HOLLYWOOD PROMOTE SCAM CARBON TAXES

STOCK RESULTS MON MAY 30,11 - AMERICAN HOLIDAY - CAN RESULTS ONLY

GOLD 1,539.10 +2.80

OIL 100.38 -0.31

TSE 300 13,829.66 +32.10

CDNX 2097.96 -2.71

S&P/TSX/60 791.37 +1.59

Israel's Fischer interested in IMF job
By JOSEF FEDERMAN, Associated Press – MAY 29,11

JERUSALEM – Israel's central bank chief, Stanley Fischer, is interested in the top job at the International Monetary Fund and has received a number of phone calls in recent days from around the world encouraging him to apply, a person familiar with the banker's thinking told The Associated Press on Sunday.The person said Fischer has not decided whether to pursue the job and has no desire to leave his current post, but would have a hard time saying no to the IMF.If the opportunity comes along, he will take it,said the person.He spoke on condition of anonymity because Fischer is still weighing his options. He said he expects Fischer to make a decision within the next two weeks.Fischer, an internationally respected economist, held the No. 2 position at the IMF during the 1990s and is well acquainted with the workings of the fund.Born in Zambia and educated at the London School of Economics and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he also has held top jobs at the World Bank and at Citigroup Corp.Fischer came to Israel in 2005 to take the post of governor of the Bank of Israel. He has been widely credited with enabling the country to largely escape the global economic crisis. Unemployment in Israel is just over 6 percent, and the real estate sector is booming.Last year, he was appointed to a second five-year term.

Fischer has received phone calls from top IMF officials and officials from major finance ministries around the world encouraging him to seek the post, the person said. He refused to identify the countries or officials.The post has traditionally gone to a European, and French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde has emerged as the front-runner. Developing nations have argued that someone from another region should be considered.The IMF's last director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, quit this month after he was accused of attempting to rape a New York hotel maid.

Hollywood star Blanchett under fire over carbon tax
– Sun May 29, 5:33 am ET

SYDNEY (AFP) – Hollywood A-lister Cate Blanchett found herself under fire for fronting a campaign promoting the government's planned carbon tax, with critics saying she is out of touch with ordinary Australians.The wealthy Oscar winner features in a new advert, funded by a coalition of unions and green groups, urging Australians to Say Yes to a tax on carbon.Australians are among the world's worst per capita carbon polluters and Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard has proposed a carbon tax to be levied on major industrial polluters by July 1, 2012.She then plans a full emissions trading scheme in three to five years.But the proposals are not popular, with the conservative opposition saying a tax would damage the economy and drive up the cost of living by making energy far more expensive, bumping up electricity bills.$53 million Hollywood superstar tells Aussie families to pay up, the Sydney Sunday Telegraph blared on its front page, referring to how much Blanchett is worth.Cate Blanchett has proved she is just another morally vain Hollywood star trying to justify her great good fortune by preaching to the rest of us about climate change,the paper said in a comment piece.The Australian Family Association said she was out of touch.

It's nice to have a multi-millionaire who won't be impacted by it telling you how great it is. It's easy for her to advocate it, she's one of the people who can afford to pay it,the association said, according to the newspaper.There are people who have no comfort zone and no room to move.Blanchett made no comment but her co-star in the advert, Australian actor Michael Caton, defended his role.I'm sure people will criticise me but I thought long and hard and I really believe in this, so I'm speaking up for it,he said.Treasurer Wayne Swan said Blanchett was being unfairly targeted.I admire people who speak their views and Cate Blanchett, along with many others, has a strong view that Australia needs to price carbon, he said.It's the responsible thing to do for citizens to speak up.The Climate Institute, an independent research organisation, also defended the actress.There is a serious scare campaign going on,spokesman John Connor told the ABC.So I am not surprised by some of the personal attacks. But what we're trying to do is focus on the policies and the issues and that a range of Australians are well behind this campaign.Earlier this month, a national poll by The Australian newspaper showed 60 percent of voters were opposed to a carbon tax. Only 30 percent of voters supported the plan and 10 percent were undecided.

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.

THE FIRST JUDGEMENT OF THE EARTH STARTED WITH WATER-IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THE LAST GENERATION WILL BE HAVING FLOODING
GENESIS 7:6-12
6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.
10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
GOD PROMISED BY A RAINBOW-THE EARTH WOULD NEVER BE DESTROYED TOTALLY WITH A FLOOD AGAIN.BUT FLOODIING IS A SIGN OF JUDGEMENT.

Hurricane and Tropical Storm Names
ContributorNetwork Brad Sylvester – MAY 30,11

Every year we hear about hurricanes and tropical storms named as if they were guests, but for the most part these tropical cyclones are unwanted visitors arriving at our shores. Let's take a look at some of the history behind the naming of tropical storms.

Why do hurricanes get names?

