USA–Is the “Last Best Hope on Earth” Gone?

The British paper, The Daily Mail, wrote on November 8:

“The swooning frenzy over the choice of Barack Obama as President of the United States must be one of the most absurd waves of self-deception and swirling fantasy ever to sweep through an advanced civilisation… This is a cult like the one which grew up around Princess Diana, bereft of reason and hostile to facts…

“Proper books, recording his sordid associates, his cowardly voting record, his astonishingly militant commitment to unrestricted abortion and his blundering trip to Africa, are little-read and hard to find… one of his alarmingly close associates, a state-subsidised slum landlord called Tony Rezko, has been convicted on fraud and corruption charges.

“… the US is just as segregated as it was before Martin Luther King – in schools, streets, neighbourhoods, holidays… Mr Obama, thanks mainly to the now-departed grandmother he alternately praised as a saint and denounced as a racial bigot, has the huge advantages of an expensive private education. He did not have to grow up in the badlands of useless schools, shattered families and gangs which are the lot of so many young black men of his generation.

“If the nonsensical claims made for this election were true, then every positive discrimination programme aimed at helping black people into jobs they otherwise wouldn’t get should be abandoned forthwith. Nothing of the kind will happen. On the contrary, there will probably be more of them. And if those who voted for Obama were all proving their anti-racist nobility, that presumably means that those many millions who didn’t vote for him were proving themselves to be hopeless bigots. This is obviously untrue…

“The United States, having for the most part a deeply conservative people, had until now just about stood out against many of the mistakes which have ruined so much of the rest of the world. Suspicious of welfare addiction, feeble justice and high taxes, totally committed to preserving its own national sovereignty, unabashedly Christian in a world part secular and part Muslim, suspicious of the Great Global Warming panic, it was unique.

“These strengths had been fading for some time, mainly due to poorly controlled mass immigration and to the march of political correctness. They had also been weakened by the failure of America’s conservative party – the Republicans – to fight on the cultural and moral fronts. They preferred to posture on the world stage. Scared of confronting Left-wing teachers and sexual revolutionaries at home, they could order soldiers to be brave on their behalf in far-off deserts. And now the US, like Britain before it, has begun the long slow descent into the Third World. How sad. Where now is our last best hope on Earth?”

“Will the Real Barack Obama Now Finally Stand Up?”

The British paper, The Independent, wrote on November 10:

“What is a strong way of saying ‘ecstatic enthusiasm’? No President has ever had such a hyperbolic welcome. The Second Coming would have been greeted in more measured terms. Then again, much of the reportage assumed that this was a secular Second Coming: a rebirth of America. Thus far, it has been impossible to fault Mr Obama. He has certainly displayed magnanimity in victory.

“… [at] some stage, the hard work will have to begin, the hard decisions will force their way on to the agenda. The Russians have already made it plain that they do not share in the global euphoria. While everyone else expresses hope, they exploit weakness. Nor is it likely that Iran, North Korea, al-Qa’ida and the Taliban will be asking for tickets to the inauguration. Then there is the little matter of the economy. No president since Abraham Lincoln has taken office in such troubled circumstances – and even Lincoln only had one enormous problem…

“His victory has at least two fascinating aspects. First, he will be much the least experienced occupier of the White House in the era of the imperial presidency. Second, no one knows what he believes. In every previous presidential campaign, there were moments of political nakedness, when the voters were able to see the candidate as he really was. Mr Obama kept his clothes on.

“We know that he had one of the most left-wing voting records in the Senate… His speeches are absolutely no guide. Mr Obama is an orator, but thus far, he has used that gift to create a cloud of exaltation. There are hardly any arguments…

“The most alarming aspect of the current economic crisis is that none of the experts seem to understand it. So how can anyone tell when it is going to end?…

“Mr Obama was right to insist that Wall Street cannot prosper if Main Street is suffering. But a healthy financial sector is vital… Many Congressional Democrats are economic ignoramuses with all the wrong instincts. If they had their way, there would be a forest of new regulations… But the world needs a strong Wall St. It is to be hoped that President Obama understands this. A president who tells blacks that the Civil Rights era belongs to history while reassuring American bankers: that is not how most of Mr Obama’s followers expect him to behave. But greatness is not to be found by pandering to followers’ illusions…

“Thus far – the cliché is inescapable – the Obama story has been stranger than fiction. Yet the real drama has still to begin.”

Will Guantanamo Bay Prison Be Shut… and Then What?

The Independent wrote on November 10:

“Mr Obama has a long-standing commitment to shut down Guantanamo, which has become a symbol of injustice for human rights campaigners, and a lightning rod for anti-US criticism since it opened eight years ago. Closing the prison, which is on a part of Cuba leased to the US, will bring to an end one of the most poisonous legacies of the Bush administration while sending a signal that the ‘war on terror’ is under more enlightened management.

“During his election campaign, Mr Obama described Guantanamo and the CIA’s secret prisons around the world as a ‘sad chapter in American history’. Other aspects of Mr Bush’s ‘war on terror’ will also demand Mr Obama’s urgent attention such as yesterday’s revelation by the New York Times that the US military has, during the past four years, conducted up to a dozen secret raids in Pakistan and other countries not at war with the US. Mr Obama has previously said he would approve such raids against enemies such as Osama bin Laden if… no other option was available.

“Mr Obama’s plans for Guantanamo inmates should see most detainees, against whom there is little or no evidence, being released to their home countries after years in legal limbo. Others will face prosecution in US criminal courts. One problem… those courts will face is deciding whether evidence from anonymous intelligence sources or obtained without any legal process can be taken into account. Some Guantanamo inmates suffered torture or other abusive treatment at the hands of CIA interrogators either at the prison or after they were picked up in security sweeps in Afghanistan or Pakistan. A few have been through the controversial military commissions process, from which even prosecutors have resigned. The US Supreme Court has several times rebuked the Bush administration for its handling of the detainees…

“Republicans will strongly oppose bringing terrorism suspects to the US. Many Democrats oppose the creation of a new court system on US soil that will have fewer rights for suspects than at present.

“Laurence Tribe, a Harvard law professor who is acting as a legal adviser to the Obama team, said at the weekend that ‘theoretical’ plans for Guantanamo would now become more focused because closing the prison is a top priority. But he also predicted that transferring suspected terrorists to US soil will be a cause of controversy. ‘I think the answer is going to be, they can be as securely guarded on US soil as anywhere else,’ Mr Tribe said. ‘We can’t put people in a dungeon forever without processing whether they deserve to be there.’…

“Lawyers representing clients at Guantanamo Bay such as Marc Falkoff point out that only a dozen or so detainees are known to be avowed terrorists… ‘Most of the detainees are goat herders, or Arabs who volunteered to help the Taliban, but they are not hardcore terrorists. The real problem is getting their home countries to accept them back.'”

How American Muslims View Barack Obama

USA Today reported on November 7:

“After months of balancing their support for the presidential candidate with concerns that their allegiance could do more harm than good, millions of relieved American Muslims cheered the election of the son of a Muslim immigrant whose middle name is Hussein.

“Record numbers of U.S. Muslims had cast their votes, boosted by registration drives held by the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, which targeted swing-state residents. MAS Freedom estimates that about 70,000 Muslims voted in Virginia, a state that had not backed a Democratic president in more than 40 years, and which Barack Obama won by fewer than 160,000 votes…

“The Muslim community has mobilized greatly since 2000, when most of its voters — with the exception of African American Muslims — had supported George W. Bush. Ultimately dismayed by the president’s post-9/11 policies, they began swinging Democratic in 2004… Early estimates indicate that between 70 and 90% of Muslim voters supported Obama this year…

“Throughout the party primaries and the general election, Muslims had to temper their political activism against a smear campaign calling Obama a ‘secret Muslim,’ based on his father’s Kenyan roots. These efforts ultimately backfired; Jen’nan Read, a Duke University sociology professor, said the rumors helped galvanize Muslims and other offended Americans to fight back.

“But some Muslims were more frustrated that Obama’s campaign, which responded to the accusations by highlighting the candidate’s Christian faith, did not also state that there is nothing wrong with being a Muslim American — an anti-Islamophobia point finally made in Gen. Colin Powell’s mid-October endorsement. They also complained when Obama volunteers moved two headscarf-wearing Muslim women out of a background shot at a Detroit rally last summer, prompting the campaign to apologize.

“‘They were disappointed,’ Read said. ‘But they were also disappointed by the past eight years of George Bush, and more disappointed in that than in (Obama’s) campaign strategy.’ Rumors of Obama’s Muslim ties, and the possible implications for U.S.-Israel relations, also fueled an unusually tough battle for the Jewish vote. But ultimately, about 78% of Jews supported Obama — slightly higher than their 2004 votes for John Kerry, although the Republican Jewish Coalition noted that this did not reach their support for either Bill Clinton or Al Gore…

“In terms of immediate goals for the next White House resident, the Muslim community now wants to see Obama fulfill his promise to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq, and to take a more balanced approach when dealing with turmoil in Pakistan and the Middle East…”

Gov. Schwarzenegger’s Position on Same-Sex Marriage “Evolving”

The Los Angeles Times reported on November 10:

“Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Sunday expressed hope that the California Supreme Court would overturn Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that outlawed same-sex marriage. He also predicted that the 18,000 gay and lesbian couples who have already wed would not see their marriages nullified by the initiative. ‘It’s unfortunate, obviously, but it’s not the end,’ Schwarzenegger said…

“With his favorable comments toward gay marriage, the governor’s thinking appears to have evolved on the issue. In past statements, he has said he believes that marriage should be between a man and a woman and has rejected legislation authorizing same-sex marriage. Yet he has also said he would not care if same-sex marriages were legal, saying he believed that such an important societal issue should be determined by the voters or the courts. Schwarzenegger publicly opposed Proposition 8, which amends the state Constitution to declare that ‘only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.’

“On Sunday, he urged backers of gay marriage to follow the lesson he learned as a bodybuilder trying to lift weights that were too heavy for him at first. ‘I learned that you should never ever give up. . . . They should never give up. They should be on it and on it until they get it done’…

“Schwarzenegger’s comments came as protesters took to the streets for a fifth day in a row, sometimes marching to [and protesting against] Catholic and Mormon churches that supported passage of the ballot measure…

“Some churches… assailed Proposition 8 as discriminatory. ‘We will continue to bless same-sex unions here until we can legally celebrate same-sex unions again,’… [Pastor] Ed Bacon told 1,000 congregants during Sunday services at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, which has blessed same-sex unions for 16 years… [He said:] “In the eyes of God, these people are married.”

The Associated Press added on November 10:

“Speaking on CNN’s ‘Late Edition’ Sunday, Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger expressed disappointment at Proposition 8’s passage. ‘It is unfortunate,’ Schwarzenegger said. ‘But it is not the end because I think this will go back into the courts. … It’s the same as in the 1948 case when blacks and whites were not allowed to marry. This falls into the same category.'”

Circuit City Files for Bankruptcy

The Associated Press reported on November 10:

“Circuit City Stores Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday heading into the busy holiday season as analysts question whether the nation’s second-biggest electronics retailer will be able to survive… The company also said it cut 700 more jobs at its headquarters, after announcing a week ago that it would close 20 percent of its stores and lay off thousands of workers.

“Circuit City filed for Chapter 11 protection, which will allow it to hold off creditors and continue operations while it develops a reorganization plan. Its Canadian operations also filed for similar protection.”

AIG’s Bailout Keeps Climbing…

Bloomberg reported on November 10:

“American International Group Inc. got a $150 billion government rescue package, almost doubling the initial bailout of less than two months ago… The move extends the government’s reach into the financial system amid the worst economic crisis in 75 years…”

Troubled Banks Continue to Lobby

USA Today wrote on November 7:

“Nineteen banks taking taxpayer money from the Treasury Department have spent $32.4 million lobbying the federal government during the first nine months of this year, their lobbying disclosure reports show. Combined, the Treasury is investing in the banks $159 billion from the $700 billion financial rescue package approved by Congress last month. None of the banks has indicated it plans to stop lobbying.”

In an accompanying article, the newspaper listed some of the larger banks in question, including Merrill Lynch, Bank of America, Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Capital One.

70 Years Ago–Germany’s Kristallnacht

AFP reported on November 9:

“Germany marked Sunday [November 9] the 70th anniversary of the Kristallnacht [“the Night of Broken Glass”] pogrom, a prelude to the Holocaust, with solemn ceremonies throughout the country and celebrations of the rebirth of Jewish life here. Chancellor Angela Merkel and Jewish leaders gathered at Germany’s biggest synagogue to pay tribute to the victims of Kristallnacht on November 9-10, 1938, and to the revival of a Jewish community against all odds…

“The pogrom… saw Nazi thugs plunder Jewish businesses throughout Germany, torch some 300 synagogues and round up some 30,000 Jewish men for deportation to concentration camps. Some 90 Jews were killed in the orgy of violence, whose pretext was the murder of German diplomat Ernst vom Rath in Paris by a student, Herschel Grynspan, who sought revenge for the expulsion of his family from Germany with about 15,000 other Polish Jews…

“Historians say the Nazis tested the German public’s reaction to the spasm of anti-Semitic violence and the lack of public outcry led them to press on, culminating in the extermination campaign launched three years later…

“After national unification in 1990, Germany began accepting Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet states and the country now has one of the fastest growing Jewish communities in the world with some 110,000 members… Because it shares the same date [November 9], the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 was also marked Sunday at low-key events ahead of the 20th anniversary next year.”

Welt-On-Line added on November 9:

“German-born Pope Benedict voiced on Sunday his lingering pain over the night 70 years ago when the Nazis whipped up anti-Jewish riots in a pogrom known as the ‘Kristallnacht’, a harbinger of the Holocaust… ‘Still today I feel pain over what happened in those tragic events, whose memory must serve to ensure such horrors are never repeated and that we strive, on every level, against all forms of anti-Semitism and discrimination … ,’ said the pope. ‘I invite people to pray for the victims of that night and to join me in expressing profound solidarity with the Jewish world,’ the pontiff told crowds at the Vatican…

“Pope Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger in Bavaria in 1927, was forced to join the Hitler Youth as a teenager, though both his parents opposed the Nazis. Earlier this year the pontiff spoke in New York about his teenage years being ‘marred by a sinister regime’…”

Holocaust Survivors Ask Vatican to Freeze Sainthood Procedure for Pope Pius XII

Reuters wrote on November 10:

“One of the most influential groups of Holocaust survivors accused Nazi-era Pope Pius XII on Monday of keeping ‘silent in the face of absolute evil’ and asked the Vatican to freeze his sainthood process…

“Elan Steinberg, the group’s vice president [and director emeritus of the World Jewish Congress], said in a statement: ‘There were many individuals and representatives of the Church whose shining heroism during the terrible years of the Holocaust should be recognized, but Pope Pius was not among them… ‘

“Some Jews have accused Pius, who reigned from 1939 to 1958, of turning a blind eye to the Holocaust. The Vatican says he worked silently behind the scenes and helped save many Jews… Pius was guilty of ‘public silence in the face of absolute evil,’ Steinberg said.

“‘During World War II, despite pleas and reports from other Church leaders and the Allies, Pope Pius failed to even once publicly and explicitly denounce the Nazi crimes against the Jews,’ he said. Differences over Pius’s role haunted Catholic-Jewish relations. Some Catholics recently pushed for the Pope to speed up his sainthood process and some Jews want it put on hold until Vatican archives are opened in about seven years…

“Steinberg said the Vatican should instead look to Pope John XXIII (1958-1963), who helped save Jews and who reported to the Vatican on Nazi plans to exterminate the Jews when he was a bishop and the Vatican’s wartime representative in Turkey.”

Billy Graham No Longer Pastor to President

USA Today and The Associated Press reported on November 7:

“Billy Graham’s work as a pastor to presidents is coming to an end, but he is praying for Barack Obama as the next U.S. leader begins his work, Graham’s son said Friday on the ailing evangelist’s 90th birthday… Graham’s views of the world are still respected in White House circles. Republican presidential candidate John McCain visited Graham at his mountainside home during the campaign, and Obama tried to meet Graham but wasn’t able to do so because of the preacher’s poor health.

“Though never partisan in his preaching, Billy Graham is a registered Democrat. His son expressed concern about Obama’s views on abortion and gay marriage — an issue Franklin Graham raised in a meeting with the Illinois senator — saying that he and his father are conservatives who believe the Bible speaks clearly on those issues.

“‘President-elect Obama heard our position,’ Franklin Graham said. ‘And I told him that this was very difficult for us and hard for us. It’s a moral issue that we just can’t back down on. But he’s our president-elect, and those positions that he holds that are contrary to Biblical teaching, I hope that God will change his heart…’ Obama favors abortion rights, and does not support a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage…

“His days at 90 are a stark contrast to Graham’s days as a globe-trotting evangelist — a ministry that put him behind the pulpit to speak with 215 million people in more than 185 countries and placed him in the confidence of some of the world’s most powerful people.”

Robert Schuller Ousts His Son–Does Not Want to Preach What Is Sin

The Los Angeles Times reported on October 27:

“The schism between… Robert H. Schuller and his son at Orange County’s Crystal Cathedral arose over a disagreement about broadening the church’s long-running television show, ‘Hour of Power,’ beyond a single personality — a move opposed by the younger Schuller, pastors involved in the matter said Sunday. The elder Schuller announced Saturday that he was removing his son… Robert A. Schuller, as the show’s only preacher three years after turning the program over to him. The show will now be hosted by different pastors, and even businessmen, from around the country and Latin America…

“Schuller built his worldwide ministry over a half century on the psychology of positive thinking and appealing to people turned off by the formality of traditional faiths. In contrast, his son’s sermons have been full of direct references to the Bible. ‘I was called to start a mission, not a church,’ Schuller told his audience Sunday. ‘There is a difference. . . . You don’t try to preach . . . what is sin and what isn’t sin. A mission is a place where you ask nonbelievers to come and find faith and hope and feel love. We’re a mission first, a church second.’… ‘I love my son and am proud of my son,’ he said, adding that the younger Schuller will continue to work as a Crystal Cathedral senior pastor.”

Pope Condemns Trade in Human Organs

Reuters reported on November 7:

“Pope Benedict condemned the trade in human organs as an abomination Friday and urged caution in removing organs for transplant from dying donors who might not actually yet be dead… Buying and selling of human organs is a lucrative business for suppliers and countries that allow foreign ‘transplant tourists’ to have operations they cannot get at home. Organs are often bought from poor peasants and sometimes harvested from condemned prisoners…

“A recent article in the Vatican daily L’Osservatore Romano challenged the medical consensus that brain death marks the death of a person. Since the brain can die before other organs, this allows doctors to harvest organs for transplant… The Vatican has long accepted the brain death criterion. Rejecting it now could force Catholic hospitals to revert to the cardiac death rule, leaving many fewer organs for transplant.”

Life Begins at Defined Moment of Conception

On November 7, 2008, Zenit published an interview with scientist Maureen Condic who holds that human life begins at a defined moment of conception. Condic is an associate professor of neurobiology and anatomy at the University of Utah School of Medicine. She received her doctorate in neurobiology from the University of California, Berkely. Her teaching focuses primarily on embryonic development, and she directs the University of Utah School of Medicine’s course in human embryology.

In the interview, Condic stated the following:

“… resolving when human life begins has important implications for a number of controversial political topics, including abortion and human embryonic stem cell research… The central question of ‘when does human life begin’ can be stated in a somewhat different way: When do sperm and egg cease to be, and what kind of thing takes their place once they cease to be?…

“[My] conclusion [is] that a new human organism comes into existence at the moment of sperm-egg fusion… a scientific analysis of the best available data does not support the conclusion that fertilization is a ‘process’; it supports the conclusion that fertilization is an event that takes less than a second to complete. The events of the first 24 hours following sperm-egg fusion are clearly unique, but they are also clearly acts of a human organism, not acts of a mere human cell.”

Barack Obama Wins US Election–and the World Hopes for Real Change

Deutsche Welle reported on November 5:

“Democrat Barack Obama has won the US presidential election by a large margin. Voter turnout at 64 percent was the highest since World War II. Speaking to supporters in Chicago, the president-elect promised a new direction for the country, and reached out to supporters of his opponent, Republican Senator John McCain. Outgoing President, George W. Bush, congratulated John McCain for the campaign he conducted with Governor Sarah Palin. Obama, who takes office in eleven weeks, will be the first African American president in US history. He has won 28 states to win 349 Electoral College votes, far more than the 270 he needed…”

“World leaders have hailed Barack Obama’s victory in the US presidential election as ‘the dawn of a new era’ and called for the global superpower to change the way it does business. German Chancellor Angela Merkel congratulated Obama for what she called his ‘historic victory’. French President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose country holds the European Union’s rotating presidency, extended his ‘warmest  congratulations.’ Kenya, the birthplace of Obama’s father, declared a national holiday to welcome the world’s first, black US president.”

The EUObserver reported on November 5:

“… Brussels urged for a ‘new deal in a new world’ under the leadership of Barack Obama. ‘This is a time for a renewed commitment between Europe and the United States of America,’ European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said… [He] assured the US President-elect of his support when both Brussels and Washington will ‘face together the many challenges ahead of us’…

“French President Nicolas Sarkozy whose country is currently chairing the EU congratulated him for the ‘brilliant victory,’ noting ‘By choosing you, the American nation has chosen change, openness and optimism.’

“‘It would give an excellent message to the people of the EU if Barack Obama were to make a speech in the European Parliament during his first visit to Europe,’ the parliament’s president, Hans Gert Poettering, said in his statement of congratulation. ‘This way he could address the almost 500 million citizens of the European Union,’ he added.”

The Difficult Road Ahead for President-Elect Barack Obama

The New York Times wrote on November 5:

“No president since before Barack Obama was born has ascended to the Oval Office confronted by the accumulation of seismic challenges awaiting him… On the shoulders of a 47-year-old first-term senator, with the power of inspiration yet no real executive experience, now falls the responsibility of prosecuting two wars, protecting the nation from terrorist threat and stitching back together a shredded economy…

“What kind of decision maker and leader Mr. Obama will be remains unclear even to many of his supporters…

“Whatever collaboration there may be in the short term, Mr. Obama represents the end of the Bush era in the long term. Yet he will find himself dealing with the Bush legacy for years to come. He promised on the campaign trail to close the detention facility at the United States naval base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, but analysts in both parties expect that to be more difficult than he imagines. He will inherit a deficit that could approach $1 trillion next year, which could curtail his ambitions, like expanding health care coverage…

“Mr. Obama’s soaring speeches have created such a well of anticipation that there is a deep danger of letdown. He talked during the campaign of a ‘new politics’ bringing Republicans and Democrats together. But if he really works with Republicans to find common ground on issues like Iraq, terrorism and climate change, he risks alienating his liberal base…

“‘There’s always some surprise that you can’t plan for,’ said Nancy E. Soderberg, a top national security aide under Mr. Clinton. She recalled the first President George Bush’s decision to send troops into Somalia just before handing over the Oval Office to Mr. Clinton…”

The Los Angeles Times added on November 4:

“The nation is in dire economic straits… The new president will focus first on stabilizing the economy… he will probably defer some of his biggest, most controversial goals until later — a decision that may send some of his liberal supporters into postelection depression…”

The Associated Press wrote on November 5:

“No president since Franklin D. Roosevelt has faced economic and financial market crises so dire and so urgent as Obama confronts now. And Obama also must deal with wars in Iraq, which he has promised to end, and in Afghanistan, where he plans to send U.S. reinforcements. He may have headaches with his own Democrats on war issues. Liberal Democrats want immediate withdrawal from Iraq, and may balk at sending more troops to Afghanistan…

“With election-reinforced majorities in both the House and the Senate, the Democrats are in full command of the government. They will have an effective Senate majority of at least 56 seats, counting two independents who have sided with them… [but] it takes 60 votes to end debate and force action. That will remain an obstacle…

“Bush is the past. Obama is the future, and it begins now, in troubled times, for a president-elect with a costly agenda of promises that would be difficult to deliver in far better economic circumstances.”

The Bush Legacy–“The Era of American Leadership Is Over”

On October 30, Der Spiegel Online published an article, which gave an interesting assessment of the USA. We are setting forth below excerpts from the article, which accurately describe how most Germans and Europeans look today at President Bush, his administration and the country as a whole. The big question is, will the new U.S. administration under President Obama be able to substantially change European perceptions of the USA?

Der Spiegel Online wrote:

“In his two terms in the White House, US President George W. Bush has presided over a precipitous fall in America’s reputation around the world. History is likely to judge him a failure. Now, his successor will have to dig the US out of a deep hole… Rarely has the decline of a nation… been so strikingly documented… Never before have such low approval ratings been measured for a US president than for Bush in his last few months. They are currently at between 19 and 20 percent. More than four out of five Americans believe that the nation is ‘headed in the wrong direction’… After seven years of Republican dominance in Washington, Bush’s fellow Republicans now avoid him like the plague…

“Iraq is the gaping foreign policy wound, even if the level of violence in Baghdad and some provinces has declined. The war violated international law, divided the allies and wounded the Americans in terms of their value system and self-respect. Over and above the enormous financial cost, the war has been the source of great human tragedy. More than 4,000 American soldiers and an estimated more than 100,000 Iraqi civilians have died, while more than four million Iraqi men, women and children have been forced to flee their country.

