2 HURRICANES ON THE WAY AMERICA

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.

B.C. coast shaken by magnitude-6.1 earthquake. 18th earthquake in swarm of tremors in same region this week.Thursday, August 28, 2008 | 10:39 AM ET

A magnitude-6.1 earthquake shook the ocean floor off the west coast of Vancouver Island, 191 kilometres west of Port Alice, B.C., early Thursday.Natural Resources Canada's EarthquakesCanada section recorded the tremor at 5:37 a.m. PT and the quake was too small to cause a tsunami, according to its website. The U.S. Geological Survey also recorded the quake with a depth of 10 kilometres.There have been no felt reports, but this earthquake may have been felt mildly on Northern Vancouver Island, EarthquakesCanada's website said.The quake Thursday is the latest in a swarm of tremors rocking the ocean floor off the west coast of Vancouver Island. A magnitude-5quake struck the ocean floor west of Vancouver Island at 1:17 p.m. PT on Wednesday. There were no reports of damage or risk of a tsunami.In total, there have been 18 quakes in the same region this week.Earthquake scientist Garry Rogers with the Geological Survey of Canada said Wednesday that quake swarms happen several times a year in that area, but this one is lasting longer and the earthquakes are larger than normal.The earthquakes are too far off shore to be felt, and they are way too small to cause any tsunami or wave action, he said.

Strong quake hits off British Columbia coast AUG 28,08

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - A strong earthquake struck off Canada's west coast early Thursday near Vancouver Island. There were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries. The magnitude-6.1 quake hit at 5:37 a.m. Its epicenter was 97 miles west of Port Hardy and 293 miles west northwest of Vancouver, the U.S. Geological Survey said. It struck at a depth of 6.2 miles.Geological Survey of Canada scientist Garry Rogers said there are no reports of injuries or damages and said it occurred too far off land for there to be any.The quake was the latest in a series of coastal tremors since Monday. Two quakes rattled the area Wednesday, both with magnitudes of around 5. There have been 18 quakes with a magnitude greater than 4 in the region this week.Rarely a day goes by where we don't have a earthquake. Once a year we have a swarm in the high fours, maybe a five. Once a decade we have a six, Rogers said.

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.

INTERESTING THAT CONDI RICE PRESSURES ISRAEL ABOUT DIVIDING JERUSALEM AND NOW NOT ONLY ONE BUT 2 HURRICANES ARE HEADING TOWARDS AMERICA. GOD WILL NOT STAND FOR THE WORLD DIVIDING JERUSALEM GET IT THROUGH YOUR THICK SKULLS WORLD LEADERS.

Gulf Coast states prepare as Gustav strengthens By STACEY PLAISANCE, Associated Press Writers AUG 28,08

NEW ORLEANS - National Guard troops stand ready, batteries and water bottles are selling briskly, and one small-town mayor has spent a sleepless night worrying. The New Orleans area is skittishly watching as a storm marches across the Caribbean on the eve of Hurricane Katrina's third anniversary. With forecasters warning that a strengthening Gustav could slam into the Gulf Coast as a major hurricane early next week, a New Orleans still recovering from Hurricane Katrina's devastating hit drew up evacuation plans.I'm panicking, said Evelyn Fuselier of Chalmette, whose home was submerged in 14 feet of floodwater when Katrina hit. Fuselier said she's been back home only a year and nervously watched as Gustav swirled toward the Gulf of Mexico. I keep thinking, Did the Corps fix the levees?, Is my house going to flood again? ... Am I going to have to go through all this again? Taking no chances, city officials began preliminary planning to evacuate and lock down the city in hopes of avoiding the catastrophe that followed Katrina in 2005.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin left the Democratic National Convention in Denver to return home for the preparations. Gov. Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency to lay the groundwork for federal assistance, and put 3,000 National Guard troops on standby.U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff is expected to meet with Jindal in Baton Rouge on Thursday and with Nagin in New Orleans later in the day, according to a department spokesman.A day after stalling off Haiti's coast, Gustav was closing in on Jamaica, with the center about 45 miles east of Kingston around 11 a.m. EDT Thursday. Gaining strength over warm Caribbean waters, Gustav was expected to again become a hurricane later Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center. It said maximum sustained winds rose from about 50 mph to near 70 mph overnight.Meanwhile, a new tropical storm, Hanna, formed farther east in the Atlantic.Forecasters said Wednesday that Gustav could strengthen to a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 111 mph or higher in coming days before hitting somewhere between the Florida Panhandle and Texas.If a Category 3 or stronger hurricane comes within 60 hours of the city, New Orleans plans to institute a mandatory evacuation order. Unlike Katrina, there will be no massive shelter at the Superdome, a plan designed to encourage residents to leave. Instead, the state has arranged for buses and trains to take people to safety.It was unclear what would happen to stragglers. Jerry Sneed, the city's emergency preparedness director, said officials are ready to move about 30,000 people. Nearly 8,000 people had signed up for transportation help by late Wednesday.Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans on Aug. 29, 2005, its storm surge blasting through the levees that protect the city. Eighty percent of the city was flooded. After the destruction, many people never returned, and the city's population, around 310,000 people, is roughly two-thirds what it was before the storm, though estimates vary wildly.

The Army Corps of Engineers has since spent billions of dollars to improve the levee system, but because of two quiet hurricane seasons, the flood walls have never been tested. Floodgates have been installed on drainage canals to stop any storm surge from entering the city, and levees have been raised and strengthened with concrete in many places.Robert Turner Jr., the regional levee director, said the levee system can handle a storm with the likelihood of occurring every 30 years, what the corps calls a 30-year storm. By comparison, Katrina was a 396-year storm.Gustav formed Monday and roared ashore Tuesday as a Category 1 hurricane near the southern Haitian city of Jacmel with top winds near 90 mph, toppling palm trees and flooding the city's Victorian buildings.The storm triggered flooding and landslides that killed 23people in the Caribbean. It weakened into a tropical storm and appeared headed for Jamaica, though it has begun to grow stronger again by drawing energy from warm, open water.Scientists cautioned that the storm's track and intensity were difficult to predict days in advance.But in southern Louisiana, there was little else to do except prepare as if it were Katrina. In Grand Isle, tractor loads of dirt and mud were being hauled in to fill portions of the levee system damaged by Katrina, said Grand Isle Mayor David Camardelle. The coastal community south of New Orleans historically is one of the first to evacuate when tropical weather threatens. I couldn't sleep last night, Camardelle said. We just came back from so much.Emergency preparations also were under way along Mississippi's coast. The eye of Hurricane Katrina pushed ashore near the small towns of Waveland and Bay St. Louis, Miss., and along the 70-mile coastline, roughly 65,000 homes were destroyed and thousands of businesses and casino barges were wiped out. Up to 5,000 temporary housing units are still in use, and emergency officials say the agency could decide as early as Thursday whether residents of those temporary homes should evacuate. Meanwhile, Alabama Gov. Bob Riley said state agencies were keeping a close watch on Gustav as he urged his state's Gulf coast residents to review personal emergency plans and enter storm-preparation mode. Associated Press Writers Michael Kunzelman, Cain Burdeau, Mary Foster and Alan Sayre in New Orleans and Tamara Lush in Miami contributed to this report.

Tourists evacuate Caymans as Gustav nears AUG 28,08

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands - Tourists are evacuating from the Cayman Islands and resorts are closing as Tropical Storm Gustav nears. Stacey McLaughlan of Albany, New York, says she and her husband were told to leave their resort by noon Thursday. If they don't leave the island, they'll have to go to a shelter.Cayman Airways pilot Chris Witt says a lot of evacuation flights are planned for Thursday. McLaughlan says she and her husband had to pay an extra US$1,000 to get out because their airline refused to bring in a plane to return them to the U.S.Gustav is expected to hit the Caymans by late Friday. Other tourists flocked to the airport in the capital, George Town, to get out before the storm, cutting their holidays short.

Officials may evacuate New Orleans as Gustav nears By STACEY PLAISANCE, Associated Press Writers AUG 28,08

NEW ORLEANS - National Guard troops stand ready, batteries and water bottles are selling briskly, and one small-town mayor has spent a sleepless night worrying. The New Orleans area is skittishly watching as a storm marches across the Caribbean on the eve of Hurricane Katrina's third anniversary. With forecasters warning that a strengthening Gustav could slam into the Gulf Coast as a major hurricane, a New Orleans still recovering from Hurricane Katrina's devastating hit drew up evacuation plans.I'm panicking, said Evelyn Fuselier of Chalmette, whose home was submerged in 14 feet of floodwater when Katrina hit. Fuselier said she's been back home only a year and nervously watched as Gustav swirled toward the Gulf of Mexico. I keep thinking, Did the Corps fix the levees?,Is my house going to flood again? ... Am I going to have to go through all this again? Taking no chances, city officials began preliminary planning to evacuate and lock down the city in hopes of avoiding the catastrophe that followed Katrina in 2005.New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin left the Democratic National Convention in Denver to return home for the preparations. Gov. Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency to lay the groundwork for federal assistance, and put 3,000 National Guard troops on standby.A day after stalling off Haiti's coast, Gustav was centered about 80 miles east of Kingston, Jamaica, and moving slowly toward the west-southwest near 6 mph at 8 a.m. EDT Thursday. The storm was expected to pass very close to Jamaica later in the day, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.Gaining strength over warm Caribbean waters, Gustav was expected to again become a hurricane later Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center. It said maximum sustained winds rose from about 50 mph to near 70 mph overnight.Meanwhile, a new tropical depression formed farther east in the Atlantic with winds near 35 mph.Forecasters said Wednesday that Gustav could strengthen to a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 111 mph or higher in coming days before hitting somewhere between the Florida Panhandle and Texas.If a Category 3 or stronger hurricane comes within 60 hours of the city, New Orleans plans to institute a mandatory evacuation order. Unlike Katrina, there will be no massive shelter at the Superdome, a plan designed to encourage residents to leave. Instead, the state has arranged for buses and trains to take people to safety.

It was unclear what would happen to stragglers. Jerry Sneed, the city's emergency preparedness director, said officials are ready to move about 30,000 people. Nearly 8,000 people had signed up for transportation help by late Wednesday.Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans on Aug. 29, 2005, its storm surge blasting through the levees that protect the city. Eighty percent of the city was flooded. After the destruction, many people never returned, and the city's population, around 310,000 people, is roughly two-thirds what it was before the storm, though estimates vary wildly.The Army Corps of Engineers has since spent billions of dollars to improve the levee system, but because of two quiet hurricane seasons, the flood walls have never been tested. Floodgates have been installed on drainage canals to stop any storm surge from entering the city, and levees have been raised and strengthened with concrete in many places.Robert Turner Jr., the regional levee director, said the levee system can handle a storm with the likelihood of occurring every 30 years, what the corps calls a 30-year storm. By comparison, Katrina was a 396-year storm.

Gustav formed Monday and roared ashore Tuesday as a Category 1 hurricane near the southern Haitian city of Jacmel with top winds near 90 mph, toppling palm trees and flooding the city's Victorian buildings.The storm triggered flooding and landslides that killed 23 people in the Caribbean. It weakened into a tropical storm and appeared headed for Jamaica, though it has begun to grow stronger again by drawing energy from warm, open water.Scientists cautioned that the storm's track and intensity were difficult to predict days in advance.But in southern Louisiana, there was little else to do except prepare as if it were Katrina. In Grand Isle, tractor loads of dirt and mud were being hauled in to fill portions of the levee system damaged by Katrina, said Grand Isle Mayor David Camardelle. The coastal community south of New Orleans historically is one of the first to evacuate when tropical weather threatens. I couldn't sleep last night, Camardelle said. We just came back from so much.Emergency preparations also were under way along Mississippi's coast. The eye of Hurricane Katrina pushed ashore near the small towns of Waveland and Bay St. Louis, Miss., and along the 70-mile coastline, roughly 65,000 homes were destroyed and thousands of businesses and casino barges were wiped out. Meanwhile, Alabama Gov. Bob Riley said state agencies were keeping a close watch on Gustav as he urged his state's Gulf coast residents to review personal emergency plans and enter storm-preparation mode. Associated Press Writers Michael Kunzelman, Cain Burdeau, Mary Foster and Alan Sayre in New Orleans and Tamara Lush in Miami contributed to this report.

New tropical depression forms in Atlantic Thu Aug 28, 5:02 AM ET

MIAMI - The National Hurricane Center says a new tropical depression has formed in the Atlantic. The depression formed early Thursday and has maximum sustained winds near 35 mph.The depression is centered about 355 miles east-northeast of the northern Leeward Islands and is moving toward the west-northwest near 5 mph.The new tropical depression comes as Tropical Storm Gustav is churning through the Caribbean and threatening to hit the New Orleans area as a hurricane.

