CANADIAN BUDGET PASSES

STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES

LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Over 318,000 still without power in Midwest Tue Feb 3, 3:47 pm ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – More than 318,000 homes and businesses remained without power Tuesday after snow and ice storms January 27-28 left almost 1.7 million customers in the dark from Oklahoma to Pennsylvania, local utilities reported.More than 200,000 customers were powerless in Kentucky and 100,000 in Arkansas.With snow falling Tuesday across the Bluegrass State and highs expected in the 20s and 30s F though Thursday, Kentuckians who remained in or returned to their dark homes may not be able to stay until the power is turned back on.About 39 percent of the homes in Kentucky use electricity for heat, versus the U.S. average of about 30 percent, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.The average high in Louisville is about 43 degrees at this time of year, according to AccuWeather.com.

E.ON U.S., which owns Louisville Gas and Electric Co and Kentucky Utilities Co, said it could take seven to 10 days to restore service to all 95,000 customers still without service.A spokesman for the electric cooperatives in Kentucky with some 127,000 customers still without power said it could take up to a month to restore service to customers in the most remote areas. The cooperatives serve the more rural parts of the state.E.ON U.S., a subsidiary of German energy company E.ON AG, owns and operates about 8,000 megawatts of generating capacity and transmits and distributes electricity to more than 900,000 customers and natural gas to more than 325,000 customers in Kentucky.In Arkansas, Entergy Corp said it hopes to restore power to most of the 33,000 customers still without service by this weekend.Entergy, of New Orleans, owns and operates about 30,000 MW of generating capacity, markets energy commodities and transmits and distributes power to 2.7 million customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.(Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by David Gregorio)

Blizzard of anger follows London snowstorm By DAVID STRINGER, Associated Press Writer – Tue Feb 3, 3:54 pm ET

LONDON – Britain's capital cleared the soggy remnants of a paralyzing snowstorm as businesses on Tuesday counted the multibillion-pound (-dollar) cost.An estimated 6 million people skipped work Monday when the largest snowstorm to hit London in 18 years stopped bus and subway services, grounded airliners and hobbled businesses.

The Federation of Small Businesses said the cost to Britain's economy through lost productivity could be as high as 3 billion pounds ($4.3 billion).Transportation officials, business leaders and local authorities accused one another of failing to prepare for the long-predicted storm that crippled Britain's transport network by dropping more than four inches (10 centimeters) of snow in London overnight Sunday, and another four inches Monday.We can't change nature and if nature does this to us we have a problem, said John Ransford, chief executive of Britain's Local Government Association, which represents the small district and town councils largely responsible for keeping roads and sidewalks clear.London Mayor Boris Johnson said many of the city's authorities simply didn't have enough snow plows to deal with the downfall. In the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, the local authority said it had no plows and only two machines to salt roads.Lawmakers who sit on London's assembly said they have called transport officials to a meeting at the capital's City Hall next week to explain whether more could have been done to prevent disruption.One of the world's biggest economies should not be grinding to a halt, said Stephen Alambritis of the Federation of Small Businesses.Most airports, bus routes and subway lines in London were working as normal on Tuesday, but more than 1,000 British schools remained closed and thousands of workers were staying home for a second day.The Association of British Insurers said that car accidents on Britain's icy highways surged on Monday, with claims for damage running 30 percent higher than usual.Johnson, who commutes by bicycle, said even he'd suffered a wobble on the glassy stretches of roads around the capital.In the southwestern city of Bristol, zookeepers said a group of lion-tailed macaque monkeys were spotted making and eating snowballs. Police in Wales scolded children after officers fielded double the usual number of complaint calls — most from adults complaining about young people hurling snowballs.

David Frost, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said few people raised in the freezing British winters of the 1960s and 1970s could understand the failure to prepare, despite days of warning that heavy snow was likely.It was hardly a surprise when we pulled back the curtains yesterday morning, Frost told The Associated Press. But, I think that there is a complacency because we're told that we'll have steadily rising temperatures as a result of climate change.Those in authority need to be more open to the fact that we'll still get heavy snow falls, too, he said.Many Londoners noted that bus services had continued through World War II and paused only for about an hour during the city's 2005 terrorist attack, when four suicide bombers killed 52 commuters on the transit network.Some suggested that British workers had set a poor example for the nation's children. Young Britons may become adults who think that when things get difficult you should just stay at home and have fun, said Margaret Morrissey, of the parenting lobby group Parents Outloud.

LAND FOR PEACE (THE FUTURE 7 YEARS OF HELL ON EARTH)

JOEL 3:2
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

THE WEEK OF DANIEL 9:27 WE KNOW ITS 7 YRS

Heres the scripture 1 week = 7 yrs Genesis 29:27-29
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.

DANIEL 9:26-27
26 And after threescore and two weeks(62X7=434 YEARS+7X7=49 YEARS=TOTAL OF 69 WEEKS OR 483 YRS) shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;(ROMAN LEADERS DESTROYED THE 2ND TEMPLE) and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.(THERE HAS TO BE 70 WEEKS OR 490 YRS TO FUFILL THE VISION AND PROPHECY OF DAN 9:24).(THE NEXT VERSE IS THAT 7 YR WEEK OR (70TH FINAL WEEK).
27 And he( THE ROMAN,EU PRESIDENT) shall confirm the covenant with many for one week:(1X7=7 YEARS) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,(3 1/2 yrs in TEMPLE SACRIFICES STOPPED) and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.

Hamas prepared for 1-year truce with open borders By SARAH EL DEEB, Associated Press Writer FEB 3,09

CAIRO – Hamas officials said Tuesday they are ready to commit to a cease-fire with Israel for at least a year in exchange for a full opening of Gaza's borders, as the group began a new round of truce talks with Egyptian mediators.At the same time, foreign ministers of pro-U.S. Arab nations, including Saudi Arabia, met in the United Arab Emirates in a show of unity in support for Egypt's efforts to forge a long-term truce and against Iran, Hamas' most important ally.Egypt is trying to mediate a durable cease-fire in place of the temporary and increasingly wobbly truce that ended the Gaza war last month. It has set a Thursday deadline for the Islamic militant rulers of Gaza to accept a deal.But the complicated details of an accord appeared unresolved with border security arrangements a key obstacle.There is an agreement in principle about a calm for one year, said Ahmed Abdel-Hadi, a Lebanon-based Hamas official. But the movement could show flexibility regarding the time ... if there are guarantees and commitments to lift the sanctions and open the borders, he told Gaza's Al Quds Radio, signaling the possibility of extending the truce beyond one year.Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza, said the Palestinian group is open to extending the cease-fire for 18 months.Abdel-Hadi said Hamas rejects a gradual opening of the border crossings or linking a truce deal to a release of Israeli soldier Sgt. Gilad Schalit, held by Hamas-allied militants in Gaza since June 2006.We are going to deal with all the issues as one package, because we are going to avoid the trap of gradual implementation, he said.

Hamas demands that any truce include the opening of borders into Gaza, which Israel and Egypt have largely kept sealed since the group seized control of the territory from the rival Fatah faction in 2007.Hamas also wants a role in administering the border crossings in recognition of its power in Gaza.Israel says it won't ease the 20-month blockade of the densely populated and impoverished coastal strip without international guarantees that Hamas will be prevented from smuggling more weapons into Gaza. It does not want any deal to give Hamas a role in controlling Gaza border crossings.Hamas remains committed to Israel's destruction and refused to renounce violence. Both the U.S. and Israel consider it a terrorist group.Egypt is also pressing Hamas to start reconciliation talks with U.S.-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to form a unity government that can negotiate peace with Israel. Abbas, a moderate, runs a rival Palestinian government in the West Bank that has been conducting peace talks with Israel for more than a year.But past attempts to broker a power-sharing deal among the rival Palestinians factions have failed. Prospects remain dim, with Hamas increasingly entrenched since its takeover of Gaza.

So Egypt has focused on what may be a more limited goal — installing forces loyal to Abbas at the border crossings. Egypt's proposals would include some form of symbolic Hamas presence at the crossings along with European monitors.Barhoum said the key to any truce is that Egypt open its crossing with Gaza, but added that the details of running the crossing into Gaza are open to discussion.In the Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi, foreign ministers from Egypt, Saudi Arabia and other Mideast nations gathered Tuesday for a hastily convened meeting that represented a more assertive effort by pro-U.S. Arab governments to push Hamas toward an Egyptian-mediated truce — and away from Iran.It made starkly clear the split in the Arab world between U.S. allies and the pro-Iranian camp, particularly Syria, which backs Hamas and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Syria was not invited to the meeting — nor was Qatar, which has taken an increasingly pro-Hamas turn since Israel's Gaza offensive. We have to ensure with our unity that unwelcome, non-Arab parties do not interfere in our affairs in an unneeded manner, the United Arab Emirates' foreign minister, Sheik Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, said in a clear reference to Persian Iran. Egypt, Saudi Arabia and allied Arab nations accuse Iran of using its alliance with Hamas to increase its influence in the region and gain a foothold on Israel's doorstep. Iran gives millions of dollars to Hamas and is believed to supply the militants with weapons — though Tehran denies this. Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco, Bahrain, Yemen and Abbas' Palestinian Authority also attended the meeting. Associated Press reporter Barbara Surk contributed to this report from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (This version CORRECTS Corrects name of UAE minister.)

FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU Obama guarantees West Bank withdrawal,Palestinian officials rejoice at new tone of White House February 02, 200910:49 pm Eastern By Aaron Klein 2009 WorldNetDaily

President Obama's first major television interview was given to the Dubai-based Arab television network al-Arabiya as Mideast envoy George Mitchell headed to the region
JERUSALEM – The Palestinian Authority received a guarantee from President Obama's administration that understandings reached with Israel during U.S.-backed negotiations while President Bush was in office would be utilized as starting points for current and future talks with the Jewish state, top PA officials told WND. With new general Israeli elections scheduled for next week, the move could limit the incoming Israeli prime minister, since the PA can point to points of agreement during previous talks between Bush and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. The PA officials, speaking on condition their names be withheld, said they were enthusiastic about the new tone of the White House and about recent meetings with Obama's Mideast envoy, former Democratic Sen. George Mitchell. They said they believe that under Obama the Palestinians can extract from Israel concessions reaching much further than during talks held under the previous administration. Regarding all understandings achieved between the parties, the Obama administration told us they will give guarantees to carry them out,said a top PA official.

With Obama, the number of settlers to be removed from the West Bank will much be more important than 60,000, said the PA official, referring to previous negotiations in which Israel expressed a willingness to withdraw from up to 94 percent of the West Bank and move about 60,000 settlers into central settlement blocks closer to Jerusalem. WND reported exclusively in November that then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice collected notes and documents from Israeli and Palestinian negotiating teams to ensure the incoming U.S. administration would not need to start negotiations from scratch. PA sources said Rice's notes are being used by Obama's team as the starting points for new Israeli-Palestinian talks. Documents noting agreements during previous Israeli-Palestinian negotiations have been used in subsequent talks, sometimes as starting points. According to both Israeli and PA sources, American officials took detailed notes of talks at U.S.-brokered negotiations at Camp David in 2000 and then used points of agreement on key issues, such as borders, during recent rounds of intense Israeli-Palestinian talks. Israeli and PA sources said Rice's notes document agreements that would seek an eventual major West Bank withdrawal and would grant the PA permission to open official institutions in Jerusalem. A top source said the PA requested that the Obama administration threaten sanctions against Israel for any new Jewish construction in the West Bank. The source told WND that Obama is said to favor Israel withdrawing from nearly the entire West Bank. Israel recaptured the West Bank in the 1967 Six Day War. The territory, in which about 200,000 Jews live, is tied to Judaism throughout the Torah and is often referred to as the biblical heartland of Israel.

PERSECUSSION,BEHEADINGS

JESUS PERSECUTED BIGTIME

PSALMS 14:1
1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.

