Americans Have Voted…

The Associated Press reported on November 3:

“Republicans scored the biggest party turnover in more than 70 years Tuesday with their win in the House and, in doing so, will dethrone Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi…

“Nevada Sen. Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader, overcame a tea party challenge from Republican Sharron Angle in one of the election’s most brutally fought races. Sizing up the new order, Reid said he wants to preserve Obama’s sweeping health care law and let taxes rise on upper income Americans…

“Obama called Ohio Rep. John Boehner, the House speaker-in-waiting, to congratulate him late Tuesday. He also spoke with Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and top Democrats in a series of conversations that reflected the shifting balance of power…

“About four in 10 voters said they were worse off financially than two years ago, according to exit polls and pre-election surveys. More than one in three said their votes were an expression of opposition to Obama. More than half expressed negative views about both political parties. Roughly 40 percent of voters considered themselves supporters of the conservative tea party movement. Less than half said they wanted the government to do more to solve problems…

“A Republican takeover of the House ushers in a new era of divided government after two years in which Obama and fellow Democrats pushed through an economic stimulus bill, a landmark health care measure and legislation to rein in Wall Street after the near collapse of the economy in 2008…”

The Wall Street Journal added on November 3:

“Moving [Obama’s] agenda through Congress will be far more difficult with GOP leaders claiming control of the House and the Democrats’ Senate majority greatly eroded. At the same time, Mr. Obama’s party will need to move past assigning blame for the midterm lashing and settle on a strategy for regaining momentum and regrouping before the 2012 election. Some top Democrats resisted talk of compromise.

“‘We have taken the country in a new direction and we are not going back to the failed policies of the past,’ House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said… Republican leaders also have sent mixed signals about working with the White House.”

“Obama Is to Blame…”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 3:

“The Democrats suffered a debacle at the polls in the US on Tuesday — and President Barack Obama is to blame. Once celebrated as a great communicator, the president has lost touch with the mood in his country…

“To the right he is confronted by the stark hatred of the Tea Party movement. In the political center, voters abandoned Obama in droves. And on the left there are complaints that instead of Mr. Change, Obama has turned into Mr. Weakling. Young voters and African Americans are, of course, still behind Obama, but many of them didn’t even bother to cast their ballots on Tuesday.

“The debacle, the largest loss of seats for the president’s party in more than half a century, isn’t just a warning for Obama. It is a demolition…”

“Washington Big Loser”

The National Journal wrote on November 3:

“Who was the big loser Tuesday? The easy answer is President Obama and his fellow Democrats on this day of epic GOP victories in the House, the Senate, and U.S. statehouses. But there is a bigger loser: Washington.

“The wave of disappointment and disillusionment with Washington that swept Obama into office two years ago never went away. With the unemployment rate hovering near double digits, the president was unable to deliver the change that most Americans could believe in, so voters delivered a message of their own to the incumbent party: Get out.

“And so Republicans won the House and narrowed the Democratic majority in the Senate. But even Republicans acknowledged that the results were more of a referendum against Washington than a vote for the GOP.

“‘We make a great mistake if we believe that tonight these results are somehow an embrace of the Republican Party,’ said incoming Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida… Even as he claimed the Speaker’s gavel, Rep. John Boehner of Ohio said, ‘We’re witnessing a repudiation of Washington, a repudiation of big government, and a repudiation of politicians who refuse to listen to the American people’…

“‘I would absolutely advise Republicans to reach out to the president,’ said 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin… Palin pointed to the nation’s weak economy and declared, ‘We’ll have to be on [a] unified team here to get the economy roaring again.’

“Newt Gingrich… said Tuesday’s results created ‘a dramatically weaker Democratic Party and a severely repudiated President Obama.’ He’s right about that, of course. But does Gingrich really think Americans gave the GOP a full-throated mandate? He made that miscalculation a generation ago and overreached as the new House Speaker…

“Most tea party activists consider Obama a big-spending liberal. Some even question his eligibility to be president. Like a cowboy saddling a bucking stallion, Republican leaders tried to tame the tea party while riding it to victories. The new House majority must now try to govern while being ridden hard by tea party activists. The risk is that the GOP will be driven to positions that turn off the same independent voters who swung away from Democrats on Tuesday…

“‘We’ve come to take our government back,’ Sen.-elect Rand Paul of Kentucky told cheering supporters… He sounded, for a moment, like the Obama of just two years ago.”

And this may reflect a huge problem America will be facing. As Americans placed their unrealistic hope in President Obama and the Democrats, are they now making the same mistake in respect to the Republicans and some of their leaders? Many undoubtedly do, but as representatives of the Tea Party said: Republicans are on probation. The question is, will they be able to deliver? Or are commentators correct who prophesy a total stalemate and paralysis for the next two years?

Without God in the picture, America’s future does not look rosy. Americans have forgotten their Maker, and God has prophesied that in that case, He will withdraw His blessings. No political party or agenda will change this certain and sure fact.

For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”

Is the American Dream Over?

On November 1, Der Spiegel Online published an interesting article, titled, “A Superpower in Decline,” asking the question, “Is the American Dream Over?” Even though the left-wing article is overly sympathetic, defensive and optimistic towards President Obama and his policies and overly critical and condemnatory towards TV personalities like Glenn Beck, the following statements are worthwhile quoting:

“America has long been a country of limitless possibility. But the dream has now become a nightmare for many. The US is now realizing just how fragile its success has become — and how bitter its reality…

“Americans have lived beyond their means for decades… But at some point, everything comes to an end. The United States is a confused and fearful country in 2010… Some 47 percent of Americans don’t believe that the America Dream is still realistic… Now, 63 percent of Americans don’t believe that they will be able to maintain their current standard of living.

“And if America is indeed on the downward slope, it will have consequences for the global economy and the political world order.

“The fall of America doesn’t have to be a complete collapse — it is, after all, a country that has managed to reinvent itself many times before. But today it’s no longer certain — or even likely — that everything will turn out fine in the end. The United States of 2010 is dysfunctional, but in new ways. The entire interplay of taxes and investments is out of joint because a 16,000-page tax code allows for far too many loopholes and because solidarity is no longer part of the way Americans think. The political system, plagued by lobbyism and stark hatred, is incapable of reaching consistent or even quick decisions.

“The country is reacting strangely irrationally to the loss of its importance… Demagogues stir up hatred and rage on television stations… will the US wake up? Or is it already much too late?…

“When government debt reaches 90 percent of the gross domestic product, the country begins to feel sick. People [lose] confidence in a better future, investors stop investing, consumers stop buying and the economy stops growing…

“The unemployment rate in the United States is at about 10 percent. But when the people who have stopped looking for work and are not registered anywhere are included, the real number is likely to be closer to 20 percent. For the first time since the Great Depression, Americans have a problem with long-term unemployment.

“…once a decline has gotten underway, it isn’t easy to change direction… There is no easy way out of the debt crisis… Unemployment remains stuck at record high levels, a second collapse in the real estate market is not unthinkable, and the classic tools of fiscal policy, tax cuts or economic stimulus packages, are hitting a wall…

“Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz warns of the consequences of a flood of liquidity. ‘It’s doing nothing for the American economy, but it’s causing chaos over the rest of the world,’ he says.

“More money means that the value of the dollar falls relative to other currencies. This is an advantage at first, because it makes exports cheaper and imports more expensive, making the US economy more competitive. But does US industry even make enough products anymore to allow it to increase sales to the global market? And what happens if the world loses confidence in its reserve currency and unloads its dollar reserves onto the market? The resulting dollar crash could plunge the global economy into the next abyss. More money also means more inflation…

“It could certainly be a comfort to the Germans that the United States is no longer so powerful that it can foist its ideas on the rest of the world. Almost 45 million Americans are considered poor, with 4 million falling below the poverty line in 2009 alone. The Department of Agriculture warns of growing ‘food insecurity.’ One fourth of all children in the United States depend on government food stamps…”

The Origin of Modern Halloween?

CNN wrote on November 1:

“Halloween is a holiday with ancient pagan roots, but the modern extravaganza of candy, pumpkins and sexy nurse costumes is as American as the Fourth of July…

“The British grocery chain Tesco sold 1.4 million pumpkins on Sunday. The chain estimates that its Halloween sales have tripled since 2005. British parks sponsored free Halloween spectacles: ghost walks, pumpkin carving. Trick-or-treating is spreading through London neighborhoods.

“But in the United Kingdom as in the United States, the real money is found in the grownup aspects of the holiday: costumes, dance parties, club nights. The growth in adult Halloween dwarfs pumpkin sales…

“The holiday is catching [on] in Germany, too. Influenced by U.S. military personnel, the Germans used to acknowledge Halloween as a children’s holiday. But since 2000, Halloween has become an adult craze…

“The Japanese have taken Halloween to over-enthusiastic heart… Bizarre, horrifying and — above all — sexy costumes have become a national pastime…

“This year… Americans spent an estimated $800 million on costumes for children, $1 billion on costumes for adults. Where did that adult dress-up party begin? As best we can tell: in San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood… A local variety store had long sponsored a Halloween street festival for kids. In the 1970s, the street festival transitioned into an adult party of lavish costumed theatricality. The ‘Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence’ — a troupe of transvestite nuns — got their start here.

“The Castro Halloween party spread to other gay neighborhoods in the 1980s: Greenwich Village, West Hollywood, Key West, Florida. In 1994, University of Florida anthropologist Jerry Kugelmass published a book on the new trend, ‘Masked Culture,’ describing Halloween as an emerging gay ‘high holiday.’

“And after a while — the straights imitated… The ‘masked culture’ first developed by the gays of San Francisco has reached across the lines of orientation — and now jumped across the boundaries between nations and languages…”

For more information on the ancient origins of Halloween, please read our free booklet, “Is That in the Bible?–Man’s Holidays and God’s Holy Days.”

Mexico’s Fascination with the Dead Becomes Bitter Reality

The Los Angeles Times wrote on November 1:

“… this year, as Mexicans picnic at cemeteries and erect elaborate altars to mark the nation’s annual Day of the Dead observances, death is haunting in its abundance. Mexicans face the stark reality of a drug war that has plunged the country into its deadliest violence since the revolution 100 years ago. So many dead. Tens of thousands, in just a few years.

“In Mexico City’s central Zocalo plaza, the so-called Mega Ofrenda, an elaborate and enormous shrine with offerings of flowers, food, drink and artworks to the dead…

“In just the last 11 days, 48 mostly young people were killed in four separate massacres in different cities, including the capital, prompting some columnists and activists to speak of juvenicidio, or the systematic slaughter of youths…

“Tuesday is the official Day of the Dead holiday, originally an indigenous custom timed by Mexico’s Spanish conquerors to follow the Roman Catholic All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1. As much as the promoters of Halloween try to supplant Dia de los Muertos, the two here end up combining into a long period of festejo.

“Children who engage in Day of the Dead solicitations of sweets and money, similar to trick-or-treating, chant the phrase, ‘Give me my calaverita.’ The word literally means ‘little skull.'”

The Ongoing Threat of Terrorism

The Local reported on November 1:

“Germany has extended a ban on air freight from Yemen to passenger flights… The spokesman told a regular government briefing that Germany had stepped up its emergency measures when it emerged that one of the parcel bombs had been routed via the western German city of Cologne. Germany is the first country to announce a ban on all flights from Yemen.

“‘All Yemeni air companies that fly to Germany have received a flight ban,’ the ministry spokesman said. ‘The German air authorities have orders to turn back all direct and indirect flights from Yemen. That means that for the time being, there will be no flights to or over German territory allowed.’

“The German government said Saturday that it would outlaw all cargo from Yemen indefinitely. A spokesman said Monday that Berlin was now weighing whether to ban freight from other countries amid a major security review…

“Qatar Airways said a package containing explosives was flown from the Yemeni capital Sanaa to Doha and then on to Dubai Friday on one of its aircraft. A source said on condition of anonymity that the plane was a passenger flight. The bomb had PETN hidden inside a computer printer with a circuit board and mobile phone SIM card attached, officials said.

“The other parcel was found at East Midlands airport in central England and travelled through Cologne. British Prime Minister David Cameron said it appeared designed to blow up a plane.

“The two bombs contained 300 grammes (11 ounces) and 400 grammes of explosives respectively and could have caused ‘significant damage,’ a German official said Monday. The government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the two bombs contained the explosive PETN…

“US officials have said the two intercepted packages originating from Yemen were addressed to synagogues in Chicago, President Barack Obama’s former power base. They have cited Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri, an alleged Al-Qaida bomb-maker born in Saudi Arabia but based in Yemen, as a ‘leading suspect’ in the case.”

The EUObserver added on November 2:

“The Netherlands, France, Canada and the US have also halted all incoming cargo consignments from Yemen, prompting an angry response from the country. Brandishing Germany’s flight ban a ‘collective and illogical punishment,’ a Yemeni official added that the measure was a ‘hasty and exaggerated reaction’ and ‘harms Yemen’s efforts in the fight against terrorism.’…

“Separately, Greek police said one of the four parcel bombs discovered in Athens on Monday was destined for French President Nicolas Sarkozy, while another addressed to the Mexican embassy in the Greek capital exploded in the offices of a private delivery company. The other two packages were addressed to the Dutch and Belgian embassies in the city…”

“It Could Stop World Trade…”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 2:

“The case has led to worldwide calls for tougher security checks on cargo freight but analysts have warned that introducing a global system for cargo screening would cost billions of dollars, plunge shipping firms and airlines into financial difficulties and even bring world trade to a standstill. ‘In a worst case, it would stop world trade,’ James Halstead, a consultant with the company Aviation Economics, told the Associated Press. ‘UPS and FedEx would probably go bust. We’d have a full-disaster scenario’…

“Germany is a major transit location for foreign deliveries that are then flown on to other countries… German Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière… said international freight traffic would collapse if Germany were to impose security checks on all freight deliveries in transit…

“German security checks probably would not have detected the explosive hidden in ink toner cartridges. The freight papers showed both parcels were X-rayed in Sanaa as well as in Dubai. No one spotted the bombs. The BKA has received copies of the X-rays from Dubai and one BKA investigator admitted that German security staff would not have identified the explosive either.”

USA Today added on November 2:

“Billions of pounds of packages bound for the U.S. each year are delivered on passenger flights in which cargo is checked with an electronic system that does not screen for bombs… The Homeland Security Department uses computers to identify possibly dangerous cargo, usually after flights are already in the air and en route to the USA… About 20% of the 9 billion pounds of air cargo that comes from overseas each year is physically checked for bombs.”

It is a tragic conclusion that it seems that terrorism is winning, in one way or another, against our highly sophisticated technological “free world”… A strong response to the terrorist threat, especially from Europe, can be expected, and we are already seeing hasty and punitive decisions from some countries, such as Germany.

The Ghost of the Lisbon Treaty

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 29:

“Why decide to revise the Lisbon Treaty, which only came into effect last year? The decision by the European Union’s 27 member states has left the European editorialists far from impressed. One paper asks why the EU must always satisfy Germany’s whims?

“After many hours of talks on Oct. 28, European Union leaders meeting at the European Council in Brussels agreed to impose financial sanctions on fiscally non-compliant member states. And perhaps even more critically, they approved a plan to revise the Lisbon Treaty to facilitate the creation of a permanent framework for ailing euro zone economies…

“‘Mrs. Chancellor Rules Europe,’ the Polish daily Rzeczpospolita states in its editorial… ‘Saving the common currency is, of course, a noble and praiseworthy cause, but more and more European politicians are asking why the EU has to satisfy Germany’s whims all the time.’

“Writing in the Spanish daily El País, José Ignacio Torreblanca remarks that ‘Franco-German entente has brought peace, stability and prosperity to Europe.’ However, he insists, we can no longer turn a blind eye to the current behavior of Paris and Berlin, who are ‘eager to cash in on every opportunity to safeguard their strategic interests, even when these are detrimental to other members of the EU.’ Dragging Europe’s 27 member states into a further round of ratification against the backdrop of economic and civic crisis ‘is worse than Russian roulette: It is a bet that could lead to the institutional suicide of the EU.’

“In Dublin, this prospect is a serious cause for concern. ‘Appropriately enough, as Halloween approaches, the ghost of the Lisbon Treaty walks again,’ laments the Irish Independent. ‘Surely we are not going to have to go through all that again. Surely, by voting for the treaty (albeit the second time around) we gave the European Union the power to make decisions without calling on the Irish to hold a referendum?… When the German chancellor proposes that if a country repeatedly breaches debt and deficit rules its EU voting rights should be suspended, she has Ireland firmly in her sights. And the gun is decidedly frontloaded.’

“The Prague daily Lidové noviny declares: ‘The Euro and War.’ The newspaper remarks that the euro and the bailout have poisoned relations between European countries. Once again, the Brussels summit has shown that there is no common denominator in the range of increasingly different ideas on how to manage the euro, while political, economic and social faultlines are opening up between member states. “Under increasing pressure, the German chancellor is obliged to prove to her skeptical fellow citizens that their country will not be forced to permanently foot the bill for the indebted countries.’… Of course, Berlin can always threaten to leave the euro… but there is no doubt that an initiative of this kind ‘would inevitably lead to the collapse of the European Union,’ warns Lidové noviny.”

New Referendums?

The EUObserver wrote on October 28:

“EU officials are working around the clock because all leaders… are absolutely agreed on one thing: There must be no referendums. One thing truly unites the Evasion Union and that is stopping the terrifying possibility that voters might get the chance to have a say in referendums that would very quickly become judgments on how Europe’s elites have handled the economic crisis.

“This is a frightening nightmare scenario for politicians who have premised their austerity measures and bank bailouts on keeping the public at arm’s length – or further… Only in the crooked world of the Evasion Union can no votes to the European Constitution be interpreted as a popular demand for ‘answers form the EU.'”

The EUObserver added on November 2:

“The nightmare scenario of another referendum on a change to the EU treaty in the Netherlands, five years after the country rejected the bloc’s proposed constitution, could return to haunt European leaders, with the hard-right Dutch Freedom Party (PVV) of Geert Wilders on Tuesday (2 November) announcing it is considering proposing just such a vote…

“Under the proposed new EU rules, Brussels will watch over the spending decisions of all EU states to make sure they are ‘competitive.’ Eurozone governments that get into debt too deeply will have stiff punishments meted out to them. Leaders were petrified that any major change to the EU treaties would set off a chain of referendums in the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands and possibly elsewhere, which they are convinced they would lose, as voters have their say on how leaders should have handled the economic crisis.

“The Dutch prime minister and the other leaders last Friday signed off on a treaty amendment only so long as the change envisaged was ‘small, small, small – the smallest possible,’ according to a Danish diplomat, ‘in order to ensure there is no possibility of referendums.’ EU President Herman Van Rompuy has been tasked to go away and come up with a ‘surgical’ – perhaps just two-line – incision to the EU treaty by December.

“One national diplomat described to this website the unwritten anti-referendum pact reached at the EU summit: ‘The move was specifically formulated to ensure that there is no possibility whatsoever that there can be any referendums. Whether this will work or not, I don’t know.'”

New Military Partnership Between Britain and France

Reuters reported on November 2:

“Britain and France will launch a broad defense partnership on Tuesday that includes setting up a joint force and sharing equipment and nuclear missile research centers, a French government source said. Treaties to be signed by French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister David Cameron at a meeting in London will pave the way for an unprecedented degree of military cooperation between the two neighbors.

“The NATO allies, western Europe’s biggest defense spenders and its only nuclear powers, have a centuries-old history of military rivalry and, more recently, have differed sharply over issues such as the Iraq war. Their new partnership is driven by the desire to maintain cutting-edge military capabilities while at the same time reducing defense spending to rein in big budget deficits.

“France and Britain will agree to set up a joint brigade-sized army contingent with air and sea support, which could assemble as needed to take part in NATO, European Union, United Nations or bilateral operations, the French source said. British Defense Secretary Liam Fox confirmed the outlines of the agreement…

“The two countries will agree to share nuclear warhead research and simulation centers, the source said. With nuclear missile tests banned, sophisticated laboratories permit both countries to test the safety of their warheads. ‘This signifies that we have reached an unprecedented level of trust,’ the French source said. ‘It’s this step taken in the nuclear domain that allows us to go further elsewhere’…

“Britain and France will work together in developing technology for future generations of nuclear submarines, missiles, aerial drones, maritime anti-mine systems and military communications satellites, the source said…”

BBC News added on November 2:

“David Cameron has said new treaties on defence and nuclear co-operation with France marked a ‘new chapter’ in a long history of defence co-operation. Speaking alongside French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the UK PM said it would make both countries’ citizens safer and would save money. A centre will be set up in the UK to develop nuclear testing technology and another in France to carry it out…

“The UK and France have also agreed to keep at least one aircraft carrier at sea between them at any one time. Each will be able to use the other’s carrier in some form, certainly for training and possibly operations… But Conservative MP Bernard Jenkin told the BBC that while he approved of the talks, Britain had to be ‘realistic’. He said there was ‘a long track record of duplicity’ by France in dealing with allies and questioned whether the French would make an aircraft carrier available for an operation like the Falklands…”

What will happen IF the “mutual trust” between these two countries will cease? We have long proclaimed that Britain will not be part of the final configuration of a revived core Europe, and that ultimately, war will ensue between Great Britain and the final European revival of the Roman Empire. 

A New Era for Europe?

Der Spiegel wrote on November 3:

“German commentators [say] the whole of Europe, like Britain and France, is strapped for cash and faces a decline in global importance. Europe, they argue, should draw lessons from the new cooperation between those two countries.

“Center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘Their partnership doesn’t come from the heart. But the French and British have been good friends to each other in times of crisis — from World War I to the recent battles in the Balkans. This time they are being forced into an alliance not by enemy soldiers, but by red figures. The British and French know that they can no longer fulfil their claims to be major powers on their own… this could usher in a new era of defense policy in Europe.

“‘The British are stressing that the new entente is taking place outside the European Union and that they aren’t thinking about an EU army. But the pact is good for the whole of Europe. France and Britain account for half of the defense spending of the entire 27-nation EU. If they get together, it will serve as a model. Further alliances will be formed as a result of budget pressures. That in itself won’t create an EU army. But such a European defense policy a la carte is definitely better than nothing’…

“Conservative Die Welt writes: ‘The agreement signed by France and Britain on Tuesday is revolutionary. There has never been such a close military cooperation even among allied states. The British and French have had a complex relationship in recent decades. The fact that they are now working together in the sacrosanct area of nuclear weapons is an astonishing development.

“‘This cooperation should serve as an example within NATO and the EU. Not just Paris and London but the whole of Europe is suffering from financial pressure and waning importance in the world. If Europe wants to prevent a rapid loss of influence — and the projection of military might in distant parts of the globe belongs to the classic categories of power — then the countries of the EU will have to bundle their military capabilities much more than they have done so far.'”

Europe will unite and create a powerful European army. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy.”

Britain’s Shameful Abortion Practices

The Daily Mail wrote on November 2:

“… for many, abortion appears to have become alarmingly casual, a form of birth control, a lifestyle choice, a minor medical procedure to be booked for a day off. The official UK figures for 2008 show that there were 195,300 abortions in England and Wales — more than 500 a day. A third of those were repeat ­terminations. A quarter of British pregnancies end in abortion.

“London has become the abortion capital of Europe. An estimated 7,000 women travel here from Ireland and Northern Ireland (where abortion is illegal) for terminations, either in ­private clinics or on the NHS. Women from countries such as Poland are encouraged by pro-choice poster campaigns to flock here on cheap flights for free abortions… It’s perhaps no wonder militant pro-life groups are springing up all over ­Britain.”

For more information on the terrible curse of abortion, please read our free booklet, “Are You Already Born Again?”

Germany’s Strong Performance

Reuters reported on October 28:

“German unemployment fell slightly in October, dropping to its lowest level in 18 years as the impact of persistently strong growth in Europe’s top economy continued to filter through to the jobs market…

“Data on Europe’s biggest economy over the past week has been bullish, signalling its unexpectedly strong recovery could hold up in the face of signs of fragility in the global economy. Consumer morale remains at its highest level since May 2008 going into November on expectations for a further rebound…”

… But Not Because of the Government…

The Local reported on October 31:

“An Emnid survey taken for the Bild am Sonntag newspaper found that 63 percent pointed to ‘the world economy in general’ as the main reason for Germany’s better-than-expected economic recovery. Only 28 percent said that government policy was to thank for the situation…

“The people surveyed also gave much more credit to Germany’s companies and employees than the government. Some 54 percent credited the workers, while 50 percent credited the companies.

“Only 22 percent gave any credit to the job market reforms known as ‘Agenda 2010’ introduced by former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder in the early part of the decade…”

Indonesia’s Ongoing Disasters

The Associated Press reported on November 1:

“Evacuees cringed and fled for cover Monday as an erupting volcano – one of 22 showing increased activity in Indonesia – let loose booming explosions of hot gas and debris, the latest blast in a deadly week… The new blast from Mount Merapi came as Indonesia also struggles to respond to an earthquake-generated tsunami that devastated remote islands. The twin disasters, unfolding simultaneously on opposite ends of the seismically volatile country, have killed nearly 500 people… One of 129 active volcanoes in Indonesia, Merapi has killed 38 people since it started erupting a week ago.

“Even in the crowded government camps miles (kilometers) away, people still instinctively ran for shelter at the power of Monday’s eruption, which was accompanied by several deafening explosions… About 69,000 people villagers have been evacuated from the area around its once-fertile slopes – now blanketed by gray ash – in central Java, 250 miles (400 kilometers) east of Jakarta, the capital…

“The fault line that caused last week’s 7.7-magnitude earthquake and killer wave that followed – and also the 2004 tsunami that killed 230,000 people in a dozen countries – is the meeting point of the Eurasian and Pacific tectonic plates that have been pushing against and under each other…

” Anak Krakatua, a volcano known as the ‘Child of Krakatoa’ also started shooting lava last week. Although the firebursts look spectacular, there were no immediate signs of major eruption… The mountain, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) west of Jakarta, was formed after the Krakatoa eruption of 1883, the largest volcanic eruption in recorded history that, along with a tsunami, killed at least 36,417 people.”

Haiti’s Fight with Cholera

Der Spiegel Online reported on November 2:

“Haiti, the battered Caribbean island, is fighting a new enemy: Thousands have fallen ill with cholera and hundreds have already died… Nine months after the earthquake, hygienic conditions are still catastrophic, and almost 1.3 million people are still living in makeshift huts made of plastic tarps… The first priority for the aid workers is to protect Port-au-Prince from the impending disaster.

