BROWN SAYS RECESSION

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.

EARTHQUAKE SIMULATION
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7680795.stm

World Bank: Storm-struck Haiti at tipping point By JONATHAN M. KATZ, Associated Press Writer OCT 22,08

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – World Bank President Robert Zoellick warned Wednesday that Haiti is at a tipping point after a spate of destructive tropical storms, but offered no immediate debt relief for the chronically impoverished country.Zoellick, ending a three-day visit, pledged long-term help to keep the desperately poor Caribbean nation from falling deeper into crisis but said the bank will not forgive its share of Haiti's US$1.7 billion in foreign debt for at least seven months.

Nearly 800 people were confirmed dead after four devastating storms hit Haiti in August and September. Roads and bridges washed out and more than half the upcoming harvest was destroyed, worsening a hunger crisis that had already helped fuel riots several months before.Critics say forcing Haiti to keep making debt payments of more than US$1 million a week will hurt recovery efforts and further deplete meager resources in the Western Hemisphere's poorest country.It's a humanitarian disaster down there. It's kind of ridiculous that Haiti has to go through bureaucratic hoops, said Dan Beeton of the Washington-based Center for Economic and Policy Research. There's no reason these institutions can't just say, OK, cancel it now.Zoellick said Wednesday that Haiti is on track to have its World Bank debt canceled by mid-2009 once it has met qualifications such as addressing corruption and increasing public investment, but that debt cancellation is up to the bank's shareholders.Frankly, the issue is not just debt. In this case, given the interest payments it's a very small sum of money, and would be forgiven anyway over time. The key is to try and get the resources, he said.Zoellick's first visit to Haiti included a closed meeting with President Rene Preval and a helicopter tour of the flood-ravaged city of Gonaives, where he said the devastation makes your eyes pop.I sense that Haiti is at a tipping point. It could go either way, Zoellick said. We have to deal with the immediate needs, to deal with the social instability, but there's also a chance to build.He stressed the need for infrastructure and watershed-management projects to prevent similar damage from future storms in Haiti, where rampant deforestation has denuded its hills and left it susceptible to deadly floods.The World Bank has pledged US$25 million for emergency storm-relief grants that are to be approved next month. Millions more have been invested in private companies, and a US$10 million grant was approved earlier for relief from the food crisis.But Haiti owes far more in debt to multilateral organizations, including US$540 million to the World Bank. It is slated to pay US$54 million in debt servicing in the next fiscal year, even after some debt relief and rescheduling, the World Bank said.

CNN NEWS VIDEO
http://edition.cnn.com/video/

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER

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

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

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

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

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

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

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS THU OCT 23,2008

09:30 AM +19.43
10:00 AM +5.58
10:30 AM +42.13
11:00 AM +222.09
11:30 AM +176.50
12:00 PM +182.43
12:30 PM -37.24
01:00 PM -80.28
01:30 PM -100.44
02:00 PM -98.05
02:30 PM -215.37
03:00 PM -233.13
03:30 PM -9.88
04:00 PM +172.04 8,691.25

S&P 500 908.11 +11.33

NAS 1,603.91 -11.84

GOLD 720.0 -15.2

OIL 69.39 +2.64

TSE 300 +57.16 9,294.04

CDNX -42.63 858.00

S&P/TSX 60 +5.19 559.99

Dow up 276 points at high today.
Dow down -233 points at low today.
Dow down 3% at one point today.
Dow has triple digit moves in all but 3 sessions since sept. 15,08.
Stocks slump for 3rd day.
Stocks move in 7% range today.
Stocks on track for fresh 5 1/2 year closing lows.
S&P down 3% at one point today.
Nasdaq down 4% at one point today.
Dow,S&P,Nasdaq on pace for 4th weekly drop in 5 weeks.
Dow,S&P,Nasdaq have fallen in 5 of last 8 sessions.
Early gains erased.
OIL RISES AS OPEC PREPARES TO CUT OUTPUT.

CLOSING STATS

Stocks bounce from lows after erasing early gains.
30 yr treasurey yields fall to at least 11 year low.
Nasdaq ends at fresh 5 1/2 year closing low.
Nasdaq finishes down 0.7% after gaining 1.8% and then falling 5.1% today.
Dow,S&P break 2 day losing streak.
Dow closes up 2% after gaining 3.3% and then falling 3.2% today.

Greenspan shocked at credit system breakdown By Mark Felsenthal Mark Felsenthal – OCT 23

Reuters – Former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan testifies before the House Oversight and Government … WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told Congress on Thursday he is shocked at the breakdown in U.S. credit markets and said he was partially wrong to resist regulation of some securities.Despite concerns he had in 2005 that risks were being underestimated by investors, this crisis, however, has turned out to be much broader than anything I could have imagined, Greenspan said in remarks prepared for delivery to the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.Those of us who have looked to the self-interest of lending institutions to protect shareholder's equity -- myself especially -- are in a state of shocked disbelief, said Greenspan, who stepped down from the Fed in 2006.With a general election looming November 4, U.S. lawmakers were sharply divided along political lines in either blaming regulators or bickering for failure to prevent the crisis that has gripped financial markets around the world.The reasons why we set up your agencies and gave you budget authority to hire people is so you can see problems developing before they become a crisis, Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, a California Democrat, told a panel that included Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox and former U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow.To say you just didn't see it, that just doesn't satisfy me, Waxman said.Republicans, for their part, singled out government sponsored mortgage finance agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for their role in unsettling financial markets and faulted Congress, which has been led by the Democrats since 2006, for failing to pass measures to rein them in sooner.They angrily protested a decision not to hold a hearing on the mortgage finance firms, which the government took over in September to restore financial health, until two weeks after the election.

PARTIALLY WRONG

Greenspan softened his longstanding opposition to many forms of financial market regulation, acknowledging in an exchange with Waxman that he was partially wrong in his belief that some trading instruments, specifically credit default swaps, did not need oversight.Waxman cited a series of public statements by Greenspan saying the market could handle regulation of derivatives without government intervention.My question is simple: Were you wrong? Waxman asked.Greenspan said he was partially wrong in the case of credit default swaps, complex trading instruments meant to act as insurance against default for bond buyers.While Greenspan was once hailed as one of the most accomplished central bankers in U.S. history, the low interest rates during his final years at the Fed have been blamed for fueling the housing bubble and eventual crash that touched off the current financial crisis.His strong advocacy for limited regulation of financial markets has also been called into question as a result of the crisis.The former Fed chair said that a securitization system that stimulated appetite for loans made to borrowers with spotty credit histories, was at the heart of the breakdown of credit markets.Without the excess demand from securitizers, subprime mortgage originations -- undeniably the original source of crisis -- would have been far smaller and defaults, accordingly, far fewer, he said.

A surge in demand for U.S. subprime securities, supported by unrealistically positive ratings by credit agencies, was the core of the problem, he added.

Greenspan proposed that that securitizers be required to retain a meaningful part of securities they issued. He said that regulatory reform will be necessary in the areas of fraud, settlement, and securitization to re-establish financial stability.

He backed the recently approved $700 billion bailout package, saying that without it, banks and other financial institutions would likely face a serious reduction in credit.

DOG AND PONY SHOW

Lawmakers from both parties also took advantage of the packed hearing room to take some political potshots. Democrats assailed gaps in rules and oversight while Republicans faulted Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for exacerbating credit market strains. For too long, the prevailing attitude in Washington has been that the market always knows best, said Committee Chairman Waxman, a Democrat. Republicans circulated an October 20 letter asking for a government investigation of alleged fraud and mismanagement at the mortgage firms. This is a nice dog and pony show and maybe it's theater, but people want someone held accountable, they want someone to go to jail, said Rep. John Mica, a Florida Republican. But Greenspan told lawmakers that regulators could not predict the future or make perfect decisions. It's a very difficult problem with respect to supervision and regulation, he said. We cannot expect perfection in any area where forecasting is required. We have to do our best but cannot expect infallibility or omniscience, he added. (Additional reporting by Kim Dixon) (Reporting by Mark Felsenthal; Editing by Gary Crosse)

OPEC chief foresees oil output cut despite economic crisis by Ben Perry Ben Perry – OCT 23,08

VIENNA (AFP) – OPEC's president said the oil cartel will lower output at an urgent meeting on Friday as hardline members pushed for sharp cuts despite warnings that a resulting price rise could worsen economic hardship.We are going to reduce output, Chekib Khelil said Thursday, adding: It's a concern that we could make the financial crisis worse by taking too strong a reduction.He said he did not know how big a cut would be made. Iran and Libya both called for a reduction of two million barrels per day, while Venezuela said there should be a cut of at least one million barrels.In any case, the decision should not impact the world economy which is already in pretty bad shape, Khelil, who is also the energy minister of OPEC member Algeria, told reporters in Vienna.British Prime Minister Gordon Brown recently said that any reduction made in a bid to push up oil prices would be scandalous at a time when major economies are close to recession.The price of New York oil dived Thursday to a 16-month low, as recession fears stoked concerns about falling crude demand, traders said.New York's main contract, light sweet crude for December delivery, sank as low as 65.90 dollars per barrel -- a level last seen on June 13, 2007 -- before rebounding to 69.05 dollars on the prospect of a cut in output.Crude futures in New York and London have plunged by more than half from record highs of above 147 dollars a barrel reached only three months ago when supply concerns sent prices soaring.The market focus (on Friday) will be on the OPEC emergency meeting, said analysts at Barclays Capital in London.Khelil's observation on Wednesday that stocks were very high and some exporters were having trouble shifting their crude indicated the inevitability of a substantial cut, they said.The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries produces 40 percent of the world's oil and its official output quota stands at 28.8 million barrels per day.Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Nuaimi refused to be drawn on talk of a scaling-back of output as he arrived in the Austrian capital on Thursday.However Libya's Oil Minister Shukri Ghanem told reporters that a huge cut of two million barrels was required to create a balance between supply and demand.

Venezuelan Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez said there should be a cut of at least one million barrels. Ramirez added that he believed there was a consensus among OPEC's 12 members for a cut.OPEC's Gulf state members led by Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, are expected to oppose a reduction of more than one million barrels, analysts said on Thursday.Kuwait's Oil Minister Mohammad al-Olaim said OPEC must take the global financial crisis into account when deciding its action.There is a surplus in the market... and sooner or later action should be taken anyway, Olaim told reporters before leaving for Vienna.(But) we are concerned about the financial crisis going on and I think any action should take into consideration the financial crisis.Recent figures for US oil reserves highlighted a sharp slowdown in demand in the world's biggest energy consumer. Analysts are now estimating that OPEC would need to cut its output by more than 1.0 million barrels per day in order to reverse the recent (price) losses, said BetOnMarkets analyst David Evans. Friday's meeting on the impact of the financial turmoil and looming recession on the oil market was originally planned for November 18 but was brought forward as prices plunged. OPEC has 12 members: Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. A 13th, Indonesia, has suspended membership.

Loonie dips under 80 cents US, stocks tumble
Last Updated: Wednesday, October 22, 2008 | 5:20 PM ET

A taxi whizzes by an electronic board in downtown Toronto showing the sharp drop in the TSX on Wednesday. (Robin Rowland/CBC)The Canadian dollar fell below 80 cents US on global currency markets on Wednesday, while North American stock markets began the day weakly.The loonie closed at 79.70 cents US, off 2.69 cents US from Tuesday's finish. The dollar hasn't closed under 80 cents U.S. since the middle of June 2005.

The loonie shed 1.38 cents on Tuesday, after the Bank of Canada cut the target for the overnight rate by one-quarter of a percentage point.The Canadian dollar has been under pressure as investors move back into the U.S. dollar and oil prices continue to retreat.Light, sweet crude oil for December dropped $5.43 to settle at $66.75 US on the New York Mercantile Exchange.The U.S. dollar was trading higher against the euro and the British pound.The S&P/TSX composite index shed 558.92 points, or 5.7 per cent, to end at 9,236.88 points.The energy sub-index dipped nine per cent on the oil price drop. Petro-Canada was off 10 per cent at $25.41, while Suncor dropped eight per cent to $26.46.The financial services sub-index fell four per cent, while the gold group lost 14 per cent on a drop of $32.80 US in the price of an ounce of gold to $733.30 US.On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 514 points to end at 8,519.21, while the Nasdaq composite index shed 80 points to close at 1,615.75. The S&P 500 gave back 58 points, finishing at 896.78.Global recession worries and weak earnings reports were seen as weighing on equities. On Wednesday morning, aircraft maker Boeing Co. said its third-quarter profit fell 23 per cent due to a machinists strike and production issues.

