OBAMA ADMIN LAUGHS OFF BIRTH CERTIFICATE SCANDLE

I FOUND A GOOD SITE FOR LADIES TALKIN MAKEUP WITH CAMILLE - youtube
http://www.youtube.com/user/TalkinMakeUp
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Pentagon to Create New Cyber-Command: Turf War With NSA Looming
May 29, 2009

(ChattahBox) On the heels of President Obama’s announcement on Friday of the creation of a civilian White House Cyber Czar, to protect the nation’s digital infrastructure, the Pentagon is set to announce the formation of a Cyber-Command to both defend against cyber attacks and wage cyber warfare against our enemies.The announcements of both the new military Cyber Command and the White House cyber security office were delayed while various security agencies lobbied for control in a series of bureaucratic turf wars, between the NSA, Homeland Security, The Pentagon and the extensive cyber security department within the Air Force.The NSA for now has emerged from the bloody turf wars as the victor in both the White House office and the Pentagon’s new Cyber Command. The White House Cyber Czar will report to the NSA, as well as the National Economic Council.The billions of dollars allocated for the creation of the new cyber security initiative has raised the stakes for a battle to win bureaucratic control over the cyber security efforts. The Homeland Security agency seems to have lost out for now in taking a lead role on domestic cyber security efforts.There is no question the development of a comprehensive cyber security effort is needed. Sophisticated cyber-criminals have been caught attacking the U.S. electric grid and military defense programs. Just recently, hackers breached the Pentagon’s Joint Strike Fighter program, and stole data.

The Pentagon Cyber Command, according to a memo by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, will reside within the Pentagon’s Strategic Command, which is already tasked with computer-network security efforts. Eventually, the Cyber Command is expected to be allocated a separate command to be added to the Pentagon’s Special Operations Command, Central Command and Strategic Command.And in a move that signals a joint effort by the NSA and the Pentagon to run the new Cyber Command, Secretary Gates planes to appoint National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander to head the new Cyber Command, which will be headquartered in Fort Meade, Maryland adjacent to NSA headquarters.The charge of the new Cyber Command would be to conduct military cyber security operations, both defensive and offensive and provide support to civilian authorities.Critics of the plan are concerned with the NSA’s propensity to conduct domestic spying operations. In a recent speech given by General Alexander, he proposed a team effort with the NSA charged with protecting military and intelligence networks, leaving other government networks to the Department of Homeland Security.In addition to the massive cyber security defensive effort, the Cyber Command would also engage in cyber warfare. Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman, likened cyber warfare to any traditional battlefield, which requires protecting our freedom of movement and preserving our capability to perform in that environment.As the new Cyber Command functions shake out, there is still the ongoing battle between what agency would actually conduct the offensive cyber warfare operations.Meanwhile, President Obama is expected to issue a classified set of presidential directives on the relative responsibilities of various military agencies in the Cyber Command.Obama also plans to sign a classified executive order creating the new military Cyber Command, which would be in full operation sometime in October.

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.

Season's 1st tropical depression forms in Atlantic MAY 28,09

MIAMI – National Hurricane Center forecasters in Miami say a tropical depression has formed off the mid-Atlantic coast, but it's not expected to threaten land.The National Weather Service counts the depression as the first of the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season, which officially begins June 1.The depression's maximum sustained winds are near 35 mph. It is expected to become a tropical storm in the coming days.

Forecasters expect the depression to stay over the Atlantic and move toward the northeast near 17 mph over the next day or two.At 11 a.m. EDT Thursday, the depression was centered about 310 miles south of Providence, R.I., and about 635 southwest of Halifax, Nova Scotia.(This version CORRECTS time reference to EDT from EST.)

Brazil dam break kills 4, leaves 11 people missing By ALAN CLENDENNING, Associated Press Writer MAY 28,09

SAO PAULO – Raging torrents from a ruptured dam swamped a rural Brazilian city Thursday, forcing residents to scramble onto rooftops and climb high trees to escape the deadly floodwaters.Four people were killed and at least 120 homes destroyed in a region already devastated by more than a month of floods.Officials said floodwaters inundated Cocal, a northeastern farming city of about 25,000 in Piaui state, after a dam section gave way under the weight of a reservoir bloated by rains.The waters swept away homes, trees and electrical energy towers and left behind muddy river beds filled with splinters and large dislodged rocks.Images showed Brazilians sobbing outside their wrecked houses. The destruction was among the most dramatic in more than a month of northern Brazilian flooding that has killed nearly 60 and left hundreds of thousands homeless in a wide swath of northern Brazil stretching from the Amazon to normally arid coastal areas.It was like a tsunami with total destruction, especially in the areas close to the dam, Gov. Wellington Dias of northeastern Piaui state told reporters after touring the devastation zone.Globo TV said the rupture sent 50 billion liters (13 billion gallons) of water pouring out of the reservoir in just one hour, causing flooding that stretched 100 kilometers (62 miles) downriver from Cocal.Eleven people were missing, 80 suffered minor injuries and nearly 3,000 were forced from their homes.Authorities began evacuating families about two hours after the dam failed, but civil defense authorities said Thursday night that search and rescue missions for the missing were suspended until Friday. Churches and other buildings were turned into shelters for the 2,953 people who were displaced.The dead included girls ages 10 and 12, a 72-year-old man and a 73-year-old woman, the state government said on its Web site.Downpours have battered northern and northeastern Brazil since April, causing floods and mudslides in a region extending from the Amazon rain forest to the Atlantic Ocean. Authorities say 59 people have been killed and more than 423,000 were displaced.

Another bout of heavy rain in recent days swelled the reservoir behind the dam, increasing pressure that opened a 165-foot (50-meter) tear and led to the rupture, the Piaui state government said in a statement.It was a lot of water, resident Antonio Antonino told SBT.People were desperate, they were crying. I'm 60 years old, and I've never seen anything like this.The floods also swept away crops and livestock, according to the government statement.I heard a very loud thundering noise, and when the dam broke a huge column of water shot up 50 meters (164 feet) into the air, and when it came down it swept away everything in its way,farmer Jose Maria Siqueira told Globo TV.Piaui Civil Defense spokeswoman Vanize Lemos said at least 150 families were initially rescued, but Brazil's federal civil defense department said Thursday night said it was sending helicopters and aid to help at least 300 more families that were still isolated.The dam overflowed two weeks ago, but residents who had been evacuated told Globo TV they had been authorized to return before the rupture occurred.The heavy rains are blamed on an Atlantic Ocean weather system that normally moves away in April but hasn't budged this year. Meanwhile, southern Brazil has been hit by a drought that has severely affected agriculture.

The flooding in northern Brazil comes just four years after a devastating drought hit the Amazon. Experts fear that the world's largest rain forest may be experiencing severe climate swings brought on by global warming, which could threaten the people and wild animals that live in the region.Associated Press Writer Tales Azzoni contributed to this report.

EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH

GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

EARTHQUAKES

MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

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

7.1 earthquake topples homes, kills 6 in Honduras By FREDDY CUEVAS, Associated Press Writer MAY 28,09

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – A powerful earthquake toppled dozens of homes in Honduras and Belize early Thursday, killing at least six people and injuring 40 as terrified residents spilled from their homes across much of Central America.The magnitude-7.1 quake struck at 2:24 a.m. (4:24 a.m. EDT; 0824 GMT) off the Caribbean coast of Honduras, 80 miles (130 kilometers) northeast of the beach town of La Ceiba, according to the U.S. Geological Survey in Golden, Colorado.People were running for the door,Alfredo Cedeno said from the reception desk at the Gran Hotel Paris in La Ceiba.You could really feel it and you could see it — the water came out of the pool.

Reynaldo Funez, 15, was buried in his house in Pineda de la Lima, 120 miles (200 kilometers) north of the capital, Tegucigalpa, and 6-year-old Deily Yazmin Santos was killed when her house collapsed in the beach town of Morazan, national fire commander Col. Carlos Cordero said.Ana Maria Rivera, spokeswoman for Honduras' Permanent Emergency Commission, said Jose Vicente Maradiaga died of a heart attack during the earthquake in the seaside town of Tela, and a 3-year-old boy was crushed when his roof collapsed in Mapulaca near the Salvadoran border. She didn't have Maradiaga's age or the boy's name.It was an earthquake of great proportions,she said.Two other people were killed in home collapses, according to the commission's chief, Marcos Burgos, who didn't have details. At least 40 people were injured, most along the Caribbean coast.The earthquake destroyed at least 57 homes and damaged another 65, the commission said. It said 14 schools were damaged, as were two Roman Catholic churches and three bridges.Democracy Bridge, which spans the country's largest river, the Ulua, collapsed in the town of El Progreso, Cordero said. The bridge is one of two connecting the northern city of San Pedro Sula, Honduras' second-largest, with the rest of the country. The second bridge was deemed safe.

The central part of the bridge fell into the river,Cordero said.

Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, who called the quake a tragedy,said damages were estimated at about $37 million.San Pedro Sula is scheduled to host a summit of foreign ministers of the Organization of American States next week. OAS Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza said in Washington the meeting would go on as planned.In Belize, about five homes collapsed and an Associated Press reporter saw at least 25 others with severe damage. Many of the wooden shacks on stilts sunk several feet into ground.In Monkey River, parts of the ground opened up and left gaping holes up to four feet (over a meter) deep. Residents heard dogs howling seconds before the quake hit.I heard this rumbling and I thought the rain is coming, but then I looked up at the sky and I saw all of the stars and I knew something was not right. Then the shaking started. It was pretty scary,said Malfry Garbutt, who grabbed her three small children and ran.Before the quake, her wooden house on stilts was eight feet above the ground. After the quake, it was only three feet.A water tower toppled in the town of Independence and electricity was out all the way to the Mexican border, local officials said.I urge you not to panic, but to remain calm,National Emergency Minister Melvin Hulse said on the radio. Honduran Education Minister Marlon Breve closed schools along the coast and on the Bay Islands, and officials reported electricity, telephones and Internet connections were cut across a large part of the country. A local official with Internet provider Amnet said a fiber optic cable was cut, affecting service throughout Honduras and in other parts of Central America.

Closest to the epicenter were the idyllic islands of Roatan and Utila, where officials and hotel employees said there were no injuries or major damage. A tsunami watch was canceled for Honduras, Belize and Guatemala when no unusual waves appeared. Raul Gonzalez, a receptionist at the Gran Hotel Sula in San Pedro Sula, said guests ran into the streets in their pajamas.I ran out of the building and kept going for about a block before I looked back and everything had calmed,he said.It was really strong. I have never felt anything like that.

The hotel did not suffer major damage.

The quake was felt strongly in El Salvador, Guatemala and northern Nicaragua, but no major damage was reported in those countries. Don Blakeman, a U.S. Geological Survey expert, said people in Mexico and on several Caribbean islands also reported feeling the earthquake.The quake was relatively shallow, with a depth of only 6 miles (10 kilometers), increasing its potential to cause major damage, Blakeman said. It is still possible we may find out there was more damage, but I think the fact that this earthquake was a bit off shore has helped tremendously, he said.Obviously the farther away from the epicenter you get, there is less damage.The USGS said a magnitude-4.8 aftershock struck off Honduras about three hours after the quake. Associated Press writers Juan Carlos Llorca in Guatemala City and Patrick Jones in Belize City contributed to this report.

U.S. IN SOUTH KOREA PUSHING NORTH KOREA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OY1vsYWeRt0&feature=player_embedded

U.S., South Korea Raise Military Alert on North By Blaine Harden Washington Post Foreign Service Thursday, May 28, 2009; 11:29 AM

TOKYO, May 28 -- The joint command for South Korean and U.S. forces on the Korean peninsula raised its alert level Thursday in response to an extraordinary week of truculence from North Korea. At the United Nations, diplomats are pushing for sanctions with teeth against the government of Kim Jong Il. Proposals include freezing assets, banning travel for elites and cutting access to international banks.

Japan and the United States want a new resolution that makes cargo inspections of North Korean vessels compulsory for U.N. members, according to a report by Japan's Kyodo news agency, which cited diplomats in New York. It also said that a trade embargo on all arms, not just large weapons such as battle tanks, has been proposed.

Japan's Foreign Ministry declined comment, except to note that Prime Minister Taro Aso is committed to strong sanctions. Since Monday, North Korea has defied U.N. resolutions by conducting an underground nuclear test and launching five short-range missiles into the sea. After the South responded with a pledge to join U.S.-led efforts to inspect North Korean ships, the North threatened a merciless attack against the South and nullified the truce that ended the Korean War. South Korean and U.S. forces raised their alert Thursday to the second-highest level, Watch Condition II.The joint command, which oversees 655,000 troops from the South and 28,500 troops from the United States, last raised its alert to this level in 2006, after North Korea's first nuclear test. Surveillance over the North will be stepped up, with more aircraft and personnel mobilized,said South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Won Tae-jae. South Korea is preparing for a possible missile or artillery strikes near a disputed sea border off the west coast of the Korean Peninsula, the Seoul-based daily Chosun Ilbo reported. The North said this week it would no longer respect that border, which has been the site of two naval skirmishes in the past decade. North Korea is unique among the world's nations in that it periodically threatens its neighbors with nuclear weapons and missiles, but also relies on them and the United States for food to help feed its 23 million people. On average, the country needs about 1 million tons of outside food a year to feed its population. The communist economy collapsed in the mid-1990s, and since then North Korea has grown increasingly dependent on generating hard currency though fthe sale of missiles, parts and related technologies to countries in East Asia and the Middle East. The North has sold missiles to Iran, Pakistan, Syria, Egypt, Libya and Yemen, earning hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Monterey, Calif.

A threat from South Korea this week to constrict or shut off that revenue stream may be the motivating force behind the North's tirade on Wednesday, when it declared that those who provoke North Korea will not be able to escape its unimaginable and merciless punishment.To that end, Pyongyang vowed to attack South Korea if ships from the North are searched as part of an effort to stop vessels suspected of carrying missiles or weapons of mass destruction. The interdiction effort, called the Proliferation Security Initiative, was created in 2003 by President George W. Bush.

The South's decision was probably made easier by the storm of international condemnation that followed the test, with the North's long-time allies, China and Russia, joining in the outrage. The anti-proliferation program would not block North Korean ships from moving through South Korean waters, officials said in Seoul. Ships would be stopped and searched only if there was intelligence suggesting they might be carrying missiles or nuclear weapons technology, the officials said. Investors in South Korea, who have been spooked all week by North Korea's behavior, seemed to calm down on Thursday -- a day that produced no detonations, missile launches or rhetorical thunder in the North. South Korea's currency, the won, rose to a three-week high, and the stock market bounced back from three days of losses. There have been no polls in South Korea this week to assess attitudes about North Korea's threats. And President Lee Myung-bak is projecting calm, saying Thursday that it is necessary to publicize locally and overseas that we have everything under control.

Still, there was uneasiness.

I can feel that this is a bit different from previous times, when North Korea would just fire missiles, and that was that,said Chun Kyung-ran, 48, a butcher in Seoul. This is making me feel vaguely nervous about the possibility of war breaking out.Special correspondent Stella Kim in Seoul contributed to this report.

North Korea's nuclear spectacular Kim Jong Il's bombshell
May 28th 2009 From The Economist print edition

Isolated it may be, but North Korea’s antics do damage far beyond its own reach

Reuters/AlamyHE HAS been coaxed, cajoled, censured and sanctioned. Yet whenever it suits North Korea’s boss, Kim Jong Il, he spews out new threats. For years he has managed to extort cash, oil and other goodies for then quietening down, only to behave even more threateningly next time. Can nothing be done to make this serial rule-breaker blink? With his second nuclear test and multiple missile launchings (see article), North Korea’s Dear Leader has ignored the hand that President Barack Obama has said he is ready to extend to America’s erstwhile enemies. He has also delivered a nuclear-powered slap in the face to China, his semi-backer and the chief proponent for the past six years of a strategy of come-what-may patience, negotiation and perks in an effort to humour Mr Kim out of the bomb business. But patience is not always a virtue in dealing with a regime as practised at blackmail as Mr Kim’s. For unless he now pays a seriously high price for his defiance, the message heard by others, particularly Iran, still mulling how far they should push their own nuclear plans is that they too can have a bomb—if they are prepared to be belligerent enough, for long enough.

Watch what he does, not what he says
Mr Kim has long played the nuclear game by his own rules. The aim of the other five around the negotiating table—America, South Korea, Japan, China and Russia—has been to get him to shut down his bomb factories and (after steadily increasing dollops of trade and investment, and in return for diplomatic ties with America) eventually to give up the bombs he has long claimed to have stashed away. Indeed, Mr Kim has promised, more than once, to do just that. Yet he has dragged out the process at every turn. It came as little surprise to those who always doubted his disarming intentions that the six-party talks came badly off track last year just at the point where tight verification rules were to be agreed upon so that outsiders could check that his promises were kept.Now Mr Kim says he will never go back to the six-party talks. He wants North Korea to be accepted as a nuclear power, his officials say, just as India in practice has been. But you can be sure of one thing if the capricious Mr Kim is persuaded back to the table. With a second nuclear blast to boast of, the price will have gone up yet again. How does he get away with it? And does it really matter that such an isolated and impoverished contrarian keeps breaking all the anti-nuclear rules? Mr Kim does not need his bombs to wreak havoc in South Korea, whose capital, Seoul, has long been within range of the North’s artillery dug into the hills just over the border. Rather, he needs a deterrent, he says, to fend off a hostile America. And yet this latest nuclear test surely destroys North Korea’s best chance in years to get on friendlier terms with the country it claims to fear most. That in turn leads dogged optimists to argue that this may be nothing more than a temporary diplomatic setback after all: the ailing Mr Kim needs the backing of nuclear hardliners in the armed forces, they explain, to steady the regime while he lines up one of his sons to take over the family dynasty.