The main purpose of naming tropical storms and hurricanes, says the World Meteorological Organization, is to make it easier to communicate about a particular storm. Using longitude and latitude can be confusing especially for people who don't use geographical coordinates on a regular basis. Using a short common name for these storms makes it easy for everyone to know which hurricane is being discussed. This can be particularly important when issuing warnings in advance of the arrival of a dangerous storm.

When does a storm get named?

Tropical cyclones are named once they achieve tropical storm status with a sustained wind speed of 39 mph, says the National Hurricane Center. After that, each storm system will keep that name even if it strengthens to become a hurricane. In some cases, a tropical storm will weaken again after being named to the point where it wouldn't deserve its own name before strengthening once again to regain named status. These storms, so long as they remain a cohesive system will get the same name back again once they regain strength.

When did hurricanes first get names under the modern system?

The current naming system for Atlantic tropical storms and hurricanes started with the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in the United States in 1953. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the National Hurricane Center both agree on that point, but they differ in their stories of the earliest examples of naming hurricanes. A phonetic system using terms like Able, Baker, and Charlie, was used in the U.S. for a couple of years before the current system. Before that says the National Hurricane Center, women's names were used from about 1941 to 1950 in the U.S. In 1978, male and female names began to be used, alternating gender with each named storm. Earlier storm names might have been associated with the nearest saint's day, says the NHC, while the WMO suggests they might have been named even more capriciously, such as after the name of a ship that was damaged by the storm.

Who decides what names to use for hurricanes and tropical storms?

The National Hurricane Center in the United States came up with the original lists of names for tropical cyclones that originate in the Atlantic, but currently these lists are maintained and updated by the WMO.

Are names used more than once?

Yes. There are six separate lists of tropical cyclone names reserved for the Atlantic. Each list is used once every six years in rotation so the names used in 2011 will again be used in 2017.

Why are some names removed from the list?

The names of hurricanes that were particularly destructive in terms of either human lives or property damage retired from the list permanently. Although both agencies say this is due to sensitivity for those affected by the storm, as a practical matter, some of these larger storms might still be actively discussed six years later when the same name comes around again leading to some confusion if they were to remain on the list. So far, 76 names have been permanently removed from circulation says the Weather Underground.

What happens if the list of tropical storm names for a given year runs out?

Each year 21 names are allotted to be used for tropical storms and hurricanes in the Atlantic. If there should be more than 21 names required, letters of the Greek alphabet are used beginning with the 22nd named storm of the calendar year.

What are the names for this year's hurricanes?

For 2011, the following names will be used in order as required: Arlene, Bret, Cindy, Don, Emily, Franklin, Gert, Harvey, Irene, Jose, Katia, Lee, Maria, Nate, Ophelia, Philippe, Rina, Sean, Tammy, Vince and Whitney.

Why aren't all of the names common English names?

Tropical cyclones that originate in the Atlantic often affect many different countries, such as those in the Caribbean or Central American. As a result, meteorologists responsible for selecting the names to be used try to use names that represent the people of the entire region.

Ala. town hit by tornadoes bans FEMA trailers
By JAY REEVES, Associated Press – Sun May 29, 3:03 pm ET

CORDOVA, Ala. – James Ruston's house was knocked off its foundation by tornadoes that barreled through town last month and is still uninhabitable. He thought help had finally arrived when a truck pulled up to his property with a mobile home from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.Then he got the call: Single-wide mobile homes, like the FEMA one, are illegal in the city of Cordova.The city's refusal to let homeless residents occupy temporary housing provided by FEMA has sparked outrage in this central Alabama town of 2,000, with angry citizens filling a meeting last week and circulating petitions to remove the man many blame for the decision, Mayor Jack Scott.Ruston and many others view the city's decision as heartless, a sign that leaders don't care that some people are barely surviving in the rubble of a blue-collar town.People have to live somewhere. What's it matter if it's in a trailer? asked Felicia Boston, standing on the debris-strewn lot where a friend has lived in a tent since a tornado destroyed his home on April 27.Scott has heard all the complaints, and he isn't apologizing. He said he doesn't want run-down mobile homes parked all over town years from now.I don't feel guilty, he said.I can look anyone in the eye.Located about 35 miles northwest of Birmingham, Cordova was hit by a pair of powerful tornadoes on April 27, the day twisters killed more than 300 people across the Southeast. Officials say 238 died in Alabama, the highest death toll for any state in a spring of violent weather.

An EF-3 twister with winds of at least 140 mph slammed into the town around 5:30 a.m., knocking out power and damaging numerous buildings. An EF-4 with winds around 170 mph struck about 12 hours later, killing four people and cutting a path of destruction a half-mile wide through town.Scores of homes, businesses and city buildings were destroyed or damaged by the time the winds died down. Nearly every red-brick storefront was whacked along Main Street, which is now deserted and blocked by a chain-link fence.Residents whose homes were destroyed assumed they would be able to live in one of the hundreds of long, skinny mobile homes that FEMA is providing as temporary housing for tornado victims. After all, the Cordova Police Department, a pharmacy, a bank and City Hall all have moved into similar trailers since the storm.But the city enacted a law three years ago that bans the type of mobile homes provided by FEMA, called single-wide trailers. Older single-wide mobile homes were grandfathered in under the law and double-wide mobile homes are still allowed, Scott said, but new single-wides aren't allowed and a tornado isn't any reason to change the law, even temporarily.The city's stance prompted an outcry that's not getting any quieter, especially with other cities with similar laws granting waivers. About 200 people attended a community meeting last night where some tried to shout down Scott.There are trailers all over here but (Scott) wants to clean all the trash out. He doesn't like lower-class people,said Harvey Hastings.