Deep recession fears slam Wall Street By Kristina Cooke Kristina Cooke – Wed Oct 22, 4:32 pm ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stocks tumbled to 5 year lows on Wednesday as investors grappled with an increasingly dire outlook for the global economy following a raft of disappointing profits and outlooks from major U.S. companies.

Plummeting commodities prices sent energy and materials company shares sharply lower. Exxon Mobil was the top drag on the Dow, down almost 10 percent.Boeing Co's shares fell 7.5 percent after the aircraft maker reported a steep drop in quarterly profit and warned it might need to provide financing to some of its customers in 2009.AT&T's shares fell 7.6 percent after the top U.S. phone carrier posted a quarterly profit below Wall Street's forecasts as it grappled with pressure on wireless margins.A plunge in emerging market assets and widespread deleveraging were seen as further signs the credit crisis that has plagued the United States and Europe has begun to hit developing countries. Stock markets around the world have fallen sharply over the last two days.The themes remain the same: concerns about global recession, deflation and concerns about significantly reduced worldwide demand, said Michael James, senior trader at regional investment bank Wedbush Morgan in Los Angeles.The Dow Jones industrial average fell 514.45 points, or 5.69 percent, to 8,519.21. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 58.27 points, or 6.10 percent, to 896.78, its lowest level since April 2003.The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 80.93 points, or 4.77 percent, at 1,615.75, closing at it lowest level since June 2003.

Boeing shares fell 7.5 percent to $42.91, where AT&T, another Dow component, slid 7.6percent to $23.78.Merck & Co shares fell 6.5 percent to $28.01 after it said it would slash 12 percent of its workforce and tempered its long-range earnings outlook.

Wachovia Corp, which is being bought by Wells Fargo & Co, posted a third-quarter loss of $23.9 billion, a record quarterly loss for a banking company during the credit crisis.Shares of Wachovia dropped 6.2 percent to $5.71, while Wells Fargo shares lost 4.1 percent to $31.30.Shares of Exxon Mobil Corp shed 9.7 percent to $64.57. Rival ConocoPhillips, which slashed its 2008 exploration and production outlook, fell 9.1 percent to $49.06.The S&P energy index slid 10.4 percent.U.S. front-month crude shed $5.26 to $66.92 a barrel.SanDisk plunged 31.6 percent to $10.09 after Samsung Electronics ditched its $5.9 billion unsolicited bid for flash memory maker, citing SanDisk's deepening losses and uncertain outlook.But Apple Inc bucked the trend, gaining 5.9 percent to $96.87, a day after the iPod maker reported a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit.Argentina's government proposed to seize almost $30 billion of private pension funds, while Hungary hiked interest rates to defend its currency. Interbank borrowing costs fell again, but recession worries held sway as investors fretted about the extent to which the credit crisis has damaged the global economy.(Reporting by Kristina Cooke)

Britain's Brown boldly says the R word By JANE WARDELL and EMILY FLYNN VENCAT, Wed Oct 22, 5:18 pm ET

LONDON – Prime Minister Gordon Brown dared to utter the dreaded R word Wednesday, confirming what consumers have known for months — that no country can escape the global recession.Wary of making a bad economic situation worse and hemmed in by a mind-numbing formula, world leaders have steered clear of the word even as they forecast tough times. But Brown and his central bank governor, Mervyn King, broke ranks.It's not news, said Bridget Newman, 52, after hearing Brown's statement to Parliament. But it seems official now, and I know that's silly, but it somehow does make a difference.Bankers and lawmakers have feared that using the word will bring more gloom to consumers and only make it harder to boost confidence at a time when markets are plunging, the value of the euro and pound are falling against the dollar, and inflation is hitting record levels.Amid the bad news, the White House announced Wednesday that a summit of world leaders would meet Nov. 15 in Washington to address the global financial crisis.A long-standing technical definition of recession has until now bought time for leaders anxious to avoid the R word. It requires two or more consecutive quarters of negative economic growth, according to official statistics.

But the near-steady crush of gloomy headlines has not let up.

Brown took the plunge Wednesday, telling lawmakers at his weekly question-and-answer session that we must now take action on the global financial recession, which is likely to cause recession in America, France, Italy, Germany, Japan and — because no country can insulate itself from it — Britain too.Earlier, King noted in a speech that it was likely that the U.K. economy is entering a recession.The White House distanced itself from Brown's comments, saying the Bush administration doesn't forecast recessions from here, but we know that things are going to be tough on the employment side of things and on the earnings side of things.Whether it's just a downturn or a recession, I just couldn't say right now, said White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.Perino's comments also appeared to downplay a statement from Ed Lazear, the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, who said: We are seeing what I think anyone would characterize as a recession in certain parts of the country.Britain's Office for National Statistics is expected to report on Friday that the economy shrank during the third quarter for the first time since 1992.

Still, that's a quarter short of the technical definition for recession that many economists rail against.There have been occasions in the past when the U.S. policymakers haven't said there was a recession in the country until months after it was over, said Richard Hunter, head of U.K. equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers.One of the reasons we're seeing the flight to the dollar right now is that many believe the U.S. has been in recession for the last year, and the fact they've been in it for longer means they're probably going to come out of it sooner.

But for most consumers in the U.S. and Europe, there is no point waiting for an official announcement of a recession.Everybody knows the good times are over, said Peter Spencer, the leading economist on a new Ernst & Young report published this week that argues Britain has been in a recession since July and predicted the country won't see growth again until 2010. Tony Jusufi, a 47-year-old drug store worker, agreed. Of course we're in a recession, he said. It doesn't matter if the politicians say it or not.

Russia Welcomes G20 Summit In US Where Crisis Had Its Origins OCT 22,08

MOSCOW (AFP)--Russia on Wednesday welcomed the White House's announcement that a summit on the global financial situation would be held in the U.S., underlining the crisis had its roots there.It is very important that this meeting takes place in the United States because the origins of the financial crisis are in the U.S. financial system, Russian presidential spokeswoman Natalia Timakova was quoted as saying by news agencies.Timakova added that Russia noted the positive reaction of the Americans to the proposal for the summit by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.On Tuesday, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev hit out at the ill effects of U.S. financial policies and said the era of U.S. economic dominance was over.The era of domination by one economy and by one currency has been relegated to the past for good, Medvedev said on a visit to the Armenian capital, Yerevan.The summit, which will gather leaders of 20 rich and emerging countries to draw up an action plan, was due to be held on Nov. 15 in Washington.The Group of 20 nations accounts for 85% of the world economy and about two- thirds of the world's population. (END) Dow Jones Newswires.

Russia mulls oil reserves as prices drop, OPECchief in Moscow
Posted : Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:43:21 GMT Author : DPA

Moscow - Russia said Wednesday it could start an oil reserve as part of an effort with OPEC countries to bolstered prices down by half since July peaks. OPEC Secretary General Abdullah al-Badri met with President Dmitry Medvedev on a two-day visit to coordinate policy with Moscow Wednesday before an emergency session of oil-exporting countries in Vienna Friday to discuss stop-gap measures to halt plummeting prices. Cooperation with OPEC is a key area for our energy ministry and in forming our energy policy. It should be quite obvious why, Medvedev told journalist before the talks with al-Badri at his country residence outside Moscow. Russia is also a large crude producer and exporter and has an interest in steady and predictable prices, he was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying. OPEC officials have issued calls this week for Russia - the world's second-largest oil producer not a member of the organization - to join in cutting deliveries to world markets. But ahead of the OPEC head's first-ever talks with a Kremlin leader, al-Badri said, I will not ask Russia for production cuts. I will ask for data on markets and the financial crisis.Igor Sechin, Russia's energy tsar and deputy prime minister, said earlier Wednesday oil reserves were being consider to influence pricing. Reserves are necessary in volumes large enough to reach efficient pricing parameters, he said, adding export duties on oil were also being discussed. Analysts said previous attempts for Moscow to align its policy with OPEC fell through as private energy firms increased oil deliveries. They added it would be technically difficult for Russia to create reserves. Moscow's strengthening ties with OPEC coming on top of news Tuesday that Russian energy monopoly Gazprom, Iran, Qatar had moved to set up an OPEC-style gas grouping is sure to worry Western consumers.

The head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) also in Moscow for the industry conference Wednesday warned against gas cuts predicting global shortages. Winter is the period of highest demand and now not is not the right time to cut production, IEA chief Nobuo Tanaka said. The current market is very volatile. And for this reason we would like to see OPEC keep up their current extraction levels. In the mid-to long-term we expected there may be a supply crisis because of a greater demand from China, India and the Middle East,Tanaka added.

World Bank says West Bank land prices rocketing By STEVE WEIZMAN, Associated Press Writer OCT 22,08

JERUSALEM – The price of property in the West Bank is rocketing beyond the reach of most local businesses and home buyers, pushed up by a weak dollar and Israeli control of large chunks of the territory, a World Bank report said Thursday.The 41-page paper said local government data from the commercial and political center of Ramallah indicates the value of prime downtown commercial plots has doubled each year since 2005, hitting the current average of about $372 a square foot.Israel, citing the need to prevent Palestinian attacks inside Israel and on Jewish settlers in the West Bank, has kept large swaths of Palestinian land and roads off limits to Palestinians. It also maintains a complex network of checkpoints on roads that remain open to West Bankers.That leaves the vast majority of Palestinians chasing land in the remaining 41 percent of the territory, which is home to at least 90 percent of the population, the World Bank said.As a result, land prices are shooting up and in certain towns are becoming prohibitive for all but high value commercial activities, or high rise apartment buildings, the report said. Residential development is crowding out other economic activities on scarce plots available for development, yet there remains a housing shortage.The report does not cover the Gaza Strip, which Israel evacuated in 2005 and largely sealed off after the Islamic militant Hamas movement seized power there in 2007.In addition to the Israeli squeeze on the West Bank, the World Bank said, property prices in the territory are being nudged up by the many Palestinians living abroad and sending money home, some of it slated for investment.The real value of domestic cash savings, usually in U.S. dollars or Jordanian dinars, are threatened by the falling dollar, creating pressure to convert these cash savings into stable investments, the report said. With few profitable options in the productive sectors, much capital is invested in land, putting added pressure on prices.The World Bank report concludes little can be done to increase the stock of land available until the Israelis and Palestinians end their conflict.Ultimately, the restrictions on access to land (under Israeli control) will only be resolved with the final resolution of the peace process and the end of the occupation, it said.The renewal of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks at a U.S.-hosted conference last November was supposed to produce a final peace deal by the end of 2008, but the sides acknowledge that target is unreachable. With Israel in the throes of forming a new government and the U.S. presidential election in two weeks, change seems unlikely anytime soon.

YOU GOT THAT CORRECT JOHN MCCAIN, OBAMA TICKLES THE DECIEVEDS EARS FROM DAY TO DAY TO FIT THE TOWN SO HE CAN WIN HANDS DOWN.

McCain says Obama will say anything to win By GLEN JOHNSON, Associated Press Writer OCT 23,08

ORLANDO, Fla. – Republican John McCain, taking a cross-state bus tour aimed at keeping vote-rich Florida from swinging to the Democrats, on Thursday accused rival Barack Obama of saying anything to get elected.The Arizona senator said Obama had added a work requirement to his proposal to grant a 10 percent universal mortgage credit. A top Obama aide said the campaign made the change two weeks ago to avoid charges that the proposal provided welfare to non-working Americans.Thirteen days to go, and he changed his tax plan because the American people had learned the truth about it and they didn't like it, McCain told a crowd at lumber yard in coastal Ormond Beach. It's another example that he'll say anything to get elected.An Obama spokesman accused McCain of distortion and said the Democrat's plan always included a work requirement, although it was discussed only within the campaign or to reporters who inquired about the particulars of the plan.Last week, Sen. McCain called Obama's tax cuts for working people welfare. Today he's claiming Sen. Obama doesn't do enough to help the unemployed, said Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor. The only thing consistent about these attacks is how dishonest they are. All of Sen. Obama's tax credits only go to workers and they always have.While criticizing Obama, McCain also targeted his own party. He complained the Bush administration was not yet buying up mortgages so homeowners facing foreclosure could renegotiate them at a more favorable interest rates. The GOP nominee has proposed a $300 billion plan, but a similar one is included in the $700 billion Wall Street bailout recently passed by Congress. Both McCain and Obama voted for that plan.I call on the administration to act now and buy up these mortgages and keep people in their homes, McCain said before singling out Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. And why is the secretary of the Treasury not ordering them to do that?

