Nancy Reagan Endorses McCain
http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/03/25/nancy-reagan-to-endorse-mccain/
Former first lady Nancy Reagan formally backed John McCain for president Tuesday at her Southern California home, saying she decided to forego her custom of waiting until after the Republican National Convention to endorse because it’s obvious he will be the nominee.
“John McCain has been a good friend for over thirty years,” Reagan said in a statement. “My husband and I first came to know him as a returning Vietnam War POW, and were impressed by the courage he had shown through his terrible ordeal. I believe John’s record and experience have prepared him well to be our next president.”
McCain, who still faces critical conservative voters, said he hopes the endorsement will help him bring the party together.
“This is an important, most important kind of expression of confidence in my ability to lead the party that I could have,” McCain said Tuesday, Ronald Reagan’s widow by his side.
Her endorsement could help McCain shore up the backing of conservatives who have long viewed him skeptically for his record of breaking with the Republican party on some issues they hold dear. At the same time, Reagan’s nod also could help further align him with the former president who attracted Democratic as well as Republican voters.
Now certain to win the GOP nomination, McCain is on the West Coast this week to raise money.
Reagan’s eventual support was expected, and she will become the latest Republican heavyweight to fall in line behind McCain. She and McCain have long been close, and it was only a matter of time before she spoke up for her friend.
Mike Baker: Majority of Elected Officials Work Hard
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,341528,00.html
In a column from a couple of weeks ago, one focusing on the excellent call girl adventures of ex-New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, I wrote the following:
“It’s the stories like Gov. Spitzer’s that command the headlines and tend to set our national mood about the state of politics in America. That’s a disservice to all those who serve in office honorably and work to make a difference.It would be a pleasant change to highlight the good works done by motivated, hardworking elected officials as opposed to the scandals, dramas and unfortunate incidents that we tend to see as representative of our local, state and national politicians.Do me a favor. In an effort to test this thought, send me any stories you might have highlighting good works done by an elected official in your area. It could be someone in your town, county, city or even at the state level.”
In the above paragraphs I was trying to make the point that the majority of elected officials actually try to work hard and do the right thing.
You just wouldn’t know it because stories about Spitzer, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kirkpatrick and others clog up the headlines and tend to color the way we think about politicians. And of course, in this election year, presidential candidates are spending much of their time telling us just how broken Washington D. C. is, how screwed up our political system is and how only they can lead us down the path towards true change and a brand new political reality.
What a load of crap.
Senators Clinton and Obama, political opportunists of the highest order, continue to slug it out in their steel cage matchup. It’s a toss up over which of them drones on more about just how broken our political system is … although I think Obama might have the edge.
Regardless, I thought it might be worth pointing out that perhaps, just perhaps, things ain’t as gloomy as our candidates would have you believe. According to my theory, dubbed by the dedicated and loyal PWB staff “Mike’s Fairly Stupid Theory on Elected Officials”, all around the country public servants work hard to do the right thing while never getting any recognition.
In fact, much like lawyers, elected officials from all levels of government tend to get thrown into the same pool occupied by characters such as Spitzer, William Jefferson, Mark Foley and others who may have strayed somewhat off the path of truth, justice and keeping your pants zipped.
That sort of stereotyping isn’t particularly fair, since my guess is that very few elected officials could afford to pay $4,300 per constituent affair.
The astute and dedicated readers of the Brief, as always, came through with a terrific response.
Many of you had stories to tell about local officials who exemplify public service, who dedicate themselves to the public good and hardly ever engage in illegal activities.
Our newest intern, whom we refer to as Intern #4, was assigned the task of selecting a few examples from the reader mailbag. While not the brightest (that would be Intern #2) nor the most motivated (Intern #1), #4 does have the advantage of knowing his limitations.
We here at the PWB do not subscribe to the claptrap that everyone’s special. If you want to be special, work harder than the average non-special person and prove yourself.
But I’m meandering off topic.
