel had burned Qurans at Bagram Airfield, the largest U.S. installation in the country. The demonstrations have at times turned violent… This wave of protest is just the latest example of how the United States has botched its attempt to win ‘hearts and minds’ in Afghanistan…

“But that’s not the message you would hear from U.S. officials… public statements made from podiums in Washington and Kabul bear little resemblance to the reality of the Afghan war… the U.S. military leadership’s glowing descriptions of progress against the Taliban insurgency did not jibe with the accounts of American soldiers on the front lines of the war… U.S. officials have so thoroughly misinformed the American public ‘that the truth has become unrecognizable’ and ‘deception [has] reach[ed] an intolerable low’ [according to inside reports of Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis]…

“U.S. officials work to spin a failing war as a success story…  As Davis wrote, Gen. David Petraeus’s testimony to the Senate Armed Forces Committee on March 15, 2011, is a textbook example of how the military misled the U.S. public… American troops are also increasingly cynical about the mission to prop up the profoundly corrupt Afghan government. Working day in and day out with Afghan officials whom they knew often funneled American taxpayer dollars to the Taliban, U.S. soldiers and civilian officials were guaranteed to experience cognitive dissonance…”

WorldNetDaily wrote on February 29:

“In a development that could chill the dedication of every soldier in the field, the U.S. government has refused to deny reports by the government of Afghanistan that NATO has agreed to have the soldiers who burned copies of the Quran face trial…

“It appears that the soldiers may not have violated Islamic law at all by their burning of the Qurans. In a PBS interview, Imam Jihad Turk, director of religious affairs at the Islamic Center of Southern California, said it was acceptable to burn the Quran if it was in a state of ‘disrepair.’ ‘When Muslims want to respectfully dispose of a text of the Quran that is no longer usable, we will burn it…’”

To please fanatical fundamentalist Afghans who have murdered American soldiers in “retaliation,” by now turning some US soldiers over to the Afghan government for trial would be an absolute outcry and constitute total derogation and dereliction of US authority.

The USA Is in DEEP Financial Trouble – Per Capita Government Debt Worse Than Greece

The Weekly Standard wrote on February 23:

“The office of Senator Jeff Sessions, ranking member on the Senate Budget Committee, sends along [a] chart, showing that ‘America’s Per Capita Government Debt [Is] Worse Than Greece,’ as well as Ireland, Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain…”

Sky-Rocketing Personal Debts

The New York Post wrote on February 26:

“More American households are falling back into the debt hole, this time without the safety net of home values to help bail them out… Last year, total US consumer debt reached its highest point in a decade… In December 2011, the total consumer debt… rose by some 9.3 percent to $2.498 trillion… These numbers… mean that many middle-class Americans are taking big risks. In a weak economy with high unemployment… many people with big card balances become vulnerable to financial catastrophe.”

Terrible Prospects of Rising Gas Prices

Reuters reported on February 26:

“A jump in energy prices is jamming the slow-turning cogs of an economic recovery in the West, but that may be nothing compared to the economic shock an Israeli attack on Iran would cause.

“Oil rose to a 10-month high above $125 a barrel Friday, prompting responses from policymakers around the world including U.S. President Barack Obama, watching U.S. gasoline prices follow crude to push toward $4 a gallon in an election year.”

More Bad News—Now Rising Water Bills

The Examiner wrote on February 27:

“First high gas prices, now water. A shocking new report about the nation’s crumbling drinking water system says that Americans should expect their bills to double or triple to cover repairs just to keep their faucets pouring. That means adding up to $900 a year more for water, nearly equal the amount of the newly extended payroll tax cut… Families can expect to pay at least $300-$550 more for water in taxes and fees just to keep their current systems operating. Add growth and improved systems, and that bill jumps to $900 for a family of three… Currently, Americans pay about $400 a month in water taxes and fees…”

Economist Warns—Recession Unavoidable

CNN wrote on February 24:

“While most economists have stopped worrying that the U.S. will fall into a double-dip recession, one influential economist maintains his position that the nation won’t be able to avoid a new downturn. Lakshman Achuthan, co-founder of the Economic Cycle Research Institute, said on Friday that his research firm is sticking with the forecast it made in September: A new recession is inevitable…

“ECRI is one of the more widely respected firms on economic recessions, as it has never been wrong when forecasting that a recession would start, or failed to predict a recession well before it was widely accepted. Achuthan predicts the recession will happen even without a new shock to the economy, such as a spike in oil and gas prices… If those things occur, he says they will simply make an inevitable recession more painful. In fact, Achuthan said data gathered since his September forecast only confirms his view that economic growth has slowed to such a degree that a downturn is now unavoidable, likely by late summer…

“Achuthan’s views are not widely accepted… But more than 50 years of economic data followed by his firm has shown him that when underlying growth slows to this degree, a recession always follows.”

More “Doomsayers” Give Grim Warnings of Coming Crash

USA Today wrote on February 27:

“Behind the mainstream Wall Street happy talk about more stable financial markets and an improving economy are grim warnings of tough times ahead from a small cadre of doomsayers who warn that the worst of the financial crisis is still to come. Harry Dent, author of the new book The Great Crash Ahead, says another stock market crash is coming due to a bad ending to the global debt bubble… [a] crash is coming in 2013 or 2014, he warns. ‘This will be a repeat of 2008-09, only bigger, when it finally hits…’

“Gerald Celente, a trend forecaster at the Trends Research Institute, says Americans should brace themselves for an ‘economic 9/11’ due to policymakers’ inability to solve the world’s financial and economic woes. The coming meltdown, he predicts, will lead to growing social unrest and anti-government sentiment, a U.S. dollar with far less purchasing power and more people out of work. Celente won’t rule out another financial panic that could spark enough fear to cause a run on the nation’s banks by depositors. That risk could cause the government to invoke ‘economic martial law’ and call a ‘bank holiday’ and close banks as it did during the Great Depression…

“Robert Prechter, author of Conquer the Crash, first published in 2002 and updated in 2009, is still bearish. He says today’s economy has similarities to the Great Depression and warns that 1930s-style deflation is still poised to cause financial havoc. Prechter predicts that the major U.S. stock indexes, such as the Dow Jones industrials and Standard & Poor’s 500, will plunge below their bear market lows hit in March 2009 during the last financial crisis. The brief recovery will fail as it did in the 1930s, he says. If he’s right, stocks would lose more than half of their value. These dire forecasts differ sharply with the brighter outlooks being espoused by the bulls, or optimists, on Wall Street. Recent stock performance and fresh readings on the economy also suggest a future that is less gloomy than the doomsayers predict.”

Sadly, as the Bible clearly shows, the “bulls” or optimists on Wall Street are wrong, and the “doomsayers” are correct. But as the next articles show, Britain is facing equally tough times.

British Government Out of Money

The Telegraph reported on February 27:

“In a stark warning ahead of next month’s Budget, the [British] Chancellor said there was little the Coalition could do to stimulate the economy. Mr Osborne made it clear that due to the [perilous] state of the public finances the best hope for economic growth was to encourage businesses to flourish and hire more workers. ‘The British Government has run out of money because all the money was spent in the good years,’ the Chancellor said. ‘The money and the investment and the jobs need to come from the private sector.’”

New Virus Threatens Survival of Many British Farms

The Telegraph reported on February 27:

“Thousands of lambs have been killed by a new virus that is threatening the survival of many British farms. The Schmallenberg virus causes lambs to be born dead or with serious deformities such as fused limbs and twisted necks, which mean they cannot survive. Scientists are urgently trying to find out how the disease, which also affects cattle, spreads and how to fight it, as the number of farms affected increases by the day.  So far, 74 farms across southern and eastern England have been hit by the virus, which arrived in this country in January. A thousand farms in Europe have reported cases since the first signs of the virus were seen in the German town of Schmallenberg last summer.

“The National Farmers Union has called it a potential ‘catastrophe’ and warned farmers to be vigilant. ‘This is a ticking time bomb,’ said Alastair Mackintosh, of the NFU… Infected ewes do not show any symptoms of the virus until they give birth, with horrific results…

“Farmers fear the disease may spread to larger flocks in the north of England, Wales and Scotland. In Europe, Germany, Holland and France have suffered worst, while recent cases have been reported in Italy and Luxembourg… There are also fears that the virus may be seen later this year among cows, which have a longer gestation period… there is no vaccine, and Defra says a ban on imports would not work, because the disease ‘is already here’…

“The AHVLA identifies Schmallenberg as one of a group of viruses ‘typically primarily spread by biting insect vectors, such as midges and mosquitoes, although the routes of Schmallenberg virus transmission have not yet been confirmed. The potential for direct transmission (ie direct from one animal to another) is therefore, as yet, unknown.’”

The economic problems should not be underestimated, either. The Telegraph wrote:

“On the Continent, some farms have lost half of their lambs. So far the worst hit in Britain have lost 20 per cent… Approximately 16 million lambs are born in Britain every year and sell at market for about £100 each. The effect of the disease on farms that are already struggling in the downturn could be severe.

“‘For any business to lose 20 per cent of your stock would be a huge blow… For a farmer to lose 20 per cent of your flock is catastrophic. If it was 50 per cent you would be put out of action…’ [said Alastair Mackintosh, of the National Farmers Union].”

German Parliament Approves Greek Bailout Against the Will of the People

BBC News reported on February 27:

“German MPs have voted by 496 to 90 to back the second EU/IMF bailout for Greece. Chancellor Angela Merkel had urged them to back the deal, while conceding there was ‘no 100% guarantee’ it would work… Germany will have to pay more than any other country for the 130bn euro ($173bn; £110bn) package, agreed by eurozone states last week. Although the Bundestag (lower house) had the power to block the bailout, it was always expected to go through because of the support of two opposition parties, the Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens…

“Under the front-page headline ‘Stop’, Germany’s mass circulation Bild newspaper made a direct appeal to parliament: ‘Don’t keep on going the wrong way.’ An opinion poll for Bild’s Sunday edition suggested that 62% of those surveyed wanted MPs to vote against the package… Mrs Merkel told the Bundestag that she was aware that people were concerned that Greece was a ‘hopeless case’ and that the eurozone would be better off without it. But she had come to the conclusion that ‘the opportunities of this new package outweighed the risks. No-one can predict what the repercussions of a disorderly default would be for all of us and also for the people of Germany.’”

Bild wrote on February 27:

“Against its better judgment, Europe is pouring money into a bottomless barrel. Europe can only master this crisis if it does what most experts have long been demanding. The Greek economy can only become competitive and resume growth with its own currency — not with the strong euro. Continuing with the old recipes won’t work. That is why today’s parliamentary vote [is] bad for Greece, bad for Germany and bad for Europe.”

The Berliner Zeitung wrote on February 27:

“Let’s remain realistic. Greece won’t manage to get back on its feet even with the second bailout package. The planned debt cut won’t be enough, the reforms aren’t getting underway and the country is breaking down under the weight of the austerity programs… A Greek exit from the euro zone would not end the EU’s solidarity with Greece. That’s because Greece could still count on help from its EU partners. The rescue could end up being cheaper and — far more importantly — less painful for the Greeks.”

Der Spiegel Online added on February 27:

“In a slight setback for Angela Merkel, the chancellor failed to secure an absolute majority within her own government coalition. A total of 304 members of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) voted in favor of the bailout, but 311 were required for a majority. Within the CDU/CSU bloc, 13 politicians rejected the bailout, with four members of the FDP joining them to oppose it. Ultimately, Merkel had to rely on opposition support.”

One must ask how long the German Parliament and Government can proceed as they do in light of growing opposition from the people. And as the next article shows, the criticism and verbal attacks on the “German villain” will not convince many Germans that continuing to help those ungrateful countries is the best course of action.

Germany—The New Villain

Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 27:

“The German parliament… approve[d] a new multibillion euro bailout package for Greece on Monday, but instead of thanks, southern Europeans are expressing their dislike of us. Germans will have to get used to their new role: We have become the Americans of Europe…

“Sentiment towards the Germans isn’t very good… right now. Hardly a day goes by without Chancellor Angela Merkel being depicted in a Nazi uniform somewhere. Swastikas are a common sight as well. It doesn’t seem to help at all that we faithfully approve one aid package after the other… A good deal of the €130 billion [which were] approved by the German parliament on Monday will never be seen again. But if you read the editorial pages of newspapers in the crisis regions, for whom this money is intended, you would be led to believe that we are out to achieve what our grandfathers failed to do 70 years ago…

“It won’t be long before they start burning German flags. But wait, they’re already doing that. Previously we had only known that from Arab countries, where the youth would take every opportunity to run through the streets to rage against that great Satan, the USA. But that’s how things go when others consider a country to be too successful, too self-confident and too strong. We’ve now become the Americans of Europe. The role reversal won’t be an easy one either — it is already safe to say that today. We Germans are accustomed to having people admire us for our efficiency and industriousness — and not to hate us for it.

“But before we complain too much about all this ingratitude, we should remind ourselves that we ourselves spent years passing the buck. As long as the global villain was America, the Germans joined in when it came to feeling good at the expense of others. The Americans also had every reason to expect a little more gratitude — after all, it was their soldiers who had to intervene when a dictator somewhere lived out his bloody fantasies while the international community stood by wringing its hands.

“People came to secretly rely on the USA as a global cop in the same way that Germany’s neighbors are now expecting the Germans to save the euro. Unfortunately, however, the feeling of inferiority can be just as vicious as that of superiority. Of course, one can try to make oneself seem smaller than one really is. But this self-denial doesn’t work. The Americans weren’t much more popular under Jimmy Carter than they were under Ronald Reagan… Obama’s election also didn’t do a whole lot to help the US’ image in the longer term. A giant can’t conceal his size for long… We will probably just have to get used to the fact that, for a time, Germany won’t be very popular in some countries in Europe…”

It is interesting that Germany is now described negatively as the “America of Europe”—showing the deep and ongoing antagonism of many Europeans towards America. These feelings are neither grateful nor justified.

“The Evil Spirits of the Past… Can Always Return”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 28:

“Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, one of the architects of the European single currency, has stepped into the German debate about the wisdom of providing Greece with further aid. On Tuesday, he urged Germany to stay committed to European unity, which he said remained a matter of war and peace, even 67 years after the end of World War II… Kohl repeated his mantra that the euro was about nothing less than preventing war…

“‘The evil spirits of the past have by no means been banished, they can always return. That means: Europe remains a question of war and peace and the desire for peace remains the driving force behind European integration,’ wrote Kohl… ‘Europe is our future,’ Kohl wrote. ‘There is no alternative to Europe. We have every reason to be optimistic that our Europe will emerge strengthened from this current crisis — if we want it to. Let us not be misled.’”

Germany the Unquestioned Boss of Europe

The Los Angeles Times wrote on February 27:

“For nearly 70 years, Germany’s grand national ambition has basically been not to have one. After losing two world wars and carrying out a horrific genocide, the country set to working its way back into the European fold, content to focus on rebuilding its shattered economy while dutifully leaving continental leadership to the likes of France. The plan has been a roaring success — so much so that, in one of history’s great ironies, Germany today finds itself right back where it wasn’t supposed to be: dominating Europe.

“As the region’s richest, most populous nation, with control over purse strings rather than panzers, Germany is the unquestioned boss amid Europe’s stubborn debt crisis and deepening economic malaise… Potentially the fate of the global economy now lies in Germany’s hands as it heads the effort to keep heavily indebted Greece (where people mutter about a ‘Fourth Reich’) from going under and pulling down other Eurozone countries with it. On Monday, Chancellor Angela Merkel successfully steered approval for a $175-billion Greek bailout through the German Parliament, a deeply divisive measure for German taxpayers who will foot more than half the bill.

“Even so, President Obama and other world leaders are urging Germany to contribute even more to a permanent European bailout fund that might stanch the debt crisis…

“The leadership role thrust onto Germany is turning out to be a minefield in many ways, complicated by the nation’s past. Berlin is caught in a classic damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t position, its every move fodder for critics eager to spot signs either of Teutonic belligerence or a failure to exercise power responsibly… The plan that Europe is pursuing to save the euro currency bears an unmistakably German stamp… Despite the growing chorus of detractors and indicators showing that austerity is strangling economic growth in ailing nations, Merkel has refused to yield, and no fellow European leader has been strong enough to overrule her.

“‘She’s the queen of Europe,’ said Josef Joffe, editor of the newspaper Die Zeit. Gone are the days when Germany was considered an economic giant but a political dwarf, as the cliche had it, Joffe said. ‘In an age where economic power suddenly moves to the fore, as it has in the last 18 months, the economic giant also becomes a political giant.’”

Coming–New War in the Middle East…

Fox News wrote on February 25:

“An Israeli pre-emptive attack on Iran’s nuclear sites could draw the U.S. into a new Middle East conflict, a prospect dreaded by a war-weary Pentagon wary of new entanglements. That could mean pressing into service the top tier of American firepower — warplanes, warships, special operations forces and possibly airborne infantry — with unpredictable outcomes in one of the world’s most volatile regions.”

The Guardian wrote on February 25:

“Iran has warned Israel against mounting an attack on its nuclear facilities amid rising international tension over its uranium enrichment programme. General Ahmad Vahidi issued a statement warning Israel that an attack would lead to the collapse of the Jewish state.”

The Economist wrote on February 25:

“The crisis has been a long time coming… Israel has nuclear weapons itself, including submarine-based weapons that could posthumously annihilate any aggressor who destroyed the country. But this deterrent is not enough to stop Israelis from seeing a nuclear Iran as the precursor to a second holocaust. The problem is that military action will not necessarily bring about what Israel wants—and could, in the medium to long term, make matters worse…

“Then there is the American presidential election. Like the Bush administration before it, Barack Obama’s White House sees Iran’s nuclear ambitions as a huge concern. But it worries that the consequences of an attack on Iran, whether by Israel or America, are unpredictable and scary: oil prices would rocket—at least for a while—endangering the economic recovery; allies in the Gulf already shaken by the Arab spring could be further destabilised; jihadist terrorism could be re-energised…

“But the election may give Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, something to bargain with. In the face of a hawkish Republican rival and in front of an electorate that is in parts fiercely pro-Israel, Mr Obama may feel he has to welcome, or even build on, an Israeli fait accompli in a way he would not have done earlier…”

It is so sad that the American election should have any influence on a decision whether or not to go to war—but sadly, in this politically motivated climate, the question of right or wrong far too often escapes the decision-making process. In fact, A-7 News reported on March 1, 2012 that “U.S. military officials say that America is preparing a plan to strike Iranian nuclear targets in the event that sanctions fail to persuade Tehran to halt its hurtle towards atomic development.”

Israel Won’t Inform USA Ahead of Military Action Against Iran

The Associated Press reported on February 27:

“Israeli officials said that if they eventually decide a strike is necessary, they would keep the Americans in the dark to decrease the likelihood that the United States would be held responsible for failing to stop Israel’s potential attack… But the apparent decision to keep the United States in the dark also stems from Israel’s frustration with the White House… they became convinced the Americans would neither take military action, nor go along with unilateral action by Israel against Iran. The Israelis concluded they would have to conduct a strike unilaterally…”

Clashes at the Temple Mount

The Jerusalem Post wrote on February 24:

“A Palestinian protester died after being shot in the chest at the Kalandia checkpoint near Jerusalem as clashes with police beginning at the Temple Mount spread through the area… Security forces used force to disperse hundreds of Muslim worshipers at the Temple Mount on Friday who rioted and threw stones following a tense week in the Old City… A number of youth barricaded themselves inside the mosque during the rioting, and dozens of police who responded to the incident used stun grenades and other riot control methods to disperse the crowd…

“A website called ‘Our Temple Mount’ has publicized a number of events at the Temple Mount encouraging religious Jews to go up to the site in order to exercise Jewish sovereignty over the religious area. The site advocates for destroying any Muslim buildings in order to rebuild the Third Temple…

“On Sunday, a group of approximately 50 Arabs threw stones at Christian tourists and police patrols, prompted by reports in the Jordanian press of more attempts by right-wing activists to ascend to the Temple Mount. Police arrested 24 people during the day on Sunday in connection with the stone throwing…”

Fundamental radicals, including Arabs and Israelis and even some “Christian” organizations, are playing with fire which could ignite the entire region.

North Korea—Cautious Optimism?