They also came amid signs McCain was curtailing his effort in Colorado, despite plans to make two stops there Friday.Republicans have slashed television advertising for McCain at the state's three largest television stations, according to the Denver Post. With early voting under way, McCain's campaign bought a total $305,550 worth of ads this week at KUSA-TV, KCNC-TV and KMGH-TV. That was down 46 percent from last week and down 56 percent from two weeks ago.Obama is spending almost seven times what McCain is at those stations in the final days, The Post reported.The criticism of Obama and the administration came at the start of a bus tour targeting blue-collar Florida workers who are like the Ohio plumber, Joe Wurzelbacher, who has become the central thematic element in speeches by McCain and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.From Daytona Beach on Florida's Atlantic Coast to Sarasota on the Gulf Coast, McCain was criticizing Obama's tax plans and promoting his own proposals to cut taxes for individuals and businesses. After his stop at All Star Building Materials, he visited a dentist who said he faced the prospect of layoffs, and lunched at a Latino restaurant in Orlando. He was visiting a farm before ending with a rally.Whether it's Joe the Plumber in Ohio or Joe over here, McCain said, pointing into the crowd at All Star Building Materials in Ormond Beach, we shouldn't be taxing our small businesses more, as Sen. Obama wants to do. We need to be helping them expand their businesses and create jobs.Obama, speaking Wednesday in Virginia, rebutted such criticism, arguing that his tax plan would not raise taxes on small businesses and working couples earning less than $250,000 a year.Let's be clear who John McCain is fighting for. He is not fighting for Joe the Plumber. He's fighting for Joe the Hedge Fund Manager, Obama said. If you make less than a quarter of a million dollars a year — which includes 98 percent of small-business owners — you won't see your taxes increase one single dime.McCain's route covered the vote-rich I-4 Corridor through Orlando, in central Florida, and was intended to boost him in a state George W. Bush won in 2000 and 2004 but which Obama is threatening to seize despite a strong GOP machine and the Arizona senator's endorsement by Gov. Charlie Crist.Florida offers 27 electoral votes, fourth-most in the country. A total of 270 is needed to win the presidency.Recent polls show Obama, a first-term senator from Illinois, with a slight lead over McCain. Nationally, an Associated Press-GfK poll shows McCain and Obama essentially even among likely voters, possible evidence of a tightened race 12 days before the Nov. 4 election. McCain's first stop in Florida, for coffee with Crist and three business owners from the Daytona Beach area, proved fruitful. Mike Murray, owner of the Starlite Diner, said he was concerned about both candidates raising taxes but planned to support McCain on Election Day. He's got the experience, Murray said as the candidate sat at a nearby booth. I'm comfortable with him. I grew up knowing his name.On the Net:
McCain: http://www.johnmccain.com Obama: http://www.barackobama.com

Next US leader should get to work on Mideast: Palestinian by Patrice Novotny Patrice Novotny – OCT 23

AFP TOKYO (AFP) – The next US president, be it Barack Obama or John McCain, should get to work immediately to jump-start Middle East peace talks, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said here Thursday.Erakat was visiting Tokyo for talks with Israel's Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit, in the latest meeting arranged by leading donor Japan aimed at building confidence between the two sides.Whoever will be the next president of the United States, whether Mr. McCain or Mr. Obama, they must immediately engage and continue their engagement and no time should be wasted, Erakat told reporters.Erakat conceded that the next US leader will have an overwhelming number of pressing issues, including the global financial crisis, US military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, and a nuclear standoff with Iran.But we need them to focus and to remain engaged for their own interest in achieving peace between Palestinians and Israelis, and Israelis and Syrians, and Israelis and Lebanese, Erakat said.US President George W. Bush brought Israeli and Palestinian leaders to a summit in Annapolis, near the US capital, in November last year, which set a goal of reaching a peace accord by the time he leaves office in January.

However the Palestinian side say the target is impossible to reach because of political developments in Israel, where outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is waiting for his successor Tzipi Livni to form a government.The negotiations still need to resolve thorny issues such as the status of Jerusalem, Jewish settlements in the West Bank, Palestinian refugees and the final borders of a future Palestinian state.Obama, who is ahead in opinion polls, said on a visit to the Middle East in July that the next US administration should continue to work toward the goal of the two states living side by side in peace and security.Both the Palestinian and Israeli officials voiced hope that the global economic downturn would not set back peace efforts in the Middle East.No financial crisis should affect our efforts to achieve peace, Erakat said.As Palestinians, we depend a lot on the generous contribution of the donor community -- the US, Europe, Japan and others, he said.

Japan, the world's second largest economy, has sought a larger involvement in the Middle East peace process in line with ambitions for a greater global role.Japan has spearheaded a project to build an agro-industrial complex in the West Bank to create badly needed jobs.Sheetrit also said that the financial crisis should not interfere with the peace process.The damage that is happening without peace is much higher and bigger than any financial crisis can cause, Sheetrit said.The Palestinian Authority received aid pledges totalling 7.7 billion dollars over three years at a donors conference in Paris in December last year.

Police: Palestinian man fatally stabs Israeli By STEVE WEIZMAN, Associated Press Writer OCT 23,08

AFP JERUSALEM – A Palestinian stabbed two Israelis in east Jerusalem on Thursday, killing an 86-year-old man and wounding a police officer in what authorities called a terror incident.Police shot and seriously wounded the man.Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the attack erupted when two police officers stopped to question an Arab man during a patrol in the Jewish residential neighborhood of Gilo. The man pulled out a knife and stabbed one of the officers, who then managed to shoot him.

Israel, which annexed east Jerusalem after captured it in the 1967 Middle East War, differentiates between districts like Gilo, which have been incorporated into its city limits, and the settlements it has constructed in the West Bank.Palestinians and most of the international community reject that distinction, and consider East Jerusalem neighborhoods settlements.The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem as the capital of a future independent state.Rosenfeld said the wounded attacker then grabbed a passer-by and stabbed him before being overpowered. The 86-year-old civilian was dead on arrival at the emergency room, said Shoham Ruvio, spokeswoman at the city's Shaarei Tzedek hospital.Medics described the policeman's wounds as moderate.The assailant was captured by a civilian as he tried to flee up a steep staircase leading to a hilltop neighborhood.He was shot but he kept running, Yoav Mizrahi told Israel's Army Radio. After a while he got tired and I caught up with him. I ran after him and caught him, wrestled him to the ground and twisted his arm behind his back.There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the stabbing.The Israeli military later searched the West Bank home of the attacker, identified by neighbors as Mohammed Albaden, in the village of Tekoa, near Bethlehem. Witnesses said two of Albaden's friends were taken away in military jeeps.Witnesses said about 100 local teenagers hurled rocks at the soldiers, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. Palestinian medics said three Palestinians were lightly injured. The army said a soldier was also lightly wounded, but gave no further details.The attack was the second in a month in Jerusalem and the fourth since July.Associated Press writer Nasser Shiyoukhi in Tekoa contributed to this report.

Coalition by Sunday or snap elections: Israel's Livni by Jean-Luc Renaudie Jean-luc Renaudie – OCT 23,

FOX News JERUSALEM (AFP) – Tzipi Livni, who has struggled to form a new Israeli coalition since becoming head of the ruling party last month, said on Thursday she will call for snap elections if a deal is not done by Sunday.Decision time has come, the foreign minister said in what was seen as an ultimatum to those other parties her Kadima party accuses of playing hardball in coalition negotiations.I have just spoken with the president to tell him I will meet him on Sunday to announce my decision: either we form a new government or we go to new elections, she said after talks with members of the centrist Kadima.President Shimon Peres asked Livni on September 22 to form a new government after she was elected Kadima leader to replace Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who has resigned to battle a wave of graft allegations.

Livni has until November 3 to put together a new coalition.

I have considered it my duty to try to form a new government, particularly now, in order to favour stability, and I believe it is still what is preferable for the country, Livni, 50, said in remarks to journalists.I have had negotiations with all possible partners with a view to forming a stable government by suggesting to all partners the creation of a true partnership, she added.Last week Kadima, which has 29 seats in the 120-member parliament, reached a draft coalition agreement with the Labour party, which has 19 MPs.But major differences emerged in negotiations with the religious Shas party, which has 12 deputies and has played the role of kingmaker in the past.The ultra-Orthodox party, a crucial member of Olmert's coalition, has demanded increased family benefits that would cost 400 million dollars (312 million euros) and a promise not to negotiate with the Palestinians over the future status of Jerusalem.The Pensioners party, which has seven parliamentary seats, is demanding a hike in pensions that could cost another 900 million dollars, and talks have been more difficult than expected.Kadima MP Tzahi Hanegbi, who has been leading the negotiations, said his party had gone as far as it could.There is a limit to the haggling, he told Israeli public radio. This is true for Shas, the Pensioners party and for the others who have failed to fully appreciate Tzipi Livni's determination.

Enough of this bazaar, he added.

If it proves impossible to form a new government, snap general elections will be scheduled for 2009 and polls indicate they could bring the right-wing Likud party to power.Livni is seeking to become Israel's second woman prime minister, after Golda Meir who held office from 1969 to 1974.As foreign minister, Livni has been leading US-backed negotiations with the Palestinians since the November 2007 Annapolis conference that revived peace talks.She has vowed to press ahead with the peace process if she becomes prime minister.

Peres: Arab peace initiative is an opportunity By MAGGIE MICHAEL, Associated Press Writer – Thu Oct 23, 11:11 am ET

CAIRO, Egypt – A long-stalled Arab peace initiative could bring peace to the Middle East — still riven by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict — the Israeli President Shimon Peres said Thursday, making his first endorsement of the proposal in an Arab country.Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, however, openly disagreed with Peres during a joint press conference, saying Palestinians and Israelis must reach a bilateral agreement before Arab states could consider normalizing relations with the Jewish state.Peres has recently been lobbying to jump-start a 2002 Saudi proposal offering pan-Arab recognition of Israel in exchange for withdrawal from Arab lands captured in 1967.The plan has been endorsed by 22-member Arab League, but seen little progress since then.In tandem with the bilateral negotiations with the Palestinians, we need to promote the Arab peace initiative, Peres told reporters after his meeting with Mubarak at the Red Sea resort of Sharm El Sheik.Peres, a Nobel peace prize winner whose presidency is largely ceremonial, said the Saudi plan needs to be negotiated further, but that it was correct, in spirit.A U.S. ally, Egypt is a regional heavyweight and was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israeli in 1979, but Mubarak said discussions of wider peace agreement were off the table because the Saudi initiative is not open for negotiations.His spokesman, Suleiman Awwad, later said Mubarak dismisses the idea of all Arab countries holding talks together with Israel before the Palestinian issue is resolved.

On Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Israeli leaders were seriously considering the dormant Saudi plan and that he had discussed it with Prime Minister-designate Tzipi Livni.There is definitely room to introduce a comprehensive Israeli plan to counter the Saudi plan that would be the basis for a discussion on overall regional peace, Barak told Israel's Army Radio.Israel wants to retain some of the land captured in the 1967 war and objects to language in the initiative that appears to endorse a large-scale return of Palestinian refugees to lands inside Israel. Israel says a massive influx of Palestinians would destroy the country's Jewish character.Peres and Mubarak said they also discussed the fate of Gilad Shalit, a kidnapped Israeli soldier, held in the Gaza Strip.Egypt will continue its persistent efforts to mediate and ensure success of a Shalit release deal and the Palestinian prisoners deal, Mubarak said.Egypt has been brokering a potential prisoner exchange between Israel and Gaza's Hamas leaders. Hamas is holding an Israeli soldier, captured more than two years ago in a cross-border raid from Gaza into southern Israel.Associated Press Writer Amy Teibel in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

EU's Solana targets deal with Syria next year Thu Oct 23, 10:57 am ET

DAMASCUS (AFP) – EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana held talks on Thursday with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on the Middle East peace process and regional issues, highlighting improved ties between them.Solana and Assad discussed bolstering links between Syria and the European Union and they agreed to pursue consultations on regional and international issues, official news agency SANA said.

