Looking for His glorious appearing! Titus 2:13

Riots in Jordan May Spark Arab Spring Revolution
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily NewsINN - Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Sharp price hikes in Jordan have fanned the flames of anger and sparked riots that the Muslim Brotherhood warns could be the beginning of another Arab Spring revolution across the river from Israel’s eastern border.

Jordan announced on Tuesday it would raise fuel prices, including a 53 percent hike on cooking gas, sparking nationwide protests in which two policemen were lightly wounded and a courthouse torched, police and state television said.

"Trade and Industry Minister Hatem al-Halwani decided to adjust the price of fuel, raising the cost of household gas from 6.5 dinars to 10 dinars per cylinder," a 53 percent rise, state TV said, according to AFP.

The hike was to help reduce a massive government deficit, which Prime Minister Abdullah Nsur told the television is 3.5 billion dinars (around $5 billion) this year.

"The financial situation in the country has been greatly affected by the Arab Spring... The economic situation is very precarious," he said.

"The decision to re-examine fuel subsidies needed to be taken two years ago," Nsur added, saying the government would subsidize low-income families to help with the higher prices.

More than 2,000 people demonstrated in Amman against the price hike, chanting "Nsur out," and "long live the great people of Jordan," holding banners that read "revolution of the hungry," and "is this in our interest?"

In the northern city of Irbid, around 1,000 people protested, and police said two anti-riot policemen were shot and lightly wounded.

Several hundred people demonstrated elsewhere, including in Karak, where police said a courthouse was torched, and also in the other southern cities of Tafileh and Maan.

"This decision is a gamble that provokes the people and challenges them. It's the most dangerous decision in 10 years," Zaki Bani Rsheid, deputy leader of Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood, told AFP.

"The people are already poor and crushed. If Jordan had elected governments that fight corruption, then we could raise prices."

Jordanians have been staging street protests to demand reform since last year, and more demonstrations are expected following the fuel price hike, which comes ahead of a January 23 general election, seen as key to introducing much-needed change.

The kingdom, which imports 95 percent of its energy needs, is struggling to find alternatives to unstable Egyptian gas supplies, which normally cover 80 percent of the kingdom's power production.

Since 2011, the pipeline supplying gas from Egypt to both Israel and Jordan has been attacked 14 times.

Nuclear Iran Seeks Apocalyptic Holy Man
Nov 14th, 2012
Commentarythemoralliberal.com
Categories: Warning;Contemporary Issues

President Barack Obama knows who the enemy is. September 11, 2012 was clear evidence that the killing of Osama Bin Laden was not a fait accompli when it comes to ending the terrorist threat.

Obama is reluctant to openly admit that radical Islam’s open declaration of war presents a danger to America. The state of Israel shows no such hesitancy. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently stood before the United Nations and warned of a medieval war of civilizations that is set to erupt global security.

A nuclear armed Iran is far different, Netanyahu pointed out, than a nuclear armed Russia. Netanyahu emphasized the distinction between the two ideologies of Iran and Soviet Russia:

“Militant Jihadists behave very differently from Secular Marxists. There were no Soviet suicide bombers. Yet, Iran produces hordes of them. Deterrence worked with the Soviets because every time Soviets chose between their ideology and survival, they chose survival. But, deterrence may not work with Iranians when they get their nuclear weapons.”

Netanyahu went on to explain that the difference between the two aggressors is the value placed on life. Iran anticipates its own destruction as a price to pay for bombing the globe into chaos:

“A great scholar of the Middle East, Bernard Lewis, put it best: ‘For the Ayatollahs of Iran, mutual assured destruction is not a deterrent, it’s an inducement.

Iran’s apocalyptic leaders believe that a medieval Holy Man will reappear in the wake of a devastating holy war, thereby insuring that their brand of radical Islam will rule the earth.’ Now, that’s not just what they believe, that is what is guiding their policies and their actions.”

Americans and nations worldwide must recognize the seriousness and inflexibility of Iran’s goal towards mutual destruction and the Obama administration’s role to date in the rapidly developing global crisis.
Inexplicably to many, Barack Obama unleashed uprisings in the Middle East while implementing a radical Socialist agenda to “transform America” back home.

The overall intent is not as bifurcated as it may appear. The radical Islamists are waging a war of religion while the radical left is waging a war of ideas. The mutual goal is the toppling of a republic based, Judeo-Christian founded and Constitutionally-grounded America.

Jihadists want America to become an Islamic state like Iran, whereas the left wants a “transformation of America” to a Socialist nation. Both systems devour individual rights and freedoms. Key to both movements is total elimination of all belief systems counter to their own.

Were they to succeed, as natural enemies, Islamists and Socialists will eventually target one another. Radical Islam condemns to death all that reject a belief in Allah.