The cotton mill, brick plant and coal mine that once made Cordova prosperous shut down years ago, but native Tony Tidwell said leaders seem to believe residents are flush with cash and can afford to build big, new houses to replace the mobile homes and small frame homes that twisters blew away.Let the people have a place to live, he said. To make matters worse, he said, the city is imposing a mean double standard when it refuses to let residents live in FEMA trailers but is using a nearly identical structure for police headquarters.Scott said the city can use small trailers because it's for the common good.It's temporary and we know it's temporary, said the mayor.We're trying to provide services for everyone.Storm victims are supposed to live in FEMA housing for no longer than 18 months after a disaster, yet about 260 campers are still occupied by survivors of hurricanes Katrina and Rita on the Gulf Coast last more than five years after those storms. The same thing could happen in Cordova if the city bends it rules to help tornado victims, Scott said.
Officials with FEMA have said it's a local issue and they remain ready to offer help to storm victims.We have several options available, and work with each community, to provide the best alternative possible for those who need housing assistance, Michael Byrne, FEMA's federal coordinating officer for Alabama, said in a statement.We stand ready to help.Ruston said he doesn't want to live in a mobile home forever, and he didn't want to leave Cordova to move in with a relative after his FEMA trailer was turned away.Now, he said, it might not be worth going back.If we're going to have a mayor like that I'll just go elsewhere,he said.

Number unaccounted for drops to 40 in Joplin
– Sun May 29, 1:12 pm ET

JOPLIN, Mo. – There are now 40 people who remain unaccounted for a week after a massive tornado hit Joplin.Mike O'Connell, spokesman for the Missouri Department of Public Safety, told The Associated Press on Sunday that the number of unaccounted just dropped to 40 because of the latest deceased whose next-of-kin have been notified. The number had stood at about 100.More than 130 people have been reported killed in the storm that hit Joplin a week ago.The tornado — an EF-5 packing 200 mph winds — injured more than 900 people. Tallying and identifying the dead and the missing has proven a complex and sometimes confusing exercise for authorities and loved ones.President Barack Obama was traveling to Joplin on Sunday to visit with survivors and family members.

Storm Songda churns towards Tokyo
– Sun May 29, 6:02 am ET

TOKYO (AFP) – Typhoon Songda weakened into a depression as it churned along Japan's Pacific coast on Sunday but was still expected to bring heavy rains to the northeast which was hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami.A total of 57 people suffered storm-related injuries on the southern Okinawan islands, police said. Of those, five were seriously hurt.Songda was downgraded to a temperate depression by the Japan Meteorological Agency as it was located off the southern main island of Shikoku at around 3:00 pm (0600 GMT).Moving northeast at a speed of 55 kilometres (35 miles) per hour, it is expected to reach Tokyo and its vicinity at around 9:00 am (0000 GMT) on Monday, said agency official Takeo Tanaka.But it is feared to stimulate the rain front over the Pacific coast of Honshu island, including the disaster-hit areas,he said.Up to about 15 centimetres (six inches) of rainfall was forecast for the northeast region over two days, the agency said.It was not clear whether it would directly hit the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, more than 200 kilometres northeast of the capital, which was crippled by the March 11 natural disasters.But the typhoon has already brought heavy rain to the Fukushima region, prompting fears that run-off water may wash away radioactive materials from land into the Pacific Ocean.Plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) has been pouring synthetic resins over the complex to prevent radioactive deposits from being swept away by winds or rain.

Ireland may need more EU/IMF cash: minister
By Carmel Crimmins and Angeliki Koutantou – Sun May 29, 10:15 am ET

DUBLIN/ATHENS (Reuters) – Ireland may have to ask for another loan from the European Union and International Monetary Fund because it will struggle to return to debt markets to raise funds next year, a government minister said on Sunday.In comments to The Sunday Times newspaper, Transport Minister Leo Varadkar became the first cabinet member to cast doubt in public on Ireland's ability to raise cash on the bond market because of punishing yields demanded by investors.I think it's very unlikely we'll be able to go back next year. I think it might take a bit longer ... 2013 might be possible but who knows? Varadkar was quoted as saying.It would mean a second program (of loans from the EU/IMF),he said.Either an extension of the existing program or a second program. I think that would generally be most people's view.Deputy Prime Minister Eamon Gilmore told broadcaster RTE that fears of a domino effect from Greece's problems were overblown. The possibility of a Greek default has sent bond yields rocketing for indebted Ireland, Portugal and Spain.It's not a situation that if Greece defaults then there are immediately implications for Ireland,Gilmore said.If Greece defaults there are implications for the wider euro zone and obviously we are part of that.It is wrong to put Ireland in the same basket as Greece.