The thought should bring little comfort. For whether he is trying to hang on to power at home, or determined to cock an enduring nuclear snook at the world, makes little difference when Mr Kim clearly feels he has licence to bang on regardless and get away with it. He has shrugged off past half-hearted sanctions imposed on him by the United Nations Security Council and others. He knows that, whatever he does, some food aid will keep flowing in, since outsiders care more than he does for the plight of his often malnourished, sometimes starving, people. And he calculates that China, which controls most of the oil taps to North Korea, is fearful of a swelling influx of refugees if the economy collapses further. China says it resolutely opposes Mr Kim’s latest nuclear and missile tests, but continues to oppose the sort of truly punishing sanctions that could make Mr Kim ponder the error of his ways.With China’s misguided protection, the harm the radioactive Mr Kim is doing just goes on spreading. There will be no stability in East Asia until he can be induced to cease his nuclear antics. His tests of increasingly sophisticated rockets were causing alarm in Japan—and talk of rearmament in some quarters there—even before hints that he is perfecting missile-mountable nuclear warheads to put on them.Leaving Mr Kim free to demonstrate his nuclear wares also increases the danger that he will find new customers for them. North Korea had already secretly built a nuclear reactor in Syria before Israel destroyed it in an air raid. Before that some of Mr Kim’s nuclear material had turned up in Libya, via the nuclear black market, before that country handed in all its bomb-making paraphernalia. A well-tested warhead design is both easier to hawk and more lucrative to sell. North Korea is known to work closely with Iran on building nuclear-capable missiles. No one knows where their co-operation stops. Unlike Mr Kim, Iran insists it has no use for the bomb. Yet suspicions have mounted as Iran has invested in expensive technologies for enriching uranium and making plutonium (both possible bomb ingredients) before having a civilian nuclear-power industry that can make peaceful use of them. And though it claims to co-operate with UN inspectors, Iran refuses to answer their questions about studies and past experiments that have little or no plausible civilian purpose.

The fallout to come
But even if North Korean and Iranian scientists have kept their nuclear distance, the example Mr Kim sets and the failure of the UN, America, China and others collectively to do more than inconvenience him with trade restrictions on fast cars and Rolex watches will only cause Iran’s suspicious neighbours, like North Korea’s, to worry that time and the world’s anti-nuclear rules are not on their side. Unless North Korea is checked, the fear and suspicion Mr Kim has created could set off a chain reaction of proliferation. If China is at all serious about joining America as a global leader, this is the time for it to shoulder its responsibility by helping to punish Mr Kim.

Russia says not against North Korea U.N. resolution
Thu May 28, 2009 8:48am EDT

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia does not object to a U.N. Security Council resolution on North Korea's nuclear test this week, but feels it is too early to talk about possible penalties, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Thursday.We do not have any basis to come out against the new resolution on North Korea in the Security Council of the United Nations, Andrei Nesterenko told a news briefing.It is premature to speak about details of the Security Council's decision concerning possible sanctions against North Korea and about their pace,he added.Western diplomats said on Wednesday world powers including Russia had agreed in principle that North Korea must face sanctions for defying a U.N. resolution by exploding a second nuclear device on May 25.A draft resolution would not be ready to circulate to the full 15-nation council for comments and an eventual vote until next week at the earliest, the diplomats said.

Nesterenko warned against an arms race in Asia after North Korea's nuclear test.

We hope that the latest actions by North Korea will not be used by other states as an excuse for the forced build up of their military potential and will not be turned into a new... arms race in the region,he said.(Reporting by Oleg Shchedrov and Guy Faulconbridge, editing by Philippa Fletcher)Thomson Reuters 2009

OBAMA ADMIN LAUGHS OFF BIRTH CERTIFICATE SCANDLE
http://wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=99342

OBAMA YOUTH CORPS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94iNrSrfGmY&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfgYffpQz5g&feature=player_embedded

LEW ROCKWELL ON JONES
http://rss.nfowars.net/20090528_Thu_Alex.mp3

WND AT THE WHITE HOUSE Obama mouthpiece laughs off birth certificate request
It's on the Internet, Lester,claims Gibbs at White House briefing May 27, 2009
6:35 pm Eastern 2009 WorldNetDaily

Presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs bends over laughing at a question over Obama's eligibility

WASHINGTON – Somebody finally asked Barack Obama's White House press secretary about the president's elusive birth certificate. When asked by WND White House correspondent Les Kinsolving why the president, who has pledged transparency in his administration, would not release his long-form birth certificate to establish his constitutional eligibility for office, spokesman Robert Gibbs guffawed in unison with members of the Washington press corps about the concerns of 400,000 petitioners who have demanded it.Are you looking for the president's birth certificate? he asked incredulously.Lester, this question in many ways continues to astound me. The state of Hawaii provided a copy with the seal of the president's birth. I know there are apparently at least 400,000 people – (laughter) – that continue to doubt the existence of and the certification by the state of Hawaii of the president's birth there, but it's on the Internet because we put it on the Internet for each of those 400,000 to download. I certainly hope by the fourth year of our administration that we'll have dealt with this burgeoning birth controversy.It was the first time any member of the press corps has publicly asked a member of the administration a question directly related to Obama's constitutional eligibility for office as a natural born citizen.

Politico has video of the exchange, which is embedded below: The question comes as the controversy is heating up nationally – sparked in part by a new billboard campaign asking the question: Where's the birth certificate? The campaign has also raised more than $50,000 in contributions from the public. The ongoing petition campaign was launched several months ago by WND Editor and Chief Executive Officer Joseph Farah. Just last week, Farah announced the billboard campaign to raise public awareness of the fact that Obama has never released the standard, long-form birth certificate that would show which hospital he was born in, the attending physician and establish that he truly was born in Hawaii, as his autobiography maintains. The Certification of Live Birth posted online and widely touted as Obama's birth certificate does not in any way prove he was born in Hawaii, since the same short-form document is easily obtainable for children not born in Hawaii. The true long-form birth certificate – which includes information like the name of the birth hospital and attending physician – is the only document that can prove Obama was born in Hawaii, but to date he has not permitted its release for public or press scrutiny.

Oddly, though congressional hearings were held to determine whether Sen. John McCain was constitutionally eligible to be president as a natural born citizen, no controlling legal authority ever sought to verify Obama's claim to a Hawaiian birth.

Both the petition and the billboard campaign are part of what Farah calls an independent the truth and transparency campaign.At today's White House briefing, Gibbs was contentious with Kinsolving before he ever asked his question. Calling on WND's longtime correspondent, he said: Lester, I'm a glutton for punishment.

Kinsolving said: Thank you, thank you, very much. Just one question concerning what the president said in his speech on Thursday, and I quote, I ran for president promising transparency, and I meant what I said. This is why, whenever possible, we will make information available to the American people so they can make informed judgments and hold us accountable.End of quote. Do you remember that statement? Gibbs: I can confirm that he said that. Kinsolving: Good. In consideration of this very good promise of transparency, why can't the president respond to the petition to requests of 400,000 American citizens by releasing a certified copy of his long-form birth certificate listing hospital – (laughter) – 400,000.Gibbs: Are you looking for the President's birth certificate? Kinsolving: Yes.Gibbs: It's on the Internet, Lester.Kinsolving: No, no, no -- the long form listing his hospital and physician. (Laughter.) Gibbs: Lester, this question in many ways continues to astound me. The state of Hawaii provided a copy with the seal of the President's birth. I know there are apparently at least 400,000 people – (laughter) – that continue to doubt the existence of and the certification by the state of Hawaii of the president's birth there, but it's on the Internet because we put it on the Internet for each of those 400,000 to download. I certainly hope by the fourth year of our administration that we'll have dealt with this burgeoning birth controversy. And with that, Gibbs ended the briefing.

This is what the White House thinks of American citizens who take the Constitution seriously,said Farah in response to Gibbs' response.I think I speak for the 400,000 petitioners when I say disregard for the Constitution is no laughing matter.Farah was pleased, however, that the question was finally asked of a member of the administration – in public and on the record. He said it is likely to provide new impetus to the petition and billboard campaigns. The first sign to be posted under the week-old campaign, a digital, electronic one, is up and online on Highway 165 in Ball, La. – the result of a donation by the owner. In addition, based on the heavy volume of financial donations in the first two days of the campaign, WND was able to commit to leasing two more standard billboards – one in Los Angeles and the other in Pennsylvania. It will take several weeks to get those billboards up because of the vinyl printing and shipping involved. Yesterday, WND agreed to lease another electronic billboard in Orange County, Calif. Birth certificate question being raised in Ball, La. While the campaign is off to a robust start, many viewers have asked why Obama's name is not included in the billboard. Farah said the matter was carefully considered. There are several reasons we chose the message: Where's the birth certificate? he explained.There is only one birth certificate controversy in this country today – despite the near-total absence of this issue from coverage in the non-WND media. This is a grass-roots issue that resonates around the country, as our own online petition with nearly 400,000 signers suggests. In addition, I like the simplicity of the message. I like the fact that the message will cause some people to ask themselves or others about the meaning of the message. It will stir curiosity. It will create a buzz. I'm assuming when these billboards are springing up all over the country, it might even make some in the news media curious. And there's one more factor that persuaded me this was the way to go. Come 2012, campaign laws will pose restrictions on political advertising mentioning the names of presidential candidates. This one clearly doesn't. I would like to see the federal government make the case that this is somehow a political ad,he said.

Farah said the campaign was born of frustration with timid elected officials in Washington, corrupt judges around the country and a news media that show a stunning lack of curiosity about the most basic facts of Obama's background – especially how it relates to constitutional eligibility for the highest office in the land. As Obama transforms this country from self-governing constitutional republic to one governed by a central ruling elite, the simple fact remains that no controlling legal authority has established that he is indeed a 'natural born citizen' as the Constitution requires,Farah said.Obama's promises of transparency have become a bad joke as he continues to hide simple, innocuous documents like his birth certificate and his student records.The idea behind the billboard campaign is to make sure Obama cannot avoid this question any longer. He must be asked to produce it at every turn, Farah says. Billboard space is currently being hunted in Houston, Dallas, Sacramento, San Francisco, Seattle and other metro areas.Is it unusual for a news agency to launch such a campaign? asks Farah.Yes it is. But we live in very unusual times. The founding fathers built special protections into the First Amendment for the free press. The reason they did that is because they understood a vibrant Fourth Estate was necessary as an independent watchdog on government. It is in that tradition that WND assumes this role – since nobody else in the press will do it.WND previously launched a petition campaign that has collected more than 375,000 names demanding Obama's eligibility be verified and demonstrated publicly. That campaign continues. That list has been shared with members of the Electoral College and the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. I wish such a campaign were not absolutely necessary,said Farah.I wish there were checks and balances in our political and electoral systems to ensure that constitutional eligibility of presidential candidates was established before politicians could assume the highest office in the land. I wish my colleagues in the news media believed the Constitution really means what it says and pressed this issue as hard as we have pressed it at WND. I wish radio talk-show hosts were bold enough to ask this question. But wishing is not enough. It's time to raise the visibility of this issue vital to the rule of law in America. I ask everyone to pitch in and help WND make a simple yet profound statement: The Constitution still matters.

http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/sotomayor-and-the-second-amendment
SOTOMAYER THE BENCH RULES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfC99LrrM2Q&feature=player_embedded

Sotomayor fits precisely with Obama's campaign promise that he will push for greater gun control measures. http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/sotomayor-and-the-second-amendment/ And she won't be able to easily dismiss her anti-second amendment position taken in her law school thesis Deadly Obsession: American Gun Culture. In fact, despite having the benefit of last year's Supreme Court's decision in District of Columbia v. Heller, upholding an individual's right to bear arms and striking down a decades-old ban on firearms in Washington, D.C., Sotomayor ruled in Maloney v. Cuomo, 554 F.3d 56 (2009) that the Second Amendment only applied to the federal government, in effect giving state governments greater freedom to regulate weapons. That case may be headed for the Court next year.She also served on the board of LatinoJustice PRLDEF, one of the racial grievance groups that helped to sink the judicial nomination of Honduran-born Miguel Estrada in 2003. http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/2258598/posts.Sotomayor also is apparently not the first Hispanic nominee to SCOTUS - Cardozo was, and he was appointed by a Republican.
http://www.openmarket.org/2009/05/26/sotomayor-not-first-hispanic-justice-cardozo-was/
Posted by: zmarshall at May 27, 2009 3:56 PM

SOTOMAYOR AND THE SECOND AMENDMENT
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009 5:46 pm | Lyle Denniston |

Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, already facing bitter criticism from gun rights advocates for an appeals court decision she joined last January, may have to choose whether to take part when the constitutional issue at stake comes up before the Supreme Court (assuming that she is confirmed). As of now, the first case in line on that issue is the one on which she ruled as a judge of the Second Circuit Court — Maloney v. Cuomo.The Maloney decision (Second Circuit docket 07-581) involves the next major issue on the Constitution’s Second Amendment, which guarantees a right to keep and bear arms.The issue is whether that Amendment applies to state and local government, thus restricting their power to control individuals’ private possession of pistols and other guns. The Supreme Court ruled last year, in District of Columbia v. Heller, that the Amendment protects an individual right to have a gun, for self-defense, in the home.The Court, however, did not settle whether the Amendment operates against any level of government other than the federal government and a federal entity, the District of Columbia. The Second Circuit, in the Maloney case, ruled that prior Supreme Court precedent saying that the Amendment only applied at the federal level is still binding law. Sotomayor was a member of a three-judge panel that issued the unsigned ruling.In reaction to her nomination, supporters of broad rights under the Second Amendment exploded.For example, Curt Levey, executive director of the conservative advocacy group, Committee for Justice, wrote: Now every red and purple state Democratic senator who considers voting for Sotomayor will be forced to explain to his constituents why he’s supporting a nominee who thinks those constituents don’t have Second Amendment rights.Because they can send red state Democrats running for cover, gun owners are the one interest group that could completely change the political equation on judicial nominations if they’re drawn into the debate. Obama’s selection of Sotomayor makes that virtually certain.

The Maloney case is now scheduled to be challenged in the Supreme Court by June 26. Sotomayor, as a Justice, almost certainly would take herself out of consideration of that case, because of her prior participation in it at the Circuit Court.Other cases raising the same question, however, are moving along in lower courts, and it is possible that the Justices may see more of those, perhaps over the summer months. If that happens, the Court may have other vehicles to choose from, thus perhaps giving Sotomayor a chance to get involved.The Ninth Circuit Court in April became the first federal appeals court to rule that the Second Amendment does apply to state and local government — thus assuring the kind of Circuit split that often leads the Supreme Court to step in to resolve the dispute.The Ninth Circuit did so in the case of Nordyke, et al., v. King (Circuit docket 07-15763). Although there was a chance that the Nordyke case could be appealed soon to the Supreme Court, in time to compete with the Maloney case for the Court’s attention on the Second Amendment question, that prospect dimmed last week. A judge of the Ninth Circuit called for a vote on whether the full en banc Court should consider the case. Both sides were ordered to file simultaneous briefs on that question by June 8 — thus slowing down the pace of that case.Another case on the same issue involves the leader of the Nation’s gun rights forces — the National Rifle Association. Its lawsuit seeking to have the Second Amendment apply to state and local government (National Rifle Association v. City of Chicago) was heard Tuesday by a three-judge panel of the Seventh Circuit Court (docket 08-4241). An early decision is expected in that case; indications at the oral argument were that two of the judges were deeply skeptical of the NRA’s plea (see this analysis by law professor Randy Barnett at the Volokh Conspiracy blog. Thanks to Howard Bashman of How Appealing blog for this link.)Another Second Amendment case moving toward a decision, in the Fifth Circuit Court, does not involve the question of applying the Second Amendment to states, counties and cities. But it does test whether the right recognized by the Supreme Court is a fundamenal one; if it is of that rank, that very likely would lead to its application to state and local government. (The Fifth Circuit case is Bledsoe v. U.S., docket 08-51217. Briefing was completed in March. Both sides have waived oral argument.)

If Sotomayor as a member of the Supreme Court does take part in the next round on the Second Amendment, it is unclear just what difference that would make. She would replace retiring Justice David H. Souter, who dissented in the Court’s 5-4 ruling in Heller establishing a personal right to have a gun in the home.If the same five Justices who made up the Heller majority were to rule that the Amendment reaches below the federal government, Sotomayor’s vote probably would not be decisive. She could bolster a majority, if she were so inclined, in favor of the broader application, of course.

PERSECUSSION,BEHEADINGS

JESUS PERSECUTED BIGTIME

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

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

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

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

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

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

WE ARE CHRISTIANS WE WILL BE TREATED THE SAME.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Couple: County Trying To Stop Home Bible Studies UPDATED: 7:43 am PDT May 28, 2009

SAN DIEGO -- A local pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a San Diego County official, who then threatened them with escalating fines if they continued to hold bible studies in their home, 10News reported.Attorney Dean Broyles of The Western Center For Law & Policy was shocked with what happened to the pastor and his wife.Broyles said, The county asked, Do you have a regular meeting in your home? She said, Yes.Do you say amen? Yes.Do you pray? Yes.Do you say praise the Lord? Yes.The county employee notified the couple that the small bible study, with an average of 15 people attending, was in violation of county regulations, according to Broyles.

Broyles said a few days later the couple received a written warning that listed unlawful use of land and told them to stop religious assembly or apply for a major use permit -- a process that could cost tens of thousands of dollars.For churches and religious assemblies there's big parking concerns, there's environmental impact concerns when you have hundreds or thousands of people gathering. But this is a different situation, and we believe that the application of the religious assembly principles to this bible study is certainly misplaced,said Broyles.News of the case has rapidly spread across Internet blogs and has spurred various reactions.Broyles said his clients have asked to stay anonymous until they give the county a demand letter that states by enforcing this regulation the county is violating their First Amendment right to freely exercise their religion.

Broyles also said this case has broader implications.

If the county thinks they can shut down groups of 10 or 15 Christians meeting in a home, what about people who meet regularly at home for poker night? What about people who meet for Tupperware parties? What about people who are meeting to watch baseball games on a regular basis and support the Chargers? said Broyles.Broyles and his clients plant to give the county their demand letter this week.If the county refuses to release the pastor and his wife from obtaining the permit, they will consider a lawsuit in federal court.by 10News.com.

FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU Peace partner set to affirm resistance against Israel Warlike declarations planned at home as Abbas meets Obama today in Washington
May 28, 2009 12:07 pm Eastern By Aaron Klein 2009 WorldNetDaily

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas
JERUSALEM – As Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas prepares to meet President Obama today, back home in the Palestinian territories key members of Abbas' Fatah organization are planning to affirm the armed struggle and resistance against Israel as official Fatah doctrine, WND has learned. The warlike affirmations are slated to be part of Fatah's official objective during a meeting of the party's General Congress slated for as early as next month. But according to Fatah sources speaking to WND, the U.S. has been working feverishly to ensure the Fatah congressional session is postponed. The U.S. considers Fatah to be moderate and has backed Israeli-Palestinian negotiations aimed at creating a Fatah-led Palestinian state.Fatah is making plans to convene the Sixth Fatah General Congress sometime next month. At the meeting, likely to take place in either the West Bank or Jordan, hundreds of voting Fatah members will discuss the future of their party and pass official resolutions outlining Fatah's major objectives.The Congress was last held in 1989 in Tunisia, prior to any Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. At the time, the Congress, led by late Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat, officially resolved continuing to intensify and escalate armed action and all forms of armed struggle to liquidate the Zionist occupation from our occupied Palestinian land and guarantee our people's rights to freedom and independence.Israel had hoped under Abbas and amid intense negotiations that the Sixth Congress would moderate the party's objectives.But senior Farah sources speaking to WND said a list of Fatah resolutions to be voted upon includes text affirming as one of Fatah's main objectives the resistance and armed struggle against the Jewish state. The sources said Abbas and other senior Fatah officials opposed the inclusion of resistance in any resolution to be called for a vote but said that the majority of Fatah members insisted it be incorporated. The sources said it was very likely the resistance clause could be accepted during the congressional meeting by the majority of general Fatah voters, who tend to publicly express more radical views than Abbas. But the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem has been working to postpone the Congress and to back Fatah leaders who would push for the exclusion of the resistance clause.

According to information reaching WND from a top Fatah official, the U.S. has pressured Egypt, Jordan and Algeria against hosting the Fatah congress, making it likely the event will instead be held in the West Bank. Also, U.S. funds recently transferred to Fatah strongman Mahmoud Dahlan were meant to enhance an internal Fatah campaign to ensure against voting for resistance against Israel. On board with that campaign are Fatah's old guard leaders, such as Dahlan, Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat and former Palestinian prime minister Ahmed Qurei. Still, throngs of Fatah voters support the resolution, according to Fatah sources. In Washington, Abbas is set to meet Obama, where the two will reportedly emphasize a repackaged 2002 Saudi plan, also known as the Arab Initiative, that calls for Arab countries to normalize relations with Israel in exchange for extreme territorial concessions. Following scores of denials he would trumpet the plan, Obama in January hailed the Arab initiative. In an interview with an Arab television network – his first formal interview as president – Obama stated: Well, here's what I think is important. Look at the proposal that was put forth by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. ... I might not agree with every aspect of the proposal, but it took great courage to put forward something that is as significant as that. I think that there are ideas across the region of how we might pursue peace. I do think that it is impossible for us to think only in terms of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and not think in terms of what's happening with Syria or Iran or Lebanon or Afghanistan and Pakistan.Since then, Obama and his team have trumpeted the plan several more times, including during a meeting last month with Jordan's Abdullah.The Arab Initiative, originally proposed by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and later adopted by the Arab League, states that Israel would receive normal relations with the Arab world in exchange for a full withdrawal from the entire Gaza Strip, West Bank, Golan Heights and eastern Jerusalem, which includes the Temple Mount.

The West Bank contains important Jewish biblical sites and borders central Israeli population centers, while the Golan Heights looks down on Israeli civilian zones and was twice used by Syria to mount ground invasions into the Jewish state. The Arab plan also demands the imposition of a non-binding U.N. resolution that calls for so-called Palestinian refugees who wish to move inside Israel to be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date.Palestinians have long demanded the right of return for millions of refugees,a formula Israeli officials across the political spectrum warn is code for Israel's destruction by flooding the Jewish state with millions of Arabs, thereby changing its demographics.When Arab countries attacked the Jewish state after its creation in 1948, some 725,000 Arabs living within Israel's borders fled or were expelled from the area that became Israel. Also at that time, about 820,000 Jews were expelled from Arab countries or fled following rampant persecution.

While most Jewish refugees were absorbed by Israel and other countries, the majority of Palestinian Arabs have been maintained in 59 U.N.-run camps that do not seek to settle the Arabs elsewhere. There are currently about 4 million Arabs who claim Palestinian refugee status with the U.N., including children and grandchildren of the original fleeing Arabs, Arabs living full-time in Jordan and Arabs who long ago emigrated throughout the Middle East and to the West. Abbas, meanwhile, has said he would work to change sections of the plan to better fit Israel's security needs. King Abdullah of Jordan made a similar pledge. Abbas' meeting with Obama comes amid disagreement between the U.S. and Israel over Jewish construction in the strategic West Bank.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had made clear he will press ahead with housing construction in the territory despite a blunt demand from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that all such building stop.WND reported earlier this week the Obama administration wants to abrogate a secret deal that President Bush made to allow Israel to construct homes in previously existing West Bank Jewish communities.The matter is ongoing and is subject to current talks with the U.S. administration,said a source in Netanyahu's office.

Obama presses Israel, Palestinians on West Bank By BEN FELLER, Associated Press Writer MAY 28,09

WASHINGTON – Gingerly trying to advance Mideast peace, President Barack Obama on Thursday challenged Israel to stop settlement construction in the West Bank on the same day the Israelis rejected that demand. Obama pushed Palestinians for progress, too, deepening his personal involvement.I am confident that we can move this process forward,Obama said after meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the White House. The president said that means both sides must meet the obligations that they've already committed to — an element of the peace effort that has proved elusive for years.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told The Associated Press after the session with Obama that no meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are on the horizon. He said there are no preconditions for such a meeting but obligations on Israel through the so-called road map for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Abbas said he is meeting his commitments under the road map and that Israel should do the same. He cited continued settlement construction as a commitment Israel is not meeting.Earlier in the day, Israel rejected blunt U.S. requests to freeze Jewish settlement construction in the West Bank, a territory that would make up the Palestinian state, along with the Gaza Strip, as part of a broader peace deal.In strong language, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton had said Wednesday that Obama wants a halt to all settlement construction, including natural growth.Israel uses that term for new housing and other construction that it says will accommodate the growth of families living in existing settlements.Israeli spokesman Mark Regev responded Thursday by saying some construction would go on.Normal life in those communities must be allowed to continue,he said, noting Israel has already agreed not to build new settlements and to remove some tiny, unauthorized settler outposts. Regev said the fate of the settlements would be determined in peace negotiations with the Palestinians.With that as a backdrop, Obama said part of Israel's obligations include stopping settlements.But he also struck a hopeful tone.

He said he had pressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the settlement matter just last week at the White House, and that the Israeli leader needs to work through the issue with his own government.I think it's important not to assume the worst, but to assume the best,Obama said.The president also pushed Palestinians to hold up their end, including increased security in the West Bank to give Israelis confidence in their safety.Obama said he told Abbas the Palestinians must find a way to halt the incitement of anti-Israeli sentiments that are sometimes expressed in schools, mosques and public arenas.All those things are impediments to peace,Obama said.The Palestinian leader said we are fully committed to all of our obligations under the road map. Doing so, Abbas said, is the only way to achieve the durable, comprehensive and just peace that we need and desire in the Middle East.Obama, like predecessor George W. Bush, embraces a multifaceted Mideast peace plan that calls for a Palestinian state alongside Israel.The president refused to set a timetable for such a nation but also noted he has not been slow to get involved in meeting with both sides and pushing the international community for help.We can't continue with the drift, with the increased fear and resentment on both sides, the sense of hopelessness around the situation that we've seen for many years now,Obama said.We need to get this thing back on track.Abbas is working to repackage a 2002 Saudi Arabian plan that called for Israel to give up land it has occupied since the 1967 war in exchange for normalized relations with Arab countries. Abbas gave Obama a document that would keep intact that requirement and also offer a way to monitor a required Israeli freeze on all settlement activity, a timetable for Israeli withdrawal and a realization of a two-state solution.The main purpose of presenting this document to President Obama is to help him in finding a mechanism to implement the Arab peace initiative,Abbas told the AP.

Asked about his impression of the meeting with Obama, Abbas said: It was a serious and open meeting and President Obama seems determined on what he has said to us and to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu about the necessity of implementing the road map, and we have agreed to continue our communications.Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Obama affirmed to Abbas that Israel has an obligation to freeze settlement expansions, including natural growth. The U.S. and much of the world consider the settlements an obstacle to peace because they are built on captured land the Palestinians claim for a future state. But successive U.S. administrations have done little to halt settlement activity. Now more than 120 settlements dot the West Bank, and Palestinian officials say their growth makes it increasingly impossible to realize their dream of independence. More than 280,000 Israelis live in the settlements, in addition to more than 2 million Palestinians in the West Bank. An additional 180,000 Israelis live in east Jerusalem, where the Palestinians hope to establish their capital. Israelis will be anxiously watching Obama's June 4 speech in Cairo, where he will deliver a message to the Muslim world to try to repair relations that frayed badly under the Bush administration. Obama will also visit Saudi Arabia before he goes to Egypt. I want to use the occasion to deliver a broader message about how the United States can change for the better its relationship with the Muslim world,Obama said of his Egypt speech.That will require, I think, a recognition on both the part of the United States as well as many majority Muslim countries about each other, a better sense of understanding, and I think possibilities to achieve common ground.Associated Press writers Steven R. Hurst, Mohammed Daraghmeh, traveling with Abbas, and Amy Teibel in Jerusalem contributed to this story.

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

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

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

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

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

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

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS FRI MAY 29,2009

09:30 AM +2.54
10:00 AM +24.27
10:30 AM +29.15
11:00 AM +19.75
11:30 AM +1.51
12:00 PM -31.98
12:30 PM -3.03
01:00 PM -14.18
01:30 PM +1.51
02:00 PM +11.07
02:30 PM +10.83
03:00 PM -3.02
03:30 PM +13.03
04:00 PM +96.53 8500.33

S&P 500 919.14 +12.31

NASDAQ 1774.33 +22.54

GOLD 980.30 +17.10

OIL 66.31 +1.23

TSE 300 10,415.54 +23.17

CDNX 1124.08 +18.92

S&P/TSX/60 635.47 +1.28

MORNING,NEWS,STATS

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE
Dow -4.25%
S&P +0.40%
Nasdaq +11.08%
TSX Advances 999,declines 576,unchanged 259,Volume 2,763,658,266.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 470,Declines 345,Unchanged 376,Volume 267,490,199.

Dow +31 points at 4 minutes of trading today.
Dow +2 points at low today.
Dow +32 points at high today so far.
GOLD opens at $975.90.OIL opens at $66.02 today.

AFTERNOON,NEWS,STATS
Dow -36 points at low today so far.
Dow +59 points at high today so far.

DAY TODAY PERFORMANCE - 12:30PM STATS
NYSE Advances 2,144,declines 1,422,unchanged 104,New Highs 22,New Lows 54.
Volume 2,873,203,791.
NASDAQ Advances 1,321,declines 1,269,unchanged 138,New highs 32,New Lows 14.
Volume 1,004,539,285.
TSX Advances 827,declines 586,unchanged 257,Volume 1,560,262,484.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 392,Declines 299,Unchanged 319,Volume 193,119,120.

WRAPUP,NEWS,STATS
Dow -36 points at low today.
Dow +118 points at high today.
Dow +1.15% today Volume 361,734,018.
Nasdaq +1.29% today Volume -.
S&P 500 +1.36% today Volume N/A

RECORD LOWS DOW
-Sept 30,1996 5,882.17
-Oct 30,1996 5,993.23
-Nov 6,1996 6,177.71
-Dec 16,1996 6,268.35
-Apr 15,1997 6,587.16
-Apr 21,1997 6,660.21
-Apr 28,1997 6,783.02
-May 1,1997 6,976.48
-May 7,1997 7,085.65

RECORD LOWS S&P 500
-Sept 5,1996 649.44
-Sept 6,1996 655.68
-Sept 11,1996 667.28
-Sept 12,1996 671.13
-Oct 1,1996 689.08
-Oct 28,1996 697.26
-Nov 4,1996 706.73
-Nov 5,1996 714.14
-Dec 17,1996 726.04

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE,WEEKENDER
Dow -3.15%
S&P +1.76%
Nasdaq +12.51%
CANADAS WEEK ENDING STATS
TSX Advances 1,025,Declines 578,Unchanged 241 Volume 2,856,374,953.
TSX Venture Advances 528,Declines 358,Unchanged 381 Volume 365,203,772.

VIDEO IMF REGIONAL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK FOR EUROPE
http://www.imf.org/external/mmedia/view.asp?eventID=1493
VIDEO IMF REGIONAL OUTLOOK IN THE MEDITERREAN UNION
http://www.imf.org/external/mmedia/view.asp?eventID=1489
WERE ARE WWE IN THE GLOBAL CRISES
http://www.imf.org/external/mmedia/view.asp?eventID=1474

GIVE THE OIL ANOTHER MONTH OR 2 AT THE MOST I BELIEVE BEFORE THE PRICES SKYROCKET FOR GOOD SINCE THE BILDERBERGS HAVE KEPT IT LOW TO BANKRUPT THE ARAB COUNTRIES,THEN THEY CAN SKYROCKET THE OIL AND GO FOR THEIR MAIN GOAL THE WATER AND THE CARBON TAX TO BE PAID TO THE EU,IMF OFF SHORE BANKERS WHICH WILL LEAD TO THE 10 REGIONS OF THE WORLD AND EU WORLD CONTROL.

Oil dips below $65 after jump on stocks data By Fayen Wong - MAY 28,09

PERTH (Reuters) – Oil fell below $65 a barrel on Friday but was on track for its largest monthly percentage gain in more than a decade after government data showed a surprisingly sharp drop in U.S. crude inventories and OPEC left output steady.Oil prices have jumped nearly 27 percent this month, buoyed by hopes of a global economic recovery later this year and a bullish price outlook from OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia.

U.S. crude oil for July delivery fell 35 cents to $64.73 a barrel by 0255 GMT. The contract, which has risen about 5 percent this week, settled up 2.6 percent at $65.08 on Thursday, a new six-month high.London Brent crude fell 39 cents to $64.00.Oil lost a bit of ground this morning but it's still trading at very high levels,said David Moore, a commodities analyst at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.The market seems to be focusing strong on the bullish sentiment and the brighter macroeconomic outlook, but it's a little doubtful whether the demand fundamentals can continue to support oil prices at such levels.Japanese industrial production rose 5.2 percent in April on a monthly basis, and the government expected continued gains through June.

Better U.S. durable goods orders out on Thursday also reinforced the sense that the global economic slump might be abating, despite a disappointing U.S. home sales report and lingering concerns over mounting Western government debt.Another bright spot was U.S. crude stocks, which fell by 5.4 million barrels in the week to May 22, the U.S. Energy Administration said, way above analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 700,000 barrel decline, as refiners ramped up output ahead of the summer driving season.Gasoline inventories also dropped for the fifth week in a row as demand rose in the week preceding the Memorial Day holiday, which traditionally marks the start of the summer driving season in the U.S.

OPEC's decision to hold production steady helped prop up prices.

The producer group on Thursday kept its output targets unchanged as the market had expected, betting on a strengthening world economy and tentative signs of increased demand.Analysts said Saudi Arabia's rare forecast this week that oil prices could reach $75 a barrel later this year represented a distinct policy shift from the world's largest oil producer, which has until recently been hinting that it would be happy with a lower price to help the world economy back on its feet.Taken in this light, Saudi's statement clearly represents a policy shift from a priority on the economy to a view that higher prices are not something that Saudi Arabia will stand in the way of,JP Morgan's energy analyst, Lawrence Eagles, said in a note.Investors will be keeping a close watch on economic data due later, including U.S. first-quarter preliminary GDP figures and Reuters/University of Michigan May consumer sentiment.(Editing by Ben Tan)

Manipulation: How Financial Markets Really Work
Stephen Lendman Global Research May 29, 2009

Wall Street’s mantra is that markets move randomly and reflect the collective wisdom of investors. The truth is quite opposite. The government’s visible hand and insiders control markets and manipulate them up or down for profit - all of them, including stocks, bonds, commodities and currencies. Catherine Austin Fitts describes a "financial coup d’etat, including fraudulent housing (and other bubbles), pump and dump schemes, naked short selling, precious metals price suppression, and active intervention in the markets by the government and central bank" along with insiders.

It’s financial fraud or what former high-level Wall Street insider and former Assistant HUD Secretary Catherine Austin Fitts calls pump and dump,defined as artificially inflating the price of a stock or other security through promotion, in order to sell at the inflated price,then profit more on the downside by short-selling. This practice is illegal under securities law, yet it is particularly common,and in today’s volatile markets likely ongoing daily. Why? Because the profits are enormous, in good and bad times, and when carried to extremes like now, Fitts calls it pump(ing) and dump(ing) of the entire American economy,duping the public, fleecing trillions from them, and it’s more than just a process designed to wipe out the middle class. This is genocide (by other means) - a much more subtle and lethal version than ever before perpetrated by the scoundrels of our history texts.Fitts explains that much more than market manipulation goes on. She describes a financial coup d’etat, including fraudulent housing (and other bubbles), pump and dump schemes, naked short selling, precious metals price suppression, and active intervention in the markets by the government and central bank along with insiders. It’s a government-business partnership for enormous profits through legislation, contracts, regulation (or lack of it), financing, (and) subsidies.More still overall by rigging the game for the powerful, while at the same time harming the public so cleverly that few understand what’s happening.

Market Rigging Mechanisms - The Plunge Protection Team

On March 18, 1989, Ronald Reagan’s Executive Order 12631 created the Working Group on Financial Markets (WGFM) commonly known as the Plunge Protection Team (PPT). It consisted of the following officials or their designees:
– the President;
– the Treasury Secretary as chairman;
– the Fed chairman;
– the SEC chairman; and
– the Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman.

Under Sec. 2, its Purposes and Functions were stated as follows:

(2)Recognizing the goals of enhancing the integrity, efficiency, orderliness, and competitiveness of our Nation’s financial markets and maintaining investor confidence, the Working Group shall identify and consider:
(1)the major issues raised by the numerous studies on the events (pertaining to the) October 19, 1987 (market crash and consider) recommendations that have the potential to achieve the goals noted above; and
(2)governmental (and other) actions under existing laws and regulations….that are appropriate to carry out these recommendations.