Deutsche Welle reported on March 1:

“The sudden agreement between the US and North Korea over its nuclear program was a positive surprise to many, but the reaction in Washington is still cautious… With the new bilateral agreement, North Korea has agreed to stop nuclear testing, stop building long-range missiles and stop enriching uranium, and has promised to allow inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to visit its Yongbyon nuclear research center… The US has taken care to say that the 240,000 tons of humanitarian aid being shipped to North Korea is not a reward for its statement on the nuclear program… few people believe that North Korea really will give up its nuclear ambitions.”

“How Do You Clean Up After a Nuclear Disaster?”

PBS reported on February 28:

“The events last March in Japan couldn’t have presented Japan with a more difficult task. After record-setting earthquake, a massive tsunami and a nuclear disaster comparable in scale only to the 1986 Chernobyl meltdown, how do you wrap your head around making once-vibrant villages habitable again? Where do you even begin?… Currently, there’s a 20 km (12 mile) exclusion zone around Fukushima Daiichi. No one is allowed to live inside it, and workers are bused in at all hours of the day and night to work at the plant. The goal is for the 80,000 or so residents forced to evacuate to eventually be able to return.

“Decontamination has never been done on such a large scale before. The only other nuclear accident to be rated a 7, the highest on the international scale, was Chernobyl in 1986 in Ukraine. In that case, the decision was made to evacuate the area — about 20 miles surrounding the plant — permanently. A protective sarcophagus was built around the plant, which is currently being updated because the original is crumbling…

“First you have to stabilize the nuclear reactors while limiting the release of radioactive materials. In part this requires keeping the nuclear fuel cool, until temperatures in the reactors reach 100 degrees Celsius or below — a point known as ‘cold shutdown.’ Three reactors at Fukushima Daiichi reached this mark last December, though because of leaks, a half-million liters of water is still being pumped in each day.

“Because of the initial flooding after the tsunami, and the gallons and gallons of water injected into the reactors, there was — and likely still is — radioactive water in the reactors. A lot of it…

 “Even if Japan’s nuclear crisis is contained, its earthquake and tsunami now seem certain to be, economically speaking, among the worst national disasters in history… [an] estimate right after the disaster placed the cost closer to 25 trillion yen, or $300 billion — four times the cost of cleaning up after Hurricane Katrina. In addition, containing and cleaning any radioactive material could cost $10 billion alone…

“Removing fuel that has melted in the Fukushima Daichii reactors will likely take 25 years. Decommissioning the plant will add another five to 10 years to this process… Japan’s government is currently working to establish long-term storage facilities, which will last about 30 years, but it estimates that their construction will take at least three more years…”

This article is astounding! The amount of time and the cost for this clean-up are staggering. It gives us a glimpse as to the momentous task ahead of us, after Christ has returned, to deal with the nuclear devastation which this world will have brought upon itself.

“Yoga Began as a Sex Cult”

The New York Times wrote on February 27:

“The wholesome image of yoga took a hit in the past few weeks as a rising star of the discipline came tumbling back to earth. After accusations of sexual impropriety with female students, John Friend, the founder of Anusara, one of the world’s fastest-growing styles, told followers that he was stepping down for an indefinite period of ‘self-reflection, therapy and personal retreat’…  this is hardly the first time that yoga’s enlightened facade has been cracked by sexual scandal. Why does yoga produce so many philanderers? And why do the resulting uproars leave so many people shocked and distraught?

“One factor is ignorance. Yoga teachers and how-to books seldom mention that the discipline began as a sex cult — an omission that leaves many practitioners open to libidinal surprise. Hatha yoga — the parent of the styles now practiced around the globe — began as a branch of Tantra. In medieval India, Tantra devotees sought to fuse the male and female aspects of the cosmos into a blissful state of consciousness.

“The rites of Tantric cults, while often steeped in symbolism, could also include group and individual sex… Candidates for worship included actresses and prostitutes, as well as the sisters of practitioners. Hatha originated as a way to speed the Tantric agenda. It used poses, deep breathing and stimulating acts — including intercourse — to hasten rapturous bliss. In time, Tantra and Hatha developed bad reputations. The main charge was that practitioners indulged in sexual debauchery under the pretext of spirituality.

“Early in the 20th century, the founders of modern yoga worked hard to remove the Tantric stain… modern practitioners have embraced a whitewashed simulacrum of Hatha. But over the decades, many have discovered from personal experience that the practice can fan the sexual flames…Since the baby boomers discovered yoga, the arousal, sweating, heavy breathing and states of undress that characterize yoga classes have led to predictable results. In 1995, sex between students and teachers became so prevalent that the California Yoga Teachers Association deplored it as immoral and called for high standards…

“If yoga can arouse everyday practitioners, it apparently has similar, if not greater, effects on gurus — often charming extroverts in excellent physical condition, some enthusiastic for veneration…

“Swami Muktananda (1908-82) was an Indian man of great charisma who favored dark glasses and gaudy robes. At the height of his fame, around 1980, he attracted many thousands of devotees — including movie stars and political celebrities — and succeeded in setting up a network of hundreds of ashrams and meditation centers around the globe. He kept his main shrines in California and New York. In late 1981, when a senior aide charged that the venerated yogi was in fact a serial philanderer and sexual hypocrite who used threats of violence to hide his duplicity, Mr. Muktananda defended himself as a persecuted saint, and soon died of heart failure…

“Another case involved Swami Rama (1925-96), a tall man with a strikingly handsome face. In 1994, one of his victims filed a lawsuit charging that he had initiated abuse at his Pennsylvania ashram when she was 19. In 1997, shortly after his death, a jury awarded the woman nearly $2 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

“So, too, former devotees at Kripalu, a Berkshires ashram, won more than $2.5 million after its longtime guru — a man who gave impassioned talks on the spiritual value of chastity — confessed to multiple affairs…”

The article speaks for itself…

Homeschooling in Canada Must Not Tell It as It Is

LifeSiteNews reported on February 28:

“Homeschooling families will soon be forbidden from teaching that homosexual sex is sinful as part of their schooling program, according to the government of Alberta, Canada. Under the province’s Education Act, homeschoolers and religious schools will be banned from ‘disrespecting’ people’s differences…  ‘Whatever the nature of schooling – homeschool, private school, Catholic school – we do not tolerate disrespect for differences,’ said Donna McColl, Lukaszuk’s assistant director of communications. ‘You can affirm the family’s ideology in your family life, you just can’t do it as part of your educational study and instruction.’

“…when McColl was asked… to explain the distinction between homeschoolers’ education and their family life, she replied that the question involved ‘real nuances’ and said she would need to get back to reporter with specifics… In 2009, the Alberta Human Rights Act was amended to classify marriage as an institution between two ‘persons,’ rather than a man and a woman.”

Google In Breach of EU Privacy Laws?

BBC News reported on March 1:

“Changes made by Google to its privacy policy are in breach of European law, the EU’s justice commissioner has said… The policy change, implemented on Thursday, means private data collected by one Google service can be shared with its other platforms including YouTube, Gmail and Blogger…

“Google… went ahead with the changes despite warnings from the EU earlier this week. Data regulators in France had cast doubt on the legality of the move and launched a Europe-wide investigation. More than 60 sets of guidelines for its individual Google-owned sites were merged into a single policy for all of its services. It means browsing data and web history, which is gathered when a user is signed in with a Google account, can be shared across all of the websites…”

Dawkins and Williams Terribly Wrong

The Telegraph wrote on February 24:

“Richard Dawkins… is regarded as the most famous atheist in the world but last night [he] admitted he could not be sure that God does not exist. He told the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, that he preferred to call himself an agnostic rather than an atheist… For an hour and 20 minutes the two men… discussed ‘The nature of human beings and the question of their ultimate origin’ touching on the meaning of consciousness, the evolution…

“Prof Dawkins told him: ‘What I can’t understand is why you can’t see the extraordinary beauty of the idea that life started from nothing – that is such a staggering, elegant, beautiful thing, why would you want to clutter it up with something so messy as a God?’ Dr Williams replied that he ‘entirely agreed’ with the ‘beauty’ of Prof Dawkins’s argument but added: ‘I’m not talking about God as an extra who you shoehorn on to that’…

“During a wide-ranging discussion the Archbishop also said that he believed that human beings had evolved from non-human ancestors but were nevertheless ‘in the image of God’. He also said that the explanation for the creation of the world in the Book of Genesis could not be taken literally. ‘The writers of the Bible, inspired as I believe they were, they were nonetheless not inspired to do 21st Century physics,’ he said.”

That the leader of the Anglican Church should deny the Genesis account and accept instead the false teaching of the evolution theory shows once more the terrible state of affairs of our “Christian” world, which is rejecting the Word of God so that it can uphold its own traditions. But neither Atheists and Agnostics, nor “Christian” leaders seem to understand that their denial of God’s Word is at least partially responsible for the lack of standards and morals with which we are confronted today. Please view our new StandingWatch program on this often-overlooked connection, titled, “Religious and Scientific Deceptions”

Human Life Begins at Conception

The New American wrote on February 20:

“Lawmakers in Virginia and Oklahoma approved ‘personhood’ legislation last week to recognize that human life begins at conception, drawing praise from pro-life activists and fury from abortion advocates. Analysts say neither of the bills would immediately ban abortions, but a prohibition would kick in if and when the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade ruling is undone…

“Both Colorado and Mississippi held popular elections to decide whether to amend their state constitutions to legally recognize the personhood of unborn children. Those measures failed.

“… state legislatures across America have been taking more and more action in recent years to protect the unborn… Americans overwhelmingly support restrictions on abortion… it appears increasingly likely that America’s four decades of legalized abortion will come to an end sooner or later…”

The question of when human life begins is not just a theoretical concept which can be used, at will,  in political campaigns in order to gain votes. It is a fundamentally important question. When human life begins with conception—which it does!—then every act to destroy such conceived life is murder, as it is the killing of helpless innocent human life. This does not only include abortion for ANY reason, but also the taking of contraceptives after conception. It seems that very few agree with God’s Word that the taking of innocent helpless human life is ALWAYS wrong—under ANY circumstance. This truth includes so many facets of life—for instance the killing of innocent civilians in war. Since every war leads to the killing of innocent people, every war, fought by humans, is wrong for that reason alone. This is not only true for aggressive or preemptive wars, but also for so-called defensive wars, even though “Christian” churches may justify those. As no political candidate or governmental leader holds such wide-ranging, godly positions, we feel compelled not to vote for ANY political candidate for THAT reason alone… but there exists a myriad of additional reasons as well.

German President Resigns in Disgrace

The Local reported on February 17:

“German President Christian Wulff resigned in disgrace on Friday, finally bowing to pressure and a lack of trust on the back of months of revelations about blurred lines between personal, business and political advantage… the next president will be Germany’s third within two years… Wulff has been under increasing pressure to resign since last December when details of a soft loan of €500,000 he got from the wife of a businessman but did not declare, became public…

“Wulff himself was a controversial candidate who Merkel pushed into office in the face of opposition from within her own party’s ranks. He took over after his predecessor Horst Köhler resigned in May 2010 after making comments which appeared to justify Germany taking military action to defend its economic interests… The German constitution says that should a president resign or be prevented from carrying out his duties, his office should be filled by the president of the upper house of parliament, the Bundesrat – currently Christian Social Union leader Horst Seehofer. The enormous Federal Convention which elects the president, must meet at the latest 30 days after a resignation to start voting on candidates…”

It was announced that the vote will take place on March 18.

Der Spiegel Online added on February 17:

“Following the announcement by prosecutors that they would seek to lift his immunity, German President Christian Wulff announced Friday morning he would resign as the country’s head of state… The resignation of Wulff, Merkel’s handpicked president, is likely to come as a blow to the chancellor and her party in the run-up to state elections in Schleswig-Holstein and Saarland… At the center of the probe are allegations that a film producer had paid for a vacation in a luxury hotel for Wulff during his time as head of a state government. Wulff has denied the allegation, saying he repaid the filmmaker in cash…”

German Parties Pick New President

BBC News reported on February 19:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she backs [independent] Joachim Gauck, a [Lutheran] pastor and former East German rights activist, to be the country’s next president. Mr Gauck was proposed by the opposition Social Democrats and Greens after Christian Wulff quit as president on Friday over corruption allegations. Mrs Merkel opposed Mr Gauck for the presidency in 2010, instead supporting her ally Mr Wulff. Germany’s president has a largely ceremonial, but influential, role. With the backing of all the major parties, Mr Gauck’s election to the position next month should be a formality…

“The 72-year-old Mr Gauck is well known for his work as a dissident in East Germany and for running the archives on the Stasi secret police after the Berlin Wall came down, exposing its crimes… ‘Let’s not forget that we have churchmen like Gauck to thank for the success of East Germany’s peaceful revolution,’ [Angela Merkel] said. Mrs Merkel is herself the daughter of a Protestant pastor and, like Mr Gauck, grew up in the former East Germany… But the affair has come at a bad time for Mrs Merkel, who is trying to steer a way through the eurozone crisis…”

It is interesting that Angela Markel should emphasize the important role of the Lutheran Church in respect to the developments in East Germany, leading to the fall of the Berlin Wall. At the same time, it is well-known what important role the Catholic Church under its (then) Polish pope played in respect to the fall of the Iron Curtain.

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 19:

“Having lived under the dictatorship of East Germany and been forced to look on as his father was shipped to a Soviet gulag for four years, Gauck has dedicated his life to promoting freedom… Due to his family background and because he was not a member of East Germany’s official socialist youth association, Gauck was denied the opportunity to study German language and literature at university. Instead, he took up theology in 1958, and he began work as a Lutheran pastor in 1965… When the religious community took on a central role in promoting democracy in the former East Germany in 1989, it was Gauck who helped lead the popular movement New Forum in Rostock and who held the religious ceremonies that often preceded large-scale demonstrations on the streets of East German cities…

“Gauck’s role investigating the Stasi has made him unpopular in some parts of the Left party, a successor to the former East German communist party. When he ultimately lost out on being appointed president to Wulff in 2010, Left party leader Gesine Lötzsch called Gauck a ‘man of the past’ who did not ‘set a path for the future’… While the Left party has consistently refused to support Gauck’s candidacy for the president’s office, Germany’s other parties have regularly backed him… During the two days of tense discussions following Wulff’s resignation, Gauck was the only person to receive the support of the FDP, the junior partner in Merkel’s governing coalition, as well as the SPD and Greens. Gauck also enjoys the support of the German population. Two polls published Sunday showed voters would like to see Gauck move into Bellevue Palace, the president’s official residence…”

After many past disappointments, Germans are looking for a decent and trustworthy person to lead them. Not everyone is happy with the most recent choice of Joachim Gauck as new President. The skeptic Twitter community is rather opposed to him, especially because the big German parties support him. Also, Pastor Gauck has been separated [but not divorced] from his wife and mother of their four children for many years, while being together with another woman for 12 years. The German news media is asking the question whether Gauck will now divorce and marry his companion, before they are moving together into Bellevue Palace. Of course, Germany’s Foreign Minister, Guido Westerwelle, a practicing homosexual, does not see the need for this discussion. Sadly, in the future, a charismatic person will arise who will seemingly support all the right values, and the people will love him. But he will be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. He is identified as “the beast” in the Bible.

Merkel’s Bitter Defeat—FDP Guilty of Blackmail?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 20:

“In accepting the opposition’s candidate for the next German president, Angela Merkel has suffered the bitterest defeat of her chancellorship. Her junior coalition partner, the FDP, teamed up with the two main opposition parties to push through their choice. The ignominious defeat could mark a turning point for the German chancellor…

“In the ad hoc alliance between the SPD, Greens and the FDP, three parties have come together to oppose the chancellor… Now the three parties, which could conceivably join forces to form a coalition government after the 2013 election, have gone their own way.The trio has outfoxed the arch-strategist Merkel. The chancellor and CDU leader has become more isolated since the weekend — and weaker.”

In a related article, Der Spiegel Online added on February 20:

“The conflict over the choice of Gauck is likely to have repercussions within Merkel’s coalition. Sources in the conservatives told the AFP news agency on Sunday evening that resentment at the FDP would probably have effects on the coalition’s cooperation in the future. SPD politicians could scarcely contain their delight at the split within the government. ‘That was by no means amicable,’ said the SPD’s general secretary, Andrea Nahles, on Sunday evening, describing the conservatives’ concession to the FDP. ‘Amazingly enough, it wasn’t the FDP that was toppled, but the chancellor.’”

The Local wrote on February 21:

“Joachim Gauck’s nomination for the German presidency nearly brought down Angela Merkel’s coalition government, with her Christian Democratic Union accusing their junior partners the Free Democrats of blackmail. The fallout from the row between the CDU and the FDP spilled into public after stories emerged of a stormy meeting between the coalition partners as the decision was being made on Sunday. According to media reports, Chancellor Merkel was incensed after she only heard of the FDP’s decision to back Gauck via the news wires…

“Volker Kauder, head of the CDU’s parliamentary faction was said to have been particularly infuriated, because he had a reputation for defending the shaky alliance with the Free Democrats… FDP leader Philipp Rösler, who is also vice chancellor and economy minister, told Die Welt on Tuesday that the conservatives had seriously threatened to bring down the government. ‘The (CDU) mentioned ending the coalition several times,’ he said… Deputy parliamentary leader Michael Kretschmer called the FDP’s behaviour a ‘flagrant breach of trust’… For a party still languishing in the opinion polls, the long-term effect on the FDP could be devastating.”

The Role of the German President

Deutsche Welle wrote on February 17:

“The resignation of German President Christian Wulff has once again called into question the role of the president. DW takes a look at Germany’s highest office, which plays a largely ceremonial role… Compared with leaders of other countries, the German president has few opportunities to influence day-to-day politics in his or her country. The president represents Germany in matters of international law, and at official gatherings…

“The president signs laws because without that signature they cannot take effect. But it is up for debate exactly how much the president can verify the content of a law, or stop its execution. Some say a president can only make sure that the formalistic lawmaking process has been followed, while others say he or she has the ability to review a law’s contents.

“Part of the president’s job is to propose a chancellor to the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag. He appoints and fires the chancellor based on suggestions made by the Bundestag. Likewise, he can appoint and fire cabinet ministers based on the chancellor’s recommendation. The president can also pardon criminals…

“Unlike in the US, France or Austria, the German president is not elected directly by the people. He is elected by a committee, the Federal Convention, consisting of members of the Bundestag and the same number of delegates sent from the state parliaments. The president has a term of five years, and can only be re-elected once. Any German citizen over the age of 40 is able to become president.

“Why does the German president play a mainly ceremonial role? The reason is that during the Weimar Republic, the period that led up to Nazi Germany, the president had wide-reaching powers. He could annul basic laws and rule with emergency law. These factors played a large role in Hitler’s rise to power…”

However, under certain circumstances, these wide-ranging powers are now vested in Germany’s Chancellor….

Euro Ministers Agree on Greece Bailout

Reuters reported on February 21:

“Euro zone finance ministers agreed a 130-billion-euro ($172 billion) rescue for Greece on Tuesday to avert an imminent chaotic default after forcing Athens to commit to unpopular cuts and private bondholders to take bigger losses. The complex deal wrought in overnight negotiations buys time to stabilize the 17-nation currency bloc and strengthen its financial firewalls, but it leaves deep doubts about Greece’s ability to recover and avoid default in the longer term… Greece will be placed under permanent surveillance by an increased European presence on the ground, and it will have to deposit funds to service its debt in a special account to guarantee repayments.

“The 5 a.m. deal (0400 GMT) was hailed as a step forward for Greece, but experts warned that Athens will need more help to bring its debts down to the level envisaged in the bailout and will remain worryingly ‘accident prone’ in coming years… Greece will struggle for years without economic growth. The austerity measures imposed on Athens are widely disliked among the population and will put pressure on politicians who must contest an election expected in April… An opinion poll taken just before the Brussels deal showed that support for the two mainstream parties backing the rescue had fallen to an all-time low while leftist, anti-bailout parties showed gains…

“Parliaments in three countries that have been most critical of bailouts – Germany, the Netherlands and Finland – must now approve the package. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, who caused an outcry by suggesting that Greece was a ‘bottomless pit,’ said he was confident it would be passed… Many economists question whether Greece can pay off even a reduced debt burden, suggesting the deal may only delay a deeper default by a few months…

“A return to economic growth in Greece could take as much as a decade, a prospect that brought thousands onto the streets of Athens to protest on Sunday. The cuts will deepen a recession already in its fifth year, hurting government revenues. ‘We sowed the wind, now we reap the whirlwind,’ said Vassilis Korkidis, head of the Greek Commerce Confederation. ‘The new bailout is selling us time and hope at a very high price, while it doggedly continues to impose harsh austerity measures that keep us in a long and deep recession.’”