Tropical Storm Hanna forms in Atlantic AUG 28,08

MIAMI - The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Hanna has formed northeast of the northern Leeward Islands in the Atlantic. The eighth tropical storm of the Atlantic season had top sustained winds near 40 mph Thursday. Its center was about 305 miles northeast of the northern Leeward Islands and was moving toward the west-northwest near 12 mph.Hanna could produce rainfall of 1 to 4 inches across parts of the Leeward Islands. It's too soon to say if Hanna will affect the U.S.

India floods a calamity, says premier by Imran Khan AUG 28,08

SAHARSA, India (AFP) - Massive flooding in eastern India has caused a "national calamity," the prime minister said Thursday after touring the devastated region where more than a million people remain trapped. Manmohan Singh announced a relief package of 228 million dollars and 125,000 tonnes of grain for those affected when a monsoon-swollen river changed course, flooding huge swathes of the country's impoverished Bihar state.If there is a need for more, we will give more, he told reporters. We would like to assure the people of Bihar that all India will support them through this difficulty.The Kosi river breached its banks ten days ago on the border with Nepal, flowing through a channel it had previously abandoned.Brahmdeo Yadav's village in badly-hit Saharsa district was reduced to an island surrounded by murky water.We have nothing to cook with so we are soaking grain into this filth and trying to survive, Yadav, a farmer, told an AFP correspondent.The district's tiny rail station was packed Thursday with thousands of flood victims desperate to get on one of the few passenger trains still operating.We just want to get out. We want to leave this curse behind, wept Girija Prasad, a housewife whose husband, Narayan, went missing when she was plucked out of the waters by a military motorboat on Wednesday.More than 400 boats had been pressed into service and hundreds more would be used to shift people to relief shelters and higher ground, officials said.About 90,000 victims have been evacuated from villages in the flood affected area by government rescue agencies, disaster management official Prataya Amrit told AFP.

At least 46 people are reported to have died in the floods, as troops and air force helicopters rushed to help police in the rescue operation.The federal government also promised tents and helicopters to speed up the military-backed evacuation.

Nepalese disaster management officials told AFP the river had washed away a series of dams and spurs, which control the water flow, sending huge torrents downstream that washed away further flood defences.Authorities on both sides of the border have been in dispute over maintenance of flood control structures and uncleared silt, officials said.In Nepal, around 50,000 people have been displaced by the floods and have sheltered in schools and makeshift camps, said local authorities.All infrastructure is pretty much gone. The telephone system, water supply, public buildings, roads and government offices have all been destroyed, said Suman Ghimire from Nepal's natural disaster committee.Around five kilometres (three miles) of the main highway on the Nepali side of the border has also been washed away, he added.

Nepali engineers were frantically trying to strengthen flood control barriers upstream to prevent increased water flow as more rain was forecast. The Kosi, which flows into the Ganges, is known as the River of Sorrow due to its record of disastrous floods during the monsoon season. More than 800 people have been killed in monsoon-related accidents following the heavy June-to-September rains across India. Bihar officials said the death toll could climb further as many areas were inaccessible.

Twister hits Sask. golf course. Tuesday, August 26, 2008 | 4:52 PM CT Comments7 CBC News

Amid an afternoon of thunderstorms in central Saskatchewan Tuesday, there were reports of tornadoes touching down near Prince Albert.Environment Canada confirmed a twister touched down at a golf course in Spruce Home, north of the city.The tornado tore part of the roof off the clubhouse, destroyed a cart shed and uprooted trees.

Six employees of Vermette Trucking and Wood Preservatives were in a mobile trailer that was hit by the storm.They were taken to hospital with what police described as non-life-threatening injuries.There have also been unconfirmed reports of a tornado near Paddockwood, northeast of Prince Albert.George Newman, who works at the Co-op store in Paddockwood, said when the storm came up, stuff blew around, including siding and garbage cans.And then all of a sudden you couldn't see anything, he said It just looked like steam going by the window and you couldn't see like a foot outside.The storm knocked power out and left trees and branches down around the community, Newman said.Tim Longworth, who works for Cornerstone Insurance in Paddockwood, said the phone was ringing steadily after the storm passed through.One woman called to say a tree came crashing through the bedroom window of her mobile home, ending up on a bed.Another family called about a barbeque coming through their window kind of thing, he said.As he drove around the area, Longworth said he saw trees snapped off like twigs, buildings missing roofs and numerous broken windows.

Great Ape Trust says flood bill is $1 million By NIGEL DUARA, Associated Press Writer Thu Aug 28, 5:38 AM ET

DES MOINES, Iowa - One of the largest great ape research centers in North America needs more than $1 million to recover from damage suffered in Iowa's record June floods. Flooding began at the 230-acre Great Ape Trust campus in Des Moines on June 10 and damaged two administrative buildings as well as mechanical systems in the ape research center, said operations director Jim Aipperspach. Two to three feet of water swamped much of the center.None of the apes was injured in the flooding, and researchers were able to resume work within a week, Aipperspach said.Some research that didn't require sophisticated computer technology and the like took place immediately, Aipperspach said.The trust will receive about $250,000 in flood insurance, Aipperspach said, and the group hopes to make up the difference with fundraising.After later phases are completed, the Great Ape Trust is expected to be one of the first worldwide to include all four types of great ape — bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans.Since the flooding, the mechanical systems have been restored and replaced and most of the information technology systems are back online, Aipperspach said.The trust is waiting on a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers report that will look at the factors that led to the floods and how best to avoid future damage.We'll stay here, it's a beautiful location, Aipperspach said. What we need to do is work with nature.The center is built in a floodplain on land donated by the city.On the Net:http://www.greatapetrust.org

DISEASES

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

Funeral to be held for suspected listeriosis victim as recall widens
Last Updated: Thursday, August 28, 2008 | 10:05 AM ET CBC News

Friends and family were preparing Thursday for the funeral of an 89-year-old Ontario woman suspected of dying from listeriosis, a day after a recall expanded to more sandwiches and two Quebec cheeses were pulled from shelves due to an unrelated listeria strain.France Clark of Madoc became ill last week and died Monday, three days after she was admitted to hospital. Clark's family alleges the woman died of listeriosis.Local health unit officials said there was a recent listeriosis death that was probably linked to the nationwide outbreak, but wouldn't confirm whether that person was Clark.The funeral will held Thursday afternoon in her southeastern Ontario hometown, about 40 kilometres north of Belleville and about midway between Toronto and Ottawa.Fifteen deaths — 12 in Ontario and three others in B.C., Quebec and Saskatchewan — have been associated with the recent outbreak. In five of those cases, listeria is confirmed as causing or contributing to the death, while the other 10 are still under investigation. Since tests linked the listeriosis outbreak to a Maple Leaf Foods plant in Toronto, the recall of meat products potentially tainted with Listeria monocytogenes has grown almost daily.

6 sandwiches, 2 platters added to recall
Late Wednesday, six new sandwiches and two sandwich platters were added to the long list of products, including cooked ham and salami sandwiches sold in Sobeys, Foodland and IGA stores in Ontario and two Kirkland Signature sandwich platters sold at Costco.Unconnected to Maple Leaf Foods, two brands of Quebec-made cheeses — Riopelle de l'Île and Mont-Jacob — have also been pulled from store shelves after officials found contamination from a strain of listeria different from that found in meat products linked to the deadly nationwide listeriosis outbreak. At least nine cases of listeriosis have been associated with the cheeses.Maple Leaf Foods said Wednesday it shoulders the blame in the listeriosis outbreak, absolving Canada's food inspection system.Company president Michael McCain said the Toronto plant at the heart of the recall won't be reopened until an investigation is complete and he has personally signed off on it.With files from the Canadian Press.

CDC: Salmonella outbreak appears to be over By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR, Associated Press Writer AUG 28,08

WASHINGTON - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the salmonella outbreak that sickened more than 1,440 people appears to be over. A joint investigation by CDC and the Food and Drug Administration found strong evidence that jalapeno peppers were a major carrier of the bacteria, and that serrano peppers were also a carrier. The salmonella strain that caused the outbreak was traced back to a produce distribution center in Texas, and to a farm in Mexico that grew peppers.The extensive probe found no contaminated tomatoes, but investigators say they cannot rule out that tomatoes might have been a carrier, particularly early on.It was the largest outbreak of foodborne illness in the United States in the past decade.

HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER

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

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

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

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

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

Oil fluctuates as Gustav bears down on Gulf By STEVENSON JACOBS, AP Business Writer AUG 28,08

NEW YORK - Oil prices fluctuated sharply Thursday as Tropical Storm Gustav spun toward the Gulf of Mexico, with some traders fearing a disruption in supplies and others betting that the government would tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve if needed. Either way, consumers were likely to see a hike in gas prices for Labor Day weekend. Gustav, approaching Jamaica with winds near 70 mph, could regain hurricane strength later Thursday and possibly enter the Gulf as a dangerous Category 3 storm early next week, forecasters said.Light, sweet crude for October delivery jumped as high as $120.50 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange before pulling back to $115.05, down $3.05. Light trading heading into holiday weekend exacerbated the volatile trading.Oil rose $1.88 on Wednesday to settle at $118.15 a barrel.

Atmospheric models showed Gustav heading toward Louisiana and areas devastated by Hurricanes Katrina three years ago Friday, though it was too early to pinpoint where it would strike.The storm not only threatens the more than 4,000 oil and gas rigs scattered throughout the Gulf, but also the dozens of oil refineries dotting the vulnerable coastline from Texas to Louisiana.If it goes anywhere near refineries, that's going to knock out production for about a week, said Tom Kloza, publisher and chief analyst at the Oil Price Information Service in Wall, N.J.Oil's retreat in the face of a possibly dangerous storm surprised some oil market watchers, who attributed the move to speculation that the government could release supplies from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to counter any drop in production from Gustav.

I think that's taking some of the steam out of this rally, said Jim Ritterbusch, president of energy consultancy Ritterbusch and Associates in Galena, Ill.Regardless of where Gustav hits, analysts said pump prices are still going to rise at least some, probably in time for Labor Day weekend.Fears of disruption in energy production have already sent wholesale gas prices soaring by up to 40 percent in recent days, meaning filling stations will have little choice but to pass on those costs to consumers.Prices are going to go up pretty soon. You're going to see increases by 5, 10, 15 cents a gallon, said Kloza. If we have a Katrina-type event, you're talking about gas prices going up another 30 percent.That would send retail prices back above $4 a gallon, a level first reached in July.Meanwhile, the exodus from the Gulf by oil workers accelerated.Royal Dutch Shell PLC has evacuated nearly 400 people and said it will bring in another 270 Thursday.The company said production will be impacted. BP PLC was also removing personnel from the region that's home to about a quarter of U.S. crude production and much of its natural gas.

Transocean, the world's biggest offshore drilling contractor, is suspending operations at all of its rigs and pulling nearly 1,600 people out of the Gulf.

Weather research firm Planalytics predicted as much as 80 percent of the Gulf's oil and gas production could be shut down as a precaution if Gustav enters the region as a major storm. Gustav formed Monday and roared ashore Haiti Tuesday as a Category 1 hurricane. The storm triggered flooding and landslides that killed 23 people in the Caribbean. It weakened into a tropical storm, though it is likely to grow stronger in the coming days by drawing energy from warm open water. The tropical storm was centered about 80 miles east-northeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and moving toward the west-southwest near 8 mph. Forecasters said Gustav might slip between Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and the western tip of Cuba on Sunday, then march toward a Tuesday collision with the U.S. Gulf Coast — anywhere from south Texas to the Florida panhandle. We know it's going to head into the Gulf. After that, we're not sure, said meteorologist Rebecca Waddington at the National Hurricane Center. For that reason, everyone in the Gulf needs to be monitoring the storm.Gustav is the first storm of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane season to pose a serious threat to the more than 4,000 oil and gas installations in the Gulf. In 2005, Katrina and Rita destroyed 109 oil platforms and five drilling rigs. In other Nymex trading, heating oil futures rose less than half a penny to $3.2645 a gallon, while gasoline prices gained 0.01 cent to $3.0697 a gallon. Natural gas futures fell 39.5 cents to $8.211 per 1,000 cubic feet.