Below, a selection of reader comments proving my soon to be published theory that many elected officials are actually not corrupt, unmotivated parasites.
From Patrick somewhere in New York: I submit Bob Reilly, NY Assemblyman for the 109th District. Every year, Mr. Reilly donates his salary to charity.
An excellent gesture Mr. Reilly. While I doubt your practice of donating your salary will become standard practice, it’s an honorable display.
Jim, out in the wilds of Colorado, writes…The only politician I have ever known who has integrity is my fire chief, Daniel Qualman, out here in Parker, Colorado.
Betsy from Indiana had someone worth mentioning…After reading your column today I immediately thought of the recently deceased Indiana State Senator David Ford. Mr. Ford worked hard for his constituents and personally impacted many of the people he represented. He died recently at the age of 59 from pancreatic cancer. Senator Ford lived a quiet life that will never be celebrated on the front of the national newspapers, but he impacted countless lives and served with honor and integrity. He cared about his constituents as people, not as voters to be manipulated. He was truly a servant to the public.
Candace from down in Travelers Rest in South Carolina has an honorable mention…In my little town we have a politician named Grant Bumgarner. He’s on the city council, is involved in the local business association and is involved in local charities to truly make a difference in the community. He’s serious about the work that he does and really cares about people. He gives 100 per cent to his community.
From the state of Louisiana, Harry writes…Ben Morris is the mayor of Slidell, Louisiana. He’s a retired Army Reserve Colonel, a former DEA agent and chief of police. He is hard working, serious spoken, honest and decent. As mayor when Katrina devastated Slidell, he was on the spot… in control and working night and day to save lives, property and businesses. He’s still on top of the rebuilding effort. All this from a trailer he uses as an office.
While still hanging out in Louisiana, we had many readers mention Bobby Jindal, the state’s new Governor. Wayne from Evangeline said that…If you want a good example of a politician working for the good of the people, look at Bobby Jindal.He’s been working very hard since taking office to fulfill his campaign promises. He has made ethics the number one issue for his administration, no small task for a state like Louisiana.
Bernadette, formerly of Pennsylvania, wanted to highlight the good works of her former state representative…I no longer live in Tioga County, Penn., but the state representative for that area, Matt Baker, is a terrific person. If he ever chose to run for national office, I’d be cheering him on. We’d be a lot better off…if we had more public servants like him.
Bo out in Smithville, Texas writes…Oklahoma Representative Sally Kern seems fearless of the third rail and is doing a great job for her constituents. She deserves an attaboy.
Finally, many readers made note of a story out of Orlando, Fla. involving a mayor, a pit bull and a near death experience for a small terrier. While every reader had a different approach to telling the story, the gist of it is that Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer saw the altercation between the pit bull and the terrier as it occurred outside his home.
Rather than forming a committee to study the situation and report back to the council within several weeks, the mayor leapt into action, running outside and wrestling the pit bull off the grateful terrier’s neck. The terrier survived and will undoubtedly vote for Mayor Dyer in the next election.
Trust me, I’ll never be accused of wearing rose colored glasses, but I do think it’s worthwhile every now and then to stop and look for the good works that people do. Now is as good a time as any…the economy is in a slow down (or a recession, or it sucks depending on your situation), Iraq has stretched on for long enough that many folks would prefer to forget about it (despite the general agreement that early departure equals increased chaos) and the election year continues to produce massive amounts of hot air, seriously threatening what’s left of the ice caps.
While it may seem counterintuitive, now is a perfect time to lighten up on the cynicism and focus on what’s right rather than what’s screwed up. Whether it’s a local elected official, a public servant, a colleague or employee, take the time to acknowledge their hard work and effort. Then we can all get back to pissin’ and moanin’.
Just my opinion.
Filmmakers Answer James Dobson's Call for a New Generation of Christian Leaders
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07000.shtml
Advent Film Group (AFG), founded to rebuild culture for Christ in cinema, heeds Dr. James Dobson's call for a new generation of Christian leaders "to carry the banner when this generation of leaders is gone," Dobson told an audience of nearly 1,400 at the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) convention. "The question is, will the younger generation heed the call? Who will defend the unborn child in the years to come?"