“There will always be debates over whether it made sense to bring down the brutal regime of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein with military force and become an occupying power. There is much to suggest that it was the wrong choice. It undermined America’s political standing (while bolstering Iran’s influence as a regional power) and, even among US allies, fueled the suspicion that Washington was solely interested in oil and military bases… There is ‘no longer the slightest doubt,’ writes The New Yorker, that the Bush administration lied to and manipulated the American public to gain support for the invasion of Iraq. It is also considered indisputable fact today that the conduct of the war was incompetent…

“Another ugly blemish on the Bush administration is the disgrace of human rights violations in Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. The administration bears responsibility — as it does for the scandalous weakening of prohibitions on torture, a move that is simply incompatible with a country based on the rule of law. The man in charge at the White House is believed to have directly approved the practice of waterboarding, which simulates the sensation of drowning in its victims…

“The domestic consequences of the Bush years have also been catastrophic. The national debt has almost doubled, to an inconceivable $10 trillion (€7.75 trillion). The number of Americans without health insurance rose by over eight million to 47 million, while the number of those living below the poverty line grew by almost six million. Bush’s tax breaks for the country’s wealthiest citizens have made America’s already extreme social disparities even more glaring…

“The well-known British philosopher and author John Gray… notes: ‘The era of American global leadership, reaching back to the Second World War, is over’…”

U.S. Treasury Keeps Borrowing Over a Trillion Dollars

The speed with which the U.S. Treasury keeps borrowing astronomical amounts of money is frightening. It seems like every sense for balance has been tossed aside. How long do we have to watch until we realize that the American Titanic is hopelessly sailing full steam ahead against its providential deadly ice berg?

AFP reported on November 3:

“The US Treasury said Monday it would seek to borrow a record 550 billion dollars in the October-December period to help stabilize the financial sector hammered by the global credit crisis. The fourth-quarter borrowing estimate was substantially higher than the 408 billion dollars announced in July, and is a record high for quarterly estimates… The Treasury said the federal government had borrowed 530 billion dollars from the markets in the third quarter.”

EU at Brink of Recession

Deutsche Welle reported on November 3:

“The European Union’s economy is set to grind to a halt in 2009 and only start picking up in 2010 as the financial crisis takes its toll on one of the world’s major economic blocs. There is a ‘real risk’ of the world’s largest economy sliding into recession, officials warned… While they make for bleak reading, the EU’s 2009 figures are better than those of the United States and Japan…

“Of the EU’s four biggest economies, Britain is almost certain of facing a full-blown recession in 2009, with its gross domestic product shrinking by 1 per cent. Germany, France and Italy are all expected to post zero growth rates next year… Among the EU member states expected to feel the full pain of the downturn are… Ireland, Estonia and Latvia… Spain, the EU’s fifth-biggest economy and formerly one of its strongest economic performers, is also set to tip into recession… France… is expected to see its deficit hit the 3 per cent of GDP upper limit this year and to exceed this limit in 2010…

“The grim economic outlook comes as Europe’s top banks revealed how much they were being squeezed of profits by the credit crunch. Germany’s second-biggest bank, Commerzbank, said Monday it had lost 285 million euros and would seek an 8.2 billion euro ($10.5 billion) ‘stabilization’ injection from the government and another 15 billion euro to secure financing. French bank Societe Generale registered an 83.7 percent drop in third-quarter net profit after being hit hard by the collapse of US lender Lehman Brothers. Britain’s biggest home lender HBOS Plc reported it could lose as much as 5 billion pounds from risky assets and bad loans.”

Greater EU Political Role in the World

The EUObserver wrote on November 4:

“The EU has in a letter to the next US president appealed for a greater European role on the world stage, more engagement with a resurgent Russia and more emphasis on peacemaking in Afghanistan and the Middle East… The letter urges the new US administration to put the Middle East peace process at the top of its agenda and foresees a ‘useful role’ for the EU as co-guarantors of a future Israeli-Palestinian accord…

“The US remains critical of Germany’s reluctance to commit troops to combat zones in southern Afghanistan, while the former-communist EU states are concerned by France’s Russia-friendly tone.”

Russia vs. the West

The Times wrote on November 5:

“President Dmitri Medvedev took advantage of the euphoria in America today to order the deployment of missiles inside Europe as a response to US plans for a missile defence shield. Speaking within hours of Barack Obama’s election as the new US President, Mr Medvedev announced that Russia would base Iskander missiles in its Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad next to the border with Poland…

“His announcement prompted a burst of applause from government ministers and parliamentary deputies assembled in the Kremlin. The President failed to congratulate Mr Obama or even to mention him by name during his 85-minute state of the nation address televised live across Russia. Instead… [he] accused the West of seeking to encircle Russia and blamed the US for encouraging Georgia’s ‘barbaric aggression’ in the war over South Ossetia in August. He issued a warning that Russia would ‘not back down in the Caucasus’…

“Mr Medvedev blamed the US for the global financial crisis, saying that the rest of the world had been ‘dragged down with it into recession’. He claimed that the era of American domination after the collapse of the Soviet Union was now over.”

How Ministers of Religion Get Involved in Politics

Surely, one should not have expected too much, if anything, from the American propaganda associated with the circus of its presidential elections. Exaggerations and misrepresentations were common-place, and the Hollywood-type showmanship of America’s candidates and their political supporters were big entertainment. And famous and not-so-famous entertainers were anxious to throw their weight behind a particular candidate–as if this would mean anything.

But when ministers of religion–who are supposed to keep their noses out of the political arena–began to compare a presidential candidate with Moses, then something is for sure morbid and rotten. It reminds us of Austrian priests and bishops who praised Hitler as the new Savior and asked Austrian Catholics to vote for him and the Anschluss [“Union”]. It reminds us how the popes crowned the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. When religions and religious representatives get involved in politics, it has ALWAYS resulted in political disaster.

The Telegraph reported on November 3:

“Adulation of the Democratic nominee is building to a crescendo. Offering a prayer before a rally in Columbus, Ohio today, Cornal Garnett Henning, an AME [American Methodist Episcopal Church] bishop for parts of Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania, compared him to Moses and Martin Luther King in the same breath. He thanked God for having ‘given us a Moses and a Martin called Barack Obama’ and asked the Almighty to ‘grant that we together… may have the will to bring about the change we need’ and ensure that ‘those who cast their sacred vote will not be deprived this right’…

“As I left the rally, there was a man chatting into his cell phone while selling clothing that offered a modified version of the national motto of the United States, substituting the candidate’s name in place of that of the Almighty. ‘In Obama We Trust’, proclaimed his t-shirts.”

Such misplaced trust in ANY political candidate or president is a major reason WHY America is going down–and WHY its status of a respected superpower is a thing of the past. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”

More Religious Confusion

A striking example of the hopeless confusion among some American “preachers” and “prophets” can be seen in the following article, published by the Salt Lake Tribune, dated October 30. The mistakes and errors contained in the preaching of some of those ministers are too numerous to mention, but here are some excerpts:

“Some Web sites and conservative Christians have tried to argue that Obama could be the foretold Antichrist… Tim LaHaye, co-author of the millennial Left Behind series, told the Wall Street Journal that he recognized allusions to his work in the ad but comparisons between Obama and the Antichrist were incorrect. ‘The Antichrist isn’t going to be an American, so it can’t possibly be Obama. The Bible makes it clear he will be from an obscure place, like Romania,’ the 82-year-old author told the paper…”

The Bible makes it clear that there will be NO rapture, as postulated in the Left Behind series, and that there is not even an “Antichrist” per se. Rather, the Bible speaks of the “spirit of antichrist” and “many antichrists.” However, it does talk about a military leader–the “beast”– and a religious leader–“the false prophet.” It is true that the “beast” won’t be an American, but neither will he be from an obscure country, “like Romania.” For further information, please read our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy.”

Will There Be a Black Pope?

Times on Line wrote on November 6:

“The election of Barack Obama as the first African-American US President could pave the way for the election of the first black Pope, according to a leading black American Catholic. Wilton Daniel Gregory, 60, the Archbishop of Atlanta, said that in the past Pope Benedict XVI had himself suggested that the election of a black pontiff would ‘send a splendid signal to the world’ about the universal Church.

“Archbishop Gregory, who in 2001 became the first African American to head the US Bishops Conference… said that recent Popes, beginning with John XXIII and Paul VI, had brought prelates ‘from all nations and races’ to Rome to take up senior positions in the Curia, the Vatican hierarchy… Archbishop Gregory said that the next time cardinals gathered to elect a Pope they could ‘in their wisdom’ choose an African pontiff…”

Evolution in Harmony With Creation?–NO WAY!!!

On November 3, 2008, Zenit reported the following:

“There is no incompatibility between the scientific theory of evolution and the Christian understanding of creation, says the archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Christoph Schönborn… Citing various addresses from Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, before and after his election as Pope, the Austrian cardinal explained that ‘there are many proofs in favor of evolution.’ Nevertheless, he stressed, ‘though this theory enriches our knowledge of life, it doesn’t respond to the great philosophical question: Where does everything come from and how did this everything take a path until coming to be man?’…

“In the same vein, Bishop Marcelo Sánchez Sorondo, chancellor of the Pontifical Academy of the Sciences, explained to Vatican Radio that the theory of evolution is even closer to the biblical account of creation than many other theories. ‘Considering the fact that the Bible presents us with a God who created the world in seven days, the idea of a progressive creation is introduced,’ he explained. ‘In this sense, it is closer than, for example, the theories of the ancient Greeks, who thought of an eternal and cyclical world.'”

The plain truth is: Both Cardinal Schönborn and Bishop Sorondo are WRONG. There is no conceivable way to harmonize the biblical account of creation with the theory of evolution. To do so would require an interpretation of the Scriptures completely contrary to their expressed statements. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution–A Fairy Tale for Adults?”

“Frozen Mice Cloned – Are Woolly Mammoths Next?”

Will the Jurassic Park of Michael Crichton (1942-2008) become reality after all? And is the world watching helplessly and indifferently how some of its scientists may bring it to the brink of utter disaster?

Reuters reported on November 3, 2008:

“Japanese scientists have cloned mice whose bodies were frozen for… 16 years and said on Monday it may be possible to use the technique to resurrect mammoths and other extinct species… Mammoths may be the extinct animals that scientists would be most likely to try to clone, as many of the animals have been found preserved in ice. In July 2007 Russian scientists discovered the body of a baby mammoth frozen in the Arctic Yamalo-Nenetsk region…”
AFP added on November 4:

“The scientists extracted a cell nucleus from an organ of the dead mouse and planted it into an egg of another mouse which was alive, leading to the birth of the cloned mouse, the researchers said… The cloned mouse was able to reproduce with a female mouse, it added.

“But the researchers said tough challenges remain ahead on how to restore extinct animals, which would require breeding with animals that are still alive. To revive a mammoth, researchers would need to find a way to implant a cell nucleus of a mammoth into the egg of an elephant and then implant the embryo into an elephant’s uterus, it said.”

Ban on Same-Sex Marriages in California

The Associated Press reported on November 5:

“In an election otherwise full of liberal triumphs, the gay rights movement suffered a stunning defeat as California voters approved a ban on same-sex marriages that overrides a recent court decision legalizing them. The constitutional amendment… will limit marriage to heterosexual couples, the first time such a vote has taken place in a state where gay unions are legal.

“Gay-rights activists had a rough election elsewhere as well. Ban-gay-marriage amendments were approved in Arizona and Florida, and Arkansas voters approved a measure banning unmarried couples from serving as adoptive or foster parents. Supporters made clear that gays and lesbians were their main target…

“Similar bans had prevailed in 27 states before Tuesday’s elections, but none were in California’s situation—with about 18,000 gay couples married since a state Supreme Court ruling in May. The state attorney general, Jerry Brown, has said those marriages will remain valid, although legal challenges are possible…

“Elsewhere, voters in Colorado and South Dakota rejected measures that could have led to sweeping bans of abortion, and Washington became only the second state—after Oregon—to offer terminally ill people the option of physician-assisted suicide. A first-of-its-kind measure in Colorado, which was defeated soundly, would have defined life as beginning at conception. Its opponents said the proposal could lead to the outlawing of some types of birth control as well as abortion. The South Dakota measure would have banned abortions except in cases of rape, incest and serious health threat to the mother…

“Two animal-welfare measures passed—a ban on dog racing in Massachusetts, and a proposition in California that outlaws cramped cages for egg-laying chickens…”

The Mysterious Death of Austria’s Joerg Haider–Was He Murdered?

The British tabloid, The Sun, wrote on October 17:

“Investigators say the Austrian Far Right leader was nearly four times the booze limit and travelling at more than twice the permitted speed when he lost control at 88mph last Saturday (October 11). But the makers of his Volkswagen Phaeton limo insist the motor is one of the safest in the world and should have survived the crash in Klagenfurt. The car giants yesterday sent its own experts to examine the mangled wreckage and search for signs it may have been SABOTAGED.

“The German firm also sparked fury by linking the death of fascist icon Haider, 58, to that of Princess Diana. The neo-Nazi chief careered off the road as he drove home from a boozy party. But the promoter of the party has insisted he was not drunk when he set off. VW spokesman Peter Thul claimed that someone with access to Haider’s car key could have manipulated the limo’s electrics which control the engine’s ‘brain’.  He said: ‘It is a fact that Haider was going too fast, but such a speed on that curve is not a problem for the car’s physics. The Phaeton and Audi A8 are the safest of all. You’d need the key to manipulate the electronics, so someone at a garage would have to tamper with it. Many things bring to mind Lady Diana’s death.’”

Der Spiegel Online added on October 24:

“A day after Jörg Haider’s protégé [Stefan Petzner] stepped down as leader of the far-right Alliance for the Future of Austria — having all but admitted that Haider was gay — reports emerge that the late politician’s widow wants a new autopsy to investigate his death. The body of Jörg Haider… was pulled from a planned cremation last weekend at the request of his widow, Claudia Haider, according to an Austrian newspaper which says Mrs. Haider is unsatisfied with the official version of her husband’s death.

“Haider died in a sudden car accident on October 11, less than two weeks after his party was boosted in a contentious national election. He was speeding, drunk, and had reportedly just seen Stefan Petzner, his political protégé and rumored lover, at a gay bar. Petzner, 27, was abruptly sacked as Haider’s successor on Wednesday after a radio interview all but confirmed the two men were lovers. The Austrian paper Heute reported that Claudia Haider wanted a new autopsy by doctors outside Austria. The paper cited senior members of BZÖ, who suggested that Haider had been drugged.

“Some forensic… experts wondered why there were no skid marks on the road where Haider smashed his VW Phaeton and speculated he was unconscious at the wheel…

“Haider’s affair with Petzner was an open secret in Austria. Still, his death prompted a nationwide outpouring of grief — some Austrians said he was ‘our Lady Di’ — and the apparent confirmation of Haider’s bisexuality this week roiled the BZÖ’s conservative party base. ‘It has been an open secret for years that Haider was gay, and most Austrians would have preferred for it to remain a secret,’ a political science professor called Reinhold Gärtner, at Innsbruck University, told the New York Times.”

“Recession Alarm Rings Around the World”

AFP reported on October 24:

“Giants of the auto, airline and technology industries ordered emergency action against the global financial crisis on Friday as shares took a new hammering amid mounting gloom. Even a 1.5 million barrel a day production cut by OPEC failed to stop oil prices falling amid fears of a deep global recession. Grim news backing those fears came from around the world.

“China, Japan and 11 other Asian nations agreed to set up an 80-billion-dollar war chest to fight what ex-US Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan called a ‘once-in-a-century credit tsunami’… In Britain, official figures confirmed the country was about to enter a recession… The combined impact sent shares tumbling in both Asia and Europe after overnight falls in Wall Street… ‘The best word to describe what’s going on right now is panic,’ said Credit Suisse strategist Satoru Ogasawara…

“The suffering extended to the auto industry with Renault ordering almost all French plants closed for at least one week… PSA Peugeot-Citroen chairman Christian Strieff said he had ordered ‘massive’ production cuts… New figures showed industrial confidence in both France and Italy had fallen to the lowest level since 1993…”

Germany’s Grim Financial Crisis

AFP reported on October 25:

“The financial crisis will last at least until late 2009…  ‘The risk of collapse is far from over. It would be wrong to lift the alarm,’ Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck said, offering a grim assessment of the country’s financial health… The 480-billion-euro (610-billion-dollar) rescue package for banks approved last week is to last through next year, ‘and we will certainly need it for that duration,’ he predicted. ‘We won’t know whether the rescue plan will entail real costs until between 2010 and 2013,’ he added.”

Deutsche Welle reported on October 25:

“Two more German banks seemed set to line up Saturday for a government rescue… One of the banks run by Germany’s 16 states, BayernLB, has already appealed for help, and a second landesbank, HSH Nordbank, run by the states of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, said it had decided in principle to apply. Landesbanks, which also have powerful non-government shareholders, have been among institutions hit hardest in the past year by investment in subprime US mortgages… A third landesbank, WestLB, was on the verge of applying for help…”

Will Germany’s Financial Crises Lead to Merkel’s Downfall?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 27:

“The financial crisis and the threat of recession are revealing German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s weaknesses and could contribute to a dramatic change in her party’s prospects in next year’s election… No one in the coalition government is mentioning a balanced budget these days. Instead of the continued economic upturn economists had predicted for next year, the country is now more likely to fall into a recession. Merkel can no longer campaign as Germany’s feel-good chancellor…

“Merkel has, in fact, been less than convincing in recent weeks. She has hesitated and faltered when the pressure was on. And she has been behaving exactly the way that her critics have always accused her of behaving. The chancellor seemed unsure of herself when it came to preventing the impending collapse of the banking system… Merkel’s clumsiness was especially noticeable…

“Merkel also flip flopped when it came to the political consequences of the economic downturn… In addition to inaccuracies and a lack of decisiveness, the financial crisis exposed another deficit that is just as serious a problem for Merkel: She cannot explain her policies convincingly. She is unable to come up with a clever way to combine a series of individual decisions into an overarching concept. Her address to the German parliament, the Bundestag, in which she explained the government’s emergency bailout package, sounded like she was reading from a legal textbook…

“Another problem for Merkel is that she faces the crisis more or less alone. Her fellow conservative colleagues in cabinet are more of a burden than a boon.”

“Worst Financial Crisis in Human History”

The Daily Mail reported on October 25:

“Sterling took a hammering as economic figures showed the UK approaching full-blown recession. Bank of England deputy governor Charlie Bean warned that the pain is just beginning, calling the situation the ‘largest financial crisis of its kind in human history’.

“On the 79th anniversary of the Great Crash of 1929: Britain’s economic output slid 0.5 per cent – more than twice the decline expected by the City… Markets tumbled around the world, with leading UK shares losing almost £50billion… Sterling had its worst-ever week against the dollar since 1971 and hit a record low against the euro… The oil cartel Opec cut production, a move likely to increase petrol prices up to 5p a litre… Experts warned that hedge funds are facing disaster, with billions likely to be wiped off savings and pension funds… Hundreds of jobs were axed in the insurance, cosmetics, haulage and textile industries.

“The plunge was prompted by the worst set of UK growth figures for 18 years, recording the first time that the economy has officially contracted since 1992… Tory leader David Cameron declared: ‘This is the day the recession became real. We have had ten years of a Government saying no more boom and bust. We have had ten years of a Government not putting aside money for a rainy day. Well, that rainy day has now come.’…

“Foreign investors are less willing to finance the UK because of its record debt burden and slumping economic output… Analysts warned that the nation faces an extended period of austerity, as unemployment soars and families are forced to save on even basic essentials.

“Professor Andrew Clare, of Cass Business School, said Britain has amassed a record debt burden that must now be paid off. The economist added: ‘We are going to have to wear a hair shirt as a nation. If this turns out to be recession lasting five or six quarters, which looks possible, we are not going to see the slightest upturn until 2010. And even then we can expect at least five years of muted growth.’… while all economies are suffering from the banking crisis, yesterday’s ONS report suggests that Britain will be a leading casualty.”

On October 27, The Guardian wrote the following:

“Estimated paper losses from UK banks on mortgage-backed securities and corporate bonds are currently £122.6bn… Gordon Brown insisted yesterday that it was right for the government to increase borrowing in order to fund investment to help the economy through tough times…

“The Bank of England may have put the paper cost of the global crisis at a staggering $2.8 trillion, but how does one come to grips with such a sum? Think of it like this: it could… pay off the last quarter’s public debt 45 times. It is more than three times the sum of UK annual public spending…”The New York Times had already reported on October 3, 2008, that “The American International Group said on Friday that it had… drawn down $61 billion of the $85 billion emergency bridge loan it received from the Federal Reserve two weeks ago, an announcement that startled credit ratings agencies.”

A Way Out of Our Financial Mess?–Hardly!!!

MSNBC reported on October 25:

“Asian and European leaders said Saturday they have reached a broad consensus on ways to deal with the global financial meltdown and will present their views at a crisis summit next month in Washington… Although short on details, the statement, adopted Friday, calls on the IMF and similar institutions to help stabilize struggling banks and shore up flagging share prices…

“Responses to the crisis among participants have been varied thus far. The 15 euro countries and Britain reacted in dramatic fashion, agreeing to put up a total of $2.3 trillion in guarantees and emergency aid to help banks. In contrast, South Korea, China, Japan and the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations have merely recommitted themselves to an $80 billion emergency fund to help those facing liquidity problems — to be established by next June…

“The IMF, whose loans normally include strict provisions, is discussing loan packages with close to a dozen countries from Iceland to Pakistan, and is examining ways to speed up the process.”

Bild Online reported on October 28 that Iceland’s bankruptcy may just be the first of additional national bankruptcies soon to come, involving countries such as the Ukraine, Pakistan, Romania, Hungary, Spain and Greece.

In addition, The Times reported on October 13, “the Royal Bank of Scotland [was] taken under state control at a cost of 20 billion pounds.” It also said that “Reliance on US will never be the same.”

Even seemingly good news in the financial market is not perceived as good these days. The Associated Press reported on October 29:

“Wall Street’s best day in two weeks — and one of its best ever — was a joyless rally. Even a manic, final-hour stampede of buying that sent the Dow Jones industrials soaring almost 900 points did nothing to dispel the feeling that the market could turn on investors in an instant.”

And, the Associated Press reported on October 30, 2008:

“The government reported Thursday the economy shrank in the summer, the strongest signal yet that a recession may have already begun, a day after the Federal Reserve slashed a key interest rate to battle an economic downturn… The classic definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters of negative GDP. Many analysts believe the GDP will decline in the current October-December period by an even larger amount and they are forecasting a negative GDP figure in the first three months of next year… While Wall Street posted its second biggest point gain in history Tuesday in anticipation of the Fed rate cut, the bleak economic reality appeared to ensure that the euphoria was short-lived…

“Analysts also noted that just lowering rates cannot serve as a panacea to overcome a credit crisis. While the goal is to encourage banks to begin lending again, financial institutions are skittish about extending new loans given the huge losses they have racked up in bad mortgages.

“Meanwhile, the administration announced that the spigot had been opened on the $700 billion fund created by Congress Oct. 3 to rescue the U.S. financial system. Treasury issued a report showing checks had been disbursed for $125 billion in payments to nine major banks, including Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. The goal is to bolster their balance sheets so they will resume more normal lending…

“Besides cutting interest rates, the Fed announced it was extending credit lines worth $30 billion each to the central banks of Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Singapore in an effort to bolster financial markets in those countries and relieve investors’ anxieties. It brought to 14 the number of central banks that the Fed has entered into so-called swap arrangements for currency as a way to pump more liquidity into global credit markets, part of an effort that the Bank of England estimated has resulted in $5 trillion in support being put forward by governments worldwide.”

“Then Ephraim Went to Assyria…”

The Washington Post wrote on October 25:

“Since Sept. 1, about $16.3 trillion worth of global stock market value has been erased… this could be just the beginning of steep declines in the stock prices of major companies that depend on exports to the United States and Europe for much of their profit…

“Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he wanted the help of other countries. ‘This is a global financial recession, and we’re fighting it every way we know how, working with other countries, trying to get the banks moving here in Britain,’ he said.”

These are interesting comments from Gordon Brown in light of Hosea 7:11-12: “Ephraim [Great Britain] also is like a silly dove, without sense–They call to Egypt, They go to Assyria [Germany]. Wherever they go, I will spread My net on them; I will bring them down like birds in the air; I will chastise them According to what their congregation has heard.”

Note also Hosea 5:13: “When Ephraim saw his sickness And Judah his wound, Then Ephraim went to Assyria And sent to King Jareb [“Jareb” means, “contentious”]; Yet he cannot cure you Nor heal you of your wound.”

For more information, please read our free booklets, “Europe in Prophecy” and “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.

Controversial Horst Seehofer New Bavarian Premier

Deutsche Welle reported on October 25:

“Horst Seehofer… has promised his party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), he will exert heavy pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel… The CSU was replacing its leadership after a state election debacle last month in which the CSU lost its absolute majority and must enter a coalition. Delegates blamed the poll loss on Merkel, who leads the CSU’s ‘sister party,’ the Christian Democratic Union. Though both parties are broadly conservative, the CDU has rejected a CSU plan to offer a larger tax rebate to commuters, bigger exemptions for heirs from inheritance tax and other tax cuts…

“[The CSU delegates] approved with a huge majority [Seehofer’s] agreement with the smaller Free Democrat Party (FDP) to rule Bavaria jointly… For the first time in 46 years, the CSU is unable to rule the largely Catholic state of Bavaria without a coalition partner… Seehofer said his objective as premier replacing Guenther Beckstein would be to restore the CSU’s old strength, with 50 to 60 per cent of the popular vote.”

Seehofer resigned his post as the German minister of agriculture, to be able to become the new Bavarian premier. He came into the limelight recently due to his marital infidelity, his fathering of a child out of wedlock, and his subsequent denial of his ongoing extramarital adulterous affair, causing a temporary split-up within his family. However, according to Bild Online, when he was sworn in as the new Bavarian Premier on Tuesday, his wife and his two adult children were present during the ceremony.