Syrian-European ties continue to make progress, Solana said, according to SANA. He voiced hope that both sides might next year sign an association agreement.The EU has signed such a deal with other Mediterranean countries in a bid to pave the way for the creation of a free trade agreement in 2010.Solana said the EU strongly supports the Middle east peace process and is trying to play a constructive role, SANA reported.The EU totally backs the indirect negotiations between Syria and Israel, he said. Since May, Syria has been engaged in indirect peace talks with Israel under Turkish mediation.SANA quoted Assad as saying Europe's role in the peace process is important and essential.Peace guarantees security and stability to the people of the region and this reflects positively on Europe and the world.Solana's visit to Damascus is his first since March 2007, when his trip signaled a resumption of EU contacts with Damascus frozen after the February 2005 assassination of former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri.Anti-Syrian Lebanese figures blamed Syria for the murder but Damascus has repeatedly denied any involvement.In March 2007, Solana urged Syria, the former powerbroker in Lebanon, to help ease a protracted crisis in Lebanon.His return to Damascus comes after Syria and Lebanon formally established diplomatic ties on October 15, for the first time since independence 60 years ago.

Speaking to reporters after his talks with Assad, the EU diplomat praised the importance of developments which recently occurred in Lebanon, namely the setting up of diplomatic ties between Beirut and Damascus, SANA reported.

FAMINE

REVELATION 6:5-6
5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.
6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.(A DAYS WAGES FOR A LOAF OF BREAD)

FAMINE

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: 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.

Beetle invasion threatens New England trees By RODRIQUE NGOWI, Associated Press Writer OCT 22,08

Reuters WORCESTER, Mass. – A wood-devouring beetle has gained a foothold in New England, and authorities plan to cut down large numbers of infested trees and grind them up to stop the pest from spreading to the region's celebrated forests and ravaging the timber, tourism and maple-syrup industries.The infestation of Asian longhorned beetles in the Worcester area marks the fourth time the pests have been found in trees in the U.S. and the closest they have ever come to the great New England woods that erupt in dazzling, tourist-pleasing colors in the fall.This insect scares us to death because if it ever got loose in the forests of New England, it would be just about impossible to contain and it'd change the landscape dramatically, said Tom McCrum, coordinator of the Massachusetts Maple Syrup Association.Calling it a national emergency, federal authorities have committed themselves to spending tens of millions of dollars to fight the invasion. They have sent in smokejumpers, tree climbers and other experts to identify infested trees.

The affected area now covers 62 square miles around Worcester and four neighboring towns, and at least 1,800 trees have been tagged for destruction.The outbreak was detected this summer, after Donna Massie spotted beetles on a tree in her backyard in Worcester. She caught one, searched online to identify it, then called agriculture authorities. Now her tree is riddled with dime-size holes.It looks like someone opened fire with a machine gun, Massie, 53, said of the signature exit holes gnawed away by the bullet-shaped black beetle with white freckles, long antennae and a voracious appetite for hardwood.The beetles first appeared in the U.S. in 1996 in Brooklyn, probably arriving in the wood of a shipping crate from China, and have since shown up in New York's Central Park and parts of New Jersey and Illinois. Authorities believe that the Massachusetts infestation is unrelated but that the beetles probably arrived the same way.Eradication efforts in New York, New Jersey and Illinois have cost $268 million over the past 11 years. Thousands of trees have been cut down.The beetles have no natural predators in North America, and regular insecticides are useless once the eggs hatch in hardwoods such as birch, poplar, willow, sycamore, maple and elm.The beetles lay their eggs in small depressions they chew in tree bark. The larvae and pupae consume the tree from the inside, leaving a trail of tunnels. They eventually chew their way out as adults. The tunneling slowly kills the tree.The movement of firewood is probably, in my mind, the biggest threat in this area because so many people burn wood, so many people move wood without thinking, Oh, I could be transporting a pest, said Tom Denholm, who has set up a federal program to fight the insects in New Jersey and was sent to Massachusetts to help with efforts here. We can move the beetle a lot faster moving firewood than the beetle moving on its own.Earlier this month, Rhode Island officials found a larva in firewood taken from Worcester to Cranston.

The beetle strikes fear in tourism and maple-syrup officials.

New England accounted for more than half the maple syrup made in the U.S. last year, with Vermont out-producing all other states in the region with a half-million gallons. Vermont Maple Sugar Makers Association spokeswoman Catherine Stevens said the beetle could be devastating to the industry if it were to spread.Leaf peeping, likewise, is big business in New England as thousands of visitors arrive in the fall to see forests riotous with reds, oranges and yellows. The beetle's favorite food happens to be the red and sugar maples that produce the most vivid colors.Also vulnerable would be Maine's timber industry, which directly contributes $6.5 billion to the state's economy. Of the 17.7 million acres of forest in Maine, more than half is hardwood that could be susceptible to the beetle.This is a threat we are taking very seriously, said Dave Struble of the Maine Forest Service. Experts in Massachusetts say they cannot cut down the trees until the frost kills the adult beetles. The trees will be ground up, a process that generates enough heat to kill any eggs or larvae. The wood chips can then be used as mulch or burned for energy.

Federal officials plan to replace the cut-down trees with a variety of species not susceptible to the beetle. That is little consolation to Worcester residents who fear they will see property values plummet in neighborhoods cherished for their tree-lined streets and lush backyards, City Manager Michael O'Brien said. It's going to take 30 to 40 years to get all those same characteristics back, he said.

EUROPEAN UNION ARMY

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

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

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

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

Kosovo mission highlights improved EU-US relations By SLOBODAN LEKIC, Associated Press Writer Wed Oct 22, 11:04 am ET

BRUSSELS, Belgium – A top State Department official said Wednesday that U.S. participation in a European Union mission to Kosovo — the first time Americans have taken part in a such a European project — shows the steady improvement in U.S. relations with the 27-nation bloc.U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried said Washington would provide 80 police officers and up to eight judges and prosecutors to the Rule of Law Mission. It will oversee the way the mainly ethnic Albanian authorities respect the rights of minority Serbs and strengthen the rule of law in Kosovo, which unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in February.

The fact that at the end of the Bush administration the United States and EU are able to conclude this kind of an agreement is a good, welcome step (that) means that the trans-Atlantic cooperation is not only strong but is producing tangible results, Fried told reporters in Brussels after a signing ceremony for the U.S. accession to the mission.The United States and most EU countries recognize Kosovo.The Rule of Law Mission originally was to start work after Kosovo's new constitution came into force June 15. But its deployment has been delayed by wrangling between the EU and United Nations over who will have the final say in Kosovo's affairs. The U.N. Security Council has been in control of Kosovo since a brief war between ethnic Albanian separatists and Serb troops in 1999.The EU mission eventually will comprise about 1,800 police officers and judges, and 200 civilian advisers — although only about a quarter of its staff have been deployed since it started operating last summer.

U.S. participation establishes a precedent for what I hope is future cooperation between the United States and the European Union, Fried said. He predicted that the new U.S. administration that is elected next month will continue to make Europe a principal focus of its foreign policy.The deployment of the mission throughout Kosovo, Fried said, will be a critical element of the supervised independence for this new state and will benefit all Kosovo citizens.Serbia, vehemently opposed Kosovo's secession, and wants the U.N. Security Council to rule on whether the EU mission can be deployed to Serb-held areas of Kosovo.Backed by Russia and a number of nonaligned nations, Serbia insists that the Rule of Law Mission itself is illegal because it was not mandated by the Security Council.

MUSLIM NATIONS

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

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

PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they 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.

British envoy: Russia must change policy Oct. 22, 2008 at 6:27 PM

MOSCOW, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- The British ambassador to Moscow has urged Russia to reconsider its recognition of the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Tony Brenton, in an interview with the Russian news agency Interfax, said the Russian government's action was a big mistake.I hope that, on reflection, Russia will think again, because the precedent we have for this is the president of Turkey recognizing North Cyprus, and it has landed Turkey for a period of 30 years with a small enclave unrecognized anywhere else in the world and placing on Turkey an economic and political burden. It would be very sad to see Abkhazia and South Ossetia in the same situation, he said.The two Georgian enclaves broke away in the early 1990s in a civil war. Russia sent armed forces into Georgia when the Georgian government made efforts to bring South Ossetia back under central control last summer.Brenton said that Britain will contribute to a military observer mission in Georgia from the European Union.

Russia wants to extend Black Sea navy base lease Wed Oct 22, 6:56 am ET

MOSCOW – Moscow wants to negotiate an extension of its lease at Ukraine's Black Sea port of Sevastopol, Russia's foreign minister said Wednesday. The move would keep Russia's Black Sea Fleet in the port where it has been stationed for centuries.

Sergey Lavrov says Russia will approach Ukraine with specific proposals on the issue as time draws closer to the current lease's expiration in 2017. His statement underlined the Kremlin's desire to maintain its strategic foothold on the Crimean Peninsula, which was ceded to Ukraine in 1954.When the time has come, we will be ready to offer the Ukrainian side to discuss conditions for an extenuation, Lavrov said at a news conference. A specific discussion on the issue will start later, as 2017 draws closer. And it will be conducted with the Ukrainian government which will be in office at that moment.Moscow is clearly hoping that Ukraine's pro-Western President Viktor Yushchenko will be out of power by then.Yushchenko said repeatedly that the Russian navy will have to leave the base after the current lease ends, and his desire for Ukraine to join NATO has angered Moscow and badly strained bilateral relations.Following Russia's war with Georgia in August, there have been fears that Moscow may try to encourage a separatist movement in the Crimea, where ethnic Russians make up 60 percent of its 2 million population.

Russia has shrugged off the allegations.

Russia respects Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and fully observes all existing bilateral agreements, Lavrov said Wednesday.Lavrov's statement followed a comment by Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, who said Monday that Russia will leave Sevastopol if its lease is not renewed by the Ukrainian government.

Russia modernizes missiles in response to U.S. plans
Updated OCT 22,08


MOSCOW (AP) — Russia's efforts to upgrade its missile arsenals will help counter the planned deployment of U.S. missile defense sites in Europe, a top general said Wednesday.Russia's Strategic Missile Force chief, Col.-Gen. Nikolai Solovtsov said the military will commission a new type of intercontinental ballistic missile and modify the existing missiles.Solovtsov said that the new RS-24 missile equipped with multiple nuclear warheads will enter service next year.Its deployment will increase the Strategic Missile Forces' capability to penetrate missile defense systems, thus strengthening the nuclear deterrent potential of Russian strategic forces, he said in a statement carried by Russian news agencies.Solovtsov said the military conducted two test launches of the RS-24 last year and will make another one before the year's end. Russian officials have said it would gradually replace Soviet-built ballistic missiles.

Alexander Vovk
Solovtsov added that the military will also upgrade the existing types of missiles to fit them with decoys intended to counter the prospective U.S. missile shield.

Russia has denounced a U.S. plan to deploy a battery of 10 missile interceptors in Poland and a related missile defense radar in the Czech Republic, saying it threatened Russian security. It has dismissed the U.S. claim that the sites were intended to counter a prospective missile threat from Iran and was not aimed against Russia.Russian officials have threatened to point nuclear missiles at the countries that will allow U.S. missile defense sites on their territory.We are fully confident that the Strategic Missile Forces will be capable of providing a guaranteed nuclear deterrent in the long time to come, Solovtsov said.He said the military will maintain the Soviet-built missiles, including those that were manufactured in Ukraine. We have agreements with Ukraine that would allow us to maintain their capability, Solovtsov said.Russia's Strategic Missile Forces said it successfully test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile Wednesday as part of regular efforts to check the readiness of Soviet-built missiles.Russia's Strategic Missile Forces spokesman Alexander Vovk said the RS-18 missile was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. He said in a statement that the launch was intended to confirm the missile's reliability as part of efforts to extend the lifetime of this type of missile.Russia's strategic forces have conducted regular test launches of Soviet-built ballistic missiles to check their performance. The military has repeatedly extended the lifetime of Soviet-built weapons as the government lacks the funds to replace them quickly with new weapons.