AFG's first film answers Dobson's appeal directly and immediately. Advent is training a new generation of Christian filmmakers, drawn from the homeschooling community nationwide, to make socially relevant stories with moral integrity and fidelity to a Biblical worldview. AFG recently completed "Come What May," the story of two Patrick Henry College (PHC) students who battle to overturn Roe v. Wade at the National Moot Court Championship. This film should inspire hope and herald new leadership when the audience sees exactly how Roe can be overturned. Advent's new movie features Dr. Michael Farris, the real-life founder and Chancellor of PHC playing the role of "debate coach." Patrick Henry College is a true-to- life national powerhouse in debate and moot court competition. (www.phc.edu/news/docs/20080131Media.asp)
Advent's filmmakers are charged to go beyond the film industry's "fuzzy faith-based" movies by tackling tough moral and social issues head-on. AFG also seeks to address the distressing lack of qualified Christian filmmakers needed to fill key positions as directors of big-budget movies. Case in point: "Amazing Grace" and "The Chronicles of Narnia," two successful Christian-themed movies, were both directed by secular filmmakers. "Though legions of Christians work in the industry, apparently none could be entrusted to direct major motion pictures," Escobar observes.
A born again believer and homeschooling dad, Escobar is a former American Film Institute Producing Fellow and recent VP of Product Development for Discovery and Executive Director for AOL Video.
Advent is attracting wide attention because of its homeschool roots and Hollywood-insider savvy. "We have a powerful new model that combines digital filmmaking, homeschool student leadership training, social relevancy, and Web 2.0 marketing. We are providing a fresh alternative to Hollywood fare. "Homeschoolers have already successfully turned the public education monopoly upside down; we will now do the same in cinema."
About AFG
Advent Film Group was founded by Christian filmmakers to champion the mission and vision of Patrick Henry College and other like-minded organizations to shape our culture through media. See the movie trailer at www.adventfilmgroup.com.
Blacks Have a Choice to Be, or Not to Be, a 'Victim'
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,341110,00.html
How is it possible that some blacks actually believe that the U.S. government invented AIDS and supplies dangerous drugs to blacks with the intent of killing them?
How is it possible to say that the persecution of blacks by whites in the U.S. today corresponds to the white Europeans (Romans) who killed Jesus (said to be black, not Semitic)?
These dispirited views are obviously disappointing, but how can large numbers of people believe these things? What is the impact of the feelings that others are out to get them on people’s desire to improve themselves?
In a truly courageous act, Larry Elder's book "Stupid Black Men" rips into the festering sore of what passes as discussions these days about race. Elder confronts the "I-am-a-victim" attitude that corrupts people's sense of self-confidence and causes them to interpret the everyday difficulties people face in life through a prism of racial animosity.
People get so wrapped up in past traumas of what they are owed that they can't focus on the opportunities available.
Elder's family did not escape discrimination.
His book has some jaw dropping stories of relatives who were forced to buy clothes in a store if their skin accidentally touched them, a truly weird twist on the old saying if you break it you buy it. His attitude is summarized early in the book: "Work hard, make sacrifices, focus on education, delay gratifications, avoid bad moral mistakes, and maintain optimism."
These days everything from the higher default rates of blacks on mortgages to the supposedly high rate that blacks receive the death penalty are attributed to discrimination. But, Elder seems to be right that "racism provides a convenient way of avoiding serious examination of issues."
The sad thing that Elder discusses is how locked into this cycle of victimhood blacks are.
According to Elder, so many have so much invested in portraying themselves as victims, that they turn on other blacks who don't support this message. If enough blacks reject this view, it makes it difficult for other blacks to make claims of being victims.
Elder has plenty of examples, but I have seen this first hand in academia, where in practice affirmative action represents little more than a proxy for job candidates political views.