Seehofer has the reputation of a controversial and unreliable politician. In an article, dated October 9, 2008, the German daily, Rhein-Neckar Zeitung, called him a “chameleon.” It continued: “Reliability does not count for him, but rather clever political tactics.” The paper stated that even his friends describe him as “fickle and as a political crank.” One Bavarian minister was quoted as saying in the past, “If Seehofer meddles one more time in my affairs, I’m going to slap him.”

Incredible… How America Is Losing its Way

WorldNetDaily reported on October 25:

“A Wisconsin pastor has been charged with felony physical abuse of a child after he spanked his 12-year-old son for lying and a teacher notified social services… [The minister] is free on a $10,000 bond, but he could face up to three years in prison and fines for disciplining his son… The boy said his father gave him two ‘swats’ that ‘hurt a little’ on his rear end in June…

“One of his siblings mentioned the spanking to a teacher, who called social services, according to the report. A June 7 report from the Divine Savior Healthcare emergency department indicated that the boy had slight bruising on his buttocks, but it said there was no swelling and he was not experiencing pain. The medical paperwork said the boy told physicians he didn’t think he was abused and he loves his father. The documents show the boy’s doctor does not believe he was abused, and he called the event a ‘social services fiasco.’…

“A judge ruled Thursday that the case will head to trial. Now jurors at the Columbia County Courthouse will decide whether the spanking constituted ‘reasonable discipline’ permitted under state law. The pastor’s 21-year-old daughter… stood outside with a sign that read, ‘Thank you for spanking me dad’ as a showing of support for her father.

“District Attorney Jane Kohlwey told the Portage Daily Register the spanking was not reasonable, because it left bruising, though [the pastor’s] attorney claims photographs only reveal red marks… [The charged pastor] has been forbidden from spanking any child as part of his bond.”

Medical Scandal–About Half of U.S. Doctors Knowingly Prescribe Useless Drugs

The Associated Press and USA Today reported the following on October 24:

“About half of American doctors in a new survey say they regularly give patients placebo treatments — usually drugs or vitamins that won’t really help their condition. And many of these doctors are not honest with their patients about what they are doing, the survey found… Placebos as defined in the survey went beyond the typical sugar pill commonly used in medical studies. A placebo was any treatment that wouldn’t necessarily help the patient… Half the doctors reported using placebos several times a month…

“In some cases, placebos were given to patients with conditions such as chronic fatigue syndrome. Doctors also gave antibiotics to patients with viral bronchitis, knowing full well that a virus is impervious to antibiotics, which fight bacteria. Experts believe overuse of antibiotics promotes the development of drug-resistant strains of bacteria.”

U.S. Raid in Eastern Syria Incurs Arab Wrath

The Time wrote on October 27:

“Sunday’s surprise raid by helicopter-borne U.S. troops in eastern Syria raises at least three key questions. Given that the U.S. is saying the number of volunteer fighters infiltrating Iraq from Syria has dwindled significantly in the past 18 months, why was this action deemed necessary? Does the raid signal a shift in U.S. tactics in the region? And with just over a week before the U.S. presidential election, why now?

“In what is thought to be the first such incursion from the Iraq side since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in March 2003, at least four U.S. helicopters crossed Iraq’s western border with Syria and attacked what officials in Damascus said was a half-constructed building in Sukkariyeh Farm, 5 miles from the Syrian frontier town of Abu Qamal. Eight people were reported to have been killed in the raid. Damascus ‘condemns this aggression and holds the American forces responsible,’ said the Syrian government in a statement that went on to demand that the Iraqi government launch an investigation into ‘this serious violation.’…

“This is not the first such raid into Syrian territory in recent years. In September 2007, Israeli jets bombed a site in northeast Syria suspected of being a nuclear facility…”

AFP added on October 27:

“US forces in Iraq staged a ‘successful’ raid into Syria against foreign fighters, an American official said on Monday, as a furious Damascus accused Washington of ‘terrorist aggression.’ Among those believed killed, the official said, was Abu Ghadiya, ‘one of the most prominent foreign fighter facilitators in the region.’… It was the first confirmed US action of its kind into Syrian territory and signalled that Washington is moving to the kind of aggressive tactics against insurgent sanctuaries along Iraq’s borders that it has been using with increasing intensity in Pakistan’s tribal border areas.

“‘We consider this criminal and terrorist aggression,’ Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem told a news conference in London after talks with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband. ‘Killing civilians in international law means a terrorist aggression,’ added Muallem, whose country’s official media said eight civilians were killed, including children. Asked if Syria would use force if the Americans mounted a similar operation again, he said: ‘As long as you are saying if, I tell you, if they do it again, we will defend our territories.’…

“The official press in Damascus blasted the attack as a ‘war crime’ by Bush’s administration. Damascus summoned the official US and Iraqi representatives in protest… The Arab League condemned the assault as a ‘violation which does nothing to help stability in the region and can only lead to new tensions,’ calling for those responsible to be held to account. In neighbouring Lebanon, Prime Minister… Siniora said the raid ‘constitutes a violation of Syrian sovereignty and thus is a dangerous, unacceptable attack that we condemn.'”

Der Spiegel Online reported on October 29:

“In Paris, the office of French President Nicolas Sarkozy released a statement Monday expressing ‘serious concern’ and calling for ‘the strict respect of the territorial integrity of states.’ Javiar Solana, the EU’s top foreign policy official, said that he was ‘worried’ and hoped matters would quickly return to normal. The foreign ministries of China and Russia both joined the chorus, focusing their criticism on US violation of Syrian territory… In Germany, responses to the attack have been fairly muted. Neither Chancellor Angela Merkel nor Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier have released statements on the incident. Some German commentators take a look on Tuesday.

“Left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes: ‘Whether the US action was a snafu or not, the question still remains: Why now? Nobody would deny that there has been a problem for years with jihadis streaming into Syria from all over the Arab world so that they can be smuggled into Iraq. But the fact is that, in the summer, it was the Americans themselves who announced to their relief that infiltrations in 2008 had already gone down by 50 percent. And the Syrians are becoming increasingly more aware of how the demons they have awoken have been turning back against them. Last month’s al-Qaida attack in Damascus, in particular, reinforced that lesson. By now, even the Syrians have become more interested in tightening up their border with Iraq. So why the current escalation? Is this the Bush administration’s way of waving goodbye to Syria?… To launch an attack on Syrian territory is also a shot across the bow of the Europeans who have been laboring for months both to strengthen ties with Syrian politicians and to encourage them to follow more constructive policies.’

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘As tasteless as it may sound given the deaths of eight people, the US attack on Syrian territory was a political warning… The question now is: How will the Syrians react? For President Assad, the American action has to be rather humbling in that his country’s sovereign territory has been breached by the US military and, in the process, not only alleged terrorists were killed, but also innocent civilians. The fact is that Syria’s 1980s army can’t provide a military response [to] the US operation. As things stand, Assad can only swallow his pride and increase efforts to keep underground fighters away from his borders. But he could also do the opposite and ratchet up the Iraq war to a new level. If that were to happen, the American[s] will have brought about the exact opposite of what they had meant to accomplish.'”

Iran’s “Preemptive Strike” Against Israel?

On October 10, 2008, haaretz.com reported the following:

“Senior Tehran officials are recommending a preemptive strike against Israel to prevent an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear reactors, a senior Islamic Republic official told foreign diplomats two weeks ago in London. The official, Dr. Seyed G. Safavi, said recent threats by Israeli authorities strengthened this position, but that as of yet, a preemptive strike has not been integrated into Iranian policy…

“Safavi said a small, experienced group of officials is lobbying for a preemptive strike against Israel… Safavi said Tehran recently drafted a new policy for responding to an Israeli or American attack on its nuclear facilities. While the previous policy called for attacks against Israel and American interests in the Middle East and beyond, the new policy is to target Israel alone. He added that many Revolutionary Guard leaders want to respond to a U.S. attack on Iranian soil by striking Israel, as they believe Israel would be partner to any U.S. action.”

Middle East Peace Talks on Hold

AFP wrote on October 28:

“Israel’s political parties decided on Tuesday to hold early elections on February 10, a decision that will leave US-backed Middle East peace talks in limbo for at least three more months… Both Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni’s centrist Kadima party and the right-wing Likud party of hawkish former premier Benjamin Netanyahu, the two frontrunners for prime minister, had pressed for holding elections as soon as possible. President Shimon Peres formally initiated the election process on Monday after Livni failed to assemble a new government coalition.

“Livni, 50, was elected as Kadima leader last month and hopes to take over as prime minister from Ehud Olmert, who stepped down in September over graft allegations but remains as caretaker premier.”

Russian-Chinese Cooperation

AFP wrote on October 28:

“Russia and China on Tuesday signed a long-awaited deal to build an oil pipeline from Siberia to China after talks between Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. The leaders watched as Chinese state energy major CNPC and Russian state pipeline monopoly Transneft signed the deal to build the pipeline from the Siberian town of Skovorodino to the Chinese border. The pipeline agreed on Tuesday would have a capacity of 15 million tons of oil per year and would be a branch of the main East Siberia-Pacific Ocean trunk pipeline, which is still under construction, officials said.”

Arabs Like and Dislike Obama

The New York Post wrote on October 28:

“‘OBAMA! Inshallah!’ – Obama! Allah willing! That slogan, scribbled on walls in Gaza, indicates the hopes that Barack Obama has inspired among Arabs. While Obama has tried to push his origins into the background, his ‘Islamic roots’ have won him a place in many Arabs’ hearts. One columnist, Mohamed Al-Menshawi, hails Obama as ‘the candidate with Muslim roots’ and as the ‘harbinger of solidarity between Americans and the Muslim world.’

“Another, Al-Jazeera’s Aala al-Bayoumi, notes: ‘Had it not been for Obama, Arabs would not even bother to follow the US presidential race.’ What makes the difference is Obama’s ‘Islamic and African roots.’…

“While radical Arabs, including the Hamas leadership, favor Obama, most Arab officials are wary of him. They fear his inexperience and leftist connections might destroy all that has been gained in Iraq, provoke a bigger mess in Afghanistan, trigger a war with Pakistan and open the way for Khomeinist hegemony in the region…

“Obama… has retained his Arabic-Islamic names. (Barack means ‘blessed’ and Hussein means ‘beautiful.’) His family name is Swahili, an East African lingua franca based on Arabic. Arab commentators note that his siblings also all have Arabic Muslim names. His sister is called Oumah, Arabic for ‘the community of the faithful’ [and] his older daughter, Malia, bears the name of a daughter of the Caliph Othman, who commissioned the compilation of the first edition of the Koran. That Obama’s stepfather was also a Muslim (from Indonesia) strengthens the empathy that many Arabs feel for him…

“Arabs welcomed and widely commented on Colin Powell’s assertion that, even if Obama were a Muslim, it should not be held against him… Not all Arab commentators are struck by Obamania, however. His flip-flops on issues – including the future of Jerusalem, withdrawal from Iraq and dealing with the Iranian nuclear threat – have prompted some to counsel caution.

“Tareq Al-Houmayed, editor of the daily Asharq Alawsat, warns Arabs not to expect too much: ‘Every American president would be governed by American interests…’ Abdulrahman al-Rashed, a Saudi commentator, also notes that no president can radically alter US global policies. He advises Arabs to neither have exaggerated hopes nor be dispirited when Obama tells the Israelis ‘more than they hoped to hear’ to win Jewish support.”

Obama and McCain — “Become Honest”…

The German daily, Rhein Neckar Zeitung, wrote on October 11/12, 2008:

“Obama and McCain continue to build more air castles… An almost impossible task waits for the victor of the presidential elections… And still, both candidates insist on maintaining plans that would cost tax payers trillions of dollars… Critics ask the candidates to become honest… The question for the next president is how quickly hopes of the voters will change into disappointment…”

The Associated Press wrote on October 28:

“Democrat Barack Obama’s ‘closing argument’ speech Monday included a sweeping accusation against GOP rival John McCain: ‘Senator McCain still has not been able to tell the American people a single major thing he’d do differently from George Bush when it comes to the economy.’ But the charge is debatable — McCain has several ideas that are different than Bush’s policy, which he touched on as recently as a Sunday interview on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’… The Obama campaign says the key word of Obama’s statement is ‘major,’ and the differences that McCain points to are minor details…”

On October 30, The New York Post wrote:

“Two leading infomercial stars agree: Barack Obama’s half-hour self-promotion last night was a flop. ‘I don’t see enough smiling. Doom and gloom totally,’ said Anthony Sullivan, one of the biggest names in infomercial history… He and AJ Khubani, who has produced infomercials for 25 years, said Obama also fell short of offering solutions to the dire problems he laid out… ‘We always spend much more time on the solution than the problem and he did the opposite,’ Khubani added.”

The Associated Press reported on October 28:

“A week from the presidential election, Republican John McCain is persisting in exaggerating and misrepresenting rival Barack Obama’s tax and health-care plans… McCain’s central claim — that people will be ‘forced’ into a new government-run [health-care] plan under an Obama presidency — is not true. In fact, Obama broke with many Democrats and others who advocate universal coverage when he announced his plan would be mandatory only for children, and voluntary for everyone else…”

Human-Animal Hybrids in the Making

AFP reported on October 23 about the following despicable developments in England:

“The lower house of parliament approved legislation Wednesday allowing scientists to create animal-human embryos for medical research, in the biggest shake-up of embryology laws in two decades… MPs in the House of Commons backed the Human Embryology and Fertilisation Bill by 355 votes to 129. It will now go to a vote in the House of Lords, and could be law by November.
 
“The wide-ranging bill… [also] gives lesbians and single women easier access to in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment by removing requirements for clinics to consider a child’s need for a father… Hybrid embryos [are] created by inserting the nuclei of a human cell into an animal egg…”

How the Abominable PAGAN Custom of Halloween Overtook Germany

Der Spiegel Online wrote on October 30:

“In the mid-1990s, few in Germany had ever heard of Halloween, and even fewer celebrated it. Now, it’s a €150 million a year industry… Most in Germany have never heard of Dieter Tschorn… but if one is looking for an explanation as to why millions of… Germans will be carving pumpkins, putting on costumes and begging for candy door-to-door, Tschorn is a good place to start. After all, more than anyone else, he is responsible for Halloween’s existence — and growing popularity — in Germany…

“Tschorn is a public relations consultant who went into business for himself in 1982. More to the point, however, he is also the spokesman for a division in Germany’s toy-making industry association responsible for Carnival, that annual season of costumed mayhem that culminates 40 days before Easter.

“Back in the early 1990s, Carnival was cancelled in Germany as a result of the first Gulf War — and those who make their living selling costumes and party supplies took a major hit. But the industry also had another important design flaw. Whereas the Carnival season always begins on Nov. 11, the timing of Easter can vary widely. Last year, for example, Easter fell on March 23, making the Carnival season just 87 days long, the shortest it had been since 1913.

“‘The shorter Carnival is, the lower our turnover — each week less represents a 5-percent drop in sales,’ Tschorn said. ‘We needed some consistency, which led to the idea to introduce Halloween in Germany.’

“It seems to have worked. In 2007, 4,600 tons of pumpkins were sold in Germany, says Tschorn. One can buy Halloween bread at the baker’s, Halloween sausage at the butcher’s, Halloween cocktails at the bar and, of course, Halloween candy in the nation’s supermarkets. Tens of thousands of German children now go door-to-door, holding out their bags and saying ‘sweet or sour,’ the German version of trick-or-treat.

“The Halloween promoter says that the holiday has become an industry worth around €160 million in Germany, in third place behind Christmas and Easter. In 1994, that number was close to zero. This year, the costume industry expects Halloween-related consumption to be 5 percent more than last year. ‘By the end of 1998, Halloween had become something of a cult,’ Tschorn said…

“Nevertheless, many in Germany aren’t nearly as excited as Tschorn is about the place Halloween has managed to carve out for itself in the country’s social calendar. The Evangelical Church is particularly irked that October 31st, the day on which Martin Luther launched the Reformation, is now more associated with a PAGAN HOLIDAY imported from Ireland via America than for Germany’s own contribution to religious history.”

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

Now…Global Bailouts Needed!

A relentless stream of devastating financial news from all over the globe highlights the repercussions of what first began in the US. The Christian Science Monitor reported the following on October 7, 2008:
 
“Battered by successive shocks, the world economy may be slipping into multicontinent recession.

“First, the housing bubble burst in the US and some European nations. Then soaring commodity prices hit countries around the world, especially poor food-importers. Now the bank turmoil wrought by the real estate downturn is spreading beyond Wall Street to other financial capitals.

“Ireland, Denmark, and France have declared a recession. Germany and Britain are teetering. Even the hot economies of India and China may suffer slowing growth.

“‘At this point it is a very fragile situation,’ says Eswar Prasad, an international economics professor at Cornell University and a fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. ‘There is a crisis of confidence more than anything else.'”

Pakistan Nears Bankruptcy

On October 6, 2008, the Telegraph.co.uk featured this somber financial report about the very politically unstable nation of Pakistan:
 
“Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves are so low that the country can only afford one month of imports and faces possible bankruptcy.”
 
The article also points out the dire impact this may have on its relationship with the US:
 
“The government is engulfed by crises left behind by Pervez Musharraf, the military ruler who resigned the presidency in August. High oil prices have combined with endemic corruption and mismanagement to inflict huge damage on the economy.

“Given the country’s standing as a frontline state in the US-led ‘war on terrorism’, the economic crisis has profound consequences. Pakistan already faces worsening security as the army clashes with militants in the lawless Tribal Areas on the north-west frontier with Afghanistan.”

Iceland’s Economy Collapses

Bloomberg.com reported on October 9:

“Iceland’s government seized control of Kaupthing Bank hf, the nation’s biggest bank, completing the takeover of a banking industry that has collapsed under the weight of its foreign debt…

“The banks are saddled with about $61 billion of debt, 12 times the size of the economy, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The government is seeking a loan from Russia and may ask for aid from the International Monetary Fund to help guarantee deposits. The central bank ditched an attempt to fix the krona yesterday as the currency went into freefall.

“‘This looks like a total collapse,’ said Thomas Haugaard Jensen, an economist at Svenska Handelsbanken AB in Copenhagen. ‘It’ll take several years before the economy can start to return to growth.'”

The article continues with this shocking assessment:

“The debts of the Icelandic banking system are too big for the government to repay.

“‘There is no way that the Icelandic population can assume responsibility for the private debt’ that the banks have built up, [Prime Minister] Haarde said yesterday.”

European Nations Not United In Moment Of Crisis

CNN.com reported this week on the reaction of governments across Europe to the global financial meltdown:

“While Europe’s four largest economies pledged to coordinate national responses to help banks in distress, their failure to agree an EU-wide plan showcased the divisions in Europe on how to deal with the crisis.”

Reporting on Europe’s frenzied attempts at coordinating a response to the financial crisis, The New York Times (10/4/2008) stated:

“After days of squabbling, the leaders of Europe’s largest economies vowed Saturday to work together to stop a growing financial panic, but they failed to offer a systemwide answer to a credit crisis that has forced them to bail out several banks in just the past week.”

The Times article continued:

“Sharply criticizing what they said were the American roots of what has become a global credit crisis, Europe’s leaders insisted it was time for the European Union to act decisively.

“We are fully aware of the responsibility that weighs on our shoulders,” said President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, who hosted the gathering at the sumptuous Élysée Palace here.

“The crisis has become the biggest financial challenge for European policymakers since the introduction of the euro as a Continent-wide currency in 1999.”

The Timesonline (10/6/2008) recounted the the failed attempt on the part of France to face the growing financial crisis in a unified stance:

“President Sarkozy’s ambition of leading a united Europe through the global financial turmoil appeared to have sunk last night as Angela Merkel moved to guarantee German savings.

“The German Chancellor’s initiative may have torpedoed Mr Sarkozy’s aim of ensuring coordinated action on crisis-hit banks in the European Union. It came less than 24 hours after the French president had summoned Gordon Brown, Mrs Merkel and Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister, to a summit in Paris designed to devise a EU strategy in the face of the upheaval. The move irritated EU leaders who were not invited, such as José Luis Zapatero, the Spanish Prime Minister.

“Critics said that the snub would complicate the already difficult task of producing a single EU policy on the crisis. The obstacles were underlined in the final document from the Paris meeting, which contained vague commitments from Europe’s biggest economies to work together. There were few hard decisions other than the establishment of a £25 billion fund to support small business unable to secure loans from their banks in the credit crunch.

“A plan floated by France and the Netherlands for a €300 billion bank rescue fund had been blocked by Britain and Germany even before the meeting had started. Mrs Merkel was always reticent to adopt the French approach of solidarité, which she saw as a roundabout way of asking Germany to finance rescue packages in other countries.

“Her go-it-alone deposit guarantee measure – which came after she criticised the Irish Republic for doing almost the same thing – blew another hole in Mr Sarkozy’s dream. He had seen the crisis as a chance to impose France’s vision of a federal Europe and a regulated economy.”
 
Europe’s fragmented approach has not been reassuring. Shocking steps are being taken to secure the financial stability of banks and investment firms–with the outcome moving Europe’s powerful core nations to take steps toward the nationalization of their economies. What lies ahead for the European Union is graphically described in our free booklet, “Europe In Prophecy.”

Pope Challenges Godlessness and Bible Understanding

An AP article appeared in Yahoo! News on October 5, 2008, reporting on a meeting of bishops during which the Pope made critical remarks about the role of religion:
 
“Pope Benedict XVI warned Sunday that modern culture is pushing God out of people’s lives, causing nations once rich in religious faith to lose their identities”
 
Continuing… “‘Today, nations once rich in faith and vocations are losing their own identity, under the harmful and destructive influence of a certain modern culture,’ said Benedict, who has been pushing for religion to be given more room in society.”
 
The article also had the following significant statements:
 
“A document prepared for the meeting rejects a fundamentalist approach to the Bible and said a key challenge was to clarify for the faithful the relationship of scripture to science. A rabbi will address the conference on Monday in what is believed to be the first time a Jew has participated in such a meeting.”
 
Concerning the address by a rabbi, Inquirer.net (10/04/2008) quoted Shear-Yashuv Cohen, Grand Rabbi of Haifa, Israel:

“Cohen told the Washington-based Catholic News Service in Jerusalem that his invitation was a ‘signal of hope (bringing) a message of love, coexistence, and peace for generations.'”

The article continued…

“He was due to speak on the Jewish interpretation of the Bible, whose first five books comprise the Torah, Judaism’s most holy sacred writings.

“Benedict has continued the conciliatory steps taken by his predecessor, Polish-born John Paul II, to improve inter-faith relations, but has sometimes stumbled.

“Most recently he allowed the reintroduction of a controversial Good Friday prayer calling for the conversion of Jews.

“However in April the German-born pontiff won some Jewish hearts and minds when he became the first leader of the Roman Catholic Church to visit a synagogue in the United States.”
 
An article appearing in the Houston Chronicle on October 3, 2008, adds some detail to the Catholic view of the Bible and its use:
 
“Of equal concern to the bishops is how Catholics understand Scripture when and if they read it. The synod’s official agenda notes the increasing popularity of ‘fundamentalism,’ which it says ‘takes refuge in literalism and refuses to take into consideration the historical dimension of biblical revelation.’

“Earlier this month, Benedict himself stated that a proper understanding of the Bible ‘excludes by its nature everything that today is known as fundamentalism” and insisted that the “word of God can never simply be equated with the letter of the text.’

“As they reaffirm the church’s teaching authority, or magisterium, the bishops will also discuss the compatibility of Catholic doctrine with modern methods of interpretation that Catholic scholars have increasingly adopted since Vatican II.”

The article also cited the following:

“Catholics over the age of 50 are old enough to remember when the church discouraged nonclergy from acquainting themselves with Scripture, apart from selections quoted in their catechisms or read aloud at Mass. But that traditional attitude has shifted amid the many dramatic changes in Catholicism that began in the 1960s.”

Iran vs. Israel–“The Day of Reckoning Is Near”

On September 27, The Daily News published the following opinion by Mr. Baer, a former CIA case officer. Mr. Baer is the author of the just-released book, “The Devil We Know: Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower”:

“Are we going to have an October surprise, an attack on Iran by either the Bush administration or by Israel to stop the regime from becoming a nuclear power? It could happen – and alter the dynamics of the presidential race in the blink of an eye – but only if Israel pulls the trigger. Don’t expect the United States to drop bombs anytime soon. The reason: Iran has us over a barrel.

“According to Britain’s Guardian newspaper, Bush earlier this year nixed an Israeli plan to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities. Reportedly, the President said no because we couldn’t afford Iranian retaliation against our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan or Iran closing down Persian Gulf shipping… Iranian Silkworm missiles could close down Gulf oil exports in a matter of minutes, taking about 17 million barrels a day of oil off world markets. Americans could suddenly be looking at the prospect of $10-$12 for a gallon of gas… An angered Iran could punish us with thousands of extra casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan, as Iranian-trained, armed and funded fighters flow back into the war zones with a vengeance…

“But none of this changes the fact that Israel – on its own, without U.S. complicity – is moving closer to a decision to attack Iran, almost by the day. What many Americans miss is that Iran is a threat to Israel’s very existence, not an imagined danger used by politicians for political advantage. Every Israeli city is within range of Iranian/Hezbollah rockets. To make matters worse, since the July 2006 34-day war, Hezbollah may have as much as trebled the number of rockets it has targeted on Israel.

