I WRITE NEWS ABOUT AND PUT NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT ISRAEL AND JERUSALEM PERTAINING TO BIBLE PROPHESY HAPPENINGS.JOEL 3:20 But Judah (ISRAEL) shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.(THATS ISRAEL-JERUSALEM WILL NEVER BE DESTROYED AGAIN)-WE CHRISTIANS ARE ALL WAITING PATIENTLY FOR THE PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE TO OCCUR.SO WE CAN GO TO JESUS AND GET OUR NEVER DYING BODIES.SO WE CAN RULE OVER CITIES OURSELVES.WHILE JESUS RULES FROM DAVIDS THRONE FOREVER IN JERUSALEM.
Students suspended for wearing Confederate flags to protest gay rainbow flag
8 hours ago-OCT 14,13
At
Tahoma High School in the nether suburbs of Seattle, it’s totally okay
to display a gay-pride flag, but two juniors were suspended for three
days for wearing Confederate flags at school.An unnamed school district spokesman said that a sophomore had been
exhibiting a gay-pride flag at Tahoma High for the last two weeks, reports local CBS affiliate KIRO.
When the two juniors showed up on Tuesday in a common area wearing the
Confederate flags as a political statement in response, they were
suspended.School officials said the Confederate flags caused a disruption
because some students were upset. The officials added that the garb was
an undisclosed violation of the Tahoma High dress code.At least one of the unidentified, Confederate flag-wearing students
wore the controversial symbol around his neck in some fashion.
Local residents supported the school’s decision, according to KIRO.“I
can see where we wouldn’t okay that,” said concerned aunt Tiki
Scroggins, who was at at school to pick up her nephew. “There’s too many
ethnic backgrounds that that could offend.”“It’s about the attitude,”
she added.Students with whom the CBS affiliate spoke also voiced support
for
the suspension. They noted that it’s one thing to see the flag on a
vehicle, but another to see it at school.“You don’t expect, like, kids
to show up with a Confederate flag on their back,” senior Coleman Wooten
said.It’s not clear if the two juniors will fight their suspensions.
In February, school officials in Wolcott, Conn reversed a prior
decision to prohibit a high school student from wearing a t-shirt
emblazoned with an anti-gay message.The American Civil Liberties Union
of Connecticut represented the student, Seth Groody.The civil liberties
organization had previously warned that it was
ready to sue the school district to protect Groody’s First Amendment
rights.The white t-shirt was festooned with a bold, red “universal no”
circle and slash mark symbol superimposed over a multicolored rainbow.
The other side of the shirt contained male and female stick figures
holding hands and the words “Excessive Speech Day.”Groody had worn the
shirt to Wolcott High School on a day that had
been designated as a day of awareness concerning the harassment of gay,
lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals.Follow Eric on Twitter and on Facebook, and send education-related story tips to erico@dailycaller.com. Join the conversation on The Daily Caller
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(ISRAEL) and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.(UPROOTED ISRAELIS AND DIVIDED JERUSALEM)(THIS BRINGS ON WW3 BECAUSE JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED,WARNING TO ARABS-MUSLIMS AND THE WORLD).
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 11:21-23
21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
23 And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.
24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.
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 (PEACE TREATY) 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 ANIMAL 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.
JEREMIAH 6:14
14 They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
JEREMIAH 8:11
11 For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
1 THESSALONIANS 5:3
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
ISAIAH 33:8
8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant,(7 YR TREATY) he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.(THE WORLD LEADER-WAR MONGER CALLS HIMSELF GOD)
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. http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2011/03/life.html
Netanyahu Reiterates: PA Must Recognize Israel as a Jewish State
After a long break, the Knesset went back to work Monday for its winter session, and PM Netanyahu set the tone for the session-By David Lev-First Publish: 10/14/2013, 6:19 PM-Israelnationalnews
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu-Flash 90
After a long break, the Knesset went back to work Monday for its winter session. Opening the session was Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who spoke from the podium about a variety of issues, including Iran and the possibility of a peace agreement with the Palestinian Authority.Netanyahu discussed the Iranian nuclear program, saying that it was a
threat not only to Israel's security, but to the world's security.“The entire region will be endangered, as will the world,” if Iran
attains nuclear weapons, he said. “However, there is no doubt that we
will be Iran's first target. The Iranians say this out loud. We will not
allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons,” he said.There are a number of crucial laws set to come up for a vote during
the winter session, including laws to draft hareidi youths, and a law to
require a referendum for any withdrawals of land. Netanyahu discussed
these in his speech. Regarding the draft law, Netanyahu said that he expected it to pass.“We will divide the burden of defending the country among all parts
of the population, while ensuring the unity of the people.” He hoped, he
said, that the opposition would support the law.Regarding security and negotiations with the PA, the Prime Minister
said that if an agreement is signed, it will be one that promises
Israel a long-term, stable peace. “How is it that when the Palestinians
demand that we recognize their nationhood that they refuse to recognize
ours,” Netanyahu asked. “The Jewish people have been in existence for
4,000 years. Why do we not deserve recognition?”Netanyahu also dismissed voices in Israel that said PA recognition of
Israel as a Jewish state was unnecessary. “The question is not why we
are raising this point, but why the Palestinians continue to delay an
agreement over this.”“We are working very hard to end the conflict with the Palestinians,” the Prime Minister
said. “I am not fooling myself into believing that this will be easy,
but I am determined to come to an agreement that will not sacrifice
Israel's national interests in order to get a nice headline in the
newspaper, or to receive international applause.”