The EUObserver added on February 21:

“Eurozone countries have been quick to pat themselves on the back for greenlighting a second bailout for embattled Greece, but the deal is dependent on a wholesale change to Greek society while the rewards in terms of economic growth and employment remain a long way off… The changes – required to cover a fiscal gap of 5 percent in 2013 and 2014 and make the country competitive – imply a thorough change to society, business and administration in Greece.

“Specifically, the country still needs to make it easier to hire and fire people, needs to start means-testing family allowances, reduce supplementary pensions, reduce public investment, decrease wages to special sectors such as the police and military, close or merge government ministries, cut electoral spending, clean up the system for health reimbursements, cut the minimum wage and renegotiate collective agreement with unions. The government also needs tackle what is seen as endemic tax evasion, although officials admit that this is a devil’s quest as the more recession bites the less still is incentive to pay state dues.

“This comes on top of the measures required for the first bailout which saw major pension reform, opening up of professions, and wage reductions – the combination of which has created a new poor in Greece and driven thousands to the streets in protest… Wages are expected to decrease by a further 15 percent over the coming three years… Meanwhile, unemployment has shot up from 9 percent in 2009 to above 18 percent now. The joblessness rate is expected to start decreasing only in 2014. A year later it is expected to still rest around 15 percent.

“…the agreement was political. The actual measures… still have to be enforced…”

The EUObserver wrote on February 22:

“One of the many loose ends to the Greek bail-out agreed in the early hours of Tuesday (21 February) is the lack of a firm commitment from the International Monetary Fund, pending a decision by eurozone leaders next week to merge the firepower of two bail-out funds…”

Military Attack on Iran Inevitable?

The Guardian wrote on February 18:

“The Middle East could be the battleground for a new cold war, if Iran succeeds in acquiring nuclear weapons, Britain’s foreign secretary has warned. William Hague said the world would face the most serious round of nuclear proliferation since the invention of the atomic bomb, which would be a ‘disaster in world affairs’…

“Hague’s desire to give economic sanctions time to work is reflected in Washington. However, officials in key parts of the Obama administration are increasingly convinced that sanctions will not deter Tehran from pursuing its nuclear programme. They believe the US will be left with no option but to launch an attack on Iran or watch Israel do so.”

The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) wrote on February 18:

“[The] Head of [the] Russian Strategic Research Center for Contemporary Religions and Politics, Maxim Shochenko, said on Saturday [the] US and EU policy of banning Iranian oil is an already failed project… He told IRNA that Iran is cooperating with different countries in this field with many states eying Iranian oil; therefore the US politically-motivated move would bear no fruits for America. Shochenko said Western powers cannot understand the realities in Iran as [an] energy-rich country… He described economic sanctions and [an] oil embargo against Iran as a failed project and said China, India, Turkey and Japan are the main buyers of Iranian crude…”

In spite of the expressed optimism of American and European leaders, these sanctions will not work at all. The reason is that Iran’s leadership is determined to bring about upheaval and war to make possible the return of their Mahdi, as they see it.

Fox News reported on February 19:

“The U.S. and Britain on Sunday urged Israel not to attack Iran’s nuclear program as the White House’s national security adviser arrived in the region, reflecting growing international jitters that the Israelis are poised to strike.

“In their warnings, both the chairman of the U.S. joint chiefs of staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey, and British Foreign Secretary William Hague said an Israeli attack on Iran would have grave consequences for the entire region and urged Israel to give international sanctions against Tehran more time to work…”

Haaretz added on February 20:

“Visits to Jerusalem by senior U.S. officials this week reflect a growing concern in Washington over the possibility that Israel will decide to attack nuclear sites in Iran. The Americans are particularly worried about the hawkish line that Defense Minister Ehud Barak has adopted on the matter… Washington, like Jerusalem, appears to be under the impression that Barak will play a key role in Netanyahu’s decision-making. According to various assessments, in the constellation of forces within the senior forum of eight capital ministers, Barak represents the hawkish camp…”

Haaretz wrote on February 21:

“Iran would take pre-emptive action against its enemies if it felt its national interests were endangered, the deputy head of the Islamic Republic’s armed forces was quoted by a semi-official news agency as saying on Tuesday… Iran is facing growing international pressure and isolation over its disputed nuclear activity. Expanded Western sanctions aim to block its economically vital oil exports and Tehran has said it could retaliate by shutting the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane vital to global energy supplies.

“Earlier Tuesday, Haaretz reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and other senior officials had protested over recent comments by senior American officials critical of any Israeli attack on Iran, saying this criticism ‘served Iran’s interests.’ A senior Israeli official said Netanyahu and Barak told Tom Donilon, U.S. national security adviser who has been in Israel this week, of their dissatisfaction with the interview given by Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, to CNN on Sunday.

“Dempsey said ‘I don’t think a wise thing at this moment is for Israel to launch a military attack on Iran,’ and a strike ‘would be destabilizing’ and ‘not prudent.’ Dempsey said the United States has so far not been able to persuade Israel not to attack Iran…”

We are seeing divisions develop between Israel on the one hand, and America and Europe on the other hand. It is interesting that Isaiah 9:21 speaks of contentions between modern-day Ephraim (mainly Great Britain), Manasseh (the USA) and Judah (the state of Israel).

Iran Continues Their Provocations

VOA News reported on February 18:

“Iranian warships have passed through Egypt’s Suez Canal and entered the Mediterranean Sea… the passage… was only the second made by Iranian ships since the 1979 Islamic Revolution… The Suez canal cuts through Egypt and allows shipping to pass between the Middle East to Europe.”

AFP added on February 18:

“Iranian naval forces are composed of small units, including speedboats equipped with missiles, which operate in the Gulf and are under the command of the Revolutionary Guards. The navy, using small frigates, destroyers, and three Russian-made Kilo class submarines, oversees high seas missions in the Gulf of Oman and Gulf of Aden. It now permanently has at least two vessels in those areas to escort merchant ships, and has been involved in more than 100 confrontations with armed pirates, according to the navy commander in December.”

The Associated Press wrote on February 19:

“Iran has halted oil shipments to Britain and France, the Oil Ministry said Sunday, in an apparent pre-emptive blow against the European Union after the bloc imposed sanctions on Iran’s crucial fuel exports. The EU imposed tough sanctions against Iran last month, which included a freeze of the country’s central bank assets and an oil embargo set to begin in July. Iran’s Oil Minister Rostam Qassemi had warned earlier this month that Tehran could cut off oil exports to ‘hostile’ European nations. The 27-nation EU accounts for about 18 percent of Iran’s oil exports. However, the Iranian action was not likely to have any significant direct impact on European supplies because both Britain and France had already moved last year to sharply curtail oil purchases from Tehran to less than 3 percent of their daily needs…”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 23:

“Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency had been hoping to be allowed access to a suspicious facility southeast of Tehran, but the visit was pronounced a failure… The failed inspection visit is the latest setback in international efforts to force Iran to come clean about its nuclear program. Tehran continues to insist the program is exclusively civilian in nature. But an IAEA report issued last November, which for the first time voiced the agency’s strong suspicion that Iran was working towards the construction of atomic weapons, has led the West to redouble its efforts to isolate the country…

“The left-leaning daily Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘Whatever the reasons were for Tehran’s lack of cooperation with the IAEA mission, they have played into the hands of all those who are calling for air strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities, whether they are in Israel, in the US Republican Party, or elsewhere. The danger of crisis has become greater as a result…’

“The left-leaning Berlin daily Berliner Zeitung writes: ‘The inspection ritual in Iran hasn’t changed for 10 years, no matter what threats the West makes or how biting their sanctions are… the current regime will make no concessions in the atomic dispute… Particularly given that Israel has nuclear weapons and is threatening with a military strike. As a result, we will experience the (non-)inspection ritual again and again — until Iran has the bomb.’”

The developments pertaining to Iran are of great concern. Experts have said that if Iran were to close the Strait of Hormuz or if Israel were to attack Iran, the average price for regular gas at American gas stations could rise this summer to 5 or 6 dollars, and that such rising gas prices would be partially due to the greed of gas companies which, according to news analyst and commentator Lou Dobbs, have exported surplus refined oil to countries like China, and because we can expect the usual greed of suppliers to make a buck and bleed their customers. Please also note the next article, which sheds a flickering light on America’s oil-exporting allies.

Bad News on the Oil Market?

CNBC wrote on February 19:

“The world’s top oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, appears to have cut both its oil production and export in December… For the third month in a row, no details were available for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Libya, the immediate reasons for which are unclear.

“Together with other Gulf oil exporters, the UAE has been in focus as a possible source of alternative supply for at least some of Iran’s crude… Iraq, another frequently-cited supplier to make up for part of the Iranian oil shortfall following European Union sanctions, reported no major changes to its supply and export regime…”

Somewhat inconsistently and contradictory, Reuters reported the following on February 19:

“Iran was supplying more than 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) to the EU plus Turkey in 2011, industry sources said. By the start of this year imports had sunk to about 650,000 bpd as some customers cut back in anticipation of an EU ban. Saudi Arabia says it is prepared to supply extra oil either by topping up existing term contracts or by making rare spot market sales.”

It was reported that at some gas stations in Florida, the price for regular gasoline has already reached 6.00 dollars a gallon.

New Mideast War Is Coming Soon

Newsmax reported on February 20:

“From Tunis to Tripoli to Cairo to Damascus, what seems real one day is no longer the next. Policymakers in Western capitals agree that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s suppression of dissent, with a toll of 6,000 dead so far — and still climbing — makes him the war criminal… In Libya, liberation from Moammar Gadhafi’s 40-year-tyranny gradually morphed into inter-tribal warfare… Thousands of Russian surface-to-air missiles bought by Ghadafi’s regime and other weapons lay abandoned in the desert, available to any terrorist group with plans to down commercial aircraft anywhere in the world…

“In Cairo, a new parliament dominated by fundamentalists of the Muslim Brotherhood, with 47 percent of the seats, appeared shaken while trying to project a moderate image for their western interlocutors. Salafists, or Muslim extremists who rooted for the late Osama Bin Laden, emerged from the most recent ballot count with 25 percent of the new parliament. Together, with 72 percent of Parliament, these two branches of Islam will dominate constitutional reform. Liquor, women with uncovered heads or in swimsuits on the beaches of the Mediterranean and Red Sea will be officially banned…

“As the Arab world continued to unravel, the Iranian nuclear crisis had a near-monopoly of front-page news… One nuclear missile obliterating Tel Aviv or Jerusalem would be a global catastrophe. Israel would survive, but Iran would cease to exist as a nation hours later. Israel’s fighter bombers with air-to-air refueling tankers have been on instant standby for months. Violating the air space of other countries wouldn’t even be a consideration…

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu believes his country cannot wait for Iran to produce its first nuclear weapon… Obama knows that the United States will be drawn automatically into the conflict as Iran unleashes its asymmetrical retaliatory capabilities up and down the Persian Gulf, including the Strait of Hormuz, through which passes 20 percent of the world’s oil consumption… The October surprise: The United States will be in its third war in 10 years.”

“Assad Must Go”

The New York Times reported on February 23:

“A United Nations panel concluded on Thursday that ‘gross human rights violations’ had been ordered by the Syrian authorities as state policy at ‘the highest levels of the armed forces and the government,’ amounting to crimes against humanity… Syrian security forces continued to bombard areas of Homs, a city in central Syria, for a 20th successive day, despite a growing outcry and international calls for the creation of humanitarian corridors to reach the sick, the wounded and the frail. The 72-page report, which was delivered to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, said that the insurgent Free Syrian Army, made up of defectors from forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, had also committed abuses, but those were ‘not comparable in scale and organization to those carried out by the state.’…

“The foreign ministers of several European and Arab countries met in London on Thursday ahead of the international ‘friends of Syria’ meeting in Tunis on Friday to discuss ways to bolster Syria’s opposition forces… The United Nations report argued that Syria was now ‘on the brink’ of civil war… The document spoke of torture and killing of civilians…

“Among the scores of people that activist groups reported killed by rockets and bombs through the day on Wednesday, two were Western journalists, the veteran American war correspondent Marie Colvin, who had been working for The Sunday Times of London, and a young French photographer, Rémi Ochlik. The two had been working in a makeshift media center that was destroyed in the assault, raising suspicions that Syrian security forces might have identified its location by tracing satellite signals. Experts say that such tracking is possible with sophisticated equipment.

“The killings provoked an outcry, with powerful media figures and European politicians calling on Syrian forces to permit the retrieval of the bodies and to allow the Red Cross to enter areas where civilians say they are under relentless siege, running short of food and medical supplies. At least two other journalists were wounded on Wednesday and their newspapers in London and Paris said they were trying to find ways to rescue them. The French prime minister, François Fillon, identified one of the wounded journalists as Edith Bouvier, a 31-year-old freelancer for the daily newspaper Le Figaro…

“Late Wednesday, British officials summoned the Syrian ambassador, Sami Khiyami, to protest the continued attacks on Homs…  the Foreign Ministry in Damascus on Thursday rejected ‘all statements that hold Syria accountable for the death of journalists who infiltrated Syria at their own risk without the Syrian authorities’ knowledge of their entry and whereabouts.’ Speaking on the BBC on Thursday, Foreign Secretary William Hague of Britain said that ‘people have been dying in their thousands, that continues. The Assad regime has continued to act seemingly with impunity.’ There would also be further steps at the United Nations to put pressure on Mr. Assad, even though Russia and China have combined to block Western and Arab League efforts to force him from power.

“Russia has said it will not attend the Tunisia meeting and news reports on Thursday said China had not committed itself to attending, blunting the gathering’s chances of securing strong action against Mr. Assad’s government.  Activists, civilian journalists and foreign correspondents who have snuck into Syria have infuriated the authorities and foiled the government’s efforts to control the coverage of clashes, which have claimed thousands of Syrian lives in the last year and which Mr. Assad portrays as caused by an armed insurgency.  Last week, Anthony Shadid, a correspondent for The New York Times, died of an apparent asthma attack in Syria on Thursday after spending nearly a week reporting covertly in the northern area of Idlib, near the Turkish border…  the latest deaths of journalists, on top of the agonizing civilian toll, focused a new wave of international revulsion and anger on Mr. Assad and the Syria government. President Nicolas Sarkozy of France said the killings showed that ‘enough is enough, this regime must go. There is no reason why Syrians should not have the right to live their lives, to freely choose their destiny.’”

It’s Not That Funny…

The Associated Press reported on February 18:

“Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul warned the U.S. [that] … we’re slipping into a fascist system where it’s a combination of government and big business and authoritarian rule and the suppression of the individual rights of each and every American citizen.’…

“Paul repeatedly denounced President Barack Obama’s recent enactment of a law requiring military custody of anyone suspected to be associated with al-Qaida and involved in planning an attack on the U.S…”

Although Ron Paul is sometimes described as the “funny uncle,” who does not really seem to have any chance of becoming the nominated Republican candidate, some of his viewpoints should not be rejected off hand. Conversely, the current four Republican candidates are attacking themselves personally with ever-increasing force, while no one seems to be emerging as the clear leader. There is great concern amongst Republicans that none of them could defeat President Obama in the next election (according to a newscast by MSNBC on February 22, 2012, current poll numbers suggest that President Obama would defeat any one of the Republican candidates). Therefore, the German press is speculating whether the Republicans will choose a new candidate, and some wonder whether this candidate could be former Florida’s governor Jeb Bush. Bild Online asks in its article of February 23, 2012: “Will it be another Bush in the end?” The paper states that rumors have it that additional candidates could be Indiana’s governor, Mitch Daniels, or New Jersey’s governor, Chris Christie.

Center for NATO Missile Defense Shield in Germany

Deutsche Welle reported on February 16:

“While the US is withdrawing combat troops from Europe, the center for NATO’s missile defense shield will be based in Germany… The US state deficit is forcing Washington to reduce military spending by $487 billion (370 billion euros) over the next decade. Some $525 billion is still earmarked for the US defense budget this year. The missions in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost the American taxpayer dearly… the army is to be downsized from 570,000 to 490,000 personnel…

“The US wants to downsize two combat brigades, notably in Germany… German Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière emphasized in Brussels that the US still views NATO as the most important military alliance: ‘The withdrawal of some 35,000-40,000 US soldiers from Germany is not dramatic. Europe remains the biggest base for US soldiers abroad. There is no reason whatsoever to doubt NATO’s commitment and America’s bond with Europe.’

“After the end of the Cold War… the US reduced the number of their troops in Europe from 230,000 to 81,000… Establishing the center for NATO’s planned missile defense shield in Ramstein, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, was not meant as a compensation for the planned troop withdrawal, say NATO officials. US Air Forces in Europe and NATO’s Allied Air Command already had their headquarters in Ramstein and it was therefore only logical to base the missile defense shield there as well…

“With cuts in the US defense budget, NATO diplomats are expecting that Europeans will be confronted with new tasks and will no longer be able to rely on the Americans stepping in automatically with regard to security issues in future. US Defense Secrety Leon Panetta, however, stressed that cost saving measures would not impede the US’ ability to provide security around the globe and fight two potential adversaries – Iran and North Korea, should it come to that – at the same time.”

While the USA is withdrawing its troops worldwide, including in Germany, US Air Forces in Europe and NATO’s Allied Air Command maintain their headquarters in Germany, and they are also going to establish there the center for NATO’s missile defense shield. This should make us think…

More Bad News for the USA

Reuters reported on February 21:

“About 2,000 Afghans protested outside the main U.S. military base in [Bagram, in] Afghanistan on Tuesday over a report that foreign soldiers improperly disposed of copies of the Koran… NATO’s top general in Afghanistan attempted to contain fury over the incident, which could be a public relations disaster for the U.S. military as it tries to pacify the country ahead of the withdrawal of foreign combat troops in 2014…

“‘We Afghans don’t want these Christians and infidels, they are the enemy of our soil, our honor and our Koran,’ said… one of the protesters. ‘I urge all Muslims to sacrifice themselves in order to pull out these troops from this soil.’ The Afghan Taliban also strongly condemned the incident. ‘Since the invasion of Afghanistan by the animal Americans, this is almost the 10th time that they have degraded the holiest values of Muslims,’ said [a] Taliban spokesman…

“Bagram also houses a prison for Afghans detained by American forces. The center has caused resentment among Afghans because of reports of torture and ill-treatment of suspected Taliban prisoners, with President Hamid Karzai demanding the transfer of prisoners to Afghan security.

“Winning the hearts and minds of Afghans is critical to U.S. efforts to defeating the Taliban, but critics say Western forces often fail to grasp Afghanistan’s religious and cultural sensitivities… The Koran is the holy book of Islam [and] any hint that Western forces are showing it disrespect could deepen resentment over their presence in Afghanistan… Protests raged for three days across Afghanistan in April last year after a U.S. pastor burned a Koran in Florida…”

BBC News reported on February 23:

“President Barack Obama has apologised to the Afghan people for the burning of Korans by American troops at a US base. In a letter to President Hamid Karzai, Mr Obama expressed his ‘deep regret’ and said the incident earlier this week was a genuine mistake.

“Demonstrations against the desecration have continued for a third day across northern and eastern Afghanistan. Two US soldiers and two Afghans were killed in an attack on a military base. Elsewhere there were four other deaths. On Wednesday, another seven people were killed and dozens injured in protests… In addition to those killed, many people have been injured in the protests, some of them critically, while armed men on Thursday also attacked at least two military installations.

“Crowds shouting ‘death to Obama’ have been throwing stones and setting fire to the US flag. Meanwhile the Taliban have called on Afghans to kill and beat all invading forces in revenge for ‘insulting’ the Koran… many officials sympathise with the outrage the US has provoked across the country… Friday prayers may spark more tensions, depending on the tone set by religious leaders.”