Russia test-fires old missile to extend lifespan Wed Oct 22, 6:22 am ET Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia test-fired an intercontinental Stilet missile on Wednesday as part of the checks needed to extend the service of the weapon until 2010, the strategic missile forces said. The missile, which belongs to a type commissioned in 1979 and known in the West as SS-19, was fired from Baikonur space center hired by Russia in ex-Soviet Kazakhstan, the forces' statement said. It did not specify where the missile landed.The results of the launch confirmed a decision to extend the exploitation time of one of the most reliable missile complexes up to 31 years, it added.Resurgent Russia views its nuclear potential as an argument supporting its claim for a stronger international role and as an effective deterrent in the face of Moscow's worsening relations with the West.Russian leaders have pledged tens of millions dollars for the military to develop new types of rockets, capable of breaking through any missile defense system, including the one being set up by the United States.Test launches of new missiles have become routine in the past few years and the Kremlin says Russia's financial crisis will not discourage it from spending as much cash as needed.However, the Russian military say that the existing types of missiles are powerful enough to be a reliable nuclear deterrent and can be used further after tests confirming their good technical condition.Earlier this month, Russia test-fired Topol missile which has been in the arsenal for 21 years.

Prolonging the exploitation time for Stilets allows to free up considerable funds for other important state needs, the statement said. The annual spending on research and construction is comparable with building one new missile.(Writing by Oleg Shchedrov)

SARAH GETS HASSELED AGAIN

This Media is too much! Now. their trying to say Sarah Palin illegally made Alaska pay for Her chldren to travel with her during this campaign, these GODLESS AGAINST SARAH AND MCCAIN AND HER FAMILY ARE JUST TO MUCH.

Palin says election result rests in God's hands By ERIC GORSKI, AP Religion Writer OCT 22,08

CNN DENVER – Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin describes herself as a hard-core pro-lifer and expresses confidence that in spite of disheartening polls, putting this in God's hands, that the right thing for America will be done at the end of the day on Nov. 4.In an interview with evangelical leader James Dobson that aired Wednesday, Palin said she thought Republican presidential candidate John McCain would implement the GOP platform if elected — I do, from the bottom of my heart — but McCain doesn't support the platform on three issues important to evangelicals: abortion, gay marriage and embryonic stem cell research.The platform calls for a constitutional ban on gay marriage, an issue McCain says should be left to individual states. Similarly, the platform seeks a constitutional ban on all abortions; again, McCain supports allowing states to decide the question. McCain supports research using embryonic stem cells, which the platform opposes.Palin called it a strong platform and told Dobson, They are there, they are solid, we stand on them and, again, I believe that it is the right agenda for the country at this time.The Alaska governor talked by phone with Dobson for about 20 minutes Monday while she was in Colorado campaigning. Dobson's Focus on the Family radio program aired the interview Wednesday.Dobson asked whether Palin was discouraged by polls showing the GOP ticket behind.

To me, it motivates us, makes us work that much harder, Palin said. And it also strengthens my faith, because I'm going to know, at the end of the day, putting this in God's hands, that the right thing for America will be done at the end of the day on Nov. 4. So I'm not discouraged at all.Palin has not focused on her faith on the campaign trail, but it clearly has energized evangelical leaders like Dobson, whose radio show reaches an estimated 1.5 million Americans daily.Dobson has come around to supporting the McCain-Palin ticket after previously saying he could not in good conscience vote for McCain. He endorsed former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee late in the primaries.Palin thanked Dobson and supporters for their prayers and — when Dobson inquired about the importance of faith in her life — said: It is my foundation, yes, my Christian faith is.She also used terms like prayer warrior and intercession — words that might be unknown to the average listener but are common vocabulary in Pentecostal Christianity. Palin spent 20 years in a Pentecostal Assemblies of God Church, but she usually refers to her faith generically as Christian, not even evangelical.It is that intercession that is so needed and so greatly appreciated, Palin told Dobson. And I can feel it too, Dr. Dobson. I can feel the power of prayer, and that strength that is provided through our prayer warriors across this nation.She continued: When we hear along the rope lines that people are interceding for us and praying for us, it's our reminder to do the same, to put this all in God's hands, to seek his perfect will for this nation, and to of course seek his wisdom and guidance in putting this nation back on the right track.

Describing herself as a hard-core pro-lifer, Palin said the birth of a son with Down syndrome was this opportunity for me to really be walking the walk and not just talking the talk. There's purpose in this also and for a greater good to be met there.Palin said the campaign had to have faith that its message will be heard minus the filter of the mainstream media.That filter has to be erased, she said. So we have to have faith in the wisdom of the people that they'll understand what our message is. But even bigger that then, I have to have that faith that God is going to help us get that message out there.

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

MORE MICROCHIP IMPLANT STORIES-VIDEOS
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1299279/be_prepared_for_2012_microchips/

http://www.care2.com/c2c/groups/disc.html?gpp=60&pst=690727

http://noworldsystem.com/2008/06/17/bilderberg-plans-microchip-implant-campaign-in-america/

http://www.dailypaul.com/node/41386

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/3127696.stm

THIS GUYS GAY AND A NEW AGE OCCULTIST,BUT WHAT HE SAYS ABOUT CHIPS AND DECEPTION OF PEOPLE GO BY WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS HOW PEOPLE WILL BE DECIEVED AND KILLED FOR NOT ACCEPTING THE MICROCHIP. THESE BEINGS HES TALKING ABOUT ARE SEDUCING DEMONIC SPIRITS.LITTLE DOES HE KNOW BEING INVOLVED IN THE OCCULT LIKE HE IS.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEjBN8sGnw0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2arUAEQlr-Q&feature=related

Microchip to be implanted in humans in 2012?

It has been reported that the govt. plans to have everyone implanted with microchip devices by the year 2012.Europe & the United States have plans to begin implantation of newborns after they are born soon.Many people (including some of our servicemen) have already been implanted.THEY make it sound so great, so much simplicity in medical, travel, banking and so on.. basically we will all have UPC CODES and an implant the size of a grain of rice embedded into our bodies.Now there are still reports of veri-chips (microchips) causing cancer etc., in some pets... so why would they go ahead and FDA approve these CHIPS into humans?Do you think it is in our best interest?

Carlos Altamirano is implanted with the VeriChip, a microchip that is used to confirm everything from health history to identity.The microchips, already available in the United States, could tap into a growing industry surrounding Mexico's criminal concerns. Kidnappings, robberies and fraud are common here, and Mexicans are constantly looking for ways to protect themselves against crime.The microchip, the size of a grain of rice, is implanted in the arm or hip. Hospital officials and security guards use a scanning device to download a serial number, which they then use to access blood type, name and other information on a computer.
How much? One chip costs $150 and has a $50 annual fee. The scanning device and related software cost $1,200. Users can update and manage their chips' information by calling a 24-hour customer service line.

CNN NEWS VIDEO
http://edition.cnn.com/video/

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER

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

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

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

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

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

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

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS WED OCT 22,2008

09:30 AM -38.71
10:00 AM -339.06
10:30 AM -360.49
11:00 AM -257.27
11:30 AM -318.83
12:00 PM -281.32
12:30 PM -236.32
01:00 PM -293.59
01:30 PM -359.69
02:00 PM -342.89
02:30 PM -333.57
03:00 PM -375.78
03:30 PM -475.95
04:00 PM -514.45 8519.21

S&P 500 896.78 -58.27

NAS 1615.75 -80.93

GOLD 730.4 -37.0

OIL 67.38 -4.80

TSE 300 -558.92 9,236.88

CDNX -68.76 900.63

S&P/TSX 60 -34.25 554.80

Down down 400 points at low today before noon.
Stocks lower on Earnings.
Major Average lower in 3RD of 4 sessions.
All 30 Dow stocks down as of 10:10AM.
Hungarys central bank hiking rates to shore up its Currency.
Hungary has lined up potential help from IMF,ECD,as a last resort.
Whitehouse to announce NOV 15 World financial summit date in WASHINGTON.
27 U.S. states in a recession.
Argentina is plummiting for 2nd straight day.
Brazil is throwing all it can to save its currency.
Ukraine,Hungary are a mess.
Barclays placing 3 BILLION EUROS in government guarenteed Bonds in the U.K at about 4.25%.
Dow disintigrates to 689 points in last half hour,then rebounds back.

THE ECONOMY

Businesses cut 159,000 jobs in Sept,760,000 jobs year to date.
Jobless rate at 6.1% in SEPT. up from 4.9% in January.
Unemployed in January 7,567,000, in Sept 9,477,000.
Wage Income rose 0.4% despite job cuts,stronger growth since March.
2ND Quarter GDP was 2.83%,3RD Quarter Estimate 0.6%.
Last big recession was 8 months long,March to November 2001.
Corporate profits down for 5 straight Quarters.
Down $60.2 BILLION in 2ND quarter to $1.52 TRILLION.
Consumer prices up 4.9% and producer prices up 8.7% in past 12 months.
Inflation has slowed over the last 2 months except in FOOD and BEVERAGES.

NAOMI WOLF END OF AMERICA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjALf12PAWc

END OF AMERICA MOVIE
http://www.endofamericamovie.com/

Oil falls below $67 on US recession fears By MADLEN READ, AP Business Writer OCT 22,08

MRK 28.01 -1.96
USO 54.75 -4.02
WB 5.71 -0.38

NEW YORK – Oil prices tumbled below $67 a barrel to 16-month lows Wednesday after the government reported big increases in U.S. fuel supplies — more evidence that the economic downturn is drying up energy demand.The Energy Information Administration said crude inventories jumped by 3.2 million barrels last week, above the 2.9 million barrel increase expected by analysts surveyed by energy research firm Platts. Gasoline inventories rose by 2.7 million barrels last week, and inventories of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, rose by 2.2 million barrels.

Over the last four weeks, the EIA said, motor gasoline demand was down 4.3 percent from the same period last year. Distillate fuel demand was down 5.8 percent, and jet fuel demand was down 9.2 percent.The main theme here that's driving this market into new low ground is demand deterioration, said Jim Ritterbusch, president of energy consultancy Ritterbusch and Associates. As we begin to see evidence that demand is leveling — it doesn't have to increase, just level — then we can start discussing a possible price bottom. But it appears premature at this point.Light, sweet crude for December delivery fell $5.43 to settle at $66.75 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after falling as low as $66.20. It was the lowest close for a front-month contract since June 13, 2007, when crude settled at $66.26.The energy markets have also been weighed down by the weak stock market, as investors grow more pessimistic about how long it will take the economy to recover from the current global financial turmoil.On Tuesday, DuPont, Sun Microsystems and Texas Instruments reported disappointing earnings and bleak forecasts, sending the Dow Jones industrials average down 2.5 percent. The Dow was down another 4 percent by Wednesday afternoon following more gloomy reports from the soon-to-be acquired bank Wachovia Corp., drugmaker Merck & Co., and insurer Travelers Cos.Oil is now highly correlated with the stock market, said Clarence Chu, a trader with market maker Hudson Capital Energy in Singapore. People are looking to the Dow for sentiment on the economy.The price of crude oil has tumbled 55 percent from its peak of $147.27 reached in mid-July.

The drop has pulled down the retail price of unleaded gasoline to $2.858 a gallon, according to auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express. That's down about 3 cents from Tuesday, and down more than $1.25, or 31 percent, from its mid-July record.In addition to stocks, the dollar's strength this week relative to other currencies has contributed to oil's decline. Investors often buy commodities like crude oil to hedge against a weakening dollar, and sell those investments when the dollar rebounds.The euro fell below $1.28 for the first time in nearly two years Wednesday. The 15-nation euro dipped as low as $1.2736 in morning trading before recovering to $1.29, still down from $1.3003 late Tuesday in New York.

Meanwhile, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which accounts for about 40 percent of global oil supply, signaled that the group plans to announce an output quota reduction at an emergency meeting Friday in Vienna.There should be a short-term boost to prices when they announce a cut on Friday, Chu said. But OPEC production has always been above their quotas, so there's a credibility problem.

Russia's top energy official said Wednesday that Russia, the largest oil producer outside of OPEC, may set aside an oil reserve to influence global prices — but won't cut output, according to news reports. Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said the government was considering creating an oil production reserve which would allow it to work more efficiently with prices on the market.In other Nymex trading, heating oil futures fell 14.13 cents to end at $2.0562 a gallon, while gasoline prices dropped 12.1 cents to finish at $1.5709 a gallon. Natural gas futures fell 10.2 cents to settle at $7.21 per 1,000 cubic feet.On London's ICE futures exchange, Brent crude fell $5.20 to $64.52 a barrel.AP Business Writer Stevenson Jacobs and Associated Press Writers Louise Watt in London and Alex Kennedy in Singapore contributed to this report.