Socialists constitute much of America’s Progressive-Left and have consistently legislated God out of American society, seeking to become god to the masses.

President Obama is the titular head of the Progressive-Left. President Obama understands Islam having studied the Koran in Indonesia.

Part of the curriculum was that The Twelfth Imam or Twelfth Mahdi is the Islamic savior — its Islamic messiah. Islam requires that in order for the Twelfth Imam to reveal himself, the world must be in global war.

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly believes that he has the divine mission to “hasten the return” of the 12th Mahdi. Destroying Israel, then America, erupts the world into the chaos needed for the Mahdi’s return.

Some 600 years before Islam, Christ appeared during His first coming as God-incarnate. The Christian Messiah is the Savior Jesus Christ. Islam reveres Jesus as a lesser prophet and not God, which puts Islam at inextricable odds with Christianity.

Iranian President Ahmadinejad believes the “Mahdi” or “Twelfth Imam” will appear publicly during a time of great disaster, with Jesus at his side, to bring peace to a war-torn world. It is said that the 12th Mahdi will take Jesus to Mecca to replace the Bible with the Koran so that Christians worldwide will convert to Islam.

A “Muslim anti-Christ” is also to surface in the world and falsely convince Jews that he is their “Jesus the Messiah” that they have long awaited.

An “Islamic Jesus,” it is said, will kill all Jews and behead anyone worldwide who does not accept Islam as the only true religion.

The Islamic Mahdi will set-up his kingdom in Jerusalem, establish a worldwide Caliphate, along with Shariah Law, and rule the world. Homosexuals will be killed and women will remain as property and oppressed.

Such belief is a driving force of today’s war on non-Islamic nations; an ancient war based on fundamental Islam that has entrenched the globe in a war on terror. Those who identify themselves as moderate Muslims declare that only extremists hold such beliefs.

The funding by Iran of the upheaval in the Middle East, the positioning of radical Muslim groups in governments across the region from Lebanon to Egypt cannot simply be dismissed as a war of ideologies between the West and the Muslim world. By Ahmadinejad’s admission, Iran’s role in the turmoil in the Middle East is to set the stage for the return of the Twelfth Imam.

Obama’s years studying Islam should have taught him that he cannot schmooze leaders like Ahmadinejad, gain their favor, and unmoor them from what they believe is the only reason they exist on the planet.

Islamic radicals seek world chaos targeting first Israel and then the United States. For Barack Obama to in anyway diminish the radical Islamist threat prioritizes his personally held biases that jeopardize America’s safety.

Netanyahu has recognized the danger and has openly warned of it for more than 15 years:

“Shockingly, some people have begun to peddle the absurd notion that a nuclear armed Iran would actually stabilize the Middle East. Yeah, right. That’s like saying a nuclear armed Al-Qaeda would usher in an era of universal peace.

I speak about it now because the Iranian nuclear calendar does not wait for anyone or anything. I speak about it now because the hour is getting late, very late. I speak about it now because when it comes to the survival of my country, it is not only my right to speak, but my duty to speak.

And, I believe that this is the duty of every responsible [world] leader who wants to preserve peace.”

Netanyahu warned that it is not just Israel and the United States, but the world at large that is being targeted:

“Militant Islam has many branches – from the rulers of Iran with their Revolutionary Guards to Al Qaeda terrorists to the radical cells lurking in every part of the globe. But, despite their differences, they are all rooted in the same bitter soil of intolerance.

That intolerance is directed first at their fellow Muslims, and then to Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, secular people, anyone who doesn’t submit to their unforgiving creed.”

Netanyahu Threatens Gaza Terrorists With Heavy Price
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily NewsINN - Elad Benari
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu threatened Gaza terrorists with “a heavy price” on Tuesday. The comments were made during a meeting between Netanyahu and mayors from southern Israeli communities in Be’er Sheva.

“Anyone who thinks he can disrupt the daily lives of the residents of the south and not pay a heavy price – is wrong,” Netanyahu said.

"My responsibility as Prime Minister is to choose the right time to charge the highest price, and that is how it will be,” he added.

Tuesday was considered a “quiet day” in the south, because only two rockets and missiles were fired throughout the day. One attack was a Grad missile fired early Tuesday morning at the city of Ashdod.

The missile missed exploding in populated or industrial areas and caused no physical injuries or damage. Another rocket exploded on Tuesday afternoon in an open area in the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council. There were no physical injuries or damages.

The Ashdod attack ended a “ceasefire” declared on Monday night and which lasted a grand total of six hours, from midnight to 6 a.m.

Before his visit to Be’er Sheva, Netanyahu met with his nine senior ministers and they discussed the Israeli response to the shooting from Gaza. The ministers decided that if the quiet is maintained, the IDF would not conduct air strikes in Gaza. However, if terrorists continue to shoot missiles, the Israeli response will be much more powerful than it has been thus far.

Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, one of the members of the forum of nine ministers, told Army Radio on Tuesday that “Gaza has a military terrorist array, which has accumulated a stockpile of missiles similar to the stockpile Hizbullah had before the Second Lebanon War. We never agreed to this, it is contrary to all agreements we signed with the Palestinian Authority.”

Steinitz added, "Sooner or later, even if there is calm in Gaza, we'll have to resolve this - and this is only possible through an operation like the 2002 Operation Defensive Shield, during which despite all the difficulties and the

Let the Headlines Speak
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily NewsFrom the Internet
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Nuclear Iran Seeks Apocalyptic Holy Man
“Militant Jihadists behave very differently from Secular Marxists. There were no Soviet suicide bombers. Yet, Iran produces hordes of them. Deterrence worked with the Soviets because every time Soviets chose between their ideology and survival, they chose survival. But, deterrence may not work with Iranians when they get their nuclear weapons.” Netanyahu went on to explain that the difference between the two aggressors is the value placed on life. Iran anticipates its own destruction as a price to pay for bombing the globe into chaos:

China submarines to soon carry nukes, draft U.S. report says
China appears to be within two years of deploying submarine-launched nuclear weapons, adding a new leg to its nuclear arsenal that should lead to arms-reduction talks, a draft report by a congressionally mandated U.S. commission says.

Papa John's and Applebee's Warn of Obamacare Cuts
Applebee’s and Papa John’s have joined the growing chorus of employers who warn the upcoming implementation of Obamacare will lead to damaging cuts in its workforces. "That's what you do, is you pass on costs,’’ John Schnatter, founder and CEO of Papa John’s, told students at Edison State College in Naples, Fla. “Unfortunately, I don't think people know what they're going to pay for this."

Medvedev: U.S. must go beyond 'reset' mode
Russia and the United States must develop relations, not try to "reset" them again, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said. "Now, we need not to again reset everything ... but to develop ties," Medvedev said in an interview before departing Wednesday to visit Finland.

Secession madness! Now 40 states join petition fray
If any of the hundreds of thousands of people petitioning the White House in the blossoming battle over secession get their way, somebody is going to leave the union, either voluntarily … or involuntarily.

HaarpStatus.com Network Detected Alaskan Earthquake Before It Struck
On Monday morning Pacific Time, HaarpStatus.com detected an anomaly they claim is abnormal, a ring shape on the network. This may have seen the signs of an impending Earthquake on this side of the planet.

Pro-lesbian study uses biased statistics
A member of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations has denounced a new study that claims children with lesbian mothers are more successful in school and happier in life. The study from the Williams Institute at UCLA and published in the Journal of Homosexuality surveyed 17-year-olds who had been raised by lesbian mothers. Dr. Andre Van Mol of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations says that sampling biases and small numbers flawed the study.

Scientists use genome sequencing to halt superbug outbreak
The success of the technique, which used fast genome sequencing technology to control an outbreak of the MRSA superbug on a baby ward, suggests it could be used to control hospital bugs, salmonella and E.coli infections and diseases like tuberculosis, scientists said. "What we have glimpsed through this pioneering study is a future in which new sequencing methods will help us to identify, manage and stop hospital outbreaks,"

Assad: Erdogan thinks he's Caliph, new sultan of the Ottoman
President Bashar Assad said that the conflict in Syria is not a civil war, but proxy terrorism by Syrians and foreign fighters. He also accused the Turkish PM of eyeing Syria with imperial ambitions.

France recognizes Syrian opposition coalition
"I announce today that France recognizes the Syrian national coalition as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people and as the future government of a democratic Syria which will allow for an end to Bashar al-Assad's regime," President Hollande told a news conference in Paris.

Doctor Shortage Could Cause Health Care Crash
The United States will require at least 52,000 more family doctors in the year 2025 to keep up with the growing and increasingly older U.S. population, a new study found. The predictions also reflect the passage of the Affordable Care Act -- a change that will expand health insurance coverage to an additional 38 million Americans.

Popocatépetl volcano (Central Mexico) activity update: increasing number of emissions
The volcano continues to produce (mostly steam) emissions at increasing frequency (120 during 11-12 Nov, 190 during 12-13 Nov), sometimes with small amounts of ash.

US Conference Board fears Brics miracle over as world faces decade-long slump
The US Conference Board’s global economic outlook calls into question the "BRICs" miracle (Brazil, Russia, India, China), arguing that the low-hanging fruit from cheap labour and imported technology has already been picked.