In August 2005, Canada-based Sprott Asset Management (SAM) principals John Embry and Andrew Hepburn headlined their report on the US government’s surreptitious market interventions: Move Over, Adam Smith - The Visible Hand of Uncle Sam to prevent destabilizing stock market declines. Comprising key government agencies, stock exchanges and large Wall Street firms,this group is significant because the government has never admitted to private-sector membership in the Working Group, nor is it hinting that manipulation works both ways - to stop or create panic. Current mythology holds that (equity) prices rise and fall on the basis of market forces alone. Such sentiments appear to be seriously mistaken….And as official rhetoric continues to toe the free market line, manipulation has become increasingly apparent….with the active participation of selected investment banks and brokerage houses - the Wall Street giants. In 2004, Texas Hedge Report principals Steven McIntyre and Todd Stein said Almost every floor trader on the NYSE, NYMEX, CBOT and CME will admit to having seen the PPT in action in one form or another over the years - violating the traditional notion that markets move randomly and reflect popular sentiment. Worse still, according to SAM principals Embry and Hepburn,the government’s unwillingness to disclose its activities has rendered it very difficult to have a debate on the merits of such a policy,if there are any. Further, virtually no one ever mentions government intervention publicly….Our primary concern is that what apparently started as a stopgap measure may have morphed into a serious moral hazard situation.Worst of all, if government and Wall Street collude to pump and dump markets, individuals and small investment firms can get trampled, and that’s exactly what happened in late 2008 and early 2009, with much more to come as the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression plays out over many more months. That said, the PPT might more aptly be called the PPDT - The Plunge Protection/Destruction Team, depending on which way it moves markets at any time. Investors beware.

Manipulating markets is commonplace and as old as investing. Only the tools are more sophisticated and amounts involved greater. In her book, Morgan: American Financier, Jean Strouse explained his role in the Panic of 1907, the result of stock market and real estate speculation that caused a market crash, bank runs, and hysteria. To restore confidence, JP Morgan and the Treasury Secretary organized a group of financiers to transfer funds to troubled banks and buy stocks. At the time, rumors were rampant that they orchestrated the panic for speculative profits and their main goals:

– the 1908 National Monetary Commission to stabilize financial markets as a precursor to the Federal Reserve; and
– the 1910 Jekyll Island meeting where powerful financial figures met in secret for nine days and created the private banking cartel Federal Reserve System, later congressionally established on December 23, 1913 and signed into law by Woodrow Wilson. Morgan died early that year but profited hugely from the 1907 Panic. It let him expand his steel empire by buying the Tennessee Coal and Iron Company for about $45 million, an asset thought to be worth around $700 million. Today, similar schemes are more than ever common in the wake of the global economic crisis creating opportunities to buy assets cheap by bankers flush with bailout cash. Aided by PPT market rigging, it’s simpler than ever. Wharton Professor Itay Goldstein and Said Business School and Lincoln College, Oxford University Professor Alexander Guembel discussed price manipulation in their paper titled Manipulation and the Allocational Role of Prices.They showed how traders effect prices on the downside through bear raids,and concluded:We basically describe a theory of how bear raid manipulation works….What we show here is that by selling (a stock or more effectively short-selling it), you have a real effect on the firm. The connection with real value is the new thing….This is the crucial element,but they claim the process only works on the downside, not driving shares up. In fact, high-volume program trading, analyst recommendations, positive or negative media reports, and other devices do it both ways.Also key is that a company’s stock price and true worth can be highly divergent. In other words, healthy or sick firms may be way-over or under-valued depending on market and economic conditions and how manipulative traders wish to price them, short or longer term.The idea that equity prices reflect true value or that markets move randomly (up or down) is rubbish. They never have and more than ever don’t now.

The Exchange Stabilization Fund (ESF)

The 1934 Gold Reserve Act created the US Treasury’s ESF. Section 7 of the 1944 Bretton Woods Agreements made its operations permanent. As originally established, the Treasury ran the Fund outside of congressional oversight to keep sharp swings in the dollar’s exchange rate from (disrupting) financial markets through manipulation. Its operations now include stabilizing foreign currencies, extending credit lines to foreign governments, and last September to guaranteeing money market funds against losses for up to $50 billion. In 1995, the Clinton administration used the fund to provide Mexico a $20 billion credit line to stabilize the peso at a time of economic crisis, and earlier administrations extended loans or credit lines to China, Brazil, Ecuador, Iceland and Liberia. The Treasury’s web site also states that: By law, the Secretary has considerable discretion in the use of ESF resources. The legal basis of the ESF is the Gold Reserve Act of 1934. As amended in the late 1970s….the Secretary (per) approval of the President, may deal in gold, foreign exchange, and other instruments of credit and securities.In other words, ESF is a slush fund for whatever purposes the Treasury wishes, including ones it may not wish to disclose, such as manipulating markets, directing funds to the IMF and providing them with strings to borrowers as the Treasury’s site explains: Treasury has often linked the availability of ESF financing to a borrower’s use of the credit facilities of the IMF, both to support the IMF’s role and to strengthen assurances that there will be timely repayment of ESF financing.

The Counterparty Risk Management Policy Group (CRMPG)

Established in 1999 in the wake of the Long Term Capital Management (LTCM) crisis, it manipulates markets to benefit giant Wall Street firms and high-level insiders. According to one account, it was to curb future crises by:
– letting giant financial institutions collude through large-scale program trading to move markets up or down as they wish;
– bailing out its members in financial trouble; and
– manipulating markets short or longer-term with government approval at the expense of small investors none the wiser and often getting trampled.

In August 2008, CRMPG III issued a report titled Containing Systemic Risk: The Road to Reform.It was deceptive on its face in stating that CRMPG was designed to focus its primary attention on the steps that must be taken by the private sector to reduce the frequency and/or severity of future financial shocks while recognizing that such future shocks are inevitable, in part because it is literally impossible to anticipate the specific timing and triggers of such events.In fact, the private sector creates financial shocks to open markets, remove competition, and consolidate for greater power by buying damaged assets cheap. Financial history has numerous examples of preying on the weak, crushing competition, socializing risks, privatizing profits, redistributing wealth upward to a financial oligarchy, creating tollbooth economies in debt bondage according to Michael Hudson, and overall getting a free lunch at the public’s expense.

CRMPG explains financial excesses and crises this way: At the end of the day, (their) root cause….on both the upside and the downside of the cycle is collective human behavior: unbridled optimism on the upside and fear on the downside, all in a setting in which it is literally impossible to anticipate when optimism gives rise to fear or fear gives rise to optimism….What is needed, therefore, is a form of private initiative that will complement official oversight in encouraging industry-wide practices that will help mitigate systemic risk. The recommendations of the Report have been framed with that objective in mind.In other words, let foxes guard the henhouse to keep inventing new ways to extract gains (a free lunch) in increasingly larger amounts - in the interest of helping to contain systemic risk factors and promote greater stability.Or as Orwell might have said: instability is stability, creating systemic risk is containing it, sloping playing fields are level ones, extracting the greatest profit is sharing it, and what benefits the few helps everyone.Michel Chossudovsky explains that: triggering market collapse(s) can be a very profitable undertaking. (Evidence suggests) that the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulators have created an environment which supports speculative transactions (through) futures, options, index funds, derivative securities (and short-selling), etc. (that) make money when the stock market crumbles….foreknowledge and inside information (create golden profit opportunities for) powerful speculators able to move markets up or down with the public none the wiser. As a result, concentrated wealth and financial power resulting from market manipulation is unprecedented with small investors’ savings, IRAs, pensions, 401ks, and futures being decimated from it.

Deconstructing So-Called Green Shoots

Daily the corporate media trumpet them to lull the unwary into believing the global economic crisis is ebbing and recovery is on the way. Not according to longtime market analyst Bob Chapman who calls green shoots Poison Ivy and economist Nouriel Roubini saying they’re yellow weeds at a time there’s lots more pain ahead. For many months and in a recent commentary he refers to the worst financial crisis, economic crisis and recession since the Great Depression….the consensus is now becoming optimistic again and says that we are going to go from minus 6 percent growth to positive growth in the second half of the year….my views are much more bearish….The problems of the financial system are severe. Many banks are still insolvent.We’re piling public debt on top of private debt to socialize the losses; and at some point the back of (the) government(’s) balance sheet is going to break, and if that happens, it’s going to be a disaster.Short of that, he, Chapman, and others see the risks going forward as daunting. As for the recent stock market rise, they both call it a sucker’s rally that will reverse as the US economy keeps contracting and the financial system suffers unexpected or manipulated shocks. Highly respected market analyst Louise Yamada agrees. As Randall Forsyth reported in the May 25 issue of Barron’s Up and Down Wall Street column: It is almost uncanny the degree to which 2002-08 has tracked 1932-38, Yamada writes in her latest note to clients.Her Alternate Hypothesis compares this structural bear market to 1929-42:
– the dot-com collapse parallels the Great Crash and its aftermath,followed by the 2003-07 recovery, similar to 1933-37;
– then the late 2008 - early March 2009 collapse tracks a similar 1937-38 trajectory, after which a strong rally followed much like today;
– then in November 1938, the market dropped 22% followed by a 26% rise and a series of further ups and downs - down 28%, up 23%, down 16%, up 13%, and a final 29% decline ending in 1942;
– from the 1938 high (analogous to where we are now,she says), stock prices fell 41% to a final bottom.

Are we at one today as market touts claim? No according to Yamada - top-ranked among her peers in 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004 when she worked at Citigroup’s Smith Barney division. Since 2005, she’s headed her own independent research company. She says structural bear markets typically last 13 - 16 years so this one has a long way to go before complet(ing) the repair process. She calls the current rebound a bungee jump, very typical of bear markets. Numerous ones occurred during the Great Depression, 8 alone from 1929 - 1932, some deceptively strong. Expect market manipulators today to produce similar price action going forward - to enrich themselves while trampling on the unwary, well-advised to protect their dollars from becoming quarters or dimes.

Germany to hold further talks on Opel takeover MAY 28,09

BERLIN (AFP) – German officials were to hold further talks Friday to try to clinch a rescue deal for General Motors' Opel unit ahead of an expected bankruptcy filing, even after talks with Washington broke down in acrimony.Chancellor Angela Merkel was expected to hold further negotiations in the afternoon with the US government, GM and the two bidders still in the race to snap up a stake in Opel: Italian car giant Fiat and Canadian auto parts maker Magna.German officials remained confident of reaching a deal despite the marathon talks, aimed at finding a suitable buyer for Opel and a financing structure for temporary loans from the German government, stalling when the US side suddenly upped their demand for loans by 300 million euros (416 million dollars).I am very confident that a deal can be reached, said Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Thursday, adding that he would call his US counterpart, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, to discuss the issue.Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck also said he was sure that a solution could be found to secure GM's European operations and tens of thousands of jobs across Europe.But the surprise US move prompted furious reactions, with Steinbrueck slamming the US negotiating tactics as scandalous and Economy Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg saying the talks were at times absurd.Opel's powerful works council described the breakdown in talks as a bitter setback and accused GM of treating Opel as a chip in the poker game of their own insolvency.The United States rebuffed the charges. We believe it was a constructive dialogue,a US government official told reporters by telephone in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity.We would strongly resist the notion that the US government was either uninterested... or trying to make any last-minute math. None of that is true.The negotiators are racing against a June 1 deadline set by US President Barack Obama's administration for General Motors to come up with a rescue plan or be forced into bankruptcy like Chrysler before it.In a key development on Wednesday, GM transferred assets and patents to Opel in a bid to keep them safe in the event of a GM bankruptcy.And in a dramatic 11th-hour move on Thursday, a proposed bankruptcy reorganisation plan was unveiled, which would give the US government a 72.5percent stake in GM, a regulatory filing showed.

Fiat and Magna remained in the race after a third bidder, Brussels-based investment firm RHJ International, pulled out during the talks.Magna's offer, backed by Russia's state-owned bank Sberbank, is still seen as the front runner, with unions and centre-left Social Democrat members of the governing coalition backing it.For its part, Fiat wants to combine General Motors' European and Latin American operations with Chrysler, in which it has secured a 20-percent stake, to create the world's second largest automaker after Japan's Toyota.Chancellor Angela Merkel is under pressure from all sides to find a way to break the deadlock, with some 25,000 German jobs at stake just four months before a national election.GM employs 55,000 people Europe-wide, including around 7,000 in Spain, 4,700 in Britain at Vauxhall, 4,000 in Sweden at Saab, 3,600 in Poland, 2,600 in Belgium and 1,800 in Italy.Although the final decision on the fate of GM's European operations lies with Detroit and Washington, Germany has a key role to play as it will provide billions of euros in loan guarantees to a suitable bidder.Analyst Christoph Stuermer from Global Insight said he was confident a deal would be thrashed out on Friday and added Fiat would have to match an offer by Magna to provide the missing 300 million euros.

SELECTIVE QUESTIONS TO Transcript of a Press Briefing by Caroline Atkinson, Director, External Relations, International Monetary Fund Washington, D.C.Thursday, May 21, 2009

QUESTION: Could you update us on the latest state of play with the IMF bond issue? What do we know about the details? And will there be a secondary market?

MS. ATKINSON: As you know, a number of countries indicated, and China I think was one at the time of the Spring Meetings, and maybe even before, that they were interested in investing if you like or providing financing to the Fund in line with G-20 commitments in the form of bonds, using bonds as a vehicle. We do have the legal authority to issue SDR-denominated bonds. The Executive Board has been briefed on that possibility. And at the moment we are discussing and we're in quite intensive discussions with different creditors about the best ways to implement this legal possibility and framework and how much they would be in place. But until we have specific firm commitments, as soon as we have specific firm commitments and details nailed down, we will of course let you know, but until then we won't go into more specifics now.

QUESTION: As everyone knows, there is a crucial debate in Washington, taking place at the U.S. Congress, for the IMF's future. I know the IMF will not comment on domestic policies, but aren't you afraid of any consequences it might have if the Congress were not to pass this legislation?

MS. ATKINSON: As you know, the U.S. authorities have requested Congress to pass the legislation. I believe that they're working hard to win approval of the legislation, and so we look forward to that outcome. I think there has been some significant progress, but of course it's essential that the U.S. should support it, but I think we also note that there have been strong efforts. The President has written a letter to Congress and so on.

QUESTION: As a follow-up to that, the U.S. pledged about $100 billion for the IMF during the G-20 meeting. If this money doesn't come through, is there concern that that would be a hindrance, or it would make it difficult for other countries then to follow through on their pledges if there's already going to be this $100 billion gap?

MS. ATKINSON: That's a hypothetical question. As I say, we are looking forward to there being progress and certainly observe that the U.S. authorities are pressing strongly for there to be such progress. I'm not going to go further than that.

QUESTION: Is there a timeline for this money? Is there a timeline for the IMF to get these commitments and get firm commitments and get the money in this account? The second question is since the IMF meetings, what are the main priorities now for the Fund to get done considering what the G-20 agreed and just generally expanding its role?

MS. ATKINSON: On the first, first of all, we have $100 billion loan from Japan that is already in place and we also have a number of other commitments. We have another $100 billion commitment from the European Union countries, we have commitments from Norway and from Canada. Korea has said that they plan to contribute at least $10 billion to the NAB, Australia also [US$7 billion], and Switzerland. So there are a number of commitments apart from the $100 billion or so from the U.S.As you also know, the NAB, the vehicle that the U.S. would plan to use, would provide for backstop financing. And we are hopeful that this money will be coming in place, I'm not saying anything different now from what the Managing Director has said, in coming months. It's important to get the money in order to provide security and confidence to markets, but also to be sure that we can fund the requests that we've had. But we are in a position now where we're able to fund obviously the commitments that we have, so it's important to keep going. We're not about to run out of money now.On your second question, there is a whole range, and I think the last time I was here I'd spoken about the pretty full agenda that we have following the Spring Meetings. Obviously the NAB financing is one element. The NAB participants met and they are planning to meet again. Once they've agreed to expand the NAB, that is something that the Board would take up. There are all of the matters involving the gold sales and quota reform and everything that is in various stages of approval. In countries there's the bond issue that we're looking at. We're continuing to do a lot of intensive work on low-income countries. And of course we're discussing with many countries in these difficult economic times in our normal Article IV, in financial stability assessment missions and in our program and lending missions. So there's sort of a lot going on.

QUESTION: Just one more, a follow-up from the bond question. You said that not much more progress can be made until there are firm commitments. Were you referring to countries needing to make firm commitments to want to participate in the purchase of these bonds or is it creditors committing to this process?

MS. ATKINSON: I'm sorry. That sounds as if I gave a misleading answer. There's lots of work and lots of progress going on. The kind of work that's going on is discussions at the moment that we are having with different creditors and different creditor countries about the nature of the bonds that they would find appropriate to provide their financing. And we will make an announcement once we have specific information on that, but there is progress going on all the time.

QUESTION: I just want to double-check. How many countries have expressed interest in the bond? We've seen Brazil, Russia, China, India. Are there half a dozen or a dozen? Is there any way you can just give us an idea?

MS. ATKINSON: I don't know. You mentioned countries. There have been a number of countries that have expressed interest and of course others that may be watching and haven't yet expressed interest but we think will. And we expect there to be a significant amount of take-up in interest and that may be in particular a way that -- some of the G-20 countries that aren't part of the NAB, for example, have indicated that they might be interested in joining the NAB. Maybe they'd be wanting to do that through bonds rather than loans. We'd be very flexible on that within, obviously, our rules, but we are able to issue these bonds. So I think there will be fairly widespread interest in doing that.

QUESTION: The IMF staff said recently that it's possible for Ukraine to ask for additional money from the IMF. Is this a new program or an extension of the current one?

MS. ATKINSON: I believe the Mission Chief has announced that the mission will look at financing needs during the second review. We have just completed the first review. That was in early May. And then there will be a second review coming up after that where we will look at everything as usual.Thank you all very much.