PM: No accord without Palestinians recognizing Jewish Israel
At
opening of Knesset’s winter session, Netanyahu vows again to thwart Iran
if necessary, says Palestinians must abandon demand for ‘right of
return’
Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu on Monday declared that there could be no peace agreement with
the Palestinians until they recognize Israel as the sovereign state of
the Jewish people.In
a bitter passage of a lengthy address at the opening of the 19th
Knesset’s winter session, Netanyahu said Israel did not need that
recognition from the Palestinians. Rather, he said, the Palestinians had
to come to terms with Israel’s Jewish legitimacy and abandon their
“nationalistic demands” on Israel.Specifically, he said, the Palestinians would
have to “abandon the demand for what is called ‘the right of return’”
for millions of Palestinian refugees and their descendants to Israel,
otherwise there could be no “end of conflict” accord. Without this
shift, and without the abandoning of “other nationalistic demands on the
land and sovereignty of Israel,” he said, there simply could be no
genuine peace.Netanyahu said official Palestinian media
routinely described Palestine as extending from Metulla (at the northern
tip of Israel) to Eilat (Israel’s southern Red Sea town), and that PA
media also repeatedly asserted that Palestinian statehood could be
achieved without recognizing Jewish Israel. “It will not,” he said.Still, he insisted he was making “a genuine
effort” to reach a permanent accord with the Palestinians in the current
negotiations.On Iran, Netanyahu repeated his contention
that Iran was fooling the world with its ostensible readiness to bring
its rogue nuclear program into international legitimacy, and said he was
convinced Iran seeks Israel’s destruction. For that reason, he said,
“Israel will not allow Iran to attain nuclear weapons.”The Monday afternoon session ended the Knesset’s fall recess and holiday period.After opening remarks by Speaker of the
Knesset Yuli Edelstein, President Shimon Peres took the plenum and began
his speech by noting the recent passing of former chief Sephardi rabbi
and political heavyweight, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef.Peres noted that Israel “has changed beyond
recognition” in its 65 years of existence, in which time “the population
has multiplied by 12 and the economy has grown 40-fold.” Despite some
difficulties, there is still “great hope” in Israel for a better future.Peres called on the Knesset to act as
“representatives of the people” and join in “a collective effort” to
enact change in Israeli society to safeguard economic and technological
growth, to reduce economic and social divisions in society, and to
safeguard Israel as a Jewish and democratic state.Iran, Peres said, “is a threat to world peace,
it destabilizes the region and threatens Israel. The world must judge
Iran by deeds and not words, even if the words sound sweet to ears used
to hearing [former president] Ahmadinejad.”The Iranian regime “supports Hezbollah, Hamas
and the blood-soaked regime in Syria. The regime of the ayatollahs is a
threat to Israel but a danger to the entire world,” Peres said, adding
that Iran is building missiles which can “carry nuclear warheads into
the heart of Europe and even the East Coast of the United States.”Netanyahu spent much of his speech on the
Iranian issue, urging the international community — ahead of new
diplomatic talks in Geneva on Tuesday — not to be fooled by new
President Hassan Rouhani into easing sanctions.Iran, Netanyahu said, is attempting “to give a
little” — by agreeing to a reduction of enriched uranium that would
still enable it to quickly build nuclear weapons if it chose to do so —
and in return wants “to get a lot” in terms of eased sanctions by the
West.The sanctions, the prime minister said, have
“forced Iran to the negotiating table.” It would be an “historic mistake
to ease pressure now, just when the sanctions are achieving results,”
he added.
In Syria, “the army used chemical weapons
against its own population in Damascus,” Netanyahu said, and noted that
Israel has “for many years” monitored and warned against the dangers
posed by Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile. The international effort to
remove the Assad regime’s chemical weapons must succeed, he said,
adding that Israel will continue to act to prevent such weapons from
falling into the hands of Bashar Assad’s Lebanese ally Hezbollah.Netanyahu noted the change of government in
Egypt, and said Israel is “making a great effort” to keep the peace
agreement with Egypt intact. Israeli-Egyptian peace is based on security
considerations and international agreements, and Israel “will do
everything to protect it,” he said.
The Arab Spring and subsequent events,
Netanyahu noted, have led to “an understanding in the Arab world” that
Israel is not necessarily the enemy, and this recognition could open
“many opportunities,” he said. “Many nations,” he said, have a great
desire to be free of the extremist elements of the Muslim Brotherhood,
al-Qaeda, and Iranian influence, which is “extremely important.” It was
“not inevitable” that Islamic extremism would prevail in the region, he
noted.“We are making real efforts to reach an end to
the conflict with the Palestinians,” Netanyahu said when he turned to
the peace process, but, he added, the question is, “Why do the
Palestinians insist on not recognizing Israel?”“What’s so difficult about recognizing this basic historic fact [that Israel is the Jewish state]?” he asked.Peres, too, addressed the current round of
peace talks with the Palestinians, and noted that they “are taking place
away from the spotlight, and this allows for serious negotiations to
bring the two state solution to fruition.”“As Jews we are obligated to seek peace and
not wait for miracles to bring it about,” Peres said, adding that
achieving peace with Israel’s neighbors is “not only a strategic,
security and economic interest, but also a moral call enshrined in our
heritage. ”Netanyahu noted that the government has
succeeded in reducing the flow of African migrants into Israel to “zero”
and said that Israel is the only Western country that has succeeded in
“controlling illegal breaches of its borders,” which, in Israel’s case,
is important to secure “Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic
country.”