KNOWLEGE AND WORLD TRAVEL INCREASED

DANIEL 12:4
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS MICROCHIPS ETC)

Flights back to normal after FAA software glitch By HARRY R. WEBER, AP Business Writer Wed Aug 27, 1:52 PM ET

ATLANTA - The FAA said that most flights around the country were back to normal Wednesday, after a software malfunction delayed hundreds of flights on Tuesday. The flight delays drew new criticism for the Federal Aviation Administration, which has been scrutinized over air traffic controller staffing levels and inspection standards for its ground-based equipment.The Northeast was hardest hit by the delays prompted by a glitch at a Hampton, Ga., facility that processes flight plans for the eastern half of the U.S.The FAA said the source of the computer software malfunction was a packet switch that failed due to a database mismatch.Sen. John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, said the episode once again highlights the need to reform and repair a broken system. His Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama, said airline passengers are sick and tired of delays and cancellations. And the nonprofit Travel Industry Association called it one more example of America's deteriorating air travel system.The FAA, for its part, said it would work to make sure the problem does not happen again.FAA spokeswoman, Kathleen Bergen in Atlanta, said there were no safety issues and officials were still able to speak to pilots on planes on the ground and in the air.According to the FAA, 646 flights were delayed as a direct result of the problem. In a 24-hour period the FAA processes more than 300,000 flight plans in the U.S., the agency said.Bergen said the problem that occurred Tuesday afternoon involved a failure in a communication link that transmits flight plan data from the Georgia facility to a similar facility in Salt Lake City.

As a result, the Salt Lake City facility was having to process those flight plans, causing delays in planes taking off. She said the delays were primarily affecting departing flights. FAA spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said there were some problems with arriving flights as well.During an early evening conference call with reporters, Spitaliere said Tuesday's glitch appeared to be a software problem and the situation was returning to normal. The Hampton facility began processing flight plans again as of 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, Bergen said.As of Tuesday evening, airports in Chicago were still experiencing 30-minute delays, while delays of 60 minutes were seen in Atlanta, which also dealt with weather issues. Bergen said those delays were cleared up as of Wednesday morning.Bergen said there was an unrelated hardware problem at the Hampton facility on Aug. 21 that resulted in issues processing flight plans. The FAA says on its Web site that a glitch that day involving the Hampton facility delayed the departure of at least 134 flights.A spokesman for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world's busiest airport, did not return a call seeking comment on the impact there from Tuesday's episode. Bergen said officials at the Atlanta airport were entering flight data manually to try to speed things up.Discount carrier AirTran Airways, which has its hub at the Atlanta airport, said in a statement that because of the suburban FAA center snafu it was at one point taking up to an hour for the FAA to get clearances to the towers for departures Tuesday. Delta Air Lines Inc., which has its main hub in Atlanta, said flights were processing for takeoff, but slowly.The communication failure caused delays for departures and arrivals at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, according to airport spokeswoman Cheryl Stewart. However, she did not have a number on delays.The FAA at one point asked that no new flight plans be filed, Stewart said.

Phil Orlandella, a spokesman for Massport, which operates Boston's Logan International Airport, said there were significant delays there, but the situation eased up by Tuesday evening. The National Airspace Data Interchange Network is a data communications system for air traffic controllers. It's used to distribute flight plans and allows controllers to know when planes are leaving, where they're going and other details. Allen Kenitzer, a western regional spokesman for the FAA, said the Utah system could handle the extra load while workers tried to get the Atlanta area system back online, but it was expected to slow down air traffic. We're not going to let an unsafe condition exist. It's just going to be slower, Kenitzer said. AP Business Writer Samantha Bomkamp in New York contributed to this report.

EU DICTATOR (WORLD LEADER)

REVELATION 17:12-13
12 And the ten horns (NATIONS) which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
13 These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

REVELATION 6:1-2
1 And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
2 And I saw, and behold a white horse:(PEACE) and he that sat on him had a bow;(EU DICTATOR) and a crown was given unto him:(PRESIDENT OF THE EU) and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.(MILITARY GENIUS)

REVELATION 13:1-10
1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.(THE EU AND ITS DICTATOR IS GODLESS)
2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.(DICTATOR COMES FROM NEW AGE OR OCCULT)
3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death;(MURDERERD) and his deadly wound was healed:(COMES BACK TO LIFE) and all the world wondered after the beast.(THE WORLD THINKS ITS GOD IN THE FLESH, MESSIAH TO ISRAEL)
4 And they worshipped the dragon (SATAN) which gave power unto the beast:(JEWISH EU DICTATOR) and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?(FALSE RESURRECTION,SATAN BRINGS HIM TO LIFE)
5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.(GIVEN WORLD CONTROL FOR 3 1/2YRS)
6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God,(HES A GOD HATER) to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.(HES A LIBERAL OR DEMOCRAT,WILL PUT ANYTHING ABOUT GOD DOWN)
7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints,(BEHEAD THEM) and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.(WORLD DOMINATION)
8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.(WORLD DICTATOR)
9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.
10 He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.(SAVED CHRISTIANS AND JEWS DIE FOR THEIR FAITH AT THIS TIME,NOW WE ARE SAVED BY GRACE BUT DURING THE 7 YEARS OF HELL ON EARTH, PEOPLE WILL BE PUT TO DEATH (BEHEADINGS) FOR THEIR BELIEF IN GOD (JESUS) OR THE BIBLE.

WORLD GOVERNMENT

DANIEL 7:23-25
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.
25 And he 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.

DANIEL 12:4,1
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

REVELATION 13:1-3,7,8,12,16-18
1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
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.

REVELATION 17:3,7,9-10,12,18
3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.
10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.
12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

America's demonization next step in New World Order? AUG 28,08

After the recent Georgian incursion into South Ossetia, discussion has been rampant regarding America's influence and dominance on the world scene. Some are proclaiming that Russia has laid to rest aspirations for a so called New World Order. From one angle this may appear to be the case, but there is a bigger picture needs to be examined.The United States is going to - and to a degree already is - be held up as an example of why global mechanisms and a world structure need to be in place to prevent such actions as the invasion of Iraq and U.S. support of Georgian forces in the invasion of South Ossetia. We've been presented with a problem, now globalist think tanks and organizations like the Council on Foreign Relations will provide us with a solution. National sovereignty has no place in this era, so we're told. We must share power.Former President of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, has stated that he sees the U.S. led Iraq war as an example of the need for a new world order to manage the globe.Look at the US in Iraq, everybody was opposed, even their allies, but they did not listen and what happened? They do not know how to get out of it now. Now we understand that... we are all linked to the US and if it falls apart it would be a real collapse. We have to help them to get out of there. That means that cooperation is needed, a new world order is necessary and global mechanisms to manage it.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul has made similar statements recently in response to the Georgia-Russia conflict. As the AFP reports,Turkish President Abdullah Gul predicted a new world order of joint international action, in an interview published in the U.K. on Saturday. He added that the conflict in Georgia shows the U.S. can no longer shape global politics on its own, and that it should start sharing power with other nations.The 2008 election gives us an idea of the current trends underway and provides a window into the establishment's long term game-plan. Both Barack Obama and John McCain have openly indicated that globalist policy will be pursued if either of them are elected president.John McCain discussed his proposed League of Democracies at the Hoover institution in May of 2007. McCain stated in part,This League of Democracies would not supplant the United Nations or other international organizations. It would complement them. But it would be the one organization where the world's democracies could come together to discuss problems and solutions on the basis of shared principles and a common vision of the future. If I am elected president, I will call a summit of the world's democracies in my first year to seek the views of my democratic counterparts and begin exploring the practical steps necessary to realize this vision.

Barack Obama made his globalist stance known during his highly publicized speech in Berlin on July 24th. He said,Yes, there have been differences between America and Europe. No doubt, there will be differences in the future. But the burdens of global citizenship continue to bind us together. A change of leadership in Washington will not lift this burden. In this new century, Americans and Europeans alike will be required to do more -- not less. Partnership and cooperation among nations is not a choice; it is the one way, the only way, to protect our common security and advance our common humanity.In this new world, such dangerous currents have swept along faster than our efforts to contain them. That is why we cannot afford to be divided. No one nation, no matter how large or powerful, can defeat such challenges alone.The more sophisticated branch of globalist elites who see the route to power through slower, deliberate and incremental steps are now making their move. America's demonization, and in turn its use as an example of the necessity of global governance, may very well be the next stage of the establishment's plan for world government.

WW3 THE 3 WAVES THAT MARCH TO ISRAEL

DANIEL 11:40-45
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south( EGYPT) push at him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) and the king of the north (RUSSIA AND MUSLIM HORDES OF EZEK 38+39) shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.
41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.(JORDAN)
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.
43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA 2ND WAVE OF WW3) 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)
45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

REVELATION 14:18-20
18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
20 And the winepress was trodden without the city,(JERUSALEM) and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.(200 MILES) (THE SIZE OF ISRAEL)

The Third and Final Wave of WW3 is when all Nations march to Jerusalem, but JESUS bodily returns to earth and destroys them,sets up his KINGDOM OF RULE FOR 1000 YEARS THEN FOREVER.

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)

WARS AND RUMURS OF WARS.

MATTHEW 24:6
6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

MARK 13:7
7 And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet.

Israel and Iran: the Armageddon scenario AUG 28,08

It is becoming increasingly likely that Israel will attack Iran's nuclear facilities in the next few months. Indeed, over the past few weeks, signs of an impending strike have been widely reported, with the Israeli government itself fuelling much of the speculation.While much of the recent media commentary has revolved around the question of whether Israel has the military capability to undertake such a difficult mission, this emphasis misses the larger point, which is that an Israeli strike may set off a chain reaction that could prove difficult to control.Assuming that the Israeli Air Force attacks -- regardless of whether or not the raid is successful -- the Iranian response will be the key to determining how serious the crisis becomes. Thus, how Tehran retaliates will result in either a tense -- but ultimately limited -- crisis, one where threats will be issued and warnings made but military action will be measured and somewhat predictable, or conversely, in a rapidly escalating crisis that might threaten the stability of the entire region, and may result in the total devastation of some states.The former scenario is easier to envisage. Under it, after the Israeli strike, Iran's leaders would issue numerous threats, but in the end Tehran would limit its military activities to sponsorship of terrorism through its regional proxies (i.e. Hamas and Hezbollah) and the stepping up of attacks against American forces in Iraq. In addition, Iran would likely attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping, which could cause panic on world oil markets.

While such actions would no doubt cause considerable casualties and damages (any attempt to close the strait will likely push oil above $200 a barrel), it is unlikely that they would cause the crisis to deteriorate further. Thus, after some time, acts of terrorism against Israel would gradually diminish, and while Iran has the ability to seriously threaten American forces in Iraq, it is unlikely to do so, as any such attempt would set the stage for a larger confrontation with Washington, a development not in Tehran's interest.As a result, within a few months, the region would settle into its normal pattern -- albeit one that will remain very unsettled for some time, and one where the U.S. will be widely vilified (as it will be blamed in the Arab world for assisting Israel, regardless of whether or not it does).The second scenario, however, is much more unpredictable, and involves several uncertainties. According to this model, Iran would retaliate against Israel using ballistic missiles -- a possibility, it should be noted, that it has explicitly warned of on several occasions. While Israel has a missile defence system, its capabilities have never been tested in war (it was of no use against the short-range rockets that Hezbollah fired in 2006), and it is unlikely that it would successfully intercept all the missiles Iran would launch.The first uncertainty involves the targets Iran strikes. Would it attack strategic targets like petroleum facilities or air bases? In this case there would be significant physical damage but limited Israeli casualties. Or would it strike major population centres (such as Tel Aviv or Haifa) or the country's nuclear facility, in which case, casualties would be extensive? In the former scenario, Israel's retaliatory strike can be expected to be somewhat similar, as the air force would mount a raid against comparable Iranian targets. In the event of the latter, though, Israel's retaliation can be expected to be heavy, perhaps raising the spectre of a counter-attack utilizing some form of WMD (the higher the number of Israeli casualties, the greater the likelihood of a non-conventional response). In this scenario, both countries would suffer significant casualties and damages, and their respective recoveries would be long and difficult.

A second uncertainty involves the type of warhead Iran would arm its missiles with. Would they be conventionally armed, in which case the number of Israeli casualties would depend on the targets hit (as discussed above)? Or would they be armed with a chemical or biological agent, in which case Israeli casualties could be massive? Once again, Israel's retaliation would likely follow the Iranian lead, with the latter scenario resulting in a major nuclear counter-strike.Given these dire scenarios, it is clear that the initial use of force by Israel may trigger a catastrophic confrontation. Thus, the preferred solution remains a diplomatic one, although given Iran's intransigence and unwillingness to give up its nuclear program, it seems unlikely that the negotiations that have been under way for years (and which recently resumed with U.S. involvement) will suddenly succeed.In sum, an Israeli strike against Iran now appears almost inevitable. The effects of this strike are impossible to predict, but it is not difficult to imagine a scenario where the results could be devastating. In the long term, the entire regime that has been created to contain nuclear proliferation, including both treaties (the NPT) and institutions (the IAEA), will need to be fundamentally transformed and strengthened to ensure that the present situation cannot occur again. Unfortunately, though, that prospect offers little comfort at present.