PRIVATISATION AMBITIONS

Greece's hopes of averting default dimmed over the weekend amid fears the country, whose debt burden stands at around 330 billion euros, may have missed fiscal targets set by its creditors.The IMF has dismissed reports that an international inspection team had found that Greece had missed all its fiscal targets. But the current mission to Athens has stayed far longer than on previous occasions and is locked in talks with the government to get economic reforms on track.Athens' creditors are increasingly focused on the possibility of raising more funds from privatizations and a poll on Sunday showed that an overwhelming majority of Greeks are in favor of selling and developing state assets to raise 50 billion euros.The European Central Bank and the IMF, however, don't believe the privatization program is ambitious enough. ECB board member Juergen Stark said Greece could raise six times more than the 50 billion euros planned from asset sales, echoing earlier views from the IMF.

A Greek paper reported on Sunday that the government was considering setting up a Spanish-style bad bank to clean up its lenders' accounts from toxic Greek bonds and make them more attractive to potential buyers.Athens is in a race against time to secure political consensus on fiscal reforms before the EU and the IMF will free up more cash to plug funding gaps in the next two years.Ireland, meanwhile, wants to tap investors for funding in 2012 before its 85 billion euros EU-IMF bailout runs out the following year.But investors believe Ireland will be unable to return to the market and instead will have to tap the European Union's permanent rescue fund in 2013, which might require some restructuring of privately held sovereign debt.
Reflecting this medium-term risk, Ireland's two-year and five-year paper are yielding close to 12 percent, more than its 10-year bonds on the secondary market.
Some 50 billion euros of the existing EU-IMF bailout has been earmarked for sovereign funding requirements with the remainder set aside to prop up the country's ailing banks.Earlier this month, the IMF said whatever was left over after recapitalizing the banks could be channeled to the sovereign if there was a delay in returning to markets.At the end of March, the Irish government said the banks needed 24 billion euros to bulletproof their balance sheets but Dublin hopes some five billion euros can be raised from imposing losses on junior bondholders and asset sales, meaning that 19 billion euros of the 35 billion would be tapped.

EU, IMF expected to judge Greece as protests swell
By Angeliki Koutantou – MAY 29,11

ATHENS (Reuters) – European and IMF officials are expected to deliver their verdict this week on Greece's faltering drive to bring its budget deficit under control, but ordinary Greeks have warned that their patience is running thin.Tens of thousands packed a central Athens square on Sunday in a non-partisan protest to denounce the nation's entire ruling class, but they also directed their anger at the International Monetary Fund and its demands for yet more austerity.Black-hooded youths have been battling police since last year, when the government launched austerity measures under the terms of a 110 billion euro ($157.5 billion) rescue for Greece organized by the IMF and European Union.But the Greeks who took Syntagma Square, in front of the Greek parliament, on Sunday were a different kind of protesters.They were families, ranging from the elderly to children, who had no class wars to wage.Prompted by Facebook rather than opposition parties or unions, they vented at Greek politicians and foreign lenders.We should take responsibility for our own lives,read one banner.Despite a party atmosphere, the crowd at Sunday's rally -- the biggest in a series of nightly demonstrations on the square for the past five days -- booed, whistled and chanted Thieves! Thieves as they pointed at the parliament building.Protesters acknowledged they had been inspired by similar rallies in Spain, which also faces budget and debt problems.Before the Syntagma Square rallies began, some Spanish protesters had accused ordinary Greeks of being too passive.But on Sunday Ifigenia Argyrou, a 57-year-old insurance consultant, said all that had changed.People were indignant but they needed a motivation to express that. The Spanish people gave us that motivation,she told Reuters.We are not sleeping, we are awake. The IMF should get out. There are other solutions without them.Police put Sunday's crowd at 30,000 although the protesters, who have few formal leaders and are prompted by Facebook, say official figures usually underestimate the size of demonstrations by a wide margin.