“Meantime, Hezbollah has become the de facto state in Lebanon. And lest we forget, Israel lost that July 2006 war to Hezbollah, pulling its troops out of Lebanon without having obtained a single objective. In other words, Israel no longer has its deterrence credibility, the fear that it can decisively retaliate against its enemies…

“Israel has to calculate that American influence around the world is on the wane. Americans are tired of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And now, after the war in Georgia, Russia is opening up its flow of weapons to Iran… [Israel] is starting to believe that it has no choice but to change its fortunes with arms… The day of reckoning is near.”

New Toothless Security Council Resolution Against Iran

AFP reported on September 27:

“The UN Security Council on Saturday unanimously adopted a resolution again urging Iran to suspend its sensitive nuclear fuel work but offering no new sanctions and merely reaffirming existing ones…

“US Ambassador to the UN Zalmay Khalilzad immediately welcomed the adoption of the resolution by all 15 council members… Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, who Friday ruled out any new sanctions for now, told reporters after the vote: ‘[The] added value of this resolution is in channelling the thinking of everybody in the direction of political rather than military enterprise.’

“Western diplomats had expressed fears that a lack of action by the Security Council might have led Israel to carry out its threat to resort to military action to ensure that its mortal enemy, Iran, does not acquire nuclear weapons… The United States and its European allies had pushed for new, tougher sanctions against Tehran but ran into resistance from Russia and China.”

Iran’s New Gas Pipeline with Europe

The EUObserver wrote on September 26:

“Iran oil minister Akbar Torkan has said Tehran wants to build a $4 billion, 37 billion cubic metre a year gas pipeline to the EU, newswires report. The ‘Pars Pipe’ would bypass Russia and be an alternative to the EU’s favoured Nabucco.”

Next–Conflict over Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh?

The EUObserver reported on September 26:

“Azerbaijan is sticking to plans to reduce oil exports to the EU and increase shipments to Russia and Iran… In the immediate aftermath of the Georgian crisis Azerbaijan decided as a temporary move to reduce shipments through Europe’s only direct import route from the energy-rich Caspian Sea… and to increase exports to Russia… Unlike Russia-critical Ukraine, Azerbaijan has remained silent over Russia’s invasion of Georgia despite disruptions caused to its oil business.

“With presidential elections coming up on 15 October, Azerbaijan’s head of state, Ilham Aliev, is trying to strike a balance between a re-assertive Russia and the West, especially since his country also has a frozen conflict on its own territory. The majority-Armenian populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh split from Azerbaijan in a civil war in 1991 and remains under Armenian occupation, with Russia and Armenia enjoying close ties. An alleged Armenian-Russian link during the Georgian conflict was highlighted by the chairperson of the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, who asked EU’s foreign policy chief Javier Solana in a public hearing on 10 September if Russian bases in Armenia were used to launch missiles at Georgia during the conflict…

“During a visit in Baku last week, the United States’ chief mediator in the region, Matthew Bryza, said it was more important than ever to resolve the dispute after the Russia-Georgia war. ‘The recent events in Georgia underscore the importance of a timely resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,’ he said, adding that the US strongly support[s] the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.”

Far-Right’s Strong Gains in Austrian Elections

AFP reported on September 28:

“Austria’s far-right notched up the strongest gains in snap parliamentary elections Sunday, while the two main parties, the Social Democrat SPOe and centre-right OeVP, slumped to historic lows.

“The SPOe and the OeVP, whose ‘grand’ coalition held power for just 18 months, held on to the first and second places again this time round, according to preliminary estimates… But voter dissatisfaction with the left-right coalition, which collapsed in bitter disarray three months ago, meant the two parties lost valuable votes to the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) and Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZOe).

“According to an estimate…, the Social Democrat SPOe scored 29.2 percent of the vote and the centre-right People’s Party or OeVP came second with 24.9 percent. The far-right Freedom Party or FPOe saw its score jump by 7.3 percentage points to 18.3 percent. Joerg Haider’s BZOe nearly trebled its showing at 11.5 percent, while the environmentalist Greens came fifth with 9.8 percent… Final results will be published on October 6, after some 586,700 absentee ballots — almost ten percent of the electorate — have been tallied.”

The Associated Press added on September 28:

“At this point, the two right-wing parties were not expected to join forces due to resistance from Freedom Party chief Heinz-Christian Strache. However, Joerg Haider, leader of the Alliance for the Future of Austria, has suggested it is something worth thinking about. And Strache on Sunday suggested he was interested in becoming chancellor.”

Austria’s Far Right

Der Spiegel Online wrote the following on September 29:
 
“… But will Strache be the kingmaker? As a young man, Strache played paramilitary games with known neo-Nazis in the forests of Carinthia, and he has been forced to admit having had close ties with the now-outlawed right-wing extremist ‘Viking Youth’ group. But now he plays the part of a Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes and demands that he be given an important role in the future government, and he even drops rather big hints that he has his eyes set on becoming chancellor. Newcomers, immigrants and asylum seekers — they will all have to brace themselves for what lies ahead, as will the political system in the Alpine state. That’s because Strache isn’t the type of person concerned with making peace; he’s much too interested in using some heavy rhetorical baiting… And he loves to speak out against foreigners…

“Strache is in no way the only one who has benefited from the Austrians’ frustration at the political status quo. His former mentor, Jörg Haider and his right-wing Alliance for Austria’s Future (BZÖ) party were able to pull in 11 percent of the vote — or almost three times as much as they did in the last elections… Haider’s success was the biggest surprise of the election.

“Though they were once close, Haider and Strache have now completely fallen out. Strache accuses his former mentor of having betrayed the FPÖ. Following a disagreement, Haider abandoned the FPÖ in 2005 and founded the BZÖ. But political observers in Vienna are already asking themselves what would happen if the two rivals were to patch up their differences and join forces into an alliance… If they did so, the whole political power structure in Austria would be thrown into complete confusion.

“Together, the FPÖ and the BZÖ would have 29 percent of the vote, which would put them at eye level with the SPÖ. Even if the far right is fragmented into two parties, it is still stronger than it ever has been. Indeed, it is in an even stronger position than it was in 1999, when Haider made the FPÖ the second-strongest party with 27 percent of the vote…

“After the 1999 election, then party chairman Wolfgang Schüssel scored an historic coup: By pulling Haider’s FPÖ, which secured the third most votes, into the government, he not only snapped the chancellery away from the Social Democrats, but also ended a decades-long tradition of joint Christian- and Social Democratic rule. For years, Schüssel gloated about the fact that — by including the right-wing populist FPÖ into his government as well as its leading figure Haider — he had helped to eliminate the far-right’s mystique. But Sunday’s election result has proved otherwise.”

Rightwing Populism on the Rise in Europe

The Financial Times wrote on September 30:

“In 2000, Austria was shunned by most of its European Union partners after Wolfgang Schüssel invited the far right Freedom party into a coalition with his conservative People’s party. Eight years later, the possible return to government of the extreme right is high on the political agenda again after two far right parties scored massive gains in Sunday’s general election. But even if the far right re-enters the halls of power, political pundits expressed confidence yesterday that there would be no repetition of Austria’s isolation.

“That is largely because of a shift in Europe’s political landscape since Vienna was ostracised. Rightwing populism has gained ground amid fears of unfettered immigration and anxieties about crime and social security abuses by foreigners… another grand coalition [in Austria] could ultimately benefit the far right. Some Austrian analysts believe that Mr Haider and Mr Strache might one day even feel bold enough to form a government themselves…”

Bavaria’s Disastrous Elections–Are Big Changes Coming in Germany?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 29:

“Bavaria’s Christian Social Union has lost its absolute majority after suffering its worst election result in over half a century. German commentators warn that the consequences of the CSU decline could be felt far away in Berlin… The sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats may have ended up with 43.4 percent of the vote but in Bavaria that is the equivalent to a political debacle. The CSU has grown used to an absolute majority in state elections and a monopoly on power in Bavaria, German’s largest and richest state. Only five years ago the party experienced its second highest vote of 60.7 percent.

“Following the ousting of long-time leader Edmund Stoiber last year a new leadership duo was put in place but neither Governor Günther Beckstein nor CSU party head Erwin Huber have shone and supporters have defected to both the pro-business Free Democrats and the conservative protest group the Freie Wähler (free voters.) Now the CSU faces the novel task of having to court potential coalition partners.

“The left, however, failed to capitalize significantly on the Bavarians’ dissatisfaction with the CSU. The Social Democratic Party (SPD), despite a recent change of leadership in Berlin, saw its vote actually fall below its abysmal 2003 tally while the Left Party didn’t quite make it past the 5 percent hurdle to secure seats in parliament…

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung, which is based in the Bavarian capital Munich, writes:

“‘The unthinkable has happened: The CSU has not only lost its absolute majority, but it can no longer govern Bavaria without a coalition partner…’

The conservative Die Welt writes:

“…’The CSU disaster is something of a mystery. Five years ago Stoiber achieved 60.7 percent, the second best state election result in the party’s history. However, soon afterwards the people and the party were united in wanting rid of the governor … Stoiber was pushed out of office in a putsch — and it was done completely openly. The CSU knew that they didn’t want him anymore. But they had no idea what they wanted instead. Now they are paying the price.’…

“The financial daily Handelsblatt writes:

“Politics will be exciting over the next few months not just in Bavaria but at the federal level. The union must now show whether the disaster in Bavaria rips it out of its lethargy or if it will go on dozing. They can no longer rely on the big win in the south balancing out weak results in the north. It should now be clear … that the CDU and the CSU have not yet won the 2009 federal elections… The worse the economic problems are perceived, the less Merkel’s policy will bear up. Like Huber and Beckstein she has believed that she will be rewarded for the economic upswing. Now she will have to rush to find an alternative route to that of the two crash pilots.'”

America Tries to Threaten and Blackmail Europe

The Daily Mail wrote on September 29:
 
“American anti-terror chiefs are threatening to withdraw the Visa Waiver Scheme for British and European tourists unless the EU signs an agreement on the new measures before Christmas. Under the US Homeland Security scheme, all travellers – including children – without a visa must fill out a detailed online questionnaire about their health and criminal history at least three days before departure…

“The measures have caused concern among European leaders and data protection authorities, with the EU demanding assurances about how the information will be used, who will have access to it and how long it will be kept…

“Michael Chertoff, director of the Department of Homeland Security, has called a halt to negotiations and is warning the European Commission that it must agree to the measures before the end of the year… The blunt rebuttal to EU concerns comes after the influential American Civil Liberties Union warned: ‘The negotiations under way between US security agencies and their European counterparts over the transatlantic transfer of personal data are just the latest of . . . the Bush Administration’s attempts to collect the personal information of an increasing share of the world’s population…”

Tight Cooperation Between Russia and Venezuela

The Los Angeles Times wrote on September 27:

“Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was feted here Friday with what are emerging as the trademark tokens of Russian favor: oil and gas deals; the promise of nuclear cooperation; and, most significant, a $1-billion loan to buy weapons. Moscow agreed to lend Venezuela money to buy a wide variety of Russian weaponry and hardware… Reminiscent of Soviet loans to its Cold War allies, the deal is among a number gradually binding the two oil-rich governments, whose ties with the U.S. are strained, into tight cooperation… Russia sent a pair of strategic bombers to Venezuela this month for training exercises… In November, Russia is expected to dispatch warships for exercises in Venezuelan waters…

“In recent years, [Chavez’s] country has ordered more than $3 billion of Russian weapons and military hardware, including helicopters, missile defense systems and dozens of fighter jets. Russia also has sold Venezuela about 100,000 assault rifles and started work on two Kalashnikov plants in Venezuela…

“During Friday’s meetings, Putin also said that Russia was ready to cooperate with Venezuela on nuclear energy. Their ministries signed a memorandum of understanding that sets out plans for an energy consortium. The deal would give Russian companies greater access to fields in Venezuela, which would reap billions of dollars in Russian investments.”

Largest Bank Failure in US History

The Associated Press reported on September 26:

“As the debate over a $700 billion bank bailout rages on in Washington, one of the nation’s largest banks — Washington Mutual Inc. — has collapsed under the weight of its enormous bad bets on the mortgage market.

“The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. seized WaMu on Thursday, and then sold the thrift’s banking assets to JPMorgan Chase & Co. for $1.9 billion.

“Seattle-based WaMu, which was founded in 1889, is the largest bank to fail by far in the country’s history. Its $307 billion in assets eclipse the $40 billion of Continental Illinois National Bank, which failed in 1984, and the $32 billion of IndyMac, which the government seized in July… The seizure by the government means shareholders’ equity in WaMu was wiped out.”

The Failed Bail-Out Plan

The New York Times wrote on September 29:

“The collapse of the proposed rescue plan for the teetering financial system was the product of a larger failure — of political leadership in Washington — at a moment when the world was looking to the United States to contain the cascading economic crisis.

“From the White House to Congress to the presidential campaign trail, the principal players did not rally the votes they needed in the House. They appeared not to comprehend or address in a convincing way an intense strain of opposition to the deal among voters. They allowed partisan politics to flare at sensitive moments.

“If there was any doubt that President Bush had been left politically impotent by his travails over the last few years and his lame-duck status, it was erased on Monday when, despite his personal pleas, more than two-thirds of the Republicans in the House abandoned the plan.

“While there were lawmakers who opposed the package on the merits, with Election Day just five weeks away, substantial numbers decided that to favor the bill would be to imperil their own political futures. And once the vote was under way and so few Republicans were voting aye, Democrats were disinclined to force more of their members to help pass the unpopular plan.

“The leaders of both parties failed, many analysts agreed, in bringing the measure to the House floor without knowing whether it had the votes to pass — a bad move at any time, but especially so in this case given the risk of the markets and the badly weakened financial system reacting badly…

“The candidates to replace Mr. Bush, Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama, were far from Washington, bit actors at best in helping to resolve a crisis that one of them will inherit… The episode underscored that Mr. Bush’s credibility and political clout, long gone among Democrats, is lacking among Republicans as well.”

After Rejection of Bail-Out Plan—Biggest Single-Day Loss EVER

CNNMoney.com reported on September 29, 2008:

“Stocks skidded Monday… in the biggest single-day point loss ever, after the House rejected the government’s $700 billion bank bailout plan. The day’s loss knocked out approximately $1.2 trillion in market value, the first post-$1 trillion day ever… The Dow Jones industrial average lost 777.68, surpassing the 684.81 loss on Sept. 17, 2001 – the first trading day after the September 11 attacks.”

The Los Angeles Times added on September 29:

“Stocks plunged today as the House of Representatives shocked Wall Street by voting down the government’s proposed $700-billion financial-system bailout. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 700 points as the vote was being concluded and investors realized that the uncertainty that pervaded Washington and Wall Street last week would continue this week… The vote threw another monkey wrench into an already chaotic stock market, with investors speculating about when and whether the rescue measure would be resurrected and how the troubled credits markets would fare in the meantime…

“An agreement by Citigroup Inc. to take over the banking operations of troubled Wachovia Corp. in a government-brokered deal — plus a series of bailouts of major banks in Europe overnight — served as a reminder that some large banks remained at risk. Stocks around the world fell hard overnight as news of the European bailouts raised fear that the financial crisis is increasingly infecting banks outside the United States.”

America’s Long Recession

AFP wrote on September 30:

“A vacuum of fear is causing a desperate shortage of funds in the interbank system, despite infusions from central banks, and is a critical factor in pressures that have brought down many top names in US and European banking… Around the world officials and commentators used the language of disaster and despair to describe the possible impact of further delay in US action on the world economy and especially the interbank lending system…

“Former World bank chief economist and Nobel economics prizewinner Joseph Stiglitz [said]… ‘We will have other dramatic failures of financial institutions. The American economy is headed into a long recession.'”

Europe Feels the Heat

Reuters reported on September 29:

“The governments of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg moved to partly nationalize Belgian-Dutch group Fortis NV with an injection of more than $16 billion. German lender Hypo Real Estate Holding AG secured a credit line from the German government and banks of up to 35 billion euros.

“British mortgage lender Bradford & Bingley Plc was brought under the government’s wing. Shares of French bank Dexia tumbled on a report it might need emergency capital, and bank rescue deals also emerged in Iceland, Russia and Denmark.

“‘The contagion is spreading to mainland Europe and everyone’s asking, “Who’s next?”‘ said Mark Sartori, head of European sales trading at Fox-Pitt, Kelton in London…

“In the Fortis rescue, the governments of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg agreed to inject 11.2 billion euros ($16.4 billion) into the banking and insurance company, which has 85,000 staff worldwide.”

Germany Blames USA For Financial Crisis–Which May Be Hypocritical

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 26:

“Germans were reacting to the finger-wagging performance of German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrück before the federal parliament, the Bundestag, on Thursday. ‘The world will never be the same as it was before the crisis,’ Steinbrück told German lawmakers. ‘The US will lose its status as the superpower of the global financial system.’ His speech blamed Wall Street’s ‘blind drive for double-digit profits’ and insufficient regulation for the crisis…

“In Friday’s papers, German commentators digest Steinbrück’s comments in a number of ways. In general, though, none of them appear ready to gloat — and none of them are ready to believe that the danger has passed.

“The center-right Frankfurter Allegemeine Zeitung writes:

“‘It’s the rhetoric of Sept. 11. … But this crisis actually has much larger dimensions than the attack against the twin towers and collapse seven years ago. Why? Because, this time, the attack on all-American doctrines is not the work of some foreign enemy. It comes from within, from the depths of the system. Largely unobstructed by its own state controls, American capitalism has created its own suicide bomber whose explosives — derivatives — have had an even greater effect than the flying bombs of the jihadists. The whole world — and not just New York — has a new ground zero now — Wall Street.’

“‘Germany will also pay a high price for the sins of the US financial system — higher even than the €320 million that the KfW so prematurely transferred to the bankruptcy administrators of Lehman Brothers. Even if German banks and the German credit system are spared from the chain reaction of a crash, the aftereffects on this side of the Atlantic will be plenty painful: shrinking growth, higher unemployment and less room to maneuver.’

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes:

“‘There’s no doubt that Steinbrück was right on a lot of points. But the finance minister’s droning self-righteousness was completely out of place. And it can’t distract us from the fact that he hasn’t provided answers on a number of important issues. You can start by taking a look at continuing economic developments. Steinbrück is now trying to propagate the theory that the US financial crisis is stabbing Germany’s solid economy in the back. But that is nonsense, as can be seen with a cursory glance at the pertinent figures, which show that the economic downturn had already begun much earlier. Steinbrück also gave no hint at how he will handle the foreseeable slump. There wasn’t much more than the impassioned warning of hard times ahead.’…

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:

“‘The government in Washington is trying to plaster over this crisis with strong words — and with strong acts, by bracing itself against the crisis with a $700 billion rescue plan. But… it could still go awry. Were that to happen, there might be a chain reaction: Banks could go belly up, one after the other; lending institutions could constrict the amount they grant in loans; the crisis could overwhelm the real economy; and companies could start going into tailspins. And in the end, just as Bush is warning us, millions of jobs could be lost. This could happen, but it doesn’t have to. If governments, central banks and overseers really take the right steps, and if they can boost the economy and not just rescue the speculators by buying them, it might be possible to get past this crisis. But it will presumably take a long time. However, if politicians and overseers continue to make as many mistakes as they have in the last few years, disaster awaits us.'”

A Country on Its Way Down

The German magazine, Der Stern, wrote the following on September 30:
 
“The suicidal ‘No’ of the American Congress shows the downfall of the USA… ‘We are dealing with a government which is unable to function in times of great need,’ economic commentator Paul Krugman said sadly, but correctly. ‘A group of insane people acts in Congress, and nobody trusts the White House anymore. We are a banana republic with atomic weapons.’… President Bush… is now lamer than a lame duck… Wall Street is dead… What is left is a weak, insecure America. A country on its way down. It has to come soon to its senses, so that it does not continue to drag along [or destroy] the entire world…”
 
Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 30, under the headline, “The End of Arrogance”:
 
“The banking crisis is upending American dominance of the financial markets and world politics. The industrialized countries are sliding into recession, the era of turbo-capitalism is coming to an end and US military might is ebbing. There are days when all it takes is a single speech to illustrate the decline of a world power. A face can speak volumes, as can the speaker’s tone of voice, the speech itself or the audience’s reaction. Kings and queens have clung to the past before and humiliated themselves in public, but this time it was merely a United States president. Or what is left of him… Even America’s closest allies are distancing themselves — first and foremost the German chancellor…
 
“Economists now characterize what began two years ago with falling prices in the American real estate market as the biggest economic disaster since the world economic crisis of the 1930s. No one knows whether and how the meltdown of global financial markets, which would have grave consequences for the world economy, can still be prevented. And now, of all times, the world is faced with a preeminent power that no longer seems capable of leading and a US president who is not even able to unite his divided country in an hour of need.”

US Senate Attempts to Save Bailout

The United States Senate met in an urgent attempt to respond to America’s money crisis.

CNN Money.com reported on late Wednesday, October 1:
 
“The Senate on Wednesday night passed a sweeping and controversial financial bailout similar in key ways to one rejected by the House just two days earlier.”
 
The article continued, “The legislation, if passed by the House, would usher in one of the most far-reaching interventions in the economy since the Great Depression.”

Needed–A Plan to Rescue Us from the New Bailout Plan

The Associated Press announced on September 25:

“Warned of a possible financial panic, key Republicans and Democrats reported agreement in principle Thursday on a $700 billion bailout of the financial industry and said they would present it to the Bush administration in hopes of a vote within days… ‘I now expect that we will indeed have a plan that can pass the House, pass the Senate (and) be signed by the president,’ said Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah. The bipartisan consensus on the general direction of the legislation was reported just hours before President Bush was to host presidential contenders Barack Obama and John McCain and congressional leaders at the White House for discussions on how to clear obstacles to the unpopular rescue plan.”

WHY is that plan so “unpopular”?

On September 19, The Financial Times wrote in more detail about the proposed plan of the federal government to rescue or bail out troubled banks. This “magnificent” plan proposes that the government borrows money to buy bad loans from troubled banks for the purpose of wiping out most of them, thereby freeing those troubled banks from their problems and allowing them to borrow more money. Of course, ultimately the tax payer will have to bleed for these grandiose concepts. In addition, note what the Financial Times writes:

“A copy of the draft legislation, obtained by Reuters, also calls for raising US borrowing authority to $11.315 trillion [the U.S. national debt is right now about $9.6 trillion]… The political negotiations on the rescue plan, which followed a week of unprecedented stress in global financial markets, envisage the most extensive peacetime expansion of the role of government in the financial system since the Great Depression and appeared to many to mark the end of an era of Reaganite deregulation.”

The Financial Times added on September 24:

“The cost of the Treasury plan to save the US financial system from collapse cannot be estimated because it is too vague, Peter Orszag, head of the Congressional Budget Office, told legislators on Wednesday. At a hearing before the House budget committee, Mr Orszag said: ‘The secretary would have the authority to purchase virtually any asset, at any price, and sell it at any future date; the lack of specificity regarding how that authority would be implemented makes it impossible at this point to provide a quantitative analysis of the net cost to the federal government.’

“But Mr Orszag added that the CBO, which analyses the cost of legislation on a non-partisan basis, expected the Treasury to ‘fully use’ the $700bn authority in the fiscal year of 2009 it is demanding. Over time, he said, the government would recover some of that money, but the extent to which this would happen could not be estimated…

“Meanwhile, new data showed that existing home sales dropped by 2.2 per cent in August, which was much worse than expected and highlighted the continuing downturn in the US housing market.”

President Bush: USA in Serious Financial Crisis

Reuters reported on September 24:

“President George W. Bush on Wednesday said the United States was in a serious financial crisis as he tried to convince Americans to support a $700 billion financial rescue plan… He warned that ‘the market is not functioning properly,’ there is widespread loss of confidence, major sectors are at risk, and more banks could fail and threaten sending the U.S. economy into recession. ‘We must not let this happen,’ Bush said.”

“Almost Armageddon” –Until Next Time…

The New York Post wrote on September 21:

“The market was 500 trades away from Armageddon on Thursday… Had the Treasury and Fed not quickly stepped into the fray that morning with a quick $105 billion injection of liquidity, the Dow could have collapsed… money market funds were inundated with $500 billion in sell orders prior to the opening…

“The panicked selling was directly linked to the seizing up of the credit markets… and the rumors of additional money market funds ‘breaking the buck,’ or dropping below $1 net asset value. The Fed’s dramatic $105 billion liquidity injection on Thursday (pre-market) was just enough to keep key institutional accounts from following through on the sell orders and starting a stampede of cash that could have brought large tracts of the US economy to a halt.”

“An Economic Pearl Harbor”–And “No Plan B”!!!

Bloomberg wrote on September 24:

“Billionaire investor Warren Buffett, calling the market turmoil ‘an economic Pearl Harbor,’ said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s $700 billion proposal to prop up the U.S. financial system is ‘absolutely necessary.’

“‘The market could not have taken another week’ like last week, Buffett told CNBC today… ‘I think it was the last thing Hank Paulson wanted to do, but there’s no Plan B for this’… The economy is ‘everybody’s problem,’ he said…”

Germany Blames USA and Britain for Present Financial Crisis

Deutsche Welle reported on September 20:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel… said her government had tried in vain to win G8 support last year for tighter regulation of hedge funds and financial oversight of capital markets, hinting that she felt vindicated in her stance as a financial disaster unfolded on Wall Street in recent days… In a separate interview with a Munich newspaper, Muenchner Merkur… Merkel criticized the US and British governments for obstructing Germany’s efforts in the first half of 2007 to bring greater transparency to the markets… the United States and Britain ‘did not back this to the degree required,’ she said.”