“The situation is extremely serious, says Nigel Fisher, the United Nations representative in Haiti, and it would be irresponsible in light of experiences with epidemics in other places not to prepare for a major outbreak… Cholera, the disease of the poor, transmitted through contaminated drinking water and unclean food, would be very difficult to stop in Port-au-Prince.

“It seems absurd that aid workers from around the world have achieved so little by now. Until recently, they were quick to point out that at least they had prevented disease outbreaks. But even that tiny success has now been destroyed. For decades, Haiti has received international aid every time disaster struck, but no one ever managed to build a functioning community…

“The next hurricane, which normally strikes the island in the autumn, was long a topic of discussion in Haiti. When it didn’t arrive, people talked about the next earthquake, and when it didn’t happen, cholera struck. The question is not whether a catastrophe will ravage Haiti, but which one will do it first…”

Catholic Church Condemns Israel

The US Daily and Reuters wrote on October 23:

“Israel cannot use the biblical concept of a promised land or a chosen people to justify new settlements in Jerusalem or territorial claims, a Vatican synod on the Middle East said Saturday. In its concluding message after two weeks of meetings, bishops from the Middle East also said they hoped a two-state solution for peace between Israel and the Palestinians could be made a reality and called for peaceful conditions that would stop a Christian exodus from the region.

“… the synod fathers took issue with Jews who use the Bible to justify settlements in the West Bank, which Israel captured in 1967… Many Jewish settlers and right-wing Israelis claim a biblical birthright to the occupied West Bank, which they call Judea and Samaria and regard as a part of historical, ancient Israel given to the Jews by God…

“Asked about the passage at a news conference, Greek-Melchite Archbishop Cyrille Salim Bustros, said: ‘We Christians cannot speak about the promised land for the Jewish people. There is no longer a chosen people. All men and women of all countries have become the chosen people. The concept of the promised land cannot be used as a base for the justification of the return of Jews to Israel and the displacement of Palestinians,’ he added. ‘The justification of Israel’s occupation of the land of Palestine cannot be based on sacred scriptures’…

“The synod’s concluding message repeated a Vatican call for Jerusalem to have a special status ‘which respects its particular character’ as a city sacred to the three great monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Jerusalem remains a key issue of dispute. Palestinians want East Jerusalem for the capital of a future state. Israel has annexed the area, a move never recognized internationally, and has declared Jerusalem to be its ‘united and eternal’ capital…

“[The document] urged Christians in the region not to sell their homes and properties. ‘It is a vital aspect of the lives of those who remain there and for those who one day will return there.'”

The Catholic Church’s involvement in this issue is quite revealing. The Bible predicts that united Europe and the Catholic Church will intervene in the Middle East and that Jerusalem will become headquarters for both entities.

Israel Condemns Catholic Church

AFP wrote on October 24:

“Israel on Sunday slammed critical remarks made by Middle East Catholic bishops after a meeting chaired by Pope Benedict XVI as ‘political attacks’ on the Jewish state.

“‘We express our disappointment that this important synod has become a forum for political attacks on Israel in the best history of Arab propaganda,’ Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said in a statement…

“‘For Christians, one can no longer talk of the land promised to the Jewish people,’ the Lebanese-born head of the Greek Melkite Church in the United States said, because the ‘promise’ was ‘abolished by the presence of Christ.’

“Ayalon said he was ‘especially appalled’ at those remarks.”

This article and the next show that this kind of confrontation between the Catholic Church and Israel will continue, as it addresses major substantive issues and goes to the core of the arguments and counter-arguments for Israel’s very existence in the Middle East.

High-Ranking Jewish Italian Politician Condemns Catholic Church

A-7 News reported on October 22:

“Jewish Italian MP Fiamma Nirenstein was reconfirmed this week as Vice President of Italy’s Foreign Affairs Committee. In addition, she was also appointed an official consultant on Israel and the international Jewish communities by Italian Foreign Minister Frattini.

“Earlier this week, Nirenstein commented on Christian leaders who criticize Israel yet ignore violence by Arabs. She pointed out that ‘Islam does not like Eastern Christians: it has forced them to flee and now they account for only 6% of the population in the Mideast’, and added that the only country where the number of Christians has grown is Israel, where 163,000 Christians live today…

“Commenting on the Vatican Synod about Middle East taking place in Rome these days, Nirenstein pointed out a document ‘written in a tone of theological excommunication towards the State of Israel,’ which was signed by the Custodian of the Holy Land, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who later denied involvement, saying that ‘no church in the Holy Land had signed the document.’ Nirenstein pointed out, however, that the names of top-level signers are clearly visible on the document which is available on the internet. The document speaks in the name of ‘us Christian Palestinians,’ and says that ‘the military occupation is a sin against God and against man’. It excommunicates Christian supporters of Israel, takes sides against the very presence of Israel, likens the defensive barrier that has blocked 98% of terrorism to apartheid, attacks the communities in Judea and Samaria and essentially cancels the existence of the Jewish state. The document goes so far as to legitimize terrorism…”

Israel Among Most Corrupt Countries

Haaretz reported on October 26:

“Israel ranks among the most corrupt countries in the Western world, according to a study released by the International Transparency Organization on Tuesday. Out of 178 countries – 1 being least corrupt – Israel was listed at number 30. But when compared to other member states of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, Israel fared much worse. The least corrupt countries were listed as Denmark, New Zealand and Singapore.”

Islamists Unwilling to Integrate

In the above-quoted article, A-7 News also reports the following:

“Other comments made by Nirenstein this past week addressed remarks made by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who said that Germany’s multicultural approach to immigration ‘has failed, utterly failed’… ‘The point is that certain cultures very often have no intention of mixing in with ours, despite our actions and best intentions,’ said Nirenstein in response. ‘Paris has become a city in which more than 200,000 people live in families where polygamy is common practice. In Italy 30,000 women have been subjected to genital mutilation and Islamic courts—ninety-odd in London alone—inflict sentences that are inconceivable.’

“She pointed out that despite the fact that immigrants should have freedom of rights because of democracy, ‘they have other rules, not the ones of democracy. In Germany, Chancellor Merkel’s homeland, a Berlin lawyer was beaten along with her Muslim client who wanted a divorce; she was also attacked in the subway and was forced to close her practice. Again in Germany, Mozart’s opera, Idomeneo, was cancelled following Islamic threats. By pure luck, the editor-in-chief of Die Welt, Roger Köppel, blocked the hand of a young Muslim who was about to stab him in his office. In Germany, England and France, it is no longer possible to trace the “missing girls” who become slaves following arranged marriages…'”

Controversial New Mayor of London–Britain’s Islamic Republic

In addition to the previous article, The Telegraph sheds more light on some of the reasons why Islamists are not liked that much in Europe, including in England. Reporting on the election of the mayor in London, the paper wrote on October 22:

“Outside the Wellington Way polling station in Tower Hamlets yesterday, as at many other polling stations in the borough, people had to run a gauntlet of Lutfur Rahman supporters to reach the ballot box. As one Bengali woman voter went past them, we heard one of the Rahman army scolding her for her ‘immodest dress.’

“That incident is perhaps a tiny taste of the future for Britain’s poorest borough now it has elected Mr Rahman as its first executive mayor, with almost total power over its £1 billion budget. At the count last night, one very senior figure in the Tower Hamlets Labour Party said: ‘It really is Britain’s Islamic republic now.’

“For the last eight months – without complaint or challenge from Mr Rahman – this blog and newspaper have laid out his close links with a group of powerful local businessmen and with a Muslim supremacist body, the Islamic Forum of Europe (IFE) – which believes, in its own words, in transforming the ‘very infrastructure of society, its institutions, its culture, its political order and its creed… from ignorance to Islam.’ Mr Rahman has refused to deny these claims…

“Now… Mr Rahman has won as an independent… As mayor, he will have far more power than he had as a council leader. And unlike a council leader, no-one can sack him, except the voters in four years’ time…

“Some of my commenters are fond of saying that the borough is an example of “Third World” politics in the UK. There are indeed similarities – but actually the claim is an insult to the Third World. Bangladesh has got to grips with Islamism; the IFE’s Bangladeshi parent, Jamaat-e-Islami, gets about two per cent of the vote in elections there. No Islamist sympathiser in Bangladesh has unfettered control over a £1 billion budget. Bangladesh, in short, has less of a problem with Islamic radicals than Tower Hamlets.”

How Much Church Should There Be in the State?

Deutsche Welle reported on October 21:

“The German constitution declares that there shall be no state church, but the government gives the main churches money and clerics give sermons on public television…

“The consumer affairs minister, Ilse Aigner, and her secretary of state, Julia Kloeckner, both Christian Democrats, had a crucifix put up Wednesday in the conference center of their ministry. Clerics of the two main churches were there to bless the cross. Kloeckner said, ‘It is good to be supported by the hand of God, and one can show that through making a clear statement.’…

“Alois Glueck, president of the Central Committee of German Catholics, says that Germany is a Christian country. ‘Of course our entire value system is linked to Christianity,’ he said in a radio interview. “That’s also what has put its stamp on our culture and our values. The values of our constitution are essentially Christian values’…

“With the arrival of Islam on the scene, the question of how far religion should have an influence on public life has been given a new dimension. The constitution may have been influenced by Christianity, but it was also influenced by a secular tradition of republican values which… often had to fight the churches for such achievements as the rights of women or freedom of religious practice for non-Christians…

“Commentators have noted that the adoption of a line critical of the church could cost the party votes in important elections in the traditionalist state of Baden-Wuerttemberg next March.”

The question is, what kind of culture is the “Christianity” in Germany promoting? To bless a crucifix may be in line with “orthodox Christianity,” but it is not in line with Biblical teaching. Many other “traditions” and “practices” could be named, and the increasing vigor of “Christian” politicians to openly embrace such customs in their public lives may have quite a continuing negative impact for those in Germany who do not conform with a kind of Christianity which they believe originates with paganism and anti-Semitism, and not with the Bible.

Still Haunting Germany Today–Germany’s Nazi Past

The Local reported on October 24:

“Nazi Germany’s Foreign Ministry was a ‘criminal organization’ that was much more involved in the killing of millions of Jews during World War II than previously thought, a German historian said. ‘The Foreign Ministry actively supported all measures of persecution, rights deprivation, expulsions and the Holocaust,’ Eckart Conze, one of four historians asked to shed light on the ministry’s role in the Holocaust, told the weekly Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung…

“The American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and their Descendants hailed the report as shedding light on a chapter that had remained shrouded in secrecy more than six decades on… Elan Steinberg, vice president of the New York-based organisation, said [:] ‘Previous efforts to whitewash the role of the Foreign Ministry and its personnel in the crimes of the Holocaust are now categorically refuted. This report is a pointed reminder of the broad cross-section of German society and institutions which were implicated in the Holocaust and the brutalities of the Nazi regime’…

“The research found that post-war chancellor Konrad Adenauer, who also served as foreign minister from 1951 to 1955, kept many of the Nazi diplomats involved in the Holocaust on staff. Der Spiegel said the envoys were often sent to Arab countries or Latin America, where public protest over their past was less likely.

“In 1966, Social Democratic Foreign Minister Willy Brandt, who would later become chancellor, maintained Ernst Achenbach as a top diplomat despite his involvement in the Holocaust. Achenbach had been a high-ranking staff member at the German embassy in Paris and was ‘actively involved in deportations’, the historians said. He managed to block until 1974 an agreement with Paris allowing Nazis who had committed crimes in France to be prosecuted.”

These revelations, especially the cover-up after the war, are alarming–but they could not have happened without– at the very least–the indifference or even tacit approval of vast portions of the German society.

Network of European Right-Wing Parties

The Local reported on October 24:

“The far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) is reportedly planning to open an office in Germany to help build a similarly populist party with nationwide appeal… The FPÖ is planning to work together with the populist right-wing group Pro Deutschland… Their aim is to establish ‘a patriotic movement on a national level’… FPÖ state party secretary Hans-Jörg Jenewein confirmed that his party intended to “significantly expand’ its activities in Germany…

“The FPÖ has cooperated with the regional sections of Pro Deutschland since 2007, but the FPÖ’s recent success in local elections in Vienna – where it won 27 percent of the vote and became the second strongest party in October – have significantly increased its resources and ability to help its German counterparts.

“It is thought that Europe’s populist right-wing parties are building a network in preparation for the 2014 European elections. Established right-wing political parties like the FPÖ, the Vlaams Belang of Belgium and the Dansk Folkeparti of Denmark need a similarly strong populist party in Germany in order to build a faction that can challenge in the European parliament… Jenewein said [:] ‘The “Pro” movement should achieve in Germany what we have achieved in Austria.'”

This article is also interesting in light of the next one.

Sarkozy’s Approval Ratings At All-Time Low

Deutsche Welle reported on October 24:

“President Nicolas Sarkozy’s approval rating has dropped to an all-time low, dashing hopes that the legislative achievement [of raising the retirement age from 60 to 62] could bring him a political comeback.

“The poll, conducted by the IFOP institute and published in the Journal du Dimanche newspaper on Sunday, showed only 29 percent of respondents were satisfied with Sarkozy’s job performance.

Sarkozy and his allies are hoping that the ongoing protest and strike movement in opposition to the pension reform… will die down as families leave their homes for the mid-term school holiday this week. But unions have already called for two more days of strikes, and university students are planning nationwide marches on Tuesday…

“Strikes in the country’s oil industry and blockades of fuel depots have left 35 percent of gas stations in the Paris area completely dry or out of one kind of fuel… About a third of gas stations in western France were in ‘real difficulty’ and 10 to 15 percent in the rest of the country were empty…

“Polls suggest a majority of French voters support or sympathize with the strikers… Sarkozy’s government insists that the pension reform is ‘inevitable,’ the only way to fill an expected pension budget gap and reduce the country’s growing deficit. But the opposition Socialists say if they win presidential elections in 2012, their candidate will restore the retirement age to 60.

“While Sarkozy’s popularity sits at a record low, analysts believe he may try to appease centrist and far-right voters before his term is over.”

If true, then it will be interesting to see how exactly Mr. Sarkozy is going to appease far-right voters.

A New Treaty For Europe?

The Economist wrote on October 21:

“It was supposed to be a final act. The Lisbon treaty, successor to the ill-fated European Union constitution, which in turn followed the Maastricht, Amsterdam and Nice treaties, would create a permanent club rulebook. ‘We expect no change in the foreseeable future,’ European leaders declared in December 2007. Freed from its internal wrangling, the EU would be able to turn outward and face the real world. Instead, the real world threw up the euro-zone debt crisis. And less than a year after the Lisbon treaty came into force, the EU is talking of a new treaty.

“Brussels’s favourite game has been restarted by President Nicolas Sarkozy of France and the German chancellor, Angela Merkel. At their summit in the French resort of Deauville (where they also met Russia’s Dmitry Medvedev) this week, they declared that, in order to deal with future debt crises, ‘it is necessary to revise the treaty’…

“The European Parliament will want more power. Ireland will almost certainly have to put any new treaty to a referendum… Eurosceptics in Britain may seize the moment to call for a repatriation of powers from Brussels. Britain wants a stable euro zone, but is torn. It does not want to be bound by the EU’s fiscal rules, but nor does it want a more tightly integrated euro zone leading to a two-speed Europe…

“A new text would best be negotiated before the 2012 French presidential election, and ratified before Germany’s 2013 election… The EU’s members are part-integrated and part-sovereign, and the contradictions cause inevitable upheavals. Brussels’s instinctive response to the threat of disintegration is further integration.”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 27:

“Tensions are mounting ahead of a crucial meeting of European leaders this week, with Germany and France at loggerheads with both the EU executive and many other member states over their calls for further changes to the European Treaty… Speaking to the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, on Wednesday Merkel reiterated her position. She said that a ‘new, robust crisis mechanism for emergencies’ was required to secure stability in the euro zone. ‘That will only succeed with a change to the European Treaty.’ The chancellor also defended her pact with Sarkozy ahead of this week’s summit. ‘It is true that a German- French agreement is not everything in Europe,’ she told the Bundestag. ‘However, it is also true that without German-French agreement a lot of things don’t happen’…

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘Even if the rest of Europe cries out in indignation, the chancellor will get her treaty change, because there is no other choice. It is unavoidable, and in the coming days presumably the EU foreign minister and members of the European Parliament will recognize the fact. While the arguments are difficult to deny, what about the political style? There is a perception in the majority of EU states that the Franco-German directorate is striking once again. Or that Germany is acting here almost as a European hegemonic power, the export champion, the giant of growth, one that is far too powerful’…

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘… It is possible that the creation of a European rescue fund has already broken the rules. What is certain is that a long-term solution requires a change to the European Treaty.'”

The EUObserver reported on October 28:

“European Union leaders appear to have come to a consensus that the bloc’s treaty must be changed, although only in a limited fashion, in order to allow for the creation of a permanent bail-out fund for member states and a series of procedures for countries to unwind their debt positions in ‘an orderly fashion.'”

“Germany’s Role in the World”

The Economist wrote on October 21:

“In France workers angry about pension reforms have blockaded fuel refineries, causing 4,000 petrol stations to run dry. The Netherlands’ recently elected minority government depends for survival on support from a Muslim-baiting populist. Economies across Europe are struggling to cope with sluggish growth, lacerating budget cuts and the after-effects of borrowing binges. But there is an exception to the gloomy European rule.

“No big developed country has come out of the global recession looking stronger than Germany has… Its sharp-elbowed behaviour during the near-collapse of the euro earlier this year heightened concerns about Germany’s role in the world that have been stirring ever since unification 20 years ago… Even a pacific and prosperous Germany causes international angst… Germany… will shape Europe, and therefore the world…

“A third of Germans think the country is overrun by foreigners, according to a newly published poll; a majority favour “sharply restricting” Muslim religious practice. Over a tenth would even welcome a Führer who would govern with “a strong hand”—a sign that the embers of extremism still glow…

“Despite their economic strength, Germans fear the worst… This pessimism shapes Germany’s dealings with the rest of the world…

“Germany, with its high-competitiveness, low-debt economy, is on top. The rest are having to adjust, including France, traditionally a joint leader of the European project. This is unsettling… Even during the golden age of European integration Germany was an awkward partner, too big to be first among equals but too small to dominate, as Helmut Kohl, the chancellor who unified Germany, put it. It never lost sight of its own interests…

“Germany’s overall direction is obscure… The EU needs Germany’s leadership more than ever, but fears its pre-eminence. Europe also needs consensus, but will not get it unless the Germans foster it. Matters will be even worse if Germany’s economic self-confidence comes across as political arrogance.”

Germany will become the leading and most powerful nation in Europe. For proof, please read our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy.”

“Unalienable Rights” No Gift from God?

WorldNetDaily reported on October 21:

“…for the third time in a little over a month, President Obama has censored a reference in the Declaration of Independence to people being endowed ‘by their Creator’ with rights. He just says that people ‘are endowed.’… The actual quote from the Declaration is:

“‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.’

“But according to the transcript of Obama’s remarks to a Democrat fundraiser in Rockville, Md., just days ago, he was talking about the greatness of America, and said:

“‘As wonderful as the land is here in the United States, as much as we have been blessed by the bounty of this magnificent continent that stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific, what makes this place special is not something physical,’ he said. ‘It has to do with this idea that was started by 13 colonies that decided to throw off the yoke of an empire, and said, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that each of us are endowed with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

“Don Wildmon, founder of the American Family Association, picked up on the dropped words immediately. ‘Repeatedly now the president has simply said Americans are endowed with certain rights, but persistently refuses to acknowledge with the Founders that these rights are a gift from God,’ he wrote his constituents. ‘He stripped God from our founding document on September 15 when speaking to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. He did it again on September 23 at a fundraiser in New York City. And he did it a third time … in Rockville, Md., when speaking to Democratic Senate candidate donors.

“This can no longer by any stretch of the imagination be considered unintentional or accidental… If our rights do not come to us from God, they come to us from government. And what government gives, government can take away…”

This IS telling. Maybe President Obama–a law professor–did not correctly remember the Declaration of Independence? Or, did he omit the reference to a Creator because he did not want to antagonize democratic and independent Atheist voters? Or, did he indeed plan to create the notion that those rights are granted by the government, which can take them away in due time? In each scenario, the answer is troublesome, to say the least.

US War Crimes in Iraq?

ABC News reported on October 22:

“In what is being described as the largest release of secret U.S. military documents ever, whistle-blowing web site WikiLeaks has released a trove of classified reports about the war in Iraq…

“Among the highlights… are claims that the death toll reached 285,000, and that 63 percent of them were civilians… [It is also claimed that] the documents state that 681 Iraqi civilians were killed at U.S. checkpoints, 180,000 Iraqis were arrested during the war, and that 15,000 Iraqis were buried without being identified.

“U.S. officials knew that the Iraqi government was engaged in torture and recorded incidents in which government interrogators electrocuted, stabbed and sodomized detainees, according to the documents.”

Whether true or not, the release of these documents constitutes a further nail in the coffin of a dying giant–the USA. Europe will hate the USA even more because of these allegations, and anti-Americanism will spread and become even larger. In addition, as the next report shows, the documents seem to portray an American army which was helpless in Iraq for years, fueling ideas to the effect that America could be beaten in a war.

The American Giant–A Humbled Nation

Der Spiegel Online reported on October 22:

“The field reports from soldiers cast a new light on the war — documenting in a unique way how the highly armed American military was helpless in the conflict for years… The brief, matter-of-fact incident reports offer an unusual perspective on a war that lasted longer than World War II.

“They show the everyday aspects of the campaign as US soldiers experienced it. The thousands of threat analyses, attack reports and arrest records allow a very precise reconstruction of the escalation of the sectarian battle between the Shiites and Sunnis, how it brutalized Iraqi society and how kidnappings, executions and the torture of prisoners became routine practices. The reports also provide some evidence that neighboring countries including Syria and Iran were involved in the war.

“… they have the cumulative effect of painting a precise picture of an asymmetrical war, one in which a superpower equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry often stands helpless on the battlefield against individual fighting units, as brutal as they are nimble. The material shows how the constant state of fear paralyzed the world’s last remaining superpower…

“George W. Bush, the US president and commander in chief at the time, declared on May 1, 2003 on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln that ‘major combat operations in Iraq have ended.’ The field reports show that his statement proved to be untrue for years to come…

“As tensions mount within the Iraqi population starting in 2004, acts of the greatest cruelty take place… The documents show hundreds of thousands of times what can happen to a society at war — how it gradually slips to the point of self-destruction and the verge of breakdown…

“Recently, Bush’s successor, Barack Obama, also officially declared the end of combat operations. On September 1, Operation Iraqi Freedom was replaced by Operation New Dawn. But aside from the excessively optimistic terminology, there were no signs of triumph to be seen. There were no flag-bedecked aircraft carriers or returning veterans being cheered as they marched up Broadway in New York…

“According to official figures, 3,884 US soldiers died between 2004 and 2009, an additional 224 soldiers from allied nations, well over 8,000 members of the Iraqi security forces… and 92,003 Iraqi civilians… Together, this makes more than 104,111 deaths, a figure that approximates the number of victims reported dead in these documents, namely 109,032. And although this war wasn’t nearly as devastating in terms of the sheer number of casualties as the Vietnam War, with its 3 million deaths, its effects on the standing of the United States in the world have been no less devastating.

“One month before the beginning of the invasion, Bush had blustered that the overthrow of dictator Saddam Hussein and ‘a new regime in Iraq would serve as a dramatic and inspiring example of freedom for other nations in the region.’ But the military that withdrew after seven years of war was a demoralized force that had long since ceased to believe in the noble goals of the campaign.

“The documents faithfully reflect this change. In the roughly 400,000 documents, the word ‘democracy’ appears only eight times. The ‘improvised explosive devices’ which instilled fear in the hearts of American soldiers, however, are mentioned 146,895 times.”

EU Complains About American Intrusive Travel “Security” Measures

ABC News reported on October 27:

“European air officials accused the United States of imposing useless and overly intrusive travel security measures, calling Wednesday for the Obama administration to reexamine policies ranging from online security checks to X-raying shoes.

“British Airways’ chairman made the first in a wave of complaints, saying in a speech to airport operators that removing shoes and taking laptops out of bags were ‘completely redundant’ measures demanded by the U.S.

“He was joined less than 24 hours later by British pilots, the owner of Heathrow airport, other European airlines, and the European Union. The EU submitted formal objections to a program that requires U.S.-bound travelers from 35 nations to complete online security clearance before departure. It called the system burdensome and said it could violate travelers’ privacy… The program applies to Europeans who don’t need visas to travel to the U.S…”

“British Airways chairman Martin Broughton told the annual conference of the U.K. Airport Operators Association that measures like separate examinations of shoes and laptops appeared to be unnecessary and were inconsistently applied in different airports. ‘America does not do internally a lot of the things they demand that we do,’ Broughton said, calling on British authorities not to ‘kowtow to the Americans every time they wanted something done’…”

Some of the American travel security measures appear indeed to be overly intrusive, redundant and plainly ridiculous. This is another example showing how America’s perceived arrogant politics antagonize even allies and friends.

Iran at Odds With Syria?

The American Spectator published the following article on October 22:

“There has been considerable speculation behind the visit to Lebanon of Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The generally accepted theory is the egocentric desire of the Iranian leader to bask in the Lebanese sunshine of acceptance as a ‘protector’ against Israel…

“Behind the scenes, however, is the fact that Syria is increasingly unhappy with the growth of Iranian influence in Lebanese politics. The deal among Hezbollah, Iran, and other Moslem political groups in Beirut always was supposed to be that Damascus would exercise the lead role in Lebanese political life. Recently Syrian intelligence is reported to have substantially infiltrated Hezbollah, aided by a considerable increase in military supplies from Damascus. Ahmadinejad’s presence in Lebanon was supposed to counter this and be a reminder to certain Hezbollah leaders of where their original training and support had come.

“Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s heralded visit was as much a regional statement as it was for local Lebanese consumption. The Iranians have a three-pronged offensive in progress: Shia alignment in Iraq, Hamas allegiance in Gaza, and Hezbollah’s ruling desires in Lebanon. The Syrians see this as the first steps in an attempt by Tehran’s clerical leadership’s plan for a Greater Persia — and Damascus doesn’t like what it sees.

“Parades in Beirut and speeches in a village overlooking the Israeli border serve the purpose of the clerical leadership in Iran in terms of flexing their regional muscle. They want to keep Damascus alert to Tehran’s outreach and international status. It also reminds the United States, and the West in general, that they have more than Persian nuclear development to worry about while they are pressing ahead with sanctions.