ISAIAH 53:4
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

MATTHEW 9:34
34 But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.

JOHN 8:41
41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.

JOHN 10:20
20 And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad; why hear ye him?

PHILIPPIANS 2:10-11(JESUS GETS REVENGE)
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.(JUDGEMENT SEAT OF CHRIST AND FOR SINNERS, THE GREAT WHITE THRONE FINAL JUDGEMENT).

WE ARE CHRISTIANS WE WILL BE TREATED THE SAME.

2 TIMOTHY 3:1-5 (WHY WE ARE PERSECUTED BY THE WORLD)
1 This know also, that in the last days perilous (DANGEROUS) times shall come.
2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

MATTHEW 5:10-12
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

MATTHEW 24:9
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.

JOHN 15:18-20
18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me (JESUS) before it hated you.
19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.

REVELATION 6:9-11
9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain(BEHEADED) for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

REVELATION 20:4
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

FAITH UNDER FIRE Nurse suspended for offering to pray,Woman offers to ask God's help to heal patient, gets suspended February 02, 2009 7:37 pm Eastern 2009 WorldNetDaily Caroline Petrie (London Daily Telegraph)

A Christian nurse in Britain may soon be fired for offering to pray for her patients' recovery. Caroline Petrie has been suspended and faces disciplinary action because her employer claims she failed to show a personal and professional commitment to equality and diversity when she suggested the prayer, the London Telegraph reported. Petrie, 45, a wife and mother of two, is a community nurse who works for North Somerset Primary Care Trust. As part of her job, she visits patients who are sick and elderly. Petrie said she never forced her Christian beliefs on any of her patients but simply asked if an elderly woman would appreciate the blessing.

I simply couldn't believe that I have been suspended over this, she told the Telegraph. I knew I hadn't done anything wrong. All I am trying to do is help my patients, many of whom want me to pray for them.Petrie visited the elderly woman, a resident in Winscombe, North Somerset, in December. It was around lunchtime and I had spent about 20 to 25 minutes with her, the nurse said. I had applied dressings to her legs and shortly before I left I said to her: 'Would you like me to pray for you?

The patient said, No, thank you.

Shortly afterward, Petrie's employer contacted her and asked her why she had offered the prayer. The patient, a woman in her late 70s, had complained to the trust.
Another nurse approached Petrie the following day and told her the woman had been surprised by the offer. Petrie apologized and asked if she had offended the patient.
The nurse replied, No, no. She was just a bit taken back. You must be aware of your professional code of conduct. I would be careful.But that wasn't the end of it. Petrie returned home to find a message on her answering machine. She was suspended without pay on Dec. 17 and forced to attend a disciplinary meeting. Petrie expects to be notified of her employer's decision this week. The nurse told the Telegraph that she has been a Christian since she was only 10 – following her mother's tragic death from breast cancer. My faith is very important to me, she said.

This was not the first prayer incident that has prompted her employer to discipline Petrie. She offered a prayer card to an elderly male patient in October, according to the report. He joyfully accepted the gift. However, the man's caretaker objected to the gesture. Petrie's boss reprimanded her, saying, As a nurse you are required to uphold the reputation of your profession. Your NMC [Nursing Midwifery Council] code states that you must demonstrate a personal and professional commitment to equality and diversity and you must not use your professional status to promote causes that are not related to health.Petrie was instructed to participate in an equality and diversity course. If there is any further similar incident it may be treated as potential misconduct and the formal disciplinary procedure could be instigated, her employer warned. Petrie said she stopped giving prayer cards to her patients, but she found it difficult not to simply offer prayers. My concern is for the person as a whole, not just their health, she said. I was told not to force my faith on anyone but I could respond if patients themselves brought up the subject [of religion].In the most recent incident, the elderly woman claims she was not insulted by the gesture, but that she is concerned other patients might take offense. Petrie has contacted the Christian Legal Center, a group that seeks to promote religious freedom, for representation. Caroline Petrie has been suspended pending an investigation into the matter, a spokesman for North Somerset Primary Care Trust told the Guardian. She is a bank nurse and she has been told we will not be using her in this capacity until the outcome of our investigation is known. We always take any concerns raised by our patients most seriously and conscientiously investigate any matter of this nature brought to our attention, the spokesman continued. We are always keen to be respectful of our patients' views and sensitivity as well as those of our staff.

Call for pope to step down over Holocaust denier
Feb 2 03:21 PM US/Eastern

Holocaust-Denying Bishop Reinstated by Pope Explains His Belief That No Jews Died in Gas Chambers.Attacks on Pope Benedict XVI's decision to lift the excommunication of a Holocaust denier escalated Monday, with one theologian calling on him to step down as the head of the Roman Catholic Church. Criticism following the pope's January 24 announcement has been particularly cutting in Germany, where denying the Holocaust is a crime punishable with a jail sentence. If the pope wants to do some good for the Church, he should leave his job, eminent liberal Catholic theologian Hermann Haering told the German daily Tageszeitung. That would not be a scandal, a bishop has to relinquish his position at 75 years, a cardinal loses his rights at 80 years, he said. Pope Benedict is 81. Meanwhile, a senior Vatican official acknowledged the Vatican administration may have made management errors with the decision to lift excommunication against four bishops, including Richard Williamson, whose comments sparked the controversy. I observe the debate with great concern. There were misunderstandings and management errors in the Curia, said Cardinal Walter Kasper, who is in charge of the Vatican department that deals with Jewish relations. The Pope wanted to open the debate because he wanted unity inside and outside, the German cardinal told Vatican Radio. He also noted that these bishops are still suspended.An international uproar followed the decision to rehabilitate Williamson, an English bishop who has dismissed as lies historical evidence that six million Jews were gassed by the Nazis during World War II. Jews and Catholics alike have produced widespread criticism.

A pardon that tastes of poison, wrote Franco Garelli, an expert in religious history, in Italy's daily La Stampa Monday. The trouble caused by this complicated affair is evident not only outside the Church but within it, wrote the academic, who spoke of the profound discomfort stirred up by the lifting of the excommunication in numerous Catholic circles.Back in Germany, high-ranking Catholic officials said the pope risked losing vital support. There is obviously a loss of confidence in the pope and rehabilitating a denier is always a bad idea, the bishop of Hamburg, Werner Thissen, told the daily Hamburger Abendblatt on Monday. The bishop of Rottenburg-Stuttgart, Gebhard Furst, meanwhile spoke of his uncertainty, incomprehension and deception in the national Bild. In France, home to Europe's largest Jewish population, chief rabbi Gilles Bernheim denounced Williamson's remarks as despicable in an interview with Le Monde. Williamson claimed that only between 200,000 and 300,000 Jews died before and during World War II, and none in the gas chambers.

French government spokesman Luc Chatel called Williamson's remarks unacceptable, abject and intolerable.In Austria, where Pope Benedict last week named a controversial ultra-conservative priest as auxiliary bishop in Linz, criticism also came from within the Church. Vienna's cardinal and archbishop, Christoph Schoenborn, on Sunday lashed out at the decision to bring Williamson back into the fold, saying that he who denies the Holocaust cannot be rehabilitated within the Church.Belgian daily La Libre Belgique slammed the Vatican's blindness and deafness, drawing links between Williamson and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Apparently no one can make the Iranian president and his henchman see reason when they deny the truth of the Holocaust, and it is the same with the bishop recently anointed by the highest authority of the Catholic Church,it said. For the pope, the blunder is extraordinary, especially given that his willingness for a dialogue with Judaism is indisputable,said French daily Liberation.

FITNA ISLAM
VIDEO - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7961200236915885171&ei=Unl3SYqPApPSjgKmzbilDw&q=fitna

PALESTINIAN MEDIA WATCH
http://www.pmw.org.il/

YAHOO NEWS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video

MIDEAST CONFLICT NEWS
http://news.yahoo.com/video/1874;_ylt=A0wNcxFdg6xIgbkAwD6z174F

ABC NEWS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video/2461

FOX NEWS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video/3074

FOX BUSINESS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video/3045

AP NEWS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video/2529

BBC NEWS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video/2918

REUTERS VIDEO NEWS
http://news.yahoo.com/video/2704

AFP NEWS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video/3091

CNBC NEWS VIDEO
http://news.yahoo.com/video/3245

HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER

DOCTOR DOCTORIAN FROM ANGEL OF GOD
then the angel said, Financial crisis will come to Asia. I will shake the world.

JAMES 5:1-3
1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.

REVELATION 18:10,17,19
10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

EZEKIEL 7:19
19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.

REVELATION 13:16-18
16 And he(FALSE POPE) causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:(CHIP IMPLANT)
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.(6-6-6) A NUMBER SYSTEM

WORLD MARKET RESULTS
http://money.cnn.com/data/world_markets/

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS WED FEB 04,2009

09:30 AM -6.37
10:00 AM +26.60
10:30 AM +68.02
11:00 AM +57.82
11:30 AM +34.73
12:00 PM +17.12
12:30 PM +0.72
01:00 PM -29.07
01:30 PM -20.55
02:00 PM -111.35
02:30 PM -129.59
03:00 PM -109.20
03:30 PM -117.64
04:00 PM -121.70 7956.66

S&P 500 832.23 -6.28

NASDAQ 1505.05 -1.25

GOLD 907.70 +15.20

OIL 40.27 -0.51

TSE 300 8700.81 +72.18

CDNX 889.95 +20.70

S&P/TSX/60 525.14 +4.92

MORNING,NEWS,STATS

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE
Dow -7.95%
S&P -7.17%
Nasdaq -3.85%
TSX Advances 506,declines 615,unchanged 223,Volume 838,388,753.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 295,Declines 317,Unchanged 314,Volume 77,188,008.

Dow -23 points at 4 minutes of trading today.
Dow -26 points at low today so far.
Dow +92 points at high so far today.
Oil opens at %41.42 today,Gold opens at $904.30.
INVENTORIES
Crude Oil +7.2 MILLION Barrels.
Gasoline +300,000 Barrels.
Refinery Utilization +1% to 83.5%.
Distillate -1.4 MILLION Barrels.
Stocks modestly higher at open today.
Nasdaq up for 3rd straight day at open.
Another wave of Executives leaving Bank of America/Merrill.
Ryder -10%,Q1 guidance well below expectations.
Kraft -8%,Lowers internal growth,Earnings guidance.
Massey -10%,results miss estimates,Cuts coal production.
Disney -6%,as poor ad and DVD sales hurt earnings.

AFTERNOON,NEWS,STATS
Dow -26 points at low today so far.
Dow +92 points at high today so far.

DAY TODAY PERFORMANCE - 12:30PM STATS
NYSE Advances 2,312,declines 1,267,unchanged 114,New Highs 6,New Lows 78.
Volume 3,015,489,942
NASDAQ Advances 1,605,declines 969,unchanged 120,New highs 8,New Lows 73.
Volume 1,039,258,891
TSX Advances 593,declines 400,unchanged 226,Volume 682,403,594.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 274,Declines 224,Unchanged 253,Volume 66,268,661.

WRAPUP,NEWS,STATS
Dow -143 points at low today.
Dow +92 points today.
Dow -1.51% today Volume 344,855,771
Nasdaq -0.08% today Volume 2,038,138,028
S&P 500 -0.75% today Volume N/A
Dow,S&P drop for 4th time in 5 sessions.
Nadaq down for 3 times in last 9 sessions.