Getting the World to Hate Israel AUG 28,08

As part of evaluating the competitive landscape of the popularity of nations, in a process referred to in marketing circles as place branding, Israel, to no one's great surprise, comes up short in brand likeability, ranking last out of 35 nations included in an August 2006 survey conducted by nation-branding expert Simon Anholt; even less attractive to respondents than Indonesia, Estonia and Turkey.How could this have happened to a country that is the Middle East's only thriving democracy and that enjoys a remarkably robust economy which has spawned some 1,000 startup high-tech companies, for example, second only to the US? How, in short, would you go about making the world hate Israel? This is how you would accomplish that objective if you were an enemy of Israel: Even after 60 years of its existence, you question the fundamental right of Israel to even exist and regularly, though falsely, condemn it for being created illegally - through the theft of Palestinian lands and property - and thus decide, because of its original sin, that it has no right to exist and is merely a Zionist regime.You make 'Palestinianism' into a virtual cult whose members offer a world-wide reverence for the Palestinian cause and repeat without end that their nationalistic striving is inviolable, a basic human right. Of all the 100 million refugees who were dispersed around the globe and were re-assimilated since World War II, you chose only the Palestinians to languish, as if in amber, in barbaric refugee camps where their lives are used as political fodder to denounce the existence of an Israel that supposedly has deprived them of a home.

You have the United Nations set up an agency, the UNRWA, whose sole function is to make sure that this one group of refugees in the whole world are coddled, advocated for, and repeat, mantra-like, that a human right of return has been sanctified and assured by international law for the Palestinians. Give only this group of refugees a collective, as opposed to individual, right of return, and not only to those refugees who supposedly lived in and left what is now Israel, but all of their descendants, as well.You use the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council of the United Nations to repeatedly demonize and delegitimize Israel, making it a pariah in the world community and issuing an edict that equates Zionism with racism. In 2006-07, if you are the Human Rights Council, you pass one hundred percent of your condemnatory resolutions against Israel.You inculcate Palestinian children, nearly from birth, with seething, blind, unrelenting and obsessive hatred of Jews and the Zionist regime, so that kindergarteners graduate with blood-soaked hands while toting plastic AK-47s and dedicate their lives to jihad, while older children are recruited to hide explosives on their bodies to transform themselves into shahids - a new generation of kindling for radical Islam's cult of death.When Israel launches a military strike against nests of terrorists or in response to ceaseless rocket barrages, you term their response disproportionate, another escalation in the cycle of violence, a violation of human rights, aggressive, militaristic, with Apache gunships pounding terrorist neighborhoods.If you are the Palestinian media, and members of the world media who are either intentionally biased or willing to be duped by anti-Israel propaganda, you repeatedly report on supposed Israeli human rights violations, such as an alleged massacre of the 21st century, a horrible war crime and example of genocide committed by Israel against Palestinians in the village of Jenin.You talk about the Israeli security barrier as an apartheid wall and describe it as a massive, soaring, unbroken division through Palestinian neighborhoods and communities, overlooking the fact that the wall is towering and solid concrete only in those regions that have been repeatedly assaulted by terrorism, and that 90 percent of the hundreds of miles of barrier is comprised merely of wire fence.You use the apartheid wall image to create a broader misconception about the Palestinians living under a South African-style apartheid regime, disingenuously equating race restrictions that blacks lived under in Soweto with the open society of Israel, in which Israeli Arabs have more rights than in any Arab state and are asked only not to murder Jews in their midst.On campuses where a coddled and insulated professoriate often express antipathy for the perceived ills of capitalism, the usurpation of Palestine by Israel, and the denial of the civil and economic rights of the Palestinians, you contend that Israel's very existence is not at all about self-determination (something you deem appropriate only for the Palestinians) and all about greed, globalism, colonialism, exploitation, and undeserved political and economic might.

You fund Middle Eastern Studies centers on university campuses and use them as anti-Israel, anti-American think tanks where scholarship is tainted with ideology and singularly focused on the Palestinian cause. You fund the active and vocal Muslim Students Association on campuses across the US that hold Israel Apartheid Week and Holocaust in the Holy Land festivals at which propaganda, Jew-hatred, apologies for terrorism and further demonizing of Israel take place.In the Arab world, you play fast and loose with history in your attempt to create a historical narrative conforming to your own political agenda, erasing any link between Palestine and the Jews. Though Jerusalem is mentioned not once in the Koran and over 669 times in the Jewish Bible, you claim that Jerusalem is now the third holiest site to Muslims, that, as Yasser Arafat announced at Camp David in 2000, the Temple Mount was never a Jewish site, that Jews now occupy Muslim lands.If you are in the Muslim world or the netherworld of Jew-haters, you question the actual extent and truthfulness of the Holocaust, first complaining that the Palestinians should not have been made to suffer the loss of their homeland because of the German's extermination of European Jewry - leading in some part to the creation of Israel - and then at other times questioning whether the Holocaust even occurred and accusing Zionists of using the fictitious event as a way to falsely extract sympathy from the world community and force them into giving Palestine away to the Jews.You write academic books questioning the strength of the Israel Lobby, and wonder out loud if Jewish influence and wealth forces us to lose credibility and threatens America's national security on behalf of Israel.You do all of these things as part of a concerted effort and also as random, independent efforts on the part of Israel's enemies, and you do it for the 60 years of Israel's existence, and then you are shocked - shocked! - when Israel is shown to rank unfavorably in surveys which measure the public perception of nations and how they compare to one another in the world community. But you are pleased, because you know that if Israel cannot be annihilated with armaments and rockets, perhaps you can make it cease to exist simply by making the entire world loathe it for being what it is.

Russia missile test heightens standoff with West AUG 28,08

MOSCOW (AFP) - Russia on Thursday tested an inter-continental missile, reports said, heightening tensions with the West as France warned the European Union could slap sanctions on Moscow over the Georgia conflict.Russia also sought international support for its stance at a summit with China and Central Asian nations.The missile test in northern Russia came barely a week after the United States completed an accord with Poland on basing an anti-missile shield in central Europe and as Russia accuses NATO of building up its navy vessels in the Black Sea.A spokesman for Russia's strategic nuclear forces said the test was successful, Russian news agencies reported. The announcement came as Russia complained about the number of NATO ships in the Black Sea and said it was taking measures of precaution.NATO said there were five warships taking part in exercises in the Black Sea that were organised before Russia's military offensive in Georgia on August 8 to rebuff a Georgian attempt to retake breakaway South Ossetia.The standoff with the West deepened with President Dmitry Medvedev's announcement that Russia recognised South Ossetia and another rebel region, Abkhazia, as independent states.There is no NATO naval build up in the Black Sea as Russian authorities are claiming in the media, alliance spokeswoman Carmen Romero said.In a statement, NATO said: This deployment is routine in nature and has been planned for over a year. Notification of the requirement to transit the Turkish Straits was given in June well before the current Georgia crisis and is completely unrelated.

US warships have taken relief supplies to Georgia outside of the NATO exercises and other western nations are beleived to have vessels in the Black Sea. Russia has moved some of its own naval forces to the Abkhaz port of Sukhumi.EU states are considering imposing sanctions on Russia at an emergency summit on the Georgian crisis on Monday, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said.Sanctions are being considered, and many other means, said Kouchner, whose country holds the European Union presidency.We are trying to draw up a strong text showing our desire not to accept the situation in Georgia, he told reporters, while refusing to disclose what kind of sanctions were under consideration.Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov shrugged off the threat, saying it was made just because they're upset that the 'little pet' of certain Western capitals didn't fulfill their expectations.

Lavrov suggested the French foreign minister had a sick imagination after Kouchner argued that Moscow could have designs on Ukraine, Crimea and Moldova.Russia claimed it had secured support from China and four other nations at a summit in Dushanbe, the Tajikistan capital.The statement released by the six nations at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit voiced support for Russia's active role in assisting in peace and cooperation in the region but also called for dialogue and respect for territorial integrity.The SCO member states express their deep concern over the recent tensions surrounding the South Ossetia question and call for the sides to peacefully resolve existing problems through dialogue, said the statement signed by Medvedev, President Hu Jintao of China and the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.The declaration called for respect for territorial integrity without specifically naming the Georgia case.The presidents confirmed their commitment to the principle of respecting the historical and cultural traditions of each country and efforts aimed at maintaining the unity of states and their territorial integrity.Medvedev described the united position of the SCO members as a serious signal to the West.I am sure that the united position of the SCO member states will have international resonance, Medvedev said. And I hope it will serve as a serious signal to those who try to turn black into white and justify this aggression.China said Wednesday it was concerned at the conflict in the Caucasus and called for dialogue and consultation to resolve the issue.On Wednesday, the Group of Seven industrialised powers strongly condemned Russia's recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.We deplore Russia's excessive use of military force in Georgia and its continued occupation of parts of Georgia, said the statement from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.South Ossetian prosecutor general Teimuraz Khugayev said Thursday that 1,692 people were killed and 1,500 wounded in the attack by Georgian forces on the breakaway region, news agencies reported.A Russian prosecutor last week said that only 133 deaths had been confirmed among civilians in the region, although they said they expected that figure to grow. Russian officials earlier said up to 2,000 people had been killed.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier called on Russia to allow an international probe into allegations of abuses by the Georgian military in South Ossetia.

Russia Courts Asian Allies as EU Considers Sanctions (Update1)
By Lyubov Pronina and Dune Lawrence

Aug. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Russia proposed expanding a security alliance with China and four former Soviet republics to counter NATO as the European Union considered sanctions on Russia for its recognition of two separatist Georgian regions. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has become an authoritative organization that commands respect. The group will consider adding new members, he said today at a summit in the Tajik capital Dushanbe. Expanding the group would realize Russia's goal of turning the SCO into an anti-American, anti-NATO counterweight, said Yevgeny Volk, an analyst in Moscow for the Washington-based Heritage Foundation research group. It comes as a result of Western criticism of Russia for its military action in Georgia and for recognizing Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Medvedev traveled to Dushanbe in search of support from China and Central Asian allies as Russia's relations with the West continued to sour. The European Union will consider sanctions against Russia for recognizing Abkhazia and South Ossetia at a meeting next week. Russia's relationship remains strained with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which has sent warships to the Black Sea, home of Russia's southern fleet, to deliver humanitarian aid to Georgia.

EU Sanctions

Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner of France, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, said some of the bloc's leaders will propose sanctions, others will be against when they meet on Sept. 1 to discuss the situation in Georgia. In a subsequent statement, Kouchner said France hasn't called for sanctions against Russia and will seek to forge a common EU position on the issue. While Europe discusses sanctions, Russia's Asian allies offered support for Russia's actions in Georgia, where it fought Georgian troops for five days over South Ossetia. They stopped short of giving diplomatic recognition to the regions. In addition to Russia and China, the seven-year-old organization includes Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, while India, Iran, Pakistan and Mongolia have observer status.

U.S. Response

The U.S. views the fact the Shanghai group and other countries haven't recognized Abkhazia and South Ossetia as evidence of international disapproval of Russia's actions, State Department spokesman Robert Wood said. I would just say that it wasn't what I would call an endorsement of Russia's recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Wood told reporters in Washington today. ``The fact that you haven't seen countries come forth and recognize these two parts of Georgia's territory is a significant sign.The U.S. is conferring with its European allies to determine their next steps, Wood said. Be assured that we're not going to sit by and allow this to continue without there being consequences.In a declaration passed today, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization welcomed the EU-brokered cease-fire that ended the fighting and offered support for Russia's active role in helping to create peace and cooperation in this region.

Belarus Recognition

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, a staunch ally of Russia, said he viewed Russia's actions in Georgia with understanding. Russia either had to just walk past or stop the bloodshed of that long-suffering people, he said. I'm satisfied that I told my colleagues about this, and received in response this sort of support for our efforts, Medvedev said. Belarus may become the second country to recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia as early as today, Interfax reported, citing the Belarusian ambassador to Russia, Vasily Dolgolev. While Russia is so far alone in recognizing Abkhaz and South Ossetian statehood, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia won't try to compel its allies to follow suit. Unlike some of our major foreign partners, we prefer that each country think for itself, he said in Dushanbe. The fact that China hasn't come out in support of Russia's position doesn't mean that China is isolating Russia, government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said yesterday.

Chinese Concern

The Russian leader said the Shanghai Cooperation Organization will consider adding new members. While the group's goals include joint provision and support of peace, security and stability in the region, according to its Web site, it's not a military alliance like NATO. Medvedev said the Shanghai group doesn't serve as a counterweight to NATO. China, which has restive ethnic populations in its western regions of Xinjiang and Tibet, and claims sovereignty over Taiwan, has been wary of inserting itself into the international dispute over Russia's actions in Georgia.

Qin Gang, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, said the government expresses concern over the latest developments in the situation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
We hope relevant countries can properly resolve the issues through dialogue, he said. China has long espoused a formal policy of non-intervention in other countries' internal affairs, a policy it invokes in defending its actions in Tibet, Xinjiang and Taiwan.