“Greater Persia may seem a dream to some outside of Iran. But in Iran and the region it seeks to dominate, it’s real enough…”

The Bee and the Myth of Evolution

The Guardian wrote on October 24:

“Bees can solve complex mathematical problems which keep computers busy for days, research has shown. The insects learn to fly the shortest route between flowers discovered in random order, effectively solving the ‘travelling salesman problem’, said scientists at Royal Holloway, University of London.

“The conundrum involves finding the shortest route that allows a travelling salesman to call at all the locations he has to visit. Computers solve the problem by comparing the length of all possible routes and choosing the one that is shortest. Bees manage to reach the same solution using a brain the size of a grass seed…

“Using computer-controlled artificial flowers to test bee behaviour, [the scientist] wanted to know whether the insects would follow a simple route defined by the order in which they found the flowers, or look for the shortest route. After exploring the location of the flowers, the bees quickly learned to fly the best route for saving time and energy.”

Scientists want us to believe that something like this remarkable conduct evolved through random chance. Or using Stephen Hawking’s rationale, the bee could have created itself and its brain capacity, as, according to him, the universe created itself as well. We would say, however, that the bee puts those concepts to shame.

Germany’s Fight with Islam

Daily News reported on October 14:

“A recent survey showing high levels of anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant sentiment in Germany alarms the country’s Turkish community, which fears such beliefs could flare into violence. The study released this week indicates that xenophobic feelings are spreading from extremists at the margins of society to the middle-class heart of the European country…

“‘What is most dangerous is that racism in Germany is going from a Nazi appearance to a ‘black-tie racism,’ Kenan Kolat, a leader of the Turkish community in Germany, told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review on Thursday. ‘The existing racism is heading toward the center of society, to cultural, white-collar racism.’…

“The survey, which was broadcast by Deutsche Welle, shows 32 percent of Germans approve of the statement, ‘When there’s a shortage of jobs, foreigners should be sent back home’; 34 percent agree or strongly agree with the statement that ‘Foreigners only come here to exploit Germany’s social welfare system’; and 35 percent think that ‘Germany has a dangerous level of foreign influence as a result of the many foreigners in the country.’…

“Germany has a sizeable Turkish community of around 2.5 million and a total Muslim population of some 4 million. German central bank board member Thilo Sarrazin recently caused outrage among Muslim immigrants when he accused Turks and Arabs of exploiting the welfare state, refusing to integrate and lowering the country’s average intelligence. ‘A policy of humiliation and exclusion is supported by part of German society,’ Kolat said…

“The survey showed the strongest negative opinions when it comes to Islam, with 55 percent of respondents saying they could understand that people find Arabs unpleasant, and 58 percent saying the practicing of the Muslim religion should be ‘considerably restricted’…”

For more information on this intriguing subject, please continue to read the following articles, and view our latest StandingWatch program, titled, “How Germans Really Feel.”

Germany’s “Multicultural Society Has Utterly Failed”

Reuters reported on October 17:

“Germany’s attempt to create a multicultural society has ‘utterly failed,’ Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday, adding fuel to a debate over immigration and Islam polarising her conservative camp… Merkel said allowing people of different cultural backgrounds to live side by side without integrating had not worked… Merkel faces pressure from within her CDU to take a tougher line on immigrants who don’t show a willingness to adapt to German society and her comments appeared intended to pacify her critics…

“Merkel has tried to accommodate both sides of the debate, talking tough on integration but also telling Germans that they must accept that mosques have become part of their landscape…’Horst Seehofer, chairman of the Christian Social Union (CSU), the CDU’s sister party, has rejected any relaxation of immigration laws and said last week there was no room in Germany for more people from ‘alien cultures.'”

Der Spiegel Online added on October 18:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s declaration that multiculturalism in Germany has ‘utterly failed’ has raised the temperature of an already burning immigration debate. German commentators on Monday clashed on whether she was voicing a home truth or scoring cheap political points…

“The right-wing Die Welt writes:

“‘No one has anything against the immigrants who live and work among us. But many people have something against the immigrants who want to bring their own system of justice along with them. Immigration means accepting the traditions of the chosen country — and also respecting those traditions. Whoever lives here has to accept that honor killings are murder. Whoever doesn’t want to do so, should stay out of the country. For this reason Angela Merkel and Horst Seehofer are right when they say that immigration needs clear-cut principles’…

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes:

“‘CSU leader Seehofer and CDU leader Merkel think that they can win back support by using slogans from the 1980s… Seehofer has positioned himself against uncontrolled immigration. But in reality, immigration has long been limited: Far more Turkish people are leaving Germany than arriving…'”

President Wulff Speaks to Turkish Parliament

Deutsche Welle reported on October 19:

“German President Christian Wulff has called on Turkish immigrants to Germany to integrate in to Germany society, saying Turks and Germans ‘are closely connected.’ ‘Our fellow citizens of Turkish origin … are welcome in our country, and belong to our country,’ he said in a speech to the Turkish parliament in Ankara. ‘As your president, I urge every immigrant to actively integrate in our German society.’

“His comments come amid a controversial debate at home on whether Berlin has failed in efforts to integrate Muslim immigrants. The four-day trip is the first visit of a German president to Turkey in a decade, while Wulff’s speech marked the first time a German head of state has addressed the Turkish parliament…

“In his speech, Wulff stressed immigrants need not give up their cultural identity or background. But those living in Germany should respect and protect the values of the German constitution, including freedom of speech, equality and the right to a religiously and ideologically neutral state… Wulff also touched on the subject of religion, calling on Turkey and other Islamic countries to be more open to Christianity…

“‘Without a doubt, Christianity belongs to Turkey,’ he said… In his speech, the German president also commented on Turkey’s struggling bid to join the European Union… Both Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are against full membership for Turkey, instead suggesting that the country should settle for a ‘privileged partnership,’ an option Ankara has firmly rejected.”

It is doubtful that Turkey will ever become a part of core Europe. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy.”

Guttenberg–Germany’s Rising Star?

The Local reported on October 20:

“Nearly a quarter of voters believe the conservative rising star Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg would make a better chancellor than the embattled Angela Merkel, a poll published Wednesday found… The poll comes amid growing speculation that Defence Minister Guttenberg, a member of the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU), is likely to become leader of his party and has a strong chance to become the nation’s chancellor…

“Guttenberg, 38, is easily the country’s most popular politician at the moment – a title long held by Merkel. In a recent poll, his approval rating of 70 percent positively dwarfed her 40 percent. Guttenberg himself has described suggestions that he might oust Merkel if the conservatives perform badly in state elections next year as ‘bizarre’…

“Forsa pollster Manfred Güllner said Guttenberg was winning the respect of voters for his independence and the fact he did not appear to be part of the ‘Berlin political circus.’… However Güllner stressed the recent speculation about Guttenberg’s leadership potential had been premature. ‘Guttenberg is seen as a nice type but as to his fitness for the Chancellery, there are many question marks. So far he has not been seriously put to the test.’”

Europe’s New Anti-Semitism

The Local wrote on October 15:

“In recent weeks, it’s become rather apparent that bigotry towards Muslims is Europe’s new anti-Semitism.

“Last weekend, Horst Seehofer, the conservative state premier of Bavaria, sparked outrage by calling for an end to immigration from Islamic countries… Seehofer’s remarks followed several of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives expressing unease over German President Christian Wulff’s recent statement that Islam was as much a part of German society as Christianity and Judaism. One Bavarian politician even said there could be no religious equality for Islam in Germany…

“Tragically it took something as horrific as the Holocaust to ensure Jews equal treatment in Western democracies like Britain and the United States, where anti-Jewish attitudes were rife prior to World War II. No-one should forget that it was only the incomparable crimes of Nazi Germany committed against Europe’s Jewry that made it no longer socially acceptable to express anti-Semitic sentiments openly…

“Many German conservatives have recently mentioned the country’s ‘Christian-Judeo’ traditions – something that would normally be expressed in English as being Judeo-Christian… But it doesn’t take a huge stretch of the imagination to apply the ugly rhetoric currently being directed towards Muslims to Germany’s Jewish population before the war.

“‘…just as it was once acceptable to badmouth Jews and scapegoat them for society’s ills – in Germany as well as Western democracies like America and Britain – millions of law-abiding, well-integrated Muslims are now being targeted unfairly…”

New Dutch Government

Bloomberg reported on October 14:

“The Netherlands, the second-largest exporter in the euro zone, got a new government today backed by Geert Wilders’s anti-Islam party that plans to cut immigration and reduce spending on development aid and the European Union… About 1.5 million Dutch voters cast ballots for Wilders’s Freedom Party, which wants to stop the building of mosques and withdraw from the EU…

“The Netherlands, which has been known for accepting foreigners since Portuguese Jews sought refuge there, has played an outsized role in the world economy since the founding of the Dutch East India Company in 1602. The merchant empire, which focused on trading instead of cultural colonization, once stretched from the Caribbean to Indonesia…

“The Netherlands has about 850,000 Muslims, according to Dutch statistics bureau 2006 data. Most are of Turkish or Moroccan origin.”

Wilders Soon Acquitted?

BBC reported on October 15:

“Dutch prosecutors have recommended acquitting leading anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders on all five charges of hate speech. They said his comments had targeted Islam, not Muslims, and he had the right to comment on social issues. The trial will continue next week and judges may still disagree with the prosecution and convict Mr Wilders. Prosecutors were obliged to look at the case again after an appeals court decision last year.

“The trial of Mr Wilders, who compared the Koran to Hitler’s Mein Kampf, has gripped the Netherlands… Prosecutors had initially declined to press charges against Mr Wilders in June 2008. But they were ordered to do so in January 2009 by the appeals court, which ruled that there was significant evidence that the politician had sought to ‘sow hatred’.”

Russians Against Muslims

Der Spiegel Online reported on October 19:

“The leaders of Moscow’s 1.5 million strong Muslim community say they desperately need more places of worship. But a plan to build a new mosque has run into local opposition which is being fuelled by nationalists calling for a ‘clean Moscow’ without Muslims and foreigners…

“The country’s largest online newspaper, gazeta.ru, drew parallels with other European controversies surrounding Islam: The burqa ban in France and the immigration debate now raging in Germany. Europeans are frightened of Islam because the religion’s values are utterly foreign to them, the article said. ‘Now we are experiencing something similar in Moscow and St. Petersburg.’

“According to estimates… up to 20 million Muslims live in Russia today. Muslims have dominated some parts of the country for centuries. While the predominantly Muslim Republic of Tatarstan in the Volga region is regarded as moderate, guerrillas are fighting to set up an Islamic state in the northern Caucasus. Islamic extremists were behind the suicide bomb attacks that shook the Russian capital this March and killed 40 people.”

Strikes Paralyze France

Deutsche Welle reported on October 20:

“The first fuel depots where cleared of blockades by the police overnight after one-third of France’s petrol stations had run dry due to a strike of oil refinery workers and barricades set up at several depots…

“The clashes between police and protesters continued on Wednesday. Many of the country’s motorways and airports remained blockaded as protests against the government’s pension reforms continued for the seventh day in a row.

“Demonstrators blocked access to airports in Toulouse, Bordeaux, Nantes and Clermont-Ferrand, while truck drivers obstructed traffic on more than a dozen motorways throughout the country. 

“President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday warned that the strikes could have serious consequences for the country’s economy… Sarkozy added that despite the protests the government would persist in pushing for unpopular pension reforms…

“Opinion polls suggest the strikers still have the support of the majority of the French. French daily Les Echos published a poll on Wednesday that said that 59 percent of the country wanted the unions to continue with the protests.

“The pension reforms are aimed at raising the standard retirement age from 60 to 62 and full pension benefits from 65 to 67. The French senate is to vote on the unpopular bill later this week.”

France Off the Hook?

Predictably, the EU dropped their charges against France for the deporatation of Roma.

The EUObserver wrote on October 19:

“The European Commission on Tuesday… put an end to its stand-off with France over Roma expulsions, deciding not to start infringement procedures after Paris submitted plans to bring its legislation in line with EU law on freedom of movement… Over a thousand Roma of Romanian and Bulgarian citizenship were repatriated in August and September… With the Tuesday decision, that case is now closed…

“‘This is proof of the good functioning of the European Union as a Community governed by the rule of law,’ the commissioner added… The news came as a ‘disappointment’ to MEPs following the Brussels-Paris row over Roma.”

“Obama’s Lost Magic” –USA and EU Far Apart

This article and the next one show the vast differences between Europe and America. Once this fact is realized, it is perhaps not any longer so difficult to believe the Bible which prophesies that the relationship between these two power blocs will steadily deteriorate and culminate in an outright war.

On October 19, Der Spiegel Online published a somewhat polemic and largely inaccurate article. Nevertheless, the following excerpts are worth quoting:

“US President Barack Obama is trying to recover his lost magic as defeat for the Democrats looms in the midterm elections. But… his window of opportunity has passed…

“When Obama came to office, the country craved perfection. His government is far from perfect, however. It’s not even close. But what is more appalling still, what is more shocking on so many levels, is the state of the nation — the political stupidity of entire federal states and systems that seem hell-bent on self-destruction. Europe and the United States are much farther apart than many Europeans think. The US is different, completely and utterly different…

“Decades of prosperity have made the US a lethargic country. And in contrast to Europeans, whose lives and countries have been shaped by war, Americans are accustomed to feeling unique and invulnerable.”

“The American and European Systems Are Largely Different”

On October 19, Der Spiegel published an interview with Karl Rove who was one of President George W. Bush’s closest advisers. We are bringing you the following excerpts from Karl Rove’s comments:

“In Europe and the United States, you’ve got different systems to select candidates, and no system is perfect. In Germany you have a parliamentary system in which political parties weed out people. And the fact of the matter is that in Germany, on both sides of the aisle, particularly on the Social Democratic side, you have seen lousy leadership of the political parties that have allowed subpar candidates to emerge through the parliamentary system…

“You have had candidates that the country rejected in a pretty profound way. Our primary system prevents this from happening as often… the advantage of our system is that it is able to react to changes in public opinion better than the European system generally is able to. And, we tend to have broadly representative parties rather than sort of multiple parties that represent more narrow slices of the electorate and lead to coalition politics.

“America does not have a history of social democracy. We have been a country in which even the Democrats have been to the right of the left in Europe, and that’s one of our strengths. A lot of people call [President Obama] a socialist. I don’t. He is a social democrat, though…”

Osama Bin Laden and the Hopeless Afghan War

CNN reported on October 18:

“Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri are believed to be hiding close to each other in houses in northwest Pakistan, but are not together, a senior NATO official said. ‘Nobody in al Qaeda is living in a cave,’ said the official… Rather, al Qaeda’s top leadership is believed to be living in relative comfort, protected by locals and some members of the Pakistani intelligence services, the official said. Pakistan has repeatedly denied protecting members of the al Qaeda leadership…

“The NATO official, who has day-to-day senior responsibilities for the war, offered a potentially grimmer view than what has been publicly offered by others. ‘Every year the insurgency can generate more and more manpower,’ despite military attacks, he said… he pointed to an internal assessment that there are 500,000 to 1 million ‘disaffected’ men between the ages of 15 and 25 along the Afghan-Pakistan border region… Most are Afghan Pashtuns and make up some of the 95 percent of the insurgency who carry out attacks just to earn money, rather than fight for a hard-core Taliban ideology.

“The official said it is now absolutely vital for the Afghan government to address the needs of this group with security, economic development and jobs in order for the war to end, and for Afghanistan to succeed. ‘We are running out of time,’ he said. The entire scenario is made more complex by the fact that ‘there is a huge criminal enterprise in this country,’ dealing in human, drug and mineral trafficking, he said. Those crimes are also tied into the insurgency.

“… the official cautioned, hard core Taliban groups such as the Quetta Shura run by Mullah Omar, the Haqqanis, the HiG (Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin) and the Pakistani Taliban still could potentially muster as many as 30,000 fighters…

“The U.S. military could sustain a war ‘indefinitely,’ the official said. But the goal is to achieve reconciliation and allow the Afghan government to function and provide security and services to the people. Without that, he said, ‘we will be fighting here forever.'”

But the world will soon grow tired of America’s fruitless “indefinite” fighting in Afghanistan–and so will the American people. For all intents and purposes, the Afghan war is lost. America has won its last war a long time ago. In fact, America has won no war since World War II.

“No One Will Dictate Israel’s Borders”

Haaretz reported on October 19:

“Israel’s ambassador to the United States Michael Oren remarked on Tuesday that Israel would not allow anyone to dictate its borders. ‘Like Ben-Gurion, Netanyahu will not allow the United Nations, or any other organization, to dictate our borders. They will be determined through negotiations,’ he said in Washington during an event at the Chamber of commerce celebrating 25 years since the establishment of the Free Trade agreement between the U.S. and Israel.

“In September, Israel entered into U.S.-sponsored direct peace negotiations with the Palestinians, which subsequently broke down in the wake of the expiration of a temporary Israeli moratorium on construction in West Bank settlements. As part of the negotiations, Palestinian negotiators have demanded the establishment of a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders.

“‘Today, too, Israel is blessed with principled and courageous leadership. While facing terrorist groups sworn to destroy every last one of us – women, children, senior citizens – and some 60,000 Hamas and Hezbollah rockets pointed directly at our homes; with so-called human rights organizations and boycott movements and campus coalitions denying our right to defend ourselves and even our right to exist, and with Iranian leaders swearing to wipe us off the map and striving to produce the nuclear means for doing that…. With all of those challenges, the Israeli government under PM Benjamin Netanyahu has not for a nanosecond reduced its commitment to peace,’ Oren said.

“‘But not a peace at any price,’ he added. ‘Not a peace that will impair Israel’s security or impugn its identity as the nation state of the Jewish people. As Netanyahu said last year in his Bar-Ilan speech, he will not allow any future Palestinian state to become another Lebanon or Gaza.'”

Israel will soon find itself in utter political isolation. The world will turn against Israel. We are beginning to see this development occurring in front of our very eyes. For more information, please read our free booklets, “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord,” and “The Book of Zechariah–Prophecies for Today!”

How Will U.S. Midterm Elections Impact Mideast Peace?

Haaretz reported on October 20:

“Next month’s U.S. midterm elections might do more than just redefine the political landscape in Washington, they could also have a significant impact on stalled Middle East peace talks. Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, launched with gusto by President Barack Obama in September, have fallen into limbo ahead of the Nov. 2 vote as both sides bide their time and wait to see how the U.S. leader emerges from the campaign.

“Polls predict hefty losses for Obama’s Democrats and Israeli ministers expect this will force him to avoid any bruising showdowns with Israel and its supporters in the coming months for fear of further undermining his shaky electoral position.

“Palestinians hope that after the vote, Obama will refocus on foreign affairs and use the last two years of his presidential mandate to seek a place in history by securing an end to the decades-old conflict, regardless of obvious domestic risks. But Palestinians also fear an enfeebled Obama will be in no position to wring concessions from Israel, starting with their demand that Netanyahu suspends Jewish settlement building in the West Bank – the issue that has stalled the talks…

“In the run-up to the midterm vote, Israeli newspapers have jumped on opinion polls showing that support for Obama among Jewish electors had slumped dramatically. Obama swept the Jewish vote in the 2008 presidential ballot, but a survey by the American Jewish Committee this month said just 49 percent of U.S. Jews backed his handling of Israeli relations, against a 62 percent approval rating for Netanyahu.

“…some analysts have questioned whether a catastrophic midterm vote might convince Obama he has nothing to lose and decide to lean heavily on Israel to accept painful compromises – something Arab states say must happen to clinch a deal.”

Lebanese Shiites Love Ahmadinejad

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 20:

“After the visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Lebanon, the radical Islamic group Hezbollah is brimming with confidence… Indeed, funds from Iran have been used to finance the construction of new buildings and streets, support war widows and create jobs in the sections of southern Beirut and southern Lebanon that Israeli fighter jets reduced to smoldering rubble in the summer of 2006…

“There was no mistaking the enthusiasm that gripped the vast majority of Shiites in Lebanon as they played host to the Iranian president. Ahmadinejad’s two-day visit gave an enormous boost to what is the largest segment of Lebanon’s population, which was, however, also the most marginalized group for many years. In particular, Hezbollah, whose name means ‘Party of God,’ is brimming with self-confidence. The organization’s militia has long since recovered from the fighting with Israel four years ago and once again boasts a well-filled arsenal of rockets.

“‘Even if Hezbollah is perhaps nothing more than a plaything of the Iranians, the Lebanese Shiites are enjoying finally being recognized as the strongest voice in the country,’ says Beirut political scientist Hilal Khashan. His colleague Raghid al-Sulh even maintains that Hezbollah is the ‘strongest political party in Lebanon of all time’…

“The Sunni and Christian opponents of the Shiite organization have not forgotten May 2008, when street clashes between Hezbollah fighters and government supporters came close to sparking a new civil war.

“The conflict was triggered by the government’s attempt to bring Hezbollah’s special telephone network under state control — a move that the Party of God saw as an attack on its vital interests. Since then, pro-Western forces in the country have tended to refrain from openly criticizing the Shiite militia.

“Still, there is a threat of renewed unrest. In just a few weeks, the United Nations’ Special Tribunal for Lebanon will announce in The Hague whether members of the militia will be charged with the murder of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. This prompted Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Rafik Hariri’s son and political heir, to try to appease Hezbollah. The younger Hariri vowed that he would never endorse such charges.”

Britain In Shock Over Huge Spending Cuts

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 20:

“The Queen has already cancelled the Christmas party at Buckingham Palace. Now she will now have to suffer further impertinences. The British austerity measures announced on Wednesday envisage drastic cuts to public spending, including a sharp reduction of the royal budget. Great Britain is facing a ‘sober decade,’ according to Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England.

“The British newspapers have dubbed it ‘Axe Wednesday,’ the day that Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne finally announced deep cuts to public finances…

“Ministerial budgets are to be cut by an average of 19 percent… And 490,000 public sector jobs will disappear over the next four years. State expenditures will be slashed by 83 billion pounds (€94 billion, $131 billion), and taxes increased by 29 billion pounds (€32 billion, $45 billion.)… These are enormous figures, and it didn’t take long for the public outcry… However,… most British people have long since accepted their fate…

“The coalition has been preparing the public for this day since it took office last May. They warned to expect the toughest cuts since the World War II…

“It took an hour for Osborne to get through his list. He said that the only alternative to his radical package of measures would be state bankruptcy. Indeed, Great Britain’s deficit is the highest in Europe…

“As it stands, Osborne’s policy is nothing short of a massive political experiment, a high-stakes bet with an uncertain outcome. A senior official in the Treasury told the Financial Times that no one knows quite what will happen next… Numerous economists have warned of a relapse into recession. Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, wrote in the Guardian on Tuesday that ‘austerity is a gamble which Britain can ill afford.’ He says that the measures could slow or stop the country’s economic recovery…

“There are reasons for concern. Early economic indicators are worse than they were just six months ago. Real estate prices are weak and consumption, both private and commercial, is cautious. Just how economically damaging drastic savings measures can be has been seen recently in the case of Britain’s neighbor Ireland…

“All the British government can do now is… hope that their plan succeeds. The hope is that the British economy will follow the model of Canada, which saw solid growth following deep spending cuts in the 1990s. Prime Minister David Cameron… is aided by the fact that he has the backing of some of the country’s most influential newspapers. ‘It’ll hurt,’ wrote Britain’s largest circulation tabloid The Sun. ‘But the prize is worth the pain.'”

BBC News added on October 20:

“Chancellor George Osborne has unveiled the biggest UK spending cuts since World War II, with welfare, councils and police budgets all hit… shadow chancellor Alan Johnson, for Labour, called the review a ‘reckless gamble with people’s livelihoods’ which risked ‘stifling the fragile recovery’…

“Labour would also have had to make major cuts if they had won the general election, but the party insists Mr Osborne’s plans were too aggressive and risked tipping the country into a ‘double dip’ recession.

“During raucous Commons exchanges, shadow chancellor Alan Johnson accused Tory backbenchers of cheering ‘the deepest cuts to public spending in living memory.'”

Sarah Palin Warns of World War III and Armageddon

Newsmax reported on October 11:

“Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, in an exclusive interview… discusses her staunch opposition to President Barack Obama’s healthcare plans and socialistic policies, and reveals new details about a possible presidential run in 2012…

“‘We have to realize that, at the end of the day,’ Palin warns in the interview, ‘a nuclear weapon in that country’s [Iran’s] hands is not just Israel’s problem or America’s problem — it is the world’s problem. It could lead to an Armageddon. It could lead to that World War III that could decimate so much of this planet.’ Palin’s reference to Armageddon, described in the Bible’s book of Revelation, refers to a final battle between the forces of good and evil over the existence of the state of Israel.”

The errors contained in the article are tremendous. Armageddon is not the final battle between the forces of good and evil–in fact, it does not describe any battle at all. Rather, it is the place where the armies of the world will assemble to march against the returning Jesus Christ in Jerusalem, where the “battle” between good and evil will take place. Furthermore, this battle will not be caused by a disagreement over the existence of Israel and therefore, Sarah Palin’s reference to Armageddon in the context of Iran is misplaced as well.

However, it is true that a war in the Middle East could lead to an intervention by European troops with the attempt to bring peace to the region–which could be the catalyst for the beginning stages of the Great Tribulation. Please read the following articles on Iran and our Q&A on the Great Tribulation in this issue of the Update, as well as the booklets quoted in the Q&A.

Iran Admits Real Purpose for Nuclear Program

Newsmax reported on October 5 what should have been obvious to any thinking and discerning person:

“For the first time since the expansion of Iran’s nuclear program was exposed in 2002, the Iranian government is dropping the pretense that it is developing nuclear technology purely for peaceful purposes. Iran has developed nuclear war plans to deter U.S. and Israeli aggression and retaliate against it, a top adviser to Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi announced in a strategic analysis.

“Defense Ministry analyst Alireza Saeidabadi’s detailed analysis, published last week on a website that Iran’s intelligence ministry runs, examines several scenarios in which Iran could become embroiled in a shooting war with the United States or Israel. One of the scenarios Iranian military planners must consider is a strategic nuclear U.S. strike on Iran, he writes. If that occurred, Iranian planning documents call for attacks against U.S. interests ‘on the world stage,’ his analysis says… in the event Israel uses unconventional weapons against Iran, ‘then Iran should employ a nuclear strategy’… ‘if the United States launches an unconventional attack, Iran needs to respond with a nuclear strategy,’ the Iranian defense ministry analyst contends.