He also hailed Israel’s progress in the world
of cyberspace, saying it was one of the world’s four leading countries
in this field.While he was stressing the economic gains that
Israel has made in recent years, Netanyahu was interrupted several
times by Arab MKs Mohammad Barakeh (Hadash) and Ahmad Tibi (Raam-Ta’al),
who were repeatedly asked to refrain from commenting by Speaker
Edelstein.
MK Yogev: Peres Dividing Nation With His 'Peace Talk'
MK
Moti Yogev (Bayit Yehudi) criticizes President Shimon Peres for
politicizing his office by promoting negotiations with the PA.-By David Lev and Ari Soffer-First Publish: 10/14/2013, 8:55 PM-INN
Shimon Peres, John Kerry and Mahmoud Abbas at the World Economic Forum in Amman, 2013-Flash 90
MK Moti Yogev (Bayit Yehudi) criticized President Shimon Peres Monday evening over his speech in the Knesset earlier. Yogev said that Peres had politicized his speech beyond what was reasonable, and had increased divisiveness among Israelis.In his speech, Peres congratulated the government for entering
into talks with the Palestinian Authority. “As Jews, we are commanded
to pursue peace and not to wait for miracles that will bring it. We have
peace with Egypt and peace with Jordan.“Negotiating with the Palestinians is not just in our security,
political, and economic interests, but also the highest moral command,
as directed by our heritage,” Peres said.Last month, Peres said that Israel must do “everything possible” to established a PA state.Speaking to Army Radio on the 20th anniversary of the Oslo Accords,
Peres said that Oslo was the “right choice” for Israel, despite the
hundreds killed by Arab terrorists since the Oslo Accords were signed in
1993.Speaking Monday, Yogev said that “between the Mediterranean and the
Jordan there is only one state, and that is Israel, the Jewish
democratic state, and with that we shall ensure security, stability, and
peace for all Israelis,” he said.Israel's presidency is a ceremonial, apolitical office. The president
is technically the head of state, and represents all Israelis, as
opposed to the Prime Minister, who is head of government.But this is not the first time Peres has been accused of inappropriately politicizing his office.
In a controversial speech last year, Peres angered many on the right when he argued that Jewish settlement in majority-Arab areas risks Israel’s Jewish majority.The President has also stood accused of promoting a left-wing agenda,
after repeatedly telling media outlets that Israel must encourage the
creation of an Arab state in Judea and Samaria with “territorial
continuity.”Prior to the start of the current round of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, Peres reportedly met in secret with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, on a personal but highly controversial mission to restart talks.
REBUILT 3RD TEMPLE
REVELATION 11:1-2
1 And there was given me a(MEASURING) reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.
2 But the court which is without the temple leave out,(TO THE WORLD NATIONS) and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.(JERUSALEM DIVIDED BUT THE 3RD TEMPLE ALLOWED TO BE REBUILT)
DANIEL 9:27
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.
Senior Muslim Cleric Warns "Israel Will Remove Al Aqsa"-OCT 14,13-INN
Sheikh Yusuf Aidais , President of the Islamic court and the Supreme
Council of Islamic law, called the Knesset "extremists", and the waving
of the Israeli flag by the Al Aqsa mosque as a "heinous crime", and
part of an overall political agenda to destroy the mosque.In an interview with SHFA News,
Aidais said that the "Al Aqsa mosque cries out for the help and support
of Muslims and Arabs everywhere, and that this must be demonstrated not
by just issuing condemnations but by action."Adais also stated that the mosque was in a precarious situation and that one day Muslims and Arabs would wake up from their sleep to find that it was gone. He called upon the Arabs of Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria to strengthen their presence and fight against the Israeli presence, as "Al Aqsa belongs only to Muslims; Jews have no rights whatsoever."
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) 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.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
Iran's Khameini Urges Unity - to Fight Israel
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameini, appealed to Muslims to “unite against their enemies," especially "the Zionists."-By David Lev-First Publish: 10/14/2013, 10:00 PM-Israelnationalnews
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei-Reuters
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameini, on Monday appealed to Muslims around the world to utilize the Muslim celebration
of Eid al-Adha (Holiday of the Sacrifice) to “unite against their
enemies.” Muslims, he said, have one enemy that all can agree on and
fight.“The riots that are now going on in the Arab states are part of a plot by the Zionists and the Americans,” he said.Those groups, Khameini said, “seek to spread terror and divide us. We
Muslims must strengthen ourselves and unite against our heretical
enemies, and spread the spirit of brotherhood among Muslims,” he said.At the same time as invoking anti-American and anti-Israel conspiracy
theories, Iranian politicians continued the “charm offensive” launched
at the UN by President Hassan Rouhani. Speaking Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister
Muhammad Zarif said that he was positive all issues surrounding Iran's
nuclear program could be resolved within six months. Zarif was speaking
before setting off for Geneva, where talks will take place on Iran's
nuclear program this week.“We will negotiate about the volume, levels and the methods of
enrichment but shipping out the (enriched) material is a red line for
Iran," Iran's deputy foreign minister Abbas Araqchi, who is representing Tehran at the talks, said on Sunday.The Geneva meeting will be the first such talks since Rouhani took
office in August, pledging to engage constructively to resolve the
nuclear question and ultimately to secure the lifting of crippling
Western sanctions. The West has responded positively to Rouhani's
overtures, sparking fears in Israel that the sanctions could be
significantly softened, or even ended.Speaking Monday, Prime Minister
Benjamin said that easing pressure on Iran over its nuclear program
would be an “historic mistake, a moment before the sanctions achieve
their objective, and particularly now, we must not give up on them but
continue the pressure."Iran can quickly enrich uranium from a low level of 3.5 percent to a
high level of 90 percent,” Netanayahu said. Iran “is willing today to
give up on the enrichment to the interim level of 20 percen -- which is
no longer important for it – in exchange for a significant easing of the sanctions," he charged.“This means Iran is willing to give very little and receive a great
deal," he said, warning that accepting such a deal could bring about
"the collapse of the entire regime of sanctions."