Pope Appoints Twelve New Cardinals

The Associated Press reported on February 18:

“Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday brought 22 new Catholic churchmen into the elite club of cardinals who will elect his successor… each of the new cardinals did make a solemn pledge to keep church secrets upon accepting their new title, ring and three-pointed red hat, or biretta, from the pope. Reciting the cardinals’ traditional oath of loyalty, each one pledged to remain faithful to the church and to ‘not to make known to anyone matters entrusted to me in confidence, the disclosure of which could bring damage or dishonor to [the] Holy Church.’

“Benedict was wheeled into St. Peter’s Basilica aboard the moving platform he has been using for several months to spare him the long walk down the center aisle. Benedict, who turns 85 in April, spoke in a strong voice as he told the cardinals they will be called upon to advise him on the problems facing the church.

“In remarks at the start of the service, Benedict recalled that the red color of the three-pointed hat, or biretta, and the scarlet cassock that cardinals wear symbolizes the blood that cardinals must be willing to shed to remain faithful to the church… As of Saturday, Italy will have 30 cardinals out of the 125 under age 80… The consistory class of 2012 is heavily European, reinforcing Europe’s dominance of the College of Cardinals…”

The Bible identifies and associates the color of scarlet quite differently in Revelation 17:4. Also, what kind of disclosure of information, obtained in confidence, would bring “damage or dishonor” to the Catholic Church?

Intended Role of the Holy Roman Emperor

Zenit wrote on February 17:

“Medieval Europe saw the Church increasing[ly] hemmed in by secular powers, in particular by the Holy Roman Emperor, the most powerful man in the world of that age. The role of the Holy Roman Emperor had been established in 800 as a protector of the Church’s person, property and liberties, but by the 11th century the emperor interfered regularly in Church matters, even appointing bishops, and he expected to have a role in electing the Roman Pontiff.

“… on Easter of 1059, Pope Nicholas II issued the papal bull In Nomine Domini, in the presence of 113 bishops gathered in Rome… This bull put the election of the pope into the hands of the cardinals who would be assembled in Rome, and was the equivalent to a declaration of independence… By the 12th century, the College of Cardinals had grown to include men from all over Europe…”

Even though history reveals a close collaboration between church and state during Europe’s different revivals of the Holy Roman Empire, it is also true that many times, a battle for supremacy was fought between church and state. Such a battle is prophesied to repeat itself, after a strong unification between state and church has occurred. The next article may give us a glimpse as to what may happen on a large scale (compare Revelation 17:16). For more information, please read our free booklets, “Europe in Prophecy” and “Is That in the Bible? The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation.”

This Won’t Make the Catholic Church Happy

The EUObserver wrote on February 17:

“The Italian technocrat government of Mario Monti has announced plans forcing the [Catholic] church to pay property tax on buildings used for commercial purposes. The tax is estimated to raise revenues of minimum €500 million, with the Catholic Church being one of Italy’s largest private real estate holders…”

We Are All Catholics Now?

On February 19, the Washington Post published an editorial by controversial newscaster Glenn Beck. IF we take Beck by his words, it’s a terribly unbalanced article. Note the following excerpts:

“I am a proud member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but today, I call myself a Catholic. Why? Because the state is telling the Catholic Church to violate its principles and teachings. So if you are a person of faith, you must call yourself a Catholic.

“Today, the Catholic Church is defending a historic American freedom. We tend to forget that many of America’s earliest European settlers were religious refugees. Europe was not a kind place to the faithful if the state didn’t approve: Jews in Spain, Puritans in England, Protestants in France and so on. You were cast out, or worse.

“Our Founding Fathers remembered this. They knew if you can’t serve God as you choose, you are not free. And so they enshrined that right in the First Amendment of the Constitution: The state ‘shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…’

“This is why Americans are offended by the ruling from the White House that would force church-run institutions to pay for birth control and morning-after pills, which are tantamount to abortion…

“Many people – including those who use contraception and abortion – respect those whose faith teaches them that God wants them to do or not do certain things. They recognize such faith in themselves. Some people don’t drink alcohol. Some don’t eat pork. Some people wear a hijab. Some work in soup kitchens. Some tithe 10 percent of their income. All because God tells them to…

“Because when the state comes against the Catholics, or the Jews, or the Muslims, or the Pentecostals, or the Mormons or those of any other faith – exotic or familiar – we must all stand up as one: We are all Catholics now… this struggle is similar to the fight against anti-Semitism.

“… when it comes to the separation of church and state, we need absolutes. The state needs to be free from the church, and the church from the state. The state has no right to say how much religion any American can practice. It’s our right, and it is the first one our Founding Fathers protected.”

This polemic article raises all kinds of problematic questions. According to Beck’s rationale, the state could not prohibit murder, racial persecution or even child sacrifice because of religious conviction and practice. This is of course total nonsense.

German-Israeli Relationship

Deutsche Welle reported on February 21, 2012:

“Nitzan Horowitz likes to remember the summer of 2006, when he covered the Football World Cup from Germany as a reporter for Israeli television… He beseeched his countrymen not to be afraid of images on television showing Germans waving flags…  Today, Horowitz is a member of the Israeli parliament for the Meretz party… ‘I think today, Germany is an anchor of democracy,’ he told DW. ‘Not just in Europe, but in the whole world.’ Germany, he says, is a strong, democratic and stable state that sets a good example for other countries…’

“But Michael Wolffsohn, a German-Israeli historian, doesn’t share Horowitz’s point of view. ‘There is no friendship between Germany and Israel,’ he said in a recent interview. Wolffsohn says opinion polls show the gap between the countries has increased since 1981, when a fierce controversy between then-leaders Menachem Begin and Helmut Schmidt concerning planned German arms sales to Saudi Arabia led to a profound break in relations… Today, Wolffsohn says Israel ranks as one of the most unpopular states in the world in the eyes of the German public…

“Would Germany, for example, back Israel if the Israeli army attacked Iran in an attempt to stop the country from developing its nuclear program?… Gadi Algazi, a historian who lives in Tel Aviv, would rather not see Germany on the side of Israel in any potential attack on Iran. A military strike against Iran’s nuclear program would be devastating, he says, adding that Germany should never support such a political solution…

“Carlo Strenger, a Swiss psychoanalyst and author, has come under fire for his criticism of Israeli politics… He understands that, due to the shared history, it may be difficult for German politicians to criticize Israel. In this respect, he admires German Chancellor Angela Merkel: while she does not attempt to hide Germany’s past, neither does she shrink from legitimate criticism…”

The Sabbath Controversy

Haaretz reported on February 22:

“Tel Aviv Chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau issued a harsh response on Tuesday to the city council’s decision to allow public transportation to operate on Shabbat. The council’s decision was decided by a majority vote on Monday. In a letter published on Tuesday morning, Lau wrote that he was ‘filled with a feeling of deep disappointment and pain’ upon hearing of the council’s decision, and called on Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai and the ministers of transportation and the interior to cancel it. ‘This is a severe blow to the holiness of the Shabbat, which is a remnant of Creation, a reminder of the Exodus from Egypt, a day of rest for every worker and a day of spiritual ascension and the unity of the family,’ he added…

“Among Israeli cities, only Haifa and Eilat are currently allowed to operate public transportation on Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest. Tel Aviv transportation authority head Moshe Tiomkin said on Tuesday that, despite the council’s decision, he did not expect the move to succeed… The Transportation Ministry issued a statement in response, saying, ‘There is a decades-old status quo regarding operation of public transportation on Shabbat, and the Transportation Ministry does not intend to violate it.’”

Scientists Playing God

Der Spiegel wrote on February 17:

“Should scientists be allowed to create extremely aggressive and highly infectious influenza viruses? Dutch virologists have done it …

“Fouchier is attracting so much attention because he has created a new organism. And although it is tiny, if it escaped from his laboratory it would claim far more human lives than an exploding nuclear power plant. The pathogen is a new mutation of the feared bird flu virus, H5N1. In nature, this virus, which kills one of every two people infected, has not yet been transmitted from humans to humans… Fouchier’s ferrets, animals that most closely resemble humans when it comes to influenza, transmitted the virus to each other without direct contact, through tiny droplets of saliva and mucus.

“Many scientists are particularly impressed by the fact that, at almost the same time, another research team also managed to produce a bird flu virus that could be transmitted via airborne respiratory droplets. To achieve this, virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the University of Wisconsin combined the avian flu virus with the swine flu virus. The newly created superbug is highly infectious…

“Similarly controversial experiments have also been conducted with other pathogens… In 2001, a mouse pox virus that was 100-percent fatal was accidentally created in an Australian laboratory… The influenza virus that caused the devastating Spanish Flu in 1918 has been completely recreated… The ‘Russian flu’ of 1977 may have been triggered by a lab virus. SARS, a respiratory disease, almost returned when laboratory workers became infected with the coronavirus during their work. A scientist in Chicago even died of SARS in 2009.

“Hundreds of new virus laboratories have been established worldwide in recent years, and highly dangerous pathogens are used in a large share of these laboratories. ‘The risk of a virus being released accidentally is considerable,’ says [an expert].”

Such “scientific” conduct is so irresponsible, that one has a hard time believing it. No wonder that God tells us that He will come to “destroy those who destroy the earth” (Revelation 11:18).

Massive Rise in Antibiotic-Resistant Blood Poisoning

The Independent wrote on February 20:

“Britain is facing a ‘massive’ rise in antibiotic-resistant blood poisoning caused by the bacterium E.coli – bringing closer the spectre of diseases that are impossible to treat. Experts say the growth of antibiotic resistance now poses as great a threat to global health as the emergence of new diseases such as Aids and pandemic flu… an estimated 25,000 people die each year in the European Union from antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections…”

Everything Goes…?

The Daily Mail wrote on February 20

“A powerful denunciation of David Cameron’s plans to legalise gay marriage is made today by former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey. In an article for the Daily Mail, Lord Carey says the proposal to change the status of marriage ‘constitutes one of the greatest political power grabs in history’. He is backing a new grassroots organisation, the Coalition For Marriage (C4M), which opposes the redefinition of marriage to include same sex couples.”

Leviticus 18:22 states: “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.” In the New Testament, 1 Corinthians 6:9 confirms: “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators nor … adulterers, nor homosexuals [those submitting to homosexuals], nor sodomites [male homosexuals] … will inherit the kingdom of God.”

The Telegraph stated on February 20:

“[A] five [year old boy], has been living as a girl for more than a year – after he first refused to live as a boy when he turned three… he has Gender Identity Disorder (GID)… [He]  is one of the youngest in Britain ever to be diagnosed with GID – meaning he feels like he’s a girl trapped in a boy’s body…. [The parents say the boy] used to be a ‘normal’ little boy… but suddenly at the end of 2010, he decided he wanted to live as a girl. He became obsessed with [a] girly kids’ TV character… and started dressing in girl’s clothing… [A] dedicated specialists explained to [the parents] that gender identity disorder is a conflict between a person’s actual physical gender and the gender that person identifies himself or herself as.”

The Associated Press wrote on February 20:

“A small but growing number of teens and even younger children who think they were born the wrong sex are getting support from parents and from doctors who give them sex-changing treatments… An 8-year-old second-grader in Los Angeles is a typical patient. Born a girl, the child announced at 18 months, ‘I a boy’ and has stuck with that belief. The family was shocked but now refers to the child as a boy and is watching for the first signs of puberty to begin treatment… Doctors who provide the treatment say withholding it would be more harmful…

“Guidelines from the Endocrine Society endorse transgender hormone treatment but say it should not be given before puberty begins. At that point, the guidelines recommend puberty-blocking drugs until age 16, [many times in monthly $1,000 injections or implants imbedded in the arm], then lifelong sex-changing hormones with monitoring for potential health risks… a Texas doctor says he’s also provided sex-changing treatment to an increasing number of children; so has a clinic at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles where the 8-year-old is a patient…

“The idea is to give these children time to mature emotionally and make sure they want to proceed with a permanent sex change… boys switching to girls will develop breasts and girls transitioning to boys will be flat-chested if puberty is blocked and sex-hormones started soon enough… Sex hormones, especially in high doses when used long-term, can have serious side effects, including blood clots and cancer…”

The Bible calls such conduct an abomination. Deuteronomy 22:5 prohibits cross-dressing and the practice of living as a transvestite, which would most certainly include sex changes, stating: “A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God.”

The New York Times wrote on February 19:

“As of 2009, more than half of all children born to women under 30 were born to unmarried women. Unmarried mothers, in some areas, have become the norm… Fifty-three percent of all children born to women under 30 is an awful lot of children born outside of what’s been considered, for more than a handful of years, the most stable family structure… The young parents of Lorain (Cleveland, Ohio) said their reliance on the government safety net encouraged them to stay single and that they didn’t trust their youthful peers to be reliable partners…

“Researchers have consistently found that children born outside marriage face elevated risks of falling into poverty, failing in school or suffering emotional and behavioral problems … co-habitation arrangements in the United States are more than twice as likely to dissolve than marriages… Overwhelmingly, the more educated you are, the more likely you are to marry before having children. Bearing children outside of wedlock is a trend that’s most strongly affecting young adults who are already at an economic disadvantage… The further we go in this direction, the more single parents (mostly mothers, but not all) will find themselves and their children living without the stability and security that helps build a happy family life. It’s hard not to think of this as a problem.”

Mail On Line added on February 19:

“More than half of births to American women younger than 30 are outside marriage… And across all ages, a staggering four in ten women are not married when they have children… Fifty years ago, a third of American marriages were sparked by a pregnancy. In the mid-1990s, a third of Americans were born outside marriage. Now, it is 41 per cent and 53 per cent for children born to women under 30. Nearly three quarters of black children are born outside marriage compared with half of Latino babies and 29 per cent of whites. There is also an education divide, with 92 per cent of college-educated women married when they give birth compared with 43 per cent of women with a high school diploma or less.”

God created the institution of marriage between a man and a woman. Christ said in Matthew 19:4-6: “‘Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. So, then, they are no longer two but one flesh…’” Galatians 5:19-21 adds that those who defile the marriage by practicing adultery, or by practicing sexual relationships outside marriage (“fornication”), will not be given eternal life: “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are, adultery, fornication… of which I tell you … that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Chaos After U.S. Decline?

On February 11, 2012, The Wall Street Journal published a lengthy article, titled, “Why the World Needs America.” Even though we do not agree with everything written in the article and disagree quite strongly with certain statements, which we do not quote herein, the following excepts are interesting and worth repeating:

“The downfall of the Roman Empire brought an end not just to Roman rule but to Roman government and law and to an entire economic system stretching from Northern Europe to North Africa… Many of us take for granted how the world looks today. But it might look a lot different without America at the top… After the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century, British control of the seas and the balance of great powers on the European continent provided relative security and stability…

“With the outbreak of World War I, the age of settled peace and advancing liberalism… collapsed into an age of hyper-nationalism, despotism and economic calamity… The collapse of the British and European orders in the 20th century did not produce a new dark age—though if Nazi Germany and imperial Japan had prevailed, it might have—but the horrific conflict that it produced was, in its own way, just as devastating…

“Would the end of the present American-dominated order have less dire consequences?…The present world order was largely shaped by American power and reflects American interests and preferences. If the balance of power shifts in the direction of other nations, the world order will change to suit their interests and preferences… For several decades, the balance of power in the world has favored democratic governments. In a genuinely post-American world, the balance would shift toward the great-power autocracies. Both Beijing and Moscow already protect dictators like Syria’s Bashar al-Assad. If they gain greater relative influence in the future, we will see fewer democratic transitions and more autocrats hanging on to power…

“The ancient democracies of Greece and the republics of Rome and Venice all fell to more powerful forces or through their own failings… If and when American power declines, the institutions and norms that American power has supported will decline, too. Or more likely, if history is a guide, they may collapse altogether as we make a transition to another kind of world order, or to disorder. We may discover then that the U.S. was essential to keeping the present world order together and that the alternative to American power was not peace and harmony but chaos and catastrophe—which is what the world looked like right before the American order came into being…”

With the loss of US power, this world will indeed change dramatically. Power blocs in Europe and the Far East will develop, which will plunge this world into a terrible and unprecedented series of wars.

No Real Solution

The Los Angeles Times wrote on February 14:

“President Obama released a budget proposal for the coming fiscal year that offers no real solution to the United States’ long-term fiscal problems. This country is hardly Greece, but Washington’s current policies put it on a path to accumulate far too much debt…

“Congress makes the ultimate decisions about taxes and spending, so the annual budget proposal from the White House typically serves as the opening bid in a months-long debate. This president, however, has waited for Republicans and Congress to go first on the tougher fiscal issues. On Monday, Obama even called on Congress to reverse one of the more difficult decisions it had made, which was to impose $1.2 trillion in across-the-board spending cuts on discretionary programs over the next decade.

“…even if lawmakers were to adopt all of Obama’s deficit-cutting measures, they wouldn’t go far enough to set the budget on a path toward balance… All told, his proposal comes up about $2 trillion short of the savings his own deficit-reduction commission called for over 10 years… the government needs a better plan for putting its fiscal house in order than Obama offered Monday.”

And in spite of sweeping irrational promises from Republican candidates to balance the budget, the inescapable truth is that, no matter who runs this country, the economic situation of the USA is doomed.

EU-US Relationship

The EUObserver wrote on February 14:

“With pressure coming from every direction, the EU and the US now, more than ever, need an honest discussion about their partnership… The electoral year in the United States poses a challenge to Europeans… Regardless of who will sit in the Oval Office for the next four years, three issues will take precedence on the transatlantic agenda.

“First, amidst the budgetary cuts in the US, any future global police-type military operations will be carried out more selectively. But when the US national interest is under threat, shrewd accounting goes out the window. In any confrontation between Israel and Iran, the US will be forced to prove its ‘iron clad commitment to Israel’s security.’ Although Obama remains committed to the diplomatic path to stop Iran from getting its hands on nuclear [weapons], he has not taken any options off the table.

“His Republican competitors speak even more openly about military intervention, accusing Obama of failing to ‘show Iran that [the US] ha[s] the capacity to remove them militarily from their plans to have nuclear weapons.’ Any military confrontation in the region will have direct implications for Europe, including military involvement if Iran retaliates.

“Second, concerns about the growing importance of China – and an increasing fear of China – in the US will need to be addressed… To act as an economic bulwark to China’s regional dominance, Obama proposed an ambitious Trans-Pacific Partnership and intends to create a Trade Enforcement Unit to investigate unfair trade practices. But these plans have caused uneasiness among Europeans who are afraid that similar moves will be interpreted as a direct challenge to China, in turn launching new competition in the region.

“Even more worrying is the language of Republican contenders calling for a strong military capability in the Pacific and deepening cooperation with India and other regional allies.

“Finally, normalising relations with Arab countries and the Muslims will remain a huge challenge.

“Despite the many efforts of the Obama Administration, the US presence in Afghanistan and its clear position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict still make Muslims sceptical of the US intentions… his Republican opponents underline Israel’s growing security problems and call for increasing the level of military assistance and co-ordination (Romney) while at the same time describing the Palestinians as ‘an invented people’ (Gingrich). Such statements cause consternation among Europeans…

“How Washington responds to these challenges will no doubt have serious implications for Europe. But instead of hoping for the best, Europeans should finally get their act together and focus on three major objectives: launching a comprehensive review of the European Security Strategy; adopting a credible and enforceable strategy for Asia; and consolidating policies towards the southern neighbourhood and Palestinian statehood. What we have instead is a catalogue of half-measures. The establishment of the European External Action Service was a messy exercise but it cannot be used indefinitely as an excuse for inaction and a lack of policies…”

The relationship between the USA and Europe is bound to deteriorate, and Europe will begin to unify even stronger in political and military matters. Please also note the next article.

EU—a Full-Fledged Political Union in the Future

The EUObserver wrote on February 14:

“European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso has told the Chinese public that the EU will become a fully-fledged ‘political union’ after the financial crisis… ‘I want to make this very clear to Chinese public opinion… Is the European Union really going to progress? I say: “Yes. No doubt about it” … Precisely because of the problems in the euro area the conclusion has been to further integrate and to complete the monetary union with a fiscal union and, I believe, in the future toward a political union.’”

Italy—a Future Major EU Driver

The EUObserver reported on February 15:

“Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti charmed all major political parties in the European Parliament on Wednesday (15 February), pledging to defend EU institutions at a time when national governments are increasingly blaming Brussels for austerity… His speech… was aimed at restoring his country’s standing as one of the founding members of the EU and the euro after years of political penumbra under his controversial predecessor, Silvio Berlusconi.