Northwestern U. Marxism conference packed with teachers
Teachers filled the ranks at the 2012 Midwest Marxism Conference, which was held Saturday at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jesse Sharkey, who spoke at one of the breakout sessions, was just one of the hundreds of attendees, many of them teachers, there to strategize about the next phases of the partnership between Chicago Socialists and the Chicago Teachers Union.

How a vicious circle of self-interest pushed San Bernardino into bankruptcy
When this sun-drenched exurb east of Los Angeles filed for bankruptcy protection in August, the city attorney suggested fraudulent accounting was the root of the problem. The mayor blamed a dysfunctional city council and greedy police and fire unions. The unions blamed the mayor. Even now, there is little agreement on how the city got into this crisis or how it can extricate itself.

White House to respond after 80,000 sign petition for Texas to secede from United States
The White House will respond after thousands signed a petition on a government website following U.S. President Barack Obama’s re-election asking for Texas to have the right to secede from the United States.

David Petraeus: Senators call for former CIA head to testify on Benghazi attack
Republican and Democratic senators have called for David Petraeus, the former CIA director who resigned last week amid a sex scandal, to testify about the deadly September 11 attack on the US mission in Benghazi, Libya.

‘Kids Without God’: Atheist Activists Launch Shocking Web Site to Convert Kids & Teens Into Non-Believers
The atheist activist community in America has taken an increasingly-active role in trying to convince citizens with doubts about their faith to fully evolve into non-believers and to “come out,” publicly proclaiming their anti-theism. ...The American Humanist Association (AHA), a group that seeks to create “a progressive society where being good without gods” is widely accepted, has launched a new outreach web site called KidsWithoutGod.com.

Google: Surveillance 'is on the rise'
Google received more requests from the U.S. government to hand over user data during the first half of this year than from any other country, according to the search company's biannual "Transparency Report" released on Tuesday. From January to June, Google received nearly 8,000 requests for user data from the U.S. government. The search company said it "fully or partially" compiled with roughly 90 percent of them.

Wealthy Dump Assets Amid Worries About Going Over 'Cliff'
For many of the wealthy, 2012 is becoming a good year to sell. They're worried about the "fiscal cliff," which is when tax cuts expire and spending cuts are set to go into effect at the end of the year. Fearing an increase in capital gains and dividend taxes, many of the rich are unloading stocks, businesses and homes before the end of the year.

Budget deficit rises to $120 billion in October
The budget deficit rose in October, the first month of fiscal year 2013, as looming negotiations over expiring tax cuts and imminent spending reductions dominated the post-election political landscape. The Treasury said on Tuesday the October deficit was $120 billion, larger than economist forecasts for a $114 billion gap and up from $98 billion in October of 2011.

Pakistan agrees Afghan Taliban releases in Islamabad talks
Pakistan has agreed to free several jailed Afghan Taliban officials during talks in Islamabad with Afghan peace negotiators, officials say. Afghan sources told the BBC the former Taliban justice minister Mullah Turabi and two intelligence officials are among the group to be freed. One Afghan official described the move as a positive gesture towards peace.

Jamaica bans Bible preaching on commuter buses
Jamaica's public transport authorities have banned lay preachers from addressing commuters in public buses. Jamaica is a predominantly Christian country, but many passengers have complained about the noise and disturbance. Drivers have been instructed to politely warn religious ministers that they are no longer allowed to evangelise fellow passengers.

UN: Haiti faces 2013 food shortage after Hurricane Sandy
The UN in Haiti says 1.5 million people remain at risk of not having proper access to food in 2013 due to the destruction caused by Hurricane Sandy and other natural disasters. The situation has been made worse by a drought earlier this year, it says. At least 54 people died as Hurricane Sandy hit the impoverished Caribbean nation two weeks ago.

EU budget in disarray after MEPs veto talks
EU spending plans for 2012 and 2013 are in disarray after talks between ministers and MEPs collapsed on Tuesday (13 November). With eight EU countries unwilling to agree to the European Commission's demand for an extra €9 billion to cover outstanding bills for this year, MEPs boycotted talks which had been intended to agree a budget for 2013 worth around €130 billion.

'Rebels seize villages in Israel-Syria buffer zone'
Syrian rebels have seized control over two towns in the buffer zone with Israel, The Daily Telegraph reported late on Tuesday. According to the report, which cites an Israeli military intelligence source from the Northern Command, 200 or more rebels took control of Be’er Ajam and Bariqa.

European workers stage austerity protests
Workers across the European Union are staging a series of protests and strikes against rising unemployment and austerity measures. Organisers of the strike are urging national leaders to abandon austerity and address growing social anxiety. Strikes are expected in Spain, Greece, Portugal and Italy, with other protests planned in Belgium, Germany, France the UK and some eastern EU states.