When black job candidates don't have the desired sufficiently liberal political views, there is opposition to them counting as minority hires. One of the rare public looks into this bias was shown by the Wall Street Journal in 1995.
When Maria Hylton’s candidacy generated opposition from others at the Northwestern Law School because she’s "mildly conservative by academic standards, centrist-conservative Democrat by political standards" and black students need black teachers who “validate” their experience as blacks. The Faculty Appointments committee had been “unanimous on the merits” of Hylton’s case.
When I was at the Wharton Business School in the 1990s there was a push to hire economist Glenn Loury, but other black professors objected because of his moderate political views meant that he was not a "true black."
Politicians constantly make righting the wrongs of discrimination the central core of their message to black voters. Elder says that Democrats need black people to be angry and constantly feel aggrieved to keep 90 percent of them voting for Democrats.
Republicans are actually more in-sync with black views on issues from vouchers for schooling, crime, abortion, illegal immigration, but many blacks would never vote for Republicans because of their perception of rampant racism by Republicans.
Yet, as Elder shows, the irony is that Republicans are eight percentage points more likely than Democrats to vote for a black or a woman or a Mormon or a 72-year-old for president.
In a book that often seems clairvoyant given the events involving the Obama campaign and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright during the last couple of weeks, the double standard seems to be everywhere.
For example, Elder points out that Obama was the only presidential candidate last year to call for Don Imus to be fired for his stupid comment about “nappy headed ho's.” To Obama, Imus “didn’t just cross the line. He fed into some of the worst stereotypes that my two young daughters are having to deal with today in America” and that if Imus worked for Obama he would be fired.
There was no discussion that these were just a few off the cuff stupid words in a long career.
Elder’s book helps me understand why Obama would join Wright’s church with its emphasis on black liberation theology to help protect him from blacks who could feel that he would challenge the victimization culture and the view that government is necessary to rescue blacks.
Obama at times is given credit for saying “don’t expect government to solve all their problems,” though it is hard to actually find an issue where that old approach doesn’t apply.
As someone who knew Obama for a little while — we were both at the University of Chicago — it has been hard to recognize the person that I knew from the one portrayed in the campaign. The person that I knew was not one who sought to build bridges with those he disagreed.
Academia is overwhelmingly filled with liberals and many even to the left of that, but most liberal academics enjoy arguing with those whom they disagree with. Debate and discussion over lunch and in the halls is what makes academia a fun place to be.
But Obama was not like that.
Possibly it was his anger over our differences over the gun issue or a broader anger with those with whom he disagreed, but attempts to engage in discussions ended with a stern looks and a turned back. That was true whether I met him at school or someplace else. There was anger there.
Like Larry Elder’s family, many blacks can point to experiences that they could let consume them with anger, real or imagined, but that obsession only harms themselves and those blacks who are trying to make their lives better. Hopefully, Elder’s book can get across the message that the vast majority of people really want them to succeed.
Clinton: Rev. Wright ‘Would Not Have Been My Pastor’
http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/03/25/clinton-rev-wright-would-not-have-been-my-pastor/
Breaking her silence on the controversy surrounding Barack Obama’s long-time pastor, Hillary Clinton said Tuesday that she would have left the congregation if her pastor behaved like Obama’s.
“He would not have been my pastor,” Clinton told reporters at a press conference in Greensburg, Pa.
“You know, we don’t have a choice when it comes to our relatives. We have a choice when it comes to our pastors and the churches we attend,” she said. “Everyone will have to decide these matters for themselves. They are obviously very personal matters … I think the choice would be clear for me.”
Though Obama has come under intense scrutiny for the anti-U.S. and racially charged sermons by Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., until now Clinton has declined to make a political point of it.
The Obama campaign blasted back that Clinton only made the statement to distract from scrutiny about her own recollection of a March 1996 trip to Bosnia.