“The new Italy – in the words of Monti, a former banker and economics professor – will be committed not only to austerity, but also to growth and will not just ‘passively transpose EU guidelines, but wants to be a major driver of these guidelines.’ It is in this ‘spirit’ that he invited German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy to Rome on Friday, for talks which will ‘focus on the community method and recognise the priority of EU institutions’…

“He also pointedly switched to English when criticising a ‘deeply superficial insular culture that naively might believe EU integration means a superstate’ after the UK vetoed crisis-related changes to the EU Treaty last December.”

The EU and Greece

Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 10:

“Many observers are losing faith in the idea that Greece can be saved even if the second bailout goes through. With unemployment at 20.9 percent and the economy in its fifth consecutive year of recession, it is unclear how Greece will ever be able to generate growth or begin to pay down its debt…

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘The Greek misery has no end… Greece presents a desolate picture, in terms of its economic structures, competitiveness, social cohesion and political system. In other parts of the world, it would be called a failed state. It is time that the Europeans admit that fact and take the necessary action. Whether the resulting conclusion is that Greece can no longer be saved from bankruptcy, or whether it should be persuaded — or forced — to leave the euro zone, is ultimately a question of math… No finance minister knows the answer, and no economist can calculate it reliably. This uncertainty is deadly, both for the markets and for countries. It must be ended quickly.’

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘The EU partners and the Greek government have a baleful fear of the truth. Which is the following: Greece cannot actually be saved (with the current approach), not by slashing the minimum wages, and not with cuts in salaries, which are supposed to remain frozen until the country has lowered its unemployment rate from nearly 21 percent to 10 percent. But where will the new jobs come from?…’

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘Greece is currently trying to do something impossible: which is to reform the economy in the midst of a deep depression. That simply doesn’t work.’

“The conservative Die Welt writes: ‘The agreement reached in Athens between the Greek government and the international donors … has not prompted high hopes on either side. Greece promised what it had to, in order to get the new aid package. And the troika acted as if it — against its better judgment — actually believes that the Greek economy can be healed. But the pictures of the demonstrations and the burning German flags show that they didn’t reckon with the Greek population. Ultimately, the crucial thing is not the politicians’ willingness to carry out reforms … but the will of the people. And the Greeks seem unwilling and unable to accept, for the sake of the stability of the single currency, cuts that go far beyond what we in Germany have ever experienced in terms of austerity measures… From an economic perspective, the country needs to leave the euro zone, because it is economically too weak and its administrative structures are too underdeveloped to be able to keep up with the others…’

“The financial daily Handelsblatt writes: ‘During the poker game with their creditors, the Greeks have been acting as if they had a joker up their sleeve. That joker was the threat of declaring bankruptcy and triggering a panicked chain reaction among investors. … But that isn’t a trump card. The main victims of a disorderly bankruptcy would be the Greeks themselves. But the troika has also been deceiving the audience of the Greek drama with numerical trickery that is easy to see through… The question of how Greece is supposed to return to growth despite the harsh austerity measures remains the troika’s secret. Both sides are lying through their teeth. … The only way to ‘save’ Greece is through an orderly national default…’”

The Associated Press reported on February 14:

“Two steps forward, one step back. So goes the frenzied effort across Europe to bail out Greece and save it from a potentially devastating default on its debts. A meeting of the finance chiefs of the 17 euro countries to discuss Greece’s second multibillion bailout planned for Wednesday was called off after Athens failed to deliver on several demands made by its partners in the currency union… Tensions between Athens and other European capitals have hit new highs this week…

“Greece is still optimistic that it will eventually get the bailout… But after keeping Greece alive through bailout loans for almost two years — and seeing the country repeatedly miss its targets — some of the richer euro countries like the Netherlands or Germany are reluctant to commit new money without firm assurances…”

The Financial Times added on February 15:

“The battle of wills between Athens and its eurozone lenders intensified on Wednesday, with Greece’s finance minister accusing ‘forces in Europe’ of pushing his country out of the euro while his German counterpart suggested postponing Greek elections and installing a new government without political parties.”

As we have said from the outset, Greece might leave the Eurozone, but the euro won’t collapse.

Will Israeli Attack on Iran Be Unsuccessful?

y-Net News reported on February 12:

“Two weeks after US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta reportedly said Israel is likely to strike Iran in the spring, German Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière said an Israeli attack will be unsuccessful. According to the minister, ‘a success of an Israeli strike on Iran nuclear facilities is highly unlikely and (will cause) obvious political damage’…

“President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met on Saturday with Hamas prime minister in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh, who is visiting Tehran. ‘The world will witness Iran’s major nuclear achievements soon’ said Ahmadinejad. Haniyeh met with supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei on Sunday. In the meeting Khamenei promised Iran’s support for the Palestinian resistance…”

In Any Event, It Would Be Terribly Complicated…

USA Today wrote on February 13:

“If Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities, the strike would probably take the form of a complex air assault involving scores of planes that would have to penetrate Iranian air defenses and attack up to a couple of dozen targets simultaneously, analysts say. ‘This would be way more sophisticated than anything that’s ever been done before,’ said Charles Wald, a retired Air Force general who led the coalition air campaign in Afghanistan that helped topple the Taliban. By contrast, Israel’s strike on Iraq’s Osiraq nuclear reactor in 1981 and an attack in Syria in 2007 were simpler operations that required Israel to hit a single above-ground target. Neither country had sophisticated air defense capabilities…

“Iran’s nuclear facilities are dispersed throughout the country, some of which are being hardened to withstand bomb blasts, said Colin Kahl, a Georgetown professor and former Pentagon official overseeing Middle East policy. Pilots would face a network of radar and anti-aircraft missiles designed to protect Iran’s airspace… Wald said the Israelis would either have to use aerial refueling or land somewhere en route to refuel. It’s not known whether any country would provide permission or whether Israel could set up a covert refueling facility in the desert… Flying over Iraq is the most direct route for Israeli pilots. Since the U.S. withdrawal, Iraq is not capable of effectively protecting its airspace, which potentially would give Israel a way to reach Iran while maintaining an element of surprise…

“Israel has large bombs capable of penetrating bunkers, but some analysts say they need more sophisticated munitions to help knock out some of the well-protected facilities… Analysts say timing on a strike would be critical, since a lengthy operation would raise the likelihood of U.S. opposition and could trigger a wider conflict…

“The United States should be prepared for an Iranian counterstrike, Wald said. Iran has medium-range missiles that could reach Israel, Kahl said… Iran’s navy could interfere with commercial shipping in the narrow Strait of Hormuz, disrupting the world’s oil supplies. In 2009, about 17% of all oil traded worldwide went through the narrow strait… Iran would probably use its surrogates, Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, to attack Israel…”

USA: “We Will Stop Iran”

Newsmax reported on February 12:

“Iran has increased the number of small, fast patrol craft in the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, some of which have been outfitted with a large warhead for a suicide run at U.S. vessels, the U.S. Navy’s top Gulf commander said… The U.S. Navy would move to stop any Iranian attempt to lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz or Persian Gulf as an ‘act of war’ the international community wouldn’t tolerate…

“The U.S. has four Avenger-class mine-sweeping ships in the Gulf… The U.K.’s Royal Navy has another four vessels… U.S. officials… estimated in 2008 that Iran possessed as many as 5,000 mines… The inventory also includes as many as 600 advanced mines bought from Russia, such as the MDM-3, which can be dropped from an aircraft…”

However, an easy and swift victory of the US Navy over Iranian naval forces is not assured by any means. It is being admitted that Iran could make life difficult for the US Navy. Note the next article.

Reuters reported on February 12:

“Iran has built up its naval forces in the Gulf and prepared boats that could be used in suicide attacks… Iran now has 10 small submarines…

“Military experts say the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet patrolling the Gulf – which always has at least one giant supercarrier accompanied by scores of jets and a fleet of frigates and destroyers – is overwhelmingly more powerful than Iran’s navy. But ever since al Qaeda suicide bombers in a small boat killed 17 sailors on board the destroyer U.S.S. Cole in a port in Yemen in 1996, Washington has been wary of the vulnerability of its huge battleships to bomb attacks by small enemy craft.”

Has It Already Begun?

ABC News wrote on February 14:

“With Iran allegedly striking out at Israeli citizens and Jewish targets around the world, Israeli and American security officials in the U.S. are on high alert. Israeli officials told ABC News that the level of personal security on high-ranking Embassy officials as well as other, lower profile officials in the U.S. is at its highest in at least five years, a response to what they called ‘a coordinated series of attacks’…

“Federal officials… noted that in cities like New York and Washington, D.C., ‘the targets are much harder’ than in countries like India, Georgia and Thailand, where Iran has allegedly attacked or attempted to attack in the past two days. But they also added that Iran can be ‘belligerent.’

“Frank Cilluffo, director of the Homeland Security Policy Institute at George Washington University in D.C., agreed that the recent incidents in India, Georgia, Thailand and Azerbaijan have ‘all the hallmarks of a concerted campaign’ that could extend to U.S. soil. ‘The recent attack on a Saudi official in Washington shows a willingness to attack in the United States,’ said Cilluffo…”

Iran Threatens Europe!

The New York Times wrote on February 15:

“Besieged by international sanctions over the Iranian nuclear program including a planned oil embargo by Europe, Iran warned six European buyers on Wednesday that it might strike first by immediately cutting them off from Iranian oil. Iran’s official Islamic Republic News Agency said the threat was conveyed to the ambassadors of Italy, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Greece and Portugal in separate meetings at the Foreign Ministry in Tehran…

“‘Iran warns Europe it will find other customers for its oil,’ the Islamic Republic News Agency said. ‘European people should know that if Iran changes destinations of the oil it gives to them, the responsibility will rest with the European governments themselves.’… The European Union has been one of Iran’s biggest markets for oil, taking about 18 percent of total Iranian petroleum exports in 2011. Among the European Union members, the biggest buyers have been Italy, Spain and France…

“The Iranians also announced new advances in their nuclear program, including escalation of Iran’s enrichment practices, which if accurate could serve to further aggravate tensions… President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad presided over ceremonies to mark advances in Iran’s nuclear program, partly to project an image of Iranian defiance against the Western sanctions. The new advances include centrifuges that Iran said were capable of enriching uranium at a much faster rate, and the insertion of the first domestically produced nuclear fuel rod into a nuclear reactor in Tehran.”

No “Arab Spring” for Egypt’s Women

Deutsche Welle reported on February 12:

“Side-by-side with fellow male protesters, Egypt’s women stood on Tahrir Square demanding freedom and democracy. But due to the military regime and the rise of Islamic factions the situation of women is deteriorating… The military is brutal in their treatment of women… The military regime is also trying to keep women from taking political office…

“The new parliament is even considering revoking the so-called Personal Status Law that women had been fighting for for years. If successful, it would mean that women could no longer divorce – only men would have the right to do so. Women would also lose the right to bring up their children beyond the age of nine. Fathers could then take away their children aged nine, not 15 as the law states now…”

So much for freedom, liberty and equality in the new Egypt…

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood Threatens USA and Israel

CNS News reported on February 13:

“A top Muslim Brotherhood official has warned that any cuts in U.S. aid to Egypt could affect Cairo’s peace treaty with Israel…

“Egyptian judges have referred 16 Americans and 27 others linked to NGOs [Non-Governmental Organizations] for trial, accusing them of using foreign funds to encourage disruptive protests… On Capitol Hill, the chorus of senior lawmakers calling for aid to Egypt to be suspended over the affair is growing, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has warned that the funds could be in jeopardy…

“‘This is only the beginning of the anti-American populism/nationalism/Islamism we are going to be seeing in Egypt from now on,’ Mideast expert Barry Rubin, director of the Global Research in International Affairs Center in Israel, wrote in a column Sunday. ‘What’s amazing is that nobody is pointing out that if an Egyptian government is willing to risk U.S. aid and have a confrontation on this small issue, what are they going to do regarding big issues?’ Rubin said. ‘What happens when the Egyptian government moves toward Islamism or helps Hamas fight Israel on some level?…’”

Reuters added on February 15:

“State-run newspapers splashed accusations of a U.S. plan to spread ‘anarchy’ in Egypt across their front pages on Tuesday… the headlines marked another low in the crisis between Washington and Cairo triggered by the investigation into U.S.-based non-governmental organisations that has led to criminal charges against Americans who have been prevented from leaving the country…The spat is one of the worst in more than 30 years of close U.S.-Egyptian ties…”

The Associated Press stated on February 15:

“Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood on Wednesday threw its weight behind the country’s military-backed government in an escalating dispute with the U.S. over the funding of pro-democracy groups… On Wednesday, the Brotherhood – whose political arm controls the largest bloc of seats in Egypt’s parliament – praised officials carrying out the crackdown and said it supported their ‘nationalist position.’ The Brotherhood said it ‘rejects all forms of pressure the U.S. is exerting,’ the statement published on the group’s website said.”

The USA and its allies supported strongly the “Arab Spring” movement. Since then, it has become obvious—which should have been clear from the outset—that the movement gave birth to the rise of radical Islamists, who are strongly opposed to the West and any style of Western democracy, and who are also very hostile towards Israel. Again, America’s foolish foreign policy has helped create a Frankenstein monster…

Shocking—Interpol Accused of Collaborating with Saudi Arabia over Islamist Radical Fanaticism

National Review reported on February 10:

“Interpol has been accused of abusing its powers after Saudi Arabia used the organisation’s red notice system to get a journalist arrested in Malaysia for insulting the Prophet Muhammad. Kashgari, a newspaper columnist, fled Saudi Arabia after posting a tweet on the prophet’s birthday that sparked more than 30,000 responses and several death threats. The posting, which was later deleted, read: ‘I have loved things about you and I have hated things about you and there is a lot I don’t understand about you … I will not pray for you.’

“More than 13,000 people joined a Facebook page titled ‘The Saudi People Demand the Execution of Hamza Kashgari’. Clerics in Saudi Arabia called for him to be charged with apostasy, a religious offence punishable by death…”

The Australian added on February 12:

“Malaysia has deported [to Saudi Arabia] a young Saudi journalist wanted in his home country over a Twitter post about the Prophet Mohammed, defying pleas from human rights group who said he faced execution… Kashgari’s detention sparked outrage from human rights groups, with Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch urging Malaysia not to send him back to face severe punishment and possibly a death sentence.”

When fundamentalists and fanaticism rule, such incredible and despicable conduct can be expected. When a “Christian” organization like Interpol lends a hand to such conduct, this is outrageous and speaks volumes of the indifference and blindness of our Western societies.

Enormous Ancient Goldmine of Queen of Sheba Found

The Guardian reported on February 11:

“Almost 3,000 years ago, the ruler of Sheba, which spanned modern-day Ethiopia and Yemen, arrived in Jerusalem with vast quantities of gold to give to King Solomon. Now an enormous ancient goldmine, together with the ruins of a temple and the site of a battlefield, have been discovered in her former territory… Sheba was a powerful incense-trading kingdom that prospered through trade with Jerusalem and the Roman empire.

“The queen is immortalised in Qur’an and the Bible, which describes her visit to Solomon ‘with a very great retinue, with camels bearing spices, and very much gold and precious stones … Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, and a very great quantity of spices’… Her story is still told across Africa and Arabia, and the Ethiopian tales are immortalised in the holy book the Kebra Nagast. Hers is said to be one of the world’s oldest love stories. The Bible says she visited Solomon to test his wisdom by asking him several riddles. Legend has it that he wooed her, and that descendants of their child, Menelik – son of the wise – became the kings of Abyssinia.”

Please read our Q&A on Ethiopia and the Queen of Sheba.

Whitney Houston Played “Russian Roulette”—Meds and Alcohol Don’t Mix

Newsmax Health wrote on February 13:

“The death of Whitney Houston from an apparent drug and alcohol interaction was shocking to her fans, but Ozzie Delgado, the pharmacy director of Cleveland Clinic Florida, says it’s a tragedy he has seen played out many times. ‘The problem is that, when people drink, they think they have a tolerance level. But that tolerance level can vary on a given day, depending on what you’ve eaten, for example, so you really don’t know what your threshold is,’ Delgado tells Newsmax Health. Combining certain medications with drinking is ‘like playing Russian roulette,’ he warns.

“Houston was found dead in her Beverly Hills hotel room on Saturday. Although the results of the toxicology report on Houston could take weeks, reports say the singer was found dead in her bathtub after drinking while also taking Xanax. According to Delgado, Xanax (alprazolam), a common anti-anxiety drug, is particularly dangerous when combined with alcohol. ‘Xanax belongs to a class of drugs called benzodiazepines, all which have a side effect called temporary amnesia. So now you have temporary amnesia and you’re compounding it with alcohol,’ he notes. ‘As a result, you can lose track of the amount of alcohol you are drinking, and you lose consciousness. It’s a snowball effect… The drug slows your respiratory rate and, when you add alcohol, it slows your respiratory rate even more. You stop breathing at a normal rate, you stop oxygenating your body, and then your brain doesn’t get enough oxygen…’ Houston had struggled with drug addiction for years before her death.

“Xanax isn’t the only drug that can get you into trouble, says Keith Veltri, who is clinical pharmacy manager at Montefiore Medical Center in Bronx, N.Y. ‘There are a lot of medications that, specifically when mixed with alcohol, can depress the respiratory system and cause drowsiness…’ He says he believes such drugs are over-prescribed, especially anti-anxiety drugs like Xanax and Valium. ‘Generally, Valium or Xanax for insomnia should only be taken for three weeks, or anxiety for four months…’

“But it isn’t only the anti-anxiety drugs (which are also prescribed for epilepsy) that can be dangerous when used with alcohol. Similar problems can also arise with prescription antidepressants such as Celexa, Prozac, Zoloft, and Wellbutrin, which is also prescribed for smoking cessation. Drugs used to fight insomnia, whether prescription or over-the-counter, also can be deadly when combined with alcohol. In addition, anti-psychotics such as Amplify, Seroquel, Risperdal, Haldol, and Thorazine should never be taken with alcohol. Patients should avoid drinking while taking painkillers such as oxycontin, morphine, and codeine, he says.

“It isn’t only prescription drugs that can be dangerous. Delgado says that care should also be taken if you’re using a cough preparation that contains dextromethorphan, as many common over-the-counter cough syrups do. ‘People should be concerned with any of these medications that have “DM” in the name,’ says Delgado. ‘When it comes to a lethal interaction with alcohol, most people don’t realize that it can take only one drug to do this,’ he says. ‘This is a common problem and many people have died. It’s just magnified when it happens to a Hollywood star.’ Performers who have died after mixing drugs and alcohol include rock stars Jimi Hendrix and Brian Jones, actor Alan Ladd, and country singer Hank Williams…”

Whether or not Whitney Houston—a practicing Baptist–died because of drug and alcohol interaction, the combination of alcohol and drugs—whether illegal or even legal, as well as prescription and non-prescription drugs—can many times become deadly. It is a shame that a supposedly Christian nation like the USA and its citizens and Hollywood “icons” do not follow the Bible even in its most elementary injunctions and principles—that it is God who made our bodies which should become holy—rather than being abused.

Birth Control Fight—Hypocrisy Galore

The Los Angeles Times wrote on February 15:

“Since President Obama moved to require Catholic hospitals and universities to offer their employees contraceptive health benefits, Republicans have rushed to accuse the administration of an unprecedented attack on religious freedoms. None has been more forceful than former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who accused Obama of ‘a direct violation of the 1st Amendment.’ But years before the current partisan firestorm, GOP lawmakers and governors around the country, including Huckabee, backed similar mandates.

“Twenty-two states have laws or regulations that resemble, at least in part, the Obama administration’s original rule. More than a third had some Republican support, a review of state records shows. In six states, including Arkansas, those contraceptive mandates were signed by GOP governors.