“The meaning is clear to former Revolutionary Guards officer Reza Kahlili. ‘He means that Iran should be prepared with the capability of nuclear weapons to respond’ if an enemy were to launch a nuclear strike against Iran, says Kahlili… ‘The use of nuclear technology for peaceful means is just a front,’ Kahlili told Newsmax. ‘They are prepared to go to war and will not give up the bomb project, which they feel is very close to being able to arm their ballistic missiles with nuclear war heads.’”

Ahmadinejad in Lebanon

The New York Times wrote on October 13:

“President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran arrived here Wednesday morning to an ecstatic welcome by supporters of Hezbollah, the militant Shiite movement that is backed by Iran. Thousands of cheering supporters thronged the road that leads from Beirut’s airport to the city, waving Iranian flags and chanting greetings in Farsi as Mr. Ahmadinejad’s convoy slowly passed…

“American officials voiced their disapproval last week of Mr. Ahmadinejad’s visit, which underscores Tehran’s powerful role in Lebanon. After his arrival, Mr. Ahmadinejad appeared at a news conference with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to announce a number of bilateral agreements on energy, trade and other issues. Iran, which has long provided arms and training to Hezbollah, has also offered to help equip the Lebanese Army, which has in recent years received support and training from the United States.”

Reuters added on October 13:

“President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday used his visit to Lebanon on Wednesday to assure the government that Iran would stand by Beirut in confronting what he called hostilities from neighboring Israel.”

The Associated Press wrote on October 13:

“… the Iranian leader’s splashy arrival only exacerbates fears among many Lebanese – particularly Sunnis and Christians – that Hezbollah and Iran are trying to impose their will on the country and possibly pull Lebanon into a conflict with Israel. Ahmadinejad said he was a friend of all Lebanese, while emphasizing the need to fight Israel.” 

It added on October 14:

“On Thursday, Ahmadinejad is scheduled to make a trip to Lebanon’s Shiite heartland in the south and the Israeli border, which will emphasize Iran’s support for Hezbollah’s fight with Israel… Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev slammed the trip Thursday, saying ‘Iran’s domination of Lebanon through its proxy Hezbollah has destroyed any chance for peace, has turned Lebanon into an Iranian satellite and made Lebanon a hub for regional terror and instability.’

“Ahmadinejad’s visit has underscored the eroding position of pro-Western factions in Lebanon. More broadly, it has suggested that the competition over influence in Lebanon may be tipping toward Iran and its ally Syria, away from the United States and its Arab allies Egypt and Saudi Arabia.”

Iran’s PressTV wrote on October 14:

“[At] a dinner banquet held in [Ahmadinejad’s honor] by Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday… Berri… said Iran and Lebanon have a common stance on key regional and international developments and added the two countries could serve as a model of brotherly relations.

“He also insisted on the significance of disarming Israel… The speaker voiced Lebanon’s support for Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities.”

Iran Leads OPEC

Iran’s leading role among Arab nations should not be underestimated.  Note this remarkable announcement in PressTV, dated October 14:

“For the first time in 36 years, Iran will assume the rotating presidency of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as of next year. Iranian Oil Minister Masoud Mirkazemi has been elected president of the 12 oil cartel following a vote on Thursday…

“Iran, OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, was unanimously elected during the 157th session of OPEC ministerial meeting that kicked off in Vienna on October 14. OPEC comprises of Algeria, Angola, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Venezuela. The cartel, which provides 35 percent of global oil demand, also reached an agreement on its oil production target.”

Peace, Peace… and There Is No Peace

Der Spiegel wrote on October 8:

“One year after the Nobel prize jury made its controversial decision to award President Obama the prize for world peace, a larger jury is still waiting for the president to live up to those lofty expectations…

“The one year anniversary of Obama’s prize comes as fighting is escalating in Afghanistan, the war in Iraq continues to smolder and Obama struggles to keep fledgling Middle East peace talks from collapsing. Drones are firing missiles in unprecedented numbers and confrontations with Iran and North Korea are hotter than ever.

“In addition, wars rage in Somalia, Africa, Asia and South America, fueled by religion, tribal hatreds, poverty and piracy.”

No human leader will bring peace to this planet. The Bible says that when people believe that peace is just around the corner, sudden destruction will overtake them.

… Nor Is There Freedom, It Seems…

On October 7, The smokinggun.com reported on an unbelievable court ruling–not in Communist China, but in the USA, the country of the “free”:

“A Mississippi judge yesterday jailed a lawyer who refused to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in his courtroom. Attorney Danny Lampley, 49, was taken into custody Wednesday morning after Chancellor Talmadge Littlejohn cited him for criminal contempt of court for failing to recite the 31-word pledge at the outset of the morning’s proceedings at the Lee County courthouse.

“An October 6 order signed by Talmadge notes that Lampley was being charged for his ‘failure to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance as ordered.’ Lampley, the judge added, ‘shall purge himself of said criminal contempt…by standing and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in open court.’”

This is outrageous conduct, but it proves that unconverted people in “authority” are prone to misuse their office. A video presently circulating on the Internet shows an American police officer verbally abusing a German tourist for driving too fast, threatening him with jail time and the prospect of being violated by homosexual inmates. Such conduct is unbecoming to anyone in authority and brings shame to this country. It serves as a reminder that true Christians, as ambassadors of Jesus Christ, have to reflect that status at all times and in the best way possible in order to not bring shame on the name of God and His Kingdom.

The Big One Could Strike at Any Time

The Los Angeles Times wrote on October 10:

“Recent reports suggest that the major rupture predicted for the southern San Andreas fault could be longer and stronger than the last big quake, shaking [340 miles] from Monterey County down to the Salton Sea. The ‘Big One’ that has been forecast for the San Andreas fault could end up being bigger than earthquake experts previously thought.

“Recent research showing that a section of the fault is long overdue for a major earthquake has some scientists saying the southern portion of the fault is capable of a magnitude 8.1 earthquake… That’s significantly stronger and longer than the southern San Andreas’ last major rupture, in 1857. Such a temblor would cause much more damage because with a larger stretch of the fault rupturing, a larger area would be exposed to the quake and the shaking would last longer…

“The southern San Andreas hasn’t had a large quake for more than a century. The sleeping giant has been building stress for so long that it could snap at any moment, experts said…”

The Bible prophesies that many earthquakes will hit this planet prior to Christ’s return, and it is very likely that the “Big One” will destroy California–as other earthquakes will lay waste major cities and areas in the USA.

Turkey and China Exclude USA

The Wall Street Journal wrote on October 9:

“Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and China Premier Wen Jiabao said Friday their two countries would from now on trade using their own currencies, effectively excluding the U.S. dollar. The announcement, at a joint news conference in Ankara, came on the final stop of Mr. Wen’s European tour. Mr. Erdogan announced eight trade agreements between the two countries, whose leaders also pledged to triple trade between China and Turkey to $50 billion within five years, and to $100 billion by 2020.”

The trend to exclude the USA and the dollar from all major transactions will continue. Please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”

China at Odds with the USA

The New York Times wrote on October 11:

“Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates met his Chinese counterpart, Liang Guanglie, in Vietnam on Monday for the first time since the two militaries suspended talks with each other last winter, calling for the two countries to prevent ‘mistrust, miscalculations and mistakes.’

“His message seemed directed mainly at officers like Lt. Cmdr. Tony Cao of the Chinese Navy. Days before Mr. Gates arrived in Asia, Commander Cao was aboard a frigate in the Yellow Sea, conducting China’s first war games with the Australian Navy, exercises to which, he noted pointedly, the Americans were not invited. Nor are they likely to be, he told Australian journalists in slightly bent English, until ‘the United States stops selling the weapons to Taiwan and stopping spying us with the air or the surface.’

“The Pentagon is worried that its increasingly tense relationship with the Chinese military owes itself in part to the rising leaders of Commander Cao’s generation, who, much more than the country’s military elders, view the United States as the enemy… The younger officers have known only an anti-American ideology, which casts the United States as bent on thwarting China’s rise…

“The stakes have increased as China’s armed forces, once a fairly ragtag group, have become more capable and have taken on bigger tasks. The navy, the centerpiece of China’s military expansion, has added dozens of surface ships and submarines, and is widely reported to be building its first aircraft carrier. Last month’s Yellow Sea maneuvers with the Australian Navy are but the most recent in a series of Chinese military excursions to places as diverse as New Zealand, Britain and Spain…

“From the Chinese military’s view, this year has offered ample evidence of American ill will. The Chinese effectively suspended official military relations early this year after President Obama met with the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan religious leader, and approved a $6.7 billion arms sale to Taiwan, which China regards as its territory.

“Since then, the Chinese military has bristled as the State Department has offered to mediate disputes between China and its neighbors over ownership of Pacific islands and valuable seabed mineral rights. And when the American Navy conducted war games with South Korea last month in the Yellow Sea, less than 400 miles from Beijing, younger Chinese officers detected an encroaching threat.”

Agreement on Nuclear Warheads Being Negotiated Between France and the UK

The Financial Times wrote on October 7:

“An agreement being negotiated by the UK and France would see British nuclear warheads serviced by French scientists and break with half a century in which neither country has collaborated on its independent deterrent… A deal to share the secrets of their nuclear programmes would boost powerfully defence collaboration between the countries and save money at a time when their defence budgets are under stress…

“A US-UK treaty forbids Britain from sharing its nuclear secrets with another country because the UK deterrent, built on the Trident D5 missile, is in large part based on US technology. François Heisbourg, a French defence analyst, said sharing warhead research would assume ‘that the British break their very special relationship with America in that field’. This would require considerable ‘confidence on the US part’.”

The real news is that France will have access to British nuclear warheads. While in all likelihood France will be part of the inner core of the revived Roman Empire, Great Britain will not be. In fact, Britain will be at odds with the coming United States of Europe.

An Opportunity for Strong European Leaders…

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 13:

“With the EU mired in crisis — from demonstrations in French streets to Irish bank bailouts — strong leadership from European capitals is more important than ever. Unfortunately, the EU suffers from a leadership void… Historically, the greatest advances in European integration… have been spurred by crises. The euro zone crisis similarly presents an opportunity — if leaders are willing to seize it…

“A united EU is a stronger and more capable global actor than individual European nations. The collective force of EU soft power on important global governance issues… is substantial. The world benefits from an EU that speaks with a unified voice, and that is capable of following through on its commitments… the EU is a crucial beacon.”

The End for Merkel?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 13:

“Has the end of Angela Merkel’s chancellorship heaved into view? After miserable poll numbers that show her coalition government losing support among German voters, the heavyweight conservative newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung [FAZ] is now speculating on forces that could topple the chancellor after next March, when the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg holds state elections…

“Merkel was re-elected in 2009 and might not face new elections until 2014, if the political tides run in her favor. But the FAZ reported Wednesday that a movement within her bloc for a new leader may already be afoot. Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, 38, is the current defense minister and a rising star in the Christian Social Union (CSU), the Bavarian sister party to Merkel’s CDU. The generally well-sourced FAZ wrote that he is ‘at the center of the speculation’ about a possible successor to Merkel as chancellor. Guttenberg is not just young but also well-groomed and popular among female voters…

“Guttenberg has proved to be a flexible, ambitious politician. He comes from an old, upper-crust southern German family. Whether chatter in conservative circles about his future has to do with a ‘real power struggle (within the CDU/CSU) or merely what-if speculation’ is, according to the FAZ, not clear.”

Germany New Non-Permanent Member on Security Council

Deutsche Welle reported on October 12:

“Germany has won election to one of two non-permanent seats on the UN Security Council assigned to Western nations. Portugal was awarded the other seat, after Canada withdrew its bid after two inconclusive rounds of voting. All three nations had for years campaigned to represent the regional area called Western Europe and other Groups (WEOG). 

“Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle called the UN’s selection a ‘significant vote of confidence’ and pledged to ‘do everything possible to justify the confidence shown to us by the United Nations.’ Westerwelle, in New York to support Germany’s bid to join the council, told reporters: ‘The world knows that it can count on Germany. We are now faced with the responsibility to establish peace, security and development around the globe.’

“The German victory is expected to boost the country’s new campaign to become a permanent member on the council. Chancellor Angela Merkel said in Berlin that the government was delighted with the results. ‘Germany will work hard during its term to push ahead on reforms of the UN Security Council,’ she said. ‘That is the expectation that a lot of people in the world have.’…

“The Security Council is the main global body charged with keeping international peace. It has 15 members: the five permanent members Russia, China, the US, Britain and France, who have the right to veto any council resolution, and ten non-permanent members. Each of these rotating countries stays on the council for two years.

“The other three non-permanent seats at stake this year had already been decided by virtue of being uncontested: India will take over from Japan for the Asian region, Colombia takes Mexico’s seat for Latin America and South Africa takes the place of Uganda for Africa.”

The new two-term for Germany begins on January 1, 2011. It is clearly prophesied that Germany will play a major role in world affairs. At the same time, Germany’s and Europe’s battle with Islam will continue and deepen. The following articles give us a flavor as to what can be expected to accelerate. While German and European mainstream politicians may give lip services to Islamic “integration,” the people think differently–and they show and will continue to show their real feelings.

“Islam Belongs in Germany”

The discussion of Islam’s role in Germany does not cease. The German press debated the accuracy of President Wulff’s statement that Islam belongs in Germany and that he is the President of Muslims.

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 8:

“The recent statement by German President Christian Wulff that ‘Islam belongs in Germany’ has provoked something of a conservative backlash. The German press is divided on whether the presence of Muslims in Germany is self-evident or cause for concern.

“When German President Christian Wulff said that ‘Islam also belongs in Germany’ during his speech to mark the 20th anniversary of German reunification on Sunday, he was initially showered with praise for recognizing the reality that around 4 million Muslims now live in Germany. Yet just a few days later, it is clear than many on the conservative side of German politics and society are still deeply uncomfortable with such a statement.

“The ongoing unease in some quarters about the country’s Muslim population was revealed by a poll published by the influential mass circulation newspaper Bild on Tuesday which showed that 66 percent of those polled disagreed with Wulff’s assertion and only 24 percent agreed with it…

“Wulff’s speech should also be seen in the context of the heated debate in Germany in recent weeks following the publication of a controversial book by Thilo Sarrazin, then a member of Germany’s Central Bank, in which he accused Muslims of sponging off welfare, refusing to integrate and not attaining high enough levels of education…

“The conservative Die Welt writes: ‘… In the end, our relationship with Islam will not be decided by the domestic immigration debates. If we surrender Afghanistan to the Islamist butchers, allow the Iranians to have nuclear weapons and accept Turkey’s anti-Israel path, then the well-meaning integration attempts won’t prevent the acceleration of political Islam here too.'”

German Outcry Over Islamic Rules in Rental Contracts

Deutsche Welle reported on October 12:

“Berlin’s inner-city Ernst-Reuter Square is a prime business location, housing the offices of companies from around the world. But the nine-storey office building at No. 2 stands half empty with a huge billboard near the entrance offering office space. This is at least in part because of a number of restrictions placed on commercial tenants of the building.

“‘Companies seeking to rent office space here are not allowed to operate business that involves selling pork’, said Simone Krziwanek, a lawyer representing a small communications firm on the groundfloor of the building. What is also banned, she said, are businesses offering ‘interest-paying financial products, as well as sex shops, gambling halls and liquor stores’…

“The building was once the Berlin headquarters of the American computer giant International Business Machines, IBM. It now belongs to an Arab property investor, who is said to be based in London…

“On Monday, Germany’s mass-circulation newspaper Bild published details of the controversial rental contracts, describing their clauses as ‘Sharia laws and multi-cultural madness which is now also undermining German business.’…

“Perhaps surprisingly, the German Catholic Church on Monday indirectly expressed support for the Arab investor. ‘Businesses not in line with Catholic ethics, like the arms trade or pornography, are also not allowed to rent office space on church property,’ said Stefan Foerner of the Berlin archbishopric. Among those banned were also shops selling condoms, he added.”

The “support” of the Catholic Church is more likely a vehicle to cement their own interests…

German Courts Apply Sharia Law

The Local reported on October 9:

“A leading law professor has contradicted Chancellor Angela Merkel’s statement that Sharia law was not practiced in Germany, saying a variety of Sharia-based rulings were being made all the time. ‘We have been practising Islamic law for years, and that is a good thing,” Hilmar Krüger, professor for foreign private law at Cologne University, told Der Spiegel magazine. Family and inheritance rulings were often made according to Sharia law, he said, listing a range of examples.

“Women who are in polygamous marriages legal in their countries of origin can make claims of their husbands in Germany regardless of the fact that their marriages would not be lawful here. They can claim maintenance from their husbands and a share of an eventual inheritance, said Krüger… A judge in Cologne ruled that an Iranian man should repay his wife’s dowry of 600 gold coins to her after their divorce – referring to the Sharia which is followed in Iran.”

Far Right Attitudes in Germany

Der Spiegel wrote on October 13:

“A new study has revealed that far-right attitudes are deeply rooted in German society. One-third of Germans would send foreigners home if there weren’t enough jobs, while one-sixth think Jews have too much influence.

“‘Germany is in serious danger of being overrun by foreigners.’ It’s a sentence one would expect to find on an election poster for Germany’s far-right NPD party. As it happens, it’s a view that is held by over one-third of the German population…

“Additionally, more than 30 percent think that ‘foreigners come to take advantage of the welfare state’ and that when jobs are scarce foreigners should be sent ‘back to their own country.’ More than one-tenth would like a ‘Führer’ — the survey deliberately used the German word for ‘leader’ that is associated with Adolf Hitler — who would govern the country ‘with a firm hand’ for the benefit of all.”

The Local added on October 13:

“Anti-Islam views were particularly strong in the… poll… Just over 58 percent said that ‘religious practice for Muslims in Germany should be seriously limited,’ and that number rose to 75.7 percent for people from former East Germany…

“’This development is most likely linked to the effects of the economic crisis,’ the study said… The study results come as the debate over immigration and integration reaches a fever pitch in Germany. Since June, Thilo Sarrazin has made a number of anti-immigrant statements aimed mainly at Turks and Arabs, coinciding with the publication of his controversial book Deutschland schafft sich ab – Wie wir unser Land aufs Spiel setzen, or ‘Abolishing Germany – How we’re putting our country at jeopardy.’

“While many politicians have condemned Sarrazin’s position, polls have shown that public support of his views is growing. In early September a poll conducted by Emnid for daily Bild revealed that 18 percent would vote for a party headed by Sarrazin, who was forced to resign from his Bundesbank position over his hot-button views. But since then, several conservative politicians have been emboldened to make similar remarks, the latest being Bavarian state premier Horst Seehofer, who over the weekend suggested a ban on immigration for Turks and Arabs because of their ‘difficulties’ with integration.”

Right-Wing Party in Austria Celebrates Massive Gains

The Austrian Independent wrote on October 11:

“The Social Democrats (SPÖ) lost their absolute majority in the Vienna city parliament for the second time since World War Two while the right-wing Freedom Party (FPÖ) celebrates massive gains… Twenty-seven per cent is the second-best result the right-wing party ever achieved in Vienna…

“[The FPÖ’s Heinz-Christian] Strache said last night he was willing to take responsibility in Vienna. The right-winger, who took over as federal party leader in 2005, remained tight-lipped on whether he will leave the federal parliament… Asked whether the FPÖ will be able to reach ever higher shares in future ballots, he said: ‘This is not yet the end.’

“The FPÖ’s strong performance in the Vienna election comes just weeks after its Styrian branch improved by 6.3 per cent to 10.9 per cent in the provincial election. The right-wing party also improved in the provincial election of Burgenland in May where it won nine per cent, up from the 5.8 per cent it claimed in 2005.

“Despite recently presented plans to focus on a more modest course, the FPÖ’s Vienna branch opted for a far-right campaign in Vienna. It accused the SPÖ of doing more for immigrants unwilling to integrate than for ‘hard-working Austrians’. The FPÖ also claimed it ‘protects free women, while the SPÖ protects (Muslim) men enforcing their women to wear head-scarves.'”

Wilders Warns Against European Islamisation

The Local reported on October 3:

“Far-right Dutch populist politician Geert Wilders warned against the ‘Islamisation’ of Europe and criticised German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a speech in Berlin on Saturday that sparked public protests… In his speech at the Hotel Berlin, Wilders claimed Germany’s national identity, democracy and prosperity were threatened by Islamic political ideology. ‘A Germany full of mosques and full of veiled women is no longer the Germany of Schiller and Heine, Bach and Mendelssohn,’ he said.

“The 47-year-old politician also took aim at Chancellor Merkel and Germany’s established parties, accusing them of accepting the “Islamisation” of Germany. Wilders was invited to speak in Berlin by ousted former conservative politician René Stadtkewitz, who recently announced he was forming a new ‘Freedom’ party in Germany.

“In an interview with the Sonntag Aktuell newspaper, Green party parliamentary group leader Jürgen Trittin said Wilders’ visit was an ‘affront to Berlin’s cosmopolitan tradition,’ in a city that is home to hundreds of thousands of Muslims. ‘We must stop all attempts by smug right-wing populists and Islamophobic bigots to marginalise and vilify these fellow citizens,’ he said.

“Wilders’ anti-immigration Freedom Party (PVV) won record support in the June election in the Netherlands, giving it the third highest vote and an unprecedented bargaining position. At a special party congress in the Dutch city of Arnhem on Saturday, members of the Dutch Christian Democrats (CDA) agreed to a power deal with the Liberal party (VVD), which would rely on support from Wilders’ PVV.”

Presently, Wilder is on trial for incitement charges against Islam. It is rumored that the prosecution will either ask for a verdict on Friday or dismiss the case. This reminds us unpleasantly of the trial against Adolph Hitler when he received a rather mild sentence for actual violence committed during the Hofbraeu House [Bierkeller] putsch. The trial and subsequent sentence did not hurt Hitler, but rather helped him in his political career.

Europe Now a Target

On the heels of warnings for American tourists to be more careful in their travels to Great Britain and Europe, European intelligence officials have revealed more details concerning the source of this concern.

CnnWorld reported on October 5:

“The man at the center of an alleged al Qaeda plot to bomb cities in Europe has told investigators the conspiracy was directed by one of the organization’s most senior figures…

“Ahmed Sidiqi, an Afghan German, was detained in Kabul in July and has since been questioned at the United States’ Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, the officials say. They say he has told interrogators that while in the tribal areas of Pakistan he met with a senior Al Qaeda leader, Younis al Mauretani, who was planning multiple attacks on European countries that would be similar to the attack on Mumbai, India, in 2008.”

The article concludes:

“There are around 40 Germans believed still to be with jihadist groups in the tribal areas of Pakistan, according to German intelligence officials. More than 200 militants have traveled from Germany to the Afghanistan-Pakistan since the 1990s, and most of them are believed to have received training, according to German intelligence officials.”

Equality For Islam?

German President Wulff’s recent comment that he is also the President for Muslims has triggered an ongoing debate–in fact, it appears to be THE NO. 1 topic in German media.

On October 5, The Local reported:

“Wulff riled his fellow Christian Democrats by saying Islam had become an important part of German society in a speech commemorating the 20th anniversary of German reunification on Sunday.

“While several Christian Democrats and their Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) allies grudgingly admitted Muslims had earned a place in Germany, they bristled at the idea they were changing the core social fabric of the country.

“‘The speech was easily misunderstood,’ CSU politician Norbert Geis told Bild on Tuesday. ‘If the president wanted to equate Islam in Germany with Christianity and Judaism, then I’d consider that wrong.’

“Christian Democrat Wolfgang Bosbach, the head of parliament’s interior affairs committee, also said Islam could not expect to be put on the same level as the faiths based solely on the New and Old Testament.

“‘Islam has certainly become part of the reality of daily life in Germany, but we belong to a Christian-Judeo tradition,’ he said.

“In his first major speech on Sunday since taking office in July, Wulff extended the hand of friendship to Muslims, saying the challenge of integrating them into society was comparable to reunifying the country after the Cold War.

“‘Christianity is of course part of Germany. Judaism is of course part of Germany. This is our Judeo-Christian history … But now Islam is also part of Germany,’ he said in his speech. ‘When German Muslims write to me to say “you are our president”, I reply with all my heart “yes, of course I am your president”.’

“His comments were welcomed by leading German Muslim groups as an important sign that they were not second-class citizens in Germany.

“But out of 1,008 Germans surveyed by YouGov for a poll published on Tuesday, a whopping 66 percent disagreed with their president’s views on Islam. Only 24 percent of those surveyed believed Muslims were as much a part of the country as much as Christians and Jews.”

Also from The Local on October 7, 2010:

“In the wake of Wulff’s speech, the centre-left parties hit back against conservatives who had previously attacked Wulff’s remarks as undermining the core values and traditions of Germany.

“‘Islam needs a fair chance in Germany,’ Dieter Wiefelspütz, interior affairs spokesman for the Social Democrats’ (SPD) parliamentary group, told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung. ‘It would be an important signal to the four million Muslims in Germany if the state recognised Islam as a religious community.'”

The article continues:

“Secretary general of the German Jewish Council, Stephan Kramer, also slammed the conservative response to Wulff’s speech as ‘close to hysterical’ and said it showed ‘that apparently many politicians even today are shutting themselves off to the reality of an immigrant community.’

“He added: ‘The Muslims living here are part of our society. So of course their religion also belongs in this country.’

“Ultimately the right to exercise freely one’s religious beliefs was anchored in the constitution, he said.

“Yet the debate within Angela Merkel’s conservatives continued. Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Hermann of the Christian Social Union said: ‘Our fundamental values are clearly grounded in the Christian-western tradition. Germany does not want to integrate to Islam but rather to preserve its cultural identity.’

“The acting parliamentary leader for the Christian Democrats, Günter Krings, said Islam was a reality in Germany though he did not want to see the practices of some Muslims incorporated into German society.

“‘There are values represented with Islam that I don’t want to see in Germany culture, such as the position of women in the community,’ he said.

“But Kramer said practical solutions had to be found as to how a pluralistic society could be developed for the future. Wulff’s critics, by contrast, were ‘digging out propagandist phrases to create the impression that Germany was facing an immediate choice between the constitution and Sharia law.’

“CDU Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen also took the more positive view that Wulff’s remarks meant many well-integrated Muslims would see Wulff as their president.