Britons increasingly Eurosceptic: poll Thu May 28, 5:41 pm ET

LONDON (AFP) – British voters are increasingly opposed to the European Union, a poll for the Economist weekly revealed Thursday, just days before elections for the European Parliament.The poll commissioned by YouGov shows that over the past 25 years, the proportion of people who think that Britain's membership of the EU is a good thing has fallen from 43 percent to 31 percent.The share of respondents who think the EU is a bad thing has risen from 30 percent to 37 percent.And while the bloc has expanded eastwards to boost its membership to 27 states, British voters have become more and more reluctant to support greater integration. Just one in five backs the idea now compared to one in three in 1995.The poll shows 33 percent want a less integrated Europe with the EU amounting to little more than a free trade area.And the number of people who want Britain to pull out of the EU has almost doubled, from 12 percent to 21 percent.A total of 2,322 adults in Britain were questioned between May 22 and May 26.Many observers believe Britons will opt for fringe parties in the elections to lodge a protest vote against the main parties, whose lawmakers have been embarrassed by damaging revelations about their expenses.

In the June 4-7 elections, an estimated 375 million voters across the EU will elect 736 deputies for a five-year term at the parliament, which is the only directly-elected EU institution.The parliament, which has an important role passing pan-European legislation drafted by the EU Commission and passes the commission's annual budget, is expected to remain under centre-right control after the elections.

Irish EU vote seen as litmus test by Loic Vennin – MAY 28,09

DUBLIN (AFP) – Recession-racked Ireland faces a test of its support for the European Union (EU) in next week's Euro elections, ahead of a crunch referendum on the EU's beleaguered reform treaty.The former Celtic Tiger's EU partners will be watching closely as embattled Prime Minister Brian Cowen seeks to convince his countrymen that they need the EU more than ever as the downturn hits hard.Ireland's voters plunged the 27-nation bloc into limbo when 53.4 percent of them rejected the Lisbon treaty in a referendum here in June 2008.After obtaining a series of guarantees, including on retaining a European commissioner for Ireland, Dublin has agreed to organise a new vote, likely in October -- and it is a vote Cowen's government cannot afford to lose.

Irish voters will join an estimated 375 million voters across the 27-nation EU when on June 5 they elect 736 members of the European Parliament, the only directly-elected EU institution which as one of its functions passes the EU Commission's budget.The campaigns for and against the Lisbon treaty will not start until after that poll -- but the referendum is already on everybody's lips.A second no result would be damaging to our international reputation and our economic prospects, warned foreign minister Micheal Martin last week, welcoming signs of growing support for the treaty.A poll published in mid-May found 52 percent of voters back Lisbon compared to 29 percent against it.Analysts have attributed this change to the deep recession, predicted by the country's leading think tank to be the worst in any industrialised country since the 1930s.Looking to the referendum, Martin said: If ever there was a time for Ireland to unequivocally confirm our commitment to the European Union, this is that time.Our future wellbeing requires that we copper-fasten our position at the heart of the European Union,he added, noting the European Central Bank has made remarkable amounts of liquidity available to Ireland's financial system.

But although the economic crisis may have strengthened support for Europe and the treaty, it has severely dented the government's popularity.While Ireland's neighbours have tried to boost growth through fiscal stimulus, Dublin has imposed austerity budgets including higher taxes and a cut in social spending -- sparking a equally tough response from voters.A poll for the Irish Times two weeks showed support for Cowen's ruling coalition had plunged to 10 percent, the lowest since the survey began in 1982.A political earthquake is offing,the Times said, predicting a triple defeat next month in the European elections, and the local elections and two Dublin by-elections that take place on the same day.In the by-elections, Cowen's centrist Fianna Fail party is expected to come in a humiliating third place, a result that would not threaten the government's comfortable majority but would seriously damage its credibility.It would be the party's worst result since 1922, said the Irish Examiner, and would lead to suggestions that the government doesn't have the people's mandate, according to the Sunday Business Post.The opposition Fine Gael party has already said it will table a motion of no confidence against Cowen's government if the defeat is as bloody as predicted. The government will continue,Cowen has insisted, rejecting calls to bring forward general elections which are not due until 2012.Analysts say Cowen's government is likely to survive, at least in the short-term -- but they are unsure if it could take another hit in the event of voters rejecting the Lisbon treaty for a second time.

Socialists list terrible potential MEPs
HONOR MAHONY 28.05.2009 @ 17:28 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - In a provocative move ahead of next week's EU vote, the Party of European Socialists have listed a selection of terrible European election candidates from other political parties.The list, published on Thursday (28 May), contains eight nominees from the centre-right European people's party, one from the liberal group, a Dutch politician and the head of the far-right British National Party, Nick Griffin.A twelfth space has been left for the Dear Reader to fill in.

There seems to be no fixed criteria for appearing on the list, and the reasons given differ in length, content and seriousness.Mr Griffin, on the list due to his having been convicted for incitement to racial hatred and Holocaust denial, appears alongside Romania's Monica Macovei, a former minister of justice, who is down for being a perpetual critic of the justice reform pace in Romania and being a controversial person.Centre-right Czech MEP Hynek Fajmon is listed for having voted against the European Parliament's report on future EU policy on climate change. He is quoted as saying The earth's climate has changed, is changing and will change regardless of whether or not we want it to.Meanwhile, Peter Stastny, a Slovak centre-right MEP and former ice hockey player, makes an appearance for initiating a monitoring group for Slovakia in the European People's Party which gave the impression that Slovakia lacks a democratic system of government and does not respect human and citizen rights.Three quotes form the backbone of Polish centre-right politician Marian Krzalewski's inclusion, including: The [Polish] constitution is worse than the Soviet invasion.French social affairs minister Brice Hortefeux, running for the centre-right European People's Party, is listed for calling immigrants neither honest or clean, while Estonia's Igor Gräzin's sin was signing up to establish anti-treaty movement Libertas as a group as well as apparently making comments against the Finnish.I know many nice Finns and some of them are even politicians. I truly love to be with them in a sauna or a forest ranger's home. But when it comes to policies, I have always a feeling that it is better to look over your shoulder, all the time,he is quoted as saying by the document.Meanwhile, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who heads the list for his centre-right party in all five electoral regions but has no intention of actually becoming an MEP is criticised for having been put on trial at least six times over financial matters and for his control over the media.

Nothing positive

The blurb at the beginning of the small pamphlet says the PES is not criticising the candidates but their views.It says the people listed will contribute nothing positive to the European Parliament.PES spokesperson Julian Scola told EUobserver there was no specific criteria for inclusion. This is just a selection of candidates. Some of the views are offensive and some may be considered absurd.We're hoping to spark an interest in the European allies of some of the parties that people may or may not vote for.He said the party was not comparing the politicians to one another and there's no attempt to link them whatsoever.However, the move may prove controversial and raise questions about who was included on the list and why. Putting Ms Macovei on the list, for example, could give a boost to the head of Romania's Socialist delegation, Adrian Severin, who has for a long time tried to discredit her in Europe.

For its part, the EPP dismissed the move as an attention-grabbing stunt.Instead of debating the serious issues that European citizens are concerned with, the PES has resorted to cheap populism,said the head of the EPP, Wilfried Martens.The centre-right has been predicted to hold on to majority in the parliament after the 4-7 June elections, while the Socialists are expected to maintain their place as second biggest faction in the EU assembly.

CAP AND TRADE (WORLD TAX) COMES TO ONTARIO

CANADA IS NOT JUST GETTING THE WORLD CARBON TAX BUT THE U.S WILL BE READY TO BRING THEIR TROOPS IN OUR COUNTRY AS WELL.I'D SAY WE HAVE A DICTATORSHIP AS WELL.OBAMAS DICTATORSHIP IS CATCHING ON.

New rule puts U.S. Coast Guard in Canadian waters
Updated Tue. May. 26 2009 9:15 PM ET CTV.ca News Staff

Canada and the U.S. signed an agreement Monday designed to increase border security by allowing the RCMP and the U.S. Coast Guard to team up and ride in each others' vessels during border patrols.Known as the Shiprider program, the new rules intend to improve security and eliminate jurisdictional grey areas in Canada-U.S. waterways. Without the new program, vessels must stop at the border and call upon the other country's officials for help.The Shiprider program has been used as a pilot program over the past few years to catch smugglers and criminals on joint waterways.Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan and his U.S. counterpart, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, signed the agreement Tuesday at a cargo facility at the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Detroit and Windsor, Ont.Van Loan said the pact shouldn't be viewed as Americans encroaching on the jurisdiction of Canada because it's a joint effort between both countries.And he stressed that security and trade between the two countries can be mutually beneficial.

Because of the integration of our North American economies ... effective management of the border is essential to the health of both of our countries' economies, said Van Loan.Talks between the two officials are set to continue this week in advance of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which comes into effect June 1. The initiative means Canadians will need to show their passports, NEXUS cards or enhanced driver's licences when entering the U.S.Napolitano, who stirred controversy a few weeks ago when she suggested the 9-11 terrorists entered the U.S. through Canada, said the U.S. wants to partner with Ottawa to ensure the safety of the continent.

She said boosting security doesn't mean closing ourselves off from other countries --it means working together as neighbors and allies.We have to be able to share information ... and put more security at the border, which helps us keep track of what is going back and forth,she said.Van Loan and Napolitano have agreed to meet twice every year, along with other high-level officials, to discuss border issues.

While Napolitano has since clarified her 9-11 comments and said the terrorists responsible for the attacks did not enter the U.S. through Canada, she has maintained that other terror suspects have crossed south over the border.Napolitano has also criticized Canada for being too lax at the border, saying federal regulations did not go far enough.Still, according to former diplomat Paul Frazer, Canadians shouldn't be alarmed by the prospect of foreign officers policing Canada's waters.It's not a one way kind of operation,he told CTV's Power Play from Washington on Tuesday.Frazer stressed that the new plan is a quid-pro-quo deal for Canada.You will have Canadian authorities aboard American boats, going into American waters, and the reverse coming into Canadian waters.With files from The Canadian Press.

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

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

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

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

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

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

ISRAEL-EU RELATIONS
http://ec.europa.eu/external_relations/israel/index_en.htm

EU sketches out conditions for upgrade with Israel
ANDREW RETTMAN Today MAY 28,09 @ 09:07 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU will at a meeting with Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman next month sketch out three conditions for upgrading relations, according to a draft declaration seen by EUobserver. The text says that the meeting in Brussels on 15 June confirms the great importance the European Union is attaching to its relations with Israel and its readiness to continue strengthening our bilateral relationship.But it does not give any timetable for implementing a formal upgrade in bilateral ties, envisaged before Israel launched Operation Cast Lead in Gaza in December.The omission effectively continues a freeze imposed on the project by Israeli-critical EU countries, such as Belgium, Sweden and Portugal, which feel that the upgrade would give an untimely endorsement to Israel's hawkish new government.Instead, the declaration spells out three main obstacles standing in the way of closer relations: Israel's refusal to sign up to a two-state solution, the continuing expansion of Jewish settlements and the Gaza blockade.The EU clearly stated that the upgrading of relations with Israel should serve the purpose of pursuing the common objectives and interests of both parties,it says.Our common interests and objectives include the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through implementation of the solution based on two states.The [EU] is deeply concerned by the recent increase in settlement activities, house demolitions and evictions in the Palestinian territories, especially in East Jerusalem,it adds.

Reconstruction and economic recovery of the Gaza Strip require permanent opening of the border crossings for the delivery of humanitarian aid.Between 500 and 700 truck-loads of aid need to get into Gaza every day to help maintain basic living conditions, but Israel lets in just 100 or so, an EU diplomat explained.The seven-page EU declaration was drafted by the Czech EU presidency on 20 May and could be changed at any moment in the run-up to the 15 June meeting.Israel's ambassador to the EU, Ran Curiel, downplayed the importance of any prickly public EU statement, saying the main value of the event will lie in Mr Lieberman's personal introduction to EU officials.He will probably say Israel has offered and is offering to upgrade relations with the EU,Mr Curiel told this website.He will say what he has to say about settlements and Israel's position on other issues inside the room.The ambassador noted that EU-Israel relations remain vibrant, especially at bilateral level, despite the lack of progress on the upgrade.The current governments of Germany, France, the UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania are on the Israeli-friendly side. Belgium, Sweden, Portugal, Spain, Ireland, Greece and Cyprus are more critical, however.The draft EU declaration also urges a complete and unconditional stop of attacks against Israeli territory by Palestinian militia.It takes a firm line on Iran, condemning threats toward Israel by the Iranian government and any denial of the Holocaust as a historical fact.The text supports the Israeli narrative that militant movements such as Hizbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza are proxies for foreign powers.Iran should stop its support to violent groups in the region and use its influence in order to encourage them to follow a non-violent approach.

Israel rebuffs US call for total settlement freeze By MATTI FRIEDMAN, Associated Press Writer – Thu May 28, 9:42 am ET

JERUSALEM – Israel defied a surprisingly blunt U.S. demand that it freeze all building in West Bank Jewish settlements, saying Thursday it will press ahead with construction.U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday that President Barack Obama wants Israel to halt to all settlement construction — including natural growth. She was referring to Israel's insistence that new construction is necessary to accommodate the expansion of families already living in existing settlements.Government spokesman Mark Regev responded by saying normal life in those communities must be allowed to continue.He confirmed that this meant some construction will continue in existing settlements.The new conflict with Washington came on the same day Obama was to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the White House. Abbas has said the Palestinian demand for freezing settlements will be at the top of his agenda in the talks.Obama's administration has been more explicit in its criticism of Israeli settlement policy than its predecessor. The U.S. and much of the world consider the settlements an obstacle to peace because they are built on land the Palestinians claim for a future state.More than 280,000 Jewish settlers live among more than 2 million Palestinians in the West Bank.Regev said the fate of existing settlements will be determined in peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. He said Israel has pledged to build no new settlements and to remove unauthorized outposts in the West Bank.While Israel could flout U.S. opposition, it is wary of picking a fight with its closest and most important ally.Israeli officials proposed a compromise earlier this week. In exchange for removing some 22 outposts, they would ask the U.S. to permit new construction in existing settlements. Clinton's remarks followed that proposal.

But even the limited step of removing outposts faces stiff opposition from the Israeli right. Settler news site Arutz Sheva reported Thursday that leading rabbis linked to the settlement movement had issued a call to soldiers to disobey orders to demolish the outposts.The holy Torah (scripture) prohibits taking part in any act of uprooting Jews from any part of our sacred land,the site quoted the rabbis' statement as saying.The new Israeli and the U.S. leaders have strikingly different approaches to Israeli-Palestinian relations. Netanyahu refuses to endorse Palestinian independence, a notion supported by Obama, his predecessor and the previous Israeli government.Clinton said Obama told Netanyahu last week when the two met at the White House that the U.S. sees stopping settlements as key to a peace deal that would see a Palestinian state created alongside Israel.He wants to see a stop to settlements — not some settlements, not outposts, not natural growth' exceptions, Clinton said. We think it is in the best interests (of the peace process) that settlement expansion cease. That is our position. That is what we have communicated very clearly. ... And we intend to press that point.The U.S. and many other Western countries have been dealing with Abbas, who leads the Palestinian Authority from the West Bank, while mostly shunning the militant Islamic Hamas group that controls the Gaza Strip.Hamas took over Gaza nearly two years ago after routing Abbas' forces in bloody street battles. Repeated attempts to reconcile between the two bitter rivals have failed to yield any results.A senior Hamas militant was killed Thursday by Israeli forces in the West Bank city of Hebron after a 14-year manhunt.The Israeli military said they surrounded the militant's house and called on him to surrender, but he instead opened fire at soldiers who shot back and killed him. The military said the wanted man, Abed Majid Daodin, 45, had recruited and dispatched suicide bombers, including two who killed 10 Israelis and wounded over 100 when they blew themselves up on commuter buses in 1995.Daodin was jailed by the Palestinian Authority after the bombings but was set free after violence erupted between Israel and the Palestinians in 2000. Hamas vowed to avenge the militants death.

SINS OF PEOPLE

2 TIMOTHY 3:1-5
1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

DECIEVERS WAXING WORSE AND WORSE.

2 TIMOTHY 3:13
13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

MORE SIN SIGNS

EPHESIANS 5:5-8
5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.
7 Be not ye therefore partakers with them.
8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

Economic crisis damaging human rights, report says
ELITSA VUCHEVA Today MAY 28,09 @ 09:16 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – Human rights violations remained widespread across the world in 2008, including Europe, with the global economic crisis not only aggravating the existing problems, but creating new ones as well, human rights group Amnesty International's yearly report released on Thursday (28 May) shows.The global economic crisis is an explosive human rights crisis. A combination of social, economic and political problems has created a time bomb of human rights abuses [across the world], said Irene Khan, the group's secretary general.There are growing signs of political unrest and violence, adding to the global insecurity that already exists because of deadly conflicts which the international community seems unable or unwilling to resolve. In other words: we are sitting on a powder keg of inequality, injustice and insecurity, and it is about to explode,she wrote in the introduction to Amnesty's report on the situation of human rights in the world.The crisis, which has been widely qualified as the worst in many decades, has brought recession to many parts of the world and left many people out of work.Subsequently, protests took place in several countries worldwide, but the protests were often met with tough responses, the report notes. We may well end up in a situation where recession could be accompanied by greater repression as beleaguered governments – particularly those with an authoritarian bent – clamp down harshly on dissent, criticism and public exposure of corruption and economic mismanagement,Ms Khan wrote.

Roma targeted

The study also found that the crisis had increased the deprivation and the stigmatisation of certain communities – such as the Roma, as well as diverted governments' intention from human rights problems and has had a negative impact on their immigration and asylum policies.Roma have remained largely excluded from public life in all countries, unable to enjoy full access to housing, education, employment and health services. The adverse economic situation seemed to provide fertile ground for old stereotypes of Roma to be exploited by elements hostile to them, the document said.Several European countries – Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy, Serbia – recorded serious cases of ill treatment of people of Roma origin and practically none has noted an improvement in that respect.In Europe, the Roma face the most profound and systematic discrimination and marginalisation, excluded from public life, segregated in schools and ghettos, facing hostility and violence.

Harder immigration policies

The economic downturn has also started to show a tendency for a tougher policy towards refugees, asylum seekers and migrants.Last year borders pushed outwards from Europe into Africa as countries like Spain and Italy signed agreements with Mauritania and Libya to stop people from entering Europe, and such agreements act as a license for more human rights violations in the transit countries,Ms Khan warned.