ISAIAH 17:1,11-14
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
11 In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, and in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to flourish: but the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow.
12 Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations,(USELESS U.N) that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
13 The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
14 And behold at evening tide trouble; and before the morning he is not.(ASSAD) This is the portion of them that spoil us,(ISRAEL) and the lot of them that rob us.
AMOS 1:5
5 I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden:(IRAQ) and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir,(JORDAN) saith the LORD.
JEREMEIAH 49:23-27
23 Concerning Damascus.(SYRIA) Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea;(WAR SHIPS WITH NUKES COMING ON SYRIA) it cannot be quiet.
24 Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
25 How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
26 Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD of hosts.
27 And I will kindle a fire (NUKES OR BOMBS) in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad.(ASSADS PALACES POSSIBLY IN DAMASCUS)
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)
JEREMIAH 47:1-7
1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Philistines,(PALESTINIAN/ARABS) before that Pharaoh smote Gaza.
2 Thus saith the LORD; Behold, waters rise up out of the north,(NORTHERN TSUNAMI POSSIBLY) and shall be an overflowing flood, and shall overflow the land, and all that is therein; the city, and them that dwell therein: then the men shall cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall howl.
3 At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses,(ISRAELS ARMY) at the rushing of his chariots, and at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands;(ISRAEL POSSIBLY NUKES GAZA)
4 Because of the day that cometh to spoil all the Philistines,(PALESTINIAN FAKE ARABS) and to cut off from Tyrus and Zidon every helper that remaineth: for the LORD will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Caphtor.
5 Baldness is come upon Gaza;(NUKED POSSIBLY) Ashkelon is cut off with the remnant of their valley: how long wilt thou cut thyself?
6 O thou sword of the LORD, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still.
7 How can it be quiet, seeing the LORD hath given it a charge against Ashkelon, and against the sea shore? (MEDITTERANEAN SEA) there hath he appointed it.
EGYPT
ISAIAH 19:1-5
1 The burden of Egypt. Behold, the LORD rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it.
2 And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbour; city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.
3 And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof; and I will destroy the counsel thereof: and they shall seek to the idols, and to the charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to the wizards.
4 And the Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts.
5 And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up.
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.
JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS-MUSLIMS) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them,(BEFORE THE NUKE GOES OFF) and behind them a desolate wilderness;(AFTER THE ATOMIC BOMB GOES OFF) yea, and nothing shall escape them.(EVERYTHING NUKED)
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,ARAB,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate,(SIBERIAN DESERT) 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.(FOR COMING AGAINST ISRAEL)
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.
JEREMIAH 8:7
7 Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times;(MIGRATION TIME) and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming;(IN MIGRATION SEASON) but my people know not the judgment of the LORD.(WW3 MIGRATING BIRDS EAT ISRAELS ENEMIES FLESH AND BLOOD)
US senators to Obama: Ease sanctions only if Iran halts uranium enrichment
A day before nuclear talks, 10 lawmakers say they support Geneva negotiations but seek ‘good-faith actions’ from Tehran
WASHINGTON — Leading US senators say Iran must end all uranium enrichment, potentially putting them at odds with the Obama administration ahead of new nuclear talks.In a letter to President Barack Obama, six
Democrats and four Republicans support this week’s negotiations in
Geneva. They also seek tougher sanctions on Iran and a convincing threat
of US military force.But the most contentious demand concerns
enrichment. The legislators including Sen. Bob Menendez, the Foreign
Relations chairman, and Sen. John McCain insist Iran shouldn’t able to
continue enriching uranium inside Iran.“If the Iranian government takes these steps
in a verifiable and transparent manner, we are willing to match Iran’s
good-faith actions by suspending the implementation of the next round of
sanctions currently under consideration by the Congress,” they said in
the letter.The missive came a day before nuclear talks
between Iran and the P5+1 group of world powers — the US, UK, France,
Russia, China and Germany — are due to commence in Geneva.