Germany and Great Britain Won’t Participate in Bailout

Der Spiegel wrote on September 22:

“On Sunday US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson then called on foreign governments to launch… bailouts for their own banks… But the governments of Germany and Great Britain have shaken their heads…

“Michael Meister, the deputy head floor whip of Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU)… said the US could be laying a foundation for the next crisis with its multibillion dollar bailout… Joachim Poss, deputy parliamentary whip for the center-left Social Democrats, also rejected calls from Washington to participate in the bailout. ‘The Americans can’t make Germany liable for their own failure and arrogance. A similar action is neither planned nor necessary in Germany,’ he said…

“In Britain, Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the BBC: ‘People were taking risks that were excessive — and that was mainly in my view in America and we are paying a price for what has come out of America.'”

“The US System Is Collapsing…”

The Los Angeles Times wrote on September 20:

“… the economic meltdown that wrought its wrath from Rome to Madrid to Berlin this week brought Europeans together in a harsh chorus of condemnation of the excess and disarray on Wall Street.

“The finance minister of Italy’s conservative and pro-U.S. government warned of nothing less than a systemic breakdown. Giulio Tremonti excoriated the ‘voracious selfishness’ of speculators and ‘stupid sluggishness’ of regulators. And he singled out Alan Greenspan, the former chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, with startling scorn. ‘Greenspan was considered a master,’ Tremonti declared. ‘Now we must ask ourselves whether he is not, after [Osama] bin Laden, the man who hurt America the most. . . . It is clear that what is happening is a disease. It is not the failure of a bank, but the failure of a system. Until a few days ago, very few were willing to realize the intensity and the dramatic nature of the crisis… The system is collapsing, exactly like the Albanian pyramids collapsed,’ Tremonti said…

“The crisis threatens to worsen woes — inflation, unemployment, weak growth — of regional powerhouses including Britain, Spain and Italy… Among the European economies, it is Britain’s that most resembles America’s in its vulnerability… ‘The financial tsunami that has engulfed Wall Street since the weekend hit these shores yesterday,’ the Daily Telegraph declared in an editorial Thursday… ‘The spectacle across the ocean has left a lasting [negative] impression on many Europeans…”

New US-German Tensions Over Relations with Russia

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 22:

“A US diplomat has denounced the controversial Baltic natural gas pipeline… [and has] ruffled feathers in Berlin and highlighted growing US-German tensions over relations with Russia.

“Michael Wood… has been the US ambassador to Sweden for the past two years… He wrote that the pipeline represents ‘a special arrangement between Germany and Russia’ that ‘bypasses the Baltic States and Poland,’ which are ‘potential customers.’ Wood calls for the EU to speak ‘with a single voice to counteract the power of Russia’s energy weapon.’

“… Rüdiger von Fritsch, head of economic affairs at the German Foreign Ministry, promptly called up the American embassy in Berlin and demanded an explanation. Von Fritsch said the German government was ‘annoyed’ by this highly ‘unusual’ approach.

“On the other end of the line, Deputy Chief of Mission John Koenig said that he was surprised by the ambassador’s statements. He underscored that the US position remains unchanged: Washington will issue no comment on the private pipeline deal… Nevertheless, the incident has created an air of suspicion…

“German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his team are afraid that the American slip-up has let the cat out of the bag on how the US actually views the issue. Sources inside the German Foreign Ministry say that for months US diplomats have been working behind the scenes to undermine the proposed 1,200-kilometer (745-mile) underwater pipeline between the Russian port of Vyborg and Greifswald, Germany. They say that the Americans fear the pipeline will increase Western Europe’s dependency on Russian gas and make it more vulnerable to blackmail.

“The dispute over the undersea pipeline threatens to divide the US and Europe, just as the Georgian crisis has done… When it comes to Russia, politicians in Washington generally view Germany with suspicion. They accuse the Germans of being so dependent on Russian gas that they don’t dare speak their mind to the Russian strongman, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

“But the Baltic States, Poland and the Scandinavians are also uneasy about the pipeline. They are afraid that Moscow and Berlin have made a special deal… Chancellor Merkel, who had already warned of the dependency on Russian gas before taking office, now supports the project without reservations.”

Needed–A New Currency Order?

Reuters wrote on September 17:

“Threatened by a ‘financial tsunami,’ the world must consider building a financial order no longer dependent on the United States, a leading Chinese state newspaper said on Wednesday… The People’s Daily is the official newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party, and the overseas edition is a smaller circulation offshoot of the main paper. Its pronouncements do not necessarily directly reflect leadership views, but this commentary by a professor at Shanghai’s Tongji University suggested considerable official alarm at the strains buckling world financial markets…

“The commentary suggested China must brace for grave economic fallout and look to alternatives, saying the crisis brings to mind the Great Depression of the 1930s. ‘Lehman Brothers’ announced bankruptcy will not only have a domino effect on the global financial world, it will bring a shock to the world economy,’ the front-page comment stated.”

China Banks Told to Halt Lending to U.S. Banks

Reuters reported on September 25:

“Chinese regulators have told domestic banks to stop interbank lending to U.S. financial institutions to prevent possible losses during the financial crisis, the South China Morning Post reported… [It] cited unidentified industry sources as saying the instruction from the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) applied to interbank lending of all currencies to U.S. banks but not to banks from other countries.”

Apocalypse–Now?

On September 21, the British paper, The Daily Mail, published an article which dealt with the possible outcome of the present worldwide financial crisis. Although much of what is predicted in the article is pure nonsense–such as, that the current crisis will destroy the Euro–some of the opinions are worthwhile considering. Here are some excerpts:

“Almost exactly seven years ago Al Qaeda terrorists targeted their hijacked planes into the Twin Towers at the heart of New York’s financial centre — and the world was transformed. There were no deaths this week, but the effects of the carnage on the financial markets will be far more profound and destabilising than the 9/11 atrocity…

“The seismic events which have seen the near-destruction of the investment banking sector and the collapse of insurance giant AIG are on the scale of the Great Crash of 1929. That was such a disaster because it created conditions for the emergence of fascism in continental Europe and then World War II. Although it is hard to predict the consequences, we should expect ramifications of equal significance — including the re-emergence of violent Far Right parties across the globe.

“Some experts were talking this week as if the financial crisis was nearly over. They could not be more wrong. The downturn has only just begun — and for most citizens uninvolved with finance the consequences have not been felt at all. But they will be felt very soon and very brutally. The British economy is in the same position as the Texan coast earlier this month as Hurricane Ike approached — apparently calm, with life going on as normal, but an almighty storm is raging just over the horizon and heading our way with terrifying speed.

“We [in Britain] can expect a sharp increase in personal bankruptcies. Yet the numbers will not peak until this time next year at the earliest. Hundreds of thousands of people will lose their jobs, with many forced to sell their houses. Property prices will slump. There will be extreme human suffering, panic and despair. Many careers will be destroyed. This is considerably worse than the downturn of the early 1990s… Banks will foreclose on thousands of small businesses. Massive corporate failures are inevitable…

“But the biggest worry is what will happen in the U.S. Ever since the end of World War II, America has been the world’s policeman. It has been able to play this role, and see off perceived enemies, such as Soviet Russia and Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, because for the past 60 years it has been the greatest global economic power. The most important question facing the world today is whether the U.S. — already crippled by the estimated $2 trillion cost of financing the Iraq occupation — can afford to continue its global role. The historical precedent is far from encouraging… America’s global dominance — already threatened by the emergence of rival economic powers such as China — may soon be coming to its end…

“The world that will emerge from the Great Crash of 2008, therefore, will be dark and unpredictable.”

What the Russians Left In Their Wake in Georgia

On September 24, The Wall Street Journal wrote the following:

“Having devastated vast areas of its own lands in the Caucasus, such as Chechnya and Ingushetia, in order to ‘protect’ them from instability, Moscow’s obliterating shadow has settled deep over Georgia — with the usual consequences. The full barbarism of Russian actions in Georgia may not emerge for years; much of the evidence lies behind the lines in terrain newly annexed by Russia. But some details are now beyond dispute.

“Alongside the various human atrocities, such as the bombing and purging of civilian areas, the invaders looted and destroyed numerous historical sites, some of which were profoundly revered by the Georgians as sacred building blocks in their national identity. This is especially true of the region around South Ossetia that served as a kind of cradle of early Georgian culture…”

Get Ready for Iran’s Nuclear Weapons

The Associated Press reported on September 24:

“Iran is nearing the ability to arm a nuclear warhead even if it insists its atomic activities are peaceful, the European Union warned Wednesday… the EU also asserted that Iran appeared to have had a past nuclear arms program despite its denials… Israel says the Islamic Republic could have enough nuclear material to make its first bomb within a year. The U.S. estimates Iran is at least two years away from that stage, and some experts say the country could reach that stage in as little as 6 months through uranium enrichment… To date, Iran has produced nearly 1,000 pounds of low-enriched uranium… close to… the 1,500-pound minimum needed to produce the 45-60 pounds needed for a simple nuclear bomb under optimal conditions…”

Russia Sabotages Sanctions on Iran

Reuters wrote on September 24:

“Iran is posing a crucial challenge to the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the EU and the United States said during a debate at an IAEA board of governors meeting. But they threatened no action, reflecting differences among six world powers negotiating with Iran over what to do after Russia snubbed a U.S.-led campaign for tough sanctions on Iran…

“‘The (IAEA) report presents a decidedly bleak picture. We now seem at a particularly critical juncture, with Iran now asserting there is nothing for the agency to investigate as far as possible military dimensions to its nuclear program are concerned,’ Germany, France and Britain, among the six big powers, said in a joint statement to the governors’ meeting… Foreign ministers of the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China scrapped talks this week to discuss a fourth round of sanctions after Moscow pulled out, a few days after an abortive meeting on the matter in Washington.”

Tensions Between Moscow and Washington Could Worsen Other World Crises

Deutsche Welle reported on September 24:

“Germany’s foreign minister [Frank-Walter Steinmeier] warned Wednesday recent tensions between Moscow and Washington could worsen a number of world crises after high-level talks on Iran’s disputed nuclear program were scrapped… Steinmeier said the US decision to pull out of a planned meeting of foreign ministers from the Group of Eight industrialized nations had led Russia on Tuesday, in a tit-for-tat move, to drop out of talks of the so-called 3+3 on Iran bringing together the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany… ‘We’re going in the wrong direction, I am completely convinced of that,’ Steinmeier said…

“Relations between Washington and Moscow have been tense since the five-day Georgia war last month. The US has recently attempted to exclude Russia from several G8 conference calls and called for internationally isolating Moscow. In his final speech at the General Assembly, US President George W. Bush accused Russia of having violated the UN charter with what his administration has called a premeditated invasion of Georgia, a former Soviet territory. The Russian Foreign Ministry called on the US to declare how it intended to maintain relations with Russia…”

Iran “Blasts” USA

The Associated Press reported on September 23:

“Iran’s president addressed the U.N. General Assembly Tuesday declaring that ‘the American empire’ is nearing collapse and should end its military involvement in other countries… He accused the U.S. of starting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to win votes in elections and blamed a ‘few bullying powers’ for trying to undermine [Iran’s] nuclear program…

“Ahmadinejad also lashed out at Israel on Tuesday, saying ‘the Zionist regime is on a definite slope to collapse, and there is no way for it to get out of the cesspool created by itself and its supporters.’ The Iranian president is feared and reviled in Israel because of his repeated calls to wipe the Jewish state off the map, and his aggressive pursuit of nuclear technology has only fueled Israel’s fears.

“Ahmadinejad accused ‘a small but deceitful number of people called Zionists … (of) dominating an important portion of the financial and monetary centers as well as the political decision-making centers of some European countries and the U.S.’…

“His speech came just hours after President Bush made his eighth and final appearance before the U.N. General Assembly, urging the international community to stand firm against the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea. ‘A few nations, regimes like Syria and Iran, continue to sponsor terror,’ Bush said…”

Pakistani Troops Fire at U.S. Helicopters

Reuters reported on September 25:

“Pakistani troops fired on U.S. helicopters which had crossed into Pakistan from Afghanistan on Thursday, the Pakistani military said. In a conflicting version of the incident, the U.S. military denied the aircraft had flown into Pakistani territory. There were no casualties nor were the helicopters damaged, NATO said.

“The shooting took place amid rising tension between Pakistan and the United States — normally close allies in the U.S-led ‘war on terror’ — after U.S. troops launched missile attacks and a helicopter-borne ground assault into Pakistan this month. The Islamabad government condemned those raids and said it would not tolerate any infringement on its territory.”

And Now… North Korea Becomes Again a Nuclear Threat

Reuters reported on September 24:

“North Korea has expelled U.N. monitors from its plutonium-making nuclear plant and plans to start reactivating it next week, rowing back from a 2007 deal to scrap its atomic bomb program…

“North Korea… [is] angry at Washington for not taking it off its terrorism blacklist… Washington says it will de-list Pyongyang once it allows inspectors to verify claims it made about nuclear arms output… Before Yongbyon’s shutdown, U.S. officials estimated North Korea had produced about 50 kg (110 pounds) of plutonium, which experts said would be enough for six to eight nuclear weapons.”

U.S. Pastors Plan to Defy IRS Ban on Political Speech

The Los Angeles Times wrote on September 25:

“Setting the stage for a collision of religion and politics, Christian ministers from California and 21 other states will use their pulpits Sunday to deliver political sermons or endorse presidential candidates… The pastors’ advocacy could violate the Internal Revenue Service’s rules against political speech with the purpose of triggering IRS investigations. That would allow their patron, the conservative legal group Alliance Defense Fund, to challenge the IRS’ rules, a risky strategy that one defense fund attorney acknowledges could cost the churches their tax-exempt status. Congress made it illegal in 1954 for tax-exempt groups to publicly support or oppose political candidates…

“[33] pastors who have signed on to the ‘pulpit initiative’ have sparked loud condemnations by fellow clergy and advocates of the separation of church and state. These critics… argue that Sunday’s sermons at churches in Oregon, Texas, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and other states will violate federal tax law by politicizing the pulpit…

“‘The integrity of the religious community is at stake when religion and politics become entangled,’ said… Eric Williams of the North Congregational United Church of Christ in Columbus, Ohio. Williams was recruited for the defense fund but instead joined with 54 other Christian and Jewish clergy members to file a complaint against the initiative with the IRS… Representing the religious leaders are three Washington attorneys, all former IRS officials, who also filed a complaint accusing defense fund attorneys of violating IRS rules by helping the churches break federal law.

“Meanwhile, a separate group of 180 ministers, rabbis and imams also has sought to counter the ‘pulpit initiative.’ Members of the Interfaith Alliance — which includes the nation’s top Episcopal bishop — have signed a pledge to refrain from electioneering in their houses of worship. ‘Political activity and political expressions are very important, but partisan politics are . . . . a death knell to the prophetic freedom that any religious organization must protect,’ said… Ed Bacon, rector of All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, who signed the pledge.

“All Saints survived a nearly two-year IRS investigation after former Rector George Regas spoke out against the Iraq war on the eve of the 2004 presidential election. Bacon repeatedly said the church did not engage in campaigning. The IRS dropped the case last year even though agency officials indicated that they still considered the sermon to be illegal.”

Dangerous War Preparations

The International Herald Tribune wrote on September 14:

“The Bush administration is pushing through a broad array of foreign weapons deals as it seeks to re-arm Iraq and Afghanistan, contain North Korea and Iran, and solidify ties with onetime Russian allies. From tanks, helicopters and fighter jets to missiles, remotely piloted aircraft and even warships, the Department of Defense has agreed so far this fiscal year to sell or transfer more than $32 billion in weapons and other military equipment to foreign governments, compared with $12 billion in 2005. The trend, which started in 2006, is most pronounced in the Middle East, but it reaches into northern Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe and even Canada… 

“The United States is far from the only country pushing sophisticated weapons systems: It is facing intense competition from Russia and elsewhere in Europe, including continuing contests for multibillion-dollar deals to sell fighter jets to India and Brazil…

“About 60 countries get annual military aid from the United States, $4.5 billion a year, to help them buy these American weapons. Israel and Egypt receive more than 80 percent of that aid. The United States has also recently given Iraq and Afghanistan large amounts of weapons and other equipment…

“The United States has long been the top arms supplier to the world. In the past several years, however, the list of nations that rely on the United States as a primary source of major weapons systems has greatly expanded. Among the recent additions are Argentina, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Georgia, India, Iraq, Morocco and Pakistan… Cumulatively, these countries signed $870 million worth of arms deals with the United States from 2001 to 2004. For the past four fiscal years, that total has been $13.8 billion…

“In the Gulf region, much of the re-armament is driven by fears of Iran. The United Arab Emirates, for example, are considering spending as much as $16 billion on U.S.-made missile defense systems… Saudi Arabia, this fiscal year alone, has signed at least $6 billion worth of sales agreements to buy weapons from the U.S. government – the highest figure for that country since 1993, which was another peak year in U.S. weapons sales, after the Gulf War. Israel, long a major buyer of U.S. military equipment, is also increasing its orders, including planned purchases of perhaps as many as four American-made coastal warships, worth $1.9 billion.”

Israel Prepares for a Strike Against Iran

The Jerusalem Post wrote on September 14:

“The US Department of Defense has notified Congress of a potential sale to Israel of 1,000 smart bombs capable of penetrating underground bunkers, which would likely be used in the event of a military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities… The bomb Israel wants is the GBU-39, developed in recent years by the US as a small-diameter bomb for low-cost, high-precision and low-collateral damage strikes. Israel has also asked for 150 mounting carriages, 30 guided test vehicles and two instructors to train the air force in loading the bombs on its aircraft.

“The GPS-guided GBU-39 is said to be one of the most accurate bombs in the world… Tests conducted in the US have proven that the bomb is capable of penetrating at least 90 cm. of steel-reinforced concrete…

“In its recommendation to Congress, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency wrote that Israel’s strategic position was ‘vital to the United States’ interests throughout the Middle East.’… The agency’s announcement came amid growing concern that the Pentagon was not willing to sell Israel advanced military platforms such as bunker-buster missiles in an effort to dissuade Jerusalem from attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities. Bunker-buster missiles would be a fundamental component of an air strike against Iran, since many of the nuclear facilities, such as the Natanz uranium enrichment complex, have been built in underground, heavily fortified bunkers.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to Become New Prime Minister?

BBC News reported on September 18:

“Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni is beginning the task of putting together a new government after her election as leader of the ruling Kadima party. She has 42 days to form a coalition and replace Ehud Olmert as prime minister… The Islamist movement, Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, said it expected no change in Israel’s policy towards the Palestinians… The centre-right opposition Likud party of former prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, which is currently leading in the polls, immediately called for a general election…

“If she can form a fresh governing coalition within the next six weeks, Ms Livni will become Israel’s first woman prime minister since Golda Meir stepped down in 1974. The BBC’s Tim Franks in Jerusalem says that will be no easy task, and if it were to end in failure, general elections will follow in a further three months.”

Russia’s Provocations Continue… While Europe Gives In… Again…

Deutsche Welle reported on September 17:

“Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed friendship treaties with Georgia’s breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia on Wednesday and promised them the backing of Russia’s armed forces… The deals were signed in the face of widespread global condemnation of Russia’s incursion into Georgia… In a speech after the signing ceremony in the Kremlin, Medvedev said Russia was committed to defending Abkhazia and South Ossetia from any Georgian attempts to reclaim the two enclaves. Georgia has insisted the two regions be returned to Tbilisi’s control…

“Just hours after the signing of the treaties, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said the European Union may resume talks on a cooperation agreement with Russia, even if Moscow maintains a military presence in Georgia’s separatist regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. On Sept. 1, EU leaders attending an emergency summit in Brussels agreed to postpone talks on a new Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) with Russia until Russian troops ‘have withdrawn to the positions held prior to Aug. 7.'”

The EUObserver reported on September 17:

“France, Germany, Spain and Italy are leaning toward pulling Georgia and Ukraine into the EU over the next 10 or more years, but keeping them out of NATO to avoid antagonising Russia. The UK is keen on both NATO and EU membership for the pair, Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza writes.”

With the exception of the UK and some Eastern European states, Europe’s conduct in this entire affair has been deplorable. Europe’s cowardice towards Russia has been clearly dictated by political and economic interests, and Europe has demonstrated that it is willing to turn its back on an ally in the pursuit of its own purposes.

Russia’s Alliances with Iran, Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua

The Times wrote on September 18:

“Russia snubbed its nose at the United States today by announcing plans to sell military equipment to both Iran and Venezuela… Reports have circulated for some time that Russia is preparing to sell its S-300 surface-to-air missile system to Iran, offering greater protection against a possible US or Israeli attack on the Islamic republic’s nuclear facilities. The missiles have a range of more than 150 kilometres and can intercept jets approaching at low altitudes.

“Ruslan Pukhov, director of the Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies in Moscow, said that it was logical to conclude a lucrative contract with Iran ‘in the current situation, when the US and the West in general are stubbornly gearing toward a confrontation with Russia.’ Russia has already delivered 29 Tor-M1 missile systems under a $700 million deal with Iran in 2005.

“Sergei Chemezov, the head of state-owned Russian Technologies also disclosed that Venezuela’s leader Hugo Chavez wanted to buy anti-aircraft systems, armoured personnel carriers, and new SU-35 fighter jets when they come into production in 2010… Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, one of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s closest allies, has visited Venezuela and Cuba this week… Mr Sechin travelled to Nicaragua yesterday as part of Russia’s efforts to revive its influence on America’s doorstep in Latin America. Nicaragua was the only state to join Russia in recognising the independence of Georgia’s breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia…”

Palin Ready to Go to War With Russia?

The EUObserver wrote on September 9:

“US Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has backed Georgia’s NATO membership in a television interview, while leaving open the option of war with Russia if it were to attack a NATO ally. In an interview with ABC News, Ms Palin was asked whether the United States would have to go to war with Russia if it invaded Georgia, and the country was part of NATO, Ms Palin said: ‘Perhaps so’…

“Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned on Thursday (11 September)… that tensions between Russia and the EU may well worsen if the planned US missile defense shield is deployed in Poland, threatening yet once more to point Russian missiles at European targets… Mr Putin fiercely defended Russia’s invasion of Georgia, accusing the West of ‘anti-Russian hysteria’ and saying that if this military operation had not been carried out, it would have been like Russia ‘getting a bloody nose and hanging its head down.'”

How German Paper “Die Welt” Saw Palin’s Interview With ABC

Die Welt wrote on September 12:

“Vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s assertion that she believes humans play a role in climate change – made in her first major interview since joining the Republican ticket – is at odds with her previous statements… ‘Show me where I have ever said that there’s absolute proof that nothing that man has ever conducted or engaged in has had any effect or no effect on climate change. I have not said that,’ Palin told ABC News in an interview broadcast Thursday and Friday. However, in the past Palin has said she does not believe global warming is caused by human activity. She has told the Internet news site Newsmax, ‘A changing environment will affect Alaska more than any other state, because of our location. … I’m not one, though, who would attribute it to being man-made…’

“She also… [a]ppeared unsure of the Bush doctrine – essentially that the United States must help spread democracy to stop terrorism and that the nation will act pre-emptively to stop potential foes. Asked whether she agreed with that, Palin said: ‘In what respect, Charlie?’ Gibson pressed her for an interpretation of it. She said: ‘His world view.’ That prompted Gibson to say ‘no, the Bush doctrine, enunciated September 2002, before the Iraq war’ and describe it to her… Asked three times what her position would be if Israel felt threatened enough to attack Iranian nuclear facilities, Palin repeatedly said the United States shouldn’t ‘second guess’ Israel’s steps to secure itself.”

U.S. Faces “Once-in-a-Century” Financial Crisis

AFP reported on September 14:

“The United States is mired in a ‘once-in-a century’ financial crisis… former Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan said… [adding] that the crisis… still had a long way to go and would continue to effect home prices in the United States… Asked whether the crisis, which has seen the US government step in to bail out mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, was the worst of his career, Greenspan replied ‘Oh, by far’… [He] also predicted that the financial crisis would see the failure of more major financial institutions, even as embattled Wall Street investment giant Lehman Brothers scrambled to find a buyer.”

U.S. Financial Mess Deepens

Reuters reported on September 15:

“Global markets plummeted on Monday after investment bank Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection, rival Merrill Lynch agreed to be taken over and the Federal Reserve threw a life line to the battered financial industry… a deepening crisis took new, bigger victims…

“The events signal a seismic shift in Wall Street’s power structure with big name investment banks biting the dust and major banks like Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase becoming the survivors. ‘It’s a return to pure capitalism, the survival of the fittest — the government can’t and won’t bail everybody out,’ said Justin Urquhart Stewart, investment director at 7 Investment Management in London. Bank of America agreed to buy Merrill Lynch in an all-stock deal worth $50 billion, seeking a bargain as the world’s largest retail brokerage sought refuge from fears it could be the next victim.

“‘It’s just shockingly fast how it happened,’ an employee for Merrill in Asia said. ‘It’s hard to believe there will be no more Merrill Lynch,’ he said…

“Asian and European stock markets tumbled… Shares in U.S. banks trading in Frankfurt tumbled… The euro jumped to as high as $1.4479, up 1.7 percent from Friday, while U.S. Treasury yields dropped to five-month lows…

“With Lehman and Merrill out of the picture, three of the top five U.S. investment banks have effectively departed the scene inside six months…

“Britain’s Barclays emerged as a front-runner to buy Lehman late on Sunday after Bank of America pulled back, but it was deterred by the U.S. government’s unwillingness to provide a financial backstop to potential losses.

“The New York Times also reported that AIG, once the world’s largest insurer, had made an approach to the Federal Reserve seeking $40 billion in short-term financing…

“One of the catalysts for this weekend’s events was the stance of U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who opposed using government money to resolve the Lehman crisis after a week earlier bailing out mortgage lenders Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, wary of accusation of encouraging excessive risk-taking by bailing out the bank.”