Secessionism

So far China's reaction to this dispute has been very soft, because we're also very aware of the secessionism in Xinjiang, Tibet, and the Central Asian countries also have the same worries, said Zhu Feng, a security expert at Peking University's School of International Studies. He said China is basically supportive of Moscow, but won't make a separate statement on the issue. The Shanghai organization in recent months has condemned an attempt by Taiwan to seek greater international recognition and unrest in Tibet. A Taiwanese referendum in March that called for the country to join the United Nations under the name Taiwan posed a threat to stability in the region, the organization said. It called protests in Tibet last spring illegal actions and said it considers Tibet an inalienable part of China, according to statements on the organization's Web site. To contact the reporters on this story: Lyubov Pronina in Dushanbe via the Moscow newsroom at lpronina@bloomberg.net; Dune Lawrence in Beijing at dlawrence6@bloomberg.net

MUSLIM NATIONS

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

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

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

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

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

EU fears Russian action in Ukraine and Moldova
PHILIPPA RUNNER AUG 28,08 Today @ 08:30 CET

French and UK foreign ministers have voiced fears Russia may be planning Georgia-type scenarios in EU neighbours Ukraine and Moldova, amid rising tension between Ukraine and Russia and fresh calls for independence by Moldovan rebels.I repeat, it [Russia's action in Georgia] is very dangerous, and there are other objectives that one can suppose are objectives for Russia, in particular the Crimea, Ukraine and Moldova, France's Bernard Kouchner said on Europe 1 radio on Wednesday (27 August).

The remark comes after Russia this week formally recognised two rebel enclaves in Georgia - Abkhazia and South Ossetia - as independent states, following a Georgian attack on South Ossetian capital Tskinvali, to which Russia responded with a military incursion into Georgia.Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova all broke away from Russia's sphere of influence in the past five years to seek integration with NATO and the EU.But in Ukraine's Crimean peninsula, 58 percent of people are ethnically Russian and hundreds of thousands hold Russian passports, with some groups calling for the territory to split from Ukraine. Crimea is also home to Russia's Black Sea fleet.In Moldova, the Russophone Transniestria region gained de facto independence after a civil war in 1992. The strip of land still houses 1,300 Russian troops.UK foreign minister David Miliband on a visit to Ukraine on Wednesday shared Mr Kouchner's concern, urging Kiev not to provide any pretext for Russian actions because, of course, the Russians have used those pretexts in the Georgian case.The British foreign secretary said the war in Georgia marked the end of the post Cold War period of growing geopolitical calm in and around Europe.Ukraine could be the next target of political pressure by Russia, EU enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn told a meeting of Finnish ambassadors in Helsinki the same day, AFP reports. It is important from a stability point of view that the EU sends a clear political signal that Ukraine's integration into the [European] Union is possible.

Crimean confrontation

Ukraine-Russia relations worsened on Wednesday as President Viktor Yushchenko condemned Russia's recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and revealed plans to raise the price for the Russian navy's land lease in the Crimea port of Sevastopol.

Violation of Georgia's territorial integrity fuels tensions, not only in the Caucasus, he said, Interfax reports. Fundamental agreements and principles of trust ... can be lost via thoughtless steps, when diplomacy and the policy of peaceful settlement are replaced with a policy of force.The Sevastopol lease move comes after Mr Yushchenko earlier threatened to ban Russian ships used in the war against Georgia from returning to port. Ukraine Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Wednesday warned the president against enflaming pro-Russian feeling on the peninsula by targeting the fleet.If we don't change the position on Crimea, if we don't harmonise relations with the Black Sea fleet, we will be in for very serious problems, she said.

Transnistria next?

Russia's recognition of the two regions also raised the temperature in Moldova on Wednesday, with Transnistria separatists predicting their turn will come next. As regards the recognition of Transnistria, this is a matter of time, the rebels' military chief Vladimir Atamaniuc told Russian newswires. It is Moldova that should be the first to recognise us, said Oleg Gudymo, a member of the internationally unrecognised Transnistrian parliament. If they want to live in peace with us they have no other option.Earlier this week, Russia's ambassador to Moldova, Valeri Kuzmin, also used threatening language on the frozen conflict. Moldova should draw its own positive conclusions after the conflict in South Ossetia, he said. I believe [Moldovan] leaders will use their wisdom ... to not allow such a bloody and catastrophic trend of events.

Stepanakert statement

While Russia is still waiting for any of its allies to join it in recognising the Georgian separatists, the Russian-backed breakaway republic of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan yesterday gave its support.This fully meets the principle of the self-determination of nations and fundamental norms of international law, the Nagorno-Karabakh foreign ministry in Stepanakert said, warning Azerbaijan that any use of force would end in a Georgia-like humanitarian catastrophe.EU and US-ally Azerbaijan is a growing exporter of oil to Europe via a pipeline bypassing Russia and aims to ship natural gas to the west through the EU's future Nabucco pipeline as well.

Germany and Russia threaten EU-Ukraine relations
ANDREW RETTMAN AUG 28,08 Today @ 17:44 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Germany's close relations with Russia are the main obstacle to signing a major EU-Ukraine treaty at an upcoming summit in France, Ukraine diplomats say, warning that failure to seal the deal will signal to Moscow that it can veto EU policy on post-Soviet states. There are maybe two or three countries who are strong opposers, strong sceptics, Ukrainian deputy foreign minister Konstantin Yeliseyev said in Brussels on Thursday (28 August), commenting on EU reluctance to state clearly that the future of Ukraine lies in the European Union in the preamble to the new treaty.In this regard, we count very much on the leadership of Germany, which is the engine of EU integration and a very powerful country, we count very much on their courage, he added, saying EU explanations - such as lack of formal consensus among the 27 states or public enlargement fatigue - are not sincere.Some other countries like Belgium are also opposed. But Berlin is the key, another Ukraine official said, with just 12 days to go to the summit in Evian, France. They are telling us the chancellory is talking to the foreign ministry and so forth, but no matter what they say, the real problem is Russia.Germany and Russia have historically close relations, with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder currently working to help build a new Germany-Russia gas pipeline and with the current chancellor, Angela Merkel, opposing EU diplomatic sanctions against Russia despite its actions in Georgia.

The statement on EU enlargement is the heart of the matter for Ukraine, which says that if Germany's preferred wording - that the new treaty does not prejudge future relations - is used, it will effectively rule out any Ukraine moves toward EU accession for the next 10 to 15 years, when the pact is due to expire.Ukraine is also pressing for NATO countries to offer it a Membership Action Plan in December, with Germany also leading opposition at NATO-level to such a move. Mr Yeliseyev warned that lack of a clear political commitment by the West to Ukraine will be seen by Moscow as a green light to expand influence in the east.If the [EU-Ukraine] summit is not successful ... it will send encouragement to Russia that it can influence EU policy and EU strategy, he said. If NATO members don't take this decision, it will show Russia that by using force, they can influence the process of enlargement and obtain a kind of domination of the post-Soviet states.The deputy minister underlined that Ukraine sees the EU as a guardian of economic and political stability, in contrast to NATO's hard security role.We consider NATO as a father and the EU as a mother. With a father it's mostly physical protection, security protection. With a mother it is mostly economic protection, he said.Mr Yeliseyev explained that the Russia-Georgia war has raised security concerns in Ukraine due to the situation in Crimea, where 60 percent of inhabitants are ethnically Russian and where Russia keeps its Black Sea fleet, which was used against Georgia, making Ukraine a third party to this conflict.If Ukrainian security detorirated, it would not be a Georgia scenario, it would be a more dangerous scenario, he said, with the 50-million-strong former nuclear power currently controlling most of Russia's natural gas exports to the EU.

From The TimesAugust 28, 2008 Russian-backed paramilitaries ethnically cleansing villages (Shakh Aivazov/AP)

South Ossetian militiamen have reportedly torched houses, beaten elderly people and murdered civilians James Hider in Gori.Russian-backed paramilitaries are ethnically cleansing villages on Georgian soil, refugees and officials told The Times yesterday. South Ossetian militiamen have torched houses, beaten elderly people and even murdered civilians in the lawless buffer zone set up by the Russian Army just north of Gori. The violence, close to the border with the breakaway republic recognised by Russia this week as independent, has prompted a new wave of refugees into Gori, 40 miles north of Tbilisi. People who had started to return to their villages in the area are now fleeing for a second time, joined by many elderly people who had refused to leave their homes when the Russians invaded two weeks ago.

A straggle of refugees gathered yesterday at the feet of a giant statue of Josef Stalin, Gori’s infamous native son, to register with the local authorities and the UN refugee agency, the UNHCR, for emergency supplies and accommodation in three tent cities being built near a football stadium. They had no uniform — I think they were Ossetians,” said Siyala Sereteli, 73, who fled her village of Irganeteye the previous day when irregular forces arrived. Weeping, she lifted her sleeve to show a deep bruise inflicted by a blow from a rifle stock. They took everything they wanted, even the fans. They beat up a man using sticks and a chair and then threw him in the river, she said. Other refugees were clustered in the shabby city hall, trying to glean news of relatives still inside the buffer zone, which Russia said it had established to prevent Georgian attacks on South Ossetians, many of whom hold Russian passports. A look of deep shock froze the face of Oliko Gnolidze when she managed to make contact on her mobile phone with an uncle, Nodari Jashiashvili, in Tkviai, about a 20-minute drive away. There is panic here, they are burning houses, came the crackly voice of her uncle. I don’t know what to do. Ossetians are in the village. Ms Gnolidze, 38, said that in earlier conversations her uncle had told her that only a few people remained in the village, with Ossetian irregulars looting under the noses of Russian troops, described by Moscow as peacekeepers. She said the Russians had forced her uncle to cook a meal for them, after which he had fled and hidden in nearby woods. Shorta Kharadze, a 45-year-old lorry driver, returned to Gori from Tbilisi, where he had sheltered during the fighting, after his mother’s neighbours from the village of Megheverizkevi told him that she had been murdered by South Ossetian militiamen. Looking gaunt, Mr Kharadze said the neighbours had telephoned him to say that two men in uniform had come to the home of his 77-year-old mother, Oliya, and demanded to know why she hadn’t left the village. She had been wounded in the arm during the fighting in the area but had refused to leave.

They beat her with an axe handle. There’s a pond in our yard — she fell near it and they pushed her in. I don’t know if she was still alive when they pushed her in or if she drowned, Mr Kharadze said. It’s like ethnic cleansing, genocide, said Koba Tlashadze, a council official in Gori, which was itself briefly occupied by Russian forces before last week’s ceasefire. It’s a special operation codenamed Clean Field, because they are emptying the villages.The UNHCR has voiced its concern about reports of new forcible displacement caused by marauding militias north of Gori near the boundary with South Ossetia. It said as many as 400 displaced people had gathered on Gori’s square on Tuesday after being forced to flee their villages by marauders operating in the so-called buffer zone established along the boundary with South Ossetia. Alessandra Morelli, a UNHCR co-ordinator in Gori, said that confirming the stories was impossible because Russian checkpoints had sealed off the buffer zone. Farther west, in Borjomi, Georgia’s Environment Minister accused Russia of having deliberately started extensive forest fires in the country’s main natural park by firing incendiary flares into tinder-dry mountains. After a helicopter inspection of the still-smouldering area, Irakli Ghvaladze said an investigation was being set up into Russian strikes on the park — far from military operations — for almost a week during the conflict. We have begun to investigate this ecocide, he said. The fires had destroyed hundreds of hectares of forest, with fire-fighting helicopters unable to operate for fear of being shot down. Who knows why the Russians did this? They destroy everything, he said.

Russia Flexes Its Muscles in Mideast By ANDREW LEE BUTTERS / BEIRUT
Wed Aug 27, 11:50 AM ET

With Russian soldiers occupying swaths of the Republic of Georgia, one might have thought that Russian President Dmitri Medvedev would have more pressing matters than scooting off to the Black Sea summer resort town of Sochi. But last week Medvedev did just that for a pleasant - and possibly ominous - bit of business: entertaining Syria's President Bashar al Assad, one of the few world leaders who have flown to Russia's side during the Georgian crisis. The trip paid off for Assad when Russia agreed to strengthen military ties with Syria. According to the Russian press, Assad also offered to host advanced Russian missile systems on Syrian soil. The Syrian state media later denied that Damascus was offering to set up Russian rocket bases. But even rumors of such a deal look suspiciously like a Russian response to U.S. plans to set up a missile defense system in Poland, an agreement signed earlier this month at the height of the Georgian conflict and denounced by Russia. Moreover, the rejuvenated Russian-Syrian connection is just one example of how the so-called new Cold War between the U.S. and Russian is spreading to the Middle East, mapping itself onto the region's pre-existing conflicts, and complicating efforts to bring stability to a region that is on the verge of a new hot war. Since the Iraq war began in 2003, the Middle East has been split by its own not-so-cold war for regional domination between Iran and its allies (Syria, Hizballah and Hamas) and the U.S. and its allies (Israel, Saudi Arabia and Egypt). Though Russia has been a mostly peripheral player, it has often wound up on the opposite side of Washington. In 2005, Moscow agreed to help Iran develop a civilian nuclear reactor, infuriating the Bush administration, which claims that Iran's nuclear energy program is merely a cover for developing weapons. Russian also supplied Syria with weapons that wound up in the hands of Hizballah, the Lebanese anti-Israeli militant group. Israeli military sources say that these Russian weapons - especially advanced anti-tank rockets - were vital in enabling Hizballah to face down the Israeli army during its disastrous incursion into Lebanon in the summer of 2006.