Obama recently recognized Iran’s right to
nuclear energy. But he hasn’t said enrichment is acceptable in Iran, as
Tehran demands.Iran has indicated it was willing to
compromise on its disputed nuclear program, as biting Western sanctions
have taken their toll on its economy.Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Iran will suggest a series of proposals aimed
at scaling back these sanctions, including limiting its production of
enriched uranium and operating centrifuges, opening its nuclear
facilities to more thorough international inspections, and closing the
enrichment facility near Qom.On Sunday, the Islamic Republic drew the line at shipping its enriched uranium to another country.US Secretary of State John Kerry said during a speech Sunday that the window for diplomacy with Iran over its nuclear program is “cracking open,” but that “no deal is better than a bad deal.”The US and world powers suspect Iran is trying
to develop nuclear weapons. Iran says its program is for peaceful
energy purposes.
On the eve of Iran talks, Mideast allies bewildered by US policy
While
Obama reaches out to Tehran, he turns on Egypt, which has been fighting
Islamist terror. Israel isn’t the only country in the region scratching
its head
Finally, a reason to
celebrate. Not only because, starting Tuesday, Iran will participate in
negotiations in Geneva with the P5+1 over its nuclear program, but also
because Tehran agreed to hold direct talks with representatives of the
American government. This stands in stark contrast to the familiar
Iranian policy that shirked any official contact with representatives of
the “Great Satan.”The End of Days must be upon us.
And yet, as Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister
Abbas Araqchi’s words Monday night made clear, there has been no
substantive change in Iran’s nuclear position that would alleviate
concerns over its intentions to produce a nuclear bomb or to become a
“threshold state.” Indeed, Araqchi made clear that Iran “will not agree
to cease the enrichment of uranium, even for one day.”Regarding the enriched uranium stores Iran
already possesses, including quantities enriched to 20%, Araqchi, who is
also the deputy head of Tehran’s nuclear negotiating team, was adamant
that “we will not agree to transfer even one gram of enriched uranium
out of Iran.” He added that his country would be ready to negotiate over
the level of uranium enrichment in the future, but Tehran repeatedly
makes clear that the talks are contingent on the partial removal of
Western sanctions as a goodwill gesture.Why the West needs to show goodwill toward
Iran is not clear. Tehran may hint that it is ready to show some
flexibility on its nuclear program, but that flexibility is not enough,
or shouldn’t be — not for Israel and not for other countries in the West
and in the Arab world.The persistent storing of enriched uranium,
even at the 3.5% level, while Iran maintains its enrichment capacity
through advanced centrifuges, combined with Tehran’s dubious record
regarding supervision of its nuclear facilities, leave serious suspicion
that Iran will try to secretly produce a nuclear bomb in the future.And still, some American media outlets have
evidently been mesmerized by President Hassan Rouhani’s smile. The New
York Times seems to be directing a campaign against Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu, who has said sanctions on Iran must not be removed
and warned about the Islamic Republic’s true intentions. Certain Western
journalists are possibly driven by the hope — and, perhaps, some degree
of naivety — that the crisis will not require the use of force.But the anti-Netanyahu campaign misses (or
ignores) the fact that the wary Israeli government, not surprisingly,
enjoys the support of many Arab countries — including Egypt, Saudi
Arabia, and the UAE — which are not naive about Iran.On Sunday, the Saudi-owned newspaper a-Sharq
al-Awsat published an editorial calling for Iran to be barred from
enriching uranium altogether. Numerous WikiLeaks documents dealing with
the Gulf States suggest that, with all due respect to the Palestinian
question, what truly keeps Arab rulers awake at night is the fear that
Iran will acquire a nuclear weapon, and will undermine their rule with
terror attacks and orchestrated demonstrations. “Cut off the head of the
snake,” as Saudi King Abdullah reportedly put it.These are not paranoid visions or the
brainchild of Netanyahu. These are real concerns of past and present
American allies in the region, who gaze with wonder and bewilderment
upon Washington’s foreign policy and struggle to understand why the US
president rushes to telephone the president of Iran while almost
simultaneously announcing that military aid to Egypt will be frozen.The voices from these states express concern
again and again in light of the lack of coherence from the United States
and what they perceive as its lack of understanding of what is really
happening in the Middle East.How is it possible that precisely when Egypt’s
government declares war on radical Islam, on terror, Washington prefers
to flirt with its enemies — Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood? For Cairo,
Riyadh, Amman and other capitals, the Obama administration — in
negotiating with Iran and suspending aid to Egypt — is shooting itself
in the foot, and wounding its allies in the process.