ALEX ON OBAMAS SPEECH P1
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=xWwDFZzDZGo
ALEX ON OBAMAS SPEECH P2
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=uyDB0TC_kao&feature=related
ALEX ON OBAMAS SPEECH P3
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=VZLvZ4ciARo&feature=related
ALEX ON OBAMAS SPEECH P4
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=jAcLTswH6pQ&feature=related
ALEX ON OBAMAS SPEECH P5
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=S9z19COC9Og&feature=related
ALEX ON OBAMAS SPEECH P6
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=j9M0_8V0tlM&feature=related

WORLD GOVERNMENTS HELPS - RESEARCHES
http://www.govspot.com/categories/worldgovernment.htm

COALITION FOR DEMOCRATIC WORLD GOVERNMENT WEB SITE - RESEARCH FOR PEOPLE
http://www.cdwg.org/home.htm
OTHER WORLD GOVERNMENT LINKS FOR RESEARCH
http://www.cdwg.org/home.htm
ADMINET WORLD GOVERNMENT LINKS ETC
http://www.adminet.com/world/gov/

STOP THE NORTH AMERICAN UNION - STORY
http://www.stopthenorthamericanunion.com/TwoPeas.html

Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 1
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=r2qPZ9WqLy4
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 2
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=RlClt3Mzp0k&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 3
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=PITVCYQTIf0&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 4
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=m6kmXTzHqrk&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 5
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=AznmsfngQd0&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 6
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=0xOyEHrjlNg&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 7
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=mye6LFrJ4Y4&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 8
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=g3oqYTJXYuU&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 9
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=zyfhFHVIjr4&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 10
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=1N_Zoo8fonQ&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 11
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=5VCJ7Ior_1Y&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 12
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=FtHsjCvIGDs&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 13
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=wEnfsd2_bUo&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 14
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=jBAuMKbiDMQ&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 15
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=sHjPk6WiG5s&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 16
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=2rpfMdAi-aU&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 17
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=5ryjUvyCLMk&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 18
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=Xhjm4BTCauk&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 19
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=_gAfKQnQ1ag&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 20
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=DlDbXOndSag&feature=related
Hijacking Humanity Final Cut - Part 21
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=_USXKtwNi2o&feature=related

Federal budget passes in House of Commons
Updated Tue. Feb. 3 2009 6:47 PM ET CTV.ca News Staff

The federal budget introduced late last month by Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government passed in the House of Commons on Tuesday night, by a vote of 211 to 91. Six Liberal MPs from Newfoundland and Labrador voted against the budget, along with the sitting NDP and Bloc Quebecois members. The remaining Liberal MPs and the Conservative caucus voted in favour of the budget. Earlier Tuesday, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff had said he would allow the six MPs from his party to vote against the federal budget. Prior to Ignatieff's announcement on Tuesday, four Newfoundland and Labrador MPs -- Judy Foote, Scott Andrews, Scott Simms and Siobhan Coady -- had vowed to vote down the budget, saying it negatively targets their province and robs it of about $1.6 billion in federal funding. Of the two remaining MPs, Todd Russell had said he was going to vote for the budget to promote party unity and Gerry Byrne had not made it clear how he was going to vote. I decided to permit them in the budget vote tonight a one-time vote of protest to signal their displeasure and my displeasure at these unilateral actions which in my view weaken our federation, cause strains in our federation at a time when Canadians should be pulling together,Ignatieff said Tuesday. He said the issue was not just about Newfoundland and Labrador but about the way (Prime Minister) Stephen Harper runs this federation.

Tonight, they will have a one-time vote against the budget in order to send a clear signal to Newfoundland and Labrador and to the whole of Canada that this is no way to run a federation, Ignatieff said. Ignatieff met with the Newfoundland and Labrador caucus on Monday evening to discuss the issue. Byrne told CTV's Power Play that Igantieff and the MPs had a very, very broad discussion about all sorts of things, though talk centred on the issue of the contentious changes to the federal funding that Newfoundland and Labrador receives from the government. He would not say if Ignatieff had asked the MPs to follow party discipline when voting on Tuesday evening. I'm not going to discuss exactly what was said in a private meeting with my leader, the future prime minister, he said. The Liberal Party has agreed to support the Tory budget but has demanded that the government submit periodic progress reports. The demand, which was put forth in an amendment Monday night, passed by a vote of 214 to 84, with the NDP and Bloc Quebecois voting against it. St. John's Mayor Dennis O'Keefe said Tuesday that the $1.6 billion figure is based upon the equalization formula and changes to that formula proposed in the budget will create the loss for the province over the next three years. That's a tremendous hit for any province, he told CTV's Canada AM on Tuesday. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said the change is the result of the government's decision to cap the growth of equalization payments to the rate of economic growth. Certainly one of the principles involved in equalization is that all provinces should be treated equally, he told the Commons.

It is not open to one province to elect to have unrestrained growth of equalization, sharing payments, whether it is through the accords or through formal equalization.
Ignatieff spoke to Harper late Monday asking him to rethink the measures that would penalize Newfoundland. I said to the prime minister, You can't run a federation this way, unilateral-without-warning changes, Ignatieff said. I said, would he push the pause button on those changes and rethink his approach to get greater national unity in a time of crisis, and he said no.CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife said Ignatieff's decision means he is marching to the drumbeat of Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams and the Liberal MPs from the province. He's opened the door to any of his members of parliament being able to vote against the Liberal Party position if that's the view of their premier or their province, Fife said. With files from The Canadian Press.

Default, Dollar Collapse Altogether Likely
by: James West February 04, 2009

James West
The prospect of the United States defaulting on its debt is not just likely. It's inevitable, and imminent.The regulatory black holes into which sanity and reason disappear on a daily basis are soon to collapse under the mass of their sheer size. The circle jerk going on among G7 governments has to end – the steady advance of gold, even in the face of a managed price, exposes the real value of the U.S. dollar, as opposed to its apparent value expressed in the dollar index.Is 2009 the year that the United States formally defaults? And with that, will the dollar collapse be rolled back ten for one or more?

There are a lot of reasons to support that theory. To Wall Street economists, such an event is heresy and therefore unthinkable. Yet Wall Street is the very La-la-land that bred the idea of a perpetually indebted nation in the first place.Number one among the indicators favoring this scenario is what is happening in the U.S. Treasuries auction market.Last Thursday, an $30 billion auction in five-year notes failed to stir the interest of traditional primary dealers. The auction itself was saved by an anonymous indirect bid.Buyers are discouraged by the prospect of what is expected to amount to $2 trillion total issuance for the full year of 2009. The further out the maturities on notes, the more bearish the sentiment towards them. The only way to entice buyers is through the increase in yields.But with yields at 1.82 per cent, five-year notes were met with a demand for 1.98 times the amount offered - the lowest bid-to-cover ratio since September. A sell-off in treasuries began in earnest upon the conclusion of that auction.The U.S. Federal Reserve suggested last week that it was going to step up its treasury-buying activity, and the mainstream media interprets this as a form of market support. What it actually is evidence of growing anxiety and desperation on the part of the Fed as the realization dawns that demand for treasuries is progressively evaporating. The increased demand for gold as an investment witnessed throughout the last two weeks that has pushed gold to a 4 month high is further evidence that investors across the board are gravitating more towards gold and away from U.S. debt.So what is the catalyzing event that will precipitate outright capitulation? I think the spin-controlled version of events will make the collapse of the derivatives market the red herring that facilitates the aw-shucks-we-have-no-choice shoe-gazing moment possible, and that’s exactly the parachute the government needs to retain a veneer of credibility - at least in its own delusional mirror.

The announcement that the CFTC was about to become the target of a regulatory overhaul supports this theory. Consistent with his unfortunate proclivity to hiring foxes to guard chickens, Barack Obama’s choice for CFTC commissioner Gary Gensler was the undersecretary of the U.S. Treasury when the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000 was passed, and is one of its architects. This was the piece of legislation that was put forth to appease the opposition to dark market trading in certain OTC derivatives first noisily derided by CFTC commissioner Brooksley Born in 1998.Ignoring Born’s admonishments with this act, it exempted credit default swaps (CDO’s) from regulation, resulting in the somewhere between 58 and 300 trillion dollars in value presently under threat if the positions were to be unwound. Because of their unregulated status, counterparties in the largest transactions can simply roll forward contracts, instead of the losing party in the transaction covering their loss with a transfer of money. It is this massive nominal value that could be the Achilles heel of what’s left of the U.S. banking system, and by extension, the U.S. dollar.I don’t arrive at this conclusion because I like making catastrophic outlandish predictions. Its merely the result of following certain logical paths to their most likely outcome based on what has happened in the past. In discussions on this topic with editors of top tier financial publications, such speculation is dismissed out of hand, and the argument to refute the likelihood of such outcomes is never brought forward.Gold exchange traded funds (ETFs) are now the largest holders of physical gold, and as a proxy for investors who don’t want to be encumbered with taking delivery of the physical, provide a simple way to participate in the gold market. United States citizens should bear in mind, however, that should the banking system be brought down completely by the collapse of the futures market, proxies for gold such as ETF’s and bullion funds could theoretically be targeted by a government desperate for possession of value. The risk from security in holding physical bullion is matched by the risk of confiscation by government in these volatile times. Don’t forget, the government confiscated and outlawed private ownership of gold in 1933 in support of an ill-conceived gold standard, which to some extent, was that era’s spin to halt the flight of gold (and real value) from U.S. soil.Don’t think for a minute such drastic events are outside the realm of possibility. If somebody had told you in 1998 that a bunch of angry crazy pseudo-Muslims were going to fly jetliners into the World Trade Center, what would you have said?

Latvian government could fall as crisis bites
LEIGH PHILLIPS Today FEB 4,09 @ 09:23 CET

As unrest spreads in Latvia as a result of the worsening economic crisis, the government faces a no confidence vote in the parliament on Wednesday (4 February).
The vote could see the first European Union government - and the second in Europe after Iceland - felled by the financial and economic turmoil that has hit Latvia harder than most other states in the 27-member bloc.On Tuesday, the country's agriculture minister resigned in the wake of farmer protests that blocked the main road around the capital, Riga, and saw the agriculture ministry building surrounded by tractors.The farmers lit bonfires outside the ministry building and demanded the minister resign.In imitation of similar actions by Greek farmers in recent days, thousands of tractor-driving farmers headed to Riga, bringing traffic to a halt on a number of motorways - the second such action in a week. The government convened an emergency meeting out of which emerged €34 million (22m lats) in fresh aid for the farmers. Shortly after Prime Minister Ivars Godmanis announced the decision, the agriculture minister, Martyns Roze, fell on his sword.The economic crisis has bludgeoned the country's farmers, whose productivity has slid as prices plunge. The losses are bankrupting rural Latvia, with producers unable to pay their loans and processing firms going out of business.Some 15 million lats is to come from the State Forests budget and another 7 million from the Latvian Privatization Agency. The aid amounts to around 5 million lats more than originally planned.A system of export loan guarantees is also to be established for dairy farmers, which, according to the prime minister, will temporarily save the sector from bankruptcy.

The industrial sector has also dropped off the cliff, with industrial production dropping 2.5 percent in December, equal to a year-on-year decline of 14.2 percent, according to figures released on Tuesday by Statistics Latvia. The fall comes atop an already steep drop of 3.1 percent in November.Manufacturing has been pummelled in particular, seeing a decline of 18.2 percent on an annual basis.Some 70 percent of the people have lost faith in the government according to polls and last week, the Union of Greens and Farmers said it would abandon the ruling coalition if the government did not come up with additional aid for farmers.The prime minister approached opposition parties to join the government, but they all declined his offer.Meanwhile, the country's neighbour, Lithuania, is itself seeing fresh protests, a fortnight after riots over the economic crisis hit the capital.A small demonstration of some 200 people, many of whom pensioners, was countered by 500 police officers and a kilometre-long fence was put up to protect the Seimas, the Lithuanian parliament, from the unsanctioned protest, according to Vilnius police commissariat spokesperson Loreta Tumalaviciene, the Baltic Course newspaper reports.

Fitch cuts Russia’s credit rating By David Oakley, Capital Markets Correspondent February 4 2009 12:16

Russia’s credit rating was downgraded on Wednesday after Fitch, the ratings agency, took fright over its haemorrhaging currency reserves and sharp drop in oil prices.