Japan's PM says may dissolve parliament by Friday
Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said Wednesday that he is ready to dissolve the parliament by Friday, bringing an election within weeks, if Japan's main opposition party agrees to key electoral reforms. Noda made the pledge during a heated parliamentary exchange with Liberal Democratic Party chief Shinzo Abe. The LDP has been pushing Noda to make good on a promise to call elections soon, but he has said lawmakers must first carry out reforms needed to make the vote constitutional.

Yuan spot price per USD hits record high
The spot price of the yuan against the U.S. dollar rose to 6.2262 on Tuesday, marking a record high since China's foreign exchange reforms seven years ago. Tuesday was the second consecutive day that the spot price of the yuan against the U.S. dollar hit a record high since China launched its foreign exchange reforms in 2005.

Israel Threatens to Overthrow Palestinian Government
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily NewsIsrael Today - Ryan Jones
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Wednesday said the time may have arrived for regime change in the Palestinian Authority, if its current leadership continues its effort to unilaterally gain recognition for a state of "Palestine" at the United Nations.

In a draft position paper made public in the Israeli media, Lieberman said the international backlash to Israel overthrowing Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas would be intense.

Nevertheless, "removing Abbas from power would be the only option in such a scenario," argued Lieberman, noting that a "soft" response from Israel would signal that Jerusalem could not handle this new challenge posed by the Palestinians, and thereby open a floodgate of new demands.

Abbas is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly later this month and petition its members for "non-member" status, a move that would mean the de facto recognition of "Palestine" as a sovereign and independent state. Abbas says he will not return to negotiations with Israel until he has received that recognition.

Israeli leaders say Abbas' position is a violation of existing signed agreements, which stipulate that a Palestinian state will only be birthed as a result of successful bi-lateral negotiations.

"The UN bid is a flagrant violation of the Oslo agreements [that is] geared toward avoiding talks with Israel," Israeli Vice Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon told Israel Radio.

Yaalon warned that Israel retains the right to counter with its own unilateral moves.

That's precisely what Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan said Israel would do. In his own interview with Israel Radio, Erdan suggested that Israel officially annex all Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, which sit on a significant portion of the lands Abbas would be claiming as an independent state.

Fearing that the episode could put the final nail in the coffin of an already-stagnant peace process, newly reelected US President Barack Obama called Abbas on Sunday to urge him to reconsider. But Obama was denied, and Abbas insisted he would move forward with his UN bid.

A large majority of the UN General Assembly members are expected to vote in favor of the Palestinian Authority request.

The immediate short-term danger for Israel is that Abbas can then officially petition the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court against the presence of Jews in Judea, Samaria and most of Jerusalem. The rulings from those courts would then become part of future Palestinian demands, and further delegitimize the return of the Jews to their ancient lands and capital.

Israel May Declare Oslo Dead and Buried
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily NewsINN - Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

The Foreign Ministry has told its ambassadors to explain that the Palestinian Authority's plan to ask for United Nations recognition is a violation of the Oslo Accords and may cause Israel to officially announce that it is “canceling them partially or completely.” The agreement commits the PA to negotiate with Israel for the establishment of an independent PA entity.

“You are asked immediately at the beginning of the work week to contact the foreign ministry, prime minister’s office, national security adviser or president’s office and request to do all possible to halt the Palestinian initiative because of its far-reaching consequences,” the ambassadors were instructed in a cable from Aharon Leshno-Yaar, director of the Foreign Ministry’s department for international organizations. Haaretz published the cable’s contents Wednesday morning.

“The Palestinian resolution is a clear violation of the fundamental principle of negotiations and is a violation of the agreements between Israel and the PLO,” the cable stated. “The adoption of the resolution will give Israel the right to re-evaluate previous agreements with the PLO and consider canceling them partially or completely, and would make progress in the peace process more difficult in the future.”

A position paper obtained by AFP states that if the UN General Assembly approves the Palestinian Authority's request, "Toppling Abu Mazen's (Abbas') regime would be the only option. Any other option... would mean waving a white flag and admitting the failure of the Israeli leadership to deal with the challenge."

Environment Minister Gilad Erdan, a senior Likud MK, said Wednesday morning that Israel should annex Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria as a response to PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s request to the United Nations General Assembly.

Indications of across-the-wall coalition unity in response to Abbas’ ploy strengthen Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s hand in advance of international criticism. He is bound to be challenged by the Obama administration and other Western nations not to duplicate Abbas’ latest de facto cancellation of agreements.

While the Palestinian Authority claims it is committed to halting the encouragement of violence and dismantling terrorist infrastructures, Abbas and other officials continue to honor suicide bombers. PA media and schools disseminate an ideology that all of Israel is Palestine, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea and from the Lebanese to the Egyptian borders.