“Black Sunday” Affects Europe

Der Spiegel Online reported on September 15:

“Financial authorities tried to shore up confidence on Monday as world markets plummeted following ‘Black Sunday’ on Wall Street where Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection and Bank of America took over Merrill Lynch.

“Europe’s big central banks pumped liquidity into the financial system to calm investors… The European Central Bank conducted a one-day tender for €30 billion… The Bank of England and Swiss National Bank also provided liquidity as Asian and European stock markets tumbled. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of leading European shares fell 5 percent, led by falling bank stocks such as UBS, down 10 percent. The Dax index of leading German [banks] fell as much as 4.7 percent to its lowest level in two years.
 
“Fears of a global crash swept through markets on Monday… The German finance ministry, the Bundesbank central bank and the Bafin financial supervisory authority all tried to restore calm in German markets with a joint statement saying the exposure of German banks to Lehman was manageable.”

For further discussion on the worldwide financial crisis, listen to our new StandingWatch program on Global Depression. It is posted on StandingWatch, Google Video and YouTube.

U.S. Housing Market Still Very Unstable

The Wall Street Journal wrote on September 17:

“A steep decline in new home construction last month to a 17-year low suggests that the hoped-for stabilization of the housing market — key to boosting the U.S. economy — is still a ways off. Construction of new homes dropped by 6.2% in August to a seasonally adjusted 895,000 annual rate, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. Construction of multifamily units fell sharply. Single-family home construction fell by a smaller amount…”

Stocks Fall and Gold Rises, as Federal Reserve Bails Out AIG

The Associated Press reported on September 17:

“Gold prices soared Wednesday, notching the biggest one-day advance ever as mounting credit market turmoil prodded jittery investors to pull money out of equities and into safe-haven assets. Gold’s huge rally came as the government moved overnight to rescue troubled insurer American International Group Inc. with an $85 million bailout loan. The Federal Reserve stepped in after AIG, teetering on collapse from losses tied to the subprime crisis and the credit crisis, failed to find adequate capital in the private sector.

“Fearing more tightening of credit markets, investors reacted swiftly and began dumping stocks and socking money into gold, silver and other safe-haven commodities. Gold is especially attractive during times of crisis because the metal is known for holding its value.”

AIG Bailout–Abuse of Taxpayer Money?

Die Welt wrote on September 17:

“For the second time this month, the U.S. government intervened to bail out a private financial company, saying the failure of the huge insurer American International Group Inc. would further disrupt markets and threaten the already fragile economy… The Federal Reserve said Tuesday it would provide up to $85 billion in an emergency, two-year loan to rescue AIG… In return, the government will get a 79.9 percent stake in AIG and the right to remove senior management.

“The move was similar to the government’s seizure on Sept. 7 of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, where the Treasury Department said it was prepared to put up as much as $100 billion over time in each of the companies if needed to keep them from going broke. Both moves were bound to raise questions about the use of taxpayer money to bail out private firms…

“The decision to help AIG marked a reversal from the government’s move over the weekend, when it refused to use taxpayer money to bail out Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. Lehman, which filed for bankruptcy protection Monday, collapsed under the weight of mounting losses related to its real estate holdings…

“The central bank also pumped $70 billion into the nation’s financial system to help ease credit stresses. In emergency sessions over the weekend, the Fed expanded its loan programs to Wall Street firms, part of an ongoing effort to get credit flowing more freely…”

The Collapse of Lehman and AIG–Bad and Good News for Europe?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 17:

“America’s central bank has saved Wall Street insurance giant AIG from failure, but a federally insured German fund could be facing €6 billion in liabilities following the collapse of investment bank Lehman Brothers…

“World markets Wednesday briefly reversed their slides after a sudden bailout by the United States Federal Reserve of the American insurance giant American International Group (AIG) — which on Tuesday joined Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch in a brutal series of Wall Street failures. But by late morning, Germany’s blue chip DAX index was headed south again, with investors doubting that the worst is over…

“Stock markets have been sliding worldwide since Bank of America announced a deal to buy Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday. The Lehman failure is said to be the largest bankruptcy in history and it could also have massive implications for Germany. Lehman Brothers’ German subsidiary is a member of the Deposit Guarantee Fund of the Association of German Banks (BdB); and the fund, backed by Germany’s biggest banks, could be required to cover up to €6 billion of Lehman’s liabilities… The fund’s liability can only be reduced if parts of Lehman’s German subsidiary are sold — and that could present a serious problem.

“According to Germany’s Finance Ministry, the Deposit Guarantee Fund has only $4.6 billion at its disposal… Experts noted… that if the amount reaches €6 billion it would be the largest single loss in the history of a German fund…

“On Tuesday, news emerged that the German state lender KfW had transferred €300 million to Lehman Brothers the day it filed for bankruptcy in an erroneous swap — a transaction in which two parties agree to exchange one stream of cash flows against another, according to Reuters. The transfer exposed the government lender to €300 million in losses, triggering criticism from the Finance Ministry, which demanded a ‘swift explanation of such a technical failure.’

“But other German companies viewed Monday’s development and the announcement of the AIG bailout as an opportunity to step into the lucrative American financial market — just as the British bank Barclays announced a deal to buy Lehman Brothers’ core businesses for what the New York Times described as a ‘fire-sale price’ of $1.75 billion.

“AIG provides insurance not just for consumers but also for large Wall Street investment firms against just the sort of credit crisis that has brought Lehman and Merrill to their knees. German insurance giants like Allianz and Munich Re are openly on the lookout for Lehman-style bargains… given a strong euro and a relatively weak dollar…”

Washington Mutual for Sale?

The Associated Press reported on September 18:

“Ailing bank Washington Mutual Inc. appeared headed toward a sale Wednesday… The New York Times, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter, said an auction of the bank was already under way, and The Wall Street Journal reported Wells Fargo & Co. and Citigroup Inc. expressed interest in a takeover. WaMu, Wells Fargo and Citigroup all declined to comment…

“After losing $6.3 billion in the past three quarters, Washington Mutual believes it is slowly healing under a new chief executive, Alan Fishman, who will receive an $8 million bonus if he can keep WaMu alive through 2009… Nonetheless, analysts still expect the company to sustain a loss of about $1.8 billion in the quarter ending Sept. 30… The company’s stock fell 31 cents to $2.01 Wednesday, leaving the stock price with a decline of 85 percent so far this year. The erosion has left WaMu with a market value of about $3.5 billion—down from $43 billion at the end of 2006.”

“Who Will Bail Out Uncle Sam?”

CBS reported on September 17:

“The federal government may seem like a financial knight on a white steed riding to the rescue of big companies in trouble. The irony is that Uncle Sam’s got enormous money problems of his own. The government is far deeper in debt than any of the companies it’s bailing out.

“As of this morning, the national debt stands at over $9.634 trillion. That’s trillion – with a ‘T.’ And that’s nearly $4 trillion more than it was on the day President Bush took office. This year alone, it’s costing taxpayers more than $230 billion just to pay the interest on the national debt.

“And it’s getting bigger every day thanks to the relentless rush of the government spending money it has to borrow. The federal deficit for the fiscal year ending September 30 is expected in the range of $400 billion – close to the all-time high. In fact, the government doesn’t have the $85 billion needed to bailout insurance giant American International Group. The treasury department announced this morning it would auction new debt to raise funds for the Federal Reserve’s rescue plan for AIG… But where does the federal government go when it needs a bailout? Taxpayers need only look in the mirror.”

“The Greatest Destruction of Financial Wealth the World Has EVER Seen”

The Washington Post wrote on September 17:

“Having pumped $100 billion into the banking system, and lent another $115 billion to rescue Bear Stearns and AIG, the Federal Reserve was forced to ask the Treasury yesterday to borrow some extra money to replenish its coffers… This is what a Category 4 financial crisis looks like. Giant blue-chip financial institutions swept away in a matter of days. Banks refusing to lend to other banks. Russia closing its stock market to stop the panicked selling. Gold soaring $70 in a single trading session. Developing countries’ currencies in a free fall. Money market funds warning they might not be able to return every dollar invested. Daily swings of three, four, five hundred points in the Dow Jones industrial average.

“What we are witnessing may be the greatest destruction of financial wealth that the world has ever seen…”

“In the end, however, there is only so much the government can borrow and so much the government can do. The only other choice is for Americans to finally put their spending in line with their incomes and their need for long-term savings… But if everyone cuts back at roughly the same time, a recession is almost inevitable. That’s a bitter pill in and of itself, involving lost jobs, lower incomes and a big hit to government tax revenues. But it could be serious trouble for regional and local banks that have balance sheets loaded with loans to local developers and builders who will be hard hit by an economic downturn. Think of that… as the inevitable second round of this financial crisis that, alas, still lies ahead.”

The New York Times added on September 18:

“The Dow industrials closed up more than 400 points [on Thursday], but there was little relief from the paralysis that has gripped the credit markets.”

US FINANCIAL CRISIS–“The World As We Know It Is Going Under”

Der Spiegel wrote on September 19:

“Panic is the word of the hour on Wall Street…

“The bad news on Wall Street was coming thick and fast. All the US indexes were crashing again after Tuesday’s brief and deceptive breather. In its wild, rollercoaster ride, the Dow Jones lost about 450 points, which was almost as much as it lost on Monday, the most catastrophic day on US markets since 2001… Things got worse after the markets closed. Washington Mutual, America’s fourth-largest bank, announced that it had started the process of putting itself up for sale. The Wall Street Journal reported that both Wells Fargo and the banking giant Citigroup were interested in taking over the battered American savings bank.

“And then came the announcement that would dominate all of Thursday’s market activities: Morgan Stanley — the venerable Wall Street institution and one of the last two US investment banks left standing — had lost massive amounts and was fighting for survival. Media reports were saying that it was even in talks about a possible bail-out or merger. Rumor had it that possible suitors might include Wachovia or China’s Bank Citic…

“In fact, it really does look as if the foundations of US capitalism have shattered. Since 1864, American banking has been split into commercial banks and investment banks. But now that’s changing. Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch — overnight, some of the biggest names on Wall Street have disappeared into thin air. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are the only giants left standing. Despite tolerable quarterly results, even they have been hurt by mysterious slumps in prices and — at least in Morgan Stanley’s case — have prepared themselves for the end…

“Many are drawing comparisons with the Great Depression, the national trauma that has been the benchmark for everything since. ‘I think it has the chance to be the worst period of time since 1929,’ financing legend Donald Trump told CNN. And the Wall Street Journal seconds that opinion, giving one story the title: ‘Worst Crisis Since ’30s, With No End Yet in Sight.’

“… the era of the unbridled free-market economy in the US has passed — at least for now. The near nationalization of AIG, America’s largest insurance company, with an $85 billion cash infusion — a bill footed by taxpayers — was a staggering move. The sum is three times as high as the guarantee provided by the Federal Reserve when Bear Stearns was sold to JPMorgan Chase in March…

“The situation appears to be so serious that George W. Bush cancelled two domestic trips he had planned for Thursday on short notice. Instead, the president will remain in Washington to discuss the ‘serious challenges confronting US financial markets.’…

“So far, the US presidential candidates have made few helpful remarks about the crisis other than the usual slogans… Republican Party presidential candidate John McCain had the most to say. On Monday, he said ‘the foundation of our economy’ was ‘strong,’ adding that he opposed a government-led bailout of US insurer AIG. But now he’s promising further government steps ‘to prevent the kind of wild speculation that can put our markets at risk.’ McCain’s explanation for the current crisis: ‘unbridled corruption and greed.’

“But Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama didn’t move past superficialities, either. ‘We’re Americans. We’ve met tough challenges before and we can again.’ What else are they supposed to say? After all, US presidents have very little influence on stockmarkets. And Wall Street is expecting the status quo for the next president…”

Terrible Aftermath of Hurricane Ike

The Associated Press reported on September 16:

 “More Hurricane Ike relief was on the way for evacuees Tuesday as tens of thousands of people waited for food, water and ice, for the electricity to return to their homes or for their first hot meal and shower… Many service stations have no gasoline, and some major highways remain under water. More than 30,000 evacuees are still living in nearly 300 public shelters, and roughly 2 million people in Texas alone are without power…

“A curfew remains in force for Houston, barring people from being on city streets from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., and officials were working to prevent looting and theft…

“Officials on the barrier island said it could be months before the city of Galveston reopens. The main gas and a primary electric transmission line to the island were severely damaged… Officials warned that mosquito-borne diseases could begin to spread… Across the entrance to Galveston Bay on Bolivar Peninsula, a resort community where entire neighborhoods were obliterated by the height of Ike’s storm surge, only one or two buildings remained standing in the town of Gilchrist. Aaron Reed, a spokesman for Texas Parks and Wildlife, said the town ‘is almost completely gone. Like somebody took a razor and went pffft.'”

Lawful Excuse to Intentionally Destroy Property Over Global Warming Dispute?

The Independent wrote on September 11:

“The threat of global warming is so great that campaigners were justified in causing more than £35,000 worth of damage to a coal-fired power station, a jury decided yesterday. In a verdict that will have shocked ministers and energy companies the jury at Maidstone Crown Court cleared six Greenpeace activists of criminal damage.

“Jurors accepted defence arguments that the six had a ‘lawful excuse’ to damage property at Kingsnorth power station in Kent to prevent even greater damage caused by climate change. The defence of ‘lawful excuse’ under the Criminal Damage Act 1971 allows damage to be caused to property to prevent even greater damage – such as breaking down the door of a burning house to tackle a fire…”

Pope Benedict in France

AFP reported on September 12:

“Pope Benedict XVI Friday threw his weight behind a call by President Nicolas Sarkozy to rethink the strict separation of religion and state in France, the ‘eldest daughter’ of the Catholic Church. Bells tolled across Paris to greet the arrival of the leader of the world’s one billion Roman Catholics, whose four-day visit comes as France faces a freefall in the number of churchgoers despite its deep Christian heritage… Sarkozy, a twice-divorced lapsed Catholic, defended his vision in presence of the pope, saying it would be ‘madness’ to ‘deprive ourselves’ of religion.”

NPR reported on September 12:

“Pope Benedict has arrived for his first visit to France, which has 35 million baptized Catholics. Polls show the French have lost much of their sense of belonging to the church though Catholicism remains by far the country’s No. 1 religion.”

Reuters added on September 13:

“Pope Benedict prayed on Saturday at the site where the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared to a French peasant girl 150 years ago… At Lourdes, Benedict prayed in the grotto where Saint Bernadette Soubirous said she had seen the Madonna 18 times in 1858, and drank water from a spring that believers say has healing powers. In the past 150 years, the Church has recognized as ‘miracles’ 67 medically inexplicable healings of sick pilgrims who visited Lourdes…

“At mass on Saturday morning in Paris, the pope told more than a quarter of a million people that the modern world had turned money, possessions and power into idols as false as the gold and silver statues worshipped by the pagans of antiquity… ‘Has it not imitated, perhaps inadvertently, the pagans of antiquity, by diverting man from his true end, from the joy of living eternally with God,’ he said in fluent French, wearing gold, white and red vestments. Benedict, who arrived in France on Friday, celebrated the mass at Les Invalides, a complex of military buildings begun by King Louis XIV in the 17th century that houses the sarcophagus of Napoleon Bonaparte…

“Since he arrived on Friday, the pope has been encouraging Catholics to speak out confidently in a country where ‘laicite’, the separation of church and state that often relegates faith to the private sphere, is part of the national psyche. The once powerful French church struggles with a shortage of priests and Sunday mass attendance is below 10 percent. But religion has re-emerged as a factor in public life, especially because of the growth of Islam, and French Catholics have increasingly spoken out on social issues.”

Due to more “miracles, signs and wonders,” which will be in some way attributed to the “Virgin Mary” and the present or future leader of the Roman Catholic Church, the number of practicing Roman Catholics in France–and around the world–will greatly increase in coming years. Also, the fact that Pope Benedict celebrated mass at Les Invalides where Napoleon I is buried, is highly significant. Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte represented the fifth revival of the HOLY Roman Empire (a confederation of Church and State)–or the eighth resurrection of the ancient Roman Empire. For more information, please listen to our Public Bible Lecture, which is posted on Google Video and titled, “Public Bible Lecture: Europe in Prophecy” and read our free booklet on “Europe in Prophecy.”

Remembering September 11, 2001

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 11, 2008:

“Most people in the world can remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard about the planes terrorists flew into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, DC. This Thursday marks the seventh anniversary of the disaster, and since then a global ‘war on terror’ has been waged — but not won.

“With NATO support, the US has toppled the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and established a new government, but not stabilized the country. A second war was started in Iraq with 9/11 as a justification — but on false premises, as most of the world knows now and many people already understood in 2003.

“Most of the world now has a new understanding of ‘security.’ Global terrorism of the sort practiced by al-Qaida finds targets that are not always easy to comprehend: a Danish embassy in Pakistan, nightclubs on Bali, trains in London and Madrid, wedding parties in Jordan, a synagogue in Tunisia, a British bank in Istanbul.

“To protect themselves, Western as well as non-Western states have passed new laws, some of them draconian. The United States set up a prison at Guantánamo Bay which has yet to be dismantled.

“The CIA has kidnapped and transported terror suspects all over the world, including people who weren’t especially suspect and have long been proved innocent. Arab nations have signed dubious extradition treaties to move terrorist suspects back and forth. Russia and China use the ‘war on terror’ for their own purposes — to declare Chechens and Uighurs potential terrorists, for example. The debate over torture, once thought to be settled in civilized nations, has enjoyed an unexpected and in some ways ignoble renaissance…

“Al-Qaida is not beaten. Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri are still at large. A number of high-ranking members of the organization have been killed or arrested, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Ramzi bin al-Shibh and others. But terrorism hasn’t stopped. Al-Qaida has retreated in Iraq, perhaps, but in Pakistan as well as North Africa, it has gained influence and space…”

Special EU Status for Britain?

The Daily Mail reported on September 9, 2008:

“The architect of the despised European Constitution has reopened old wounds after he attacked Britain for ‘hampering’ the creation of an EU superstate. Valery Giscard d’Estaing, who spearheaded the drafting of the constitution – only to see it soundly rejected by his own countrymen – said the UK should be given a ‘special status’ to prevent it blocking closer integration. The former French president said Britain’s attempts to curb the expansion of power in Brussels was ‘exhausting for all concerned, and disappointing’.

“The arch Europhile, who was speaking at a conference in Westminster on Britain’s future relationship with Europe, has always been committed to a continental-wide ‘superstate’. As the president of the EU convention he played a key role in drafting the constitution – which was then dumped by French and Dutch voters in 2005. It was revived last year as the Lisbon Treaty, which Labour forced through Parliament in March…

“M Giscard d’Estaing insisted closer integration of the EU’s 27 member states would continue. But he suggested Britain should have a ‘special status’ which would maintain close links with the EU but prevent us from ‘acting as a brake’. He condemned the UK for its ‘permanently antagonistic standpoint’ towards the EU.

“The EU Treaty creates a permanent European president, a foreign affairs minister and a legal personality for the EU which would allow it to sign international treaties on Britain’s behalf. Despite being rejected by Irish voters in June, the EU has vowed to push ahead with it.”

“European Court of Justice Violates National Jurisdictions”

The EUObserver wrote on September 10:

“The European Court of Justice needs to be stopped from undermining national jurisdiction, former German President Roman Herzog and Lüder Gerken, the director of the Centre for European Policy, have warned… The sharp words come in the wake of similar arguments coming from Denmark and Austria accusing the court of stepping beyond its bounds.

“Several cases analysed by Mr Herzog prove, in his view, that the European Court of Justice ‘systematically ignores fundamental principles of the Western interpretation of law’, that it ‘ignores the will of the legislator, or even turns it into its opposite’ and ‘invents legal principles serving as grounds for later judgements’…

“Mr Herzog’s comments come amid growing frustration amongst Danish leaders that a ruling by the court regarding Irish legislation covering the residency rights of non-EU citizens who are spouses of citizens, is having a knock-on effect on similar Danish legislation… In 2006, former Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schussel also attacked the European Court of Justice after it forced Austrian universities to open its doors to more foreign students, arguing that the court was interfering in education, ‘a clear national competence,’ he said at the time.”

Sarah Palin a Former Practicing Pentecostal

CNN reported on September 8:

“For more than two decades, current Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was a practicing Pentecostal. She belonged to the Wasilla Assembly of God church in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska… she attended the church from her teenage years through to 2002…

“Palin’s former pastor, Tim McGraw, says that like many Pentecostal churches, some members speak in tongues, although he says he’s never seen Palin do so. Church member Caroline Spangler told CNN, ‘When the spirit comes on you, you utter things that nobody else can understand … only God can understand what is coming out of our mouths.’ Some Pentecostals from Assembly of God also believe in ‘faith healing’ and the ‘end times’ — a violent upheaval that they believe will deliver Jesus Christ’s second coming…

“The McCain campaign says the Governor doesn’t consider herself Pentecostal… Palin’s former pastor says he has no doubt her religious beliefs will influence her decision making when it comes to government policy… Six years ago, Palin left Assembly of God… But the Assembly of God says she still returns for special conferences and events, such as the graduation of ministry students in June…

“Palin now attends the [non-denominational] Wasilla Bible Church. She was there on August 17, just days before entering the national spotlight. David Brickner, the founder of Jews for Jesus, was a speaker. He told congregants that terrorist attacks on Israel were God’s ‘judgment’ of Jews who haven’t embraced Christianity… The McCain campaign says his comments do not reflect her religious views. Palin’s spokeswoman says she is pro-Israel.

“Pastor Ed Kalnin, the senior pastor of Palin’s former Pentecostal church, has also come under fire for his comments. In 2004, he told church members if they voted for John Kerry for president, they wouldn’t get into heaven. He told them, ‘I question your salvation.’ Assembly of God issued a statement online in response which said Kalnin was ‘joking’…”

Still Unfavorable Relations Between USA and Europe

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 10:

“According to a major survey, Europeans want the Democrats to win back the White House this year. But Barack Obama’s positions on Iran’s nuclear program and Afghanistan are not widely supported in Europe…

“According to the latest ‘Transatlantic Trends,’ 47 percent of those polled across 12 European countries agree that there would be an improvement in relations between Europe and the US if Obama moved into the White House. By contrast, just 11 percent of those surveyed thought there would be a similar improvement under a President John McCain…

“These figures clearly do not back up the assumption that relations between Europe and the US have already relaxed… The image of the US in Europe has remained almost unaltered during the second Bush administration. Then as now, only 36 percent of Europeans view America’s role as a superpower positively (before the Iraq War that figure was still 64 percent.)…”

Worship of “the Virgin Mary”

Vatican Information Service (VIS) reported on September 7:

“Benedict XVI departed from Rome’s Ciampino airport, landing at the airport of Cagliari-Elmas on the Italian island of Sardinia… Having greeted the political, civil and ecclesiastical authorities, he travelled to the Shrine of Our Lady of Bonaria, which he visited briefly… the Pope celebrated Mass in the presence of 100,000 people on the esplanade in front of the Marian shrine…

“Going on to refer to the hundredth anniversary of the proclamation of the Virgin as patroness of the island, the Pope called on the faithful ‘to give thanks to Mary for her protection and to reiterate our faith in her, recognising her as the ‘Star of the new evangelisation’… [He] asked the Virgin to help the people of Sardinia ‘to bring Christ to families… May Mary, he said, ‘help you… evangelise the world of work, of the economy and of politics’… At the end of the Eucharistic celebration, Benedict XVI performed an act of consecration to Mary which concluded with the consignment of a golden rose to Our Lady of Bonaria.”

High U.S. Unemployment Rate in August

The Wall Street Journal wrote on September 6:

“A jump in the unemployment rate to 6.1% in August, the highest in nearly five years, underscored the economy’s fragility and deepened political debate over whether a second stimulus package is needed. The jobless-rate jump, from 5.7% in July, was larger than anticipated, reflecting how energy prices and problems in the housing and financial sectors have radiated outward to slow overall economic activity.”

U.S. Government’s Take-Over of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

CNN reported on September 7:

“Federal officials on Sunday unveiled an extraordinary takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, putting the government in charge of the twin mortgage giants… The move, which extends as much as $200 billion in Treasury support to the two companies, marks Washington’s most dramatic attempt yet to shore up the nation’s housing market, which is suffering from record foreclosures and falling prices… Fannie… and Freddie…, which were created by the U.S. government, have been badly hurt in the last year by the sharp decline in home prices as well as rising mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures. All told, the two firms have racked up about $12 billion in losses since last summer…

“Fannie and Freddie have become virtually the only source of funding for banks and other home lenders looking to make home loans… The two firms buy loans, attach a guarantee, then sell securities backed by the loans’ income stream. All told, they own or back $5.4 trillion worth of home debt – half the mortgage debt in the country.

“… the cost to taxpayers [will] largely depend on the future financial performance of Fannie and Freddie. Another unintended yet unavoidable consequence may be the impact to the nation’s banks. Some of the nation’s largest financial institutions… own a big chunk of the estimated $36 billion in preferred shares of Fannie and Freddie… Those stakes are at risk of being wiped out…”

US Stocks Fall

The Financial Times wrote on September 10:

“US stocks suffered their worst fall of the year as a 45 per cent drop in Lehman Brothers shares renewed fears about the health of the global financial system… Lehman is expected to have suffered billions of dollars in credit-related writedowns in the third quarter.”