The long-term credit rating was lowered a notch to triple-B, two rungs above junk grade, following a similar move from Standard & Poor’s in December. It would prove very costly for Russia should it lose its investment grade rating. Russia is the only G8 nation to have suffered a downgrade since the start of the financial crisis.

Russia’s foreign exchange reserves have fallen by $210bn since July as the central bank has been forced to defend the rouble, as investors have become increasingly concerned about the faltering economy.Traders said the Russian central bank was defending the currency on Wednesday to keep it within its new trading band against its euro/dollar basket, which the bank set two weeks ago. The rouble has depreciated 27 per cent since the end of August, when worries first emerged over Russia after its invasion of Georgia and the oil price began to fall from its peaks close to $150 a barrel.The downgrade pushed the euro down to session lows against the dollar below $1.29 as the markets sought the US currency and the yen as safe-havens amid the fresh uncertainty over Russia’s outlook.It leaves Russia’s central bank in a difficult position as it faces pressure to raise interest rates to shore up its currency, while at the same time it needs to loosen monetary policy to revive is sharply slowing economy, which is facing its first recession since the 1998 financial crisis.We think interest rates may ultimately have to rise by another 250bp if the authorities are to defend the current rouble band, Neil Shearing at Capital Economics said.Fitch said: Monetary and exchange rate policy remains a challenge for the central bank in terms of whether to continue using foreign exchange to support the rouble, which would weaken the sovereign balance sheet, tighten domestic liquidity, which would adversely affect the banks, or revise its exchange rate policy, which would adversely affect its credibility.However, the agency said the country’s ratings remain supported by the sovereign’s strong and liquid balance sheet. General government debt was less than 10 per cent of gross domestic product at the end of 2008, compared with the triple-B median of 28 per cent. Despite the substantial decline since last summer, Russia’s foreign exchange reserves are still the third highest in the world and the country is a net external creditor.The Financial Times Limited 2009

Chrysler sales plunge 55 pct; GM, Toyota also down By KIMBERLY S. JOHNSON and BREE FOWLER, AP Auto Writers FEB 3,09

DETROIT – Chrysler's U.S. vehicle sales plunged 55 percent in January, while General Motors' tumbled 49 percent and Ford's dropped 40 percent, starting 2009 at an abysmal pace for the whole auto industry as lower sales to fleet buyers like rental car companies weighed down the results.Toyota's sales dove 32 percent for the month, Nissan's dropped 30 percent and Honda's fell 28 percent, putting the overall industry on track for its fourth straight month in which U.S. sales plunged 30 percent or more.But Subaru bucked the trend of declines for a second month in a row, posting an 8 percent sales increase, and Hyundai said its sales jumped 14 percent.

Hyundai credited its increase to its offer to cover a new vehicle's depreciation if customers return a car within 12 months because they are unable to make the payments.

This program gets to the root cause of today's economic concerns — fear of job loss, Hyundai regional general manager Peter DiPersia said in a statement.Chrysler's sales chief, Steven Landry, told reporters earlier at a meeting with dealers that U.S. industry sales could drop as much as 35 percent in January. The annualized sales rate for the month could drop below 10 million for the first time in more than 26 years, he said.According to Ward's AutoInfoBank, the last month in which the seasonally adjusted annual sales rate dropped below 10 million was August 1982, when it hit 9.9 million as the nation was mired in a recession.Domestic and foreign automakers have been struggling as unemployment rises, consumer confidence weakens and many people have a tougher time getting loans. General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC have received $13.4 billion in federal loans to stay afloat, and they hope to get more after they submit a viability plan to the government by Feb. 17. Ford Motor Co. has said it does not plan to use government aid.GM said earlier this month it is planning its turnaround under the assumption the entire industry will sell 10.5 million new vehicles in the U.S. this year. Chrysler has said it's planning on 11.1 million units, and Ford last week reduced its forecast to a range between 11.5 million and 12.5 million. But few people were expecting the automakers to start 2009 at such a pace.January is typically a slow sales month, and many automakers and analysts are expecting the market to rebound in the second half of the year as the economy and access to credit improves.Detroit-based GM sold 128,198 light vehicles in January, while Ford's sales totaled 93,060 and Chrysler sold 62,157. Toyota Motor Corp. sold 117,287 cars and trucks.The automakers have rolled out hefty incentive offers to boost sales. Edmunds.com estimated the average automaker incentive at $2,714 per vehicle sold in January, down 5.2 percent from December but up 12.5 percent from January 2008.

Jesse Toprak, the auto Web site's executive director of industry analysis, attributed the year-over-year increase to a greater number of lingering 2008 model year vehicles. He noted that 27 percent of all new vehicles sold this January were from the 2008 model year, up from 12 percent a year ago.Analysts had expected high-volume fleet sales to be down sharply in January, as consumers and businesses cut back on travel in the economic downturn and rental car companies hold onto their current cars longer.Production cuts that have idled many U.S. factories for several weeks have compounded the problem. Many fleet customers get their deliveries right after cars roll off the assembly line, so when factories suspend production, those deliveries come to a halt.Chrysler said its January fleet sales dropped 81 percent from year-ago levels. GM said its fleet sales fell 80 percent to just over 13,000 vehicles in January, marking their lowest sales level since 1975. GM's retail sales fell 38 percent.We think fleet volume, especially rentals, will stabilize in the last half of the year, said Mark LaNeve, GM's vice president for North American marketing. We're aggressively going after it.Dearborn-based Ford said January's drop in sales of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles included a 65 percent decline in fleet sales, but Ford's retail sales, which dropped 27 percent from a year ago, stabilized over the last three months. What we're looking for is stabilization. You have to stop falling before you can start rising, said Emily Kolinski Morris, Ford's top economist. Consumers are responding to favorable prices and discounts.Not all of the major automakers posted big drops in fleet sales. Bob Carter, Toyota division general manager, said his company's fleet sales fell roughly in line with its retail sales drop. Carter said Toyota aims to keep fleet sales at about 10 percent of total sales, and said they came in at about 9 percent in January. Chrysler posted a 66 percent drop in car sales and a 49 percent decline in truck sales. Company officials attributed the steep decreases to shortage of affordable credit for its customers, noting that the $1.5 billion federal loan for its financing arm wasn't received until the second half of the month. Toyota's sales of light trucks fell 35 percent on about equal declines in SUV and pickup truck demand, while its car sales dropped 29 percent. Sales of its Prius hybrid slid 29 percent. Carter said he's optimistic consumer confidence is beginning to turn and that the credit markets are beginning to loosen, but he cautioned that the first half of 2009 will continue to be difficult for the industry, predicting that sales will not rebound until the second half of the year. The entire auto industry continues to find itself in the eye of this economic storm, Carter said.

Honda Motor Co.'s car sales fell 27 percent and its truck sales dropped 29 percent, but the Japanese automaker saw a 6 percent increase in sales of its Fit subcompact, and sales of the updated Acura TSX sports sedan rose 16 percent. Ford shares rose 8 cents, or 4.3 percent, to $1.96 Tuesday, while GM shares fell 4 cents to $2.85. Toyota's U.S. shares rose $1.71, or 2.7 percent, to $65.59, and Honda's shares climbed 69 cents, or 3 percent, to $23.41. The Associated Press reports unadjusted auto sales figures, calculating the percentage change in the total number of vehicles sold in one month compared with the same month a year earlier. Some automakers report percentages adjusted for sales days. There were 26 sales days last month, one more than in January 2008. AP Auto Writer Bree Fowler reported from New York. AP Auto Writer Dan Strumpf in New York contributed to this report.

Investors pile $910-million into mutual funds
SHIRLEY WON, Globe and Mail Update FEB 3,09

Canadian investors plowed an estimated $910-million into mutual funds in January – the first month of the key RRSP season – despite continued market turmoil.It was the first month of net inflows since last August, but most of the cash was parked in money market funds, according the Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC).Maybe people think the worst is over, said independent fund analyst Peter Loach said in an interview. There is relative stability in TSX – it's hovering in the 8,000-range.For those people who haven't redeemed, maybe they think it's too late to redeem, and you simply want to get your RRSP tax slip.An estimated $660-million to $1.16-billion flowed into mutual funds last month, IFIC said.Canadians parked money into short-term funds last month as North American markets sank deeper into the red. The S&P/TSX composite index lost 3.3 per cent of its value. South of the border, the S&P 500 index fell 8.6 per cent.Since December, however, the IFIC statistics no longer include CI Financial Corp., which has opted no longer to submit data to the industry group. Even though CI was not a member of IFIC, it did provide numbers to the organization which only counts mutual fund sales.CI Financial, which does not break out sales of its segregated funds from mutual funds, reported net redemptions of $97-million for January. Excluding one institutional account that had $219-million in net redemptions, CI had net sales of $122-million.

Botswana gets World Bank loan in 20 years
by Sunday Standard Reporter 02.02.2009 8:59:09 AM

The European Union (EU) has helped the Botswana government to secure a loan from the World Bank that will help the country beef up its war chest against the Aids pandemic that has taken the lives of thousands of productive labour. The P400 million loan, payable in 25 years, is the first loan the government secured from the international lender since the country graduated from a poor country to a middle income status.We look forward to speedy implementation of the project, so that the benefits can touch the lives of common people who are suffering from the adverse effects of the disease, said Paul Malin, Head of Delegation of the European Commission to Botswana and SADC. Botswana Finance Minister Baledzi Gaolathe promised that because of the monitoring from donors, the government will improve monitoring on the government. It is in the best interest of government to ensure that targets are duly met without fail. Otherwise it will be difficult to convince our partners to proceed with the buy down facility, the minister said. Of all the total loan secured under the an IBRD buy-down loan facility, the EU softened the loan with P160 million. The facility has so far been used in China. Botswana’s status as a middle income country precludes it from receiving concessional financing from the World Bank, hence the need for a financing instrument specifically tailored to the country’s needs. The buy down loan facility involves merging the loan with donor grant resources like the one from EU to lower the cost of the loan. The funds will have the financial impact of reducing the interest rate effectively to 0% and also contribute towards repaying the principal payment. Observers applauded the EU for the helping hand, especially at a time when the global recession is hitting government revenues with major cuts expected on the budget on Monday. It is estimated that 283,000 Batswana adults, many in their prime, are suffering from the debilitating disease.

The EU pointed out that Botswana has notched some impressive gains in the fight against HIV/AIDS saying by the beginning in 2002, it was the first African country to provide no-cost, antiretroviral therapy to all citizens. By June 2008, antiretroviral coverage had expanded to an estimated 93 percent of the population. These concerted efforts, together with introduction of a routine HIV testing policy, have successfully halved the number of AIDS-related deaths. It said the Aids project is a good example of a country-led effort. The multi-partner project steering committee is chaired by Botswana’s National AIDS Coordinating Agency (NACA), and includes representatives of the European Commission, U.S. Government, United Nations agencies, the private sector (Merck) and civil society, including the Gates Foundation, among others. The disease has exacted a heavy toll on the country with many lives lost. Between 1991-2003 mortality rates in Botswana tripled, severely distorting the population structure. Life expectancy has decreased to 56 years. Were it not for the epidemic, the Botswana Census Bureau estimates that life expectancy would be 70 years. By 2010, projections show that more than 20 percent of all children in Botswana will have lost one, or both parents, to the disease, noted the EU. Previously, the World Bank and government of Botswana have interacted in the analysis of the development impact of HIV/AIDS on the economy and helped in the Export Diversification Report.It has also helped government with 2006 Report on Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC) on Accounting & Auditing; Livestock Sector Development Strategy; and Poverty and Social Impact Analysis.Other areas of interaction include the bank support in the Morupule Expansion project and the Mmamabula Export Power Station Project and the Integrated Transport project.

DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast(THE EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADE BLOCKS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise:(10 NATIONS) and another shall rise after them;(#11 SPAIN) and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(BE HEAD OF 3 KINGS OR NATIONS).