Dow tumbles 560 on earnings forecast worries By TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writer OCT 22,08

^DJI 8,519.21 -514.45
^GSPC 896.78 -58.27
^IXIC 1,615.75 -80.93

AP – Trader Robert Duffy works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008. (AP Photo/Richard … NEW YORK – Stocks are ending sharply lower as investors worry that the economy is poised to weaken even as frozen credit markets slowly start to show signs of recovery.Corporate profit forecasts, a jump in the dollar and falling oil prices Wednesday indicate investors are worried that an economic slowdown will sweep the globe.The major indexes each lost more than 4 percent, including the Dow Jones industrials, which is ending down 560 at the 8,469 level after being down as much as 698 points in the final half hour of trading.

World leaders to meet on economy in Washington By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press Writer OCT 22,08

WASHINGTON – Leaders from 20 nations will meet Nov. 15 in Washington to address the global financial crisis — the first in a series of summits to resolve what economists predict could be a long and deep economic downturn, the White House announced Wednesday.The first meeting will be held to discuss underlying causes of the financial crisis, review progress being made to address it and start developing reforms needed to ensure it does not happen again, White House press secretary Dana Perino said.The president had spent the past couple of days on the phone with a lot of different leaders talking to them about their thoughts about this meeting, Perino said.This will be the first in a series of summits that bring together leaders from countries that participate in the G-20 finance process to discuss current economic challenges. The so-called G-20 are: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union.

At the first meeting, working groups will be set up to develop recommendations to be considered by leaders in subsequent summits. The White House will host a dinner on the eve of the summit. The location of the meeting, however, has not yet been announced.Bush, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, who met at the Camp David, Md., presidential retreat last week, announced the series of summit, saying the international community needs to work together to address the credit crisis that has shaken markets around the globe.

Noting that the summit will be held after the election, it's too early to know whether the president-elect, be it John McCain or Barack Obama, who were notified about the meeting Wedneday morning, will be in attendance. It's also unclear whether subsequent summits would be held while Bush is still in office.The leaders will review progress being made to address the current financial crisis, advance a common understanding of its causes, and, in order to avoid a repetition, agree on a common set of principles for reform of the regulatory and institutional regimes for the world's financial sectors, Perino said.The managing director of the International Monetary Fund, the president of the World Bank, the United Nations Secretary-General and the chairman of the Financial Stability Forum also have been invited to participate.

Brazil takes new steps to help banks amid crisisReuters, Wednesday October 22 2008 (Recasts with Mantega comments, adds byline, changes dateline, previous SAO PAULO)By Isabel Versiani

BRASILIA, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Brazil on Wednesday allowed its two largest state banks to buy stakes in financial firms, the government's latest step aimed at shielding the domestic banking sector from the global credit crunch.It also freed up the central bank to conduct swap operations with other central banks, giving it another tool to add liquidity to the foreign exchange market as the country's currency, the real, tumbled anew against the dollar.Finance Minister Guido Mantega told a briefing in Brasilia Brazil's financial system was solid and that no bank was collapsing but he said the lack of liquidity could cause problems for some banks.We are taking this measure to help facilitate liquidity and to give an alternative to those financial institutions which don't have this liquidity, Mantega said.The Brazilian financial system is solid, it's one of the most solid in the world, he added.

Central bank head Henrique Meirelles told the same briefing the move allowing the central bank to carry out swaps with other central banks was a preventive step which would not be used yet.Despite the new steps, the real plunged more than 5 percent to 2.36 per dollar on Wednesday and the stock market <.BVSP> lost nearly 5 percent as investors fled emerging markets and sought safety in dollars.Recent official steps have ranged from foreign exchange swap auctions to increasing credit lines to farm and construction industries to allowing bigger banks to take over the loan portfolios of smaller banks in potential distress.Brazil said earlier on Wednesday it would allow state-controlled Banco do Brasil and Caixa Economica Federal to buy stakes in other financial institutions.While Brazil's major banks are seen as sound, some smaller banks are seen as potentially vulnerable to a drying up of credit. Analysts forecast conditions will remain hard for the entire sector -- and probably unbearable for smaller players.Policymakers have already moved to support smaller banks by sharply reducing reserve requirements to those institutions and injecting as much as 160 billion reais ($68.41 billion) into the banking system.The government also issued a decree authorizing the central bank itself to acquire such portfolios if needed.

SMALL BANKS SEEN VULNERABLE

The Brazilian government has allowed larger banks to use part of their reserve requirements deposited in the central bank to buy loan portfolios of smaller institutions.Some of Brazil's largest banks are already making their moves. Bradesco , the country's largest private-sector bank, and Unibanco said this month they purchased loan portfolios of smaller rivals.Spain's Santander bank, which owns Banco Real, also said this month it had closed deals to buy loan portfolios of other institutions and Banco do Brasil said it was in talks to do the same.Smaller banks are thus having to chose between paying very high rates for credit or being taken over, which has hit their shares.Daycoval , Cruzeiro Sul and Panamericano are among the small banks whose shares have fallen heavily since September. ($=2.339 reais) (Additional reporting by Renato Andrade and Ana Nicolaci Da Costa; Writing by Stuart Grudgings; Editing by James Dalgleish)

Argentina market plunges on plan to nationalize pensions
Bloomberg NewsPublished: October 21, 2008

The main stock index in Argentina fell as much as 14 percent Tuesday, it biggest loss in 11 years, on speculation that the government would nationalize pension funds, potentially depriving the equity market of one of its biggest investors.

Telecom Argentina, a large telephone company, plunged as much as 27 percent, the most ever. BBVA Banco Frances and Banco Macro led a decline in banks. Empresa Distribuidora y Comercializadora Norte, the Buenos Aires-based electricity distributor, lost more than a fifth of its value, the steepest fall since its trading debut in April last year.President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, grappling with a financial crisis that has frozen access to credit, was scheduled to propose an overhaul of the pension system at 4 p.m. New York time that may give the government control of $29 billion in privately run retirement accounts.Clearly if you take away all these buyers and you go to a government plan that's not going to be investing in equities then that's obviously negative for the local market in Argentina, Will Landers, who manages $5 billion in Latin American equities at BlackRock Inc., said in an interview.The Merval index fell 13 percent to 1,018 in late trading in New York, heading for its biggest loss since October 1997. The Merval's decline was the biggest move among global benchmarks.Argentina pension funds were net buyers of stocks for a third straight month in September, investing about $144 million in domestic equities, according to Deutsche Bank. They have $4.1 billion invested in domestic stocks, or about 13 percent of their total holdings.

Disappearing Into Irrelevance

Fernandez has struggled to find new sources of funding for the government since the global financial crisis complicated efforts to renegotiate $20 billion in defaulted bonds and pay off about $6.7 billion owed to the Paris Club group of creditors. The country has not had access to international debt markets since defaulting on $95 billion of bonds in late 2001.It's disappearing into irrelevance for an emerging market institutional investors' perspective, said Bill Rudman at WestLB Mellon Asset Management in London.Telecom tumbled the most on the Merval, losing 1.85 to 5 pesos.
Edenor dropped 23 percent to 67 centavos.Banco Frances, a large private bank, lost 22percent to 2.85 pesos, the lowest since November 2002. Banco Macro slid 19 percent to 3.06 pesos.

Hungary: Central bank makes emergency rate hike
Associated Press 10.22.08, 10:38 AM ET

BUDAPEST, Hungary - Hungary's central bank Wednesday made a steep emergency interest rate hike to stabilize the country's currency, hurt by the financial crisis, raising the possibility that other countries in the region could follow its lead.The National Bank of Hungary's Monetary Council raised the base rate to 11.5 percent from 8.5 percent. The base rate is the interest paid by the central bank to commercial banks using its two-week bill facility, the main instrument used by the National Bank of Hungary to manage liquidity on the interbank market.The move is meant to protect the national currency, the forint, which has fallen 16 percent against the euro since the start of October, according to Neil Shearing of Capital Economics.Investors are worried that Hungary, like many emerging markets, may suffer badly as the financial crisis causes foreign investment to pull out of the country.

But while countries like Hungary try to shore up their currencies with rate hikes, the higher cost of borrowing will put extra pressure on economic growth just as the world prepares for an economic slowdown.Today's move could be the final straw that tips the Hungarian economy into recession in 2009, said Shearing.But he warned that Hungary is not alone in its predicament. Turkey could soon raise interest rates and policy makers in Poland and Romania will also be monitoring developments in foreign exchange markets, Shearing said.While these countries are forced to consider rate hikes, the neighboring European Central Bank joined other major monetary authorities around the world in slashing rates earlier this month, and is expected to continue to do so into next year.

Ukraine's PM expects IMF decision on WednesdayReuters, Wednesday October 22 2008

KIEV, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Ukraine Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said she expected the International Monetary Fund to decide on a loan for the country on Wednesday and warned that stagnation threatened the eocnomy.Ukrainian officials say the country could receive a credit worth up to $14 billion.The IMF is meeting today...to adopt all the necessary decisions. We are hoping very much that they will be positive, Tymoshenko told a government meeting. (Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

Emerging Markets-Shares up but Ukraine, Hungary pressured
Mon Oct 20, 2008 7:28am EDT By Sebastian Tong

LONDON, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Emerging market assets bounced on Monday due to improved risk appetite and easing of global credit conditions but fears over foreign debt exposure continued to weigh on Hungary and Ukraine.Russian stocks led broader gains for the sector's equity markets, which saw the benchmark .MSCIEF rise 2.5 percent higher to 582.29 by 1105 GMT.Emerging sovereign debt spreads 11EMJ tightened 7 basis points but still traded at a five-year high of 622 bps.We are taking our lead from global equity markets and also from the fact that global credit markets are slightly looser, said Beat Siegenthaler, chief strategist emerging markets at TD Securities.

We needed a break after recent falls. But trade is very quiet.The prospect of a global economic slowdown was underlined by China data showing gross domestic product growth slid into single figures in the third quarter.But government efforts to stem the global crisis that has wiped out $15 trillion off the stock market in over the last 12 months helped lift sentiment.Like their counterparts in the developed West, governments in emerging economies have moved to stabilise their financial markets, to avert a banking crisis and currency collapse similar to Iceland's.Russia's rouble powered to its highest level since August after its central bank set curbs on currency trading to stamp out short sellers.Russian shares, which have sagged to three-year lows, rose on expectations that energy cartel OPEC might cut output this week and boost prices that have fallen by more than half in three months. Confidence has been further bolstered by Moscow's promise to start spending its wealth fund to buy shares and bonds this week.The dollar-denominated RTS Index .IRTS soared 7.3 percent while the energy shares-laden MICEX Index rose 4.5 percent.

HUNGARY, UKRAINE WORRIES

Over the weekend, South Korea pledged $130 billion in state guarantees and capital injections for banks while Kazakhstan said on Monday it would inject a total of $15 billion into its slowing economy which has been hard-hit by rising bad corporate and bank debt.Ukraine's prime minister said she was confident that talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would prove successful and enable the country to secure financial assistance of up to $14 billion to shore up the country's financial system.The country's hryvnia currency , which hit an all-time low of 5.9 to the dollar on Oct. 9, remained under pressure to fall nearly 3 percent against the greenback.Ukraine is probably the most exposed (in emerging Europe) because its banks have many foreign links. They also have a large current account deficit and of course political problems, said Siegenthaler.Worries over an exposed banking system and large external financing needs also weighed on Hungary, dragging stocks .BUX 2.4 percent lower and its forint currency 0.65 percent down against the euro. The country scrapped a treasury bill auction on Monday and has lined up the IMF and the European Central Bank for potential financing help.The cost of insuring Hungarian debt has risen with five-year credit default swaps (CDS) quoted at 540 bps, up 10 bps from Friday's close.