“‘His speech was an acknowledgement to the people of Muslim beliefs who live here and want to live here,” he said. ‘But it is clear – and the president also said this – Germany’s religious and cultural roots lie in Christianity and Judaism.'”

These hotly debated issues regarding Islamic beliefs and even the presence of Muslims in Germany, the German State of Bavaria and other areas of central Europe have been slowly coming to a boil! Following the disasterous handling of the Roma immigrants by the current French government, it appears that the underlying question of Europe’s Christian status is also being drug into the fray, and these overlooked core issues will become even more heated as more disputes arise!

Sludging the Danube!

Reuters wrote on October 7, 2010:

“Toxic red sludge from a Hungarian alumina plant reached the Danube on Thursday and crews struggled to dilute it to protect the river from what the prime minister called an ‘unprecedented ecological catastrophe’…

“Philip Weller, executive secretary to the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR), a Vienna-based U.N. body, said most damage was local.

“‘It is clear that the consequences of this are greatest in the local area and that the implications on a trans-boundary level, we understand, will not be significant which doesn’t mean they don’t exist,’ he said.

“‘The Hungarian authorities took a number of measures to reduce the toxicity, they added substances to neutralize the material, they also constructed some underwater weirs to slow the mud and maintain it and contain it as much as possible in the Hungarian territory of the river system.’

“It also helps that the Danube is a large river with a very high volume of water, he added.

“Gabor Figeczky, Hungarian branch director of the WWF environmental group said:

“‘Based on our current estimates, it (pollution) will remain contained in Hungary, and we also trust that it will reach Budapest with acceptable pH values.’

“Downstream from the disaster site, the Danube flows through or skirts Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Romanian, Moldovan and Ukrainian territory en route to the Black Sea.”

As with other significant issues arising within the EU, calls for more controls are being sounded–especially in light of the possible widespread influence of this spillage. While the European Union continues to solidify its governing role, its member states will have to conform in matters that will influence all aspects of life within the EU.

The Middle East: Talks and More Talks

In the latest round of U.S. sponsored peace efforts in the Middle East, a familiar assessment has come forward–“deadlocked!”

The Los Angeles Times carried this report on October 7, 2010:

“Only a month into a new round of peace talks, the Obama administration is drawing criticism from allies and veteran diplomats that it is giving away too much just to keep negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians from collapsing.

“Administration officials have offered an assortment of inducements to persuade Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to extend a freeze on Jewish construction in the West Bank for two months. Palestinian officials have threatened to break off the talks unless Israel extends the freeze that expired Sept. 26.

“The U.S. has been wooing Netanyahu for weeks with offers including a squadron of F-35 fighters, support for a long-term Israeli troop presence in a new Palestinian state, and a pledge to veto any anti-Israel resolutions passed by the United Nations Security Council. The U.S. also is offering access to its satellites that could provide early warning of attacks.

“To the Palestinians, the White House is pledging support for their position on the exact location of borders for a future state in exchange for a promise to continue negotiating even if Israel refuses to extend the construction moratorium.

“Although the Obama administration was expected to eventually give out incentives to keep the negotiations alive, diplomats and other observers say they are surprised that it has offered so much, so early for such a small victory: a commitment by both sides to keep talking…

“The White House’s willingness to pay a steep price so early in the game reflects the huge stakes for the administration. Obama has said repeatedly that peace the Middle East is vital to U.S. national security.

“U.S. officials fear that if the talks fail now, it may be months before they can coax the sides back to the table, and by then they might be dealing with a new and less cooperative Palestinian leadership. And collapse of the talks would hurt U.S. prestige in the region.

“‘This has become all about American credibility, and that’s why there’s such an effort to keep it going,’ said one person close to the talks, who was unwilling to be identified by name because of the sensitivity of the subject.”

While the Middle East continues to draw the attention from would-be “peace brokers” from all over the world, the underlying concerns will not be resolved–not until Jesus Christ returns and forcibly institutes the rule of God’s government! Our booklets, available at www.eternalgod.org; globalchurchofgod.co.uk; and churchofgodacf.ca, present the biblical truth of prophecy for our time and explanations about how good news does lie ahead! Also, please watch our regular web videos found at www.StandingWatch.org (postings appear on YouTube, as well); and, in German, www.AufPostenStehen.de, both presented by evangelist, Norbert Link.

Art Gilmore Dies

Wire reports of October 3, 2010, relate the death of long-time announcer, Art Gilmore:

“Art Gilmore, who launched his more than 60-year career as an announcer in the 1930s and became a widely recognized voice on radio, television, commercials, documentaries and movie trailers, has died. He was 98.

“Gilmore died Sept. 25 of age-related causes at a convalescent care center near his home in Irvine, Calif., said his nephew, Robb Weller.

“Among the highlights of his long and prolific career:

“On radio,he was the announcer on shows such as ‘Amos ‘n’ Andy,’ ‘Dr. Christian,’ ‘Red Ryder’ and ‘The Sears Radio Theater.’

“Moving to television in the 1950s, he was the announcer for ‘The George Gobel Show,’ and he began a 16-season stint as the announcer on ‘The Red Skelton Show.’ He was also the narrator on the TV series ‘Mackenzie’s Raiders,’ ‘Men of Annapolis’ and ‘Highway Patrol.’

“On radio and television, Gilmore’s voice was heard introducing and concluding ‘The World Tomorrow,’ a church-sponsored program with Herbert W. Armstrong and later his son, Garner Ted Armstrong.

“Moviegoers also heard Gilmore’s voice on more than 2,700 movie trailers.”

Why is the Pope Visiting Britain?

Overshadowing the papal visit to Britain, the first for Pope Benedict XVI, are questions as to why he would confront the obvious public outcry against his trip. CNN.com reported on September 16:

“As the United Kingdom braces to receive one of the best-known and most controversial figures on the planet, Pope Benedict XVI, a question hangs over the state visit: Why is he coming?”

The article continues:

“And the United Kingdom is not a Catholic country. On the contrary, Britain’s break from Rome in the 16th century echoes, if faintly, to the present day, with laws on the books forbidding the heir to the British throne from marrying a Catholic.

“In fact, the country is one of the less religious ones in Europe, home to vociferous critics of religion, like Richard Dawkins, and those who find belief in a higher power simply unnecessary, like Stephen Hawking.

“Public opinion on the eve of his visit ranges from indifference to downright hostility. There will be protests from critics who consider him a protector of pedophiles and from liberal Catholics who resent his staunch defense of orthodox doctrine.

“And all this will play out in in front of the British media — one of the world’s most aggressive.

“So why, aged 83 and happier at home, is the professorial vicar of Christ on earth stepping into the lion’s den? It may be the very factors that seem to argue against his coming that impelled him to come, according to two experts.

“This pope relishes a challenge, said John Allen, CNN’s senior Vatican analyst. His ‘No. 1 priority is to combat secularism, and in some ways the United Kingdom is the dictionary definition of a post-religious society,” Allen said. “He just created a whole new department in the Vatican to reawaken the faith in the West, and this trip is a chance to elaborate a strategy.’

However, ABC NEWS/International (online 9/16/10) further reports on the swirling resentment that is following the pope’s visit:

“But this four-day, $20 million visit is already mired in controversy. The cloud of the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church is hanging over events.

“Belgian investigators just published a report detailing sexual abuse by priests in nearly every diocese in that country.

“Some of the victims were reportedly as young as two years old.

“British victims of abuse are demanding more than just an apology from the Pope. They want money for counseling and they want the Vatican to throw open its files on abuse.

“Protests are also planned by those who oppose the Pope’s views on condom use, homosexuality and the ordination of women.

“When asked about the sex scandals, he said ‘the revelations were a shock to him’ and ’caused great sadness.'”

UK is Like “Third World Country!”

The guardian.co.uk, on September 15, 2010, reported the reactions to very controversial remarks made by a leading papal advisor:

“The pope’s visit to the UK is mired in controversy after one of Benedict XVI’s senior advisers dropped out after comparing an arrival in multicultural Britain to landing ‘in a third-world country’.

“Cardinal Walter Kasper – the Vatican’s leading expert on relations with the Church of England – also accused the UK of discriminating against Christians.

“The cardinal’s remarks, made hours before the papal party was due to land in Edinburgh this morning, came in an interview with the German news magazine Focus, in which he noted that Britain was a ‘secular, pluralistic’ country.

“Asked by the magazine whether Christians were discriminated against in the UK, Kasper replied: ‘Yes. Above all, an aggressive new atheism has spread through Britain. If, for example, you wear a cross on British Airways, you are discriminated against.'”

Strife Builds Over French Actions

Controversy continues over France’s crackdown on illegal migrants, and BBC reported on September 16:

“President Nicolas Sarkozy was furious after European Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding appeared to compare France’s removal of Roma with Gypsy deportations during World War II…

“Although France has deported thousands of Romanian and Bulgarian Roma over the past few years, it began accelerating the process last month, as part of a high-profile crackdown on illegal camps in the country.

“On Tuesday, Ms Reding seemed to compare France’s actions to the persecution of Jews and Gypsies in Nazi-occupied France, when she said: ‘This is a situation I had thought Europe would not have to witness again after the Second World War.’

“She also urged the European Commission to take legal action against France over the deportations.”

Also, from the BBC on September 16, 2010:

“France and Germany are embroiled in a diplomatic row after German Chancellor Angela Merkel flatly contradicted President Nicolas Sarkozy on the issue of Roma camps.

“The issue of Roma (Gypsy) deportations from France has dominated an EU summit.

“Mr Sarkozy told a news conference that Chancellor Merkel had said to him that she intended to follow France’s example in dismantling Roma camps.

“Mrs Merkel’s spokesman denied she had discussed the issue with Mr Sarkozy.

“Fresh from a blazing row with the president of the European Commission, President Sarkozy has managed to fall out with his closest ally in Europe, says the BBC’s Oana Lungescu, who was at the summit in Brussels.”

The focus on human rights is pre-occupying the planned summit of EU leaders in Brussels, while the intended focus was a co-ordinated approach towards China and India–new emerging power-houses on the world stage.

We are witnessing a steady emergence of issues that will soon call for a new kind of leadership in Europe, and Bible prophecies reveal that the stage is set for a startling shift in who is the true super-power! Please read our free booklet: Europe In Prophecy-The Unfolding of End-Time Events.

No Middle-Ground in the Middle East!

Following more “peace talks,” the stalemate remains deeply entrenched in the volatile West Bank.

On September 16, CNN World reported:

“Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has proposed a three-month extension of Israel’s construction moratorium on the West Bank, a diplomatic source told CNN Thursday.

“The proposal, which was made this week during Middle East peace talks being held in the region, was accepted by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, but essentially rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“The two sides appear to be at a stalemate, the source said.

“Netanyahu’s official position remains that he will not support any extension of the moratorium, which has been in place for 10 months and is set to expire September 26.

“The U.S. special envoy to the region, former Sen. George Mitchell, is attempting to negotiate a “quid pro quo” from the Palestinians in exchange for an extension, the source added.

“‘There are all kinds of ideas in the air’ over different ways to break the logjam, the source noted.’

“‘Nobody is going to let the talks break down over this issue,’ the source said. ‘Nobody is walking out of these talks.'”

Along with the momentous changes occurring now in Europe, the Middle East remains one of the most troublesome challenges in today’s diplomatic efforts. Like Europe, this region, and especially the State of Israel and Jerusalem, are destined to fulfill prophecies from the Word of God that only few now understand.

Our free booklet, “The Book of Zechariah-Prophecies for Today!,” will help you understand, as well. 

Coming in 2011–Largest Tax Hikes in US History

On September 3, 2010, The Drudge Report linked to the following article, published by atr.org:
“In just 120 days, the largest tax hikes in the history of America will take effect…

“The top income tax rate will rise from 35 to 39.6 percent (this is also the rate at which two-thirds of small business profits are taxed). The lowest rate will rise from 10 to 15 percent. All the rates in between will also rise. Itemized deductions and personal exemptions will again phase out, which has the same mathematical effect as higher marginal tax rates… The ‘marriage penalty’ (narrower tax brackets for married couples) will return from the first dollar of income. The child tax credit will be cut in half from $1000 to $500 per child. The standard deduction will no longer be doubled for married couples relative to the single level. The dependent care tax credit will be cut… For those dying on or after January 1, 2011, there is a 55 percent top death tax rate on estates over $1 million… The top capital gains tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 20 percent in 2011.  The top dividends tax rate will rise from 15 percent this year to 39.6 percent in 2011.  These rates will rise another 3.8 percent in 2013…

“There are over twenty new or higher taxes in Obamacare. Several will first go into effect on January 1, 2011… Americans will no longer be able to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin). The HSA Withdrawal Tax Hike… increases the additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged accounts, which remain at 10 percent… Starting next year, there will be a multi-billion dollar tax assessment imposed on name-brand drug manufacturers. This tax, like all excise taxes, will raise the price of medicine, hurting everyone… The IRS is now empowered to disallow perfectly-legal tax deductions and maneuvers merely because it judges that the deduction or action lacks “economic substance.”  This is obviously an arbitrary empowerment of IRS agents. Employer Reporting of Health Insurance… will start for W-2s in the 2011 tax year.  While not a tax increase in itself, it makes it very easy for Congress to tax employer-provided healthcare benefits later…

“The deduction for tuition and fees will not be available. Tax credits for education will be limited. Teachers will no longer be able to deduct classroom expenses… Until this year, a retired person with an IRA could contribute up to $100,000 per year directly to a charity from their IRA… This ability will no longer be there.”

USA Today added on September 8:

“The most sweeping tax cuts in a generation are due to expire at the end of the year. Congress is set to take up the issue this month. If Congress does nothing, families at every income level face tax increases next year.

2011 Income	Number of tax returns	Average tax increase
Less than $10,000	28,681,000	$70
$10,000 to $20,000	24,383,000	$410
$20,000 to $30,000	18,523,000	$756
$30,000 to $40,000	15,679,000	$893
$40,000 to $50,000	13,001,000	$923
$50,000 to $75,000	23,972,000	$1,126
$75,000 to $100,000	15,245,000	$1,837
$100,000 to $200,000	16,885,000	$3,672
$200,000 to $500,000	3,757,000	$7,187
$500,000 to $1 million	608,000	$18,092
$1 million and over	315,000	$101,587

In times of financial hardship, these tax hikes are irresponsible and extremely damaging to all of us. Even though the USA is not ruled by a “king,” dictatorial and autocratic government-imposed measurements surely give the impression that we are. In other words, we are under a CURSE!

The Bible warned ancient Israel that the people’s desire to reject God’s leadership and be ruled instead by a king would result in financial hardship, misery, high taxes, increased wars and pain (compare 1 Samuel 8:11-18). We are being plagued by similar problems today.

As the ancient Israelites, many Americans foolishly felt that a new president would bring about “change” for the better. Now, many feel that a change in the current government would substantially improve our condition. It is high time for the American people to wake up and forsake their trust in a man–ANY man–and to return to God who alone can give us peace and prosperity.

Obama’s Economic Recovery Plan Not a Hit with Economists

USA Today wrote on September 8:

“President Obama’s proposal to jolt a listless recovery with $180 billion worth of tax breaks and transportation projects left economists largely unimpressed Tuesday. ‘I don’t think they’re game-changers,’ says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics. ‘I don’t think they’re going to add up to a lot of new jobs’…

“The administration wants to spark economic growth by… letting businesses deduct from their tax bills 100% (up from 50%) of what they invest in new equipment through 2011. The deduction would give businesses $200 billion up-front; but it would cost the Treasury only $30 billion over the next decade because businesses would have gradually written off the value of the equipment anyway…

“Zandi says companies probably wouldn’t ramp up spending to take advantage of the deduction until next year: ‘Most companies are going to sit back and make sure the business landscape is safe before they jump in.'”

The Universe Created Itself?

The Daily Mail wrote on September 3:

“The Archbishop of Canterbury has led a religious backlash after Britain’s most famous scientist declared God redundant. Dr Rowan Williams dismissed Professor Stephen Hawking’s findings that modern physics leaves no room for a Creator and science could explain the origins of the universe.

“In The Grand Design, the best-selling author concludes: ‘Because there is a law such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the universe exists, why we exist. It is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue touchpaper and set the universe going.’

“But Dr Williams said: ‘… ‘It is the belief that there is an intelligent, living agent on whose activity everything ultimately depends for its existence. Physics on its own will not settle the question of why there is something rather than nothing.’

“Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks… said: ‘Science is about explanation. Religion is about interpretation… The Bible simply isn’t interested in how the universe came into being.’

“Vincent Nichols, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, added: ‘I would totally endorse what the Chief Rabbi said so eloquently about the relationship between religion and science.’

“Ibrahim Mogra, an imam and committee chairman at the Muslim Council of Britain, said: ‘If we look at the universe and all that has been created, it indicates that somebody has been here to bring it into existence. That somebody is the almighty conqueror.’…”

When reading those above-quoted comments by Prof. Hawking, Chief Rabbi Sacks or Archbishop Nichols, one shudders at the confusion, as they all got it wrong. If you want to know the TRUTH, please watch our new StandingWatch program, “Why Atheists Are Wrong.”

Germany’s Sarazzin Debate

AFP reported on September 6:

“Politicians have rushed to condemn a board member of the German central bank for a new book tackling immigration, but his views have found considerable support among the population at large. Thilo Sarrazin’s book ‘is not convincing, but it has convinced many people,’ said the influential Spiegel magazine, which this week has the Bundesbank executive on its cover, calling him a ‘people’s hero.’

“His publisher is rushing to print more copies of ‘Germany Does Itself In’ to meet demand. Online retailer Amazon.de has a massive 207 reader reviews on its website, with the average score 4.4 stars out of a possible five.

“The Social Democrats (SPD), the centre-left political party Sarrazin belongs to, has been inundated with thousands of letters, emails and phone calls attacking the central bank board’s desire to expel him. ‘Listen to the voice of the people for once,’ Spiegel quoted one of the almost 4,000 emails as saying.

“In the book, Sarrazin says Europe’s top economy is being undermined, overwhelmed and made ‘more stupid’ by poorly educated, fast-breeding, badly integrated and unproductive Muslim immigrants and their offspring. ‘If I want to hear the muezzin’s call to prayer, then I’ll go to the Orient,’ he says, saying that allowing in millions of ‘guest workers’ in the 1960s and 1970s was a ‘gigantic error.’

“He also says that Turkish and Kurdish ‘clans’ have a ‘long tradition of inbreeding,’ leading to higher rates of birth defects, and ponders whether this might be one reason for immigrants’ poor school performance, Spiegel said. This and his comment to a newspaper that ‘all Jews share a certain gene’, critics say, is akin to the kind of pseudo-science used by the Nazis.

“Chancellor Angela Merkel called the remarks ‘completely unacceptable.’ The Bundesbank’s board has asked President Christian Wulff to fire him, as it cannot do so itself. Sarrazin has no intention of going quietly, however, and has threatened to appeal in the courts if Wulff dismisses him in a ‘show trial’…

“The debate has taken on such proportions that Merkel, 56, gave an interview to the Turkish daily Hurriyet, and on Sunday she admitted in the Bild am Sonntag weekly that Germany has made mistakes and has a lot of work to do. In the past, Germany ‘dreamed a so-called multi-cultural dream and didn’t do enough to remind immigrants of their responsibilities,’ she told the paper.

“…a Pandora’s Box has been opened. Backing for Sarrazin, 65, is so strong that a survey published on Sunday indicated that if he set up his own new political party, almost one in five (18 percent) would vote for him. Sarrazin has no intention of doing any such thing, but the survey raised fears that a charismatic right-wing populist in Germany, like anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders in the Netherlands, could win considerable political support.”

Deutsche Welle reported on September 10 that Sarrazin asked German President Christian Wulff to relieve him of his responsibilities as a German central bank board member.

The Bible announced in advance that in these last days, a powerful charismatic leader will arise in Germany and become the leader of Europe.

Germany Without Right-Wing Leaders… For Now…

Der Spiegel wrote on September 3:

“Right-wing populist parties are everywhere in Europe. But in Germany… the right side of the political spectrum is decidedly vacant. Why?… In contrast to virtually all of its neighbors — particularly Belgium, Holland, Denmark and France — there is no political home in Germany for people like Sarrazin…

“The fleeting nature of right-wing populism in Germany is almost unique in continental Europe. Belgium has the Vlaams Belang party, the Netherlands has Geert Wilders and France’s far right has periodically found significant success at the polls under Jean-Marie Le Pen. In Switzerland, voters supported a populist movement to ban the construction of minarets. Austria’s right wing has a long history of political success under now deceased Freedom Party leader Jörg Haider and many eastern European countries, led by Hungary, have an active right wing…

“Still, the almost unanimous opprobrium German political parties have heaped on Sarrazin is misleading. Recent studies suggest that the lack of a robust, right-wing populist party in Germany is more of a political anomaly than an indication of tolerance in the country. According to a study by the University of Bielefeld published last December, fully 46 percent of Germans agree that there are ‘too many Muslims’ in the country…

“A survey in July, conducted by the polling institution Emnid for the newsweekly Focus, found that 20 percent of Germans would consider voting for a party to the right of Merkel’s Christian Democrats… Nevertheless, [Ulrich] Kober, [head of the integration and education department at the Bertelsmann Stiftung think tank] emphasizes, there is nothing to prevent the development of a populist right wing in Germany in the future… ‘We aren’t that different from our neighbors,’ Kober says. ‘The xenophobic and anti-Muslim potential is there. I certainly wouldn’t bet my life on Germany being an island of sanity.'”

Conspiracy Against Netherlands’s Geert Wilders?

Reuters reported on September 3:

“A well-known Australian Muslim cleric has called for the beheading of Dutch anti-Islamic politician Geert Wilders, a newspaper said on Friday. Wilders’ Freedom Party scored the biggest gains in June 9 polls… Polls show Wilders would win a new election if one were called now.

“Wilders demanded to know why he had learnt about the threat from the newspaper and not from Dutch authorities who are guarding him after a film and remarks he made angered Muslims around the world.

“De Telegraaf, the Netherlands’ largest newspaper, led its front page on Friday with a story on the speech by Feiz Muhammad… The paper posted an English-language audio clip in which he refers to Wilders as ‘this Satan, this devil, this politician in Holland’ and explains that anyone who talks about Islam like Wilders does should be executed by beheading…

“Wilders is currently on trial in the Netherlands for inciting hatred and discrimination against Muslims. The Freedom Party leader made a film in 2008 which accused the Koran of inciting violence and mixed images of terrorist attacks with quotations from the Islamic holy book. Wilders was also charged because of outspoken remarks in the media, such as an opinion piece in a Dutch daily in which he compared Islam to fascism and the Koran to Adolf Hitler’s book ‘Mein Kampf’… But his views have also made him extremely popular with a segment of the country uneasy about the Netherlands’ commitment to multiculturalism.”

Austria’s Strache on the Rise?

The Austrian Independent wrote on September 6:

“Freedom Party (FPÖ) leader Heinz-Christian Strache has attacked the European Union (EU) for being a ‘centralist’ association. The right-wing politician said today… ‘We want a federalist Europe, not a centralist one.’ Strache has previously criticised EU decision-makers for financially backing struggling member Greece. He has also attacked the Austrian government for contributing around 2.3 billion Euros to the international rescue and support bid for Greece.

“Strache became federal leader of the FPÖ five years ago after former party boss Jörg Haider – who died in 2008 – set up the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ). All then FPÖ ministers followed Haider and joined the new right-wing party. Both factions suffered losses in subsequent elections, but the FPÖ recuperated significantly faster than the BZÖ.

“Strache’s party is expected to increase its share in upcoming provincial elections in Styria (26 September, 4.6 per cent in 2005) and Vienna (10 October, 14.8 per cent in 2005). Its Styrian branch has caused outcry by setting up an online shooting game targeting mosques and muezzins, while Strache – who also heads the FPÖ’s Viennese department – said he considered suggestions for more mosques featuring minarets ‘disconcerting’. FPÖ General Secretary Harald Vilimsky has been criticised for calling mosques ‘hotbeds of radical Islam.'”

The struggle between Christian Europe and its Muslim citizens and residents will continue and increase in proportion.

Roma the New European Scapegoats?

Der Spiegel wrote on September 6:

“France’s expulsion of Roma people could be copied by other governments unless it is vigorously condemned by the European public, warn German media commentators. They argue that Brussels is right to voice its misgivings against a policy that flies in the face of the principles the French nation has stood for since the revolution…

“Left-wing Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘Officially it isn’t a crime yet in France to be a Roma from Romania or Bulgaria. But de facto the French government is no longer treating these European Union citizens as individuals with fundamental rights. They are being treated as enemies… The Roma are an easy target for a policy that is seeking cheap applause from worried citizens. Like the term “gypsies” in the past, the word “Roma” is being used by government propaganda as a synonym for thieves and troublesome beggars whose expulsion doesn’t require any further reason: their ethnic background suffices…

“‘This hunt for publicly branded scapegoats serves as a deterrence. The Roma are being made an example of for a policy that Nicolas Sarkozy was already considering when he was still interior minister talking about “selective immigration.” This policy deliberately instrumentalizes existing prejudices. There is a big risk that this policy will spread from France and Italy to the rest of Europe if it isn’t rejected firmly enough by the European public.’

“The Berlin daily Der Tagesspiegel writes: ‘The Roma are EU citizens — everywhere in the European Union. That means that Roma who come from within the EU can move freely everywhere in the bloc… Sarkozy is by no means the only European leader to be tough with the Roma. Germany’s current repatriation of Roma refugees to Kosovo poses the question: are we really checking every individual case here too?'”

Deutsche Welle reported on September 9 that the European Parliament passed a resolution condemning France’s policy of Roma deportation. The article continued: 

“The resolution stressed that ‘mass expulsions are prohibited’ under EU law, ‘since they amount to discrimination on the basis of race and ethnicity.’ French Immigration Minister Eric Besson… said there was ‘no question’ of Paris complying. ‘Of course we are not going to submit to a political diktat,’ Besson said.”

It is always dangerous to look for scapegoats to be blamed for unfavorable conditions.

“Europe Needs a Directly Elected Leader with Charisma”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 8:

“European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso came out with plenty of fine words during his ‘state of the union’ speech on Tuesday… It seemed inevitable that expectations would be disappointed… Barroso, who is not known for his charisma or public speaking ability… was criticized both for blandness and for not speaking out clearly on issues such as the deportation of Roma in France, which the EU has expressly criticized…

“Commentators writing in the Wednesday editions of Germany’s main newspapers give their verdict on Barroso’s speech. The consensus is that Europe needs a more passionate advocate if ordinary people are to overcome their apathy regarding the EU.