An Italian move to return migrants rescued at sea to Libya without proper examination of their protections needs is against the country's obligations under refugee law and sets a dangerous precedent for EU member states.Meanwhile in Greece, despite new legislation on the asylum process and conditions of reception of migrants, the treatment of irregular migrants and asylum-seekers continued to violate international standards,the report said.

A call for new global deal on human rights

In the face of a worsening human rights situation worldwide, the EU itself remains ambivalent on its commitment to human rights,Amnesty concluded.Europe too often lacked political leadership to ensure the protection of human rights in the region, with many of its states also lacking the political will to live up to their obligations,it went on.The organisation urges the EU to shoulder its responsibility in fighting against discrimination, poverty and insecurity and calls on governments worldwide to act to set up a new global deal on human rights.The world doesn't need another treaty, the world doesn't need any more paper promises – what it needs is real commitment and concrete action from governments,Amnesty says.

EUROPEAN UNION ARMY

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

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

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

REVELATION 19:19
19 And I saw the beast,(EU LEADER) and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse,(JESUS) and against his army.(THE RAPTURED CHRISTIANS)

Sarkozy opens France's first Gulf military base By BRIAN MURPHY, Associated Press Writer – Tue May 26, 4:23 pm ET

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates – French President Nicolas Sarkozy opened his nation's first military base in the Gulf Tuesday, boosting the naval presence along strategic oil routes and in pirate-infested waters off the Somali coast.The new naval base outside the United Arab Emirates' capital, Abu Dhabi, is France's first major foreign military installation since the 1960s and its first outside Africa. It is expected help safeguard vital Persian Gulf shipping lanes. It also puts France in position to play a higher profile role in calming the growing tensions between Iran and Gulf Arab states.Some of the most pressing missions, however, may come off the coast of Somalia. Pirates have expanded their assaults on ships in the Gulf of Aden farther into the Indian Ocean. Somali pirates have attacked more than 80 ships this year alone in the Gulf of Aden, and successfully hijacked about 30 of them.The United States remains the major foreign military presence in the Persian Gulf with key air bases, logistics operations and the headquarters of the 5th Fleet in Bahrain.At a ceremony Tuesday, Sarkozy watched the French and UAE flags being raised over the naval base as forces from both nations stood at attention.

France is also seeking a bigger role in the region's culture and business.

Sarkozy's two-day trip includes a visit to the future site of a branch of the Louvre. The arm of the French art museum will be part of a cultural and residential district being built in Abu Dhabi. The city also hosts a branch of France's Sorbonne University, and is set to receive outposts of New York University and the Guggenheim Museum.In light of all these new projects, Sarkozy called the oil-rich UAE a laboratory for globalization.He is pushing a deal for the UAE to purchase twin-engined Rafale fighter jets and supports the Emirates' push to develop civilian nuclear power plants.Nuclear power is not the sole prerogative of Western states, Sarkozy said.President Barack Obama approved plans for the U.S. to help the UAE become the first Arab nation with a nuclear power industry last week, though Congress could still try to block the deal. U.S. companies are expected to compete against ones from France, Japan and Russia for a share of the $41 billion project.In a speech to French military personnel and diplomats, Sarkozy also focused on the importance of economic stability, urging oil-rich nations and industrial powers to work to stabilize world oil prices. He noted that the global economy cannot afford major price swings while it works to recover from the economic downturn.Sarkozy did not give a target price range, but he said he wanted to work with the Emirates, an OPEC member, and others to lower volatility in oil markets.The French president said high prices undermine growth, but low prices sow the seeds of future shocks by discouraging investment in other investment technologies, including nuclear power.

Oil prices have rebounded significantly from lows near $30 a barrel earlier this year, but remain about 60 percent below the record $147 level they hit last July. Crude now sells at about $60 a barrel — above the level the UAE needs to balance its budget but below what some fellow OPEC members consider to be a fair price.Sarkozy's visit also sought to forge strategic commercial alliances between one of Abu Dhabi's government-backed investment vehicles and France's newly created strategic investment fund.

NATO, Russia want foreign ministers meeting By SLOBODAN LEKIC, Associated Press Writer MAY 27,09

BRUSSELS – Political ties between NATO and Russia are gradually improving following the break caused by the Russo-Georgian war, but a ministerial meeting is needed to pave the way for military cooperation, officials said Wednesday.NATO deputy spokeswoman Carmen Romero said that ambassadors from NATO's 28 nations and Russia's envoy to the alliance were determined to hold a meeting of foreign ministers as soon as logistically possible.The ambassadors met on Wednesday within the framework of the NATO-Russia Council, a panel set up to improve cooperation between the former Cold War foes.Russia's NATO envoy Dmitry Rogozin described the meeting as constructive and forward-looking.Discussions were focused on giving new stimulus and quality to our joint work,he said.Moscow and NATO have sought in recent months to improve ties that were frozen after Russia's war with Georgia last August.A meeting of foreign ministers had been scheduled in April, but tensions soared again over the expulsion of two Russian diplomats for alleged spying and the retaliatory move by Moscow which expelled two NATO officials. Moscow also strongly objected to a NATO military exercise in Georgia, and the planned ministerial talks were called off.Rogozin said that although both sides were now determined to move forward on issues where they had shared interests — such as Afghanistan, anti-piracy efforts and disarmament — the meeting of foreign ministers was needed to endorse any formal military-to-military cooperation between Russia and NATO.

Russia has allowed NATO nations to use its road and rail networks to transport military supplies to Afghanistan, after the alliance's main supply chain through Pakistan came under repeated attack by pro-Taliban guerrillas.Although the main transport line has not been cut, NATO commanders say they need alternate routes to ensure that logistical supplies will continue to flow through uninterrupted.

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.

Small chance of tropical cyclone in Atlantic: NHC Wed May 27, 8:37 am ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A tropical cyclone has a small chance of forming in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the Carolinas before moving north into colder ocean waters, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Wednesday.The NHC gave the system less than a 30 percent chance of developing into a tropical storm over the next 48 hours.If, however, the system does strengthen into a tropical storm with winds of 39 to 73 miles per hour, it would be named Ana, the first named storm of the Atlantic season which runs from June 1 to November 30.The NHC said an Air Force reconnaissance aircraft would investigate the system this afternoon if necessary.Most weather models forecast the system would remain a couple hundred miles offshore in the Atlantic as it moves north along the east coasts of the U.S. and Canada over the next several days.None of the weather models projected the system would reach the U.S. oil and gas producing region in the Gulf of Mexico.Energy traders watch for storms that could enter the Gulf of Mexico and threaten U.S. oil and natural gas platforms and refineries along the coast.Commodities traders likewise watch storms that could hit agriculture crops like citrus and cotton in Florida and other states along the coast to Texas.(Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by John Picinich)

Storm blacks out parts of Dallas-Ft Worth area Wed May 27, 8:41 am ET

DALLAS – A severe thunderstorm in Texas has knocked out power to some residents of the Dallas-Fort Worth area.A spokeswoman for the utility Oncor said Wednesday that 11,000 of its customers were blacked out by lightning and wind.Spokeswoman Jeamy Molina said most of the outages caused by the Tuesday night storm were in the Fort Worth area.There were widespread reports of hail in Fort Worth and surrounding areas.

Cyclone Aila kills nearly 200 in Bangladesh, India By Anis Ahmed – Tue May 26, 3:34 pm ET

DHAKA (Reuters) – Nearly 200 people have been killed by a cyclone that ripped through Bangladesh and eastern India, while millions remained marooned by floodwater or forced to live in shelters.The death toll in Bangladesh rose to more than 130 following recovery of dozens of bodies Tuesday, newspapers and private television channels said, while Indian officials said at least 64 people had died in West Bengal state.Cyclone Aila slammed into parts of coastal Bangladesh and eastern India Monday, triggering tidal surges and flooding that forced people from their homes.Officials in both countries said they feared the death tolls would rise although relief and rescue efforts were being intensified.Millions of people have been affected by the cyclone, with half a million in shelters and another half a million forced from their homes or were marooned,a disaster control official, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters in Dhaka.Officials in Bangladesh moved about 500,000 people to temporary shelters after they left their homes to escape huge tidal waves churned by winds up to 100 kph (60 mph).Heavy rain triggered by the storm also raised river levels and burst mud embankments in the Sundarbans delta in the neighboring eastern Indian state of West Bengal.So far, we have got reports of 64 deaths in the state, including nine deaths in landslides in the Darjeeling hills on Tuesday,West Bengal's chief secretary Ashok Mohan Chakraborty told reporters in Kolkata.In Bangladesh, the worst affected area was the Satkhira district, near the port of Mongla, where a local official said 31 bodies were found in one village.The situation here is alarming,Mohammad Abdus Samad, deputy commissioner of Satkhira, told Reuters by telephone.

CROPS DAMAGED

Large areas of crops were destroyed in both countries by the cyclone, officials said, adding they were assessing the damage.Many farmers have lost their rice just ready to be harvested. Allah has taken it all from me. I have been made a pauper, said Mohar Ali, a farmer.Aila swept many areas still recovering from Cyclone Sidr in November 2007, which killed 3,500 people in Bangladesh and made at least a million homeless.

Bangladesh officials said at least 100 people were missing after Monday's cyclone.

Some aid workers said they feared several hundred people might have been killed by Aila, which followed the less lethal Cyclone Bijli that killed a only few people in April.Army, navy and coastguards were helping civil officials and volunteers to search for the missing and pick up people marooned in hundreds of villages, caught in chest or shoulder-high waters, witnesses said.Continuing rain and wind have slowed our efforts,one official said. Bangladesh's food and disaster management minister, Abdur Razzaque, who visited some of the battered areas Tuesday, said authorities were trying to bring the marooned families to safety and provide them food and shelter.

Witnesses said many cyclone survivors faced a shortage of food and drinking water in areas still under storm surge. In West Bengal, the Indian army and government aid workers Tuesday began an operation to provide relief to more than 400,000 people marooned in the Sundarbans delta region. We have moved two columns, each with 100 personnel, to Sundarbans for relief,said Mahesh Upasani, a defense spokesman. (Additional reporting by Serajul Islam Quadir, Ruma Paul and Nizam Ahmed in Dhaka, Sujoy Dhar in Kolkata and Jatindra Dash in Bhubaneswar; Editing by Alison Williams)

Bangladesh steps up relief operation as cyclone death toll reaches 113
www.chinaview.cn 2009-05-27 23:51:29 by Shams Chowdhury

DHAKA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- As the grim picture of death and destruction from the cyclone Aila-hit southern Bangladesh continued to emerge with official count of 113 deaths so far, rescuers made desperate efforts to reach relief materials to survivors in remote places. Food and Disaster Management Minister Abdur Razzak said at a press conference here on Wednesday evening that the death toll might go up slightly as some more people still remain missing. We've identified 113 bodies so far,he said. The unofficial tally, however, put the death toll at 153 till Wednesday evening. Local people and volunteers working in the affected area fear that the death figure could rise further as they kept spotting bodies in the cyclone-devastated areas. Of the total deaths in some 17 districts, 35 were reported from the worst-hit southwestern Satkhira district, another 35 from southwestern Khulna and 26 from southeastern Noakhali.The cyclone Aila formed in the Bay of Bengal crossed Bangladesh's southwestern coast on Monday afternoon with a speed of 70-90 kilometers per hour, triggering abnormally high tidal surge and heavy rains in the coastal region. This was the biggest natural calamity in Bangladesh after cyclone Sidr battered the country's southwestern coastal belt on Nov. 15, 2007 leaving more than 4,000 dead or missing.The food minister told reporters on Wednesday that 6,665 people were injured and 61,440 domestic animals perished in the cyclone which left more than 3.3 millions people affected. He said some 993,785 people are still staying at different cyclone centers where foods, drinking water and medicines were sent.

Razzak admitted that limited shelter centers virtually increased the death toll and related damage.The Bangladeshi army continued its rescue and relief operations in affected remote areas in the coastal region in close coordination with the local administration.Army medical teams are providing treatment and medicines to the victims. Army troops have established 13 water treatment plants in the cyclone hit areas to provide distilled water to the victims. Air force helicopters transported relief goods and water purification plants to the affected areas where survivors are suffering from lack of food and safe drinking water. According to initial official assessment, standing crops on some 80,667 acres (about 32,670 hectares) of land were damaged completely while partially on 309,327 acres (125,277 hectares). Besides, 179,655 houses were fully damaged and 315,967 were partially damaged. The cyclone fully damaged 641.8 km of roads, 509 km of embankments, 152 bridges and culverts and 341 educational institutions.We've sufficient stock of relief materials. We sent 22.3 million taka (about 318,571 U.S. dollars) in cash to the affected areas,minister Razzak said.Meanwhile, Secretary of the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management Mokhlesur Rahman told Xinhua on Wednesday that around 42,000 volunteers alongside thousands of local government and non-government officials are relentlessly working to help the victims.We've formed a high-powered inter-ministerial committee to assess economic losses due to the cyclone. The committee has been asked to submit its report next week,he said.Rahman said there is no plan to seek foreign assistance for cyclone victims, but adding,We'll gladly welcome if any of our friends comes forward with any support.Editor: Mu Xuequan

SIGNS IN THE SUN, MOON AND STARS

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

Russian capsule blasts off for space station By PETER LEONARD, Associated Press Writer MAY 27,09

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan – A Russian space capsule blasted off Wednesday into the searing hot afternoon skies of Central Asia on a landmark mission to expand the permanent human presence in space.The Soyuz craft carrying Canadian Bob Thirsk, Russian Roman Romanenko and Belgian Frank De Winne soared above Kazakhstan's southern steppe to begin a two-day journey to the international space station — the largest man-made object in the earth's orbit.Hundreds of journalists, relatives, visiting space enthusiasts and dignitaries, including Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium, thronged in and around two rickety wooden viewing stands a mile (1.5 kilometers) away, taking pictures and applauding as the rocket's propulsion system shook the earth.Liftoff was on schedule at 4:34 p.m. local time (1034 GMT; 6:34 a.m. EDT) from the Russian-leased Baikonur cosmodrome, despite fears that windy weather earlier would delay the launch. The capsule is expected to dock with the space station Friday.The three astronauts on the Soyuz will join the three crew members already on the station, forming a six-member permanent crew for the first time.Thirsk's 81-year-old mother, Eva, beamed with delight and her voiced wavered as she spoke of her joy at the successful start to her son's second mission in space.He's doing what he wants to do. And he's so happy about it, and I'm so happy for him,she said.Thirsk, 55, stands to become the first Canadian to spend six months in space, easily outstripping other Canadian astronauts and his own previous 17-day trip on the space shuttle Columbia in 1996.In another first, De Winne, 48, will become the first European Space Agency astronaut to take command of the station when he takes over from Russian Gennady Padalka in October.It is quite an achievement, said Belgium's Philippe.He represents Europe, he represents Belgium, he represents international collaboration for peaceful application of science.Romanenko, 37, is the second Russian to follow his father into space. Yuri Romanenko, who flew as a space commander in the 1970s and 1980s, also attended the launch.

International space officials and astronauts praised it.

The Russians do a magnificent record of taking people to space and back, Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield said.They don't have a launch window, they don't have launch date, they have a launch second.The Soyuz capsule will be hooked to the space station until it is used in the future by astronauts returning to Earth.The newest crew members will further consolidate the international credentials of the space station, which is currently occupied by Padalka, U.S. astronaut Michael Barratt and Japan's Koichi Wakata.Speaking at a news conference on the eve of the launch, De Winne hailed the strengths of the international approach to space exploration.To maintain six people onboard by one single nation in a space station would be impossible,he said.

Experts also say the enlarged crew will allow for greater advances in scientific research.

The kinds of science, the amount of science — all of that is going to be expanded once we get our feet planted with the six people onboard,NASA spokesman Rob Navias said.Canada's space agency has planned a dozen experiments to study the effects of weightlessness on the human body. Equipment for a number of European experiments is awaiting a launch on a shuttle in August. More people in space will also mean more trash, however, and Russian, European and Japanese agencies are mobilizing a range of transportation vehicles to smoothly transfer material to and from the station. Astronauts from the U.S. space shuttle Endeavour worked late last year to remodel and expand the station, delivering a new bathroom, a kitchenette, an exercise machine, two sleeping quarters and a recycling system that converts astronauts' urine and sweat into drinking water. On the Net: NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/shuttle_station (This version CORRECTS Corrects spelling to Navias sted Navius. Other minor edits.)

2ND WAVE CHINA AND KINGS OF THE EAST MARCH TO ISRAEL

REVELATION 16:12
12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.(THIS IS THE ATATURK DAM IN TURKEY,THEY CROSS OVER).

DANIEL 11:44 (2ND WAVE OF WW3)
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)

REVELATION 9:12-18
12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.(IRAQ-SYRIA)
15 And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.(1/3 Earths Population die in WW 3 2ND WAVE)
16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand:(200 MILLION MAN ARMY FROM CHINA AND THE KINGS OF THE EAST) and I heard the number of them.
17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)
18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)

US vows to defend allies amid NKorea bluster MAY 27,09

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Washington stressed its resolve to defend Asian allies Wednesday, warning North Korea against saber-rattling and bluster in the wake of its nuclear test will only deepen the country's isolation.The US reiterated commitments to defend Japan and South Korea amid threats from Pyongyang's leaders, who are apparently angered at the fallout from its recent nuclear and missile tests.I want to underscore the commitments the United States has and intends always to honor for the defense of South Korea and Japan,US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.That is part of our alliance commitment that we take very seriously, Clinton said claiming North Korea's actions had contravened pledges it made during six party talks involving Japan, South Korea, Russia, China and Washington.Amid a hail of international condemnation North Korea said it would abandon the truce that ended the Korean war Wednesday and warned it could launch a military attack on the South.The comments, which came two days after the Stalinist state tested an nuclear bomb for the second time, drew further condemnation from the United States -- which vowed to counter any military threat.

(North Korea) has ignored the international community, it has abrogated the obligations it entered into through the six-party talks and it continues to act in a provocative and belligerent manner towards its neighbors,Clinton said.There are consequences to such actions.Her statement came after the regime of Kim Jong-Il had said it could no longer guarantee the safety of US and South Korean ships off its west coast and that the Korean peninsula was veering back towards war.The North's anger was provoked by the South's decision to join a US-led international security initiative, established after the September 11 attacks to stop the spread of weapons of mass destruction

The White House condemned North Korea's response.