10/14/2013 VATICAN INSIDER
Parolin takes over from Bertone as Vatican Secretary of State tomorrow
Cardinal Bertone's final hours as Vatican Secretary of State
The “changing of the guard” will take place at midday on Tuesday 14
October. After thanking the outgoing Secretary of State for his service
to the Catholic Church, Pope Francis will present his successor
ANDREA TORNIELLIvatican cityForty five days after the announcement of Pietro Parolin’s
appointment as the Vatican’s new Secretary of State on 31 August, the
time has come for Tarcisio Bertone to say goodbye. The cardinal, who was
appointed Vatican Secretary of State by Benedict XVI is to leave his
post at noon tomorrow. Tomorrow he will lose the power he has as head of
Vatican diplomacy and “prime minister” of the Holy See to sign official
documents. This power will be passed on to the new Secretary of State,
Archbishop Pietro Parolin.The last handover took place in Castel Gandolfo in
2006, when Benedict XVI was still Pope. It was September and the Pope
was still staying at the papal summer residence. There was an official
lunch attended by all staff of the Secretariat of State. Tomorrow’s
ceremony will take place at 12 noon in the Vatican and will be a more
sober affair with no lunch: Pope Francis will thank Bertone for his
service and introduce his successor, a prelate who is very familiar with
the Secretariat of State having worked there until 2009.Bertone’s journey to the Vatican’s top diplomatic
position was not easy. Benedict XVI chose him for the job having worked
alongside him for seven years in the Congregation for the Doctrine of
the Faith. Ratzinger saw this practical person, this jovial Salesian who
was able to get the Curia “machine” running, as a suitable shoulder to
lean on. This was despite the fact he did not have a diplomatic
background. “I intend to be a Secretary of the Church more than a
Secretary of State” and “I will be the Pope’s transmission belt,”
Bertone had stated after his nomination. Before his appointment he had
been Archbishop of Genoa since 2002. Angelo Sodano, outgoing Secretary
of State at the time, tried to dissuade Benedict XVI from choosing
Bertone. The appointment of a man who had no diplomatic background to
the Secretariat of State’s top position did not go down well with
members of the Vatican diplomatic corps. It was seen as payback time for
those who believed that diplomats had too strong an influence in the
Curia and criticised a tendency of automatic career advancement.There is no doubt that some members of the Curia
appeared averse to Bertone’s appointment. This opposition grew as the
years went on, but not because of a lack of diplomatic skill. Some
important cardinals close to Benedict XVI, begged the Pope to change his
number two man, claiming that Bertone had been partly responsible for
the frequent crises that popped up during Ratzinger’s pontificate.
Still, Benedict XVI never doubted the faithfulness and loyalty of his
closest collaborator and chose not to heed their advice. But although
Benedict XVI’s shock resignation after the terrible Vatileaks scandal
was triggered by old age and frailty, his decision was also an implicit
admission that changing the Roman Curia was a difficult task.Cardinal Bertone was criticised throughout his
time as Secretary of State. He was criticised for a number of things:
his frequent trips within Italy and abroad (where he was often perceived
as the “deputy Pope”; the fact that he surrounded himself by lay
collaborators or those who called themselves as such. These figures had a
strong feel for business; for taking too strong an interest in Italian
ecclesial and political appointments and showing too little an interest
in international ones; for not protecting Benedict XVI enough
when Ratzinger sometimes found himself surrounded by people who used the
Pope as a shield instead of shielding him. Ratzinger had had to
intervene, in person, on more than one occasion to solve problems and
try to calm the waters, as in the scandalous case of the remission of
Holocaust denier Richard Williamson’s excommunication.But pointing the finger at Bertone alone for the
crisis in Ratzinger’s pontificate would be unfair and would not be a
reflection of the truth. Everyone shared a collective responsibility. It
should be noted that when Bertone reached the age of 75 he presented
his resignation along with a letter to the Pope in which he admitted
some shortcomings on certain occasions. Benedict XVI was confident of
the abilities of his top collaborator and decided to keep him in the
position.“I have always given everything but I’ve had my
downsides,” Bertone said in Siracusa (Silicly) last 1 September. “And
thinking back now, there are some things I would have done differently.
But this does not mean I did not intend to serve the Church.” “These past seven years have been positive
overall. Of course a number of problems have presented themselves,
particularly in the past couple of years. Accusations were made against
me … A mix of poison pen letter writers and evil people … But this
should not cloud the overall positive picture,” Bertone added.
The arrival of the new Secretary of State should
wipe away the image of the head of Vatican diplomacy as a “deputy Pope”
for good. It is not just Parolin’s personality and background that are
different, the Secretariat of State is also currently being reviewed by
Pope Francis’ advisory Council of Cardinals. It is strongly felt that
the Secretariat of State needs to play a less central role and that
there needs to be first and foremost the “Pope’s Secretariat”, more than
a “State” Secretariat. One of the ideas being discussed is to remove
some of the coordination and supervision powers the Secretariat of State
has over Curia dicasteries.Bertone is still President of the Commission of
Cardinals overseeing the Vatican bank (IOR) and Camerlengo of the Holy
Roman Church. He will soon vacate his apartment in the first loggia,
ready for his successor to move in, although no confirmation has yet
been given as to where Parolin will actually live (he is currently
staying in St. Martha’s House).Cardinal Bertone will be keeping one of his two
secretaries, Fr. Lech Piechota. The other secretary, Fr. Roberto
Lucchini will be given a position in the 2nd section of the Secretariat of State.Italian Catholic newspaper Avvenire
revealed that in early November the Vatican Publishing House will
publish a 530 page book, crammed with addresses and speeches made by the
outgoing Secretary of State. The book will include a preface by Pope
Francis.
10/14/2013 VATICAN INSIDER
The new evangelisation according to Francis
Cardinals hold a meeting with the Pope (ANSA)
Addressing participants in the Plenary of the Pontifical Council
for Promoting New Evangelisation today, the Pope urged Christians to use
the language of mercy and engage in dialogue with those who think
differently, have a different faith, or have no faith at all
ANDREA TORNIELLIvatican city“The new evangelisation must necessarily use the
language of mercy, which is more about gestures and attitudes than
words.” Christians need to seek out and approach others and speak with
everyone. These were Francis’ key messages at the Plenary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation
led by Archbishop Rino Fisichella in the Clementine Hall this morning.