These tensions are now likely to grow as Russia flexes its muscles in a region where the U.S. is vulnerable. For one thing, Russia sees fewer and fewer reasons to tread lightly around Israel. During the 2006 Lebanon war, Russia condemned Hizballah actions as terrorism, and afterwards claimed it had made efforts to prevent weapons sales to Syria from helping Hizballah. But the war in Georgia highlighted that Israel is itself in a kind of arms race with Russia. Israel was supplying the Georgian army with weapons and Israeli security companies were training Georgian soldiers. And recent Israeli press reports claim that Hizballah has set up Russian-made radar-guided air defense systems since the 2006 war in the eastern Bekaa Valley in order to shoot down Israeli jets. What's more, ever since the U.S. circulated a draft Security Council Resolution condemning Russia's Georgian invasion, Washington can expect scant Russian help at the United Nations to prevent Iran from developing nuclear technology. This could have dramatic consequences. Israeli officials have been implying that if the U.S. and the U.N. fail to halt the Iranian nuclear program, they will take matters into their own hands and launch air strikes against Iran. Of course, the new Cold War in the Middle East may end up amounting to no more than a passing chill. Assad's flirtation with Russia could be intended to strengthen Syria's hand in ongoing indirect peace talks with Israel through Turkish mediation. On the other hand, Syrian hardliners opposed to peace could see Russia's backing as one more strong argument for holding out against American and international pressure to recognize Israel. A disturbing sense of dÉjÀ vu adheres to all these alliances, arms races and nuclear programs. The Middle East was a major theater in the original Cold War. Before the Camp David Accords of 1978, Syria, Iraq and Egypt were all Soviet client states; indeed, Syria still has the aging Soviet-era fighter jets and tanks to prove it. And while all stayed quiet on the European front of the Cold War, it got pretty hot in the Middle East. In at least three major wars between Arabs and Israelis (in 1967, 1973 and 1982), the U.S. and the Soviet Union got to see how their weapons stacked up against those of their foe. As the chill spreads today, it's worth remembering that the Middle East is a region where conflicts too often don't stay on ice. View this article on Time.com

Russia faces diplomatic isolation on Georgia By Denis Dyomkin and Francois Murphy AUG 28,08

DUSHANBE/PARIS (Reuters) - Russia faced diplomatic isolation over its military action against Georgia on Thursday, with its Asian allies failing to offer support and France saying EU leaders were considering imposing sanctions. Moscow accused the West of heightening tension by a naval build-up in the Black Sea, and said talk of punishing Russia for recognizing the independence of two breakaway Georgian regions was the product of a sick and confused imagination.The Group of Seven rich nations condemned Moscow's continued occupation of Georgia and a group of Asian allies led by China, meeting at a regional summit, failed to follow Russia's lead on independence for two breakaway regions of Georgia.Belarus, Russia's closest ex-Soviet ally, gave the clearest support, with President Alexander Lukashenko saying the Kremlin had no other moral choice but to recognize the Georgian regions. But he too stopped short of recognizing them himself.The crisis flared early this month when Georgia tried to retake by force its separatist province of South Ossetia and Russia launched an overwhelming counter-attack.Russian forces swept the Georgian army out of the rebel region and are still occupying some areas of Georgia proper. On Tuesday Moscow announced that it was recognizing South Ossetia and another breakaway region, Abkhazia, as independent states.France, the current European Union president, has called a meeting of EU heads of government on Monday to discuss the Georgian crisis.Sanctions are being considered and many other means as well, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said in response to a question at a news conference.We are trying to elaborate a strong text that will show our determination not to accept (what is happening in Georgia), he said. Of course, there are also sanctions.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov dismissed such talk, noting that Kouchner had also suggested recently that Russia might soon attack Moldova, Ukraine and the Crimea.But that is a sick imagination, and probably that applies to sanctions as well. I think it is a demonstration of complete confusion, Lavrov told reporters in Tajikistan.The United States and Europe demand Russia respect a French-brokered ceasefire and withdraw all its troops from Georgia, including a disputed buffer zone imposed by Moscow.

BLACK SEA MANOEUVRING

Analysts see Moscow's actions as a bid to halt expanding Western influence in the Caucasus, a major oil and gas transit route from the Caspian Sea to the West that bypasses Russia.As the diplomatic maneuvering gathered pace, Moscow also expressed alarm at a naval build-up in the Black Sea, an area normally dominated by its southern fleet.Two U.S. warships are already off the coast of Georgia to show support for their ally and Washington has ordered the flagship of its Sixth Fleet, the sophisticated joint command ship Mount Whitney, to the area, saying it will deliver humanitarian supplies.The chief spokesman for Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told reporters on Wednesday evening that deployment was something that can hardly be explained ... Let us hope that we do not see any direct confrontation.NATO insists the only Black Sea presence under the auspices of the Western military alliance is a group of four warships -- one Spanish, one German, one Polish and one American -- which are on a long-planned routine exercise. There is certainly no NATO build-up in the Black Sea, Commander Kevan McHale at NATO's Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) said on Thursday. Notification of transit through the Turkish Straits was given in June, NATO said later. Russia's deputy chief of the General Staff, Colonel-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn, has spoken of up to 18 NATO vessels being in or expected in the Black Sea. Russia responded by sending the flagship of its Black Sea fleet, the guided-missile cruiser Moskva, to the Abkhaz port of Sukhumi, less than 200 km (120 miles) to the north of where the two U.S. warships are sailing.

DIPLOMATIC ISOLATION

In Tbilisi, Georgians buried their war dead and prayed for their country on a religious holiday. The remains of 10 of the 263 soldiers killed in the conflict were lowered into a single grave on a hill overlooking the capital, after a haunting funeral march played by a military band. I don't know which one is my son, cried an elderly woman holding a photograph of a man in military uniform. We've been waiting for him for two weeks.Though it easily won the war, Russia has struggled to win diplomatic support for its actions in Georgia, which have been condemned by the United States and European powers. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev failed to secure support for his action at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a group linking Moscow with China and four ex-Soviet Central Asian states.

The SCO states express grave concern in connection with the recent tensions around the South Ossetian issue and urge the sides to solve existing problems peacefully, through dialogue, and to make efforts facilitating reconciliation and talks, the summit's closing statement in Dushanbe said. Even China, which often sides with Russia in diplomatic disputes, issued a veiled criticism of Moscow's actions, saying it was concerned about the latest changes in South Ossetia and Abkhazia and calling for dialogue to resolve the issue. (Additional reporting by Mark John in Brussels and Christian Lowe in Moscow; Writing by Michael Stott and Jon Boyle in Moscow; Editing by Robert Hart)

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

Bulgaria makes case for Nabucco pipeline
RENATA GOLDIROVA AUG 28,08 Today @ 09:05 CET

Bulgaria has called on the EU to throw all its weight behind the Nabucco energy corridor, a pipeline designed to lessen the bloc's dependency on Russian gas.Finding enough supplies is the big problem and it cannot be solved just by the efforts of the companies in the Nabucco consortium ... Without a political deal, this case cannot be solved, Bulgarian economy minister Petar Dimitrov said in an interview with Reuters on Wednesday (27 August). The Nabucco project - connecting Turkey with Austria, via Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary - should enable the transportation of Caspian energy resources to the European market, but it remains unclear how to feed the pipeline. Earlier this year, Turkmenistan agreed to supply 10 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas to the European Union each year. In addition, the union hopes the bulk of the supplies could come from countries such as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Egypt or Iraq.In order to address this very point, Mr Dimitrov suggested a high level political meeting take place between the EU and potential suppliers as well as transiting countries.Russia is holding political talks to buy out the available gas from the Caspian region ... I believe the EU should also hold such political talks and not narrow it all down to just principal support for the Nabucco project, the Bulgarian minister told Reuters.According to Forbes, Russia's state-run gas monopoly, Gazprom, offered to buy all of Azerbaijan's gas exports earlier this month.Demand for energy is sharply rising in the European Union and it is expected to import at least 360 bcm - out of 500 bcm consumed - from countries beyond the 27-country bloc by 2020. At the same time, the EU has been trying to diversify its energy supplies away from Russia.The Nabucco project's capacity amounts to 31 billion cubic metres of natural gas per year. The EU hopes construction will begin in 2010.

AMERICA (POLITICAL BABYLON)

EZEKIEL 39:21
21 And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them.

ISAIAH 18:1-2
1 Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia:
2 That sendeth ambassadors by the sea, even in vessels of bulrushes upon the waters, saying, Go, ye swift messengers, to a nation scattered and peeled, to a people terrible from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden down, whose land the rivers have spoiled!

JEREMIAH 50:11,37,12
11 Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage, because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls;(BACKSLIDERS)
37 A sword is upon their horses, and upon their chariots, and upon all the mingled people that are in the midst of her; and they shall become as women: a sword is upon her treasures; and they shall be robbed.(A NATION OF MINGLED PEOPLE)
12 Your mother shall be sore confounded; she that bare you shall be ashamed:(MOTHER ENGLAND) behold, the hindermost of the nations shall be a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.

JEREMIAH 51:13,7,53
13 O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.
7 Babylon hath been a golden cup in the LORD's hand, that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine; therefore the nations are mad.
53 Though Babylon should mount up to heaven, and though she should fortify the height of her strength, yet from me shall spoilers come unto her, saith the LORD.

REVELATION 18:3,5,7
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
7 How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.

JEREMIAH 50:3,24
3 For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD. (RUSSIA A SNEAK ATTACK)

REVELATION 18:10
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.

OBAMA VIDEO TO STORY
http://wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=73464

ELECTION 2008 E-mail frenzy: Obama plans to disarm U.S.Candidate pledges on YouTube clip to gut military spending, research August 26, 2008 9:52 pm Eastern By Drew Zahn 2008 WorldNetDaily

DES MOINES, Iowa – A video the Barack Obama campaign produced last year to solicit the endorsement of an Iowa-based advocacy group has generated more than 3 million page views on YouTube, fueled by chain e-mails claiming the clip is evidence the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee intends to disarm the U.S..Florida's St. Petersburg Times received an e-mail that warned of Obama's plan to unilaterally disarm our nation and stated, You do not have to check Snopes to determine if this is true or false. ... Watch and listen to Obama's own words.WND also received an e-mail suggesting the Democratic National Committee is supposedly pressuring YouTube to remove the video clip before it leaks out to too many viewers and damages Obama's chances of winning the presidency.The video, however, was originally posted on YouTube by the Obama campaign itself on Oct. 22, 2007, and has been seen – in its various repeat appearances on the site – well over 3 million times.Does it give evidence of a plan to disarm the U.S.? In the clip, Obama pledges to cut tens of billions of dollars in defense spending, cut investments in missile defense systems and slow our development of future combat systems.You can view the candidate's promises in his own words and full context below:In addition to budget cuts and curtailing weapons research and development, Obama concludes the video by pledging to refrain from developing new nuclear weapons, to negotiate with Russia to take intercontinental missiles off hair-trigger alert and to achieve deep cuts in our nuclear arsenals.Whether such promises constitute an endangering level of disarmament or not is a subject hotly debated on YouTube itself.One viewer commented, How will you protect the American people without a powerful defence (sic)? R & D is mandatory to keep ahead of the threats, and develop new and better ways to support and protect our troops when they go in harms (sic) way.Another viewer agreed with Obama's plan, saying, Wow. So that's where all my money is going. … Man we are over-kill when it come (sic) to producing a lot of weapons for this country.

Obama originally made the video clip to garner the endorsement of Caucus4Priorities, an Iowa-based group that would likely agree with the latter viewer that advocates shifting federal funds from defense spending to social programs.The Democratic candidate thanked the group in the video's opening remarks.The video was made last October as Obama was attempting to win Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucus. Obama pulled ahead of Hillary Clinton and John Edwards to win the caucus but lost the Caucus4Priorities endorsement, as the organization backed Edwards instead.