Israel Air Strikes Continue After Death of Hamas Military Chief Ahmed Jabari. Hamas: It’s War
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel;War

After confirming the death of Ahmed Jabari, commander of Hamas’s military arm, Ezz e-din al-Qassam, Hamas announced: We are now at war with Israel. Jabari, 52, was killed by a targeted Israeli air attack in Gaza City. A key figure in the radical Palestinian Hamas movement, he was caught driving in a black Mercedes in Gaza City. Hamas has announced a general call-up and threatened to respond not just with rockets but suicide attacks. Israeli sources say the air operation called Pillar of Cloud is underway against more Hamas leaders and its military infrastructure and rocket stocks across the Gaza Strip until peace is restored to southern Israel.
debkafile’s military sources report that southern Israeli is on high alert in expectation of a furious Hamas reprisal for the loss of its leading terror strategist. Areas such as Gedera and Gan Yavneh which have escaped most missile attacks may now be targeted. Israel may also expect repercussions from Cairo since Jabari was a favorite of the ruling Muslim Brotherhood and his death occurred the day after Egypt brokered a ceasefire in the missile offensive from the Gaza Strip. That “ceasefire” was violated Wednesday with five Grad rockets against the Eshkol district.

Is Pakistan's Paranoia Pushing It Into a Nuclear War With India?
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily Newsoilprice.com
Categories: Commentary;Contemporary Issues

The possibility of a nuclear war between Pakistan and India grows every day. If the Pakistanis do not bring under control the terrorist groups in the country and resolve the conflicts with India, it is not a matter of if it will happen, but when.

There have been few achievements to celebrate in the sixty-five year history of Pakistan and that has made the success of the nuclear program central to the national identity. This is especially true for the military that receives a quarter of the budget and is the only strong national institution.

Development of the weapons started in January of 1972 by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, when he was the Minister for Fuel, Power and Natural Resources. The decision to go nuclear came after a disastrous military defeat in 1971 by India. Bangladesh with Indian assistance separated from Pakistan.

Without its eastern territory, Pakistan was facing an enemy six times larger. The only way to deal with such a threat was to acquire an equalizer. Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Ali Bogra stated in 1954, "When there is more equality of military strength, then I am sure that there will be a greater chance of settlement."

His words expressed what is an ongoing national preoccupation with military parity with the far more powerful India.

India joined the nuclear club in 1974. Pakistan followed in 1998 and became the only Moslem nuclear power with what became known as the “Islamic Bomb;” and that made it a leader in the Islamic world community.

The Pakistan high command believed that the U.S. does not want a Moslem country to possess nuclear weapons and will at some time in the future attempt to seize or destroy its arsenal.

Since September of 2001, much of the American military action has been directed towards Moslem states. As the sole nuclear Islamic country, that convinces the Pakistanis that they too will be targeted.

Washington worries that Pakistan with a number of terrorist organizations supported by the Inter-Service Intelligence is the one place where terrorists would be the most likely to acquire a nuclear weapon or nuclear materials.

A high ranking official of the Inter Service Intelligence told the Atlantic for a December 2011 article on the Pakistani nuclear weapons program, “You must trust us that we have maximum and impenetrable security. No one with ill intent can get near our strategic assets.”

Since April 2012, The Strategic Plans Division that is charged with protecting the nuclear arsenal of an estimated ninety to one hundred and ten strategic warheads has been adding an additional eight thousand specially trained troops to protect the storage facilities from an American attempt to seize or destroy the nuclear weapons.

A retired high level Pakistani officer confided that he and many of his colleagues believe that the U.S. will move against nuclear facilities shortly after the American combat role ends in Afghanistan. He and his colleagues expect the United States to abandon Pakistan as it did in 1989 when the Soviet Union was driven out of Afghanistan.

The raid by U.S. special operation forces into Abbottabad in May of 2011 to kill Osama Bin Laden has been taken as a warning signal by chief of army staff General Ashfaq Kayani what to expect.

Senator John Kerry was sent to Pakistan shortly after the raid to explain the American position. He did not reduce the general’s anxieties when he declined to provide a written guarantee that the U.S. would not attack the Pakistani nuclear storage facilities.

The positioning in the region of units under the United States Joint Special Operations Command is a factor that is feeding the Pakistani paranoia.

The task of JOSC is to keep out of the hands of terrorists nuclear materials that were abandoned when the Soviet Union left the Central Asian states. Included in what is seen as a high risk region is Pakistan that is on the list of failed or failing states.

Satellite photos and other sources estimate that there are fifteen locations where weapons or nuclear materials are likely to be kept. Six of these have been attacked by terrorists, although no weapons or materials have been taken.

The generals are probably telling the truth when they say that the weapons are safe in the military facilities. What they are not saying is that their effort to evade detection by the Americans has created other serious flaws in the security.