MEETING Canceled

Socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou had been due to rally his party on Monday behind yet deeper austerity to win new international aid. But his PASOK canceled the executive council meeting on Sunday without a detailed explanation.Papandreou has already failed to win backing from the opposition to adopt fresh austerity steps, more economic reforms and faster sales of state assets, as demanded by the EU and IMF.With the team of EU and IMF officials in Athens expected to complete its review of Greek finances soon, Papandreou also needs to prevent fatigue from spreading to his own socialist party as its popularity declines.Papandreou's PASOK has a comfortable majority in parliament but one weekend opinion poll showed it had lost its lead for the first time since it won elections in 2009.Greeks are angry about they impunity of politicians they hold responsible for the crisis, as well as the dire state of the economy and waves of austerity demanded under international bailout.Under that plan, Greece was supposed to resume borrowing on financial markets next year but that now seems increasingly unlikely, so the EU is preparing a new aid plan that would meet Greece's funding needs in 2012 and 2013.In return, the EU wants Athens to impose yet more austerity and reform, including privatizations. The officials are checking Greece's fiscal progress to approve a 12 billion euro aid tranche -- the fifth under the current bailout -- and possibly new funding the country needs to avoid debt default.German weekly magazine Spiegel fanned fears over the weekend Greece might not get the money, saying the country might have missed all fiscal targets set by its lenders.Both Greece and the IMF denied the report [ID:nLDE74R09I] [ID:nLDE74S01N], while Greek Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou was upbeat on the budget negotiations.We expect that they will conclude successfully in the next few days,he said in a statement.Pressure continues to pile on the socialist government with the EU commission's top economics official Olli Rehn saying time was running out for Greece to secure political agreement on an economic adjustment programme to exit a debt crisis.(Editing by David Stamp and Maria Golovnina)

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).

E. coli cucumbers may be in Austria, Hungary By KAREL JANICEK and VERONIKA OLEKSYN, Associated Press – Sun May 29, 1:20 pm ET

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Spanish vegetables suspected of contamination with a potentially deadly bacteria are being recalled from stores in Austria and the Czech Republic to prevent the spread of a deadly outbreak, officials said Sunday.The death toll from the bacteria rose to at least 10 people, and hundreds across Europe have been sickened.Czech authorities said 120 organic Spanish cucumbers were being pulled off shelves while their counterparts in neighboring Austria announced that small amounts of cucumbers, as well as tomatoes and eggplants, were being removed from 33 stores.The Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety said it was informed by a European Union warning system that two German companies had issued an immediate recall and sales ban of cucumbers, tomatoes and eggplants they had delivered in to stores in the Alpine republic. The agency said that some of the vegetables may have been sold and urged consumers to throw them away.The Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority said cucumbers from a contaminated shipment also went to Hungary and Luxembourg. There were no immediate reports of illness there.The cucumbers transited Germany, where health officials said Sunday one more person had succumbed to the bacteria, raising the death toll from nine to 10. The number of people infected also went up over the weekend, with at least 467 cases of intestinal infection in the northern city of Hamburg alone, including 91 cases of the more severe hemolytic uremic syndrome, Hamburg health official Cornelia Pruefer-Storcks told German news agency DAPD on Sunday. HUS is a rare complication arising from infection associated with the E. coli bacterium.

An exact number of infections in Germany was not available, but local papers estimated that around 1,000 people had fallen ill with the intestinal infection across the country by Sunday.German Health Minister Ilse Aigner reiterated her warning not to eat any cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce and other leaf salads.As long as experts in Germany and Spain have not succeeded in finding the cause of the infection without a doubt, these general warnings for vegetables stay in place, Aigner told German weekly Bild am Sonntag.Austrian Health Ministry spokesman Fabian Fusseis said two German tourists have tested positive for enterohaemorrhagic E.coli, also known as EHEC, without HUS complications. But it is still unclear if the cases are linked to the outbreak in their homeland, he added.Swedish health officials say 36 cases of the bacterial infection have been reported in Sweden and that 13 had developed HUS. In Denmark, 11 people have been infected, including five with HUS.
Britain's Health Protection Agency, meanwhile, said England so far has seen three cases of E. coli in German nationals — two with HUS.The Food Standards Agency said there is no evidence any of the effected organic cucumbers have been distributed to the U.K. but that it is monitoring the situation closely.By Friday, Swiss authorities had recorded one case of enterohaemorrhagic E.coli: a woman who returned from a trip to northern Germany where she had eaten from a salad buffet.A spokesman for the European Union said Sunday that two greenhouses in Spain that were identified as the source of the contaminated cucumbers had ceased activities. The water and soil there are being analyzed to see whether they were the problem or the contamination occurred elsewhere, said Frederic Vincent, the spokesman.The results of the tests are expected Tuesday or Wednesday, he said.

The EU notified member states Friday of the source of the outbreak, which has affected primarily the Hamburg area of Germany and, to a lesser extent, Sweden, Denmark, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, according to Vincent. He added that the EU had also warned the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary and Luxembourg about contaminated vegetables that had been sent from Spain through Germany, though he noted it was unclear if the warning was limited to cucumbers.It is up to the individual member states to decide what action to take, Vincent said. The EU has warned people who have recently visited Germany to consult doctors if they experience bloody diarrhea.The Spanish government has said two companies from southern Andalucia that produce cucumbers were being investigated in connection with the deadly bacterial outbreak.Spain's health minister, Leire Pajin, said Friday that the regional government of Andalucia, in coordination with national authorities and counterparts in Germany and the EU, had put in place measures to reassure consumers that it was safe to eat fresh fruit and vegetables.We have to make it very clear that there is not a single person in Spain that at this moment has been affected by this bacteria,said Pajin.Oleksyn reported from Vienna. Don Melvin in Brussels, Cassandra Vinograd in London, Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin, Harold Heckle in Madrid, Malin Rising in Stockholm and Frank Jordans in Geneva also contributed.