Mideast running on different clocks at Ramadan By KATARINA KRATOVAC, Associated Press Writer AUG 28,08

CAIRO, Egypt - The start of the holy month of Ramadan next week is causing clock confusion in the Middle East. Egypt and the Palestinians are falling back an hour far earlier than usual, trying to reduce daylight hours for Muslims fasting until sunset in sweltering summer temperatures. Politics is also adding a twist. The Palestinian militant group Hamas is ending daylight-saving time at midnight Thursday in the Gaza Strip, which it controls — while the West Bank, run by the rival Fatah faction, is waiting until midnight Sunday.The Palestinians have traditionally changed their clocks at different times from Israel in a gesture of independence. Now for the first time, they're directing the gesture at each other, reflecting the rival claims for power in the more than year-old split between the Palestinian territories.Hamas just wants to show they're different from the Palestinian government, to pretend that they are the real government here, said Jamal Zakout, a spokesman for the prime minister of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority. He said the PA chose midnight Sunday because Ramadan is expected to begin Monday.Egypt will also move its clocks back one hour at midnight Thursday, a full month earlier than usual. The switch will put Egypt two hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time and at least an hour later than its Mideast neighbors.The creeping-up of the clock change reflects the complications of the lunar Islamic calendar.Ramadan comes around 11 days earlier each year. Currently, that brings it more into the long, hot days of summer, making it particularly tough for Muslims, who abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset during the holy month. Even in September, temperatures in Egypt are in the upper 90s.Egypt's decision will enable its people to have their iftar evening meal, breaking the fast, an hour earlier.Israel goes off daylight-saving time on Oct. 5, before the Jewish holy day Yom Kippur. It won't reduce the length of the 25-hour fast, which goes from sunset to sunset, but makes it a bit easier by reducing the number of daytime hours observant Jews must go without food or water.Jordan and Lebanon will switch the clocks back as usual by the end of October. Syria falls back in late September, while Saudi Arabia and Iraq don't change clocks.Ramadan, which commemorates the revelation of the first verses of the Quran to the Prophet Muhammad, begins and ends with the sighting of the new moon. During the month, families and friends gather for sometimes lavish iftar meals, ending with the Eid al-Fitr, a three-day holiday of the breaking of the fast.

Associated Press Writers Ibrahim Barzak in Gaza City and Mohammed Daraghmeh in Ramallah contributed to this report.

Livni widens lead in race to replace Olmert Thu Aug 28, 6:33 AM ET

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni will easily win leadership elections in the ruling Kadima party to replace embattled Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, poll results showed on Thursday. The survey in the daily Maariv showed Livni winning 49 percent of the votes among Kadima members, widening her lead over her closest party rival, Transport Minister Shaul Mofaz. The poll showed Mofaz receiving 28 percent.Support for two other candidates was in single figures. Previous polls showed Livni, Israel's chief negotiator with the Palestinians, with a lead of 8-18 percentage points over former military chief Mofaz.The scandal-hit Olmert threw Israel into political turmoil that could hamstring Middle East peacemaking by announcing last month he would stand down as prime minister after a September 17 leadership contest.Olmert would remain caretaker prime minister until his successor builds a new coalition, and officials have questioned whether Livni would be able to put together a new government.Should the new Kadima leader be unable to form a coalition and snap elections were called, recent polls show Livni would be neck and neck in the vote with opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu, a former prime minister from the rightist Likud party.Thursday's survey was taken among 400 Kadima voters with a margin of error of 4.9 percent.(Writing by Ari Rabinovitch; editing by Andrew Roche)

RUSSIA ALARMED AT BUILDUP IN BLACK SEA

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.

New Orleans mulls evacuation as Gustav looms By Kathy Finn AUG 27,08

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - Three years after Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Louisiana coast, New Orleans residents on Wednesday again confronted the prospect of an evacuation as Tropical Storm Gustav loomed. Not since Katrina struck on August 29, 2005, have residents faced a forced departure from their homes and businesses as many still struggle to rebuild their lives in a city famed for its jazz clubs and Mardi Gras festival.Storm levees broke under the onslaught of Katrina, flooding 80 percent of New Orleans and killing almost 1,500 people in the city and along the Gulf of Mexico coast. The hurricane caused $125 billion in wind and flood damage.

With Tropical Storm Gustav swirling near Cuba and likely to enter the Gulf of Mexico as a hurricane this weekend, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said an evacuation could begin as early as Friday -- three years to the day after Katrina inundated New Orleans.Jindal said he had activated the state's catastrophic action team and could declare a state of emergency as early as Thursday. He also put the Louisiana National Guard on alert.We all need to be prepared and ready to respond, from the citizen level and at every level of government, Jindal said.Jindal, elected as governor in October 2007, is hoping to avoid heavy criticism that fell on his predecessor, Kathleen Blanco, for not reacting quickly enough after Katrina.Federal agencies and the New Orleans city government also faced the wrath of residents over their response to the disaster, while President George W. Bush was criticized for his role, including his initial decision to view the devastated city only from the air.After Katrina, chaos broke out in New Orleans as stranded flood victims waited days for help. Many residents who fled the hurricane have not returned.On Wednesday, Gustav drifted away from Haiti and the Dominican Republic after killing 16 people. Forecasters warned the storm may still become a dangerous hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico, with their models showing it most likely on track to hit anywhere from the Florida panhandle to Texas.Jindal said if the threat continues, his state could make 700 buses available for assisted evacuations, which could begin on Friday for people who need help due to medical or other conditions.He advised other residents of the southern parishes to review their own emergency plans and be prepared to evacuate if an order is given.The state's Office of Emergency Preparedness held a conference call on Wednesday afternoon with the presidents of all area parishes and emergency personnel to review current conditions and disaster plans.The Louisiana SPCA announced it would shut down its shelter and begin evacuating the animals to other shelters.(Editing by Chris Baltimore and John O'Callaghan)

OZONE DEPLETION

ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:

MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.

Arctic sea ice drops to 2nd lowest level on record By SETH BORENSTEIN and DAN JOLING, Associated Press Writers AUG 27,08

WASHINGTON - More ominous signs Wednesday have scientists saying that a global warming tipping point in the Arctic seems to be happening before their eyes: Sea ice in the Arctic Ocean is at its second lowest level in about 30 years. The National Snow and Ice Data Center reported that sea ice in the Arctic now covers about 2.03 million square miles. The lowest point since satellite measurements began in 1979 was 1.65 million square miles set last September.With about three weeks left in the Arctic summer, this year could wind up breaking that previous record, scientists said.Arctic ice always melts in summer and refreezes in winter. But over the years, more of the ice is lost to the sea with less of it recovered in winter. While ice reflects the sun's heat, the open ocean absorbs more heat and the melting accelerates warming in other parts of the world.Sea ice also serves as primary habitat for threatened polar bears.We could very well be in that quick slide downward in terms of passing a tipping point, said senior scientist Mark Serreze at the data center in Boulder, Colo. It's tipping now. We're seeing it happen now.

Within five to less than 10 years, the Arctic could be free of sea ice in the summer, said NASA ice scientist Jay Zwally.It also means that climate warming is also coming larger and faster than the models are predicting and nobody's really taken into account that change yet, he said.Five climate scientists, four of them specialists on the Arctic, told The Associated Press that it is fair to call what is happening in the Arctic a tipping point. NASA scientist James Hansen, who sounded the alarm about global warming 20 years ago before Congress, said the sea ice melt is the best current example of that.Last year was an unusual year when wind currents and other weather conditions coincided with global warming to worsen sea ice melt, Serreze said. Scientists wondered if last year was an unusual event or the start of a new and disturbing trend.This year's results suggest the latter because the ice had recovered a bit more than usual thanks to a somewhat cooler winter, Serreze said. Then this month, when the melting rate usually slows, it sped up instead, he said.The most recent ice retreat primarily reflects melt in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska's northwest coast and the East Siberian Sea off the coast of eastern Russia, according to the center.The Chukchi Sea is home to one of two populations of Alaska polar bears.Federal observers flying for a whale survey on Aug. 16 spotted nine polar bears swimming in open ocean in the Chukchi. The bears were 15 to 65 miles off the Alaska shore. Some were swimming north, apparently trying to reach the polar ice edge, which on that day was 400 miles away.Polar bears are powerful swimmers and have been recorded on swims of 100 miles but the ordeal can leave them exhausted and susceptible to drowning.And the melt in sea ice has kicked in another effect, long predicted, called Arctic amplification, Serreze said.

That's when the warming up north is increased in a feedback mechanism and the effects spill southward starting in autumn, he said. Over the last few years, the bigger melt has meant more warm water that releases more heat into the air during fall cooling, making the atmosphere warmer than normal.On top of that, researchers were investigating alarming reports in the last few days of the release of methane from long frozen Arctic waters, possibly from the warming of the sea, said Greenpeace climate scientist Bill Hare, who was attending a climate conference in Ghana. Giant burps of methane, which is a potent greenhouse gas, is a long feared effect of warming in the Arctic that would accelerate warming even more, according to scientists. Overall, the picture of what's happening in the Arctic is getting worse, said Bob Corell, who headed a multinational scientific assessment of Arctic conditions a few years ago: We're moving beyond a point of no return.Science Writer Seth Borenstein reported from Washington and Dan Joling reported from Anchorage, Alaska. AP writer Arthur Max contributed from Accra, Ghana. On the Net: National Snow and Ice Data Center image:
http://nsidc.org/data/seaice_index/images/daily_images/N_daily_extent_hires. png

MUSLIM NATIONS

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

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

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

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

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

US, Russia anchor military ships in Georgian ports By SERGEI GRITS and JIM HEINTZ, Associated Press Writers AUG 27,08

BATUMI, Georgia - A U.S. military ship loaded with aid docked at a southern Georgian port Wednesday, and Russia sent three missile boats to another Georgian port as the standoff escalated over a nation devastated by war with Russia. Georgia's government said its short war with Russia had caused $1 billion in damages, while European leaders called the Kremlin's moves in two breakaway Georgian regions an unacceptable attempt to unilaterally redraw the map of the Caucasus region.The dockings came a day after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev recognized the Georgian territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states, which Georgia answered Wednesday by recalling all but two diplomats from its embassy in Moscow.The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Dallas, carrying 34 tons of humanitarian aid, docked in the Black Sea port of Batumi, south of the zone of this month's fighting between Russia and Georgia. The arrival avoided Georgia's main cargo port of Poti, still controlled by Russian soldiers.The U.S. Embassy in Georgia had earlier said the ship was headed to Poti, but then retracted the statement. Zaza Gogava, head of Georgia's joint forces command, said Poti could have been mined by Russian forces and still contained several sunken Georgian ships hit in the fighting.Poti's port also reportedly sustained heavy damage by the Russian military. In addition, Russian troops have established checkpoints on the northern approach to the city and a U.S. ship docking there could be perceived as a direct challenge.Meanwhile, the Russian missile cruiser Moskva and two smaller missile boats anchored at the port of Sukhumi, the capital of Abkhazia, some 180 miles north of Batumi. The Russian navy said the ships were involved in peacekeeping operations.Although Western nations are calling the Russian military presence in Poti a clear violation of a European Union-brokered cease-fire, a top Russian general said using warships to deliver aid is devilish.Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn warned that NATO has already exhausted the number of military forces it can have in the Black Sea under international agreements and warned Western nations against sending more ships.

Can NATO — which is not a state located in the Black Sea — continuously increase its group of forces and systems there? It turns out that it cannot, Nogovitsyn was quoted as saying Wednesday by the Interfax news agency.Western leaders assailed Russia for violating Georgia's territorial sovereignty.We cannot accept these violations of international law, of accords for security and cooperation in Europe, of United Nations resolutions, and the taking ... of a territory by the army of a neighboring country, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Wednesday.

Britain's foreign minister, David Miliband, said Moscow succumbed to the temptations of power politics with its invasion of Georgia and warned Russia not to start a new Cold War. Yesterday's unilateral attempt to redraw the map marks a moment of real significance, he said.Russia is more isolated, less trusted and less respected than two weeks ago, Miliband added in a speech during a visit to Kiev to show support for Ukraine, which like Georgia is a former Soviet republic whose pro-Western leader angered the Kremlin by seeking membership in NATO.President Bush has urged Russia to reconsider its irresponsible decision.Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili called Bush on Tuesday evening, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said Wednesday, but he declined to provide detail about the conversation, other than that Bush had gotten an update from Saakashvili.Europe, the United States and other leaders around the world will make the case to Russia that this is a very shortsighted decision on their part, Fratto said, adding that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was in contact with her counterparts around the world about the issue.Many of the Russian forces that drove deep into Georgia after fighting broke out Aug. 7 in the separatist region of South Ossetia have pulled back, but hundreds at least are estimated to still be manning checkpoints that Russia calls security zones inside Georgia proper. The U.S. and other Western countries have given substantial military aid to Georgia, angering Russia, which regards Georgia as part of its historical sphere of influence. Russia also has complained bitterly about aspirations by Georgia and Ukraine to join NATO. In Tbilisi, boxes of aid were sorted, stacked and loaded onto trucks Wednesday for some of the tens of thousands of people still displaced by the fighting. Some boxes were stamped USAID — from the American People.