We're certainly concerned and take any threat seriously. But my sense is they're trying to get renewed attention through saber-rattling and bluster and threats, said White House spokesman Robert Gibbs.Threats won't get North Korea the attention it craves. Their actions are continuing to further deepen their own isolation, from the international community,Gibbs told reporters.This is the fifth time in 15 years that they've sought to nullify the armistice governing the Korean War, said Gibbs, adding: I think their actions would be better focused on living up to their rights and obligations.The United States and its allies are doing all that we can to ensure North Korea is not spreading nuclear know-how, said the spokesman.But amid the bluster, Clinton offered a diplomatic olive branch to Pyongyang, leaving open its return to the negotiating table.There will be an opportunity for North Korea to come back into a framework of discussion within the six party process and that we can begin once again to see results from working with the North Koreans toward denuclearization.

NKorea threatens to attack US, SKorean warships By HYUNG-JIN KIM, Associated Press Writer MAY 27,09

SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea threatened military action Wednesday against U.S. and South Korean warships plying the waters near the Koreas' disputed maritime border, raising the specter of a naval clash just days after the regime's underground nuclear test.In Washington, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton warned that Pyongyang faced unspecified consequences because of its provocative and belligerent acts.Pyongyang, reacting angrily to Seoul's decision to join an international program to intercept ships suspected of aiding nuclear proliferation, called South Korea's decision tantamount to a declaration of war.Now that the South Korean puppets were so ridiculous as to join in the said racket and dare declare a war against compatriots, North Korea is compelled to take a decisive measure, the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea said in a statement carried by state media.The North Korean army called it a violation of the armistice the two Koreas signed in 1953 to end their three-year war, and said it would no longer honor the treaty.South Korea's military said Wednesday it was prepared to respond sternly to any North Korean provocation.Clinton said there are consequences to such actions, referring to discussions in the United Nations meant to punish North Korea for its nuclear and missile tests.She also underscored the firmness of the U.S. treaty commitment to defend South Korea and Japan, U.S. allies in easy reach of North Korean missiles.

North Korea's latest belligerence comes as the U.N. Security Council debates how to punish the regime for testing a nuclear bomb Monday in what President Barack Obama called a blatant violation of international law.Ambassadors from the five permanent veto-wielding council members — the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France —as well as Japan and South Korea were working out the details of a new resolution.The success of any new sanctions would depend on how aggressively China, one of North Korea's only allies, implements them.It's not going too far to say that China holds the keys on sanctions, said Kim Sung-han, an international relations professor at Seoul's Korea University.South Korea, divided from the North by a heavily fortified border, had responded to the nuclear test by joining the Proliferation Security Initiative, a U.S.-led network of nations seeking to stop ships from transporting the materials used in nuclear bombs.Seoul previously resisted joining the PSI in favor of seeking reconciliation with Pyongyang, but pushed those efforts aside Monday after the nuclear test in the northeast.North Korea warned Wednesday that any attempt to stop, board or inspect its ships would constitute a grave violation.The regime also said it could no longer promise the safety of U.S. and South Korean warships and civilian vessels in the waters near the Korea's western maritime border.They should bear in mind that the (North) has tremendous military muscle and its own method of strike able to conquer any targets in its vicinity at one stroke or hit the U.S. on the raw, if necessary,the army said in a statement carried by state media.The maritime border has long been a flashpoint between the two Koreas. North Korea disputes the line unilaterally drawn by the United Nations at the end of the Koreas' three-year war in 1953, and has demanded it be redrawn further south. The truce signed in 1953 and subsequent military agreements call for both sides to refrain from warfare, but doesn't cover the waters off the west coast.North Korea has used the maritime border dispute to provoke two deadly naval skirmishes — in 1999 and 2002. On Wednesday, the regime promised unimaginable and merciless punishment for anyone daring to challenge its ships.

Pyongyang also reportedly restarted its weapons-grade nuclear plant, South Korean media said.The Chosun Ilbo newspaper said U.S. spy satellites detected signs of steam at the North's Yongbyon nuclear complex, an indication it may have started reprocessing nuclear fuel. The report, which could not be confirmed, quoted an unidentified government official. South Korea's Yonhap news agency also carried a similar report.The move would be a major setback for efforts aimed at getting North Korea to disarm.North Korea had stopped reprocessing fuel rods as part of an international deal. In 2007, it agreed to disable the Yongbyon reactor in exchange for aid and demolished a cooling tower at the complex.The North has about 8,000 spent fuel rods which, if reprocessed, could allow it to harvest 13 to 18 pounds (six to eight kilograms) of plutonium — enough to make at least one nuclear bomb, experts said. North Korea is believed to have enough plutonium for at least a half dozen atomic bombs.Further ratcheting up tensions, North Korea test-fired five short-range missiles over the past two days, South Korean officials confirmed. Russia's foreign minister said world powers must be firm with North Korea but take care to avoid inflaming tensions further.The world "must not rush to punish North Korea just for punishment's sake,Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, adding that Russia wants a Security Council resolution that will help restart stalled six-nation talks over North Korea's nuclear programs and will not provoke Pyongyang into even more aggressive activity.South Korean President Lee Myung-bak urged officials to remain calm in the face of North Korean threats, said Lee Dong-kwan, his spokesman.

Pyongyang isn't afraid of any repercussions for its actions, a North Korean newspaper, the Minju Joson, said Wednesday. It is a laughable delusion for the United States to think that it can get us to kneel with sanctions, it said in an editorial. We've been living under U.S. sanctions for decades, but have firmly safeguarded our ideology and system while moving our achievements forward. The U.S. sanctions policy toward North Korea is like striking a rock with a rotten egg.Associated Press writer Steve Gutterman in Moscow and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

China military build-up seems U.S.-focused: Mullen
Mon May 4, 2009 9:56pm BST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China's build-up of sea and air military power funded by a strong economy appears aimed at the United States, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Monday.Admiral Michael Mullen said China had the right to meet its security needs, but the build-up would require the United States to work with its Pacific allies to respond to increasing Chinese military capabilities.They are developing capabilities that are very maritime focused, maritime and air focused, and in many ways, very much focused on us, he told a conference of the Navy League, a nonprofit seamen's support group, in Washington.They seem very focused on the United States Navy and our bases that are in that part of the world.China in March unveiled its official military budget for 2009 of $70.24 billion, the latest in nearly two decades of double-digit rises in declared defense spending.Beijing bristles at criticism, saying its spending is line with economic growth and defense needs, and its budget remains a fraction of the Pentagon's.Mullen acknowledged that every country in the world has got a right to develop their military as they see fit to provide for their own security.But he said the build-up propelled by fast economic growth required the United States and allies or partners like South Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand to work together to figure out a way to work with (China) to avoid miscalculations.Mullen's comments followed remarks by President Barack Obama's top adviser on Asia on Friday calling for high-level talks with the Chinese military to reduce mistrust.

A brief naval clash in March in waters near China underscored that the absence of a sound relationship between our two militaries is a part of that strategic mistrust, said Jeffrey Bader, senior director for Asian affairs at the National Security Council.In that encounter, the U.S. Defense Department said an unarmed U.S. Navy surveillance ship was shadowed and harassed by Chinese ships.(Reporting by Karen Jacobs, writing by Paul Eckert, editing by Alan Elsner)

Netanyahu calls on Arab states to normalize ties By MATTI FRIEDMAN, Associated Press Writer – Wed May 27, 10:19 am ET

JERUSALEM – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday urged Arab countries to make immediate moves toward normalizing ties with Israel and said he would offer concrete steps toward peace with the Palestinians.Netanyahu made the plea during a debate in parliament that came as he tries to balance international pressure to make concessions to the Palestinians with internal calls from within his hardline coalition not to budge.We are prepared to make, and we will make, concrete steps for peace with the Palestinians, he said. We expect the Palestinians to make such concrete steps as well. And it would be good if Arab countries joined the peace effort and made concrete and symbolic steps toward normalization with Israel, not later, but now,Netanyahu said.He mentioned cooperation in economic projects and agriculture but insisted any progress would depend on positive Palestinian actions.

President Barack Obama supports the normalization idea, Netanyahu said, calling it a new and refreshing approach that totally matches our views.Netanyahu, who was at the White House last week, also said that he and Obama agree the Iranian threat could create an opportunity to bring Arab countries together in a coalition of moderates, Netanyahu said.Israel considers Iran a serious danger because of its nuclear program, development of long-range missiles and frequent references by its president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Israel's destruction. Israel dismisses Iran's insistence that its nuclear program is peaceful, charging that the Iranians are building nuclear weapons.

Obama has made clear that his administration supports the creation of a Palestinian state, and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has called for a complete halt to construction in West Bank settlements. The U.S. considers Israel's 121 settlements obstacles to peace, since they are built on territory claimed by the Palestinians.

Netanyahu's policies clash with those of the U.S. on both of those points, raising concerns of a looming rift with Washington.Netanyahu says he is willing to resume peace talks immediately, but has not said he supports the creation of a Palestinian state, a cornerstone of international Mideast peace efforts.Netanyahu also says existing settlements should continue to expand to accommodate natural growth in their populations. He also has ruled out ceding sovereignty in east Jerusalem, which Palestinians want as the capital of a future state. Israel captured the area in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed it.Senator Robert Casey, a Democrat from Pennsylvania heading a Congressional delegation visiting Israel, said Wednesday that the administration's policy over the settlements is still being formulated.Though Obama called for a total construction freeze, Casey said,I think there is a way to meet in the middle, and obviously the articulations and definitions are going to be important. It is too early to prejudge.

Ottawa to seek buyers for AECL nuclear firm: report MAY 28,09

TORONTO (Reuters) – The Canadian government is set to announce on Thursday it will seek buyers for a stake in its Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd nuclear reactor business and bring aboard private-sector management for AECL's ailing Chalk River nuclear facility, a Canadian newspaper said.The Globe and Mail said the aim of the plan, which is to be announced at 11:15 a.m. (1515 GMT) by Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt, is to find a major international partner for AECL to help boost global sales of its Candu reactors.A source familiar with the plan said Ottawa argues the sale of an ownership stake will strengthen AECL and insists that it remains committed to its bid to build new nuclear power plants in the province of Ontario. The sale of a stake in AECL could bring in billions of dollars, the Globe said.Potential buyers include General Electric Co and Canadian firm SNC-Lavalin, the paper added.The plan would see the 60-year-old government-owned firm divided into two companies -- the Candu business, which develops new reactors, and the national research unit at Chalk River, Ontario, which produces a third of the world's medical isotopes.Under the plan, Ottawa would maintain sole ownership of the Chalk River facility.Chalk River, which makes the medical isotopes, was closed earlier this month after a small leak was found in the 50-year-old reactor. Officials said on Wednesday it could be out of operation for three months, but the actual downtime may be much longer.

This has sparked concern over the availability of isotopes.

The isotopes are used in medical research and in some cancer treatments. When injected into the body, they give off radiation that can be imaged with a camera to diagnose cancer, heart disease and other medical conditions.AECL had been working on a new reactor project to produce medical isotopes but the government scrapped it last year, citing huge cost overruns and technical problems.(Reporting by Scott Anderson and David Ljunggren; editing by Peter Galloway)

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

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

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

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

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

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

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS THU MAY 28,2009

09:30 AM +1.25
10:00 AM +47.63
10:30 AM -37.24
11:00 AM +5.50
11:30 AM +31.54
12:00 PM +51.13
12:30 PM -6.69
01:00 PM -24.37
01:30 PM +78.13
02:00 PM +67.54
02:30 PM +116.29
03:00 PM +114.22
03:30 PM +81.80
04:00 PM +103.78 8403.80

S&P 500 906.83 +13.77

NASDAQ 151.79 +20.71

GOLD 959.60 +5.20

OIL 64.78 +1.33

TSE 300 10,392.37 +250.21

CDNX 1105.16 +12.17

S&P/TSX/60 634.19 +16.11

MORNING,NEWS,STATS

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE
Dow -5.43%
S&P -1.13%
Nasdaq +9.77%
TSX Advances 617,declines 918,unchanged 289,Volume 2,450,625,805.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 401,Declines 418,Unchanged 361,Volume 273,246,621.

Dow +63 points at 4 minutes of trading today.
Dow -37 points at low today.
Dow +86 points at high today so far.
GOLD opens at $959.10.OIL opens at $64.02 today.

INVENTORIES
Natural Gas +106 BCF.
Crude Oil -5.4 MILLION Barrels.
Gasoline -600,000 Barrels.
Distillate +300,000 Barrels.

NEXT U.S G-20 MEETING IN PITTSBURGH SEPTEMBER 24-25,2009

AFTERNOON,NEWS,STATS
Dow -37 points at low today so far.
Dow +86 points at high today so far.

DAY TODAY PERFORMANCE - 12:30PM STATS
NYSE Advances 1,942,declines 1,632,unchanged 97,New Highs 10,New Lows 38.
Volume 3,224,558,864.
NASDAQ Advances 1,072,declines 1,494,unchanged 133,New highs 21,New Lows 13.
Volume 997,147,718.
TSX Advances 811,declines 547,unchanged 252,Volume 1,426,688,218.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 310,Declines 276,Unchanged 284,Volume 140,697,141.

HERES A GREAT LINE BY LOU ROCKWELL:THE FEDERAL RESERVE BANKERS ARE LIKE COCKROACHES IN A DARK KITCHEN,THEY CAN'T STAND THE LIGHT.THEY WANT NO ONE TO KNOW THEIR SECRECY.THANK GOODNESS RON PAUL AND 179 MEMBERS ARE TAKING A SWIPE AT GETTING THESE ROBBERS INTO THE LIGHT WERE THE FED CAN BE AUDITED AND HOPEFULLY ABOLISHED.

WRAPUP,NEWS,STATS
Dow -54 points at low today.
Dow +134 points at high today.
Dow +1.25% today Volume 290,734,564.
Nasdaq +1.20% today Volume 2,116,126,896.
S&P 500 +1.54% today Volume N/A

JUNE 2,08 ONTARIO CAP AND TRADE READ
http://ecolibertarian.com/2008/06/02/ontario-and-quebec-do-cap-and-trade/
http://www.premier-ministre.gouv.qc.ca/salle-de-presse/communiques/2008/juin/entente-chang-climatiques-en.pdf

HERE WE GO CANADA THE WORLD CARBON TAX HAS COME HERE,GET READY TO BE ROBBED TO THE NEW WORLD ORDER NUTCASES.

Ontario set to launch cap and trade plan: reports MAY 27,09

TORONTO (Reuters) – The Canadian province of Ontario plans to introduce a cap and trade program to lower industrial emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, media reports said on Wednesday.According to an article on the Canadian Broadcasting Corp website, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty said the province cannot wait any longer for Ottawa and Washington to come up with a plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions, blamed for climate change.Legislation could be introduced as early as Wednesday, some media reports said.A cap and trade plan would set corporate limits on emissions. A company that produces more carbon than the cap allows would be able to buy offsetting credits from companies that emit less.According to the CBC, Ontario -- home to Canada's industrial heartland -- would be the third province to adopt a cap and trade system, following British Columbia and Quebec. Manitoba is expected to soon follow suit.The CBC said Canada's federal Conservative government has expressed interest in working with the United States to create a North American cap and trade system, but has not yet put a regulatory framework in place to reduce emissions.(Reporting by Frank Pingue; editing by Rob Wilson)

Ontario to move on cap-and-trade emissions plan: McGuinty Wednesday, May 27, 2009 | 1:36 PM ET The Canadian Press,cbc

Impatience for a North American cap-and-trade system to curb greenhouse gas emissions has driven Ontario and Quebec to move ahead with their own plan to fight climate change, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty said Wednesday.His Liberal government is introducing legislation that will pave the way for a cap-and-trade regime in the province, which aims to lower greenhouse gas emissions by putting a price on carbon.

The reason that we are going to move ahead together with Quebec is because we can't wait for Washington or Ottawa to move ahead,McGuinty said.And we want to make sure we have in place a framework at least — before we can talk about putting a price on carbon … that allows Ontario businesses to know where the future is going to be.The two provinces reached their own agreement on cap and trade last June, which was scheduled to be in place by 2010.Quebec introduced legislation May 12 that would allow the government to institute a cap-and-trade system with co-operating states and provinces as early as 2012.

Details on plan yet to be announced
While Ontario's legislation was to be introduced Wednesday, it was still unclear how the system would work.McGuinty couldn't provide specifics about how the system, such as whether the province will set hard caps on emission levels or penalize polluters who don't comply with the rules.He also dodged questions about whether the province's worst polluters — its coal-fired generation plants — will be forced to bear additional costs under the system, which could be passed on to taxpayers.Details of the plan are expected to be laid out in regulations that have yet to be drafted, but could be addressed in a discussion paper that will be released for public consultation.A cap-and-trade system places a ceiling on greenhouse gases and lets participants buy and sell emissions permits within that cap. Those who don't meet the emissions targets can buy credits from others with a surplus, instead of lowering their emissions.Ontario is the third province to move toward a cap-and-trade system after British Columbia and Quebec. Manitoba is expected to soon follow suit.All four provinces, along with seven American states, are part of the Western Climate Initiative, which is trying to set up a regional cap-and-trade system by 2012.

Meanwhile, Ontario's coal-fired plants are not expected to be shut down until 2014.

The federal Conservative government has expressed interest in working with U.S. President Barack Obama to create a North American cap-and-trade system, but hasn't yet put a regulatory framework to reduce emissions into legislation, which is expected in the coming year.The Canadian Press, 2009

Natural gas in the Arctic is mostly Russian By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, AP Science Writer MAY 28,09

WASHINGTON – Nearly one-third of the natural gas yet to be discovered in the world is north of the Arctic Circle and most of it is in Russian territory, according to a new analysis led by researchers at the U.S. Geological Survey.These findings suggest that in the future the ... pre-eminence of Russian strategic control of gas resources in particular is likely to be accentuated and extended,said Donald L. Gautier, lead author of the study published in Friday's edition of the journal Science.Russia is already the world's leading natural gas producer, noted Gautier, of the Geological Survey's office in Menlo Park, Calif.The report, by an international scientific team, estimated that the Arctic also contains between 3 and 4 percent of the world's oil resources remaining to be discovered.Two-thirds of the undiscovered gas is in just four areas — South Kara Sea, North Barents Basin, South Barents Basin and the Alaska Platform — the report said.Indeed, the South Kara Sea off Siberia contains 39 percent of the Arctic's undiscovered gas, the researchers said.Russia has been active in asserting its claim to parts of the Arctic. It first submitted a claim to the United Nations in 2001, but was rejected for lack of evidence. The United States, Canada, Denmark and Norway have also sought to assert jurisdiction over parts of the Arctic.