Reuters added on September 11:

“Washington Mutual Inc… shares sank below $2 for the first time since 1990 as anxiety grew about the largest U.S. savings and loan’s mortgage losses, capital needs and survival prospects… Wall Street is worried that Washington Mutual, like Lehman Brothers… may not have time to right itself… Washington Mutual has said mortgage losses could reach $19 billion through 2011… the falling stock price could make further capital raising prohibitively expensive.”

USA–“$407 Billion in the Hole”

CNN reported on September 9:

“The budget deficit will jump by $246 billion to $407 billion this year, the Congressional Budget Office [CBO] estimates in a report released Tuesday… The budget deficit shot up 153% from last year’s shortfall of $161 billion… Federal spending on Medicare and Medicaid alone is expected to jump 30% in the next decade… [Peter] Orszag [director of CBO] said… ‘The nation is on an unsustainable fiscal course.'”

Russia’s Cat-and-Mouse-Game with the West

The Associated Press reported on September 9:

“Russia announced Tuesday it would keep 7,600 troops in Abkhazia and South Ossetia for the foreseeable future, asserting power in the breakaway regions even as it began a pullout from positions deeper in Georgia. The Kremlin’s plans for a heavy military footprint in the enclaves mock Georgia’s hopes that a revised peace agreement will lead to a complete Russian withdrawal from the fractured country at the heart of a bitter fray between Moscow and the West…

“A senior U.S. official… told lawmakers… that the United States is reviewing how to help Georgia rebuild its military. Georgia blames Russia for the war and is calling for a complete withdrawal of Russian forces, including from Abkhazia and South Ossetia. ‘There is no way Georgia will ever give up a piece of its sovereignty, a piece of its territory,’ Saakashvili said Tuesday.”

Ukraine Disappointed Over Germany

The EUObserver wrote on September 9:

“EU and Ukraine leaders will celebrate a ‘great day’ as they unveil plans for a new bilateral treaty in Paris [referred to as “Association Agreement”]…, but behind the fanfare, Ukraine diplomats are disappointed… Nine EU members including Poland, the UK, Sweden, the Czech republic and the Baltic states had pushed for the Paris declaration to ‘recognise’ Ukraine’s EU membership ‘perspective’… Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg blocked any suggestions of future EU expansion into post-Soviet territory, however…

“French diplomats have explained that while the title ‘Association Agreement’ is reminiscent of treaties signed with countries such as Poland in the run-up to the 2004 round of enlargement, it carries no special promise, as ‘association’ deals also exist with Chile or Morocco…

“Ukrainian diplomats see the summit declaration as a sell-out… ‘I feel like we have thrown away our European future,’ one Ukrainian contact said.”

Ukraine Could Be Next

The Wall Street Journal wrote on September 10:

“Perhaps the most urgent question in the world affairs today is whether Russia’s invasion and continuing occupation of Georgia was a singular event. Or was it the onset of a distinct, and profoundly disturbing, national security and foreign policy agenda? Much as one would like to cling to the former theory, the evidence favors the latter…

“Apart from Estonia and Latvia… by far the most likely target is Ukraine… Mr. Putin has made his contempt for Ukrainian sovereignty clear, most notably at the NATO summit in Bucharest last April when, according to numerous reports in the Russian and Ukrainian press, he told President Bush that the Ukraine is ‘not even a real state,’ that much of its territory was ‘given away’ by Russia, and that it would ‘cease to exist as a state’ if it dared join NATO… Whatever the operational specifics, the Russian political barometer seems to augur storms ahead.”

Russia’s Continued Threats

AFP reported on September 10:

“Russia could point missiles at strategic US targets in central Europe, including planned American missile shield sites in Poland and the Czech Republic, a senior Russian general said Wednesday. ‘I can’t exclude that if such decisions are taken by our military-political leadership, the missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic and other such objects could be chosen as designated targets for some of our inter-continental ballistic missiles,’ General Nikolai Solovtsov said… Moscow ‘is obliged to take corresponding measures that prevent under any circumstances the devaluing of Russia’s nuclear deterrent…’

“The comments came as tensions mounted between Russia and the United States over last month’s Russian military surge into Georgia and the fraught question of missile defence… Moscow sees the plans for new US missile defence facilities in central Europe as part of an effort to encircle Russia. Washington insists the planned facilities are directed against ‘rogue states’ such as Iran and in no way threaten Russia.”

Germany’s Political Dilemma–Waiting for a Strong Leader

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 9:

“Frank-Walter Steinmeier doesn’t seem to be looking forward to next year, and who can blame him. The Social Democrat candidate for the 2009 election has never campaigned for office and must unite a bitterly divided party. Few analysts rate his chances of beating Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“… the most likely outcome of the next general election is a continuation of the current grand coalition between Germany’s two main parties, Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats and Steinmeier’s SPD. The two rival parties have been ruling Europe’s largest economy together since 2005 in a loveless marriage that has failed to produce significant economic reforms and has plunged the country’s already staid political scene into a dull torpor… Expect more of the same, is the depressing prediction by seasoned observers…

“Angela Merkel’s government is likely to come to a near-complete standstill over the next year as the SPD and CDU square off ahead of the election… The irony is that after that long election campaign the rivals will probably find each other seated round the exact same cabinet table next year.”

Iran–Is Time Running Out for Israel?

Reuters reported on September 9:

“Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant is nearing completion and the start-up of its reactor will soon become ‘irreversible’, the Russian state-owned company that is building the power station said on Tuesday. Russia has already delivered nuclear fuel under a $1 billion contract to build the Bushehr plant, on the Gulf coast in southwest Iran, and Iranian officials say the reactor is likely to be started up soon [i.e., December 2008 – February 2009]…

“Russia signed a contract to build the plant in 1995 on the site of an earlier project begun in the 1970s by German firm Siemens. Siemens’s project was disrupted by Iran’s 1979 Islamic revolution and the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.”

Pakistan’s New President

The Associated Press reported on September 9:

“Repeatedly paying homage to his assassinated wife, new President Asif Ali Zardari… was long on platitudes but short on specifics while meeting with media after taking the oath of office in a short ceremony at the presidential palace. He was chosen to replace Pervez Musharraf, a U.S. ally who resigned under pressure last month… The United States came to depend heavily on Musharraf for cooperation to capture or kill al-Qaida leaders who plotted the 9/11 attacks on America and fled Afghanistan after the U.S.-led invasion in 2001 toppled the Taliban regime. However, the Taliban revived on Musharraf’s watch, and al-Qaida chiefs Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahri remain on the run, probably somewhere in Pakistan’s tribal areas.

“Washington has increasingly taken matters into its own hands in recent weeks, with controversy erupting every time civilians become casualties. Missile strikes in Pakistan’s northwest have killed dozens, and U.S.-led forces last week took part in a helicopter-backed ground assault that killed at least 15… The unilateral actions have sparked a public backlash, including official protests, although it appears that Pakistan, the Islamic world’s only nuclear power, is too dependent on the billions of dollars in U.S. aid to do much more than complain.”

Strained Relations Between Pakistan and USA

CNN reported on September 10:

“Pakistan’s military chief said Wednesday that no foreign forces will be allowed to conduct operations inside Pakistan in light of last week’s ‘reckless’ U.S. military ground operation… The announcement came as Pakistan’s military resumed its battle against Taliban militants in its tribal region… A ground incursion last week by U.S. forces into Pakistan strained relations between the two countries. Pakistan summoned the U.S. ambassador in Islamabad to complain about the incident, which it said killed 15 civilians.

“The Pentagon has not confirmed the raid, but a senior U.S. official… told CNN… that U.S. helicopters dropped troops into the village of Angoor Adda in South Waziristan, which borders Afghanistan. The official said there was no evidence of any civilian deaths. The U.S. official said the operation was launched fairly quickly without formal permission from Pakistan’s government after it became clear that there was sufficient intelligence to take the risk of putting U.S. troops on the ground in a potentially hostile area of Pakistan.

“In the U.S., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen, warned Congress on Wednesday that cross-border attacks into Afghanistan by militants in Pakistan’s tribal region are a problem… He added that the U.S. is ‘running out of time’ to win the war in Afghanistan and that sending in more troops will not guarantee victory. On Tuesday, President Bush announced the deployment of 4,500 additional troops in Afghanistan.”

The Associated Press added on September 11:

“Pakistan’s prime minister on Thursday backed a harsh rebuke of the U.S. by the Muslim nation’s military chief, a sign of a strain in relations seven years after the Sept. 11 attacks forged the two countries’ anti-terror alliance. Pakistan’s public show of anger with the U.S. comes amid revelations that President Bush secretly approved new U.S. military raids in that country.”

Waste of Time and Money–The Large Hadron Collider

The Sun wrote on September 10:

“Scientists from 60 countries have been working 250ft underground on the project which is trying to recreate conditions in the first billionth of a second after the Big Bang dawn of the universe 14 billion years ago. They aim to fire beams of protons at almost the speed of light in opposite directions through a 17-mile ring-shaped frozen tunnel. Each beam will pack as much energy as a 93mph Eurostar train. The tunnel has been dug under mountain rock in the Alps along the border between Switzerland and France. Although the big switch-on took place today, the first high-energy collisions are not due until October 21.”

AFP added on September 10:

“Now that the beam has been successfully tested in clockwise direction, CERN plans to send it counterclockwise. Eventually two beams will be fired in opposite directions with the aim of recreating conditions a split second after the big bang, which scientists theorize was the massive explosion that created the universe.”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 9:

“Will the Large Hadron Collider… bring about the end of the world? Most physicists say no — but they are hoping for clues as to how the universe began… Physicists say that the €6.4 billion ($9.2 billion) project — the lion’s share of which came from European countries — may provide unique new insights into how our universe was formed, the existence of ‘dark matter’ and even the possible reality of a number of new dimensions…

“Still, despite all the hype and the hope, scientists truly don’t know exactly what they’ll find in this grandest of all scientific experiments…  for those expecting the end of the world, the wait will continue for another few weeks. The Large Hadron Collider won’t actually begin bashing protons against each other until later this autumn.”

If we could only believe God–and all that money could be used for much more needful purposes. The Bible TELLS you how the universe began. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution–a Fairy Tale for Adults?”

Europe’s Half-Hearted Measures Towards Russia

The EUObserver reported on September 2, 2008:

“EU leaders on Monday (1 September) agreed to postpone talks on a new EU-Russia partnership until Russian troops withdraw from Georgia following the insistence of a bloc of member states… Poland – one of the countries pushing for the suspension – hailed the final declaration as a victory and insisted its position was not isolated. ‘We were not alone, we were acting within a group,’ including also the Czech Republic, the Baltic States – Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, the UK and Sweden, Polish President Lech Kaczynski told journalists…

“Additionally, EU states agreed to ‘strongly condemn Russia’s unilateral decision to recognise the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia…’ However, as expected, EU leaders… stopped short of imposing formal sanctions on Russia… The EU has also decided to appoint an ‘EU special representative for the crisis in Georgia’ and to send immediately a ‘fact-finding mission’ to gather information on the ground.”

Germany and France Block EU Sanctions Against Russia

Der Spiegel Online wrote on September 2:

“Last week, some European Union members talked of levying sanctions on Moscow. On Monday evening in Brussels, however, German and French-style diplomacy won out… In the five page document, the word ‘sanctions’ doesn’t make a single appearance. It is, of course, a calculated omission…

“‘Postponed [talks],’ but not abandoned — there is a fine line between the two in diplomatic language. If the talks had been abandoned then initiating new ones would have required the approval of the leaders of the EU member states…”

Germany Main Obstacle to Signing of Major EU-Ukraine Treaty?

The EUObserver wrote on August 28:

“Germany’s close relations with Russia are the main obstacle to signing a major EU-Ukraine treaty at the upcoming EU-Ukraine summit in France [in September]…

“‘There are maybe two or three countries who are strong opposers, strong sceptics,’ Ukrainian deputy foreign minister Konstantin Yeliseyev said in Brussels…, commenting on EU reluctance to state clearly that ‘the future of Ukraine lies in the European Union’ in the preamble to the new treaty. ‘In this regard, we count very much on the leadership of Germany, which is the engine of EU integration and a very powerful country, we count very much on their courage,’ he added…

“The statement on EU enlargement is a deal-breaker for Ukraine, which says that if Germany’s preferred wording – that the new treaty ‘does not prejudge future relations’ – is used, it will effectively rule out any Ukraine moves toward EU accession for the next 10 to 15 years, when the pact is due to expire. Ukraine is also pressing for NATO countries to offer it a Membership Action Plan in December, with Germany also leading opposition at NATO-level to such a move.

“Mr Yeliseyev warned that lack of a clear political commitment by the West to Ukraine will be seen by Moscow as a green light to expand influence in the east… ‘If Ukrainian security deteriorated, it would not be a Georgia scenario, it would be a more dangerous scenario,’ he said, with the 50 million-strong, former nuclear power currently controlling most of Russia’s natural gas exports to the EU.”

Highly Irresponsible Article by Der Spiegel on Russia-Georgia Conflict

On September 1, the left-liberal German magazine, Der Spiegel, wrote a highly offensive piece which almost sounded like Russian war propaganda. The article was entitled, “Russia and the West–The Cold Peace.”

In the article, the authors even gave some credence to the ridiculous allegation that U.S. Vice President Dick “Cheney may have sparked the crisis in Georgia as a favor to the Republican presidential candidate. There is a wealth of evidence to support such a theory.” In making this outrageous claim, Der Spiegel became a mouth-piece for Vladimir Putin, who was referred to by The International Herald Tribune, on August 29, as follows:

“[Putin] suggested that the Bush administration may have tried to create a crisis that would influence American voters in the choice of a successor to President George W. Bush… Putin offered scant evidence to support his assertion, and the White House called his comments absurd.”

In addition, Der Spiegel also referred to “indications” that Georgia’s leader “Saakashvili attacked the civilian population [of South Ossetia] while they were asleep in their beds. That could be tantamount to a war crime.”

In spite of these irresponsible allegations, the article included a few worthwhile statements which we would like to quote, for your consideration:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel loves the Russians… She also loves Russian, and back in the former East Germany, Merkel learned the language so well that she won a Russian contest… She also said that if Russia were to send its military into Estonia, the country would be covered by Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, meaning that an armed attack against one NATO member is considered an attack against them all… War, of course, would be the result… Nobody has a solution to the problems…

“After the EU summit, [Merkel] is due to call US President George W. Bush to pitch the European line on Russia, assuming there will be one. During the Cold War this would have been a call to the leading Western power. But these days the US is in no position to play a leading role… The crisis with Russia comes at a time when US foreign policy is plagued by uncertainty. Bush, the warrior, is powerless to act. He commands the largest military machine in the world, and yet no major breakthrough has been achieved in Iraq or Afghanistan. America has occupied these countries, but failed to pacify them…

“A colonel in the FSB, Russia’s domestic secret service and the successor organization to the KGB, expressed alarm last week. A violent conflict between Americans and Russians ‘on what is currently Ukrainian territory’ is ‘highly probable,’ he said, adding that if followers of Ukraine’s reformist president Viktor Yushchenko continue to insult the Russian inhabitants of the Crimea and defame the Russian Black Sea Fleet then it will be ‘time to come in and help the Russians living there.’ Around 1,500 kilometers to the north of the Crimea, in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, belligerent statements of this kind evoke a distinct sense of fear. In 1939, these Baltic countries were deprived of their independence as a consequence of the Hitler-Stalin Pact.”

Haider Back in the News–with a “New” Image

Deutsche Presse Agentur (DPA) reported on August 31:

“Rising prices and immigration are emerging as key topics in Austrian general elections due September 28, with right-wing parties expected to win up to 25 per cent of votes. Shortly after Social Democratic Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer stepped down as party chief in June, the conservative People’s Party (OVPe), the junior partner in government, announced the end of the coalition and called for early parliamentary elections… [Joerg] Haider… wants to fight high gasoline costs by opening government-subsidised petrol stations.”

On September 1, 2008, Reuters added the following:

“Right-wing populist Joerg Haider, staging a national comeback, aims to boost his party’s fortunes in Austria’s September 28 snap election but without the firebrand politics that once made waves across Europe. Gone are the xenophobic outbursts and the apologist rhetoric about Hitler’s Third Reich that helped provoke brief European Union sanctions on Austria when his party was part of the federal ruling coalition from 2000 to 2006.

“Haider, whose penchant for controversy once extended to cultivating ties with Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi, has cut a notably calmer and conciliatory profile since re-emerging from a three-year retreat as governor of Carinthia province. He says his small party can be part of a ‘responsible alternative’ to dysfunctional coalitions of Austria’s two big parties, arguing his views — still anti-immigration and anti-EU integration — have become mainstream… he said his Alliance for the Future of Austria Party would take 6 to 8 percent, roughly double its showing in 2006… ‘(Our goal) is the biggest possible piece of the 25 percent pie,’ he told Reuters in an interview…

“Once a maverick more comfortable in opposition, Haider has played up a statesman’s image, saying an anti-inflation subsidy plan he applied in Carinthia could work on the national level and that he was open to a Vienna coalition with anyone…

“He said the European Union should forge ‘a privileged partnership or special treaties’ with Turkey to obtain a natural gas pipeline not dependent on Russia… But Haider said Turkey was culturally too different from the EU to qualify for membership — a mainstream view in Austria. He said asylum seekers convicted of crimes should be fitted with electronic tags to ensure they cannot vanish while awaiting deportation…”

McCain’s New Running Mate

The Associated Press reported on August 29:

“McCain’s veep choice is historic and hardly known… She has more experience catching fish than dealing with foreign policy or national affairs… McCain picked an independent figure in his own mold… [Alaska’s Governor Sarah] Palin’s selection was a jaw-dropper, as McCain passed over many other better known prospects, some of whom had been the subject of intense speculation for weeks or months… She brings a strong anti-abortion stance to the ticket and opposes gay marriage — constitutionally banned in Alaska before her time — but exercised a veto that essentially granted benefits to gay state employees and their partners… Democrats seized on the gaping experience gap and said McCain now has no business questioning the seasoning of their nominee…

“Palin’s clean-hands reputation has come into question with an investigation recently launched by a legislative panel into whether she dismissed Alaska’s public safety commissioner because he would not fire her former brother-in-law as a state trooper. Trooper Mike Wooten went through a messy divorce from Palin’s sister. The governor denied orchestrating the dozens of telephone calls made by her husband and members of her administration to Wooten’s bosses…

“Four months into her most recent pregnancy, Palin learned the child would have Down syndrome, and she said she never had any doubts about whether she would have the baby. ‘We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential,’ Palin told AP earlier this year in describing what she and her husband had confronted…

“During her first year in office, Palin moved away from the powerful old guard of the state Republican Party and has refused to kowtow to the powerful oil industry, instead presiding over a tax increase on oil company profits that now has the state’s treasury swelling. But she is a proponent of petroleum development, in tune with McCain, although the two disagree on drilling in Alaska’s protected Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She favors drilling there; he opposes it.

“The governor also opposed designating polar bears as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, fearing that step would get in the way of a proposed natural gas pipeline tapping the North Slope’s vast reserves.”

The Associated Press reported on August 29:

On August 29, nbc4.com published the following profile on Governor Sarah Palin:

“With the selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, Sen. John McCain has extended an olive branch to the far right wing of his party… Below is a list of her stance on several important issues.

“Abortion: Palin is outspokenly pro-life.

“Marriage: Palin opposes same-sex marriage and stated on her campaign web site that she believes ‘marriage should only be between a man and a woman.’

“Climate: Upon being elected governor of Alaska, she created a sub-cabinet on climate change. However, she has been a vocal critic of scientists who suggest that climate change is leading to the decrease in polar bears in Alaska. She has also threatened to sue to have polar bears not listed as a threatened species.

“Immigration: Being that her state only borders Canada and is thousands of miles from the Mexican border, Palin has not often expressed her views publicly on illegal immigration.

“Guns: Palin is a lifetime member of the NRA. On her Web site, she wrote that she supports ‘our Constitutional right to bear arms and am a proponent of gun safety programs for Alaska’s youth.’

“Economy: She supports reducing property taxes and taxes for small businesses to grow the economy.

“Iraq: Palin is generally supportive of America’s presence in Iraq, her 18-year-old son Track Palin is in the Army and is slotted to go to Iraq in September. Palin has also visited members of the Alaska National Guard in Kuwait.

“Health Care: According to her campaign Web site, Palin supports flexibility in government regulations that allow competition in health care. She believes it will drive down health care costs and reduce the need for government subsidies. Palin also feels patients should have access to full medical billing information.”

The Iraq War a Task from God?

The Associated Press reported on September 3, 2008:

“Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told ministry students at her former church [Wasilla Assembly of God] that the United States sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a ‘task that is from God.’ In an address last June, the Republican vice presidential candidate also urged ministry students to pray for a plan to build a $30 billion natural gas pipeline in the state, calling it ‘God’s will.’

“Palin asked the students to pray for the troops in Iraq, and noted that her eldest son, Track, was expected to be deployed there. ‘Our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God,’ she said. ‘That’s what we have to make sure that we’re praying for, that there is a plan and that plan is God’s plan’…

“Palin attended the evangelical church from the time she was a teenager until 2002… She has continued to attend special conferences and meetings there.”

Palin’s Daughter Is Pregnant…

MSNBC reported on September 1, 2008:

“The 17-year-old daughter of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is pregnant, Palin said Monday in an announcement intended to knock down rumors by liberal bloggers that Palin faked her own pregnancy to cover up for her child.
   
“Bristol Palin, one of Alaska Gov. Palin’s five children with her husband, Todd, is about five months pregnant and is going to keep the child and marry the father, the Palins said in a statement… ‘We have been blessed with five wonderful children who we love with all our heart and mean everything to us,’ the Palins’ statement said. ‘Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. As Bristol faces the responsibilities of adulthood, she knows she has our unconditional love and support,’ the Palins said…”

A question is being debated on the Internet whether the case involves statutory rape under Alaska law. Much false information has been circulated in this regard. According to the press, at the time of sexual intercourse, the boyfriend was 18 and the teenage girl 17. Based on this statement, no statutory rape would be involved in Alaska for numerous reasons.

However, we may want to consider the issue of proper conduct. In virtually all press releases, nothing was said about sin. Rather, if at all, the word “mistake” was used, or it was emphasized how important it is to use contraceptives to prevent unwanted pregnancies. What ever happened to the Biblical command to “flee fornication”?

We are glad that the decision was made not to abort the child–but rather, to get married. However, this does not justify the sin of fornication. Of course, God forgives sin upon repentance, and so must we. At the same time, our young people must be taught that it IS still sin to live together and engage in sexual activity outside of the sanctity of marriage. To just gloss over such conduct and call it “mistake,” if it leads to unwanted consequences, is NOT the way to proceed.

One point of view, which may come close to what we are addressing, was perhaps expressed in an article published on September 3, 2008, by the New York Daily News. It was titled, “Just Too Young.” We are quoting the following excerpts:

“Whatever its political implications, the out-of-wedlock pregnancy of Sarah Palin’s 17-year-old daughter is emblematic of a truly lamentable social phenomenon. Across America – and especially here in New York City – far too many teenage girls become pregnant every year, well before most are emotionally and financially equipped for parenthood. Ditto for the fathers…

“In 2006, the city was home to 268,000 girls who were 15 to 19 years old. More than 23,000 got pregnant – almost one out of every 11, which was more than double the national rate. These pregnancies added to a national total of roughly 730,000 teen pregnancies, 80% of which were unplanned. They also drove up the number of abortions, with almost 14,000 New York girls ending their pregnancies, as well as the number of single-parent households, with more than 7,500 giving birth out of wedlock…

“Thanks to Palin’s newfound prominence as John McCain’s running mate, Bristol Palin and her partner, Levi Johnston, 18, have been thrown into the spotlight as poster children for what not to do in a relationship at a young age. The responsibility they are said to be taking in planning to marry and raise their child does not eliminate that they are adjusting to the lifetime consequences of irresponsibility… the country would be well served by a frank discussion of the ills that often follow when immature teenagers blunder into pregnancy.”

117 U.S. Banks “Problem Banks”–with the Number Expected to Rise

Bloomberg reported on August 29:

“Integrity Bank of Alpharetta, Georgia, was closed by U.S. regulators today, the 10th bank to collapse this year amid a surge in soured real-estate loans stemming from the worst housing slump since the Great Depression…

“Banks are being closed at the fastest pace in 14 years as financial companies report more than $505 billion in writedowns and credit losses since 2007… The FDIC this week said 117 banks are classified as ‘problem’ in the second quarter, a 30 percent jump from the first quarter. The agency doesn’t identify ‘problem’ lenders. ‘More banks will come on the list as credit problems worsen,’ FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair said…

“The credit market turmoil may topple some of the nation’s biggest banks, Kenneth Rogoff, former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, said in Singapore Aug. 19. ‘Like any shrinking industries, we are going to see the exit of some major players,” Rogoff told Bloomberg, declining to name the banks he expects to fail.”

USA to Strike Iran in Coming Weeks?

On September 1, 2008, the Jerusalem Post published an article with the headline, “US to strike Iran in coming weeks.” In the article, it was pointed out:

“The Dutch intelligence service, the AIVD, has called off an operation aimed at infiltrating and sabotaging Iran’s weapons industry due to an assessment that a US attack on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program is imminent… The report claimed that the Dutch operation had been ‘extremely successful,’ and had been stopped because the US military was planning to hit targets that were ‘connected with the Dutch espionage action.’ The impending air-strike on Iran was to be carried out by unmanned aircraft ‘within weeks,’ the report claimed, quoting ‘well placed’ sources…”

Will Israel Strike Iran?