STOP THE NORTH AMERICAN UNION - STORY
http://www.stopthenorthamericanunion.com/TwoPeas.html

United States of Africa plan fails.Plans to create a United States of Africa appear to have foundered at a meeting of the African Union in Ethiopia. FEB 4,09

The proposals were put forward by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, a long term advocate of the plan to create a United States of Africa.Gaddafi used his inaugural address as head of the African Union to push the idea, but many leaders objected on the grounds that it would add a layer of bureaucracy that the contintent could ill afford.They did agree to look at the legal implications of the unity proposal and meet again. Gadaffi wants closer integration between African states to begin immediately.The BBC reports that the Libyan leader appeared to admit defeat and laid his head on the table in despair after his plan was rebuffed at the meeting of the 53-country union, which took place behind closed doors.African leaders did vote in favour of changing the name of the union to authority.

The Gadaffi gambit: world peace talks FEB 4,09

The chaos in the Middle East has prompted a radical diplomatic overture from a former opponent of the US. robert fox reports.The Libyan government is floating a proposal to host an international peace conference on the Middle East. It would focus on the crisis in Iraq, but would also embrace Iran and the rapidly deteriorating situation in Lebanon.The Gadaffi family have indicated that their preferred co-chairmen are Mikhail Gorbachev and Bill Clinton. They enquired about Nelson Mandela, but were politely told that he is now too sick to travel.It sounds fanciful, of course; a bit of left-field thinking by the clan Gadaffi and the Libyan government. Maybe. But it might be just about the only thing going - and such meetings have borne fruit in the past.One of the architects of the plan is Saif Gadaffi (right), who has a good record in negotiating with difficult parties, including jihadi hostage-takers in the Philippines.

EU far right meet for Lisbon Treaty pow-wow
LEIGH PHILLIPS Today FEB 4,09 @ 17:14 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - A clutch of Europe's far-right parties gathered in Vienna over the weekend to strategise over campaigning against the Lisbon treaty in the coming months.The education division of Austria's Freedom Party invited their nationalist right co-thinkers from across the European Union, including the Danish People's Party, the Flemish separatist Vlaams Belang, France's fascist Front National and Bulgaria's extremist Ataka (National Union Attack) to a conference on the Lisbon Treaty on Saturday and Sunday (31 January-1 February).Philip Claeys, of the Vlaams Belang, described the pow-wow as a meeting to organise the opposition of the national right parties to the treaty.The keynote speaker was Karl-Albert Schachtschneidner, a law professor at the University of Nuremburg-Erlangen, who last year represented Bavarian Eurosceptic deputy Peter Gauweiler in an appeal with the German Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe to try to bring a halt to ratification of the treaty.But the groups decided that they will not be sending anyone to campaign against the treaty in the second referendum in the autumn. Ahead of the first referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, left-wing and centrist No campaigners warned Jean-Marie Le Pen against coming to Ireland to support their side, saying his presence would actually push people to back the Yes side instead.We won't send people, We shouldn't interfere in other people's affairs, one attendee, Danish MEP Mogens Camre of the Danish People's Party, told this website.I don't want Irish people meddling in Danish affairs, and I'm sure they don't want Danes meddling in theirs. There was discussion of how to fight the treaty in each of our own countries.Explaining the German professor's argument, Mr Camre said: The predominant problem [with the treaty] is that it gives powers over the national political system to people from other countries.

The democratic system is very clearly linked to the national sate. Democracy cannot exist if the politicians speak a different language from the people. They have to really know the culture of the people they represent.Others at the meeting included Bruno Gollnisch of France's Front National, Dimitar Stoyanov of Ataka and the Pro-Koeln Movement from Germany.Pro-Koeln, an anti-Islam campaign group, was launched to try to stop a mosque from being built in Cologne. Around a dozen spin-offs subsequently sprung up in other parts of the state of North-Rhine Westphalia in Dusseldorf, Duisburg and elsewhere, to combat the building of new mosques and the removal of existing ones. The movement has since transmogrified into a new nativist political party, Pro-North-Rhine Westphalia.Bulgaria's Ataka party is most well-known in the European Parliament for the actions of Mr Stoyanov in 2006 while acting as an observer in the chamber ahead of the country's adhesion to the EU in 2007.

Mr Stoyanov sent an email to all deputies after the nomination of Hungarian Roma MEP Livia Jaroka as Parliamentarian of the Year, declaring: In my country there are tens of thousands of Gypsy girls way more pretty than this honourable one. In fact if you're in the right place on the right time you even can buy one (around 12-13 years old) to be your loving wife. The best of them are very expensive – up to €5,000 a piece, wow! Italy's xenophobic Lega Nord (Northern League) was invited, but due to legal problems at the last minute was unable to attend.Also in Vienna for the session were the Swiss People's Party and United Russia, the party of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. We had some hilarious discussions with the person they sent, said Mr Camre. He believes we should all join a bloc with Russia against the United States, which is hardly our position.

EUROPEAN UNION ARMY

DANIEL 7:23-25
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them;(#11 SPAIN) and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.( BE HEAD OF 3 NATIONS)
25 And he (EU PRESIDENT) shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.(3 1/2 YRS)

DANIEL 8:23-25
23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king (EU DICTATOR) of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences,(FROM THE OCCULT) shall stand up.
24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power:(SATANS POWER) and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes;(JESUS) but he shall be broken without hand.

DANIEL 11:36-39
36 And the king (EU DICTATOR) shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.
37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers,(THIS EU DICTATOR IS JEWISH) nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.(CLAIM TO BE GOD)
38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces:(WAR) and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.
39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god,(DESTROY TERROR GROUPS) whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many,(HIS ARMY LEADERS) and shall divide the land for gain.

Abbas wants EU peacekeepers in the Middle East
VALENTINA POP Today FEB 4,09 @ 17:30 CET

The president of the Palestinian Authority urged Europe to play a bigger role in the Middle East, renewing his calls for the presence of international peacekeepers and election monitors in the region after the Israeli war on Gaza, which he labelled a war crime.Speaking in the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday (4 February), Mr Abbas said the time had come for the international community to step in, detailing the suffering of Gazan civilians during the January offensive by the Israeli military.I would like to stress again our request for the sending of international forces in order to protect our people, he said.Until when will Israel retain a free hand to destroy the assets and infrastructure of our people? Mr Abbas asked.He also pointed out that some of the infrastructure destroyed during the three weeks of fighting was paid for by the European Union.We must not deal with Israel as if it is a state above accountability, above international law, Mr Abbas said.The EU is unlikely to send peacekeepers, although it does maintain 40 monitors on standby in Israel, waiting to be redeployed to the Gaza border, from where they had been withdrawn in 2007 after a sectarian struggle broke out between Islamist Hamas and secular rival Fatah for control of the Palestinian Authority.Mr Abbas said he is seeking a government of national reconciliation with Hamas so the two sides could work together for the sake of the Palestinian people, who are now split both geographically and politically.

Asked later what Hamas would think of a unity government, Abbas said he thinks they would support it.The national interest of Hamas is to achieve Palestinian national unity, he said. The interest does not lie in a homeland in two parts.Hans-Gert Poettering, president of the European Parliament, said Europe wanted to help both Israel and the Palestinians achieve peace.Only a government of national consensus could ensure the unity of the Palestinian people. The European Union would be willing to work with such a government, prepared to respect the basic principles of the peace process, to renounce violence and commit itself to peace negotiations with Israel, Mr Pottering said.The president of the parliament said his institution wanted a swift resumption of the peace negotiations and stressed that internal Palestinian reconciliation is a pre-condition for peace between Israel and Palestine.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority announced on Wednesday a €465 million reconstruction programme for the Gaza Strip. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said the programme would cover all Palestinian houses destroyed or damaged during Israel's offensive.

War crimes on both sides

There are crimes, and people who committed those crimes have to be held responsible so that these crimes cannot be repeated, Mr Abbas said. We are stretching out our hand for peace with Israel, but what was done were regretfully crimes of war.He also criticised Hamas for bringing destruction to Gaza and said that the movement's leader, Khaled Mashaal, could be taken to court in another country for drawing his people to this destruction.Rights activists say Gaza's Hamas rulers and other Palestinian groups committed war crimes by targeting Israeli civilians with rockets. They also say Hamas' use of human shields, as alleged by Israel, would constitute war crimes.Human rights organisations, including B'Tselem, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, emphasise that investigations will take months and concede few venues exist for any trials. The International Criminal Court can only investigate if asked by the UN Security Council or an involved state that has recognised the court. Israel has never recognized its jurisdiction, and because only states can recognise the court, the Palestinians also have no recourse to the ICC.

France and Germany call for stronger EU-NATO ties
ELITSA VUCHEVA Today FEB 4,09 @ 09:28 CET

Real co-operation between the European Union and NATO, as well as a closer EU – US coordination on security issues and improved relations with Russia are needed in order for Europe to better face current challenges, the leaders of France and Germany have said.In order to respond to the demands of the future, some areas – such as EU – NATO co-operation – are key, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel wrote in a joint column entitled Security – our common mission and posted on the website of French newspaper Le Monde on Tuesday evening (3 February).To our great regret, the strategic partnership between NATO and the EU is not living up to our expectations, due to disagreements which persist between certain nations, the leaders of the EU's two biggest nations wrote.We think that this must change. We must go toward a real cooperation, founded on a necessary complementarity, they went on.The two leaders will meet in Munich on Saturday (7 February) for an annual Security conference, before hosting this year's NATO summit on 3 and 4 April in Strasbourg and Kehl, which will also mark the Alliance's 60th anniversary.They write they expect this summit to launch the work on a new strategic concept and give new orientations in order to transform the Alliance in a credible manner.

However, the paper does not give any indications on a possible French return to the organisation's military structures, something Mr Sarkozy had hinted at during last year's NATO summit.France has been out of NATO's military command since 1966, when the then-President Charles de Gaulle withdrew the French forces protesting against what he saw as US dominance emerging within the organisation.Stronger partnership with both the US and Russia.Ms Merkel and Mr Sarkozy also stressed the need for Europe to have strong partnership with both the US and Russia.For Germany and for France, in order to face the current challenges, Europe needs the US just like the US needs a strong European partner, they wrote.To face the risks of the 21st century, it is necessary to strengthen the transatlantic security and defence partnership, and to adapt it to the new challenges. This implies analysing the situations together, taking common decisions and implementing them together in the same spirit of partnership, they went on.As for Russia, the French and German leaders acknowledge that last summer's crisis in Georgia marked a fracture and created a trust problem in the relations with Moscow.However, Russia remains our neighbour and a very important partner. We have not gone back to the cold war era.We intend to re-establish and develop fruitful relations based on trust, Ms Merkel and Mr Sarkozy wrote.

German troops in France

Meanwhile, Germany and France gave a clear sign of their deepening military ties on Monday, as it was announced German troops would be stationed in France for the first time since World War Two.The German soldiers would be stationed somewhere in the north eastern region of Alsace-Lorraine – over which France and Germany have fought several times in the past.Berlin and Paris are still negotiating on the exact city where the 450 to 800 soldiers would be stationed, Reuters reports.The question of whether this will happen has basically been decided, it's now about the how and how many and where,a diplomatic source told the news agency.

EU SECURITY WEBSITE (RAPID REACTION FORCES)
http://www.basicint.org/pubs/Papers/BP37.htm

Armed Forces: European Rapid Reaction Force
Question 2.37 pm Asked By Baroness Knight of Collingtree FEB 4,09

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many British troops are currently serving with the European Rapid Reaction Force.The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): My Lords, I am sure that the whole House will join me in offering condolences to the friends and family of Corporal Daniel Nield, who was killed on operations in Afghanistan last Friday.Turning to the Question, the Answer is none, because there is no European rapid reaction force.