Now, Russia is working to prove that an underwater mountain range crossing the polar region is part of its continental shelf. In 2007 two Russian civilian mini-submarines descended to the seabed to collect geological and water samples and drop a titanium canister containing the Russian flag.Arctic oil reserves are much smaller than those of natural gas and are unlikely to lead to any shift in world oil balance, Gautier said in a recorded briefing provided by Science.But they could be of importance locally if developed by individual countries, he said, citing in particular the United States and Greenland, which is governed by Denmark.However, Gautier added, the study looked only at the geological setting and the chance that energy resources are present.If these resources were to be found they would not be found all at once, they would be found incrementally and they would be produced incrementally, he said, urging caution about assuming that the oil might extend world production significantly.Gautier said the study focused on geological conditions in the Arctic and how they compared to other parts of the world where oil and gas have been found.

Because so much of this territory is unexplored and data is so limited the researchers had to develop a new method to do assessments, Gautier said.They collected the best information they could for the region and then subdivided it into geological areas. Those areas were compared with other geological regions around the world where gas or oil have been found in order to produce their assessment of where more resources are likely to be located.Gas and oil tend to be found in sedimentary basins, he said, and each one of these basins has a story, a geologic story.As new data become available our understanding of the resources in the Arctic will change, he added.On the Net: Science: http://www.sciencemag.org

Energy policy is EU's big failure of past 50 years
VALENTINA POP Today MAY 28,09 @ 07:48 CET

EUOBSERVER/BRUSSELS – Europe's energy policy in the past 50 years has been one of its biggest failures, but the bloc's increased dependency on Russia is pressuring member states to adopt a common strategy, the EU's ambassador to Washington, John Bruton, has said.The EU only acts when faced with a crisis, is less results-oriented than the US and has trouble selling itself as the world's only multinational democracy, Mr Bruton said on Wednesday (27 May).The former Irish prime minister was speaking at a policy debate about Europe's role in the world, organised by the European People's Party, an umbrella party for the centre-right, currently holding the majority of European governments and key positions in EU institutions. Mr Bruton also used to be the vice-chairman of the EPP before he became the European Commission's envoy to Washington, in 2004.Energy policy is one of the big failures of the European Union in the last fifty years, particularly bearing in mind that we started out as a coal and steel community. But our growing dependence on Russia is going to increase the pressure for a common energy policy, to improve the internal grids and have shared arrangements within the European Union,Mr Bruton said.The EU executive has been instrumental in developing a common energy policy in the past three years. The policy move gained political momentum after January 2006 when Russia first cut off gas supplies to Ukraine, affecting EU consumers. Mr Bruton praised the solidarity shown by member states in this year's disruption, and said the political ingredients were now in place for the energy policy.His remarks were echoed by Nato's head of the policy planning division, Jamie Shea, who said that it was not good for Europe to have a situation in the middle of the winter where the eastern half is freezing at minus 25 degrees, while the western half is sunbathing at 25 degrees plus,especially since it was just a matter of linking up the grid and reversing flows in pipelines.

Meanwhile, Russian gas giant Gazprom threatened a repeat of the supply cuts in the coming winter due to Ukraine's alleged inability to pay for the gas it receives and urged the EU to get involved in finding a solution to the bilateral dispute. While willing to invest in the modernisation of Ukraine's infrastructure, the EU has shown little interest in paying for the non-transparent gas deals between Kiev, Moscow and murky middlemen.The explicit reference to energy resources as a foreign policy tool in Russia's latest security strategy - presented two weeks ago - was worrisome, but EU must still engage with its big neighbour, Elmar Brok, a senior MEP, said at the same debate.He stressed that if adopted, the Lisbon Treaty would further enhance the EU's common energy policy and could alleviate some of the fears eastern European members have towards Russia.

Surprise cash demand stalls Opel talks
ANDREW WILLIS Today MAY 28,09 @ 09:16 CET

An unforeseen request by General Motors for an additional €300 million to help its European subsidiary Opel, caused talks with the German government and potential buyout companies Fiat and Magna to stall in the early hours of Thursday morning (28 May).We had a nasty surprise when this demand turned up literally at 8 pm [an hour before the talks started],said German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck, reports Bloomberg.We did consider this a bit of an outrage. The German government now hopes to secure a deal by Friday, economy minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg told journalists in Berlin.Detroit-based General Motors – likely to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US if it does not meet a US administration-imposed restructuring deadline of 1 June – said the additional cash was needed in order to keep Opel operating. But Mr Steinbrueck said the federal government was not willing to provide the extra cash, adding the exact purpose of German state aid had to be transparent. This wasn't the case,he said.The German government entered the late-night discussions with US and GM officials, looking to set up a trust into which Opel could be placed. The trust would then receive €1.5 billion in German government loans. Canadian company Magna has suggested it may stump up the additional money as it vies with Italian company Fiat to takeover Opel. Other buyout contenders appear to have fallen out of the race.

European concerns

As Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel struggles in an election year to save the 25,000jobs provided by Opel, other EU member states are becoming increasingly concerned that German alone may determine the fate of GM's European operations. GM also owns Vauxhall in the UK and Saab in Sweden, with a large Opel plant situated in the northern Belgian region of Flanders. Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy and the premier of Flanders Kris Peeters sent letters to Ms Merkel and commission president Jose Manuel Barroso earlier this week, calling for a European solution to a European problem. We are now faced with the involvement on the European side of only the German government in this decision-making process,Van Rompuy and Peeters said in their letter to Chancellor Merkel, reports AFP. Given the spread of the Opel, GM Europe and Vauxhall plants over several European countries we prefer a more global European participation in this process,they added.In their letter to Mr Barroso the two politicians call for: a new initiative by the European Commission in order to involve the governments of the other countries with GM sites in the discussions on the plans.In response, the European Commission announced on Wednesday it would convene a meeting of European economy ministers to discuss matters surrounding the sale of Opel.The commission's industry spokesman the commission's industry spokesman, Ton Van Lierop, said the meeting would be held at the shortest notice but was unable to specify exactly when.

Stocks plummet as bond yields spike ,Major indexes give back Tuesday's gains as the yield on the 10-year note jumps to a 6-month high. General Motors looks bankruptcy bound.By Ben Rooney, CNNMoney.com staff writer May 27, 2009: 5:44 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks fell Wednesday, giving back gains from the previous session, after a sharp rise in Treasury yields added to jitters over a looming bankruptcy for General Motors. The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) fell 173 points, ending the day 2% lower. The S&P 500 (SPX) lost 17 points, or 1.9%. The Nasdaq composite (COMP) slid 1.1%, giving up 19 points.Stocks had traded mixed for most of the session as concerns that GM will not be able to avoid bankruptcy overshadowed an encouraging housing report. But the selloff gained momentum in the afternoon as the yield on the benchmark 10-year bond jumped to a 6-month high.

Shares of energy producers fell even as the price of oil rose above $63 a barrel. Technology stocks, which had led gainers for most of the day, also ended lower. Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners, said the surge in the 10-year yield, along with other economic concerns, prompted many investors to cash in the previous session's gains.Today's economic news was somewhat mixed,he said.It's an excuse to lighten up some positions after yesterday's rise.Wall Street rallied Tuesday after an upbeat reading on consumer confidence revived some of the economic optimism that has lifted the market 30% from its lows in early March. But analysts say the market has settled into a range as investors look for more concrete evidence of economic growth. In general, we are at a point in the marketplace where it's going to take a big catalyst to get us moving upward again,said Art Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co.Bonds: Treasury prices fell, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year bond rising to 3.71% - it's highest since mid-November. It stood at 3.51% late Tuesday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Treasurys sold off shortly after the government said it received relatively healthy demand for Wednesday's $35 billion worth of 5-year notes.Bill Larkin, a fixed-income analyst at Cabot Money Management, said many investors think strong demand for short-term U.S. debt suggests that there could be fewer buyers for longer-term bonds. There's an imbedded risk for longer-dated government-backed securities, he said. That, along with signs of a strengthening economy, are two big negatives in bond land.
The increase also raised concerns that mortgage rates, which are tied to the 10-year yield, could head higher and stifle a recovery in the housing market. Additionally, many analysts worry that the record amounts of debt coming to the market could overwhelm demand for Treasurys as the government expands already massive budget deficits.Autos: GM (GM, Fortune 500) confirmed reports that bondholders rejected an offer from the company to trade $27 billion of debt for equity stakes, making it much more likely that GM will declare bankruptcy. The company faces a June 1 deadline to win concessions from its union, creditors and other parties or be forced into bankruptcy by the U.S. Treasury Department, which is funding GM's operations. Shares fell 19%.Chrysler LLC, which went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy late last month, will learn soon whether it can sell its best-performing assets to a newly formed version of itself, called Chrysler Group.Economy: Sales of existing homes increased 2.9% in April to 4.86 million homes sold, up from a downwardly revised figure of 4.55 million in March, according to the National Association of Realtors.April sales were slightly ahead of expectations. Analysts surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast a rate of 4.66 million units. But sales are still off 3.5% from the 4.85 million homes sold 12 months ago.Wednesday's housing data followed a report issued Tuesday that showed the drop in home prices deepened during the first three months of the year.

Separately, a survey released Wednesday showed that business economists expect the recession to end this year. Almost three out of four survey respondents believe the recession will end by the third quarter of 2009, the report said. Banks: The FDIC said that the number of banks on its so-called problem bank list jumped to 305 during the first three months of the year, up from 252 in the fourth quarter of last year. This is the highest number of troubled institutions since 1994.Shares of Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) rose 1% after the company said it was well on its way towards raising the nearly $34 billion in capital that government regulators said it needs to buffer against future loan losses.Companies: Monsanto (MON, Fortune 500), the world's largest seed company, said it expects 2009 fiscal-year results to be at the low end of its earnings forecast. The company said stronger-than-expected competition in the herbicides business prompted the warning. Shares fell 6%. Office supplies retailer Staples (SPLS, Fortune 500) reported a one-third drop in quarterly profit to $147 million, or 20 cents per share, but still managed to beat analyst expectations. Excluding restructuring expenses, Staples reported earnings of 22 cents per share, one cent ahead of the analyst consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters. The stock fell 1.7%.Other markets: Stocks in Asia soared, boosted by the overnight gains on Wall Street. European markets edged higher in midday trading.In currency trading, the dollar rose against the euro and the yen. It slipped against the pound, with the U.K. currency rising above $1.60. NYMEX oil for July delivery was rose $1 to settle at $63.45 a barrel. Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said Wednesday that the global economy was capable of managing with oil as high as $75 to $80 a barrel, according to Reuters.COMEX gold for August delivery closed at 953.30 an ounce, unchanged from Tuesday.May 27, 2009: 9:54 AM ET

Harper says deficit spending to continue MAY 27,09

OTTAWA (Reuters) – Prime Minister Stephen Harper, responding to opposition calls for the dismissal of Finance Minister Jim Flaherty because of record deficit projections, said Canada would stay the course with its economic plan.Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff said Canadians had lost confidence in Flaherty because the budget deficit was now projected at more than C$50 billion, much higher than originally forecast.

Harper said Canada's deficits were proportionately one-quarter to one-third the size of shortfalls in the United States and elsewhere, and they were affordable. He said all the factors behind the deficit were short-term.(Reporting by Randall Palmer; editing by Rob Wilson)

U.S., Egypt boosting trade ties ahead of Obama trip MAY 27,09

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States and Egypt will step up cooperation on trade, the two countries announced.on Wednesday, a week before President Obama's planned trip to Egypt and a much-anticipated speech to Muslims.Deepening trade ties should mesh well with the strong cooperation between Washington and Cairo on political and security matters, said the joint statement issued by U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohammed Rachid after a meeting in Washington.The two men signed a United States-Egypt Plan for a Strategic Partnership under which senior U.S. and Egyptian officials will develop a framework over the next three months for trade and investment cooperation, the statement said.

In the months ahead, we have dedicated ourselves to pursuing a program of intensified U.S.-Egyptian cooperation on economic, trade, and investment issues,it said.The strengthened cooperation will help to sustain Egypt's important recent economic reform efforts,the statement added.Egypt, which signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, has been a key partner for Washington in decades of efforts to secure Middle East peace, and is one of the biggest recipients of U.S. military and economic aid.

But the trading relationship lags in comparison. Obama's predecessor, former President George Bush, negotiated free trade deals with some other Muslim countries but decided against doing so with Egypt, in part because of concerns over that country's commitment to democratic reform.Wednesday's statement did not mention the specific issue of a free trade agreement.However, it said that a program would be expanded under which Egyptian goods made with Israeli components in certain zones of Egypt, enter the U.S. duty free.That program, known as the Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZ) agreement between Egypt, Israel and the United States, will now be expanded to two new zones in Egypt, the statement said. Egypt began implementing the program in 2005.Obama's Egypt trip next week fulfills a promise he made during his presidential campaign to give a major address to Muslims during the first few months in office. The White House said he chose Egypt, the most populous Arab country, because it in many ways represents the heart of the Arab world.The Egyptian trade minister Rachid said the two countries were starting a new phase in ties.We are opening a new page in the relationship between Egypt and the United States with a new administration that is clearly trying to engage at a higher level and clearly trying to play a positive role in our part of the world,Rachid said during a visit to the U.S. Council on Competitiveness.Egypt's textile and clothing exports to the United States have risen since the QIZ deal. But overall U.S. imports from Egypt were down 0.3 percent last year, to $2.4 billion.U.S. goods exports to Egypt the same year were $6.0 billion, and Egypt is currently the 36th largest export market for U.S. goods.(Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

Estonian man casts first online vote in EU history
EUOBSERVER STAFF Today MAY 28,09 @ 15:31 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – An Estonian man has become the first person in EU history to vote online, as internet campaigns make their mark on the 2009 elections. But a throwback in Northern Ireland has seen canvassers threatened with a gun. Vahuur Orrin from Tallinn cast his vote in Brussels one second after the virtual polling station opened at 9.30am local time, with the moment captured on video for the YouTube file-sharing website. Voting has also begun early in Finland and Sweden, with Nordic and Baltic countries leading the game in terms of helping geographically-scattered voters cast remote ballots. The Lithuanian government has in another first also opted to give official media accreditation to bloggers covering the vote.In France, centre-right President Nicolas Sarkozy has attracted 106,000 friends on his personal page on the Facebook social networking site. His nearest rival in terms of online popularity is far-left leader Olivier Besancourt with 17,000 friends.In the real world, Mr Sarkozy's UMP party is leading polls on 26 percent, while his nearest rival, the centre left Socialist party, trails on 19 percent.A Czech Facebook page called Let's throw eggs at Paroubek everywhere has 40,000 followers. The campaign aims to punish the centre-left CSSD party leader for engineering the fall of the centre-right government while it occupied the prestigious EU presidency chair.Egg-throwing began two weeks ago, with Mr Paroubek occasionally losing his cool and calling assailants Nazis. On Wednesday, he was hit by 10 eggs while on the rostrum. On Tuesday, six eggs hit home.

Several commercial companies and NGOs are also trying to raise their profile by launching MEP-rating websites. PR firm Burson-Marsteller has launched tweetelect09.eu, to gather up all EU election-related tweets - the modish new messaging service where users post updates just 140 characters long.Twitter hit the headlines in Germany this week when it emerged that officials leaked via tweets the result of the German presidential election before it was officially published.Some politicians are focusing on traditional media, however. Spanish TV stations on Wednesday evening beamed the face of centre-left PM Jorge Luis Zapatero across airwaves as he sat watching Barcelona play Manchester United in the European football championship finals.With the Spanish side winning 2-0, Mr Zapatero afterward lavished praise on the Spanish side in interviews. The bubble of national pride could help his party nose ahead of the opposition People's Party, with the pair neck-and-neck in polls.In Poland, the right-wing Roman Catholic Radio Maryja has begun broadcasting a regular Euroleksykon programme in which Professor Jerzy Nowak lays out genealogies saying that many centre-right or centre-left MEP candidates have Jewish blood.

Jaded fishermen

The various media efforts are doing little to boost voter interest in the EU elections, however.An SFZ/FFS poll has found that 60 percent of the 350 million eligible EU voters believe politicians are lying in their campaigns, with cynicism the strongest in Finland, Germany, France and the UK but mildest in Spain. A TNS Sofres survey for Le Monde shows 57 percent of people are not interested in voting. Pollsters from Ispsos told the paper that the recession is playing a role. These elections are not the French people's [main] preoccupation,one expert said.Scottish fishermen in Peterhead Harbour told The Times that EU fishing quotas have destroyed their business over the past 30 years. I'll probably write on the ballot paper None of the rogues above,Paul Jennings said.The elections could have a strong impact in Germany even if voters stay home, with German papers saying the event is a dry run for national elections in July. Predict09 says the centre-right CDU and CSU parties will clock up 34.7 percent (10 percent less than in 2004), while the Social Democrat opposition is to get 30 percent.

Crime and creativity

Danish Social Liberal MEP candidate Carsten Nielsen has also demonstrated that creative election ideas are not limited to the internet. Ms Nielsen is calling for the EU to set up 10 superhospitals to treat rare diseases, with access for all EU citizens. Bulgarian would-be MEP and former football and steel tycoon Alexander Tomov has shown a different type of creativity. Mr Tomov's registration as a candidate with his personal Bulgarian Social Democracy party has given him immunity from an €18 million embezzlement case.Amid the internet-generated atmosphere of modernity around the poll, canvassers for the moderate republican SDLP party in Northern Ireland awakened old demons while visiting a pro-republican housing estate in County Armagh.

A masked man with a gun threatened the group on its walkabout in an apparent throwback to the sectarian conflicts of previous decades. Let me make this very clear to those people who think they can intimidate me or my party, they will not,SDLP councillor Dolores Kelly said.