“In Massachusetts in 2006, then-Gov. Mitt Romney signed a healthcare overhaul that kept in place a contraceptive mandate signed by his Republican predecessor. Now the GOP presidential candidate is calling the Obama rule an ‘assault on religion.’ At the federal level, President George W. Bush never challenged a similar federal mandate imposed in 2000…

“Congressional Republicans are pushing legislation to exempt all employers from providing contraceptive coverage if it goes against their beliefs. In 2000, when Iowa became one of the first states to enact a contraceptive mandate, the Republican Legislature overwhelmingly backed the bill, which has no exemption for religious employers of any kind…

“In Arizona, state Rep. Linda Binder, a pro-choice Republican, formed a bipartisan coalition to push her bill, which exempted churches but not other church-affiliated institutions, through the Republican-controlled Legislature. Then-Gov. Jane Hull, a Republican and a Catholic, signed the measure into law. In New York, a similar law also won GOP support in the Legislature. It was signed in 2001 by Gov. George E. Pataki, another Republican.

“Four years later, the Arkansas law easily cleared that state’s Legislature, with help from Republican lawmakers, including two GOP cosponsors. Huckabee signed it in April 2005. He defended the law in a statement. ‘Religious employers are not required to comply with this policy,’ he said. ‘My position is, and always has been, that religious entities shouldn’t be forced to pay for contraception.’ But like the original federal regulation proposed by Obama, the Arkansas law did not exempt church-affiliated hospitals and universities. It exempts only ‘religious employers’ that are nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is ‘the inculcation of religious values,’ and primarily employ people who share the same religion, a standard few Catholic hospitals meet.”

To top it all, arch-conservative Catholic Republican Presidential candidate (father of seven children) Rick Santorum stated in an interview in 2006 that any kind of contraceptives (including those preventing pregnancies) are “harmful to women” and “harmful to our society.”

ABC News printed his most recent “clarifications” on the matter in its article, dated February 15, 2012:

“And his personal position against contraception has solidified… he said he disagrees with others in the Christian faith who believe that contraception is OK. ‘It’s not OK because it’s a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be,’ he said. ‘They’re supposed to be within marriage, they are supposed to be for purposes that are, yes, conjugal, but also, but also procreative. That’s the perfect way that a sexual union should happen. We take any part of that out, we diminish the act. And if you can take one part out that’s not for purposes of procreation, that’s not one of the reasons, then you diminish this very special bond between men and women, so why can’t you take other parts of that out? And all of a sudden, it becomes deconstructed to the point where it’s simply pleasure. And that’s certainly a part of it—and it’s an important part of it, don’t get me wrong—but there’s a lot of things we do for pleasure, and this is special, and it needs to be seen as special.’”

To be very clear on this, this view point is opposed to the teachings of the Bible. To say that God prohibits birth control, preventing pregnancies, within the confines of marriage, and that the sexual act must always include the purpose of procreation and cannot be done for “mere pleasure” within marriage, is not only against biblical teaching; it is also an irresponsible position. But this concept finds, sadly, its origins in the biblical record about the Garden of Eden, when the first man and his wife became ashamed of their sexuality, considering it as evil, even though God declared that everything that He had made was good. It was  Satan—not God–who convinced Adam and Eve that sex was dirty and could only be viewed as somewhat “acceptable,” if it was to be used merely for procreation.

Divorce—The Terrible Suffering of Innocent Children

Zenit wrote on February 10:

“Each year in the United States over a million children are the innocent parties to the divorce of their parents. While divorce also hurts the parents it is the children who particularly suffer…  As would be expected, divorce affects the ability of parents to relate to their children. One study found that the stress caused by divorce damages the relationship between children and their mothers for as many as 40% of divorced mothers. This insufficiency is more marked by the time children are in high school and college…

“Another aspect… is the effect of divorce on religious practice among children. They found that following divorce, children are more likely to cease practicing their faith. This lessening of religious practice means that children suffer from a lack of the beneficial effects of religion, in areas as diverse as marital stability, education, income, and physical and mental health… At the level of elementary school there is an immediate decline in academic performance. At high school level children from intact families have significantly better test scores compared to children of divorced parents. One example in the study was that by the age of 13 there is an average difference of half a year in the reading ability between children of divorced parents and children from intact families.

“Other research cited included a study that found children from divorced families were 26% more likely to drop out of secondary school compared to children brought up in intact families… Divorce not only imposes costs on families but also on government and society. Children of divorced families are considerably more likely to engage in delinquent behavior, to be involved in fighting, robberies, and substance abuse…

“Higher levels of child abuse and neglect are further consequences of divorce… With the high level of divorce in recent times these debilitating consequences will continue to be played out in the years to come. Not a comforting thought as Western society continues to witness continued attacks on family life and attempts to re-define marriage.”

No wonder God thunders at us that “He hates divorce, for it covers one’s garment with violence… Therefore take heed to your spirit, That you do not deal treacherously” (Malachi 2:16).

Russia and China Veto UN Resolution Against Syria—“Security Council Should Be Abolished”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 6:

“In the end, the joint resolution drafted by the Arabs, Europeans and Americans failed, and the killing continued in Syria… The resolution didn’t even contain any sanctions. The text of the resolution had already been watered down before the vote in response to considerable pressure from Russia. Ultimately, Moscow still refused to support it — making the tone of the conversations in Munich on Sunday even angrier.

“Pointing to Russia and China, Yemeni Nobel Peace Price [sic] recipient Tawakkul Karman lamented: ‘In the name of the Arab youth, I condemn the position of these countries. They support the criminal regime of Bashar Assad.’ Kenneth Roth, the head of… Human Rights Watch, added that the actions of Russia and China had made the Security Council ‘irrelevant.’ US Senator Joe Lieberman railed that the Chinese and the Russians… had now isolated themselves in the international community, just as Assad himself had done.

“Moscow doesn’t seem particularly moved by the outrage over its veto… Russia is firmly sticking to its support of Assad… Damascus purchases Russian rockets, Yak-130 fighter jets and it cooperates on a large scale with Russian energy companies… Beijing also continues to work together with the Assad regime…

“US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offered a grim scenario if Assad remains in office: ‘More bloodshed, increasing resistance by those whose families are being killed and whose homes are being bombed, and a greater likelihood that Syria will descend into civil war.’”

Der Spiegel Online published the following related article on February 6:

“… the international community remains divided after Saturday’s move by Russia and China to veto a United Nations resolution condemning the violence in the Middle Eastern country. Syrian opposition leaders expressed outrage over the veto… On Monday, the US moved to close its embassy in Damascus and withdraw its diplomats and staff because of instability in the country.

“Speaking at a joint press conference in Paris after a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said, ‘France and Germany will not abandon the Syrian people. We will not accept that the international community remains blocked.’ Russia and China, however, have staunchly defended their positions…

“Editorialists in the German press on Monday unanimously condemn the veto, saying it sends a worrying signal about the reliability of Russia and China as future partners in international affairs…

“The conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘It is a disgrace that Russia and China have cast their veto against a resolution that contained neither sanctions nor a weapons embargo. It didn’t authorize military intervention either. It merely condemned the genocidal behavior of the Assad regime. The fact that even this was too much for the rulers in Moscow and Beijing reveals a lot about their mindset and their authoritarian view of government. It’s almost as if they are saying that a dictator should be allowed to wage war against his own population… For Syria that means the killing and the civil war will go on…’

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘… the West and the Arab League certainly won’t be able to stand back and watch Assad put down the protests for much longer. They must build a new forum to organize resistance to the regime without Russia and China…’

“The left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘…The Russian and Chinese government’s decisions make a mockery of the Security Council… When the Security Council cannot even agree to verbally criticize the merciless slaughter of citizens by a dictator’s clique, then it has revealed itself to be redundant. The shelved resolution should, in the future, be used as a reminder that this body has squandered its opportunity. The way the Security Council is composed should be abolished along with the right to a veto.’”

A coalition between Russia and China, hostile to European interests, is clearly forming. There are also more and more voices advocating the abolishment of the Security Council and even the entire UN, which have indeed been irrelevant, while replacing them with a more “competent” body.

Syria and Russia vs. the Arab League and the West

BBC News reported on February 7:

“Gulf Arab states say they are expelling Syrian ambassadors in their countries and recalling their envoys from Syria. The Gulf Cooperation Council said Syria had rejected Arab attempts to solve the crisis and end 11 months of bloodshed. The US closed its embassy in Syria on Monday, and several European countries have recalled their ambassadors. The moves came as Syrian government forces continued their fierce assault on the restive city of Homs, and Russian officials visited Damascus.

“Separately Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, denied reports that he had threatened Qatar’s prime minister during talks at the UN last week. Someone was trying to drive a wedge between Russia and the Arab world, he said.”

Germany Expels Syrian Diplomats

Deutsche Welle reported on February 9:

“German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Thursday that he was expelling four members of the Syrian embassy in Berlin, after two men were arrested for allegedly spying on opponents of the Syrian regime. Diplomatic sources said there were ‘clear indications’ that the four were guilty of ‘acts not in accordance with diplomatic law.’… Westerwelle summoned the Syrian ambassador to discuss the arrests. ‘The position of the federal government was made unmistakably clear at this meeting that the possible action against the Syrian opposition in Germany will not be tolerated,’ the ministry said.”

“Deja Vu as Russia Gas Cuts Hit Eight More EU Countries”

The EUObserver wrote on February 3:

“Eight EU countries have joined Italy in noting a sharp drop in Russian gas supplies, in events recalling the massive 2009 crunch. Gazprom deliveries to Austria and Slovakia reportedly fell by 30 percent on Thursday (2 February). Shipments to Poland fell 7 percent and Czech distributor RWE Transgaz said deliveries are ‘several’ percent lower than normal. The European Commission on Friday added that Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary and Romania have also been affected.

“The cuts began in Italy on Tuesday. Earlier this week it reported a 10 percent drop, but the figure hit 20 percent on Thursday.  Member states created special reserves after the 2009 gas crunch – which cost EU firms hundreds of millions of euros and which saw blackouts in some former Communist EU countries in the middle of a harsh winter. But there are signs the 2012 crunch could also get nasty.”

Deutsche Welle added on February 7, 2012:

“From France to Ukraine, Europe continues to freeze under a continental cold spell. Add a Russian gas shortage to the mix and you’ve got a problem – though one that’s being felt differently around the EU. The European Commission came out Tuesday (February 7) with a mollifying announcement regarding the flow of Russian gas to western Europe… The Commission gave further reassurance that everything was under control, saying that supplies had returned to normal in a number of EU member states.

“However, the tone in one of those member states, Italy, is entirely different at the moment. Officials were said to be holding emergency talks in Rome on Tuesday to ensure that gas supplies could keep homes heated. The death toll from the cold snap in Italy has hit 26, making it the hardest hit among all western European nations… Italy has far less gas on reserve than its northern EU compatriot, Germany, which is one of the reasons why Germany – despite having its supplies cut by Russia – isn’t suffering as much… What’s more, a country located as far south as Italy isn’t built to cope with the cold as well as Germany… Indeed, Italian demand for gas has reached record heights…

“Russia’s state-owned Gazprom gas supplier rejected calls on Tuesday to make up for last week’s shortages by sending extra supplies, with both the company and the Russian government saying Russia had its own gas problem to deal with amid the cold snap… Gas prices in Europe have indeed soared this week, with the UK recording its highest levels since winter 2006…”

Europe will not sit back idly for long if it feels continuously threatened and provoked by Russian conduct—especially if such conduct affects the European economy.

Iran–Waiting for the Mahdi

WorldNetDaily wrote on February 5:

“Amid crippling sanctions over its nuclear weapons program, Iran is continuing to prepare itself for war against the West, and now is warning of a coming great event.  ‘In light of the realization of the divine promise by almighty God, the Zionists and the Great Satan (America) will soon be defeated,’ Ayatollah Khamenei, the Iranian supreme leader, is warning. Khamenei, speaking to hundreds of youths from more than 70 countries attending a world conference on the Arab Spring just days ago, told a cheering crowd in Tehran that ‘Allah’s promises will be delivered and Islam will be victorious.’ The countries represented included Bahrain, Egypt, Libya and Tunisia, all of which have been involved in the Arab Spring…

“Many clerics in Iran have stated that Khamenei is the deputy of the last Islamic messiah on earth and that obedience to him is necessary for the final glorification of Islam… Khamenei has been heard to say that the coming of the last Islamic Messiah, the Shiites’ 12th Imam Mahdi, is near and that specific actions need to be taken to protect the Islamic regime for upcoming events.”

On February 5, the Tampa Tribune published the following article:

“Iran is an overwhelmingly Islamic nation, and almost all Iranians belong to the Twelver sect of the Shia branch of Islam. This sect awaits the return of the 12th Imam, or Mahdi, a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammed anointed by Allah himself. According to the Twelvers, the Mahdi has been in hiding in caves since the 9th century… but he will return just before the Day of Judgment. According to the Hadith, his return will be preceded by three years of chaos, violence and cataclysmic events. He will rule over the world for a period of seven years, eliminate all tyranny and oppression, and usher in an era of peace…

“Some Twelvers, including the current president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameinei, believe that they are to prepare the way for the return of the Mahdi. In order to do so, they are to bring on the state of chaos and destruction, which will precede the Madhi’s return. The worse things get; the faster they win…”

The literal belief in a Mahdi at a time of great upheaval is without any doubt of tremendous importance and significance, if one wants to understand the motives and actions of the Iranian leadership.

Iran Ready to Destroy Israel?

WorldNetDaily wrote on February 5:

“The Iranian government, through a website proxy, has laid out the legal and religious justification for the destruction of Israel and the slaughter of its people. The doctrine includes wiping out Israeli assets and Jewish people worldwide… Because Israel is going to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, Iran is justified in launching a pre-emptive, cataclysmic attack against the Jewish state, the doctrine argues.

“On Friday, in a major speech at prayers, Khamenei announced that Iran will support any nation or group that attacks the ‘cancerous tumor’ of Israel.”

The hatred of the Iranian leadership towards Israel is unabated. As the next article shows, other non-Christian and non-Jewish nations, such as Pakistan, are apparently willing to support Iran in case of war.

Will Pakistan Help Iran?

Y-Net News wrote on February 5:

“Is the world counting down to ‘D-Day’? After US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta estimated that Israel would attack Iran by June, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned government officials against  ‘Iran chatter,’ a  European diplomat based in Pakistan said that if Israel attacks, Islamabad will have no choice but to support any Iranian retaliation. The diplomat’s statement raised the specter of putting a nuclear-armed Pakistan at odds with Israel, which is widely believed to have its own significant nuclear arsenal.

“To some, the greatest risk of an attack was to the moribund world economy. Nick Witney, former head of the EU’s European Defense Agency, said ‘the political and economic consequences of an Israeli attack would be catastrophic for Europe’ since the likely spike in the price of oil alone ‘could push the entire EU, including Germany, into recession’… Witney… added that ‘the Iranians would probably retaliate against European interests in the region, and conceivably more directly with terrorism aimed at Western countries and societies.’”

Germany’s position is really dubious in this matter. Will they turn against Israel if it were to attack Iran?

USA Sanctions Against Iran Increase

Newsmax reported on February 6:

“President Barack Obama ordered a freeze on all Iranian government and central bank assets held in the U.S. or any foreign branch of a U.S. entity… Previously, only assets belonging to sanctioned Iranian entities or individuals were frozen. The order signed by the president yesterday blocks all property and interests in property belonging to the Iranian government, its central bank, and all Iranian financial institutions, even those that haven’t been specifically designated for sanctions by the U.S. Treasury.

“Longstanding U.S. regulations already prohibited American citizens or entities from virtually all direct and indirect transactions involving Iran or the government of Iran, aside from those exempted under general licenses for transactions involving food, medicine, remittances and humanitarian relief. The measure was mandated as part of Iran sanctions legislation that was passed by Congress and signed by the president Dec. 31.”

USA and Israel At Odds Over Iran

The New York times wrote on February 8:

“Amid mounting tensions over whether  Israel will carry out a military strike against Iran’s nuclear program the United States and Israel remain at odds over a fundamental question: whether Iran’s crucial nuclear facilities are about to become impregnable… The difference of opinion over Iran’s nuclear ‘immunity’ is critical because it plays into not just the timing — or bluffing — about a possible military strike, but the calculations about how deeply and quickly sanctions against Iran must bite.”

Argentina vs. Britain

The Telegraph wrote on February 8, 2012:

“‘The sending of a destroyer to accompany the Royal heir is a militarisation of the South Atlantic,’ Mrs Kirchner said. ‘We will present a complaint to the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly, as this militarisation poses a grave danger to international security.’ Mrs Kirchner said the Falklands was not only a ‘regional issue’ but had become a ‘global cause’…

“Tensions have increased to their highest level since the end of the conflict 30 years ago as the Duke of Cambridge, a Royal Air Force helicopter pilot, began a six week tour of duty in the islands at the weekend… The Royal Navy also announced last week it was sending its most powerful warship, HMS Dauntless, to the South Pacific…

“Argentina has received the backing of Latin American countries for its claim of sovereignty over the remote, wind-lashed islands, which were occupied by Britain in 1833. The dispute erupted into warfare April 2, 1981 when Argentine troops seized the islands, only to be routed in a 74-day war that claimed the lives of 649 Argentines and 255 Britons.

“Diplomatic friction between Argentina and Britain has intensified since 2010, when the Government authorised oil exploration in the waters near the islands.”

The once bright star of the British Empire is surely sinking…

Greek Deal Reached… Or Has It?

Deutsche Welle reported on February 9:

“Greek political leaders have clinched a deal on austerity measures required so as to receive a second package of international loans… The talks had dragged on for several days. Cuts to state and private pensions worth some 300 billion euros ($398 billion) had been amongst the most contentious measures. The deal was inked as eurozone finance ministers gathered in Brussels ready for further talks on Greece… The euro, safe haven German sovereign bonds and several stock exchanges responded positively to the news… Greek and European leaders have been working against the clock, as the government in Athens needs fresh capital to meet a 14.5-billion-euro bond repayment due on March 20.”

Der Spiegel Online added on February 9:

“The highly indebted euro-zone country is close to insolvency, and the government in Athens appears to be willing to meet most of the demands made by the troika, comprised of the EU, IMF and European Central Bank (ECB), responsible for determining if Greece has fulfilled its aid requirements…

“German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble… expressed skepticism that the agreement reached in Athens would be enough to secure funding… Europe had increased pressure on Greece in the final rounds of negotiations after earlier talks failed to produce a breakthrough. A spokesperson for European Commissioner for Currency and Monetary Policy Olli Rehn pushed all sides to hurry in order to prevent a Greek default…

“Overnight, the party chiefs… agreed to reduce the minimum wage by 22 percent… The country is also expected to eliminate 15,000 jobs in the public sector by the end of the year. And in the private sector, all wages are to be frozen for as long as it takes to reduce the current unemployment rate of 21 percent down to 10 percent…”

In a related article, Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 9:

“In Greece, a consensus has developed as to who is to blame for the country’s economic misery. Age old stereotypes are flourishing. Georgios Trangas had launched into a tirade — yet again. He… stared into the camera and turned to his favourite subject: the Germans, and how they are cold-bloodedly shoving Greece into the abyss. ‘Germany doesn’t care that 3 million pensioners are dying here,’ he raged. The sentence is one of his more harmless utterances on this evening. But such verbal artillery is hardly out of the ordinary on the Athens television broadcaster Extra 33, a channel full of angry broadsides against the ‘German occupiers’…

“The problem, of course, is that Trangas… is on primetime television… Trangas is a cult figure. What he says carries a certain amount of weight in Greece. He quickly reduces complex problems to mere slogans and just as rapidly identifies who is to blame. And only seldom are those responsible to be found in his own country…

“Trangas is a master of hyperbole, and has won many viewers with his tirades. But his core message is one that many in Greece share. Seeing the EU as the ‘Fourth German Reich’ is hardly a novelty in the country — and one almost has the feeling that the sentiment against Germany grows more poisoned by the day. Indeed, just this week, the associations representing doctors, lawyers and structural engineers met in Athens and agreed on a unified boycott of products from Germany. Just how the boycott will be put into practice is not yet clear. But it could mark the beginning of a broader anti-Germany movement. Already, the burning of German flags, and the display of swastikas, has become de rigueur at anti-austerity demonstrations in Greece.”

These anti-German feelings don’t bring about much sympathy in Germany—given the fact that the consensus is that Greece is to be blamed for their current problems—not Germany. In fact, most Germans are angry with their own government, feeling that Germany is already doing far too much for Greece. It is not unlikely that Greece won’t be part of the final configuration of core Europe.