Baroness Knight of Collingtree: My Lords, does the Minister recall that, as recorded in col. 1353 of Hansard of 27 October last, she assured me that the rapid reaction force did not exist? Is she aware that two days later, in the Royal Gallery, there was a large reception for our Armed Forces, during the course of which five soldiers present told me that they were currently assigned to and working with the rapid reaction force? Will the Minister make it clear that this rapid reaction force is not the same rapid reaction force as the one that is said to be part of the European army? Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I can be consistent and give an assurance that there is no European rapid reaction force. Of course we have troops on standby, and at that significant reception in the Royal Gallery we were all able to talk to our soldiers, who have embarked on a variety of missions, some with NATO and some, indeed, with the EU on occasion.The simple fact of the matter is that we have only one set of forces. We in Britain decide how to deploy them. There is no permanent standing army waiting for Europe to instruct it, and there is no European rapid reaction force.Lord Rotherwick: My Lords, today Reuters reports in the newspaper that a battalion of French and German soldiers is to be deployed in Strasbourg. Indeed, it is the first time that German troops have been deployed in Strasbourg. Who deploys this force? Do the German Government or the French Government deploy it, or is it a European force? Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, the same procedure applies as I have just outlined for this country; namely, that we have control over our own forces and control over their deployment, be that on NATO

3 Feb 2009 : Column 548

operations or, indeed, EU operations. The same applies to other countries. Each country decides how and when its own forces are deployed.Lord Stoddart of Swindon: My Lords, the French are very keen on forming a rapid reaction force and have been for some while. Can the Government give an assurance that they will never agree to such a force? Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I think that the noble Lord is under a misapprehension. President Sarkozy has made it extremely clear that there is no suggestion of having a European army. Indeed, he has said of his own situation that,our armed forces are and will remain national. They won’t be integrated into any supranational ... forces.Lord Addington: My Lords, I associate these Benches with the condolences given earlier. Will the noble Baroness enlighten the House as regards the situations in which we would consider taking action with our European allies; for example, in relation to peacekeeping? Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, we have spoken in this House on previous occasions on the use that we are now making of our forces in conjunction with our European allies; for example, in the work that is going on to deter piracy off the Horn of Africa. NATO was doing that work until December and a European force is now doing it for a year. That is a good example not only of European co-operation but of co-operation between NATO and the EU.Lord Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon: My Lords, the United States has in effect withdrawn its security guarantee. Under President Obama the United States will have different priorities in the world; in the future Europe will not be its major priority. We are facing an assertive Russia, a rising China and a shift of economic power to the east. In the face of these circumstances, is not the right reaction from Europe to deepen its institutions of defence and foreign affairs and, if there is no European reaction force, should there not be one soon? Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, President Obama’s priorities may have a different emphasis but I suspect that the basic thrust of his policy will remain the same given the challenges that we all face, some of which he has outlined. Challenges such as terrorism are ones that Europe and the United States share. It is right that we should work together within Europe. We are a defensive alliance and NATO will remain the centre point of that. In order to make that alliance work I do not think that we need to deepen or reinvent new structures. The example I gave a moment ago of piracy shows that NATO and the EU can work together very closely and very successfully without over-elaborate structures, which I think do not always serve Europe well.

Lord Trimble: My Lords, if the Government are as lukewarm towards a rapid reaction force as the Minister suggests, I wonder what they were saying at the presidency meeting in December which agreed among other things that there should be the goal for 2010 of deploying, or being capable of deploying,two rapid response operations of limited duration using ... the EU’s battle groups.

3 Feb 2009 : Column 549

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, the EU’s battle groups are domestic groups which on occasion come together to deal with a specific policy. We have a battle group which we could use if we so chose, but the choice would be ours; it would not be made under instruction from the EU or anyone else.Lord Redesdale: My Lords, considering the problems that have arisen in trying to get any concerted action in many African countries that are suffering a collapse of civil administration, would not a European Union coherent response be the right way forward? Without it, is it not possible that we will ignore many problem areas in Africa? Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, there have been attempts by European countries to try to ease the situation—for example, in Chad—but I do not think that we should have any illusions that we can solve all the problems of the world by ourselves.Lord Wallace of Saltaire: My Lords, does the Minister recall that the launch of the European security and defence policy was an initiative of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and that we appear rather to have back-pedalled on that in the past three or four years? Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I do not think that there has been any back-pedalling; what I think there has been is a great deal of misrepresentation about what co-operation with Europe is all about. I repeat what I said earlier: there is no European army, there is no permanent standing army, and we in this country will make decisions about how, where and when our Armed Forces are deployed. END. And then read this The European Rapid Reaction Force
http://www.basicint.org/pubs/Papers/BP37.htm

The EU Rapid Reaction Force: Europe Takes on a New Security Challenge
By Chris Lindborg

European leaders now recognize the need for a change after having witnessed a decade of the most violent conflict on the continent since World War II. Their trans-Atlantic partners also sense that Europe needs some security supplements. In particular, U.S. leaders have repeatedly criticized Europeans for failing to do enough during times of violent crises and for not having done their fair share militarily, especially during North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) missions.

Leaders from the European Union (EU) have been concocting various plans to stem violent political crises that may continue to occur in southeastern Europe and elsewhere. The most anticipated of these is the European Rapid Reaction Force (ERRF). The ERRF’s purpose will be to intervene in crises before they become full-scale wars, and to release NATO from participating in some military interventions. The ERRF may become a useful prescription for controlling political violence, and despite rampant criticism, it would not threaten the existence of NATO. Nevertheless, the ERRF may be a hard pill for European leaders to swallow and it will have its deleterious side effects.

History
European leaders considered creating an exclusively European integrated military force as far back as the late 1940s with the signing of the Brussels Treaty, which paved the way for the birth of the Western European Union (WEU) in 1954.[1] The French and Germans led the creation of a small Eurocorps of 1,000 troops in 1992 as a symbol of post-Cold War friendship.[2] The series of Balkan wars, however, provided the real impetus for developing the current ERRF. Europeans did not anticipate the magnitude of atrocities committed during the 1990s, especially after everyone thought they had learned their lessons from World War II. The United Nations (U.N.), needing to rely on the consensus of leaders from around the world, was engaged, but it could not take the kind of fast and forceful action needed to prevent the wars. The United States, usually a trusty ally and an unprecedented military hegemon, was wary of intervening militarily in southeastern Europe, especially on the ground. Memories of the Vietnam conflict still loomed too large. Moreover, the same leaders in NATO and the United Nations were guilty of political foot-dragging and passing the blame for inaction on to other organizations, which virtually paralyzed Europe during the early stages of the crises. Although the United States eventually intervened through NATO, it did not take the lead until thousands already had died in the Balkans.In particular, European leaders concluded from the Balkans experience that they needed an in-house military capability they could deploy rapidly. Europe already had multilateral organizations and the military knowledge to successfully create such a force. NATO intervention in the Kosovo crisis, however, revealed that Europe paled in its military capability and coordination compared to the United States.In May 1999, during a time of climatic events in Kosovo, the Amsterdam Treaty entered into force.[3] The Treaty intensified European integration and incorporated the Petersberg Tasks of the older WEU into the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). These tasks include humanitarian and rescue missions, peacekeeping activities, and the role of combat forces in crisis management, including peacemaking.[4] At the landmark Helsinki Summit in December 1999, leaders discussed ways to implement the Petersberg Tasks.

Capabilities and Operations
Most significantly, Europeans in Helsinki produced a Headline Goal, stating that by 2003, the EU should be capable of deploying 60,000 troops to a site within 60 days and of maintaining a presence at that site for one year.[5] EU Member States also agreed that they would need to develop new military structures to successfully implement the Petersberg Tasks.The EU will use the ERRF both apart from, but also in conjunction with, other international organizations. The ERRF could deploy at the request of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the United Nations. The ERRF also could share expertise and resources with NATO, but it would not deploy in response to a request from the alliance.Because of the overlap in membership among these organizations, and the multiple duties they have incurred, the EU will need to ensure that the ERRF will not render redundant other military arrangements. The EU created the Capabilities Development Mechanism (CDM), which will specifically take on the task of avoiding duplication between the EU and NATO and enhance communication between the two organizations.[6] The EU and NATO already have been cooperating in southern Serbia and in Macedonia.In addition, the European Council recently endorsed intensifying interaction with the United Nations to ensure that EU training is compatible and enhances U.N. military and civilian crisis management.[7] Because the ERRF might go beyond the European theater, it may need to rely on U.N. guidance and knowledge in the future.[8]

With an eye toward strengthening Europe’s own strategic capabilities, leaders at Helsinki also put forward military requirements. EU Member States will need to work toward improving several areas: the coordination of monitoring and early warning systems; the opening of existing joint national headquarters to officers from other Member States to promulgate the sharing of information; creating a European air transport command; increasing the number of national troops that would be readily deployable; and improving air and sea-lift capacity, much of which had been lacking on the European side during NATO’s Operation Allied Force in 1999.[9]In accordance with the guidelines established at Helsinki, the Nice Summit in December 2000 solidified the creation of three new military structures that will have as part of their responsibilities the oversight of policies and strategies that will influence ERRF operations. First, the Political and Security Committee (PSC) replaces the Council-level Political Committee and adds security to its list of duties. The PSC provides political control and strategic direction to the EU’s military response to crises. The PSC will meet during crisis, as well as non-crisis, periods.[10]

The second critical structure, the Military Committee, comprises military personnel at the levels of Chiefs of Defense who report back to the PSC on the military policy of the EU. The Committee may initiate proposals and is responsible for maintaining an official military relationship with non-EU countries and organizations. Formal consultations between the EU and NATO, however, will occur at the level of the PSC and the North Atlantic Council (NAC). Meetings will occur between the EU and NATO twice a year at the highest level (once for each EU Presidency) and 6 times a year at the ambassadorial level.[11] The first meeting took place between the Military Committee of NATO and the Military Committee of the EU on 12 June 2001.The third structure is made up of the broader Military Staff. It is their responsibility to monitor political developments, help to provide strategic planning and to liaise frequently with national and multinational military headquarters. Most importantly, however, the Staff will provide the military expertise necessary to implement the CFSP and to ensure that the EU has sound military options upon which the ERRF could act.[12] When a military operation takes place, it will happen under an EU Joint Action, meaning that actions taken will remain under the political and strategic control of the EU, even when NATO or other organization’s assets are used.[13] First, the Political and Security Committee asks the Military Committee to request an Initiating Directive” from the Military Staff. The Military Staff then drafts a document and gives it to the Military Committee. After the Military Committee adds comments, the Committee returns it to the PSC. The PSC must approve of this document, at this stage deemed the Initial Planning Directive, which gives the guidelines for military action.[14] The host country also will need to accept the action. This is a sticking point that could become controversial once EU leaders are faced with real crises. Therefore, policy-makers involved with European crisis management will want to give more consideration to the political obstacles they might encounter when the time comes to make decisions regarding intervention. The entire process could take a considerable amount of time. European leaders in Brussels recently formalized plans for an EU Exercise Programme that will test whether these command structures will function effectively. These exercises will begin in June 2002.[15] In addition, the PSC already tested crisis management procedures in a workshop this past June.[16]

The cohesion of EU Member States in carrying out ERRF missions will be critical. Ultimately, national governments decide whether to contribute their troops to a particular ERRF deployment. Under the Amsterdam Treaty, Member States that opt out of an action need not fund it in the instance of military operations. Consequently, strong political will and cooperation will be important for sharing resources and moving forward with such missions.In November 2000, just before the Nice Summit, EU Member States pledged military contributions to the ERRF, which enabled the EU leaders to estimate that they could have access to 100,000 troops, 400 aircraft, and 100 ships for the ERRF by 2003.[17] Usually, it is desirable to have three times the number of troops needed in the field to permit rotation and to sustain a year-long presence. Therefore, the ERRF is still, on this account, 80,000 troops short. Furthermore, states already are having difficulty with their informal equipment pledges. The heavy-lift A400Ms will not come into service until at least 2007.[18] This could make it difficult for the ERRF to live up to its 60-day deployment goal for quite some time.Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Lord George Robertson has encouraged European countries to increase their defense spending.[19] EU Member States may be able to meet the military requirements of the peacekeeping section of the Petersberg Tasks, but it will be more tenuous for the EU to muster the military resources for peacemaking, which could include separating parties already engaged in combat.[20] European leaders might find ways to streamline their current military structures so they can sufficiently contribute to the ERRF without substantially increasing defense spending. This, however, remains to be seen. The next major assessment of European contributions to military crisis management will take place in November 2001 at the Capabilities Improvement Conference.[21]