“The left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘According to surveys, every second European feels apathetic toward the European Union. …. Therefore, it would be in the interest of the president of the European Commission to ignite a bit of enthusiasm for Europe among Europeans. But passion is not Jose Manuel Barroso’s thing… Instead of revealing what he really thinks, Barroso remained true to his nickname of the “chameleon”… Europe needs a directly elected leader with charisma.’

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘Barroso…fuelled the preconception that Europe wants more power and money…’

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:

“The European Union is currently in a weak state… The citizens of Europe are turning away from the EU… And the governments of most member states are placing their bets on national interests rather than further European integration… without new political glue to hold it together, the EU will fall apart in the long term. Neither the Commission nor the Parliament can prevent that — only the member states can. Only in the individual countries can the people of Europe be persuaded that the EU is a good thing…”

The EU will not fall apart; however, we will witness a two-speed Europe with a core Europe of ten nations or groups of nations. And there WILL BE a charismatic leader who will present the glue to hold Europe together. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy.”

Watch Rise of Militaristic China

The Economist Daily wrote on September 1:

“The International Institute for Strategic Studies (better known as the IISS), reckons China now has more warships than America, which long possessed the biggest fleet. As it can be hard to distinguish a warship from other boats, the IISS uses its own definition of what counts and what does not. This striking trend is yet another manifestation of the rise of China.”

The Bible prophesies a military alliance between China, Russia, Japan, India and other Far Eastern countries, which will become a challenge to Europe.

Soon–Nuclear War in the Middle East?

Reuters reported on September 3:

” Iran would retaliate by striking Israel’s nuclear facility if Israel attacked its nuclear activities, armed forces chief of staff Hassan Firouzabadi said on Friday. ‘Our developed weapons can hit any part of the Zionist regime (Israel) … We hope not to be forced to attack their nuclear facility,’ Firouzabadi told the semi-official Mehr news agency…

“Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in a live broadcast at Tehran University marking the annual Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day, told Israel to leave Iran alone… Israel, believed to be the only nuclear-armed Middle East state, has not ruled out military action if diplomacy fails to end a dispute over Iran’s nuclear ambitions.”

Middle Eastern Peace Talks

Haaretz reported on September 6:

“The United States and the international community must pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if peace between Israel and the Palestinians is to be finally achieved, Arab Israeli MK Ahmed Tibi said in a Los Angeles Times editorial over the weekend, adding that, left to his own devices, Netanyahu would only continue his history of evading an honest peace deal.

“The L.A. Times op-ed was published in the wake of last week’s peace summit in Washington, in which Israel and the Palestinians relaunched direct peace talks in an attempt to reach a final status peace deal within 12 months. However, despite reports of optimism in both camps over the possibility of a peace agreement, Tibi wrote that Netanyahu would only use direct talks to avoid achieving a deal with the Palestinian Authority, as he has done in the past.”

In a related article, Haaretz wrote on September 6:

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed concern Monday that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would abandon the peace process, after the latter declared that he would not concede to Israel on a number of core issues and would refuse to continue negotiations should construction resume in West Bank settlements…

“Meanwhile, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul-Gheit said Monday that Israel’s demand to be officially recognized as a Jewish state was ‘a cause for concern’, considering the growing Arab sector.”  

As it says in 1 Thessalonians 5:3: “For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.”

Jeremiah 6:14 adds: “…Saying, ‘Peace, peace!’ When there is no peace.”

Jeremiah gives us the answer from God’s own mouth for this development: “They continually say to those who despise Me, ‘The LORD has said, “You shall have peace,” And to everyone who walks according to the dictates [stubbornness] of his own heart, they say, “No evil shall come upon you.”‘… Behold, a whirlwind of the LORD has gone forth in fury–A violent whirlwind!… In the latter days you will understand it perfectly” (Jeremiah 23:17-20).

Christian Outrage on Planned Burning of Koran

AFP reported on September 8:

“The planned mass burning of copies of the Koran in Florida on Sept. 11 would be ‘an outrageous and grave gesture,’ the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue said Wednesday. Florida pastor Terry Jones… vowed to burn the Muslim holy book in a protest against extremism. ‘No one burns the Koran,’ read the headline in Tuesday’s L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican’s paper.

“The Vatican’s condemnation added to a chorus of voices asking Jones to reconsider his protest. The planned Koran burning drew widespread protest from leading figures, including U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. David Petraeus.

“Last month, The Dove World Outreach Center of Gainesville [listing 50 members] made international headlines when it announced on its Facebook page that members of its congregation would burn copies of the Koran to mark the ninth anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the U.S.”

Newsmax reported on September 9:

“The anti-Muslim leader of a tiny Florida church says he was lied to and is rethinking his decision to cancel burning Korans to mark 9/11. Pastor Terry Jones earlier Thursday had backed off his threat to burn the Koran after he said he was promised that a planned Islamic center and mosque would be moved away from New York’s ground zero. Muslim leaders denied there was such a deal. Later outside his church he said that the imam he thought he made the deal with ‘clearly, clearly lied to us’ about moving the mosque.”

Even though we most certainly do not advocate or support the mass burning of copies of the Koran, one has to ask where is the outrage of Christian or American leaders when copies of the Bible or the American flag are burned, or when Jesus Christ is mocked and blasphemed in cartoons and other publications?

USA Today touches upon this very issue, when it states on September 8:

“Is burning a Bible because you hate Christianity, a hate crime? How about burning a Torah? Is that an anti-Semitic act? And this brings us to the question of burning a Quran…. Is the Dove World Outreach Center’s Quran bonfire, planned for the Saturday anniversary of the 9/11 attack, a hate crime or an expression of free speech — like the deplorable but legal protest act of burning a U.S. flag to object to a government policy?”

Terry Jones in Germany

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 8:

“What is less well known is that [Terry Jones] led a charismatic evangelical church, the Christian Community of Cologne, in the western German city up until 2009. Last year, however, the members of the congregation kicked founder Jones out, because of his radicalism… The pastor and his wife apparently regarded themselves as having been appointed by God, meaning opposition was a crime against the Lord… Andrew Schäfer, a Protestant Church official responsible for monitoring sects in the region where Cologne is located [said:] ‘Terry Jones is a fundamentalist…’

“Both major churches in Germany have ‘sect commissioners’ who monitor the activities of religious groups, sects and cults… According to Schäfer, Jones urged church members to beat their children with a rod and also taught ‘a distinctive demonology’ and conducted brainwashing.

“When he came to Germany in the 1980s, Jones apparently considered Cologne ‘a city of Hell that was founded by Nero’s mother,’ while he thought Germany was ‘a key country for the supposed Christian revival of Europe,’ Schäfer says.

“Jones became increasingly radical as the years went by, former associates say. At one point he wanted to help a homosexual member to ‘pray away his sins.’ Later he began to increasingly target Islam in his sermons…

“By the end of 2007, the community had had enough. Members confronted him and tried to change the direction of the church. But Terry Jones refused to make changes, they say. In the end, Jones, his wife and their fellow preachers were expelled from the church and he moved back to the US…”

Of course, one has to be very careful when former members report about their church. Still, if true, some of these allegations about Jones would be very troublesome.

New Zealand’s Earthquake Tears Open New Faultline

Mail On Line reported on September 6:

“The earthquake that devastated a city in New Zealand tore open a new 11ft faultline in the Earth’s surface. The 7.1-magnitude quake which hit Christchurch, the country’s second-largest city, destroyed about 500 buildings and caused an estimated £930million of damage…

“The quake was caused by the continuing collision between the Pacific and Australian tectonic plates, said Professor Mark Quigley, of Canterbury University. ‘One side of the Earth has lurched to the right … up to 11ft and in some places been thrust up,’ he said. ‘We went and saw two houses that were completely snapped in half by the earthquake.’… Prime Minister John Key said it was a miracle no one was killed.”

Destructive Solar Storm in 2012?

On August 26, Yahoo India News published an article by Australasian Science (ANI), stating the following:

“Astronomers are predicting that a massive solar storm, much bigger in potential than the one that caused spectacular light shows on Earth earlier this month, is to strike our planet in 2012 with a force of 100 million hydrogen bombs… Similar storms back in 1859 and 1921 caused worldwide chaos, wiping out telegraph wires on a massive scale. The 2012 storm has the potential to be even more disruptive.

“‘The general consensus among general astronomers (and certainly solar astronomers) is that this coming Solar maximum (2012 but possibly later into 2013) will be the most violent in 100 years,’ News.com.au quoted astronomy lecturer and columnist Dave Reneke as saying…

“No one really knows what effect the 2012-2013 Solar Max will have on today’s digital-reliant society. Dr Richard Fisher, director of NASA’s Heliophysics division, told Reneke the super storm would hit like ‘a bolt of lightning’, causing catastrophic consequences for the world’s health, emergency services and national security unless precautions are taken.

“NASA said that a recent report by the National Academy of Sciences found that if a similar storm occurred today, it could cause ‘1 to 2 trillion dollars in damages to society’s high-tech infrastructure and require four to 10 years for complete recovery.'”

Volcano Erupts after 400 Years

The Associated Press reported on August 30:

“An Indonesian volcano dormant for four centuries erupted for the second straight day Monday, shooting clouds of hot ash more than a mile into the air and forcing 30,000 people to flee. Some domestic airplanes had to be diverted because of poor visibility. Many villagers living along the slopes of Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province wore masks as they packed their belongings and headed to emergency shelters, mosques and churches… Their abandoned homes and crops were blanketed in gray soot and the air was thick with the smell of sulfur…

“Sinabung last erupted in 1600… Indonesia is spread across 17,500 islands and is prone to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes because of its location within the so-called ‘Ring of Fire’ — a series of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia.

“It is also home to some of the largest eruptions in recorded history. The 1815 explosion of Mount Tambora buried the inhabitants of Sumbawa Island under searing ash, gas and rock, killing an estimated 88,000 people. The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa could be heard 2,000 miles away and blackened skies region-wide for months. At least 36,000 people were killed in the blast and the tsunami that followed.”

For more information on volcanic eruptions, as well as past space impacts, as discussed in the next article, please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution… A Fairy Tale for Adults.”

The Destruction of the Dinosaurs

BBC reported on August 27:

“The dinosaurs were wiped out 65 million years ago by at least two space impacts, rather than a single strike, a new study suggests. Previously, scientists had identified a huge impact crater in the Gulf of Mexico as the event that spelled doom for the dinosaurs. Now evidence for a second impact in Ukraine has been uncovered. This raises the possibility that the Earth may have been bombarded by a whole shower of space rocks…

“What might have caused this bombardment is highly uncertain.”

However, the Bible explains what caused the devastation in the past.

Devastation in Pakistan Continues…

The New York Times wrote on August 27:

“Hundreds of thousands more Pakistanis fled their homes as high floodwaters reached the southernmost region of the country and inundated several more districts… Almost one million people have been displaced since midweek in Sindh Province, adding to the estimated six million already made homeless countrywide over the last three weeks in Pakistan’s worst floods in living memory…

“Health workers setting up clinics in the major centers of displacement reported a sharp increase in cases of acute diarrhea. The numbers represent an increase of 30 percent compared with the same period last year… A high incidence of malaria is also being reported in the southern provinces…”

America’s Grim Economic Future

The Daily Mail wrote on August 27:

“America was heading for a second recession last night as gloomy figures showed its economy grinding to a halt. Slowing growth and rising unemployment across the Atlantic cast a long shadow over a small improvement in the UK economy –which grew at its fastest rate for nine years this spring…

“Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke described the financial outlook yesterday as ‘inherently uncertain’ and said the economy ‘remains vulnerable to unexpected developments’… Any worldwide slowdown led by an American slump would hurt Chancellor George Osborne’s hopes of leading the UK to a recovery led by exports.”

President Obama Dismissive

Politico wrote on August 29:

“President Barack Obama dismissed a recent poll showing that a third of Americans don’t know he’s a Christian — and blamed an online campaign of misinformation by his conservative enemies for perpetuating the myth that he’s a Muslim.

“Obama, speaking with NBC ‘Nightly News’ anchor Brian Williams on Sunday afternoon, was equally dismissive of conservative talk show host Glenn Beck — saying he didn’t watch the Fox host’s Saturday rally in Washington but wasn’t surprised that Beck was able to ‘stir up’ people during uncertain economic times…

“‘I can’t spend all of my time with my birth certificate plastered on my forehead,’ quipped Obama, who took a deep breath to gather his thoughts when asked if the poll reflected his inability to communicate with voters. ‘The facts are the facts. We went through some of this during the campaign — there is a mechanism, a network of misinformation that in a new media era can get churned out there constantly,’ said a visibly annoyed Obama, referring to ‘birthers,’ who have waged a guerrilla campaign questioning either the existence or the validity of his Hawaiian birth certificate…

” A stunning 18 percent of Americans identify Obama as Muslim… Only a third identify Obama, who speaks passionately about his faith in his autobiography, as Christian…”

“Six Days to War” With Iran

Newsmax reported on August 27:

“Iran expert Kenneth R. Timmerman… lays out the scenario likely to unfold if the United States and Iran go to war. In Timmerman’s report, you’ll find out why ‘Six Days to War’ could happen sooner than you think — as many American assets are already ‘in position’ for an attack…

“Timmerman’s report on the looming war with Iran is based on sources including top Israeli intelligence officers, military, and political leaders interviewed in Israel and Washington, D.C., and a key planning document… developed by the Iranian navy.”

In a SPIEGEL interview, which was published on August 30, Iranian Foreign Minister Mottaki discussed the “risk” of a military strike against Iran. We are bringing you the following excerpts:

“SPIEGEL: There are growing calls in Israel for a military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities — with or without Washington’s approval.

“Mottaki: Israel has been talking about this for years. The Zionist regime knows exactly what fate awaits it here. The regime would be putting its own existence at stake with an attack.

“SPIEGEL: You would attack Israel?

“Mottaki: I have just told you what would happen.

“SPIEGEL: Your first reactor, in Bushehr, is scheduled to go online on Sept. 26 after more than 30 years of construction. Do you really want to see the Israelis reduce it to rubble?

“Mottaki: Do you have evidence that Bushehr will be attacked? How probable do you think such an attack is?

“SPIEGEL: The likelihood is considered high.

“Mottaki: We don’t see this likelihood.

“SPIEGEL: Do you want to ignore reality? Don’t you recognize the military threat? Don’t you see the worldwide protest against the impending stoning of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani [accused of adultery and sentenced to death]?

“Mottaki: What is the point of these questions? You would be better advised to listen to us. It was our interpretations of the situation in this region that have proved to be right. We predicted that the United States would capitulate in Iraq, and that’s what has happened. Instead, you are playing the human rights game. You ask me about the possible killing of a human being. But you show no sensitivity for the many, many people that are being killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. How long does the West intend to live with this contradiction?”

Iraq’s Dire Situation–Waste of U.S. Taxpayer Money

The Associated Press reported on August 29:

“A $40 million prison sits in the desert north of Baghdad, empty. A $165 million children’s hospital goes unused in the south. A $100 million waste water treatment system in Fallujah has cost three times more than projected, yet sewage still runs through the streets

“As the U.S. draws down in Iraq, it is leaving behind hundreds of abandoned or incomplete projects. More than $5 billion in American taxpayer funds has been wasted — more than 10 percent of the some $50 billion the U.S. has spent on reconstruction in Iraq, according to audits from a U.S. watchdog agency.

“That amount is likely an underestimate, based on an analysis of more than 300 reports by auditors with the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction. And it does not take into account security costs, which have run almost 17 percent for some projects…

“Even completed projects for the most part fell far short of original goals… And the verdict is still out on whether the program reached its goal of generating Iraqi good will toward the United States instead of the insurgents…

“The reconstruction program in Iraq has been troubled since its birth shortly after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. The U.S. was forced to scale back many projects even as they spiked in cost, sometimes to more than double or triple initial projections…”

Iraq’s Dire Situation–Fears of Civil War

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 30:

“US combat troops are withdrawing from Iraq, where terrorist attacks are once again part of everyday life. The Iraqi population is suddenly mourning the departure of the once-hated occupiers, as fears of a civil war grow…

“Only 50,000 US troops will remain in the country, out of a total of over 170,000 soldiers that were in Iraq at the high point of the American deployment. They are staying mainly to support the Iraqi security forces as advisers and trainers, and are also due to return to their homeland at the end of 2011.

“The withdrawal of US combat troops from Iraq’s urban centers just over a year ago was welcomed euphorically… Visitors to Baghdad can sense the fear [now] that many people have of a new civil war. That fear is underscored by the daily news reports on television. Last week, at least 56 Iraqis died at the hands of suicide bombers and snipers in around two dozen terrorist attacks. In August, an average of five policemen or soldiers died every day…

“Given the violence that is flaring up again, many Iraqis want their occupiers to stay longer… The uncertainty about what will happen now is so far-reaching that it has even affected the former arch-enemies of the US Army. Abu Mujahid lost a leg in 2004 when he fought against the invaders in the battle of Fallujah. Shrapnel fragments are lodged in his head, the legacy of a US missile strike. ‘Yes, we fought them to the death,’ Mujahid, who is a Sunni Muslim, told the news agency Reuters. ‘We dreamed of the day when they would leave Iraq. But their withdrawal at this time is not in Iraq’s interests’…

“The US forces, for their part, are observing the sudden regret over their departure with interest. ‘We are seeing that very clearly,’ says Brigadier General Mark Corson, speaking in the US military base in Balad about 70 miles (110 kilometers) north of Baghdad… The decision to leave the country has not been called into question for one moment, despite the Iraqis’ new-found affection for their occupiers, Corson says. ‘You can’t please the Iraqis. If you’re here, you are the evil occupier. If you leave, you are letting them down. Then it’s better to just leave at some point.'”

Iraq’s Dire Situation–President Obama’s Oval Office Speech

The Associated Press reported on September 1:

“Despite President Barack Obama’s declaration Tuesday of an end to the combat mission in Iraq, combat almost certainly lies ahead. And in asserting the U.S. has met its responsibilities in Iraq, the president opened the door wide to a debate about the meaning of success in the muddle that most – but not all – American troops are leaving behind.

“A look at some of the statements Obama made in his Oval Office speech and how they compare with the facts:

“OBAMA: ‘Tonight, I am announcing that the American combat mission in Iraq has ended.’

“THE FACTS: Peril remains for the tens of thousands of U.S. troops still in Iraq, who are likely if not certain to engage violent foes. Counterterrorism is chief among their continuing missions, pitting them against a lethal enemy. Several thousand special operations forces, including Army Green Berets and Navy SEALs, will continue to hunt and attempt to kill al-Qaida and other terrorist fighters – working closely with Iraqi forces. Obama said, ‘Of course, violence will not end with our combat mission,’ while stopping short of a full accounting of the hazards ahead for U.S. troops.

“OBAMA: ‘We have met our responsibility.’

“THE FACTS: That depends entirely on how the U.S. responsibility is defined. Sectarian division – the danger that Obama said as a presidential candidate had to be addressed before Iraq could succeed – continues to deprive the country of a fully functioning government. U.S. goals for reconstruction are unmet. And although the U.S. says Iraqi forces can handle the insurgency largely on their own, Iraq is expected to need U.S. air power and other military support for years to control its own air space and to deter a possible attack by a neighboring state.

“It was the U.S. that invaded Iraq, overthrew its government, disbanded its security forces and failed in the early phases of the conflict to understand the depth of Iraq’s sectarian and ethnic divisions and its political paralysis… today Iraq has no permanent government and its security forces arguably are not fully prepared to defend the country’s skies and borders…

“OBAMA: ‘Within Afghanistan, I have ordered the deployment of additional troops who – under the command of Gen. David Petraeus – are fighting to break the Taliban’s momentum. As with the surge in Iraq, these forces will be in place for a limited time to provide space for the Afghans to build their capacity and secure their own future.’

“THE FACTS: Obama is reciting almost the exact language of the Bush administration’s rationale for the Iraq surge: to buy time and space for the Iraqis to reach political accommodations and to strengthen their own security forces. That’s quite a change from Obama’s stand as a presidential candidate, when he criticized it. Obama seems to be embracing the troop surge logic now, even though it’s clear that the Iraqis have yet to achieve the necessary level of reconciliation to form an enduring government.”

Leader of Germany’s Central Bank under Fire over “Attacking” Jews and Muslims

The Daily Mail reported on August 30:

“A leading member of Germany’s central bank has caused outrage by claiming that Jews are identified by a particular gene. Thilo Sarrazin, who is on the board of the Bundesbank in Frankfurt, said in a newspaper interview: ‘All Jews share a certain gene. Basques (Spanish separatists) have particular genes, that distinguishes them from others.’

“Germany’s Jewish community today reacted with horror and accused him of anti-Semitism and attempted racial profiling. Germany’s deputy Chancellor Guido Westerwelle accused the banker of stoking up hatred… Another member of the German cabinet, defence minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, said Sarrazin had ‘overstepped the borders of provocation’. German Chancellor Angela Merkel tonight condemned Sarrazin for making ‘stupid and pointless’ statements…

“Sarrazin gave an interview to the respected Welt am Sonntag Sunday newspaper to promote his book entitled ‘Deutschland schafft sich ab’, which can be translated as ‘Germany does away with itself.’ In the book he claims the country is on the road to ruin because of the influx of immigrants from the Middle East which would overwhelm the indigenous population and create a nation of ‘dunces’. In particular he singles out Muslims for failing to integrate and having low IQs… He asserts the result has been a ‘dramatic fall’ in literacy and numeracy. ‘Germany is becoming more stupid,’ he said.

“‘Muslim immigrants don’t integrate as well as other immigrant groups across Europe. The reasons for this are apparently not based on their ethnicity, but are rooted in their culture of Islam,’ he told Welt am Sonntag. Germany has strict laws which ban inciting racial hatred. These include denying the Holocaust, using the Heil Hitler salute and displaying a Swastika. Making anti-Semitic remarks is also an offence but Sarrazin’s comments – while distasteful – are unlikely to lead to a prosecution.”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 30:

“Sarrazin, a member of the center-left Social Democrats [and] a former minister of finance for the city-state of Berlin, has repeatedly caused controversy by criticising Turks and Arabs in Germany… In his book, Sarrazin argues that Muslims undermine German society and that young Muslim men are aggressive due to sexual frustration…

“Left-wing Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘He is without doubt a racist. Unlike other opponents of Islam, Sarrazin doesn’t just believe in a “clash of cultures” and voice shrill warnings about “over-alienation” by Muslims. He goes further by attributing cultural and social differences mainly to genetic dispositions… What should be done if 65 years after the banning of “Mein Kampf” another treatise of racial theory turns into a bestseller in Germany?’

“Conservative Die Welt writes: ‘He is right on many counts… One has to be appalled at a growing, passive-aggressive underclass, about miserable educational achievements and also about Turkish and Arab immigrants who refuse to integrate and to get an education. Even if many people claim that all this has long been known, nothing has been done. We still lack the political will to tackle this unpleasant conflict… One has to be tough and honest, but one mustn’t argue in static technocratic terms like Sarrazin…’

“Left-wing Frankfurter Rundschau writes: ‘The hobby author Sarrazin is responsible for risk control in the most important central bank of the euro zone. Such an office cannot seriously be carried out by someone who no one takes seriously anymore in the financial sector.'”

Germans Sympathetic Towards Sarrazin

Deutsche Welle wrote on August 30:

“Germany’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) on Monday said it would begin proceedings for the expulsion of longstanding member Thilo Sarrazin over comments in his new book. Sarrazin… officially launched his book ‘Deutschland schafft sich ab’ (‘Germany does away with itself’) at a press conference in Berlin on Monday…

“At the launch, Sarrazin reiterated his beliefs about the threat of Muslim culture to European societies. He told reporters that Germans were in danger of becoming ‘strangers in their own country’ and demanded stronger checks on immigrants…

“Advance orders have sent the book to the top of German sales charts.”

Der Spiegel added on August 31:

“Thilo Sarrazin’s comments about Muslims have triggered outrage in Germany and abroad, but have met with willing listeners among the general public. His rhetoric is slowly bringing about change in Germany, transforming it from a tolerant society into one dominated by fear and Islamophobia…

“Of course, these fears are not completely unfounded. Conditions in areas like Berlin’s Kreuzberg neighborhood give rise to very real, justified concerns. There are schoolrooms where three-quarters of the students are from immigrant families, students whose German is barely good enough to get by. There are Arab and Albanian family clans that control crime syndicates and receive welfare benefits. There are phenomena like forced marriages and honor killings. In some mosques, imams are encouraging the faithful to engage in Islamist terror. All of this exists, and yet it has nothing to do with ordinary Islam and the day-to-day lives of well over 90 percent of Germany’s Muslims. And yet these are precisely the kinds of things that fuel cheap attempts to create stereotypes of Muslims as the enemy…

“There is no question that there are Muslims in Germany who sympathize with Islamist ideas… It is also undeniable that suicide bombers worldwide frequently invoke Islam — a deplorable but not an isolated phenomenon. Every monotheistic religion, through its claim to exclusivity, contains the potential for violence.

“But no one condemns Christianity as a whole when Northern Irish breakaway factions commit murder in the name of God. We don’t blame all Catholics when some of them kill abortion doctors while invoking their faith. And we don’t take all of Judaism to task when a Jewish terrorist named Baruch Goldstein slaughters dozens of Muslims during prayers in Hebron while invoking Yahweh. But we do condemn Islam, whose holy book contains about as many passages glorifying violence as the Old Testament (which, unlike the Koran, does mention stoning as a punishment).”

The false claim that the Old Testament glorifies violence is absolutely outrageous and blasphemous. For more information, please read our free booklets, “And Lawlessness Will Abound…” and “Should YOU Fight in War?” .

Changes in German Bundeswehr?

Deutsche Welle wrote on August 28:

“German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg has announced plans to reduce the size of the German military by about a third of the current 250,000 troops, and to end Germany’s mandatory military service. At the same time, however, he said he also wants to see an increase in the number of troops available for active duty, which is currently 7,000.

“Outlining his plans to make military service more attractive, Guttenberg told the mass market Bild am Sonntag newspaper that despite ending conscription, a trial period for potential volunteer troops could be an option to avoid a shortage of service members… In an interview with ARD television, German Chancellor Angela Merkel supported Guttenberg’s ideas to reform the Bundeswehr, saying she’d like to see a ‘culture of volunteerism’ and that signing up for the Bundeswehr should be made more attractive for young people.