Hungarian monetary policymakers are set to meet at 1200 GMT.
Risk premiums are likely to remain elevated, and exchange rate stability and bond market liquidity may become a key concern for monetary policy. Therefore, future policy measures are likely to support bond market liquidity and keep interest rates high until money market conditions stabilise, Citi said in a research note.(Additional reporting by Peter Apps; Editing by Victoria Main)

Germany hits out at French protectionism plan
RENATA GOLDIROVA Today OCT 22,08 @ 09:14 CET

France's idea that EU governments take stakes in European strategic companies to shield them from foreign bidders and the impact of the financial crisis has ruffled feathers in Germany, with the country's economy minister immediately going public to defend free market rules. The French proposal ... goes against the successful principles of our economic policy, German economy minister Michael Glos said on Tuesday (21 October), AFP and FAZ report, shortly after Nicolas Sarkozy had presented his fresh economic vision in the European Parliament. Mr Glos opposed the French push for wider protectionism by describing current state intervention in the banking and insurance sector as an indispensable exception so as to prevent a possible breakdown of financial flows and help protect jobs and growth.Germany remains open to capital from all around the world, the German minister concluded.

Berlin also poured cold water over Mr Sarkozy's suggestion to set up an economic government to oversee the 15-nation eurozone. The minister's remarks came hours after French President Nicolas Sarkozy told MEPs that he did not want European citizens to wake up a few months from now and discover that European companies belong to non-European capital which has bought at the lowest point of the stock exchange.He had added that the eurozone government should consist of heads of state and government and gather regularly to co-ordinate action. It is not the first time in recent days that France and Germany have differed in their economic views. At EU leaders' summit last week, the French president led calls for giving a helping hand to European industry, in particular carmakers, arguing that the US administration had injected $25 billion into the sector in cheap loans. But Berlin questioned the approach, diplomats said.

Stocks open lower as investors watch earnings By TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writer OCT 22,08

Reuters – A staff member of the Tokyo Stock Exchange reacts after the afternoon trading session in Tokyo October … NEW YORK – Wall Street tumbled again Wednesday as investors again shifted their focus away from improving credit markets and fixated on worrisome corporate earnings that are raising fears of a deep and painful recession. The major indexes fell more than 1 percent, including the Dow Jones industrial average, which fell 350 points.While reduced strains in world credit markets have eased some investors' nervousness about the economy, market anxiety remains high as hundreds of companies this week release third-quarter earnings and in some cases fourth-quarter forecasts that offer a glimpse of the rough conditions that may lay ahead.On Wednesday, commercial and personal property insurer Travelers Cos. said hurricane-related losses pushed third-quarter profit down 82 percent and forced it to lower its full-year forecast.In other earnings, Wachovia Corp., which is being bought by Wells Fargo & Co., said it swung to a huge loss in the third quarter while the drug maker Merck & Co. said its quarterly profit fell 28 percent and that it would cut more than 10 percent of its work force.In midmorning trading, the Dow fell 350.93, or 3.88 percent, to 8,682.73. On Tuesday, the Dow retreated 231 points after forecasts from DuPont Co., Sun Microsystems Inc. and Texas Instruments Inc. raised fears that companies' outlooks for the fourth quarter and beyond could signal a severe economic downturn.Broader stock indicators also fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 36.59, or 3.83 percent, to 918.46, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 37.44, or 2.21 percent, to 1,659.24.

Meanwhile, credit markets showed more signs of improvement after virtually freezing up last week. Bank-to-bank lending rates fell sharply overnight, indicating that credit is becoming easier to obtain. The London Interbank Offered Rate, or Libor, on three-month loans in dollars fell to 3.54 percent from 3.83 percent, dropping for an eighth straight day.Demand for Treasury bills, regarded as the safest assets around, grew slightly compared to the previous day as economic worries led investors to shun risky assets in favor of government bonds.The three-month Treasury bill yielded 1.06 percent, down from 1.07 percent late Tuesday. The levels are a notable improvement from the 0.20 percent seen last Wednesday, when investors were willing to take the slimmest of returns in exchange for a safe place to keep their money.The dollar was sharply higher against other major currencies, while gold prices fell.In other corporate news, AT&T Inc. said its third-quarter earnings rose 5.5 percent but missed analyst expectations in part because of strong sales of iPhones, which the carrier subsidizes. The stock fell $1.89, or 7.4 percent, to $23.84.Other companies reporting results were mixed. Travelers rose 59 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $36.92, while Wachovia fell 14 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $5.95. Merck fell 99 cents, or 3.3 percent, to $28.98.Light, sweet crude fell $4.38 to $67.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Tuesday, oil fell as a stronger dollar dented demand for commodities and overshadowed worries about a planned OPEC output cut.Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 8 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 141.8 million shares.The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 11.58, or 2.2 percent, to 519.07.Financial markets overseas fell sharply. Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 6.79 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 3.43 percent, Germany's DAX index fell 3.52 percent, and France's CAC-40 lost 4.26 percent.
On the Net: New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com

Brussels to educate Ireland on EU realities
VALENTINA POP Today OCT 22,08 @ 18:58 CET

EUOBSERVER / STRASBOURG - The European Commission plans to help the Irish government communicate Europe better to citizens after June's shock No vote on the Lisbon treaty, with a new inter-institutional agreement to pull together the PR efforts of the main EU institutions.It's not about the European Commission interfering with the procedures and referenda on the Treaty, but it is investing in trying to correct the situation where so many people said they didn't know anything about the EU, or didn't know enough to take a position when they were asked, communication commissioner Margot Wallstrom said on Wednesday (22 October) in Strasbourg.Ms Wallstrom plans to sign a memorandum of understanding on launching a new communication management project in Ireland when she visits Dublin on 13 to 14 November.The one year partnerships - already up and running in Germany, Hungary and Slovenia with eight other EU states about to sign up - see the commission provide EU literature, journalist training, school manuals and other civic education programmes. One concrete project in Germany was Guess who is going back to school, in which about 500 German officials paid visits to their former schools, explaining to pupils what their job is within the EU institutions.The commissioner on Wednesday also signed an inter-institutional agreement between the European Parliament, commission and Council to co-ordinate the three institutions' communication efforts.

She said the move was not designed to create a propaganda machine but to support the fundamental democratic principle of the right to know. It is the first time we have this framework after heavy resistance from member states, the commissioner explained.

The new agreement foresees co-ordinating future communication efforts on common priorities, such as the 2009 European elections, energy and climate change and the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.It is also designed to avoid situations where both the parliament and the commission organise events or print leaflets on the same topic without knowing what the other is doing.Co-ordination will be provided by the Interinstitutional group on information (IGI) comprised of Ms Walstrom on behalf of the commission, French minister Jean Pierre Jouyet on behalf of the European Council and the vice-president of the European Parliament, Spanish conservative MEP Alejo Vidal-Quadras. IGI will not have its own budget, but will draw from the coffers of the three institutions.

Irish public was misinformed

Going back to the Irish referendum on the Lisbon treaty, Ms Wallstrom said the public debate included a lot of emotional arguments and disinformation, such as the idea that by voting Yes, people would have to send their children to an EU army.The EU uses too much bureaucratic language, too much of a jargon impenetrable to normal people. There is no need for emotional arguments either, but for a factual language that people can understand, she explained.Asked what would be the outcome of a pan-European referendum on the Lisbon treaty - as suggested by some Irish campaigners - Ms Wallstrom stressed that it is the ultimate challenge from a communication point of view to hold any referendum on a complex legal text.Whatever you do, you won't have in the end everybody reading a 400-page document, she said. That's what MEPs are being paid for.

Ukraine disappointed with EU hypocrisy
ELITSA VUCHEVA Today OCT 22,08 @ 18:25 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – Ukraine is generally satisfied with the outcome of an EU-Ukraine summit that took place in Paris last month, but is disappointed the final political declaration failed to underline the country's European identity, Ukraine's deputy foreign minister, Kostyantyn Yeliseyev, said on Wednesday (22 October).In an open spirit, I would like to tell you my disappointment with the fact that the EU rejected the idea to recognise Ukraine as a state with a European identity, Mr Yeliseyev told a group of journalists in Brussels.It's a funny thing, when they negotiated this document, I suggested OK, if you don't want that, put in the political statement the sentence that you recognise Ukraine as a European state with an African identity. They said of course not. Ok, let's put with Asian identity. [Again] No,the deputy foreign minister recounted, saying nobody could give him a proper answer on why the reference to European identity was not acceptable.This is just to show you sometimes the hypocrisy also of the EU, Mr Yeliseyev said.The Ukrainian diplomat underlined some positive achievements of the high-level meeting in September, such as concluding an association agreement with the EU based on the principle of political association and economic integration, or the launch of a dialogue on a visa-free regime.Additionally, some very important political features were agreed in September, for instance for the first time the EU recognised that Ukraine is a European country and that we [EU and Ukraine] share a common history and common values, Mr Yeliseyev said.But he deplored that even today there is a group of sceptics within the EU who are trying to some extent to block further progress in EU-Ukraine relations, naming the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.

Business as usual

Following comments from European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso last week that the EU is concerned with the recent political crisis in Ukraine, Mr Yeliseyev said the situation should not be over-dramatised.I don't see any problems, any interconnection between the negotiations [with the EU] and the current internal developments in Ukraine, he said.Ukrainian president Victor Yushchenko earlier this month dissolved parliament and announced early elections would take place in December, in an ongoing power struggle with Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.The vote would be the third time in three years that parliamentary elections are held in Ukraine.Sometimes people are trying to over-dramatise the situation [in Ukraine], Mr Yeliseyev said. There are political disputes between major political forces in Ukraine [but] to my mind this is very common to any EU member state … It is a common practice for democracy.We are trying to do business as usual [and] the administrative machine in Ukraine is working properly.

The eternal visa issue

Ukraine's deputy foreign minister also raised the question of visa requirements for citizens from his country - a very sensitive issue for Ukrainians.The EU made much of a visa facilitation agreement with Ukraine that came into force at the beginning of this year that was supposed to make receiving short-stay and multiple entry visas easier for Ukrainian citizens. But Ukrainians say it has not made any real difference.Unfortunately on the ground there is no fully fledged implementation [of this agreement] … There are [still] a lot of problems, a lot of negative examples how the EU side is discriminating Ukrainian citizens in this field, Mr Yeliseyev said.Some EU states - including Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium - are very unfriendly when it comes to visa policy towards Ukraine, the minister pointed out.As a result, during the first half of this year the quantity of Ukrainians travelling to EU member states decreased 2.5 times. This is unacceptable, totally unacceptable, he added, with Kiev to launch a dialogue on a future visas free regime on 29 October.

Donors pledge billions to rebuild Georgia
RENATA GOLDIROVA Today OCT 22,08 @ 18:06 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The international community has pledged $4.5 billion (€3.4 billion) toward the rebuilding of Georgia hit by the short war with Russia over South Ossetia in August, with the European Commission alone putting aside up to €500 million to address Tbillisi's needs between 2008-2010. It is a moral imperative to help a neighbour in need, commission president Jose Manuel Barroso said when opening a donor's conference in Brussels (22 October). He added that it was also in the interest of the EU to help Georgia to get back on its feet - for wider stability as well as energy security reasons. Prior to the outbreak of the conflict, the Georgian economy was booming, with growth expected to reach 10 percent this year. But with a large chunk of infrastructure damaged and the flow of foreign investement decreased, current forecasts put the figure at around five percent. According to EU external relations commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the commission package of up to €500 million will be channelled to three main purposes - to strengthen the Georgian economy, build strategic infrastructure, including energy infrastructure, and provide food and shelter to those in need. However, Ms Ferrero-Waldner stressed that the recent war should not distract Georgia from economic and political reforms, which are essential and which should further advance.In response to their pledges, Georgian deputy prime minister Lado Gurgenidze expressed a big thank you to all donors, saying that the final cheque exceeded Georgia's expectations. We are deeply moved and humbled by the solidarity especially in the time of the financial crisis, he said. Some 38 countries and 15 international organisations took part in the donor's conference.

Concerns over use of funds

But shortly before the conference opened, representatives of civil society and the opposition in Georgia issued an open letter, urging all donors to ensure the funding is used to improve living conditions, not to strengthen the current regime.

Financial support should be delivered through the most direct channels and with the utmost transparency and within a strict monitoring mechanism, which avoids unconditional funding, reads the letter. It continues by saying that any additional funds available should go to supporting concrete democratisation programmes.The media, the judiciary and the electoral processes are cited as areas with the biggest shortcomings. The signatories were not part of the Georgian official delegation nor present at the conference. When asked about the letter, deputy prime minister Lado Gurgenidze said he had not read it and limited himself to the pledge that every euro would be spent to the best possible use.Today is just the beginning. There are three years of hard and productive work ahead of us, the politician concluded.