Human Rights Take a Back Seat to Sovereignty

Der Spiegel Online wrote on February 3:

“An international court ruled on Friday that Germany cannot be held liable for paying reparations to the descendents of victims of a massacre perpetrated during World War II in Italy. The verdict has implications far beyond Nazi-era war crimes, and was welcomed by countries far and wide. It sounds like a paradox: Germany takes Italy to court and wins — and Rome is secretly pleased with the ruling. In addition, several other governments around the world are breathing a sigh of relief on Friday. After all, had the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled differently, people in Afghanistan or Ethiopia, in the Balkans or in Libya, would have been able to take countries to court whose soldiers committed war crimes on their soil. It is a situation that governments everywhere wanted to avoid.

“And now they have. The ICJ ruling threw out a 2008 decision by the highest Italian appellate court which sought to force Germany to pay reparations to the families of victims of World War II-era war crimes… Human rights organization Amnesty International said in a statement that the ruling was a ‘great step backwards in the protection of international human rights.’… And in the future, the families of Afghan, Iraqi or Ethiopian victims of human rights abuses perpetrated by foreign countries will have no more legal recourse than did the Italians and Greeks in the case decided on Friday in The Hague.”

Der Spiegel Online wrote in its headline, “Human Rights Take a Back Seat to Sovereignty.” Fortunately, the time is soon coming to an end when sovereign countries or individuals, including politicians and diplomats, can hide behind the cloak of “immunity,” thereby preventing just and fair prosecution of and punishment for their deeds and conduct.

Constitutional Right for Same-Sex Couples to Marry?

The Wall Street Journal wrote on February 7:

“A federal appeals court panel here ruled Tuesday that California’s voter-mandated ban on gay marriages was unconstitutional, in a closely watched case that eventually could lead the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry. In a 2-1 vote, the panel of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said California’s 2008 law, popularly known as Proposition 8, had used the state’s initiative power to target a minority group and take away a right the group possessed, without legitimate reason.

“Doing so, wrote Judge Stephen Reinhardt in an 89-page majority opinion, violated the 14th Amendment’s equal-protection clause… Tuesday’s decision is likely just the second stop in a battle that could next be appealed to an expanded 11-judge panel of the same court—or directly to the Supreme Court… Proposition 8 defined marriage in the California state constitution as between one man and one woman…

“Six states, plus the District of Columbia, now permit same-sex marriages… Gay marriage has become a political lightning rod. President Barack Obama has stopped short of supporting gay marriage but has backed other gay-rights legal concerns. The major Republican presidential candidates, except Ron Paul, have signed a pledge saying they are committed to a federal Constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. In a poll of U.S. adults last fall by the Associated Press and the National Constitution Center… 53% of respondents said the government should give legal recognition to marriages between people of the same sex.”

Nightmare Scenario—Genetically Modified Mosquitoes

ABC News reported on February 4:

“A British biotech lab has released huge numbers of genetically modified mosquitoes in an effort to combat dengue fever… They buzz very, very quietly… Their victims can’t hear them until it’s almost too late… The insects in question are female yellow-fever mosquitoes, some of the most dangerous animals on the planet. In addition to the illness after which they were named, they also transmit the dengue virus.

“Dengue fever is on the rise worldwide and spreading faster than any other insect-borne viral disease. Every year, female mosquitoes infect at least 50 million people in tropical and subtropical regions (the males don’t bite). More than 20,000 of their victims — most of them children — succumb to their illness. The mosquitoes at the lab near Oxford serve a rather different purpose: To save human lives. Scientists have implanted a gene they hope will wipe out these mosquitoes’ wild cousins. When males from the lab mate with wild females, their larval offspring die within a short space of time. The lab insects have been produced to commit infanticide…

“The yellow-fever mosquitoes from Milton Park have since been released in Malaysia… They specialize in feeding on humans [and] are also currently buzzing around near the city of Juazeiro in eastern Brazil. Mosquitoes are due to be released in other dengue-plagued countries too, including Panama, India, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. They could also soon turn up in Key West, Florida, as early as March; preparations there are underway…

“The problem is that genetically-modified female mosquitoes can still bite humans. This means the protein which kills their own larvae might be injected into humans when the mosquitoes suck their prey’s blood, with unknown consequences for the human organism…”

One must wonder how far man will go in the name of science to fool around with God’s creation—not knowing or realizing what kind of Frankenstein monster they are creating. Note also the next article.

Nightmare Scenario—Scientists Create Most Deadly Form of Bird Flu

The Daily Mail wrote on February 8:

“Details of secret experiments by scientists who have created the most deadly form of bird flu in the lab will inevitably be leaked – potentially into the hands of terrorists.. When H5N1 bird flu erupted over seven years ago, out of the 584 people known to have caught it, 335 died. What stopped it from becoming a world-wide killer was its inability to jump from birds to humans easily.

“However, a mutation of the virus was made by Ron Fouchier and his team at the Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam in Holland, which was just as deadly and passed easily between ferrets, the animal that best indicates whether humans will catch it. In December, the NSABB asked the journals Nature and Science to censor publication of the study, and similar research conducted by American scientists, setting off a furious debate in the scientific and public health communities.

“The move followed a voluntary 60-day suspension of a study into the virus by the researchers themselves, who became worried that their work could lead to a pandemic. Fears were raised that the engineered viruses may escape from the laboratories… or possibly be used to create a bioterror weapon. In a letter published in Nature and Science, 39 scientists defended the research as crucial to public health efforts.”

One must wonder what kind of a sick mind would want to create such a deadly sickness—and that in the name of science and the “greater good.”

Global Warming Threat Incontrovertible?

Newsmax reported on February 5:

“An editorial signed by 16 prominent scientists in the Wall Street Journal takes sharp issue with calls for drastic action against global warming, asserting that the threat is far from ‘incontrovertible’ as alarmists claim… The ‘most inconvenient’ fact cited by the scientists is the lack of global warming over the past 10 years… Why then does the call for action against global warming persist? The scientists say: Follow the money. ‘Alarmism over climate is of great benefit to many, providing government funding for academic research and a reason for government bureaucracies to grow,’ they declare…

“Temperatures in some areas in Europe on Thursday sank to minus 26.5 F. Parts of the Black Sea froze near the Romanian coastline and rare snow fell on Croatian islands in the Adriatic Sea.”

It seems, money rules… no matter what. But NOT for much longer!!!

Trouble for Mitt Romney from Catholics and Evangelicals?

Newsmax reported on February 7:

“Mitt Romney is vociferously attacking a provision in Obamacare requiring religious employers to cover birth control in employee health plans — but the healthcare bill he enacted as governor of Massachusetts also contained that requirement. C.J. Doyle, executive director of the Catholic Action League of Massachusetts, told the Boston Globe that Romney’s criticism of President Obama is hypocritical because as governor he did not lift the state-level requirement of contraception coverage. ‘The initial injury to Catholic religious freedom came not from the Obama administration, but from the Romney administration,’ Doyle said. ‘President Obama’s plan certainly constitutes an assault on the constitutional rights of Catholics, but I’m not sure Gov. Romney is in a position to assert that, given his own very mixed record on this.’…

“Romney GOP presidential rival Newt Gingrich also has attacked Romney over the birth control provision. ‘The Obama administration is raging a war against the Catholic Church,’ Gingrich said on ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’ last week. ‘Well guess what? Mitt Romney’s Romneycare — he specifically refused to exempt Catholic hospitals, he specifically cut funding for kosher meals for Jewish senior citizens in Medicaid in Massachusetts. There are a lot of parallels between these two guys. Romneycare and Obamacare are essentially the same… In the long run, the Republican Party is not going to nominate the founder of Romneycare, a liberal Republican who is pro-abortion, pro-gun control, and pro-tax increase.’”

But one will have to wait and see whom the deeply divided GOP will nominate—especially in light of ultra-conservative Roman Catholic Rick Santorum’s surprising and unexpected victory in three states.

Newsmax wrote on February 8, 2012:

“A resurgent Rick Santorum made a clean sweep in presidential contests Tuesday night that showed the importance Christian activists hold within the GOP. He took Colorado by a narrow margin… won Minnesota’s Republican caucuses with ease [and] was victorious as well in a nonbinding Missouri primary…”

The Washington Post added on February 8:

“In the aftermath of Rick Santorum’s clean sweep of Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri, Mitt Romney is still, in fact, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. But the lack of enthusiasm for his candidacy among conservatives foreshadows a potentially ugly road ahead to Tampa and general election problems if he is nominee…

“The arguments advanced by Romney advisers are not incorrect. He did not spend real money in these states. He did not campaign in them very much. There were no delegates awarded in any of the three. Missouri was simply a beauty contest. Arizona and Michigan, whose primaries are at the end of the month, look favorable for Romney. Super Tuesday offers more opportunities to win. Santorum and Newt Gingrich have limited resources…

“The issue is not whether Romney has been significantly derailed from his path to the nomination, but rather what kind of nominee he might be and what kind of party would be behind him… But that methodical path they [supporters] describe also could give him the nomination while leaving his party fractured, the base uninspired and his opponents bitter and slow to reconcile… Republicans are fervent in their desire to defeat the president in November but can’t work up much enthusiasm for their own candidates…

“Two of his victories came on friendly turf: New Hampshire, where proximity to Massachusetts helped Romney; and Nevada, where the sizeable Mormon population was a great asset. On more neutral terrain, he owes his success in considerable part to the power of negative campaigning. He almost won Iowa, and came close only after he and the super PAC behind his candidacy spent millions trashing Gingrich with negative ads. His victory in Florida came after another heavy investment in negative ads aimed at the former speaker…

“After South Carolina, Gingrich thought the contest would come down to him versus Romney. Santorum now will try to become the lone alternative to Romney. For that reason, Gingrich was the other big loser Tuesday night…”

Roman Catholics May Prevail Against President Obama

Newsmax reported on February 7:

“Roman Catholic pressure to get the Obama administration to back down from its insistence that they provide free contraceptives in their healthcare plans appeared to be paying off on Tuesday. Now the White House may be ready to work with the church to find a way to get around the mandate, said David Axelrod, a top adviser to President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign…

“Axelrod said Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius had already given churches an exemption to the mandate, against the recommendation of the Institute of Medicine. ‘The question now is about these extended affiliated institutions … and there are tens of thousands – hundreds of thousands – of women who work in these hospitals and universities who are not Catholic or they may be Catholic and they use birth control…

“The administration’s insistence that religious organizations provide insurance that covers contraceptives – including abortifacients such as the morning-after pill – has led to claims that Obama is anti-religion. Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, who converted to Catholicism in 2008, said last week, ‘The Obama administration is raging a war against the Catholic Church.’

“Fellow Catholic candidate Rick Santorum said the church should have fought harder against the whole Affordable Health Care Act. ‘I told the Catholic bishops years ago when they were … promoting Obamacare, be careful what you wish for,’ he said. ‘They got what they deserved.’

“Catholic bishops wrote letters that were read to parishioners from the pulpit over the weekend. ‘We cannot – we will not – comply with this unjust law,’ was the message in the letter from many of the bishops… But whether the bishops have the backing of their followers is unclear. A USA Today poll released Tuesday showed that 58 percent of Catholics support compulsory contraceptive insurance. That figure rose to 62 percent among Catholic women.”

This whole matter is a two-edged sword. First, mandated compulsory healthcare coverage is morally wrong and also unconstitutional, in our opinion. Secondly, to demand covering abortifacients such as the morning-after pill is likewise wrong, as such a pill kills human life. On the other hand, contraceptives preventing impregnation are perfectly alright and in that regard, the Catholic Church’s teaching is unbiblical. What is interesting to see is the tremendous political influence of the Catholic Church in the USA. At the same time, a spokeswoman for the Democratic Party was very reluctant to make any commitments or concessions in favor of the Catholic bishops in an interview with CNN on February 8.

Coming—Worldwide Disease Epidemics and Pandemics

Der Spiegel Online wrote on January 27:
 
“Antibiotics were once the wonder drug. Now, however, an increasing number of highly resistant — and deadly — bacteria are spreading around the world…
 
“The bacteria are transmitted via the skin, through towels, clothing or direct body contact. All it takes is a small abrasion to provide them with access to a victim’s bloodstream. Festering pustules develop at the infection site, at which point the pathogens are also capable of corroding the lungs. If doctors wait too long, patients can die very quickly… The two bacteria, ha-MRSA and ca-MRSA, are only two strains from an entire arsenal of pathogens that are now resistant to almost all available antibiotics. Less than a century after the discovery of penicillin, one of the most powerful miracle weapons ever produced by modern medicine threatens to become ineffective…
 
“With the spread of ESBL-forming bacteria, reserve antibiotics have to be used more and more frequently, thereby allowing new resistances to develop. In fact, there are already some pathogens that not even the drugs of last resort in the medical arsenal can combat… This rapid spread has caused many to wonder whether more and more people… will soon die of infectious diseases that were supposedly treatable, as happened in centuries past. Unfortunately, there are many indications that this might ultimately be the case… The World Health Organization (WHO) recently warned against an impending medical catastrophe…
 
“In fact, the carelessness with which doctors and farmers are jeopardizing the effectiveness of one of the most important groups of drugs borders on lunacy. Some 900 metric tons of antibiotics are administered to livestock each year in Germany alone. Instead of treating only those animals that are truly sick, farmers routinely feed the medications to all of their animals. Likewise, some 300 metric tons of antibiotics are used to treat humans each year, far too often for those merely suffering from a common cold… This large-scale use inevitably leads to the spread of resistant bugs… Still, even more responsible prescribing practices will hardly be able to stop the advance of resistant bacteria in the long term. What’s more, no new antibiotics can be seen on the horizon. Only four pharmaceutical companies worldwide are still working on developing new agents…”
 
Other media reports show the increasing ineffectiveness and counter-productiveness of antibiotics. Surely, Christ’s predictions that we will hear more and more about end-time diseases and pandemics are coming to pass…

The World’s Biggest Political Battle

Der Spiegel wrote on January 26:

“The battle lines are being drawn in what is undoubtedly the world’s biggest political battle — the election of an American president. Incumbent Barack Obama used his annual State of the Union speech in front of Congress on Tuesday to outline the foundations of his campaign…

“Die Zeit writes: ‘Obama remains a politically vulnerable president. … And the criticism from the Republicans is also not completely unjustified…’

“The center-left Frankfurter Rundschau writes: ‘… the US has developed into a class society. More so than in Germany, anyone’s future prospects depend on where they come from. Only those with affluent and well-educated parents… even [have] a shot at having… a career…’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘With the demand for a minimum tax for the rich, (Obama) is breeding resentment among the successful entrepreneurs and investors who are the engine of economic development… With minimum taxes and increased industry control, he will not win back manufacturing jobs for America.’”

Der Spiegel added on January 27:

“The US Republican candidates’ debate in Florida quickly devolved into a horror show of absurdities on Thursday night as candidates argued about immigration and moon colonies. Mitt Romney was branded the winner, but the real losers were the viewers, the truth and politics in general… CNN moderator Wolf Blitzer tried to heighten the drama by asking absurd questions about US colonies on the moon, Swiss bank accounts, and Puerto Rican statehood, not to mention which of the four candidates’ wives would make the best first lady… The most important topic for voters, the economy, wasn’t addressed at all.

“At the end, the commentators declared Romney the winner (because he bit the hardest) and Gingrich the loser (because he didn’t bite back hard enough). Santorum was termed the ‘new’ challenger (because he attacked everyone), and Paul became the funny uncle. But the real loser was the political system… Those who follow this race daily may have long since lost perspective on how absurd it is… Maybe the best solution came from Paul, who said: ‘Well, I don’t think we should go to the moon. I think we maybe should send some politicians up there.’”

We feel ALL politicians should be sent up there… Subsequently, Mr. Romney won the election in Florida, but Mr. Gingrich–who reached a distant second place– vowed to continue fighting until the bitter end. The very next day, both politicians resumed their personal attacks against each other, and the other two remaining Republican contestants, Messrs. Santorum and Paul, chipped in as well.

Cameron Critical of European Court of Human Rights

Israel National News reported on January 27:

“British Prime Minister David Cameron delivered a speech before the Council of Europe, the 47 nation grouping that is responsible for the European Court of Human Rights. Britain has been discomfited by the court’s activism and decisions. A recent parliamentary study found that Britain lost 75% of the cases in which it was sued…

“Britain’s major complaint is a serious one. The UK is concerned about court rulings on immigration that prevented the country from protecting its citizens against terrorism. Terrorists who had entered the country illegally could not be deported… Another problematic area is the penchant of the European Court of human rights to review cases that have gone through the entire appeals process in the national courts, adding yet another tribunal. The court ‘should not undermine its own reputation by going over national decisions where it does not need to.’”

Britain’s frustration with the institutions of the EU will continue.

Tough Smacking Laws Need to Be Relaxed

Great Britain’s Press Association wrote on January 29:

“Legislation surrounding the smacking of children needs to be relaxed so working-class parents can instil discipline in their homes without fearing prosecution, according to a senior Labour politician. MP for Tottenham David Lammy claimed Labour’s 2004 decision to tighten up the smacking law was partly to blame for last summer’s riots, which erupted in his north London constituency.

“In an interview with LBC Radio, the former education minister said: ‘Many of my constituents came up to me after the riots and blamed the Labour Government, saying: “You guys stopped us being able to smack our children”… These parents are scared to smack their children and paranoid that social workers will get involved and take their children away.’

“Mr Lammy… said working-class parents should be able to physically discipline their children to prevent them from joining gangs and getting involved in knife crime. Current legislation, enforced under The Children Act of 2004, says parents are allowed to smack their offspring without causing the ‘reddening of the skin’. Previously they could use ‘reasonable chastisement’ with a judge deciding if they had over-stepped the mark. However, since the 2004 amendments the decision has been left to social workers…

“The politician argued parents in Tottenham had to raise their children ‘with knives, gangs and the dangers of violent crime just outside the window’, but ‘no longer feel sovereign in their own homes’, because of the laws. ‘The ability to exercise their own judgment in relation to discipline and reasonable chastisement has been taken away,’ he added.”

Indeed, man’s ways ARE foolishness to God.

Victory for Merkel

The Financial Times wrote on January 30:

“Twenty-five of the European Union’s 27 countries have signed up to a German-inspired treaty enshrining tougher fiscal rules to help underpin the euro. But Berlin was warned that there were limits to how much sovereignty governments could be expected to surrender for the sake of fiscal discipline… The continued debate over Greece’s future came as Ms Merkel was handed a symbolic victory in her months’ long drive to include tough budget limits into the fabric of the single currency. But Berlin lost a second signatory at the summit when the Czech Republic announced it would join the UK by not agreeing to the pact.

“David Cameron… said he would not block signatories from using EU-wide institutions. But he warned he would take legal action if the new treaty undermined British interests. Ratification by Germany’s most important partner in the eurozone also became more complicated as Mr Sarkozy said he would not ask the French assembly to approve the treaty before April’s presidential election. Mr Sarkozy’s likely opponent, Socialist François Hollande, has said he would seek to renegotiate the pact, but Ms Merkel said she did not believe France would back away from the commitment.”

Deutsche Welle added on January 31:

“Twenty-five of the European Union’s 27 member states agreed to a fiscal unification pact that would cede much control of national budgets over to Brussels… The United Kingdom had already declined to take part in the so-called ‘fiscal compact,’ which, among other things, would require countries to introduce balanced budget rules into their laws or constitutions. The Czech Republic also said it would not sign the agreement.”

The Wall Street Journal added:

“Leaders of 25 European Union governments agreed Monday night on what some billed as a historic pact to move to closer fiscal union and signed off on the details of a permanent bailout fund for the euro zone…”

The EU Says “No” to German-American Merger

Der Spiegel reported on January 2:

“The European Commission has vetoed a planned merger between Deutsche Börse and NYSE Euronext stock exchanges, saying that it would have created a quasi-monopoly in certain kinds of trading… It would have been the world’s largest stock-exchange company… According to the Commission, the two companies control more than 90 percent of the trade in European exchange-traded financial derivatives… Deutsche Börse reacted to the decision with disappointment. ‘This is a black day for Europe and for its future competitiveness on global financial markets,’ said the company’s executive board in a statement. ‘The EU Commission’s decision is based on an unrealistically narrow definition of the market that does no justice to the global nature of competition in the market for derivatives.’