“Guttenberg estimates the German military would need between 7,500 and 15,000 short-term volunteer troops. Additionally, the defense ministry said he is looking into various means of compensation for volunteers who would serve between 12 months and 23 months. This could include a salary, pension or educational opportunities, he said.

“The interview was published while Guttenberg was paying a surprise visit to German troops in the Baghlan province of Afghanistan… He emphasized his support for the troops’ efforts, but wouldn’t comment on a possible date for the withdrawal of German soldiers from Afghanistan.

“The idea of ending Germany’s long-standing tradition of mandatory military service has not been without criticism. In a speech to the Marine Officer’s School in Ploen, Peter Harry Carstensen, the state premier of Schleswig-Holstein, said he considered Germany’s mandatory military service an integral part of society. ‘This is not something we can sacrifice easily,’ he said.

“But Guttenberg said only a small percentage of German men were actually called on to perform mandatory service… adding that only 13 to 16 percent of men are drafted into temporary service.”

Germany Strengthens EU

The EUObserver wrote on August 26:

“Germany’s constitutional court has laid down the ground rules for controlling decisions by the EU’s top court… Thursday’s pronouncement backed by seven of the eight judges not only avoids a direct conflict with the EU’s Luxembourg court but also appears to strengthen it. Germany’s court stated that EU decisions may only be checked if European institutions seriously overstep their powers. A headline in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung says: ‘Karlsruhe (the court) restricts its own powers’…”

Iraq War Damaged American Credibility

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 20:

“Has American credibility been severely damaged by the Iraq War? One day after the last US combat unit left the country, some in the German press say that it has. Commentators are pessimistic about Iraq’s ability to cope alone.

“It has been seven and a half years since Shock and Awe, the military campaign launched by US and UK forces to topple Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. On Thursday, the last US combat unit crossed the border into Kuwait with far less fanfare than when those first coalition forces arrived in March 2003…

“Yet the cost of the war has been enormous both financially and in terms of human lives. Over 4,400 US troops and 100,000 Iraqi civilians died during the conflict. And the country is by no means completely pacified, with sectarian and ethnic tensions still present and insurgents thought to be regaining strength…

“According to a US-Iraq military pact from 2009, US troops must be out of the country by Jan. 1, 2012 yet last week Robert Gates, Obama’s defense secretary, said that if a new Iraqi government is formed ‘and they want to talk about beyond 2011, we’re obviously open to that discussion.’ Those comments are not likely to have been welcomed by much of the Democratic party, which faces tough midterm elections in November. The US public is weary of almost a decade of war in Afghanistan and Iraq and Obama, who is up for re-election in 2012, will have to tread carefully.

“Just last week Iraq’s military commander, Lieutenant-General Babakir Zebari, caused consternation when he said his troops would not be in a position to protect the country until 2020 and that Washington should keep its forces in Iraq until then.

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘… The invasion of Iraq was wrong, unjust and damaging. For the Iraqi people one inscrutable, violent regime has been replaced by another. And the promises of freedom and democracy are worthless if they can’t run a generator or help buy food. This practical disillusion is paired with the strategic defeats that America has suffered… the US has also weakened itself, where it was classically strong: as a hard power. America showed itself to be helpless during the worst years of the Iraq civil war and incapable of dealing with the complex insurgency… America’s claim to leadership is broken, its credibility severely damaged. The world has become more confusing and less safe. That is the legacy of this war.’

“The business daily Handelsblatt writes: ‘The Iraqi Army is hardly in a position to provide security. The people will have to suffer much bloodshed in the future because the roots of terrorism have not been dealt with. Iraq is not able to deal with this by itself. It still doesn’t have a functioning government after the elections in March. This double vacuum provides a fertile breeding ground for extremist groups. Washington has suffered terrible damage to its image in the Middle East. Iraq is not pacified and the Taliban is resurgent in Afghanistan because the US concentrated its military capacity in Iraq. Neighboring Iran is playing cat and mouse on the nuclear issue while peace between the Israelis and Palestinians is out of reach. The Iraqis have few grounds for optimism. The US is not only leaving behind a security gap, but also a political mess. The institutional structures are too weak and the army too inexperienced to prevent the country from descending into chaos and anarchy.’

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘… The war is far from over, never mind [who] won… Around 50,000 American soldiers are staying in Iraq and contrary to what the government seems to be suggesting, they are full-fledged soldiers who will attack if need be. The Iraqi soldiers and police are not able to provide security everywhere in the country … and the number of terrorist attacks has increased recently, while five months of attempts to form a government have failed so far’…

“The left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘The Anglo-American war in Iraq and the subsequent occupation was a severe breach of international law. The collected justifications by the Bush and Blair governments for the war were lies from the beginning. A later attempted justification was the deposing of Saddam Hussein, a dictator who the West and the Soviet Union had backed in the late 70s and armed for his war against the Islamic revolutionary regime in neigboring [sic] Iran. What price was paid for the overthrow of Saddam? Over 100,000 civilians have died as a direct consequence of the war and other acts of violence since March 2003. In Iraq 4,419 US soldiers lost their lives and tens of thousands came home injured or with terrible trauma. The Pentagon budget since 2003 for the war and occupation was over $740 billion. Some experts put the actual cost for the US economy at $3 trillion. Yet despite these huge costs and victims, Iraq is neither pacified in the long-term nor politically stable.'”

America won its last war a long time ago. It has not won the Iraq war, nor will it win the Afghan war, nor any other war to come. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”

Obama vs. Bush

Newsmax wrote on August 22:

“When George W. Bush departed the White House on Jan. 20, 2009, he left as one of the most unpopular presidents in history. At the time, a Gallup poll found President Bush tallied a mere 34 percent approval. That put him only slightly above the two most unpopular presidents in the era of modern polling: Harry Truman (32 percent when he left office), and Richard Nixon (22 percent when he resigned in disgrace in August 1974.)

“Close to two years into President Barack Obama’s term, Bush’s mojo with the American public appears on the rise… Nationally, Obama continues to be the more popular politician. Gallup’s latest poll shows Obama’s favorability at 52 percent, compared with Bush’s 45 percent. Yet, these numbers show steady improvement for the one-time Texas governor who led the nation’s ‘war on terror.’

“Since March 2009, Bush’s Gallup rating has climbed 10 points. Obama’s favorability during the same period: down by more than 20 points… For the moment, Bush’s Rocky Balboa-like comeback is happening despite the fact that Bush left the country in the worst financial shape since the Great Depression and ramped up social spending to dizzying heights while nearly doubling the national debt and embroiling the nation in two foreign wars.

“The cause for this GOP windfall could be because of the fact that Obama seems to have fallen so far short of the ‘hope and change’ message he promised voters. His actions during his first two years have alienated independent voters in a manner that go well beyond any of Bush’s errant ways.”

America’s leadership is no longer respected, regardless as to who might lead.

Jewish Voters Disassociate Themselves from Obama

In a related article, Newsmax reported on August 22:

“Barack Obama won nearly 80 percent of the Jewish vote in 2008, but his support among Jews has been declining in part because of concerns over his Israeli policies. A study of Jewish voters by McLaughlin & Associates this past spring found that only 42 percent of respondents would support Obama’s re-election, while 46 percent said they would support another candidate.

“Among Orthodox Jews, 69 percent would likely support another candidate, and just 17 percent would back Obama. Among those affiliated with Conservative Judaism, only 38 percent would support Obama, as would a slim majority of Reform Jews, 52 percent.

“Overall, 50 percent said they approved and 39 percent disapproved of Obama’s handling of American relations with Israel. ‘We are not only witnessing a sharpening of the divide within the community, but a radicalization of the Jewish political right, accompanied by a corresponding disengagement of the Jewish liberal sector from the Israel discourse,’ The Jewish Journal observed in an Aug. 10 article… ‘Not only worried about their own economic status, this constituency is deeply concerned by what they observe as the erosion of support for Israel’…

“Morton Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America, tells Newsmax: ‘The majority of Jews now realize that this guy is bad for Israel, let alone bad for America.'”

The relationship between America and the state of Israel will steadily deteriorate.

Islam’s Laws and “President Apostate?”

On August 20, 2010, the Drudge Report re-published an article, which had been originally published on May 12, 2008, stating the following:

“Senator Obama is half African by birth and Africans can understandably identify with him. In Islam, however, there is no such thing as a half-Muslim. Like all monotheistic religions, Islam is an exclusive faith. As the son of the Muslim father, Senator Obama was born a Muslim under Muslim law as it is universally understood. It makes no difference that, as Senator Obama has written, his father said he renounced his religion. Likewise, under Muslim law based on the Koran his mother’s Christian background is irrelevant.

“Of course, as most Americans understand it, Senator Obama is not a Muslim. He chose to become a Christian, and indeed has written convincingly to explain how he arrived at his choice and how important his Christian faith is to him. His conversion, however, was a crime in Muslim eyes; it is ‘irtidad’ or ‘ridda,’ usually translated from the Arabic as ‘apostasy,’ but with connotations of rebellion and treason. Indeed, it is the worst of all crimes that a Muslim can commit, worse than murder (which the victim’s family may choose to forgive).

“With few exceptions, the jurists of all Sunni and Shiite schools prescribe execution for all adults who leave the faith not under duress; the recommended punishment is beheading at the hands of a cleric, although in recent years there have been both stonings and hangings.

“… in Iran in 1994 the intervention of Pope John Paul II and others won a Christian convert a last-minute reprieve, but the man was abducted and killed shortly after his release. Likewise, in 2006 in Afghanistan, a Christian convert had to be declared insane to prevent his execution, and he was still forced to flee to Italy.

“Because no government is likely to allow the prosecution of a President Obama — not even those of Iran and Saudi Arabia, the only two countries where Islamic religious courts dominate over secular law — another provision of Muslim law is perhaps more relevant: it prohibits punishment for any Muslim who kills any apostate, and effectively prohibits interference with such a killing.”

Based on this fact and other factors, we cannot expect that the relationship between the Obama administration and the Muslim world will steadily improve.

America IS in a Depression!!!!

CNBC wrote on August 24:

“Positive gross domestic product readings and other mildly hopeful signs are masking an ugly truth: The US economy is in a 1930s-style Depression, Gluskin Sheff economist David Rosenberg said Tuesday… then as now… signs of recovery were unsustainable and only provided a false sense of stability, said Rosenberg.

“Rosenberg calls current economic conditions ‘a depression, and not just some garden-variety recession,’ and notes that any good news both during the initial 1929-33 recession and the one that began in 2008 triggered ‘euphoric response.’

“‘Such is human nature and nobody can be blamed for trying to be optimistic; however, in the money management business, we have a fiduciary responsibility to be as realistic as possible about the outlook for the economy and the market at all times,’ he said…

“Rosenberg’s warning comes as a slew of major analysts—Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan among them—have slashed GDP projections for 2010 to the 1.5 to 2 percent range. Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans said in a speech Tuesday that the risk of a double-dip recession has escalated. He said government programs to help distressed homeowners have been ineffective and aren’t helping the pivotal housing sector recover.

“The dour outlooks come on the same day that the National Association of Realtors said home sales reached a 15-year low in June, dousing hopes that the industry had reached a bottoming point. Rosenberg points out that the ‘overall economic malaise’ has come despite aggressive efforts by the Federal Reserve to stimulate the economy through rate cuts…”

CNBC added on August 24:

“The Dow Jones Industrial Average will lose about half of its value over the next couple of years… according to Charles Nenner, founder and president of Charles Nenner research. Stocks are currently in a bear-market rally, and looking at charts and past trends, unemployment and leading indicators suggest the Dow will drop to 5,000 in the next two to two-and-a-half years, Nenner told CNBC in an e-mail.

“Deflation will arrive… pushing the Dow lower… ‘Things look really bad for the next 10 years,’ Nenner said.”

As we are apparently experiencing a depression–not unlike the one in 1929–please listen again to our StandingWatch program, “Coming–The Great Depression?” giving helpful tips as to how to cope in such dire circumstances.

Iran’s “Ambassador of Death”

The Associated Press reported on August 22:

“Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Sunday inaugurated the country’s first domestically built unmanned bomber aircraft, calling it an ‘ambassador of death’ to Iran’s enemies. The 4-meter-long drone aircraft can carry up to four cruise missiles and will have a range of 620 miles (1,000 kilometers)…

“The ceremony came a day after Iran began to fuel its first nuclear power reactor, with the help of Russia, amid international concerns over the possibility of a military dimension to its nuclear program… Referring to Israel’s occasional threats against Iran’s nuclear facilities, Ahmadinejad called any attack unlikely, but he said if Israel did, the reaction would be overwhelming. ‘The scope of Iran’s reaction will include the entire… earth,’ said Ahmadinejad. ‘We also tell you — the West — that all options are on the table.'”

The Jerusalem Post and the Associated Press wrote on August 21:

“Nationwide celebrations were planned for Saturday’s fuel loading at Bushehr. ‘I thank the Russian government and nation, which cooperated with the great Iranian nation and registered their name in Islamic Iran’s golden history,’ Salehi said. ‘Today is a historic day and will be remembered in history.’

“Iran says it plans to build other reactors and says designs for a second [reactor] in southwestern Iran are taking shape. The Bushehr project dates backs to 1974, when Iran’s US-backed Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi contracted with the German company Siemens to build the reactor. The company withdrew from the project after the 1979 Islamic Revolution toppled the shah.

“The partially finished plant later sustained damages after it was bombed by Iraq during its 1980-88 war against Iran. Before making the Russian deal to complete Bushehr, Iran signed pacts with Argentina, Spain and other countries only to see them canceled under US pressure.”

“Israel Says Iranian Reactor Use ‘Totally Unacceptable'”

y-net news, Reuters and AFP reported on August 21:

“Israel on Saturday denounced Iran’s fueling up of its first nuclear power plant as ‘totally unacceptable’ and called for more international pressure to force Tehran to cease any uranium enrichment. Israel, widely assumed to be the only Middle East country to have nuclear weapons, has said a nuclear-armed Iran would be a threat to its existence, raising concerns Israel could attack Iran’s nuclear sites… Also on Saturday, US State Department spokesman Darby Holladay said the reactor ‘underscores that Iran does not need an indigenous enrichment capability if its intentions are purely peaceful.'”

Bild Online added the following on August 22:

“There is evidence that Iran is working on a rocket which could reach Berlin… According to unverified reports, the US aircraft carrier ‘USS Truman’ is heading towards the Persian Gulf, rather than Afghanistan… Professor Michael Wolffsohn (Military University Munich): ‘I have not the slightest doubt that Israel will attack before Iran has the bomb. When we add two and two, we can see that Israel and perhaps also the USA are preparing for the event of emergency.'”

Welt Online added on August 22:

“It is a terrible signal that Russia supports this development in Iran… And it is further proof that Russia has been playing the hypocrite for years… According to the New York Times, the American government is trying to persuade Israel that there is no immediate present danger emanating from Iran, because the country would need one more year to build the bomb. It is a mystery what is supposedly comforting regarding this. It would mean that Iran can only be stopped militarily and that such an attack would happen within a year, at the latest… The Iranian messages this weekend prove all by themselves why Iran must never be allowed to have the bomb.”

It is likely, as we have said for years, that Israel will attack Iran and that as a consequence, an outright war in the Middle East will ensue. The Bible says in Hosea 5:13 that in the future, Judah or the state of Israel will receive a wound. It also says that Judah will not find rescue or help as God will “take them away” (verse 14). Does this wound refer to Israel’s attack on Iran and Iran’s retaliation (with the possible help of others) and the world’s condemnation of Israel?

Israel Prepares for War Against Iran

WND wrote on August 22:

“While Israel is hoping for a peaceful resolution to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, the Jewish state is also preparing for ‘a time of war,’ declared a Knesset member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party… Likud Knesset Member Danny Danon… the deputy speaker of Israel’s parliament… hinted that Israel may take action if the world does not stop the Iranian nuclear threat, recalling Israel’s lone strike on Iraq’s nuclear reactor in 1981.

“Stated Danon: ‘We are ready for all scenarios, and we are able to defend our civilian population. I cannot tell you how long we can wait more. But we prefer to wait and see if the international bodies are acting, or [whether] it will be only the burden of Israel, like it was in the early ’80s, when the great leader, Menachem Begin, [made] the great decision to bomb the nuclear reactor in Iraq.'”

Al-Qaida Prepares for Israel-Iran War

The Jerusalem Post wrote on August 20:

“Al-Qaida is ready to exploit a war ‘by the Jews against Iran,’ the Sunni group’s second-in-command in Yemen, Saeed al-Shehri, said in an audio message this month, according to the Daily Beast.

“The mostly Shi’ite nation of Iran is an enemy to Al-Qaida, and al-Shehri predicted that after Israel attacked Iranian nuclear installations, Iran would blame Saudi Arabia – which reports say may let Israel fly through its airspace to attack Iran – and use the opportunity to seize the holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

“Al-Shehri said Israel would then seize territory from surrounding Arab nations to establish ‘the greater state of Israel,’ and the Sunni Arab population of the Middle East would be trapped between the ‘Jews in the Middle East and Iran in the Peninsula,’ the Daily Beast reported.

“According to the Daily Beast, Al-Qaida would benefit from an Israel-Iran war because if Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear installations, Iran would use its proxies to lash back at Americans in the Gulf, Iraq, and Afghanistan. The Daily Beast is a news aggregator and original content website owned by a former Wall Street Journal editor.”

Iran Prepared to Supply Lebanon with Weapons Against Israel

Haaretz reported on August 25:

“Iran is prepared to sell weapons to Lebanon if Beirut asks for help in equipping its military, the Islamic Republic’s defense minister said Wednesday. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi’s comments come one day after the leader of Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah group, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, called on the Lebanese government to formally seek military assistance from Iran.

“‘Lebanon is our friend,’ Vahidi was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency. ‘If there is a demand in this respect, we are ready to help that country and conduct weapons transactions with it.’ In a televised speech on Tuesday, Nasrallah vowed that his Iranian-backed group could help secure the aid for Lebanon’s poorly equipped army.

“The Hezbollah leader made his suggestion after a U.S. congressman suspended $100 million of American military aid to Lebanon earlier this month over concerns the weapons could be used against Israel and that Hezbollah may have influence over the Lebanese army.

“Lebanon’s government has since opened an account at the central bank to receive donations to help it purchase weapons for the military. But Beirut is not entirely dependent on U.S. military assistance, and has turned to other countries, including Russia and Arab nations, for assistance in the past.

“Iran is a key supporter of Hezbollah, believed to funnel it weapons and millions of dollars in funding, though Tehran denies arming the Shiite group. Hezbollah, also closely allied to Syria, boasts a heavy arsenal of rockets capable of reaching deep inside Israel.”

The End Is Near–But What End?

USA Today wrote on August 23:

“When some Christians look into the near future, they see a wondrous fate for themselves and fellow evangelical believers: a rapture in which God sweeps the true Christians up to heaven. According to this reading of the bible’s Book of Revelation, what awaits those on the wrong side of the ecclesiastical line is not so wondrous: seven years of unimaginable suffering, war and destruction that ends with the Second Coming of Jesus.

“Opinion surveys over the past decade show that more than half the American public believes that the end times are coming. A new poll from the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press finds that roughly four in 10 Americans believe the Second Coming will happen by 2050. Those enraptured by the rapture tend to view current events through the lens of biblical prophesy, reading everything from the Obama election to the oil disaster in the Gulf Coast as fulfillment of one or another cryptic passage from Revelation…”

The Bible does not teach a “rapture,” nor a period of seven years of “unimaginable suffering.” For the truth on what the Bible really teaches, please read our free commentary, “Is That in the Bible?–The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation.”

Obama: Muslim Rights

The Washington Post wrote on August 13:

“President Obama said on Friday that he supports the construction of a mosque near Ground Zero in New York, saying that opposing the project is at odds with American values. ‘Let me be clear: as a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country,’ he said at a White House ceremony marking the traditional breaking of the daily Ramadan fast, according to prepared remarks. ‘That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances.'”

Obama: Muslim Wisdom

Politico wrote on August 14: 

“The White House on Saturday struggled to tamp down the controversy over President Barack Obama’s statements about a mosque near Ground Zero… Obama’s comments placed him squarely in the middle of the controversy over a Muslim group’s plans for a mosque near the site of the 2001 attack – and in turn, transformed an emotion-laden local dispute in New York into a nationwide debate overnight.

“Republicans pounced, amid early signs that the issue would seep into some state and congressional contests… And Democrats – at least the ones willing to comment at all — could barely contain their frustration over Obama’s remarks, saying he had potentially placed every one of their candidates into the middle of the debate by giving GOP candidates a chance to ask them point-blank: Do you agree with Obama on the mosque, or not? That could be particularly damaging to moderate Democrats in conservative-leaning districts…

“Adding to the political problem for Democrats were the mixed messages out of the White House. Obama’s comments Friday night… were widely reported as offering support for the specific mosque project in question near Ground Zero.

“But on Saturday, Obama seemed to contradict himself, telling reporters at one point, ‘I was not commenting and I will not comment on the wisdom of making the decision to put a mosque there. I was commenting very specifically on the right people have that dates back to our founding. That’s what our country is about…’

“That impromptu answer to a TV reporter… prompted a second attempt to clarify his initial statement, this time from spokesman Bill Burton. ‘Just to be clear, the President is not backing off in any way from the comments he made last night,’ Burton said. ‘…What he said last night, and reaffirmed today, is that if a church, a synagogue or a Hindu temple can be built on a site, you simply cannot deny that right to those who want to build a mosque.’

“White House officials later said that Obama was simply saying that since there was no local ordinance that would prevent construction of the mosque, he believed local officials made the right decision to allow it to go forward… The Friday statement and Saturday clarification were consistent in a literal sense, but they sent sharply different signals that called into question how clearly the president thought through his intervention in the controversy or how his words would echo.

“The legal right to build the mosque is one even many critics of the mosque have not contested—claiming mainly that the project was inappropriate on grounds of taste and local sensitivities and therefore should be strongly discouraged.”

Obama Nationalizes the Debate

The Wall Street Journal wrote on August 16:

“The dispute over the mosque is just the most prominent in a series of debates around the country where Muslim groups have sought to build mosques. In the community of Temecula, Calif., where a proposed mosque has sparked an intense dispute, Mr. Obama’s comments spurred a surge of letters to local newspapers decrying his statements. Pastor William Rench of Calvary Baptist Church, next door to the proposed mosque site, said he now expected opposition to the mosque plan to harden.

“‘It will galvanize their desire for resistance to the mosque,’ he said. ‘It confirms in their minds the idea that Mr. Obama seems to be more accommodating to the Islamic world than he is for the Christian representation in America.’ Mr. Rench said former President George W. Bush, who also spoke of Islam as a peaceful religion, might have made similar statements, but Mr. Rench said he disagreed with those views…

“In Tennessee, where the growing Muslim community wants to build a larger mosque in Murfreesboro, Darrel Whaley of Milton said the president’s remarks angered him. A local pastor at Kingdom Ministries Worship Center, Mr. Whaley has spoken at county meetings against plans for the mosque and recreational facilities.

“Asked how the president’s comments might influence the local debate over the Islamic center, Mr. Whaley said Mr. Obama ‘didn’t help it any, that’s for sure.’ Mr. Whaley said he was concerned that ‘if Islam comes in with the Sharia law, there’s not going to be any such thing as religious freedom’…

“On the national political stage, Mr. Obama’s comments drew fire from Republicans… Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.)… said the president was ‘insensitive’ to what Americans feel on the issue… Mr. Berntsen, a former senior Central Intelligence Agency officer who served in Afghanistan, said a mosque near Ground Zero would become a national security risk. ‘He missed the point that people found this offensive because it’s very, very close to Ground Zero,’ he said. ‘That mosque will become a magnet for militants. They will be drawn there in large numbers, and they will seek to impose themselves on that mosque, regardless of who the leaders are.'”

Obama Divides the Nation

AFP wrote on August 13:

“US President Barack Obama’s endorsement of a controversial plan to build a mosque just blocks from Ground Zero poured fuel Saturday on a raging debate over religious freedom and sensitivities over the 9/11 attacks… On Saturday the group 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America, which represents some relatives of attack victims, said it was ‘stunned’ by the president’s remarks. Obama ‘has abandoned America’… Building the mosque ‘is a deliberately provocative act that will precipitate more bloodshed in the name of Allah,’ the group claimed…

“A CNN/Opinion Research poll earlier this month showed that 68 percent of Americans opposed the Islamic center plans, while only 29 percent favored them… Self-described ‘liberal Muslim’ Farzana Hassan, a Canadian, told Fox News on Saturday that she believes the Islamic center’s location is ‘provocative. This is highly insensitive to the sentiments of the people who lost loved ones in the 9/11 attacks,’ said Hassan, who has written books on Islam.

“Obama said the Al-Qaeda terrorists responsible for the 9/11 attacks do not represent Islam. ‘It is a gross distortion of Islam,’ the president said late Friday… The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a US advocacy group, said it welcomed Obama’s ‘strong support for Muslim religious rights’… One of those reacting Saturday was New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. ‘I applaud President Obama’s clarion defense of the freedom of religion,’ Bloomberg said in a statement. The proposed site ‘is as important a test of the separation of church and state as we may see in our lifetime,’ he said.

“Passions over the issue run high across the country. A Florida church has already said it will hold a ‘Koran-burning’ on September 11 — which this year coincides with Eid al-Fitr, the end-of-Ramadan holiday.”

“Muslim Power Over the West”

The British paper, Daily Express, published the following opinion by Leo McKinstry, August 16:

“The proposal is a deliberate act of provocation against America and Judaeo-Christian civilisation. The reason that the hijackers were determined to destroy the Twin Towers was because they were seen as a graphic symbol of American enterprise. Once the mosque is erected, it will become a symbol of Islamic triumphalism, an assertion of Muslim power over the West….

“Tolerance is a one-way street when it comes to Islam. Muslims constantly demand that our society respects their sensitivities… Yet, as the Ground Zero controversy shows, there is no reciprocal concern shown by Muslims for indigenous cultures.

“For all President Obama’s blather about bridge-building, the fact is Islam is an ideology that spells misery, oppression and misogyny wherever it gains power….

“The Ground Zero mosque is indicative of a climate of appeasement and self-loathing that has gripped the political class in the West. It is grotesque that, in the name of freedom, our leaders refuse to challenge a doctrine that would destroy our freedoms. Here in Britain, the supine state has allowed domestic terrorism, forced marriages, child sex trafficking, immigration abuses and honour killings to flourish for fear of being labelled ‘racist’.