Bergoglio thanked participants for the service rendered to the faith and
spoke about the importance of testimony, the urgent need to meet others
halfway and to have a pastoral plan that focuses on what is essential.“In our time we often
encounter an attitude of indifference towards faith, which is no longer
considered relevant to human life,” Francis said. It is important for
Christians to live faith in a concrete way and inspire others to ask
questions: why live like this? What is the impetus for our actions?
These are questions which lead us to the heart of evangelisation, which
is the witness of faith and charity.”So many have drifted away from the Church:
“Blaming others is wrong. Blaming is pointless. Certain ideologies and
individuals throughout the history of the Church and of its members
carry responsibility. As children of the Church we must continue the
path of the Second Vatican Council, strip ourselves of all that is
redundant and harmful, of things that give us a false sense of security,
holding the Church back and damaging is real identity.”“There is a need for
Christians who help show God's mercy and tenderness towards every
creature. We all know that today’s humanity is facing a deep crisis.
This is why the new evangelisation must necessarily use the language of
mercy, which is more about gestures and attitudes than words.
At the same time, it calls on faithful to have the courage to go
against the tide and convert from idolatry to the one and true God.”
Every person who is baptised is a Christ bearer as the ancient fathers
used to say. Anyone who has met Christ, like the Samaritan woman at the
well, cannot keep this experience to themselves … All of us should ask
ourselves if the people we meet can feel the warmth of our faith and see
the joy of our encounter with Christ!”The Pope went on to stress that the new
evangelisation is about re-approaching those who have drifted away from
the faith and lost the deep meaning of life. Just as the Son of God came
out of his divine condition and approached us, so all Christians are
called to approach others, and engage in dialogue with those who think
differently to us, have a different faith or have no faith at all. We
should approach everyone because we have all been created in the image
of God. We can approach others without fear and without renouncing our
identity.”“No one is excluded from the hope of life and God’s love. The Church “is
sent to reawaken everywhere this hope, especially where it is
suffocated by difficult and at times inhuman existential conditions,
where hope cannot breathe. … We need the oxygen of the Gospel, the
breath of the Spirit of the Risen Christ, to reignite [hope] in our
hearts. The Church is the house where the doors are always open not only
to welcome everyone in to breathe love and hope, but also so we can
take this love and hope outside.”Finally, the Pope explained that it is no use losing time on matters
that are superfluous of secondary importance. Instead we need to
concentrate on the essential reality - which is our encounter with
Christ, his mercy and his love - and loving our fellow humans. We need
to be courageous and take new paths, without becoming fossilized. The
Pope underlined the importance of catechesis, a moment of
evangelisation, in overcoming the split between Gospel and culture and
our faith illiteracy. He recalled that many times, he has encountered
children who do not know how to make the sign of the Cross, and remarked
that the work of catechists is a valuable service to new
evangelisation, while emphasising that parents should be “the first
catechists, the first educators in faith in their own families, by their
witness and by their words”.
Walmart Shelves Emptied in Food Stamp Shopping Spree
By SUSANNA KIM | Good Morning America – 1 hour 50 minutes ago-OCT 14,13-yahoonews
Louisiana officials are trying to decide what to do
about a massive shopping spree by families on food stamps when a power
outage lifted the caps on their spending cards.Police were called to Walmart locations in Mansfield, La., and Springhill, La., on Saturday as shoppers cleaned out store shelves.Springhill Police Chief Will Lynd said some customers were pushing
more food than any household could store in a refrigerator and freezer."I saw people drag out eight to ten grocery carts," he said.Lynd said customers were "not unruly." There were no fights or arrests made, but the scene was still chaotic, he said."It was definitely worse than Black Friday. It was worse than
anything we had ever seen in this town," Lynd said of Springhill, which
is near the border with Arkansas. "There was no food left on any of the
shelves, and no meat left. The grocery part of Walmart was totally
decimated."He said one customer made about $700 in food purchases.
Lynd said that around 9 p.m. CT on Saturday, a Walmart employee made
an announcement on the intercom saying that the computer system had been
restored and card limits had returned. At that time, customers left
shopping carts full of food in store aisles."At that point in time, they knew the jig was up and they couldn't purchase what they wanted to," Lynd said.In the Walmart store in Mansfield, about 80 miles south of
Springhill, staff temporarily closed the store to new customers to
prevent a fire hazard with the existing number of shoppers.Mansfield's chief of police Gary Hobbs said no arrests were made and
there were no incidents besides customers "pushing and shoving." Hobbs
said there were reports that customers were checking out with six to
eight shopping carts, then returning later in the day to purchase more.Unlike Walmart, other grocery stores in town told customers they
would not accept EBT cards until the card limits were evident again,
Hobbs said.The Department of Agriculture, which administers the food stamp
program, said the issue was not related to the government shutdown.The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services' spokesman
Trey Williams said the agency is meeting today to discuss how to handle
the issue.
The shopping frenzy was triggered when the Electronic Benefits
Transfer system went down because a back-up generator failed at 11 a.m.