MUSLIM NATIONS

EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY)of the north quarters, and all his bands:(SUDAN,AFRICA) and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.

PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(JORDAN) and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)

DANIEL 11:40-43
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south( EGYPT) push at him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) and the king of the north (RUSSIA AND MUSLIM HORDES OF EZEK 38+39) shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.
41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.(JORDAN)
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.
43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.

JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.(SIBERIAN DESERT)
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(NUCLEAR BOMB)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

Eleven killed in wider Syria military push: lawyer
By Khaled Yacoub Oweis – MAY 29,11

AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian forces killed at least 11 civilians and wounded scores Sunday, a prominent human rights campaigner said, in a widening military push into central Syria to quell protests against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad.Tanks, supported by troops, fired heavy machineguns in the towns of Talbiseh and Rastan and several villages near the city of Homs, residents said.They are the latest population centres to come under army assault since a military crackdown to crush dissent against Assad's autocratic rule began at the end of last month in southern Syria, the cradle of the 10-week uprising.The killings occurred in and around the towns of Talbiseh and Rastan in rural Homs, human rights lawyer Razan Zaitouna said by telephone from Damascus. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which is based in Britain, said earlier it had the names of eight civilians killed.Soldiers are now all over Talbiseh. They are breaking into houses and arresting people, one resident in the town of 60,000 said in a telephone interview. The sound of bullets echoed in the background.

The official state news agency said four members of the security forces were killed in Talbiseh while chasing armed terrorist groups... to detain them and present them to justice.Talbiseh is 10 km (6 miles) north of Homs, Syria's third largest city, where tanks shelled a main neighborhood earlier this month.Troops have been occupying the main square in Homs to prevent scenes similar to when tens of thousands demonstrated in Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen to press for reform.Witness reports of violence in Syria, as well as official accounts, are difficult to verify independently because the government barred most international media from the country not long after the start of the unrest in March.Another witness in Rastan, further to the north, said the town's main clinic was full of wounded people and there was no way to get them to a hospital because of heavy tank fire.This is pure revenge,said the witness, a lawyer who declined to be named for fear of reprisals.

Thousands of protesters in Rastan Friday demanded the removal of Assad in one of the largest demonstrations in the region since the uprising against the government erupted in southern Syria on March 18.Rastan, a relatively prosperous town in an agricultural region, is on the main northern highway from Damascus to Syria's second city Aleppo.The lawyer said Internet, water, electricity, land lines and most mobile telephone links had been cut, a step commonly used by the military before they storm urban centres.

PROTESTERS DEFY ARMY ASSAULTS

Protests in Syria have continued despite the increasing force used to crush demonstrations that began with calls for political freedom and an end to corruption but are now urging the removal of Assad.The president has responded to the growing protests, the biggest challenge to his rule, by intensifying a military crackdown that has killed hundreds.The 45-year old leader has lifted emergency law and promised reforms but the opponents say there has been no change in Syria where the ruling Baath Party has banned all opposition and political freedoms since 1963.Rights groups estimate at least 1,000 civilians have been killed by security forces, the army and gunmen loyal to Assad in the past 10 weeks. They said 10,000 people have been arrested, with beatings and torture commonplace.Authorities blame armed groups, Islamists and foreign agents for the violence and say at least 120 soldiers and police officers have been killed. Activists say secret police killed scores of soldiers for refusing to fire at civilians.In the eastern town of Deir al-Zor, protesters staged a night-time rally Sunday, a day after at least one man was hurt when security forces opened fired to disperse a demonstration that had went through the night, witnesses said.I was hearing the bullets and the protesters chanting the people want the overthrow of the regime at the same time, one witness, a resident of the city, said by telephone Saturday.Demonstrations have been held nightly in Deir al-Zor and other cities and towns to circumvent heavy security which has intensified in recent weeks after street demonstrations grew in numbers and tanks were deployed in and around urban centres.Human rights campaigners said a night-time rally took place Saturday in the town of Binish in the northwestern province of Idlib in protest against arrests Friday, when the biggest demonstrations typically occur after weekly prayers.The Syrian National Organization for Human Rights said security forces shot dead 12 demonstrators Friday during protests in 91 locations across Syria.The authorities are still pursuing the calculated course of using excessive violence and live ammunition to confront mass demonstrations,the organization said in a statement.(Editing by Matthew Jones)

Yemen leader accused of allowing Islamist takeover
By AHMED AL-HAJ, Associated Press – MAY 29,11

SANAA, Yemen – Hundreds of Islamic militants cemented control over a town in southern Yemen on Sunday, even seizing army tanks, military officials said, while breakaway army units encouraged other military forces to switch their loyalties and join the uprising.The growing number of defections in the military posed the most serious threat yet to President Ali Abdullah Saleh's three-decade grip on his country.A leader of the breakaway forces, Maj. Gen. Abdullah Ali Elewa, appealed to other units to join.Stand side by side with the courageous armed forces, Republican Guards and security officers who endorsed the peaceful popular youthful revolution and announced their support to stand up to the tyrants and corrupt, and unjust,he said.Elewa, a former defense minister, was one of nine military officers who signed the statement, named Statement Number One in the style of a military regime, though the officers are not in power. The group included leaders of four of Yemen's five military divisions.