“In America, the results have been just as deadly, as shown by the case of Major Nidal Malik Hasan. Despite his declared support for Islamic terrorism, US army top brass refused to act against him. Then, in November last year, he shot dead 13 of [his] colleagues. None of those men would have died if the destructive creed of multi-culturalism had not been so strong. Tolerance in the face of extremism is killing our society. The  9/11 attacks should have galvanised the west. Instead, 10 years later, it is looking like our death knell.”

Obama Hosts Ramadan Meal

The Hill reported on August 13:

“President Obama will host an iftar — the special evening meal observed during Ramadan — on Friday night in the White House dining room. Obama participated in a similar gathering last year.

“Celebrations like iftar dinners ‘remind us of the principles that we hold in common, and Islam’s role in advancing justice, progress, tolerance and the dignity of all human beings,’ Obama wrote in a statement Wednesday. ‘Ramadan is a celebration of a faith known for great diversity and racial equality … a reminder that Islam has always been part of America and that American Muslims have made extraordinary contributions to our country.'”

Ramadan–Peace and War

Foreign Policy wrote in its July/August 2010 edition:

“Although not quite the global consumer behemoth that is Christmas, Ramadan comes in a respectable second… Today, in Aceh, Indonesia, failure to observe Ramadan is punishable by flogging; in 2009, Egypt’s Interior Ministry began enforcing edicts that made daytime eating during the holy month a misdemeanor offense… The Prophet Mohammed waged the Battle of Badr, the very first Muslim war against Meccan ‘infidels,’ during Ramadan in 624. The 1973 conflict that Israelis call the Yom Kippur War is known to Egyptians, Jordanians, and Syrians — who launched their surprise attack while fasting — as the Ramadan War. More recently, in Iraq, the month of Ramadan has seen dramatic upticks in sectarian violence and attacks on U.S. troops, reaching a high of more than 1,400 incidents in 2007. But Ramadan has also complicated military maneuvers: During the battle of Tora Bora, some of the Afghan fighters closing in on Osama bin Laden insisted on going home at dusk to break the fast…

“Secular dictators have long used the holiday to shore up their sagging religious legitimacy. Turkmenbashi, the late neo-Stalinist ruler of Turkmenistan, pardoned 8,145 prisoners during Ramadan in 2005; autocrats from Damascus to Algiers have followed the same playbook. Saddam Hussein, who cynically tried to style himself an Islamist during his regime’s latter years, twice made Ramadan cease-fire offers to Tehran during the Iran-Iraq War. And in 2008, when U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visited Libya during Ramadan, Muammar al-Qaddafi refused to shake her hand, citing Muslim strictures against touching women while fasting — all the while surrounded by his cohort of amazonian female bodyguards. It highlighted, once again, how the Islamic holy month has always been a mix of the sacred and the profane.”

Obama’s Upbringing in Islam

The Drudge Report re-published on August 16 an interesting piece by the New York Times, dated March 6, 2007, focusing [supportively] on Mr. Obama’s upbringing and explaining, to an extent, his apparent fascination with and support of Islam.

The article stated:

“‘I was a little Jakarta street kid,’ [Obama] said… He once got in trouble for making faces during Koran study classes in his elementary school, but a president is less likely to stereotype Muslims as fanatics — and more likely to be aware of their nationalism — if he once studied the Koran with them.

“Mr. Obama recalled the opening lines of the Arabic call to prayer, reciting them with a first-rate accent. In a remark that seemed delightfully uncalculated… Mr. Obama described the call to prayer as ‘one of the prettiest sounds on Earth at sunset.’

“Moreover, Mr. Obama’s own grandfather in Kenya was a Muslim. Mr. Obama never met his grandfather and says he isn’t sure if his grandfather’s two wives were simultaneous or consecutive, or even if he was Sunni or Shiite…”

Interestingly, it was just published by Time magazine that about 25% of Americans believe that Mr. Obama is a Muslim…

Muslim Watch?

AFP wrote on August 10:

“Muslims around the world could be setting their watches to a new time soon when the world’s largest clock begins ticking atop a soaring skyscraper in Islam’s holiest city of Mecca.

“Saudi Arabia hopes the four faces of the new clock, which will loom over Mecca’s Grand Mosque from what is expected to be the world’s second tallest building, will establish Mecca as an alternate time standard to the Greenwich median.”

Hispanics Feel Betrayed by Both Parties

Newsmax reported on August 15:

“Hispanic voters largely supported Barack Obama in the 2008 election after he vowed… that he would draft an immigration reform bill during his first year in office.

“More than a year has come and gone, no immigration bill has been forthcoming, and Obama is increasingly coming under criticism from Hispanic media figures…

“Members of the Obama administration ‘know they are in trouble with the Hispanic community, and the problem in November is the Hispanic vote may be up for grabs again,’ [Univision anchor Jorge] Ramos told Politico. ‘My fear is they might not vote. They don’t feel protected or supported by either party.’”

California–Only a Short Sigh of Relief?

The Associated Press reported on August 16:

“A federal appeals court put same-sex weddings in California on hold indefinitely Monday while it considers the constitutionality of the state’s gay marriage ban. The decision, issued by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, trumps a lower court judge’s order that would have allowed county clerks to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples on Wednesday… The court plans to hear the case during the week of Dec. 6…

“A different three-judge panel than the one that issued Monday’s decision will be assigned to decide the constitutional question… Currently, same-sex couples can legally wed only in Massachusetts, Iowa, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire and Washington, D.C.”

Euro vs. Dollar

Bloomberg reported on August 16:

“China, whose $2.45 trillion in foreign-exchange reserves are the world’s largest, is turning bullish on Europe and Japan at the expense of the U.S… The nation has been buying ‘quite a lot’ of European bonds… China’s position may make it harder for the greenback to rebound…

“Concern the U.S. economy is faltering was underscored by the Federal Reserve on Aug. 10…

“Asian central banks holding some 60 percent of the world’s foreign-exchange reserves are turning away from the dollar. Concerned about weakening U.S. growth and the Treasury’s record borrowing, they are switching toward euro assets to safeguard reserves…

“The Dollar Index’s 5.2 percent drop in July, the biggest decline in 14 months, failed to dissuade most foreign-exchange forecasters from predicting the greenback will strengthen against the euro and yen by December…

“‘China has confidence in Europe’s economy, in the euro, and the euro area,’ Yu said [Yu is a member of the state-backed Chinese Academy of Social Sciences].”

A Two-Speed Europe

The Wall Street Journal wrote on August 16:

“A two-speed Europe has always been unacceptable to advocates of the European project. Insistence on a one-speed Europe might, only might, prove to be a feasible political policy. But when it comes to economics, a two-speed Europe is here, and is here to stay for a long while.

“Germany is in the midst of an export-led boom that saw its economy grow at an annual rate of over 8% in the second quarter, the fastest pace since reunification in 1990. Profits are good and employers are hiring or adding hours to those working part time… Opponents of further fiscal and monetary stimulus are saying that Germany’s rather spectacular performance is due at least in part to the budget-balancing policies initiated by Chancellor Angela Merkel—no Obama-style borrow-and-spend for Europe’s new Iron Lady.

“But Germany is not euroland. It is easy to dismiss what we have come to call the periphery countries (Greece, Spain, Ireland, Portugal), but their combined GDP almost equals that of Germany. And they are in trouble. Greece is in recession: its economy contracted at a rate of 6% in the second quarter, while both Spain and Portugal grew at annual rates of less than 1%.”

International Business Times added on August 16:

“‘The recovery in core Europe [particularly Germany and France] is happening quickly and at a fast pace,’ Guillaume Menuet and Silvia Ardagna, European economists at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch… said. But they clarify that Germany and France did not experience recessions due to home-based problems nor did they experience a collapse of housing bubbles. ‘Recessions in these countries were triggered by the U.S. financial crisis,’ they stated.

“For example, Germany’s economy suffered directly from the collapse of global growth and trade. Then, as effective economic policies started having an effect on the economies across the globe, world demand and trade picked up and Germany was positioned to benefit from it. In addition, the depreciation of the euro further boosted German exports.

“The peripheral nations of Europe, which are in much worse shape than the ‘core’ countries of the euro zone, had a different path into and out of the recession. ‘Peripheral countries had their own domestic imbalances that were exacerbated by the global crisis,’ Menuet and Ardagna said. ‘So they have to work hard to solve their structural issues, and economic recovery will come later and at a slower pace.’”

For more information on Europe’s future, please read our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy.”

A Nation on the Way Out

On Friday 13, Pat Buchanan wrote on humanevents.com:

“A nation whose national debt is approaching the size of its gross national product, that goes abroad to borrow money to keep non-essential workers on government payroll is a nation on the way down and out… As long as this Congress and White House remain in power, a U.S. default on its national debt is inevitable. The only question is when…

“We have a situation where private sector workers in Middle America are being taxed, their children being driven ever deeper into debt to China, so government employees who have greater job security than they do, and earn more in pay and benefits than they will ever earn, can stay in Fat City. And folks wonder why so many Americans detest government…

“U.S. government workers, who enjoy the greatest job security of any Americans, now earn twice as much in pay and benefits as the average American. This is not the D.C. some of us grew up in. Nor is this all Obama’s doing. For most of the fat years of the federal work force came while Washington was being run by a Congress of Big-Government Conservatives and a White House of Bush-Cheney Republicans. No wonder the tea party is targeting both parties.”

Afghanistan–and No End in Sight

Der Spiegel wrote on August 17:

“General David Petraeus… has suggested that Barack Obama was too optimistic in setting a 2011 withdrawal date. German commentators argue that Petraeus is simply being realistic… Observers have interpreted Petraeus’ remarks as something of a broadside aimed at Obama… In a further sign of what may turn into an intense political battle in the US over the future of the Afghanistan war, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the Los Angeles Times there was ‘no question in anybody’s mind’ that the US would begin reducing troop levels in 2011. Gates also suggested in a separate interview with the magazine Foreign Policy that he would leave office in 2011…

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘The White House is unlikely to find Petraeus’ comments amusing. The new commander in Afghanistan doubts whether the withdrawal can start next year. … The general has taken a stance in direct opposition to the president… In the struggle for power within the US administration, he will take advantage of the fact that Obama can not afford to lose another commander in Afghanistan — especially not one of Petraeus’ stature.’

“The conservative Die Welt writes: ‘The timeframe originally set by Obama was unrealistic and overly ambitious…’

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘Petraeus has his own interests which are totally reasonable. He does not want to leave Afghanistan as the commander of an unsuccessful force. He wants a military victory… But Petraeus will not succeed with his strategy. The withdrawal will begin, because the voters want it. That may be unwise, but it’s too late to change the general public’s opinion. Mistakes were made in Afghanistan over a period of years. It’s now time to pay the price.’

“The left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘… The war in Afghanistan doesn’t just reveal the impotence of the Americans — It also shows the impotence of President Obama.'”

For more information on the future of the USA, please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”

Israel’s Attack on Iran Imminent?

Newsmax wrote on August 13:

“News that Russia will load nuclear fuel rods into an Iranian reactor has touched off a countdown to a point of no return, a deadline by which Israel would have to launch an attack on Iran’s Bushehr reactor before it becomes effectively ‘immune’ to any assault, says former Bush administration U.N. Ambassador John R. Bolton. Once the fuel rods are loaded, Bolton told Fox News on Friday afternoon, ‘it makes it essentially immune from attack by Israel. Because once the rods are in the reactor an attack on the reactor risks spreading radiation in the air, and perhaps into the water of the Persian Gulf.’

“Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin declared in March that Russia would start the Bushehr reactor this summer. But the announcement from a spokesman for Russia’s state atomic agency to Reuters Friday sent international diplomats scrambling to head off a crisis. The story immediately became front-page news in Israel, which has laid precise plans to carry out an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities while going along with President Obama’s plans to use international sanctions and diplomatic persuasion to convince Iran’s clerics not to go nuclear…

“Bolton cited the 1981 Israeli attack on Saddam Hussein’s Osirak reactor outside Baghdad and the September 2007 Israeli attack on a North Korean reactor being built in Syria. Both of those strikes came before fuel rods were loaded into those reactors…According to Iran’s ISNA news agency, IAEA inspectors will be on hand to observe the fuel-rod loading process that is now scheduled to begin Aug. 21.”

The Jerusalem Post added on August 17:

“Former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton said he didn’t see ‘any signs whatsoever that President Obama would make the necessary decision’ to strike Iran’s nuclear reactor, speaking in an interview with Israel Radio Tuesday. Bolton claimed Israel has only three days to strike before Russia ‘begins the fueling process for the Bushehr reactor this Friday,’ after which any attack would cause radioactive fallout that could reach as far as the waters of the Persian Gulf.”

The German magazine, Focus, wrote on August 17 that Bolton said he was very skeptical that Israel would indeed attack Iran within the next few days. He was fearful that the opportunity to do so had already passed.

Will Israel Attack Iran Without a Green Light from USA?

Haaretz reported on August 10:

“Israel might attack Iranian nuclear sites within a year, if Iran stays the current course and the U.S. administration doesn’t succeed in persuading Israel’s leadership that U.S. President Barack Obama is ready to stop Iran by force if necessary, so argues Jeffrey Goldberg in Atlantic magazine’s September cover story, obtained by Haaretz ahead of publication.

“Based on dozens of interviews the Atlantic correspondent conducted in recent months with Israeli, American and Arab officials, Goldberg came to the conclusion that the likelihood of an Israeli strike has crossed the 50 percent mark. And Israel might not even ask for the famous ‘green light’ from the U.S. – or even give couple of false pre-attack alerts, so that Washington won’t try to stop the unilateral operation…

“The repercussions of such a strike, which could include the bombing of the Iranian facilities in Natanz, Qom, Esfahan, and maybe even the Russian-built reactor in Bushehr, are less than clear… The results might be dire: It’s likely that the Israeli air force won’t have much time to waste in Iran, as Hezbollah will probably retaliate against Israel in the North and the fighter jets will be needed there. The unilateral operation might throw relations between Jerusalem and Washington into an unprecedented crisis, and might even unleash full-scale regional war with possible economic repercussions for the whole world, not to mention the cost of human lives.

“According to Goldberg, for Israel the red lines are clear. The end of December is Netanyahu’s deadline to estimate the success of ‘non-military methods to stop Iran’…  For Netanyahu, it’s clear the bomb will not only strengthen Iran’s proxies, but will undermine Israel’s status as a safe haven for Jews, embolden terrorists all over the word, and make the Arab countries more reluctant to make peace with Israel.”

For more information on the future of the state of Israel, please read our free booklet, “The Book of Zechariah–Prophecies for Today!”

Iraq’s Uncertain Future

Deutsche Welle reported on August 19:

“Iraqis have been looking forward to the day when United States forces pack up and go home ever since the 2003 invasion led to 150,000 US soldiers being deployed in their country. They’ve been living with an occupying army for over seven years. Even after sovereignty and the responsibility of governance were returned to Baghdad, US forces remained. Many Iraqis who were happy to have seen the dictator Saddam Hussein removed by the Americans soon came to resent the continued US presence. Many blamed them for the instability which followed Saddam’s demise. To this day, most hold Washington largely responsible for the lack of basic services and the insecurity that continues to make everyday life in Iraq a dangerous struggle.

“Strangely enough there is a growing chorus of voices being raised in concern now that the Americans are actually leaving. The United States has been slowly withdrawing its forces from Iraq for months as part of President Obama’s commitment to bring US combat troops home by 2011. With the last combat brigades crossing into Kuwait on Thursday, 50,000 troops will remain behind in 94 bases. With just a third of the invasion force left and with only a year to go before the US ‘status of forces’ agreement with Iraq runs out, Iraqis should be planning their street parties. And yet, there is a growing air of trepidation as the troops leave and an even more concerned eye looking toward the final pullout date in 2011.

“With the political situation in Iraq still unresolved some six months after disputed presidential elections paralyzed the country’s government and with terrorist and insurgent attacks making the July 2010 death toll of 525 the highest in two years, the thought of a dramatic reduction in US personnel is making some Iraqis nervous.

“‘US combat troops leave Iraq in a state of political paralysis following the March 2010 parliamentary elections, and a precarious and fragile ‘stability’ predicated more on an uneasy maintenance of a status quo than on any durable or sustainable gains in security,’ Dr. Kristian Ulrichsen, an Iraq expert at the London School of Economics and Political Science, told Deutsche Welle.

“‘In this sense both the political and security situations are extremely fragile and could be reversed by any number of issues which remain unresolved…’

“Nadim Shehadi, an Iraq expert at the Middle East programme at Chatham House, believes the US withdrawal may create a new power struggle in Iraq… ‘There is only one thing worse than having the US as your enemy and that is to have the US as your friend – this will be the scenario when the US withdraws’…

“Even the country’s military leaders are concerned that the 2011 end date is coming too fast for Iraq’s security forces. Lieutenant General Babaker Zebari, Iraq’s most senior military commander, has even mooted the possibility of US forces staying on until 2020, a date when Iraqi forces are expected to be fully ready.

”The main calls for continued US troop deployment in Iraq have come from Kurdish officials such as Zebari who have many reasons for wanting the US military to remain in position,’ Ulrichsen said. ‘Regular clashes between Kurdish Peshmerga militia and the Iraqi military have occurred. In almost every instance, the US has sided with the Kurdish Regional Government in political and military affairs, and Kurdish leaders fear that the loss of their powerful external protector will leave them alone to face the Iraqi central government which may attempt to reassert centralized political and military control throughout all Iraqi territorial boundaries. That could threaten civil war.’

“‘There’s a risk of fighting between Shia and Sunni factions restarting when the US leaves but probably the single biggest concern is violence between the Arabs and the Kurds,’ Richard Gowan, an Iraq expert with the European Council for Foreign Affairs, told Deutsche Welle… ‘The most worrying scenario is that rising violence could lead Turkey to intervene militarily, given its own concerns over Kurdish separatism.’

“US commanders and strategists have also privately considered the possibility of staying on in Iraq, especially when the Iraqi Army is so obviously incapable of repelling an external attack, battling the Kurds in the north or keeping al Qaeda or other militant groups from taking advantage of sectarian rivalries and over-running the country.

“Despite this, it is unlikely President Obama will sanction any extension to the deployment of US troops in Iraq. There is far too much at stake politically for the US president to renege on one of his strongest promises. Obama’s credibility is at stake not only over the assurances he made to US citizens to bring the troops home but also to the agreement he made with the people of Iraq… However, by committing to his own deadlines and fulfilling his promises, some experts say Obama is cutting out of Iraq with the job unfinished and that the US is leaving Iraq in such a parlous situation that the country could destabilize the wider region, making it a state of concern much like in the days of Saddam Hussein…

“‘The US has been unable to resolve deep political tensions inside Iraq. In part that reflects the very naive and ill-informed attitude to Iraq adopted by the Bush administration, which thought expelling Saddam was 90 percent of the job,’ [Gowan said].” 

Self-Inflicted Worldwide Sickness?

NewsDaily wrote on August 11:

“A new superbug from India could spread around the world — in part because of medical tourism — and scientists say there are almost no drugs to treat it.

“Researchers said on Wednesday they had found a new gene called New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase, or NDM-1, in patients in South Asia and in Britain… who received recent medical care in India, a country where people often travel in search of affordable healthcare.

“NDM-1 makes bacteria highly resistant to almost all antibiotics, including the most powerful class called carbapenems. Experts say there are no new drugs on the horizon to tackle it… ‘India also provides cosmetic surgery for… Europeans and Americans, and it is likely NDM-1 will spread worldwide,’ the scientists wrote in the study.”

Wildfires–Russia’s Cover Up

Der Spiegel Online reported on August 16:

“As the Russian wildfires continue to burn, the Kremlin’s spin machine is in high gear, as the government attempts to cover up the true scale of the disaster. The country’s leadership duo, Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin, have been using the same PR stunts and propaganda gimmicks they have relied on in the past…

“A total of 505 existing wildfire hotspots were still blazing on Friday. While the Emergency Situations Ministry was already announcing that the fires were being brought under control, the heat had sparked new fires at 245 new locations. To make matters worse, it is primarily in areas contaminated with radioactivity that firefighters still have to battle the flames.

“It was only last week that the government admitted that fires have been burning since mid-June in the very districts that were contaminated with radionuclides following the nuclear accident at Chernobyl, Ukraine in 1986.

“…the lies, cover-ups and manipulation will continue in Moscow. Nobody actually knows how many victims have succumbed to the fires and the smog over the past weeks. Hospital physicians have been banned from diagnosing ‘heatstroke’ as a cause of death…

“Russia is burning… it appears that Russia, which is supposedly becoming strong once again, has no firetrucks, no firefighting aircraft, no forestry workers and no geographical maps to locate the areas that require extinguishing. These are essentially consequences of Putin’s policies. It was the former KGB colonel who… abolished governor elections.

“Since 2004, in order to ‘more effectively’ deal with emergency situations, the governors have all been handpicked. The most important thing is that they should be loyal and do what Moscow says… Russian governors are not primarily concerned about their subjects, because the people don’t elect them and, of course, cannot remove them from office. Instead, the governors’ main objective is to make a good impression with the Kremlin.”

Pakistan–Unprecedented Disaster

The Los Angeles Times reported on August 16:

“U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Sunday that the floods ravaging Pakistan are the worst disaster he has witnessed… The Pakistani government and international relief organizations have been overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster, which has killed more than 1,600 people and damaged or destroyed more than 722,000 houses…

“The United Nations has said that $460 million is needed to supply displaced Pakistanis with shelter, clean drinking water and emergency healthcare, but only $93 million has been raised so far. According to the U.N., as many as 6 million flood victims have yet to get access to food and drinking water.

“Ban surveyed flood-damaged regions of the country Sunday, and afterward said the destruction he saw eclipsed the scale of ruin he witnessed in natural disasters with far higher death tolls: the Asian tsunami of 2004, the 2008 earthquake in China and the earthquake in Haiti in January…

“Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gilani said this weekend that as many as 20 million people have been left homeless by the floods, regarded by Pakistani leaders as the worst disaster to strike the country…

“Fueled by record-breaking monsoon rainfall, the floods washed away homes, roads, bridges, hospitals and schools in the northwestern province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, then moved south into Punjab and Sindh provinces, destroying millions of acres of farmland and wiping out entire villages. Over the weekend in Sindh province, officials evacuated 300,000 people from the city of Jacobabad, about 60 miles west of the Indus River.

“The government has been harshly criticized for what many flood victims say has been a sluggish response.

“With the disaster now in its third week, the threat of waterborne disease has become a major concern. U.N. officials on Sunday said Pakistan’s Health Ministry has yet to confirm any cases of cholera, backtracking from statements Saturday that one cholera case had been confirmed in the northwest. Left untreated, cholera can lead to severe dehydration and death.

“However, outbreaks of cholera are common in large floods. Guido Sabatinelli, the World Health Organization’s representative in Pakistan, said the massive scale of the disaster makes it possible that health workers could encounter thousands of cases. ‘We could have up to 140,000 cases of cholera,’ Sabatinelli said. ‘We are preparing ourselves for that.'”

The Bible prophesies the increase of worldwide disasters. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Is That in the Bible? The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation.”

Germany’s Poor State of Moral Affairs

On August 13, Der Spiegel Online published the following commentary, giving testimony to the lack of upholding Christian standards within large portions of Germany’s population:

“Germans have many things they can be proud of. One is the fact that the mayor of Berlin is openly gay. And so is the current foreign minister.

“Anyone who remembers… the words the conservative Bavarian politician Franz-Josef Strauss uttered in 1970, when he said ‘I’d rather be a cold warrior than a warm brother’ (in German, the term ‘warm brother’ is slang for ‘gay man’), knows that a society’s stance toward homosexuals is a measure of how civilized it is…

“Most Germans couldn’t care less whether a politician is gay, straight, a vegetarian or an avid cyclist. Guido Westerwelle, the leader of the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), wasn’t voted into office and appointed as the country’s foreign minister because he’s gay, nor is he in his current position despite his homosexuality. Voters simply didn’t care about his sexual preference one way or another. And that — one would hope — won’t change until the day he is voted out of office again…

“But now Westerwelle has outed himself, not as a gay man, but as a diplomat. He has announced that he will not take his partner with him on trips to countries where homosexuality is a crime. Why? Because ‘we want to promote the concept of tolerance in the world. But we also don’t want to achieve the opposite by behaving imprudently’…

“Westerwelle’s words are an example of moral hara-kiri in slow motion, and they’re a disgrace for Germany. Homosexuality is a statutory offence in at least 75 countries, but the penalties for being gay run the gamut from the mild to the severe. The love between two men is punishable by death in Iran, Sudan, Yemen, Mauritania, Somalia, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia…”

On August 18, Der Spiegel Online reported the following, quoting just one sensible voice (of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) within the midst of confusing nonsense:

“Germany’s highest court has ruled that gay couples in civil partnerships are entitled to the same inheritance tax rights as married couples. Most of the German press welcomes the ruling, with many editorials arguing that the next step is full income tax equality…

“The conservative daily Die Welt writes: ‘… Rather, reforms like this are a way of implementing the equality principle in our constitution, which forbids treating people worse because of their sexual orientation. It is good when people are there for each other. When homosexuals do this in committed partnerships, they should be treated as married partners and have the same right to benefit from the assets of the deceased in cases of death.’

“The left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘… There is no reason why lesbians and gay men should not be taxed together with their partners just like heterosexual married couples, instead of being treated as single people… Regardless of whether one considers the institution of marriage to be modern or outmoded, as long as there are marriages, then there should be no difference made between homosexuals and heterosexuals.’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘The convictions of the majority are decisive in a democracy — except when the Constitutional Court speaks. It has now decided that homosexual partnerships should have the same inheritance rights as marriages. It was particularly easy for the court to brush aside a constitutional principle that for decades had privileged marriage… It looks like marriage will gradually really need that “particular protection of the state”‘…

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘… The lawmakers have to differentiate between couples with and without children. Not, however, whether the couple is made up of a man and a woman, a woman and a woman or a man and a man.'”

The Bible is clear: The Christian marriage between a man and a woman is sanctified in God’s eyes, and every other sexual relationship is not. The Bible speaks with godly authority. You can prove that the Bible is God’s Word, which is in force and effect for you. Please read our newest free booklet, “The Authority of the Bible.”