Political Obstacles
The ERRF faces political challenges that may be worse than, and which might exacerbate, its aforementioned capability problems. France’s Chief of Defense Staff, General Jean-Pierre Kelche, scared NATO fans when he demanded that the ERRF have a military command and planning structure entirely independent of NATO.[22] This is exactly what Conservative leaders in the United Kingdom and some leaders in the United States have feared about the ERRF.In the United Kingdom, ERRF opponents worry that it might become a standing army and drain scarce resources away from the U.K. military for the sake of serving the whims of the rest of Europe.[23] With a recent Labour victory in the United Kingdom, the ERRF should continue to receive support. The Blair government is convinced that the ERRF should not and will not become an independent Euro-Army. The reviews are more mixed on the U.S. side, which in part is a result of its stake in NATO. President George W. Bush has iterated his support for the ERRF proposal, so long as it does not duplicate or interfere with NATO capabilities and operations.[24] This is a more positive view than expressed by his Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, who quipped that he was a little worried about the plans for the ERRF. He also remarked that the ERRF runs the risk of injecting an instability into an enormously important alliance.[25] Reflecting the Bush administration’s good cop, bad cop routine, Secretary of State Colin Powell has said, There's no reason to see this [the ERRF] as destabilizing NATO in any way . . . In fact, I think it is our common belief that it will strengthen NATO.[26]

U.S. cooperation will be vital if the ERRF is to rely on NATO assets, especially since the United States carries top-of-the-line technology necessary for a rapid reaction force. Most EU Member States, including the United Kingdom, have aimed to use the assets of existing organizations, especially from NATO, in an effort to avoid duplication and to cut down on costs. On the other hand, France, and to a lesser extent, Germany, have advocated the creation of all necessary capabilities that would enable the EU to manage its military missions entirely independent of NATO. Whereas sharing assets with NATO might help reduce costs, a completely self-contained security structure might give the ERRF more flexibility in its operations. While these squabbles continue, the “Berlin-plus” arrangement is currently in the works to help decide which military resources NATO will make available to the EU.[27]The Berlin-plus arrangement is in jeopardy, however, particularly because of Turkey’s wariness of potential ERRF missions. The EU wants guaranteed permanent access (legally-binding automatic access without the approval of the North Atlantic Council (NAC)) to planning capabilities at NATO’s Supreme Headquarters of the Allied Powers in Europe (SHAPE) when the EU wants to conduct operations.[28] Turkey is a member of NATO, and would like to join the EU. Turkey’s prospects for near-term membership are dim because of its poor human rights record. Because Turkey is not a member of the EU, it would not, under current negotiations, have a vote on ERRF missions.[29] Turkey wants the approval for EU-use to be done on a case-by-case basis because it fears the ERRF might become involved in conflicts pertaining to Turkey’s strategic interests, and worries that the EU might aid Greece (Turkey’s antagonist over Cyprus). Onu Oymen, Turkey’s ambassador to NATO, has noted that 13 of the possible 16 scenarios for future crises in which the ERRF might intervene would take place near Turkey.[30]If Turkey fails to agree to a deal with the EU and NATO, then NATO will need to deny the EU access to valuable intelligence capabilities.[31] If the EU fails to receive access to SHAPE, then it will need to create its own Command, Control, Communication, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) structure, just as the French have desired.

Ultimately, EU leaders do not intend to use the ERRF to create a European standing army, and have formally announced this repeatedly at the EU summits in an effort to quell the concerns of NATO. The ERRF will come from national forces that will be earmarked for the use of the ERRF. A standing army will be far from possible with the current commitments of the EU Member States, especially when taking into account their ability to live up to those obligations. The ERRF will not be a defensive alliance as is NATO.[32] Essentially, the ERRF might intervene where NATO will be unable or unwilling to act.

Future Challenges
The real threat to NATO’s survival will come from other sources, such as opponents on the western side of the Atlantic trying to halt Europe’s efforts to improve its own security, or from a mismanaged expansion of the alliance. That the ERRF would become a competing military structure to NATO is unlikely. The ERRF, under its current plans, would be incapable of launching the type of mission NATO conducted during the Kosovo intervention of 1999.[33]The critical question is whether the ERRF will be capable of accomplishing its goals and improving security, particularly in light of the challenges of coordinating with NATO, the future of EU expansion, and the limits of military action. First, the ERRF and NATO will not necessarily compete for the same military missions. Rather, their coexistence during the early years of the ERRF might lead to a shirking of responsibilities. NATO leaders may become eager to let the ERRF take on more responsibility and assume that it is capable of taking military action where it might not have the capability to do so effectively. EU leaders might feel that the ERRF may not be ready, nor have the military capability, to take certain actions. Therefore, the EU leaders would expect NATO to take over. True, the EU is working to develop more lines of communication between it and NATO, but if too much time will be spent bickering over who should do what, then critical opportunities might be lost on the ground. The ERRF will need time to weed out communication and coordination problems, as well as time to accrue the military infrastructure that will be necessary for its missions.

Second, the EU expansion process may become problematic for the ERRF.[34] Depending on how lenient the EU is in accepting countries with questionable governing practices, including human rights abuses, it may become increasingly difficult for EU governments to reach agreements on where to intervene. While EU Member States are allowed to abstain from actions, if too many countries opt out of a particular ERRF action, the action may not receive enough resources to be viable. Effective military action will necessitate the wide acceptance and participation of EU Member States.More specifically, leaders from a new EU Member State might refrain from supporting an ERRF action if a situation is similar to their own political exigency. For example, within the United Nations, China has repeatedly abstained from or voted against U.N. action where military intervention supposedly crossed the line of sovereignty in the name of defending human rights. Therefore, the EU might suffer from the same paralysis once it enlarges. As expansion talks proceed to include more countries, EU leaders will need to consider each country’s potential level of ERRF contribution and participation.Third, there may become a tendency to rely on the type of military solution that the ERRF affords, rather than to choose more appropriate routes of action, such as using the civilian tools the EU is developing for managing crises. For instance, EU leaders should keep in mind that governments may be more amenable to inviting the EU’s nascent police corps into their countries to control smaller outbreaks of violence, rather than having the specter of military brigades marching into their territories during times of tenuous political leadership. This also could cut down on the negotiating time involved for inviting outside help, resulting in a shorter mission approval time than would be required for military intervention. A large and well-organized international police corps could have intervened earlier in the recent crisis in Macedonia between Kosovar rebels and the Skopje government, possibly preventing the deaths that already have occurred there.[35]

Furthermore, the ERRF will take two months to fully deploy to its destination. Crises can easily spiral into full-scale wars within that timeframe. To their credit, EU leaders recently have pushed forward civilian crisis management and conflict prevention options. The EU will be capable of deploying 1,000 police within a span of one month. Smaller civilian teams that may be more rapidly deployed also are in the works.[36] If police can arrive on the ground to control the violent aspects of conflict right away, then civilian conflict managers can move in to implement human rights and election monitoring, supply food and medical aid, and eventually permit the type of long-term development initiatives that would eliminate the need for the ERRF to intervene in the first place. While the ERRF will be useful, some preventive medicine would be easier to swallow for those involved in developing European security and for those who might benefit from rapid intervention. EU leaders should continue to develop these civilian tools and advocate their use in the very early stages of crises, making the ERRF an option of last resort.At the very least, however, the ERRF is an expression of political will which acknowledges that tragedies such as those in the Balkans fall partly under the responsibility of other European nations. Once the ERRF is up and fully running, its mere existence hopefully will help institutionalize the obligation to react to crises and to help prevent the abdication of political responsibility that leads to deadly delays in action.The author would like to thank Martin Butcher, Catriona Gourlay, Theresa Hitchens, and Otfried Nassauer for their advice during the writing of this paper. The author takes responsibility for any errors.

Endnotes

[1] The Brussels Treaty on Economic, Social, and Cultural Collaboration and Collective Self-Defense was signed on 17 March 1948. The Treaty provided the foundation for the creation of NATO and the WEU. For more information, see European Security and Defense: the WEU’s Role, n.d.
[2] The Eurocorps has worked under NATO, the United Nations, the WEU, and the OSCE, along with the approval of its five member states: Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg and Spain. NATO arranged to have the Eurocorps lead the KFOR at the headquarters in Kosovo in January 2000. For more information, see http://www.eurocorps.org.
[3] European Union, Amsterdam: A New Treaty for Europe, May 1999. Background on the Treaty may be found at: http://europa.eu.int/abc/obj/amst/en/.
[4] The Petersberg Tasks derive from the 1992 Petersberg Declaration for the WEU. For more information, see Western European Union Council of Ministers Petersberg Declaration, Bonn, 19 June 1992.
[5] Presidency Conclusions: Helsinki European Council, 10 and 11 December 1999.
[6] Björn Von Sydow, speech delivered to the European Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, 12 June 2001.
[7] General Affairs Council, EU-U.N. Co-operation in Conflict Prevention and Crisis Management – Conclusions,11 June 2001.
[8] The EU Helsinki Presidency Report recognizes the U.N. Security Council as having primary responsibility for maintaining peace and international security. The United Nations could request the service of the ERRF, but special U.N. Security Council approval would probably be necessary for the ERRF to deploy outside of the European theater (Sharon Riggle with the assistance of Jens Mosegaard, EU Reinforces Links with the U.N.,European Security Review, March 2001, p. 5).
[9] Presidency Conclusions: Helsinki European Council.
[10] Presidency Conclusions: Nice European Council Meeting, 7, 8, and 9 December 2000 and Sharon Riggle, EU Officially Adopts Military Tasks: A Summary of the Nice Conclusions, Centre for European Security and Disarmament Briefing Paper, 18 December 2000. The Nice conclusions may be found at: http://europa.eu.int/council/off/conclu/dec2000/dec2000_en.htm.
[11] Riggle, 18 December 2000.
[12] Presidency Conclusions: Nice European Council Meeting and Riggle, 18 December 2001.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15] Common Security - Meeting of Defence Ministers of the EU Member States, the Candidate Countries, Islands and Norway: Roundtable, European Council in Brussels, 15May 2001.
[16] Catriona Gourlay, EU’s Bark Still Louder Than Its Military Bite, European Security Review, Number 6, June 2001, p. 3.
[17] Thomas Sköld, States Pledge Resources for Crisis Management,European Security Review, Number 3, December 2000, pp. 2-3.
[18] Simon Taylor, Europe’s Defence Industry Frustrated at Government Reluctance to Boost Arms Spending,European Security Review, Number 7, July 2001, p. 5.
[19] NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson, European Defence: Challenges and Prospects, speech delivered to the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, London, 11 June 2001. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, defense spending by European NATO members declined by 5% from 1998 to 1999 in constant US dollar terms (International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance, London: International Institute for Strategic Studies/Oxford University Press, 2000, p. 38).
[20] Catriona Gourlay and Frederik Jensen, The European Parliament’s Maximalist Vision of CESDP, European Security Review, December 2000, p. 4.
[21] Gourlay, June 2001, p. 3.
[22] Many within NATO are highly sensitive to the remarks of the French because of France’s 29-year hiatus from NATO’s military structures (which ended in 1995) and because France still is not part of NATO’s integrated command.
[23] A group of admirals and generals from France and the United Kingdom recently expressed a similar viewpoint in a letter to The Daily Telegraph, Weakness of a Rapid Reaction Force, 12 June 2001, p. 23.
[24] Toby Harnden, We’ll Back Euro-force if it Doesn’t Harm NATO, The Daily Telegraph, 12 June 2001, p. A5.
[25] Ben McIntyre, Powell Lukewarm Over Plans for European Force, The Times, 7 February 2001. Any U.S. opposition to the ERRF will be ironic because the Rumsfeld team is now considering a Global Joint Response Force of its own to handle crises (see Roberto Suro,Quick Strike Force Urged for Military, The Washington Post, 13 June 2001, p. A01).
[26] Elise Labott, Powell, Cook Paint Positive Picture of European Defense Force, Cnn.com, 7 February 2001.
[27] Björn Von Sydow, 12 June 2001.
[28] Otfried Nassauer and Catriona Gourlay, Controversy Over EU Access to NATO Capabilities,European Security Review, March 2001, pp. 3-4.
[29] Turkey was an Associate Member of the WEU and had a considerably high-level of participation in its military policy. The EU now has taken over most of the WEU’s activities.
[30] Stephen Castle, Turkey Demands Role in EU Reaction Forces, The Independent, 29 May 2001.
[31] In a recently drafted accord, Turkey would have a voice in the deliberations about the ERRF’s use of force, and be able to oversee military operations near Turkey. Turkey would not, however, have veto power over the ERRF’s operations. The compromise also would cover the non-EU NATO members of Norway, Iceland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland. The ERRF would agree to refrain from intervening in disputes between NATO members, which is a nod to Turkey and Greece’s dispute over Cyprus (Michael R. Gordon, In Accord, Turkey Tentatively Agrees European Union Force May Use NATO Bases, The New York Times, 5 June 2001). The agreement had not been formalized, and Turkish leaders recently rejected the terms in June negotiations.
[32] In a speech delivered to the Royal Institute of International Affairs on 11 June 2001, NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson admitted ...[W]e need options other than NATO or nothing.In the post-Cold War world, there is simply no guarantee that the U.S., or NATO as an organization, will wish to get involved in each and every security crisis in and around Europe. . .The fact is that Europe needs to be able to react when the U.S., or NATO, doesn’t.(European Defence: Challenges and Prospects, speech delivered to the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, 11 June 2001.)
[33] CNN-Reuters, EU Pledges Rapid Force Troops,CNN.com, 21 November 2000.
[34] Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Turkey are several of the countries engaged in accession talks with the EU.
[35] As of mid-August 2001, NATO was sending to Macedonia a vanguard of several hundred troops to prepare for a possible disarmament mission. NATO previously had 3,000 troops in Macedonia, but these were for supporting the 30,000 NATO troops stationed in Kosovo (Carlotta Gall, Macedonia Seeks Political Shelter From Winds of War, The New York Times, 14 June 2001.)
[36] See Council of the European Union, Presidency Report to the Göteborg European Council on European Security and Defence Policy, 11 June 2001, and the EU Programme for the Prevention of Violent Conflicts, n.d.