The assurance that the weapons are safe from attackers collapses once a warhead leave the guarded facilities. Weapons are being moved frequently in lightly defended ordinary vehicles along public highways to prevent Indian and American spy satellites or snooping drones from tracking the movements.
There is little doubt that various extremist organizations have penetrated the military and are aware of the schedules and routes, but ISI acts as if it has enough control over the terrorists to prevent an ambush.

The larger strategic nuclear warheads are often transported disassembled. Recently, though, Pakistan has adopted tactical nuclear weapons with smaller warheads that are easier to moved assembled.

In April, ISI released photos of the Nasr, a new sixty kilometer range missile that appears to be capable of delivering a nuclear warhead. Because of the short range of the weapon, it will have to be positioned close to the frontier.

That places the missile in a more vulnerable position for a terrorist group to seize while being transported along public highways or in isolated locations.

At the time that Pakistan acquired nuclear weapons, military strategists rejected tactical nuclear weapons because they would provoke the Indians to escalate to strategic weapons in response.

That opinion has changed. The addition of a fourth nuclear reactor at Khushab that produces plutonium to be used in tactical weapons says that the inventory will be expanded.

Estimates of the amount of enriched uranium and plutonium in their inventory in 2011 places the potential number of weapons that can be produced at between 160 and 240.

They are developing as well two cruise missiles, two short range shoot and scoot type missiles and two ballistic missiles that will all require different types of warheads and different amounts of materials.

They have the fourth largest and fastest growing inventory of warheads of the nine nuclear classified countries. What has never been made clear is when they will feel that they have enough warheads to give them a sense of security.

The military consumes so much of the national budget that the country has been forced to curtail other developments. No other source of revenue is available that will enable the Pakistanis to compete with the Indian military that has a budget three times greater than theirs and a growing diversified economy to support its expansion.

The high command has concluded that the only equalizer for the weaker of the competitors is the tactical nuclear weapon. What makes this a very high risk strategy is the Pakistani first-strike policy.

India nearly retaliated against Pakistan after the 2008 Mumbai attack. That was before Pakistan had begun deploying tactical nuclear weapons. India would have been able to use its superior forces to crush Pakistani defenses.

Should there be another deadly attack by a Pakistan based terrorist organization, especially if it involves a stolen nuclear warhead, the Indians will not hesitate to retaliate. This time, the Indian army will encounter nuclear weapons in the field.

Then, Delhi that has no tactical nuclear weapons will have to decide if a strategic response is to be used. The survival of South Asia and far beyond will be depending on that decision.

IDF Brigades on Standby for Gaza Ground Operation
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel;War

Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood: Israel Must be Stopped Attacking Gaza
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

The Muslim Brotherhood ruling Egypt posted a strong statement against Israel Tuesday, Nov. 13 saying that Israel must be stopped from mounting an attack on the Gaza. “We will never enable Israel to attack the Gaza Strip,” said the party statement. DEBKAfile: The government in Cairo has had nothing to say about the mounting violence from Gaza, leaving it to its political-religious masters, the Brotherhood, which is clearly caling the shots in Cairo these days. It is this warning that gave the Netanyahu government pause before deciding to fight Palestinian aggression from Gaza to a standstill.

Court Upholds Right to Express Views on Homosexuality
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily Newslifesitenews.com
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Pastor Stephen Boissoin, who was found guilty in 2007 by a provincial human rights tribunal of “hate speech” for writing a letter to the editor expressing his views on homosexuality, has been strongly vindicated after the Alberta Appeals Court dismissed an appeal of a lower court decision in Boissoin’s favor.

The court also ordered Boissoin’s accuser, homosexual activist Dr. Darren Lund, an assistant professor at the University of Calgary, to pay Boissoin’s attorney fees.

Appeals Court Justice Clifton O’Brien concurred with the lower court that Boissoin’s letter “was not likely to expose homosexuals to hatred or contempt within the meaning of the Alberta statute.”

Pastor Stephen BoissoinIn 2009, Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Earl C. Wilson overturned the 2007 ruling by the Alberta Human Rights Commission (AHRC), which ordered Boissoin to desist from expressing his views on homosexuality in any sort of public forum, ordered him to pay damages equivalent to $7,000 to Lund and called for Boissoin to personally apologize to Lund via a public statement in the local newspaper.

In the letter, published in 2002 in the Red Deer Advocate, Boissoin had criticized homosexuality as immoral and dangerous, and called into question new homosexual rights curricula permeating the province’s educational system.

“Children as young as five and six years of age are being subjected to psychologically and physiologically damaging pro-homosexual literature and guidance in the public school system; all under the fraudulent guise of equal rights,” wrote Boissoin.

In quashing the Alberta Human Rights Commission’s judgment against Boissoin, Justice Wilson said there was nothing in the letter to suggest it was encouraging anyone to discriminate against homosexuals in areas that lie within provincial jurisdiction and are set out in the statutes, such as housing, employment, or access to goods and services.