FIRES AND EXPLOSIONS

REVELATION 8:7
7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

Wildfire breaks out in S. Calif., east of L.A. OCT 22,08

FONTANA, Calif. – At least 100 acres have burned in a wildfire that broke out Wednesday morning amid hot and gusty weather in San Bernardino County, east of Los Angeles.The fire broke out in Fontana northwest of Interstate 15 at about 12:45 Wednesday, and winds in excess of 30 mph were pushing it west into the mountains and canyons of suburban Rancho Cucamonga, about 40 miles northeast of Los Angeles, county fire spokeswoman Angie Samayoa said.People in about 100 homes near a Buddhist temple have been told they may want to evacuate but are not being ordered to do so, Assistant San Bernardino County Fire Marshall Mike Horton told KABC-TV.Homes are not directly in the line of fire, Samayoa said.More than 300 firefighters were on the scene and water drops from aircraft were coming after sunrise, Samayoa said.The fire broke out five years to the day after the beginning of the Grand Prix wildfire, which burned 59,000 acres and destroyed 135 homes in the same area, officials said.

Southern California was experiencing strong Santa Ana winds a week after similar conditions spurred several major wildfires.The dry northeast winds were expected to peak at 50 mph through Wednesday evening, but were expected to be weaker than last week's siege.Temperatures will also reach the 90s in many areas.

FEARFUL SIGHTS AND GREAT SIGNS FROM HEAVEN

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.

India launches 1st unmanned moon mission By GAVIN RABINOWITZ and SETH BORENSTEIN, Associated Press Writers Wed Oct 22, 7:37 am ET

AFP NEW DELHI – India launched its first mission to the moon Wednesday, rocketing a satellite up into the pale dawn sky in a two-year mission to redraw maps of the lunar surface.Clapping and cheering scientists tracked the ascent on computer screens after they lost sight of Chandrayaan-1 from the Sriharikota space center in southern India. Chandrayaan means Moon Craft in ancient Sanskrit.Indian Space Research Organization chairman G. Madhavan Nair said the mission is to unravel the mystery of the moon.We have started our journey to the moon and the first leg has gone perfectly well, he said.Chief among the mission's goals is mapping not only the surface of the moon, but what lies beneath. If successful, India will join what's shaping up as a 21st century space race with Chinese and Japanese crafts already in orbit around the moon.To date only the U.S., Russia, the European Space Agency, Japan and China have sent missions to the moon.As India's economy has boomed in recent years, it has sought to convert its newfound wealth — built on the nation's high-tech sector — into political and military clout. It is hoping that the moon mission — coming just months after finalizing a deal with the United States that recognizes India as a nuclear power — will further enhance its status.Until now, India's space launches have mainly carried weather warning satellites and communication systems, said former NASA associate administrator Scott Pace, director of space policy at the George Washington University.You're seeing India lifting its sights, Pace said.While much of the technology involved in reaching the moon has not changed since the Soviet Union and the U.S. did it more than four decades ago, analysts say new mapping equipment allows the exploration of new areas, including below the surface.

India plans to use the 3,080-pound lunar probe to create a high-resolution map of the lunar surface and the minerals below. Two of the mapping instruments are a joint project with NASA.In the last year, Asian nations have taken the lead in moon exploration. In October 2007, Japan sent up the Kaguya spacecraft. A month later, China's Chang'e-1 entered lunar orbit.Those missions took high-resolution pictures of the moon, but are not as comprehensive as Chandrayaan-1 will be or NASA's half-a-billion-dollar Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter scheduled to be launched next year, Pace said. The most comprehensive maps of the moon were made about 40 years ago during the Apollo era, he said.We don't really have really good modern maps of the moon with modern instrument, Pace said. The quality of the Martian maps, I would make a general argument, is superior to what we have of the moon.NASA has put probes on Mars' frigid polar region, but not on the rugged poles of the moon. Yet the moon's south pole is where NASA is considering setting up an eventual human-staffed lunar outpost, Pace said.The moon's south pole is certainly more rugged than where Neil Armstrong landed. It's more interesting. It's more dangerous, Pace said. We need better maps.Beijing in 2003 became the first Asian country to put its own astronauts into space. It followed that last month with its first spacewalk.More ominously, last year China also blasted an old satellite into oblivion with a land-based anti-satellite missile, the first such test ever conducted by any nation, including the United States and Russia. The Indian mission is not all about rivalry and prestige. Analysts say India stands to reap valuable rewards from the technology it develops and, according to Pace, it already shows increased confidence in difficult engineering and quality control. The $80 million mission will test systems for a future moon landing, with plans to land a rover on the moon in 2011 and eventually a manned space program, though this has not been authorized yet. And the Indian space agency was already dreaming of more. Space is the frontier for mankind in the future. If we want to go beyond the moon, we have to go there first, said Indian space agency spokesman S. Satish. Associated Press writer Seth Borenstein reported from Washington.

MUSLIM NATIONS

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

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

PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they 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.

ELECTION 2008 Obama admits Kenyan birth? Campaign doesn't respond to claims in lawsuit over birth certificate October 21, 2008 9:22 pm Eastern By Drew Zahn
2008 WorldNetDaily

Philip J. Berg

Pennsylvania Democrat Philip J. Berg, who filed a lawsuit demanding Sen. Barack Obama present proof of his American citizenship, now says that by failing to respond Obama has legally admitted to the lawsuit's accusations, including the charge that the Democratic candidate was born in Mombosa, Kenya.As WND reported, Berg filed suit in U.S. District Court in August, alleging Obama is not a natural-born citizen and is thus ineligible to serve as president of the United States. Though Obama has posted an image of a Hawaii birth certificate online, Berg demands that the court verify the original document, which the Obama campaign has not provided.Now Berg cites Rule 36 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which states that unless the accused party provides written answer or objection to charges within 30 days, the accused legally admits the matter.Since Obama has only filed motions to dismiss and has not actually answered the charges in the lawsuit, Berg claims, according to Rule 36, Obama has legally admitted he is not a natural-born citizen.Now Berg is asking the court for a formal declaration of Obama's admission and asking the Democratic National Committee for another presidential candidate.In a statement released today, Berg argues that he filed Requests for Admissions on Sept. 15, meaning Obama had until Oct. 15 to answer or face the consequences of Rule 36.Obama and the DNC admitted, by way of failure to timely respond to Requests for Admissions, all of the numerous specific requests in the Federal lawsuit, Berg's statement reads. Obama is not qualified to be president and therefore Obama must immediately withdraw his candidacy for president and the DNC shall substitute a qualified candidate.Berg's original lawsuit leveled several charges at both Obama and the DNC – accusing the former of lying about his place of birth, faking his birth certificate and fraudulently running for office; and accusing the latter of not properly vetting its candidate.

Though it hasn't given Berg the evidence he seeks, the Obama campaign has publicly answered allegations that the candidate was born in Kenya and faked his Hawaii birth certificate.Smears claiming Barack Obama doesn't have a birth certificate aren't actually about that piece of paper, says the Fight the Smears section of Obama's website, they're about manipulating people into thinking Barack is not an American citizen.The truth is, Barack Obama was born in the state of Hawaii in 1961, a native citizen of the United States of America, the campaign website states. It also includes images of a Hawaii birth certificate bearing the name Barack Hussein Obama II.Berg has also taken the controversy public through his website and through repeated public offers to revoke the lawsuit if Obama will produce legal documents that establish his citizenship.Without those documents, Berg has chosen to file two additional motions in district court in Philadelphia. The first asks the court to notify Obama and the DNC of what Berg understands they have now legally admitted, and the second asks for an expedited ruling, given the quickly upcoming Nov. 4 election.It all comes down to the fact that there's nothing from the other side, Berg told Jeff Schreiber for his blog, America's Right. The admissions are there. By not filing the answers or objections, the defense has admitted everything. He admits he was born in Kenya. He admits he was adopted in Indonesia. He admits that the documentation posted online is a phony. And he admits that he is constitutionally ineligible to serve as president of the United States.

EU-Russia talks likely to resume in November
VALENTINA POP Today OCT 22,08 @ 09:25 CET

EUOBSERVER/STRASBOURG - French president Nicolas Sarkozy and EU external relations commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner have both stressed the need to resume talks on a new treaty with Moscow in November, despite concerns on the consequences of getting back to business as usual with Russia before it fully complies with the ceasefire agreement in Georgia.Given the state of the world today, I don't believe the world needs a crisis between Europe and Russia. We can defend our differences, human rights, but it would be irresponsible to create the conditions for a conflict for which we have no need, Mr Sarkozy, who chairs the rotating EU presidency and brokered the cease fire between Moscow and Tbilisi, told members of the European Parliament on Tuesday (21 October).Europe should not be an accomplice in starting another Cold War.His remarks were echoed by Europe's commissioner for external relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner, who explained the need for dialogue with Russia due to the complex interdependence of the EU and Russia in the field of energy and on the international stage in issues like Iran, non-proliferation of nuclear weapons or climate change.We will have a very important discussion at the next GAERC [foreign ministers meeting] on 10 November and then I do hope that we find the right understanding on pursuing negotiations for the New EU-Russia Agreement. Because, indeed, they have only been postponed, she said, adding that the EU needs to treat Russia as it is not as we would wish it to be.At a summit last week in Brussels, EU leaders postponed until next month a decision on whether to reopen talks on the partnership and cooperation agreement with Russia, suspended after the military invasion of Georgia. The GAERC meeting will take place only four days ahead of an EU-Russia summit held in the French city of Nice.Russia invaded Georgia on 7 August as Georgian forces shelled Russia-backed rebels in South Ossetia. But Moscow's later promise to pull troops back to pre-7 August positions and let OSCE monitors into South Ossetia have not yet been fulfilled. Signalling a change of tone towards Tbilisi, Mr Sarkozy also alluded to Georgia's share of the blame in the August war.

We saw a war with a completely disproportionate reaction from the Russians in the case of Georgia. It was disproportionate to intervene as the Russians did in Georgia. I also use the word reaction, because that was because there was a preceding inappropriate action, and Europe has to be fair. Europe shouldn't hesitate to step out of the ideological framework, the French president said.

Geneva post-mortem

A political solution to the conflict can only to be found in Geneva, Mrs Ferrero-Waldner said, welcoming the fact that the talks were launched on 15 October, despite the fact they started with a difficult moment.The internationally-mediated talks between Russia and Georgia failed last week after Russia insisted on giving delegates from Georgia rebel enclaves South Ossetia and Abkhazia full diplomatic status.French minister for European affairs, Jean Pierre Jouyet, also speaking in front of the MEPs on Tuesday, said the talks were a success because all parties came to the table.Look at how long peace talks take - for instance in the Balkans. I think that the fact that we already got all the parties around the table is already an important step forward, even though we are fully aware that the process will be lengthy, he explained.MEPs took national lines on the debate, with Polish, Baltic, Finnish and Swedish MEPs defending Georgia while Austrian and Italian deputies inclined toward Russia.Belgian liberal MEP Annemie Neyts said it would be regrettable if the decision of resuming talks had already been taken come what may. Having decided that whatever happens, we will pick up the negotiations, even before the [EU-Russia] summit, I don't know whether that is showing the greatest of diplomatic skills, she said. But Dutch socialist Jan Marinus Wiersma urged the EU to be non-confrontational.

Eastern European hearts

Strong divisions on the subject between post-Communist EU states and old Europe also exist at diplomatic level in the run-up to the 10 November foreign ministers debate, with some eastern countries even calling for the EU-Russia summit to be called off over Russia's non compliance with peace accords.Do we want the Nice council to be remembered in the heart of eastern Europe as another day when Europe rewarded Russian revisionism and aggression? Is this the leadership Mr Sarkozy wants to show us? a senior diplomat from one of the post-Communist EU countries told EUobserver, saying the EU would create a dangerous precedent if it legitimised Russia's occupation of Georgia by restarting treaty negotiations. The French presidency wants to celebrate success on all fronts. But we in the east are fed up with paying the price for those who play games in the West. We've been paying for the last 60 years and it cost us a lot of lives.But a Belgian diplomat underlined that negotiations on such an agreement [the EU-Russia partnership treaty] should not be seen as a present we give to Russia. It's of interest to the whole of the EU.