Saleh labeled them traitors and war mongers.We understand the demands of the youth revolution, but we ask them first to get rid of those corrupt, agent and traitor elements who defected from the military, Saleh said in a statement.Late Sunday, several explosions were heard in the capital Sanaa. Their origin was not known.Also, witnesses in the southern city of Taiz said security forces attacked protesters camped out in the central square with rifles and water cannon in an attempt to clear the area. Doctors said 150 people were taken to hospitals with injuries. In an earlier clash in Taiz, six protesters were killed, activists and doctors said.
Throughout the three months of protests against his 33-year rule, Saleh has repeatedly argued that the terror group would overrun the impoverished corner of the Arabian peninsula if he falls.

Critics say he's bluffing.

He wants to ... confirm his false claims that if he gives up power, the homeland will be destroyed, Elewa said.Hundreds of Islamic militants stormed Zinjibar, a small town of more than 20,000 people near the shores of the Gulf of Aden, on Friday, seizing a number of banks and government offices.Military officials said the militants extended their control starting late Saturday night, capturing six army tanks and several armored cars after the governor, the security chief and the commander of a local army brigade withdrew.Other army units clashed with the militants around the town Sunday, shelling it from the outskirts and forcing terrified residents to flee or cower in their homes.Medical and military officials said eight civilians and 18 soldiers have been killed since Saturday. Scores more have been injured.The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.Ali Dahmis, a political analyst in the town, said officials who supported Saleh fled early, making it easier for militants to stream in.Col. Abdullah al-Badawi, who defected from Saleh's regime and led his men to fight the Islamists, claimed the militants were in fact supporters of Saleh.We will chase the mujahideen, the supporters of President Saleh, and will never allow them to have a foothold in Abyan, he said, referring to the province of which Zinjibar is the capital.Elewa, said Saleh sought to spread fear that Yemen without him will become another Somalia.Saleh's political opponents and experts on Yemeni affairs discount such fears, though the estimated 300 fighters of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula could exploit the growing turmoil to operate more freely in remote parts of the country.

Washington considers the group to be the biggest terrorist threat to the U.S. It has been linked to the December 2009 attempt to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner and the plot to put U.S.-addressed parcel bombs onto air cargo flights.It is not clear if the militants who seized Zinjibar were linked to al-Qaida. Yemen is home to numerous other Islamic extremist groups.Islamist militants also took over the nearby town of Jaar at the end of March, and there were similar accusations then that the government purposely stood aside.The United States, which once considered Saleh a necessary ally in fighting Yemen's active al-Qaida branch, has turned its back on the ruler, calling for him to transfer power peacefully.Saleh has clung to power despite daily protests, a wave of defections by army officers and political and tribal allies, and international condemnation of a crackdown that has killed more than 150 protesters.Saleh has refused to sign a U.S.-backed proposal by Yemen's powerful Gulf Arab neighbors to step down in exchange for immunity from prosecution.

With diplomatic efforts stalled, the political crisis gave way to serious street battles last week between Saleh's forces and armed men loyal to the country's most powerful tribal leader, who has turned against the president.The clashes killed 124 people and raised fears of a civil war before the two sides reached a cease-fire over the weekend. Armed tribesmen who had occupied government buildings began withdrawing Sunday in observance of the cease-fire.In another sign of Saleh's eroding support, a brigade of the powerful Republican Guard announced its defection to the opposition Sunday.Activist Abdul-Rahman Ahmed said a letter from Brig. Gen. Ibrahim al-Jayfi, commander of the Guard's Ninth Brigade, was read to thousands of protesters in the provincial capital of Damar, 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of Sanaa.The head of Yemen's most powerful tribal confederation has called on the Guard to help topple Saleh.A larger crumbling of support within the Guard appeared unlikely because it is commanded by one of the president's sons.