“The two companies can still appeal the decision before the European Court of Justice. The head of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), Duncan Niederauer, recently said that he would not rule out legal action against a veto. It was the third attempt by Deutsche Börse and NYSE to merge. The Frankfurt-based Deutsche Börse would have owned 60 percent of the proposed new company, and the NYSE 40 percent… The US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had already cleared the merger.”

The EUObserver added:

“… the German firm reacted furiously to [the] announcement… The story is not over yet, with Deutsche Boerse expected to shortly make a bid for the London stock exchange…”

A prophecy about Europe in Daniel 2 comes to mind, saying that “they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay” (verse 43). Still, to make Germany angry may not be a smart move for European countries… and neither is the impression that Germany is giving as wanting to become the master of Europe… Please note the next article…

Europe Afraid of Germany

“The EU summit on Monday was overshadowed by a new upsurge in fears of German domination following reports over the weekend that Berlin was proposing dispatching an EU commissioner to Athens to seize control of the Greek budget… Greek newspaper Ta Nea published a cartoon of Merkel holding Greece like a marionette under the headline ‘Nein! Nein! Nein!’… Economic data released on Tuesday underlined that Germany is doing far better than its European partners. German unemployment fell to a record low of 6.7 percent in January while joblessness in the euro zone rose to 10.4 percent in December, the highest rate since June 1998.

“German media commentators say Germany has a right to insist on fiscal discipline in Europe but needs to tread more lightly in its rhetoric, and must refrain from proposals that insult its partners…

“The conservative Die Welt writes: ‘… Countries in crisis can’t be transformed into protectorates…’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘Germany has the strongest economy by far in the EU, and its lead is growing. It is also the most populous country, which isn’t insignificant in democratic terms. So it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the German government is making use of this clout; that’s legitimate. But Germany isn’t the hegemon of Europe. It isn’t the hesitant or even steamrolling hegemon who flattens the other members of the EU and/or euro zone. The union of the Europeans doesn’t work that way. It isn’t geared to systematic domination or subordination…

“‘If Germany is to lead, as most partners want it to or say they want it to, this leadership cannot simply consist of giving orders… Greek public shouldn’t stupidly call the chancellor a Nazi, and should draw the right conclusions from a grandiose failure. And despite all the fuss being made: The country has de facto already surrendered its budget autonomy.’

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘Germany stands where it never wanted to stand again after 1945: as the dominant power in the middle of Europe. Its attempts to achieve this with cannons and tanks in the 20th century ended in apocalypses of blood and fire, but that’s precisely why that Germany no longer exists. No country succumbed to the temptation of nationalism more terribly than Germany; in its collective memory, the crimes it committed across Europe still weigh heavily.

“‘True, it is a disgrace to exploit that fact today, even in Greece, whose political parties drove the state to ruin. But it should teach the German government not to confuse firmness with the arrogance of power when it comes to the euro crisis. Because this power is very real, and it is causing fear. The idea to impose an austerity commissioner on Greece was insensitive…

“‘In truth, this worst crisis since the start of the European Union shows how vital that union is. It shows that a common currency, the free movement of goods, open borders and friendship among peoples can’t be taken for granted. These are historically unique achievements of a continent whose peoples settled their disputes by waging war up until two generations ago… Germany must convince rather than dictate. It is just as dependent on Europe as the Greeks.’”

The Local added on February 2:

“A eurosceptic British MEP provoked the German head of the European Parliament chairman to cut off his microphone after comparing Germany’s proposed plans for Greece’s finances to the Nazi occupation of the country. The move by parliament president Martin Schulz prompted Nigel Farage to storm out of the Brussels chamber on Wednesday.

“Farage, who heads the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) likened Germany’s proposal for EU control of Greece’s public spending to placing it under control of a ‘Gauleiter’ – a Nazi administrator in charge of a region during the Third Reich. His microphone was eventually turned off by Schulz, a German Social Democrat, at which point Farage ‘had no option but to walk out of the chamber in disgust,’ his spokesman said in a statement.

“The comment provoked uproar, especially among German MEPs, with Green Party representative Reinhard Bütikofer accusing the UKIP leader of spreading, ‘hatred in the European Parliament’ and ‘hatred between European peoples.’ Farage later said he was only repeating a word being used in the British media… The UKIP party does not support Britain being a member of the European Union, and if newly appointed president Schulz decides to take punitive action against Farage, he could face a fine.”

Germany’s Interests in Africa

German Foreign Policy reported on January 20:

“The German Foreign Ministry is warning that unrest in Nigeria could escalate. The German government is ‘very worried’ about developments in that country, declared the Africa Commissioner in the German Foreign Ministry. For years, Nigeria has been the scene of violent upheavals in the Niger Delta and more recently has been marked by an escalation of attacks by Islamist organizations. Over the past few weeks, a nationwide general strike has paralyzed the country, during the course of which, government repressive forces have killed at least nine people.

“The widespread impoverishment of broad sections of the population in this country rich in petroleum and natural gas is the primary reason for these protests. Germany is interested in more than only Nigeria’s natural resources; Germany also attributes significant geo-strategic importance to Nigeria, as a western proxy in African conflicts as well as a deputy in fighting against piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
 
“Apprehension is now growing in government circles in Berlin, that Nigeria could be politically destabilized, which, in the eyes of Germany, would reduce its geostrategic usefulness. By intensifying cooperation with Abuja, the German government is attempting to counteract this development.”

The Rhein-Neckar Zeitung reported on January 23 that Nigeria is becoming chaotic and is facing civil war due to the threats and terrorist activities of Islamists—especially the radical Boko Haram organization, which is advocating the creation of an Islamic state and the enforcement of Sharia law. They want to prohibit Western culture and Christianity. In 2011 alone, they murdered more than 3,000 people and injured more than 10,000 people in Nigeria. Their attacks are mainly focused on Christians.

Watch Ethiopia

The BBC News wrote on January 28:

“The African Union has inaugurated its newly built headquarters in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. The entire $200m (£127m) project was funded by China as a gift to the AU, as Beijing continues to strengthen its influence in Africa. In front of African leaders a huge golden key was handed over and the 100m high building was officially opened. The tower overlooks a vast conference centre where African heads of state are expected to meet for years to come… The new AU building dominates the skyline of Addis Ababa and is the city’s tallest building…

“Trade between China and Africa has increased more than six-fold during the past decade to $120bn (£76bn) in 2011. China is interested in Africa’s natural resources and in return is investing huge sums in African infrastructure. Roads are being built by Chinese firms at a staggering rate… While other rich nations impose conditions before aid is given, China’s relationship with African countries is strictly a business one, he says… In Ethiopia, many jobs have been created through Chinese-funded projects. Chinese cars are being made in Ethiopian factories and China is also building a light railway across Addis Ababa.”

China’s involvement in Africa and especially Ethiopia is quite interesting. In the past, Ethiopia was identified as the king of the South, mentioned in Daniel 11, pushing at the king of the North [the revived Roman Empire in Europe]. It is unclear whether this prophecy, which has been fulfilled under Mussolini, is dual. Recently, Ethiopia was mentioned in the news in respect to a highly controversial kidnapping of German citizens in that country. We also know that the relationship between China and Europe will constantly deteriorate.

German Diplomat Named EU Special Representative for Middle East Peace Process

Germany.info reported on January 23:

“German diplomat Andreas Reinicke, until now German ambassador in Damascus, will become the EU special representative for the Middle East peace process. The appointment was agreed by the EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on January 23. He will play a key role in bringing both sides back to the negotiating table, according to Catherine Ashton, EU high representative for foreign affairs.

“Reinicke is considered one of the most experienced Middle East experts in the German Foreign Office, having been stationed at both the embassies in Tel Aviv and Ramallah and heading up the Middle East section at the Foreign Office headquarters in Berlin. In addition to the EU’s long-standing efforts to help achieve a peaceful solution in the Middle East, Germany is also working bilaterally to support a peaceful solution. The German Government has had numerous political talks with representatives of the Israeli Government and the Palestinian Authority. The Middle East is one of the region’s most frequently visited by the Federal Foreign Minister and the Federal Chancellor.”

Germany’s influence and involvement in the Middle East is prophesied to continue and increase.

The Iranian Threat

Israel National News reported on January 27:

“The current U.S.-led push to force Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions through steadily increasing economic and diplomatic pressure is beginning to show results and it would be ‘premature’ to resort to military force, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey, said on Thursday… He said the U.S. was increasing its economic and diplomatic pressure on Iran while making  preparations—if there was no other option—for a possible military intervention into the country… The London Times reported this week that Israeli officials told Dempsey that Israel would give President Barack Obama no more than 12 hours’ notice if and when it attacks Iran. The Netanyahu government also will not coordinate with the United States an attack on the Islamic Republic, according to the report.”

As the next article shows and as the dpa reported on January 24, the EU also announced wide-ranging “extraordinary” economic sanctions against Iran. Beginning with July 1, 2012, all oil imports into Europe from Iran are prohibited. According to the Figaro in Paris, the sanctions are prepared to preempt an Israeli attack on Iran. A most ridiculous position was taken by the Tagesanzeiger in Zurich, stating on January 25: “The crisis can only be avoided if the EU is willing to strengthen the regime in Tehran.”

Iran’s Reaction to EU Sanctions

Deutsche Welle reported on January 29:

“Iranian lawmakers have delayed a retaliatory halt in oil exports to Europe despite their fury over the EU’s embargo on imports of Iranian oil. The EU is pressing Iran to drop its nuclear ambitions. Iranian energy commission spokesman Emad Hosseini said the plan by Iranian lawmakers to fast-track a bill through parliament on Sunday to choke off oil exports to Europe has been put off until next Friday…

“Eighteen percent of Iranian oil exports go to EU countries, mainly to Italy, Spain and Greece. The EU embargo enacted on January 16 applies in phases. It banned new import contracts but gave those three EU nations until July to find alternative suppliers… Saudi Arabia has said it could make up for shortfalls, but that could be complicated by repeated Iranian threats to close the Gulf region’s export channel, the Strait of Hormuz. The United States, which has two aircraft carrier groups in the region, has warned Iran via diplomatic channels not to cross a red line… ”

Israel Contemplating Military Action Against Iran

The Telegraph wrote on January 27:

“Reviving Western concerns that his government is still contemplating unilateral military action against Iran, Ehud Barak gave one of the clearest signs yet that Israel’s support for new US and EU sanctions remains strictly limited. ‘We are determined to prevent Iran from turning nuclear,’ he told the World Economic Forum in Davos. ‘And even the American president and opinion leaders have said that no option should be removed from the table. It seems to us to be urgent, because the Iranians are deliberately drifting into what we call an immunity zone where practically no surgical operation could block them’…

“Israel’s fears that it might soon be too late to launch military action were bolstered earlier this month when Iran announced that it had begun to enrich uranium at its Fordow plant, which is buried so deep within a mountain it may be impossible for Israeli warplanes or missiles to destroy. Mr Barak’s ministry believes that once the bulk of uranium enrichment is carried out at Fordow, Iran will be in the immunity zone. Israel also reckons that Iran could be in a position to build a bomb within months… The EU agreed this week to an embargo on importing oil from Iran, but said it would phase in the sanctions over six months…”

The Washington Post wrote on February 2:

“Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has a lot on his mind these days, from cutting the defense budget to managing the drawdown of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. But his biggest worry is the growing possibility that Israel will attack Iran militarily over the next few months. Panetta believes there is strong likelihood that Israel will strike Iran in April, May or June — before Iran enters what Israelis described as a ‘zone of immunity’ to commence building a nuclear bomb. Very soon, the Israelis fear, the Iranians will have enough enriched uranium in deep underground facilities to make a weapon — and only the U.S. could then stop them militarily. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doesn’t want to leave the fate of Israel dependent on American action…

“Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak may have signaled the prospect of an Israeli attack soon when he asked last month to postpone a planned U.S.-Israel military exercise that would culminate in a live-fire phase in May. Barak apologized that Israel couldn’t devote the resources to the annual exercise this spring. President Obama and Panetta are said to have cautioned the Israelis that the United States opposes an attack… This U.S. policy… might open a breach like the one in 1956, when President Eisenhower condemned an Israeli-European attack on the Suez Canal. Complicating matters is the 2012 presidential campaign, which has [Republican] candidates clamoring for stronger U.S. support of Israel… senior Americans doubt the Israelis are bluffing…”

It appears more and more likely that Israel will soon resort to military action against Iran.

Iranian Soldiers for the Mahdi

WorldNetDaily wrote on January 25:

“Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has held several secret meetings with his economic and military advisers in recent days to prepare for the possibility of war with the United States. Sources report the preparations are to include the execution of those Iranians who oppose the regime. Khamenei has been heard to say that the coming of the last Islamic Messiah, the Shiites’ 12th Imam Mahdi, is near and that specific actions need to be taken to protect the Islamic regime for upcoming events… Selected forces within the Revolutionary Guards and Basij reportedly have been trained under a task force called ‘Soldiers of Imam Mahdi’ and they will bear the responsibility of security and protecting the regime against uprisings. Many in the Guards and Basij have been told that the 12th Imam is on earth, facilitated the victory of Hezbollah over Israel in the 2006 war and soon will announce publicly his presence after the needed environment is created…

“Journalists, writers and publishers who are deemed to be against the regime would be arrested and punished. Even high religious authorities who do not fully support Khamenei will be put under surveillance and dealt with if they become outspoken about the direction of the country. Several journalists already have been arrested in the past week. In a recent speech, Khamenei hinted of a warlike environment and warned those clerics who might doubt his direction of the country that their survival is tied to the survival of the Islamic regime. Many Iranians who resent the regime resent the religion it promotes, so even opposition clerics might not fare well…

“The plan by the leader calls for total control of Tehran, the capital where the presence of the Basij and Hezbollah militias would be quite visible so that no one would dare to challenge the regime…Khamenei’s extraordinary measures are based either on an understanding that war could be imminent or that the regime has decided to announce it has nuclear capability and is getting ready for a possible reaction from Israel or America.

“Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, an influential cleric and a radical Twelver, previously had stated that Khamenei ascends to the sky every year to take direction from Imam Mahdi, and sources close to the cleric have disclosed that Khamenei has been ordered by Imam Mahdi to continue with the nuclear program despite worldwide objection as it will facilitate his coming. Last March, a Iranian secret documentary, ‘The Coming Is Upon Us,’ was revealed to depict Khamenei as the mythical figure who creates the environment for the reappearance of Mahdi by leading Iran to destroy Israel.”

With this fundamentalist view point, it should be obvious that “negotiations” or sanctions will not dissuade Iran. Quite to the contrary, the religious powers appear to be determined to continue provoking Israel and the West, to bring about an all-encompassing war in the region. Please view our new StandingWatch program, titled, “Why Sanctions Against Iran Will Not Help.”

Turkey and Arab Nations Support Hamas

Israel National News reported on January 27:

“Hamas’ Gaza chief Ismail Haniyeh’s recent official tour opened the door to financial cooperation between the terror group and Turkey, a high-ranking Hamas official told the Al-Sharq newspaper on Thursday. The official told the newspaper that Turkey has agreed to carry out a project to support Hamas and rebuild Gaza. According to the official, Hamas will open an official office in Turkey in the coming weeks.

“Iran recently cooled its relations with Hamas, after Hamas refused to support Syrian president Bashar Assad. Despite the cool relations, however, Haniyeh indicated Wednesday he has added Iran to the itinerary of his next international tour… The addition of Iran to Haniyeh’s itinerary comes after Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sent Haniyeh a letter on Tuesday congratulating him on the anniversary of Hamas’ victory over Fatah in its bloody June 2007 seizure of Gaza.

“Hainyeh recently returned from his first official tour since Hamas violently took over Gaza in 2007. In addition to Turkey, during the tour he also visited Egypt, Tunisia and Sudan.”

Turkey’s relationship with Israel will become more and more hostile, while it will associate and collaborate with Israel’s enemies.

Unrest in Iraq

The New York Times wrote on January 28:

“Since the United States military withdrew from Iraq in the middle of last month, 434 Iraqis have been killed in attacks across the country, according to security officials, one of the highest tolls for that amount of time in the past few years… the wave of violence over the past five weeks has unnerved Iraqis who fear that their leaders, embroiled in a political fight with one another, are not prepared to thwart attacks without help from the Americans… The attacks, which have been aimed mainly at Shiites, have also raised questions about whether the insurgent group Al Qaeda in Iraq has regained its footing…”

The USA has failed to accomplish its goal to bring peace, freedom and democracy to Iraq. It leaves behind a deeply divided country, which is feared to descend into civil war.

Fierce Violence in Syria

Deutsche Welle reported on February 1, 2012:

“Fierce clashes have swept across Syria killing 59 people… the death toll was heaviest in Damascus where 24 civilians were killed, along with six army deserters. Fifteen soldiers were reported killed in the city of Homs. Nearly 200 people are thought to have died in the unrest over the past few days.

“The fresh violence comes as Russia continues to say it will vote against a UN Security Council draft resolution condemning the Syrian regime. Kremlin officials say the current draft does not rule out military intervention or forced regime change in Syria… Morocco introduced the draft resolution calling for the formation of a unity government that would lead to ‘transparent and free elections.’ The outline says there will be no military intervention in Syria as there was in Libya last year.”

In spite of the wording of the draft resolution, Russia is objecting, showing that its motives are quite different from what is being alleged. Nevertheless, the U.N. buckled to Russia’s demands, as BBC News wrote on February 2:

“Diplomats at the UN Security Council have watered down a resolution on Syria in an apparent attempt to overcome Russian objections to an earlier draft. The new text drops explicit reference to a call for President Bashar al-Assad to hand over power, a key part of an Arab League plan… The revised draft… also removes a paragraph calling on member states to act to prevent the flow of arms into Syria. This was another clause opposed by Russia even though it does not impose an arms embargo…

“Human rights groups and activists say more than 7,000 people have been killed by Syrian security forces since the uprising began in March… US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had earlier said Council members must decide whether they supported the Syrian people or ‘a brutal, dictatorial regime’. Russia, a key ally of Syria, has continued to send weapons for use by the Assad government despite the uprising. In Moscow, a top defence ministry official said there were no plans to halt such deliveries.”

“Democracy” in Egypt?

The New York Times wrote on January 26:

“Building tensions between the United States and Egypt flashed into the open Thursday when Cairo confirmed that it had barred at least a half-dozen Americans from leaving the country and the Obama administration threatened explicitly to withhold its annual aid to the Egyptian military. The travel ban came to light on Thursday after the International Republican Institute, an American-backed democracy-building group, disclosed that the Egyptian authorities had stopped its Egypt director, Sam LaHood, at the Cairo airport on Saturday before he could board a flight to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Mr. LaHood is the son of Ray LaHood, the secretary of transportation and a former Republican congressman from Illinois…

“Just a day before Mr. LaHood was detained temporarily, President Obama had warned Egypt’s leader, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, that this year’s American military aid hinged on satisfying new Congressional legislation requiring that Egypt’s military government take tangible steps toward democracy, said three people briefed on the conversation. Mr. Obama referred specifically to the criminal inquiry into several democracy-building groups with foreign financing, including the Republican Institute…

“State Department officials said that it was the first time in three decades that American military aid to Egypt was at risk. That aid, $1.3 billion a year, has always been sacrosanct as the price the United States pays to preserve Egypt’s 1979 peace treaty with Israel… Now Hillary Rodham Clinton, the secretary of state, is required to certify that Egypt is making democratic progress… before releasing the aid this fiscal year. Representative Frank R. Wolf, a Republican from Virginia who serves on the House Appropriations Committee, said… ‘This is out of control… If the administration follows the law, there’s no way they can continue the aid.’”

Islamists received 70 percent of the votes in the first “free” parliamentary election. A confrontation with Israel is feared. The recent turmoil during the first session of the Egyptian parliament with Islamic majority, and the election of a member of the radical Muslim brotherhood as President of Parliament shows how far removed Egypt is from any resemblance to democracy—and it manifests the threat that new Egypt poses for the West. The violent outbreak at a soccer game on Wednesday is not the kind of peaceful democratic behavior that the Egyptians were thought to embrace.  Almost 80 people died and about 1,000 were injured in the city of Port Said, Egypt, after fans rushed the field following a game against a rival team.