DISEASES

REVELATION 6:7-8
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).

Bat-killing syndrome spreads in Northeast By MICHAEL HILL, Associated Press Writer FEB 3,09

ROSENDALE, N.Y. – A mysterious and deadly bat disease discovered just two winters ago in a few New York caves has now spread to at least six northeastern states, and scientists are scrambling to find solutions before it spreads across the country.

White-nose syndrome poses no health threat to people, but some scientists say that if bat populations diminish too much, the insects and crop pests they eat could flourish. Researchers recently identified the fungus that creates the illness' distinctive white smudges on the noses and wings of hibernating bats, but they don't yet know how to stop the disease from killing off caves full of the ecologically important animals.The cause for concern is that this is going to race across the country faster than we can come up with a solution, said Alan Hicks, a wildlife biologist with New York state's Department of Environmental Conservation.

Now that is entirely possible.

Bats with white-nose burn through their fat stores before spring, driving some to rouse early from hibernation in a futile search for food. Many die as they hunt fruitlessly for insects.White-nose syndrome spread fast last winter to dozens of caves in New York and southern New England, within a roughly 150-mile radius of the caves west of Albany, N.Y., where it was first found. Early observations show it has reached farther still this winter, even before cave inspections and bat counts begin in earnest this month.Bats with white-nose syndrome were found recently in northern New Jersey's Morris County and in an old iron mine in Shindle, Pa., more than 200 miles away from the outbreak's epicenter. In addition, the Pennsylvania Game Commission on Tuesday said that hundreds of little brown bats, a species devastated by white-nose syndrome, were found dead from the disease outside two mines in the northeastern part of the state.The disease may have spread as far as 450 miles from the epicenter, to the John Guilday Caves Nature Preserve in West Virginia. The National Speleological Society has temporarily shut down the preserve as a possible white-nose sighting is investigated.So far, there are 40 confirmed white-nose sites in the Northeast, said Jeremy Coleman, who is tracking the illness for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office in Cortland, N.Y.Death tolls for the tiny creatures are hard to pinpoint, but some estimates run into the hundreds of thousands.The news was grim on a recent day when more than a dozen researchers lowered themselves by rope into a sprawling old limestone mine in New York's Hudson Valley, about 80 miles north of New York City.Bat counter Ryan von Linden's headlamp swept across isolated clusters of the mammals hanging off the rock ceiling. A chorus of squeaks echoed in the blackness.

There are not as many as there are supposed to be, von Linden whispered. Not even close.With a precise total pending, Hicks estimated the cave's count of Indiana bats, an endangered species, was down 15 to 35 percent from last year's roughly 19,000. Researchers said the number of little brown bats also appeared to be down, although they didn't have enough specifics from prior years to measure the drop exactly.Hoping to glean more information on the syndrome, the researchers plucked 14 groggy little brown bats from the rock, weighed them, measured them, snipped a bit of their hair and stuck tiny radio transmitters to them to track their activity levels.Bats' nocturnal habits and some species' ability to carry rabies can give the flying mammals a fearsome image. But they can pollinate plants and play an important role in checking the populations of mosquitoes and insects that can damage wheat, apples and dozens of other crops.Researchers at the U.S. Geological Survey's Wildlife Health Center this fall established that the sugary smudges on infected bats are a previously undescribed fungus that thrives in the refrigerator-like cold of winter caves. The center is still working to determine whether the fungus causes the disease, but biologists are already focusing on potential ways to combat the fungus.Since the fungus grows in the cold and damp, they could try to lower humidity levels in at least some crucial caves, though that could create other problems for those ecosystems. Researchers also are looking at the possibility of a fungicide or even fungus-killing bacteria that could spread from bat to bat. Ward Stone, New York state's wildlife pathologist, said he has been able to culture bacteria that live on big brown bats and kill the white-nose fungus in a lab. Tests need to be performed to see whether any of the options are realistic. And time is our biggest enemy, said David Blehert, head of microbiology at the USGS center in Madison, Wis. On the Net:
http://www.fws.gov/northeast/white_nose.html

SIGNS IN THE SUN, MOON AND STARS

LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

Iran claims first launch of its own satellite By NASSER KARIMI and JASON KEYSER, Associated Press Writers – Tue Feb 3, 4:24 pm ET

TEHRAN, Iran – Iran sent its first domestically made satellite into orbit, the president announced Tuesday, a key step for an ambitious space program that worries the U.S. and other world powers because the same rocket technology used to launch satellites can also deliver warheads.For nearly a decade, Iran has sought to develop a national space program, creating unease among international leaders already concerned about its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.The telecommunications satellite — called Omid, or hope, in Farsi — was launched late Monday after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gave the order to proceed, according to a report on state radio. State television showed footage of what it said was the nighttime liftoff of the rocket carrying the satellite at an unidentified location in Iran.A U.S. counterproliferation official confirmed the launch and suggested the technology was not sophisticated. Speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence gathering, the official said it appeared it isn't too far removed from Sputnik, the first Soviet orbiter launched in 1957.The TV report praised the launch as part of festivities marking the 30th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution that toppled the U.S.-backed Shah and brought hard-line clerics to power.In a year in which Ahmadinejad faces a tough election battle to stay in power, the launch provided a symbol of national pride to hold up even as falling oil prices batter the economy and the hard-line leader's popularity.

As it seeks to expand its influence in the Middle East, Iran touts such technological successes as signs it can advance despite U.S. and U.N. sanctions over its nuclear program.The launch touched off concern in the United States, Europe and Israel about possible links between its satellite programs and its work with missiles and nuclear technology.There's almost always a link between satellite programs like this and military programs and there's almost always a link between satellites and nuclear weapons. It's the same delivery vehicle, said James Lewis, an expert on defense technology at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.White House spokesman Robert Gibbs condemned the launch, saying: This action does not convince us that Iran is acting responsibly to advance stability or security in the region.State Department spokesman Robert A. Wood accused Iran of using the space-launch program as a technological stepping stone to develop long-range ballistic missiles.Iran's ongoing efforts to develop its missile delivery capabilities remain a matter of deep concern, Wood said. Iran's development of a space-launch vehicle capable of putting a satellite into orbit establishes the technical basis from which Iran could develop long-range ballistic missile systems.

Yiftah Shapir, a top Israeli expert on the Iranian space program, said the launch itself doesn't really mean much to Israel, we knew about it before hand.The significance is in the technology itself. They are making progress and working on a program to spy on targets worldwide. But they are decades away from achieving that, said Shapir, who heads the military balance project at the Institute for National Security Studies, a think tank at Tel Aviv University.The United States and some of its allies accuse Iran of pursuing a covert nuclear weapons program. Iran denies the charge, saying its atomic work is only for peaceful purposes, such as power generation.The announcement of the launch came as officials from the U.S., Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China were set to meet Wednesday near Frankfurt to talk about Iran's nuclear program. The group has offered Iran a package of incentives if it suspends uranium enrichment and enters into talks on its nuclear program. The U.N. Security Council has imposed sanctions to pressure Iran to comply.This test underlines and illustrates our serious concerns about Iran's intentions, Britain's Middle East minister Bill Rammell said Tuesday. There are dual applications for satellite-launching technology in Iran's ballistic missile program.Ahmadinejad insisted the launch was intended to be a message of peace and friendship to the world. We need science for friendship, brotherhood and justice, he told state television. The launch has clear political aims, said Lewis. You can say, I am the dominant power in the region and here's the proof. That's what a space launch does for you.The satellite was taken into orbit by a Safir-2, or ambassador-2, rocket, which was first tested in August and has a range of 155 miles. Iranian television said the satellite would orbit at an altitude of between 155 and 250 miles.

State radio said it is designed to circle the Earth 15 times during a 24-hour period and send reports to the space center in Iran. It has two frequency bands and eight antennas for transmitting data. Ahmadinejad said the satellite reached its orbit and had made contact with ground stations, though not all of its functions were active yet. He said Iran would now seek to increase the ability of its satellite-carrier rockets to carry more weight. Iran's space plans are lofty and even hold out the goal of putting a man in orbit within 10 years, though accomplishing that would be extremely expensive. A domestic satellite program would put Iran in a growing club — more than 80 countries are building or planning to build their own satellites, according to Lewis. But the ability to launch them is a much more exclusive crowd; only nine countries have done so. In 2005, Iran launched its first commercial satellite on a Russian rocket in a joint project with Moscow, which is a partner in transferring space technology to Iran along with North Korea and China. That same year, the government said it had allocated $500 million for space projects in the next five years. Iran has said it wants to put its own satellites into orbit to monitor natural disasters in the earthquake-prone nation and improve its telecommunications. Iranian officials also point to America's use of satellites to monitor Afghanistan and Iraq and say they need similar abilities for their security.
Karimi reported from Tehran and Keyser from Cairo. Associated Press writers Pamela Hess, Pauline Jelinek and Robert Burns in Washington and Ian Deitch in Jerusalem also contributed to this report.