Israel braces for border clashes in coming days
By JOSEF FEDERMAN, Associated Press – Sun May 29, 2:59 pm ET

JERUSALEM – The Israeli military is preparing for the possibility of violent protests along its borders in the coming days, aiming to avoid a repeat of deadly unrest that erupted earlier this month, a senior military official told The Associated Press on Sunday.Facebook-organized activists have called for demonstrations next weekend in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan to mark the anniversary of the 1967 Mideast war, in which Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip east Jerusalem and Golan Heights.The official said the army also is planning to counter possible unrest in the West Bank in September after an expected U.N. vote to recognize Palestinian independence.The official said the army hopes to avoid civilian casualties but would set red lines for the demonstrations. That means Israel will not allow demonstrators to burst across the borders during the coming week's protests — as they did on the Syria-Israel border on May 15 — or to enter Jewish settlements in the West Bank in September.He said Israel will not react to nonviolent demonstrations, including large gatherings near the settlements, but that it would be forced to take action in life-threatening situations.On May 15, the day on which Palestinians mourn the anniversary of Israel's founding, hundreds of demonstrators in Syria broke through the frontier and entered the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, while in Lebanon, large crowds converged on the border. Some 14 protesters were killed in clashes with Israeli soldiers, who were caught off guard by the attempts to breach the borders.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity under military guidelines, said the army will be much better prepared this time around. Larger numbers of troops will be deployed, he said, and they will be equipped with crowd-control tools such as rubber bullets and water cannons.With peace talks frozen, Palestinian activists have begun to talk about holding large, nonviolent protests throughout the West Bank after a U.N. vote in September.The official said Israel is not expecting large-scale violence at that time, but he warned it wouldn't take much to trigger an outbreak in fighting.Unfortunately, we have seen lots of demonstrations turn violent,he said.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOjFA5-BplM&feature=player_embedded
Corporate Media Attacks Alex Jones, Defends TSA Perverts Kurt Nimmo Infowars.com May 29, 2011

Following a successful rally on the capitol in Austin last week to protest a decision by lawmakers to back down on a bill to stop TSA molestation, apologists for a tyrannical state are coming out of the woodwork in defense of goons sticking their hands down the pants of six year old kids.One such apologist is Bud Kennedy, who writes for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. According to Kennedy, the protest was all about showboat Alex Jones and had nothing to do with perverts in blue latex gloves fondling the breasts of pregnant women.Kennedy is apparently unable to get his facts straight. He says Jones is a SiriusXM radio talk show host and that is how he raised awareness about this pivotal issue. In fact, Jones made his call to meet at the capitol in downtown Austin over local terrestrial radio, shortwave, micro-radio and the internet, where he dominates in the talk radio arena.But Kennedy’s inability to report reality is secondary. What’s really disgusting is his support for the state and its pathological insistence it must grab the testicles of children in order to supposedly stop terrorism by a shadowy group with links to intelligence agencies.

For the real deal on the protest last week, see Jones’ report below.Kennedy’s not alone in challenging critics of the TSA abusers. Gary Scharrer, writing for The Houston Chronicle, also attempted to make reasonable protest against federal tyranny out to be the ravings of crackpots.

Here’s Kennedy’s article, posted on Saturday:Bud Kennedy Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Crazy session of Texas Legislature just gets crazier

As if there weren’t already enough showboats in the Texas Legislature, the radio talkers landed last week.First, bizarro satellite radio host Alex Jones led a madcap march on the Capitol. About 100 of Jones’ listeners descended on the Senate, calling senators cowards and federal pimps for not passing a bill to outlaw close pat-downs at airports.Tea Party Republicans somehow persuaded this Washington-bashing Legislature to pass a bill essentially making it a misdemeanor for airport security officers to pat anyone’s crotch or shirt.With the Senate poised to vote, San Antonio-based U.S. Attorney John Murphy warned lawmakers by letter Tuesday that the security agency would cancel any flight or series of flights without close searches.

In other words -- no pat-downs, then no flights to Texas.On Wednesday, in the middle of a Capitol workday, Jones invited SiriusXM listeners to gather and led them through the halls chanting,Criminal! Treason! Each senator is an enemy of the Republic and the Republic of Texas! he shouted in a Texas Tribune video.After forced pat-downs,next is the forced inoculations and the federal blood draws, Jones said. It's a battle plan.Jones has been doing the same show in Austin for 20 years, first on public-access cable TV with leaflets about black helicopters and global conspiracies. First crusading for a Branch Davidians memorial, then blaming the U.S. for 9-11, he has grown into a satellite and shortwave crank.Alex is fascinating because he has gathered a large audience through new media,said Michael Harrison, the executive of Massachusetts-based Talkers magazine.Jones will headline the magazine's talk radio convention next month in New York.

A lot of what he says has some sense behind it, Harrison said.And some of it can be interpreted as crazy. But he knows how to draw an audience.The same could be said for state Sen. Dan Patrick, a former TV sports anchor turned religious conservative radio showman.Patrick carried the no-pat-down bill in the Senate. He accused Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst of killing the bill through an elaborate political ploy.With Dewhurst considered a leading contender for U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's seat, Patrick took a potshot: Someone who will not stand up to the federal government -- you have to ask yourself is that the kind of person that we need in the U.S. Senate.
The next day, we found out why Patrick was grandstanding. He said he's also interested in running for Senate.Instead of telling Texans first, though, he declared his interest on national radio to Washington-based talker Laura Ingraham.
Anything for a show.Bud Kennedy's column appears Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Twitter @budkennedy 817-390-7538 Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/2011/05/28/3111653/crazy-session-of-texas-legislature.html#ixzz1NmtIgnIt