Tim Callaghan, head of the USAID response team, told an AP television crew that aid workers would continue to assess the needs of those affected by the fighting and provide other assistance as required.The United Nations estimated that nearly 160,000people had to flee their homes, but hundreds have returned to Georgian cities like Gori in the past week. In Tbilisi, Georgia's capital, Prime Minister Lado Gurgenidze said Russia had inflicted damage worth $1 billion. That is about a third of the entire government budget for last year and Georgian leaders are hoping for substantial economic aid from the West to help recover. Gurgenidze added that despite the extensive damage, the fighting had not fundamentally hurt the country's economy, which has boomed in recent years, with annual growth of 10 percent to 12 percent in 2006 and 2007. The Georgian economy has continued functioning more or less as normal, the financial system kept functioning, the exchange rate has held up, the consumers have kept consuming, Gurgenidze said. Russia's ambassador to Moldova, meanwhile, said the country's leaders should be wary of what happened in Georgia and avoid a bloody and catastrophic trend of events in the separatist, pro-Russia region of Trans-Dniester. The ambassador, Valeri Kuzmin, said Russia recognized the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia because of Georgia's aggression against South Ossetia.Trans-Dniester broke away from the former Soviet republic of Moldova in 1990. A war broke out between Moldovan forces and separatists in 1992 leaving 1,500 dead. Trans-Dniester is supported by Russia but is not recognized internationally. Russia has 1,500 troops stationed there to guard weapons facilities.

Russia Sees New Realm of Concern: Black Sea Sergei Grits/Associated Press
The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Dallas at Georgia's Black Sea port of Batumi on Wednesday. AUG 27,08 By ANDREW E. KRAMER

MOSCOW — Russian commanders said Wednesday they were growing alarmed at the number of NATO warships sailing into the Black Sea, conceding that NATO vessels now outnumbered the ships in their fleet anchored off the western coast of Georgia.

Sergei Karpukhin/Reuters
South Ossetian residents in the capital, Tskhinvali, on Tuesday celebrated Russia's recognition of South Ossetia as an independent state. As attention turned to the balance of naval power in the sea, the leader of the separatist region of Abkhazia said he would invite Russia to establish a naval base at his territory’s deep-water port of Sukhumi.And in a move certain to anger Russia, Ukraine’s president, Viktor A. Yushchenko, said he would open negotiations with authorities in Moscow to raise the rent on the Russian naval base at Sevastopol, which is in Ukraine’s predominantly Russian province of Crimea. The United States is pursuing a delicate policy of delivering humanitarian aid on military transport planes and ships, to illustrate to the Russians they do not fully control Georgia’s airspace or coastline.

The policy has left American and Russian naval vessels maneuvering in close proximity off the western coast of Georgia, with the Americans concentrated near the southern port of Batumi and the Russians around the central port of Poti. It has also left the Kremlin deeply suspicious of American motives.What the Americans call humanitarian cargoes — of course, they are bringing in weapons, the Russian president Dmitri Medvedev, told the BBC in an interview on Tuesday, adding: We’re not trying to prevent it.The White House dismissed all assertions that the Pentagon is shipping weapons under the guise of humanitarian aid, calling them ridiculous.

Apparently testing Russian assurances that their forces have opened the port of Poti for humanitarian aid, the United States Embassy in Tbilisi said a Coast Guard cutter, the Dallas, would attempt to dock there on Wednesday, well within a zone controlled by the Russian military during the war.The Dallas, however, docked instead at Batumi, to the south. It was carrying 34 tons of humanitarian aid. Georgian military officials said the other port may have been mined, The A.P. reported.During the conflict with Georgia, Russian soldiers occupied the port and sank Georgian ships in the harbor. Russian officials have said their forces are now out of the city, but that they are still occupying positions at checkpoints just to the north. Russian ships are also patrolling off the coast.In Moscow, the naval maneuvering was clearly raising alarms. Russian commanders said the buildup of NATO vessels in the Black Sea violated a 1936 treaty, the Convention of Montreux, they maintain limits to three weeks the time non-coastal countries can sail military vessels on the sea.Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, the deputy head of the Russian general staff, told a briefing in Moscow that under the agreement, Turkey, which controls the straits of Bosporus and Dardanelles, must be notified 15 days in advance before military ships sail into the sea, and that warships cannot remain longer than 21 days.The convention stipulates a limited number of vessels, he said. That is, the same state cannot deploy a certain group without any limit.He said any sustained NATO deployment would require rotating ships through the straits.It was unclear Wednesday how many NATO ships were currently in the Black Sea. A spokesman at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers in Europe, in Mons, Belgium, said there were four NATO warships there on a previously scheduled exercise called Active Endeavor, for training in anti-terrorist and anti-pirate maneuvers. But he cautioned that other NATO countries could have ships in the sea not operating under NATO command.

Obviously, there are other NATO-affiliated nations out doing things, Lt. Col. Web Wright, the spokesman, said. But I can’t speak for those nations.The United States guided missile destroyer McFaul, for example, docked over the weekend in Batumi to deliver humanitarian aid. A report on the Russian news agency Interfax cited this ship, along with three others, as operating in the sea though it was unclear whether it referred to vessels taking part in the previously scheduled exercise.Reporting was contributed by Ellen Barry in Vladikavkaz, Russia; Helene Cooper in Washington; Nicholas Kulish in Tallinn, Estonia; and Steven Erlanger in Paris.

France accuses Russia of ethnic cleansing
PHILIPPA RUNNER AUG 27,08 Today @ 10:04 CET

Talk of war and ethnic cleansing hit European TV channels on Tuesday (26 August) as France and Russia debated Moscow's hard backing of rebel groups in Georgia. But plans for next week's EU summit and new EU-Russia energy links remain unaltered for now.We fear a war and we don't want one, French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner said on the France 2 television station, after Russia gave formal recognition to Georgia's breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions earlier in the day. If it's hot, we don't want it.The minister showed a map of South Ossetia and pointed to the town of Akhalgori, saying: Tonight, Russian troops are sweeping through it, pushing Georgians out and over the border. It's ethnic cleansing.In a separate interview on France's LCI channel, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev dared the EU to impose diplomatic sanctions at next week's EU summit. If they want a degradation of relations, they will get it, he said. The ball is in the European camp.We are not afraid of anything, including the prospect of a new Cold War, the president also said on the Russia Today TV channel. On the Arabic Al-Jazeera network he spoke of using military means against a future US missile base in Poland. Meanwhile, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused NATO members of rearming Georgia. They are even starting to supply new types of weapons, restoring the military infrastructure that was used in the aggression, he said, Ria Novosti reports.The rhetoric coming from Poland and Georgia was no less harsh, with Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski telling Polish daily Dziennik Russia will again lose in a confrontation with the 10 times richer West. The end of the revival of Russia's imperialism has started, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said, calling for Europe to impose a travel ban on Russian leaders and their families, while claiming he has serious signals that the crisis will speed up Georgia's integration with NATO and the EU.

Business as usual?

Germany continued to sound a calmer note throughout the day, however, indicating that suspension of EU-Russia treaty talks is still not on the cards. We will not solve conflicts if we do not talk to each other, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on a visit to Lithuania, DPA reports.Ms Merkel's trip to the Baltic states and Sweden is aimed at promoting a new Germany-Russia gas pipeline - Nord Stream - which Germany calls a strategic European project, but which the former-communist EU states fear will strengthen Russia's energy leverage against eastern Europe.Meanwhile, French EU presidency officials quietly brushed aside a joint proposal by Poland, Sweden and the Baltic countries to invite the fiery Mr Saakashvili to the EU summit on Monday. The idea did not meet with much enthusiasm, a Polish diplomat told PAP.Russia's recognition of the rebel enclaves will make the EU meeting more complicated, Dutch Green MEP Joost Lagendijk commented. With this, it will be more difficult for the moderates to say: We should not alienate Russia, he told AFP.

Kosovo parallel

With Russia continuing to draw parallels between South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Kosovo -which has been recognised 46 countries worldwide - individual Belarusian MPs were the only non-Russian entities to back Moscow in its recognition of the two rebel regions so far.I'm sure that Belarus will become one of the first countries to recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Belarus lower house delegate Aleksei Ostrovsky said, BelaPAN reports. But Minsk remained quiet on Wednesday morning, with EU diplomats noting that President Alexander Lukashenko is currently trying to improve relations with Brussels to offset Russia's influence on his eonomically-fragile dictatorship.The Shanghai Co-operation Organisation [China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan security alliance] is to meet in Tajikistan to discuss the Georgia issue on Thursday. But Moscow's traditional allies have also taken a back seat in the conflict for now, amid an EU push to offer Central Asia new ways of breaking Russia's monopoly on its transit of oil and gas to Europe.

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

Ireland shoots down idea of swift Lisbon revote
LEIGH PHILLIPS AUG 27,08 Today @ 09:25 CET

The Irish government has insisted that no second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty is in the works after Europe minister Dick Roche on the weekend told press that another vote on the text would be appropriate.Nothing whatsoever has been decided vis-a-vis the next step, because we're only in the process of analysis at this stage, the Irish Times quotes an unnamed government spokesperson as saying. People who are saying another referendum or legislation, they are all jumping ahead to an outcome, and the government isn't anywhere near that.Meanwhile, the UK's Financial Times reports that Irish government officials have privately conceded that any second referendum, should one take place, would not occur before next year's European Parliamentary elections, but rather in the second half of 2009.The government clarification comes after a storm of criticism attacking Mr Roche's comments from campaigners for both the Yes and No sides in the failed June referendum as well as all main opposition parties.Irish Europe minister Dick Roche had told the Irish Independent newspaper earlier this week: A referendum is the appropriate response to the position we are in, while stressing that it was his personal view at this stage.

The government has made it clear that no option has been ruled in or out. We cannot exclude that at some stage and in the right circumstances it may be necessary to consult the people once again.In response, the Labour Party's deputy leader, Joan Burton, described the minister's comments as unwise and unhelpful, adding: There can be no question of simply putting the same proposition to the people once again.

There is no basis for believing that a second referendum would produce a different outcome to the one we got on 12 June, she said, saying the government should not be threatening to ram another referendum down people's throats.Leading opposition party Fine Gael's European affairs spokesperson, Lucinda Creighton, said Mr Roche's remarks showed the government had learnt nothing from its disastrous referendum campaign.Meanwhile, her colleague, MEP Gay Mitchell said of the minister: I think he is jumping the gun. I don't think it's helpful ... I don't think it's helpful to be coming out in the month of August with proposals or solutions one way or the other.

According to the Irish Independent newspaper, both Ms Burton and Sinn Fein's Mary Lou McDonald believe the government was using Mr Roche's comments as a trial balloon in order to see what the popular response to a second referendum would be.Ms McDonald said the move displayed another example of a government without a plan.

COMPUTER GLITCH CAUSES FLIGHT DELAYS

Last Updated: Tuesday, August 26, 2008, 20:50Computer glitch causes US air traffic delays

Air traffic at more than two dozen major airports across the United States was delayed this afternoon due to a communications network problem, according to the Federal Aviation Administration's website.The Department of Homeland Security declined to comment, referring calls to the FAA.CNN said air safety was not affected and the FAA has not lost contact with any of the 5,825 flights in the air.The computer glitch occurred at an FAA facility south of Atlanta, CNN reported.2008 irishtimes.com

FAA computer problems causing flight delays Story Highlights.FAA facility south of Atlanta, Georgia, having problems processing data.All flight-plan information must be processed by facility in Salt Lake City, Utah.Unknown number of flights delayed by glitch. AUG 26,08

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Every major airport in the United States was experiencing flight delays Tuesday afternoon because of a communications breakdown at a Federal Aviation Administration facility, the administration said.Flights at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport were delayed Tuesday afternoon.The facility south of Atlanta is having problems processing data, requiring that all flight-plan information be processed through a facility in Salt Lake City, Utah. The two facilities process all flight plans for commercial and general aviation flights in the United States, said FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen.The administration said there are no radar outages and said they have not lost contact with any planes. The flights currently in the air have flight plans and should arrive safely at their destinations, said CNN aviation expert Miles O'Brien.But that doesn't mean the situation won't cause headaches at the airport. This has potential as time goes on to turn into a much bigger mess, O'Brien said.The problem appeared similar to a June 8, 2007, computer glitch that caused severe flight delays and some cancellations along the East Coast.

Don't Miss
FAA: Real-time flight delays
On the FAA's Web site, delays were being reported at all 40 airports located on the administration's flight information map.The Web site, which normally lists the length of expected flight delays, was no longer listing that information Tuesday afternoon.The total number of flights affected was unknown.