“The language does not go so far as to fall within the prohibited status of ‘hate’ or ‘contempt’,” Wilson wrote in his decision.

Lund appealed Justice Wilson’s decision to the Alberta Court of Appeal, which handed down its decision last week.

In his ruling dismissing the appeal, Justice O’Brien also criticized the AHRC for not considering an affidavit filed by the managing editor of the Red Deer Advocate, Joe McLaughlin.

In that affidavit McLaughlin said that his newspaper “disagrees” with Lund’s claims that that paper exposed homosexuals to hatred by publishing Boissoin’s letter, and argues that “Advocate editorials, commentary and letters written in critical response to Boissoin’s letter are more likely than not to promote tolerance of homosexuals rather than discrimination.”

McLaughlin also observed that Boissoin actually expressed “sympathy, love and fellowship for some homosexuals” in his letter, taking aim at the “machine” that supports their cause, rather than individual homosexuals.

“While we do not agree with or support much of what Boissoin says, we believe his views are honestly felt, based on his understanding of the Bible,” said McLaughlin. “We believe that he has a right to express his views, and the Advocate has the responsibility to publish letters on issues of wide public interest.”

“Matters of morality, including the perceived morality of certain types of sexual behavior, are topics for discussion in the public forum,” concluded Justice O’Brien. “Freedom of speech does not just protect polite speech.”

Boissoin’s lawyer, Gerald Chipeur, Q.C., who is an allied attorney with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), pointed out that not only did Justice O’Brien throw out the AHRC’s decision, but ruled that a human rights panel had no constitutional authority to preside in such circumstances.

“This was a watershed case,” Chipeur said. “Very important, in terms of freedom of expression and religious liberty. Going forward, it will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for religious or political debate to be found in breach of Alberta’s current human rights laws.”

“Christians and other people of faith should not be fined or jailed for expressing their political or religious beliefs. There is no place for thought control in a free and democratic society,” Chipeur remarked. “The tools of censorship should not be available to prohibit freedom of religious expression in Canada. The court rightly found that this type of religious speech is not ‘hate’ speech.”

Concern Over 'Souped Up' Human Race
Nov 14th, 2012
Daily Newsbbc.co.uk
Categories: Today's Headlines;Commentary

People already have access to potent drugs, originally made for dementia patients and hyperactive children, that boost mental performance and wakefulness.

Within 15 years, experts predict that we will have small devices capable of recording our entire life experience as a continuous video feed - a life log that we can reference when our own memory fails.

Advances in bionics and engineering will mean we could all boast enhanced night vision allowing us to see clearly in the dark.

While it may be easy to count the potential gains, experts are warning that these advances will come at a significant cost - and one which is not just financial.

Four professional bodies - the Academy of Medical Sciences, the British Academy, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society - say that while human enhancement technologies might improve our performance and aid society, their use raise serious ethical, philosophical, regulatory and economic issues.

In a joint report, they warn that there is an "immediate need" for debate around the potential harms.

Chairwoman of the report's steering committee Prof Genevra Richardson said: "There are a range of technologies in development and in some cases already in use that have the potential to transform our workplaces - for better or for worse."

There may be an argument for lorry drivers, surgeons and airline pilots to use enhancing drugs to avoid tiredness, for example.

But, in the future, is there a danger that employers and insurers will make this use mandatory, the committee asks.

As our population ages, it is accepted that we will all be expected to work further into old age.

Human enhancement could enable older workers to keep pace with younger colleagues.

But there is also the risk that those who fail to join the technological elite would be sidelined as dinosaurs, says Prof Jackie Leach Scully, professor of social ethics at Newcastle University's Policy, Ethics & Life Sciences Research Centre.

Several surveys reveal that many students now use brain-enhancing "smart" pills to help boost their exam grades, which raises the question about whether colleges and universities should insist candidates are "clean" in the same way that Olympic athletes have to prove they are drug-free to compete.

Many people buy them over the internet, which is risky because they don't know what they're getting.

And we know little about their long-term effects on healthy, young brains.

Dr Robin Lovell-Badge, of the Medical Research Council and who chaired one of the workshop sessions that formulated the report, said: "It was clear from discussions that cognitive-enhancing drugs present the greatest immediate challenge for regulators and other policymakers.

"They are simple to take, already available without prescription, and are increasingly being used by healthy individuals.

"However, other forms of enhancement, including physical methods, will follow. Some were on show at the Paralympics, some are being explored by the military and others may become a serious option in the clinic in the not too distant future.

"It is good to see and to be excited by many of these developments, but there must be an equally watchful eye and care taken to ensure that the workforce can capitalise on the benefits, but not suffer the harms that could come about by their inappropriate use."