The Jerusalem Post reported on August 29, 2008:

“Israel will not allow Iran to attain nuclear capability and if time begins to run out, Jerusalem will not hesitate to take whatever means necessary to prevent Iran from achieving its nuclear goals, the government has recently decided in a special discussion… Jerusalem has begun preparing for a separate, independent military strike… Jerusalem has consistently warned in recent years that it will not settle for a ‘wait and see’ approach, merely retaliating to an attack, but will rather use preemption to prevent any risk of being hit in the first place.

“Ephraim Sneh, a veteran Labor MK who has recently left the party, has reportedly sent a document to both US presidential candidates, John McCain and Barack Obama. The eight-point document states that ‘there is no government in Jerusalem that would ever reconcile itself to a nuclear Iran. When it is clear Iran is on the verge of acquiring nuclear weapons, an Israeli military strike to prevent this will be seriously considered.’…

“Sneh also visited Switzerland and Austria last week in an attempt to lobby them against the Iranian threat. Both countries have announced massive long-term investments in Iranian gas and oil fields for the next decade. ‘Talk of the Jewish Holocaust and Israel’s security doesn’t impress these guys,’ Sneh said wryly. Hearing his hosts speak of their future investments, Sneh replied quietly ‘it’s a shame, because Ido will light all this up.’ He was referring to Maj. Gen. Ido Nehushtan, the recently appointed IAF commander and the man most likely to be the one to orchestrate Israel’s attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, should this become a necessity. ‘Investing in Iran in 2008,’ Sneh told his Austrian hosts, ‘is like investing in the Krupp steelworks in 1938, it’s a high risk investment.’ The Austrians, according to Sneh, turned pale.

“In related news, a top official said Friday that Iran had increased the number of operating centrifuges at its uranium enrichment plant to 4,000… Meanwhile, the pan-Arabic Al Kuds al Arabi reported Friday that Iran had equipped Hizbullah with longer range missiles than those it possessed before the Second Lebanon War and had also improved the guerrilla group’s targeting capabilities. According to the report, which The Jerusalem Post could not verify independently, Hizbullah was planning a massive rocket onslaught on targets reaching deep into Israel’s civilian underbelly in case Israel launches an attack on Iran.”

Will Conflict with Iran Ignite World War III?

AFP reported on August 29, 2008:

“A senior Iranian military commander has warned that any US or Israeli attack on the Islamic republic would start a new world war… Another top military commander said Iran was prepared to ‘take the enemies off-guard’ and would unveil more weapons in case of an attack… During war games in July which provoked international concern, aides to the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that Iran would target US bases and US ships in the Gulf as well as Israel if it was attacked. Iran also test-fired its Shahab-3 missile which it says puts Israel within range.”

AFP added on September 2:

“Syrian President Bashar al-Assad warned Tuesday that an attack by Israel on Iran would have catastrophic consequences for the entire world. ‘We think that Israel could try to launch attacks against Iran, even against Lebanon or Syria,’ he said…”

Serious Water Shortage in Israel

The British paper, The Independent, wrote on August 30:

“The 2,000-year-old fishing boat of Galilee in which, the story goes, Jesus may have sailed, is one of the most precious ancient treasures in Israel. The vessel, which draws thousands of tourists to a kibbutz in Ginosar, was discovered by chance in 1986 when the sea level dropped dramatically because of a severe drought.

“‘This year it is actually worse. I have been here 54 years and I have never seen the water so low, the situation so bad,’ said Haim Binstock, an expert on the boat in the museum where it is kept. ‘I don’t think the outside world realises just how dangerous the situation is, not just for Israel but for the whole region.’

“The waters of the Sea of Galilee are now at their lowest on record and, officials say, are set to fall even lower. The crisis is both natural and man-made. Four successive years of droughts, with rainfall less than half the annual average, has combined with a lack of snow on the peaks of Mount Hermon to lead to the shortage. At the same time, Israel’s relentless pumping of water to irrigate farmland and supply homes has been massively worsening the situation.”

“Iraq Signs $3 Billion Oil Deal with China”

CNN reported on August 30:

“Iraq has signed its first major oil deal with a foreign company since the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime… It was the first time in more than 35 years that Iraq has allowed foreign oil companies to do business inside its borders. The contract with the China National Petroleum Corporation could be worth up to $3 billion. It would allow the CNPC to develop an oil field in southern Iraq’s Wasit province for about 20 years, Oil Ministry spokesman Assim Jihad said.

“Iraq’s Cabinet must still approve the contract, but Jihad said that would happen soon and work could start within a few months. The Chinese company will provide technical advisers, oil workers and equipment to develop al-Ahdab oil field, providing fuel for al-Zubaidiya power plant in Wasit, southeast of Baghdad, bordering Iran, Jihad said.

“Once development begins, the field is expected to start producing a preliminary amount of 25,000 barrels of oil a day and an estimated constant daily amount of 125,000 barrels after three years, he said. Iraq currently produces about 2.5 million barrels a day, 2 million of which are exported daily, Jihad said. That is close to its status before the U.S.-led war that toppled Saddam in 2003, but below its levels prior to the Persian Gulf War in 1991… Iraq has among the largest oil reserves in the world, with an estimated 115 billion barrels, tying Iran for the No. 2 status behind Saudi Arabia’s 264 billion barrels…”

Germany Worried About Afghanistan

Germans are worried and concerned about the situation in Afghanistan. Deutsche Welle reported on September 3:

“With German troops tense about the growing risk of Taliban attacks, German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung traveled to Afghanistan on an unannounced visit. Jung met on Tuesday, Sept. 2, with a tribal leader near Kunduz and conveyed Germany’s condolences over the shooting deaths of an Afghan woman and two children. They were killed last Thursday evening when German troops at a roadblock opened fire on a car when it ignored an order to stop…

“Jung said he assured him the German army was doing everything it could to prevent civilian casualties. German prosecutors have been conducting a routine inquiry into whether the shooting was allowed under German rules of engagement.

“Tension has been high in the German contingent amid an upsurge of both attacks and warnings of attacks, German soldiers say. Last week a German soldier was killed when a remote-controlled bomb went off near an armored vehicle. At a briefing, Jung was told that security had ‘markedly deteriorated’ with a growing risk of attack on the Germans by booby traps, missiles, ambushes and suicide bombers.”

Is the World Facing Another Global War?

Times-On-Line wrote on August 24:

“Is the world drifting towards a new global war? From this week the dominant super-power, America, will for three months pass through the valley of the shadow of democracy, a presidential election… Barack Obama and John McCain will not act as statesmen but as politicians… Their eye will stray from the ball.

“Meanwhile, along history’s fault line of conflict from Russia’s European border to the Caucasus and on to Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan… drums are sounding and harsh words are spoken. The world is now run by a generation of leaders who have never known global war. Has this dulled their senses?…

“The world is showing alarming parallels with the 1930s. Lights are turning to red as the world again approaches depression. The credit crunch and the collapse of world trade talks are making nations introverted. Meanwhile… Russia… is flexing its muscles and finding them in good working order…

“Any student of McCain or Obama, of Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev, or of the leaders of Britain, France and Germany, might conclude that these are not people likely to go to war. They are surely the children of peace. Yet history shows that ‘going to war’ is never an intention. It is rather the result of weak, shortsighted leaders entrapped by a series of mistakes. For the West’s leaders at present, mistake has become second nature.”

Russia’s Intentional Provocations Continue

The Associated Press reported on August 26:

“Russia formally recognized the breakaway Georgian territories [Abkhazia and South Ossetia]… heightening tensions with the West… a day after Russia’s Kremlin-controlled parliament voted unanimously to support the diplomatic recognition. Western criticism came almost immediately.”

AFP added on August 26:

“US President George W. Bush on Tuesday demanded that Russia reverse its ‘irresponsible decision’ to recognize Georgia’s rebel regions South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states. ‘The United States condemns the decision,’ he said… warning that ‘Russia’s action only exacerbates tensions and complicates diplomatic negotiations’ on the future of Georgia.

“Leading the West’s outraged response, Bush said Moscow’s diplomatic gesture violated a French-brokered August 12 ceasefire pact, as well as ‘numerous’ UN Security Council resolutions backed by Russia in the past… ‘In accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolutions that remain in force, Abkhazia and South Ossetia are within the internationally recognized borders of Georgia, and they must remain so,’ he said…

“Absent significant, concrete reprisals, [Medvedev] has shrugged off warnings of growing isolation from the international community [and a new Cold War], saying: ‘We’re not afraid of anything’…

“German [Foreign Minister] Frank-Walter Steinmeier said all sides were ‘playing with fire’ and urged: ‘The spiral of provocation must stop, and immediately.'”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 26:

“It looks as if Moscow is courting isolation. Russia’s relationship with the West was already straining under the ongoing crisis in the Caucasus. Now, though, the situation has become even more tense…

“The Russian move was swiftly met with sharp Western criticism, revealing the dismay with which Europe and the United States have watched Moscow fail to be swayed by any international threats. German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the decision ‘completely unacceptable’ while France expressed its deep regret and reiterated its commitment to the territorial integrity of Georgia. A spokeswoman for the British Foreign Office said: ‘We reject this categorically and reaffirm Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.’

“Sweden’s Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said the fact that Russia’s leadership ‘has now chosen this route means they have chosen a policy of confrontation, not only with the rest of Europe, but also with the international community in general’…

“The move has certainly upset the markets, with Russian stocks falling to their lowest level in two years directly after Medvedev’s announcement, as traders worried about rising tensions in the region. Masha Lipman, an expert at the Moscow Carnegie Center think tank said that the decision is likely to lead to the further diplomatic isolation of Russia. Speaking to the Associated Press, she said that it was an ‘indication that Russia has opted for further aggravation in relations with the West, and a very serious rift this time.'”

Europe Must Act With One Voice

Bild Online reported on August 26 that German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned Russia’s decision to recognize two former provinces of the Russian Empire, stating that the EU must and will act as a unity, and that Georgia and Ukraine will become members of NATO.

“Explosive” Proposals as to How to “Deal” With Russia

On August 26, The Wall Street Journal published the following opinion by Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator from South Carolina, and Joe Lieberman, an Independent Democratic senator from Connecticut:

“Russia’s aggression is not just a threat to a tiny democracy on the edge of Europe. It is a challenge to the political order and values at the heart of the continent… There is disturbing evidence Russia is already laying the groundwork to apply the same arguments used to justify its intervention in Georgia to other parts of its near abroad — most ominously in Crimea. This strategically important peninsula is part of Ukraine, but with a large ethnic Russian population and the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet at Sevastopol…

“Our response to the invasion of Georgia must include regional actions to reassure Russia’s rattled neighbors and strengthen trans-Atlantic solidarity. This means reinvigorating NATO as a military alliance, not just a political one. Contingency planning for the defense of all member states against conventional and unconventional attack, including cyber warfare, needs to be revived. The credibility of Article Five of the NATO Charter — that an attack against one really can and will be treated as an attack against all — needs to be bolstered.”

The Former Soviet Republics Faced With Russian Aggression

In its September 1, 2008, edition, Time magazine published a map designating the former Soviet Republics. Many of them must now be afraid of Russian invasion. As the magazine stated, “… after the invasion of Georgia, former members of the U.S.S.R. face an inescapable truth: you can’t run from geography. Try as they might to move closer to Europe, many are now nervously eyeing a resurgent Russia on their borders.”

Starting with the former provinces in the north and then moving towards the south and the east, the former Soviet-Russian republics, which are all bordering on Russia, are as follows:

The Baltics and their “prickly relationship with Russia,” consisting of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania;

Eastern Europe, consisting of Belarus, Ukraine [“Russia has held a grudge against Ukraine” since 2004] and Moldova;

The Caucasus [“a vital region for the West”], consisting of Georgia, Armenia [“which borders Turkey and Iran, readily accepts Russian protection”] and Azerbaijan; and

Central Asia [“wedged between Russia and China”], consisting of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

Russia Determined to Threaten the West

The Associated Press reported on August 26:

“Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is warning his country may respond to a U.S. missile shield in Europe through military means. Medvedev says that the deployment of an anti-missile system close to Russian borders ‘will of course create additional tensions. We will have to react somehow, to react, of course, in a military way…'”

On August 27, AFP reported:

“As Medvedev prepared to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao, a KEY ALLY , the Russian military criticised NATO’s naval presence in the Black Sea, said by the West to be part of planned exercises and to deliver aid to Georgia…

“Russia’s ambassador to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, warned that any attack by the alliance on the Moscow-backed regions would ‘mean a declaration of war on Russia’…”

The Associated Press added on August 27:

“A U.S. military ship loaded with aid docked at a southern Georgian port Wednesday, and Russia sent three missile boats to another Georgian port as the standoff escalated over a nation devastated by war with Russia… Although Western nations have called the Russian military presence in Poti a clear violation of an European Union-brokered cease-fire, a top Russian general has called using warships to deliver aid ‘devilish.'”

Russia Tests Missile, Receives Some Support from China

AFP reported on August 28:

“Russia on Thursday tested an inter-continental missile, heightening tensions with the West as France said the European Union could impose sanctions on Moscow over the Georgia conflict…

“The missile test in northern Russia came barely a week after the United States completed an accord with Poland on basing an anti-missile shield in central Europe and as Russia accuses NATO of building up its navy vessels in the Black Sea… Russia has been developing the missile in response to US plans to develop a missile-defence shield…

“A statement released by the six nations at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit voiced support for Russia’s ‘active role’ in ‘assisting in peace and cooperation in the region’… [The statement was] signed by Medvedev, President Hu Jintao of China and the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.”

However, as Der Spiegel Online pointed out on August 27, the SCO refused to follow Russia’s lead to recognize Georgia’s rebel regions South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states. This prompted Russian media to criticize Medvedev and calling his mission a failure, according to Der Spiegel.

Russia Shows Strength, While Europe Shows Weakness

On August 27, The Wall Street Journal published the following analysis about Russia and the EU:

“Russian power is extraordinarily brutal in the post-Soviet era, as we have already seen in Chechnya. This brutality has been confirmed — although on a smaller scale — in the spectacle of the Russian army occupying a sovereign country, moving through it as it pleases, advancing and retreating at will, and casually destroying the military and civilian infrastructures of a young democracy as an astonished world watches. Today it is Georgia. Tomorrow will it be Ukraine? Or, in the name of the same solidarity with the supposedly persecuted Russian-speaking populations, will it be the Baltic countries? Or Poland?…

“The new Russia is indifferent to international protests, admonishments and warnings… Russia has no shame when it comes to twisting principles and ideals… European — and in this instance French — diplomacy is weak. We expect a great democracy to condemn and sanction the aggressor, without nuance. But in effect the opposite was done… Mikheil Saakhashvili, the Georgian president, was… forced to ratify a document that the Russians speak of as the ‘Medvedev document.’ Not a word in it mentions the territorial integrity of the country. Then there are the famous ‘additional security clauses’ acknowledging the Russian army’s right to be stationed there and to patrol, as scandalous in principle as they are vague in their modalities of application. Has the world turned upside down? This must be a dream.

“Western public opinion fell with disconcerting facility for the thesis advanced — from the very first day — by the Kremlin’s propaganda machine. We know now that the Russian army had been hard at work on its war preparations since before Aug. 8… We must analyze in greater depth the mechanisms of… blindness… Reason, if not honor, demands that we go to the rescue of Europe in Tbilisi.”

China and the USA–“A Biblical Seven Years”

The New York Times published the following article, which was re-published by Der Spiegel Online on August 27, titled, “A Biblical Seven Years”:

“China did not build the magnificent $43 billion infrastructure for these games, or put on the unparalleled opening and closing ceremonies, simply by the dumb luck of discovering oil. No, it was the culmination of seven years of national investment, planning, concentrated state power, national mobilization and hard work. Seven years… Oh, that’s right. China was awarded these Olympic Games on July 13, 2001 — just two months before 9/11.

“As I sat in my seat at the Bird’s Nest, watching thousands of Chinese dancers, drummers, singers and acrobats on stilts perform their magic at the closing ceremony, I couldn’t help but reflect on how China and America have spent the last seven years: China has been preparing for the Olympics; we’ve been preparing for Al Qaeda. They’ve been building better stadiums, subways, airports, roads and parks. And we’ve been building better metal detectors, armored Humvees and pilotless drones.

“The difference is starting to show. Just compare arriving at La Guardia’s dumpy terminal in New York City and driving through the crumbling infrastructure into Manhattan with arriving at Shanghai’s sleek airport and taking the 220-mile-per-hour magnetic levitation train, which uses electromagnetic propulsion instead of steel wheels and tracks, to get to town in a blink. Then ask yourself: Who is living in the third world country?

“… the first rule of holes is that when you’re in one, stop digging. When you see how much modern infrastructure has been built in China since 2001, under the banner of the Olympics, and you see how much infrastructure has been postponed in America since 2001, under the banner of the war on terrorism, it’s clear that the next seven years need to be devoted to nation-building in America.

“We need to finish our business in Iraq and Afghanistan as quickly as possible, which is why it is a travesty that the Iraqi Parliament has gone on vacation while 130,000 U.S. troops are standing guard. We can no longer afford to postpone our nation-building while Iraqis squabble over whether to do theirs…”

Iran Builds Submarines With Capacity to Launch Torpedoes and Missiles

On August 26, The New York Sun reported the following:

“Iran’s Defense Ministry said it started to build submarines to give its military ‘the most advanced arms’ and maintain ‘security’ in the Strait of Hormuz. The production line for the Qaem submarines, which will have the capacity to transport and launch torpedoes and subsurface missiles, was inaugurated yesterday, Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar was quoted as saying…

“The Strait of Hormuz, at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, is a chokepoint between Iran and Oman through which about a fifth of the world’s daily oil supply is shipped. Iran is caught in a standoff with Western countries over its nuclear program. America, while saying it is committed to a diplomatic solution, has never ruled out military action.

“Iran warned in June that it would ‘impose control’ on the Gulf, including the strait, in response to any attack on its atomic installations.”

America’s Weak Banking System

Reuters reported on August 27:

“Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) might have to borrow money from the Treasury Department to see it through an expected wave of bank failures, the Wall Street Journal reported… The last time the FDIC had borrowed funds from the Treasury was at nearly the tail end of the savings-and-loan crisis in the early 1990s after thousands of banks were shuttered.

“The fact that the agency is considering the option again, after the collapse of just nine banks this year, illustrates the concern among Washington regulators about the weakness of the U.S. banking system in the wake of the credit crisis, the Journal said.”

Another U.S. Bank Folds…

Bloomberg reported on August 23:

“Columbian Bank and Trust Co. of Topeka, Kansas, was closed by U.S. regulators, the nation’s ninth bank to collapse this year amid bad real-estate loans and writedowns stemming from a drop in home prices. The bank, with $752 million in assets and $622 million in total deposits, was shuttered by the Kansas state bank commissioner’s office and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp… Citizens Bank and Trust will assume the failed bank’s insured deposits…

“The pace of bank closings is accelerating as financial firms have reported more than $500 billion in writedowns and credit losses since 2007. The FDIC’s ‘problem’ bank list grew… to 90 banks with combined assets of $26.3 billion.”

How Germans View Obama’s Choice of Biden

On August 25, following Barack Obama’s announcement that he chose Joe Biden as his running mate, the German press responded in a divided manner.

According to Der Spiegel Online, “The right-leaning Die Welt writes: ‘(Choosing Joe Biden as his running mate) is not without its problems… In the minds of the voters, Joe Biden is just as much as a blank slate as Obama is. In America, that’s what you call “double trouble.” Naming Biden doesn’t mitigate people’s stranger anxiety with Obama. It actually accentuates it.’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘By deciding on Biden as his running mate, Obama … has made it clear that he considers his lack of foreign policy experience to be dangerous and that, given the current global situation, it might even be decisive in the election. Otherwise, it’s very unlikely that he would have chosen Biden, as he represents a tiny state and neither he nor Obama enjoys general popularity with the common citizen. Biden’s own runs for the presidency have usually ended fairly early, with extremely poor results…’

“The financial daily Handelsblatt writes: ‘… If Biden makes it to the White House, it would be a good thing for Europe, too. Biden is a frequent guest in European capitals, and he’s seen the problem spots with his own eyes. … With Biden, Obama is putting a specialist on his team in a time of foreign-policy crisis. That can only help the occasionally troubled trans-Atlantic relations.'”

Democrats Support Unconditional Right of Legal Abortion

The Associated Press reported on August 25 about the Democratic Convention in Denver, Colorado:

“In one of their first orders of business, delegates ratified a party platform tailored to Obama’s specifications. It backs ‘complete redeployment within 16 months from Iraq,’ as well as health care for all, a new economic stimulus package and higher taxes on families earning over $250,000 a year.

“‘The Democratic Party strongly and unequivocally supports Roe v. Wade and a woman’s right to choose a safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay, and we oppose any and all efforts to weaken or undermine that right,’ it said.”

Catholics Attack Biden and Pelosi

The Washington Times reported on August 26:

“Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. arrived at the Democratic National Convention on Monday amid rumblings over whether his pro-choice Catholicism would help or hurt the Democratic ticket. An Irish-Catholic from a working-class upbringing, Mr. Biden won the nod as presumptive presidential nominee Barack Obama’s running mate in part because of his appeal to blue-collar Catholics… But the party’s hopes of winning the critical Catholic vote took a hit Sunday when Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver said Mr. Biden should avoid taking Communion as a result of his pro-choice stand on abortion…

“The debate underscored what has emerged as a central theme of this year’s convention: the tension between the Democratic Party’s renewed outreach to religious voters and its long-standing support for unfettered access to abortion… Catholics, the nation’s largest religious voting bloc, represent 26 percent of the electorate… Catholic advocacy groups didn’t wait long before weighing in on the ‘wafer wars.’ The conservative Catholic group Fidelis condemned the selection of Mr. Biden. ‘Now everywhere Biden campaigns, we’ll have this question of whether a pro-abortion Catholic can receive Communion. … Selecting a pro-abortion Catholic is a slap in the face to Catholic voters,’ said Fidelis President Brian Burch.”

On August 25, TheHill.com reported:

“In a rare public rebuke of a top politician, the archbishop of Washington [Donald W. Wuerl] said Monday that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was incorrect when she recently said the [question when human life begins] has long been a matter of controversy within the Catholic Church… Pelosi responded to a question on when life begins by mentioning she was Catholic…

“Wuerl… cited Catechism language that reads, ‘Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception … Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law.'”

“Black Against White” — “The Hidden Issue in the US Presidential Campaign”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on August 27:

“McCain against Obama. Republican against Democrat. Old against young. There are a number of ways to define the ongoing battle for the White House. But the most important is getting short shrift: black against white… Whenever a question about race is asked, the interviewee either tries to act as if he hadn’t heard properly, or the answer quickly meanders into meaninglessness…

“… it is not just Russia and the Georgian war that have suddenly granted McCain serious-contender status in this election. The race issue… remains, despite being pushed into the background by political correctness, unresolved. Now, the issue of race is playing a role in weakening Obama and strengthening McCain and almost no one wants to talk about it. Indeed, the issue of race in the campaign has become the province of the lunatic fringe — such as radio personality Rush Limbaugh. Obama’s candidacy, he said on air, ‘goes back to the fact that nobody had the guts to stand up and say no to a black guy.’ He also referred to Obama as the ‘little black man child.’

“Limbaugh may be extreme, but it’s not difficult to imagine that a large percentage of Republican voters are also wary of seeing a black president. More important, though, is whether the swing voters will be willing to vote for a black man over a white man. And it also depends on the fickle Democrats, many of whom voted for Ronald Reagan in the ’80s. Now they must choose between voting for Obama — or maybe, in the end, McCain.

“It will also, of course, depend upon the aggrieved and defeated Hillary Clinton and how well she fades into the background after her Tuesday night speech in Denver. Obama, for his part, can only help himself by holding his tongue when it comes to Clinton. There are, after all, a number of white skeptics who would have preferred to see Clinton as the Democratic candidate. Race, after all, was a hidden factor in the primaries as well.”

California Appeals Court Affirms Home Schooling by Non-Credentialed Parents

On August 8, 2008, The Mercury News reported the following:

“In a decision widely praised, a California appeals court this morning affirmed the right of parents who don’t have a teaching credential to educate their children at home. A three-judge panel overturned a lower-court order in February that had created an uproar among home-schooling parents when it required that they be credentialed. An estimated 166,000 California children are home schooled.

“The Second District appellate court in Los Angeles ruled that individual parents, like private schools, are exempt from the requirement that those who teach children be credentialed by the state…”

Misrepresentation of the Biblical Sabbath

RTE News reported on August 24:

“Cardinal Séan Brady has suggested that EU hostility to religion may have prompted some Irish voters to reject the Lisbon Treaty. He said a succession of anti-family, anti-life and other anti-Christian decisions by Brussels has made it more difficult for committed Christians to maintain their instinctive support for Europe in the Lisbon Referendum.”

Christianity Today added on August 25 how Cardinal Brady blatantly mischaracterized Sunday, calling it “the Sabbath.” As any serious biblical scholar knows, the Bible commands the worship of the Seventh-Day Sabbath (from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset)–not Sunday, which is the FIRST day of the week. To refer to Sunday as the Sabbath is either willfulness or blatant ignorance. The Bible prophesied however, in the Old Testament book of Daniel, that the Catholic Church WILL attempt to change the times of holy worship. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Is That in the Bible?–Man’s Holidays and God’s Holy Days.”

Christianity Today wrote:

“Cardinal Sean Brady… told the audience: ‘Successive decisions… have undermined the family based on marriage, the right to life from the moment of conception to natural death, the sacredness of the Sabbath, the right of Christian institutions to maintain and promote their ethos, including schools… Ignoring this trend within the EU and its impact on people of faith has inevitable political and social consequences, not least on levels of support for the project itself.'”