EST Saturday during a regularly-scheduled test, according to Xerox, a
vendor for the EBT system and based in Norwalk, Conn.The outage allowed recipients to spend unlimited amounts of money because the spending limit was removed for their EBT cards.The EBT system was affected in 17 states, where individuals and
households access programs like Supplemental Nutritional Assistance
Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and other programs."The loss of power triggered a preventative shutdown of the EBT
system to protect its overall integrity," according to a statement from
Xerox spokesman Kevin Lightfoot. "While the system was restored within
22 minutes, the network experienced connectivity issues until our
technical staff were able to re-establish full access just before 10
p.m. EST."Lynd said the Springhill Walmart store manager called police on
Saturday morning to ask for advice over crowd control. When he arrived,
Lynd told the Walmart staff that they had the right to refuse service if
they chose to, but Walmart's corporate office advised the store to
allow customers to purchase what they wanted with the cards.A spokeswoman for Walmart, Kayla Whaling, said the frenzied shopping
in Louisiana "was isolated and is not representative of the what our
stores experienced across the country."
Xerox said that it continues to "investigate the cause of the issue
so we can take steps to ensure a similar interruption does not
re-occur."A spokeswoman for Xerox, Jennifer Wasmer, said, "If there is an EBT
system outage, there is an agreed and documented process for retailers
to follow. The process includes a 'per cardholder, per day' spending
limit that is set at a state level."In Louisiana, the limit is $50 per cardholder per day, she said."The emergency process allows retailers to meet the critical food
needs of cardholders even if the system is temporarily down," she said.When asked about reports that Walmart customers were spending
hundreds of dollars more than their account limits, Wasmer said ABC News
would have to speak to retailers.Walmart did not respond to a question about whether its Louisiana stores recognized a $50 limit. ABC News' Gitika Kaul contributed to this report.
Government shutdown backfires? GOP says Democrats now guilty of extortion
The government shutdown began with
Democrats saying Republican demands about Obamacare were 'extortion.'
Now, as the GOP resistance collapses, Senate Democrats are pushing back.
By Mark Sappenfield
8 hours ago-OCT 14,13-yahoonews
For the past few weeks, Democrats from the president on down
decried Republican tactics on a potential government shutdown as
political hostage-taking on a par with "extortion." So, of course, now that the Republicans are on the run, the Democrats are doing the exact same thing in reverse.They're
saying they want to undo major part of the sequester budget cuts as
part of a deal to end the government shutdown and raise the debt limit.
It's as though Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D) of Nevada has
finally sensed his moment to destroy that product of tea party
Republicanism once and for all. One might not even be surprised if "Ride
of the Valkyries" was booming from his Senate office this morning.That is how dramatically the story in Washington has flipped during the two weeks since the government shutdown.On
Oct. 1, the Republicans were on the offensive – or at least thought
they were. Sen. Ted Cruz (R) of Texas was at the front of the column,
and the cry coming from his ranks was that they would stop at nothing to
gut President Obama's signature achievement, the Affordable Care Act.A
government shutdown? A hit to the credit rating of the United States if
Congress refused to raise the debt ceiling? Either was preferable to a
new government entitlement that they said would erode American liberties
and drive the country further into a potentially fatal debt crisis.Inevitably,
they failed, because they had nowhere near the numbers in Congress to
win, and – despite their rhetoric – only a minority of Americans wanted
to repeal Obamacare. Americans had already decided that question in the
2012 elections, and Republicans' failure to accept that rebuke meant
they would receive it again this month. The Democrats, who knew all
this, had not the slightest intention of yielding.
But
now, members of the Republican establishment have abandoned their tea
party insurgents for a more moderate position: They've offered to end
the government shutdown and raise the debt ceiling – both only
temporarily – so that Congress can discuss reforming Social Security and
Medicare.Democrats, surely would wish for more. A temporary
reprieve still holds a hint of "extortion" and still keeps Washington
bumping from one fiscal crisis to the next. But, these days, such is the
stuff of which compromises are made.
But Senator Reid is having none of it. He knows that polls show
most Americans blaming Republicans for the current gridlock. And he
knows that the Republican establishment absolutely, positively does not
want the government to default on its debt. The tea party, with its
grass-roots outrage, might be willing to stay firm on its debt-limit
resolve, but establishment Republicans are much more likely to listen to
Wall Street, and a failure to raise the debt limit could mean global
financial chaos. Not good for 401(k)s.So Reid is trying his hand
at the "extortion" game. The Republicans can only save themselves if
they get out of this mess, and he's the only Democrat in Congress who
has the power to let that happen. So far, he's letting them dangle.
He
now wants the Republicans to roll back parts of the sequester budget
cuts agreed to during the 2011 debt-ceiling crisis. The sequester,
however, happens to be the only tangible success of Congress's tea party
era. Asking the Republicans to go back on the sequester cuts would be
like asking the Democrats to go back on, say ... Obamacare.Sound familiar? "There's
no question that House Republicans overreached in trying to use this
negotiation to repeal a [health care] bill that was very central to the
president's agenda,'' said Sen. Bob Corker (R) of Tennessee, according to The Wall Street Journal.
"The same thing is happening on the Democratic side among Senate
leadership as pushed by the White House. They're trying to now undo a
law put in place in 2011, the Budget Control Act.''Just like the
Republicans didn't have the numbers in Congress to defund Obamacare, the
Democrats don't have the numbers to eviscerate the sequester. Not if
the Republicans hold firm as the Democrats have. And it's hard to
imagine the Republican-controlled House surrendering so meekly, even in
its current beaten and battered state.In all likelihood, Reid is
merely pressing his advantage to gain as much leverage as he can. An
agreement before Oct. 17, the day Congress needs to raise the debt
ceiling or risk default, now seems inevitable.The real lesson here, it seems, is one of political perspective. In D.C., "extortion" is just politics by another name.