“After originally refusing to play politics with this issue, it’s disappointing to see Hillary Clinton’s campaign sink to this low in a transparent effort to distract attention away from the story she made up about dodging sniper fire in Bosnia,” Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton said.
“The truth is, Barack Obama has already spoken out against his pastor’s offensive comments and addressed the issue of race in America with a deeply personal and uncommonly honest speech. The American people deserve better than tired political games that do nothing to solve the larger challenges facing this country,” Burton continued.
Echoing comments she made earlier in the day to The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the New York senator likened Wright to radio talk show host Don Imus, who was fired by CBS radio a year ago for calling members of the Rutgers University women’s basketball team “nappy-headed hos” and who drew criticism for the remarks from both Obama and Clinton.
“I gave a speech at Rutgers, about a year ago, that was triggered by the Don Imus comments. And I said that it was time for standing up for what is right, for saying enough is enough, for urging that we turn a culture of degradation into a culture of empowerment, for saying that, while we, of course, must protect our right to freedom of expression, it should not be used as a license or an excuse to demean and humiliate our fellow citizens,” she told reporters.
Some polls showed Obama’s support slipping at the height of the Wright controversy a week ago, when the Illinois senator gave a major speech in Philadelphia on race that addressed his church ties. Obama decried Wright’s sermons for not recognizing the progress that’s been made with regard to racial equality, but would not denounce the pastor himself.
Obama has said he was not in church when many of Wright’s anti-U.S. statements were made, but admits hearing remarks he found objectionable and knowing that Wright was controversial.
However, Obama is not the only politician this campaign season who has had brushes with the Chicago pastor. A photo posted on The New York Times’ Web site Thursday night showed Bill Clinton and Wright shaking hands at a White House prayer breakfast 10 years ago.
Meanwhile, Obama’s church, Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, is fighting back against the criticism heaped on Wright. Wright’s successor, the Rev. Otis Moss III, used his Easter sermons Sunday to compare Wright’s treatment by the media to the crucifixion of Jesus at the hands of the Romans. Church members claim Wright’s sermons, in which he said “God damn America” and blamed the U.S. government for introducing HIV into the black community, have been taken out of context.
Jewish Group Wants Obama Aide Removed
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Jewish_Group_Wants_Obama_/2008/03/25/82924.html
The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) today called on Sen. Barack Obama to remove Gen. Merrill "Tony" McPeak as his military advisor and national campaign co-chairman.
"By choosing to have a military advisor and national campaign co-chairman like General McPeak, serious questions and doubts are once again being raised about Senator Obama's positions and judgment on Middle East issues," said RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks.
In a 2003 interview with the Oregonian, Gen. McPeak resorted to old stereotypes and unfortunate language by blaming the lack of progress with the Israeli-Palestinian peace process on the undue political influence of American Jewry. The problem, said McPeak is "New York City. Miami. We have a large vote -- vote, here in favor of Israel. And no politician wants to run against it."
"Rather than putting the blame where it belongs -- on the Palestinian leadership and their continued reliance on terror, General McPeak finds it more convenient to blame American Jewry and their perceived influence," said Brooks. "This is the same dangerous and disturbing canard being promoted by the likes of Jimmy Carter and authors Mearsheimer and Walt in their book, The Israel Lobby."
In addition, Gen. McPeak has a long history of criticizing Israel for not returning to the 1967 borders or returning the Golan Heights to Syria, as he wrote in Foreign Affairs in April 1976.
"Senator Obama continues to surround himself with advisors holding troubling and disturbing anti-Israel bias. General McPeak's views are alarming. We call on Senator Obama to immediately remove General McPeak from his campaign leadership role and as a key advisor," said Brooks.
Israeli Child Receives a Deadly Gift
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/344905.aspx
JERUSALEM, Israel - Last week, 15-year-old Ami Ortiz, the son of an Israeli pastor opened a holiday package during the Jewish celebration of Purim. He thought it was a gift. Instead it was a bomb.
Bomb Heard Around the Globe
News of this terror attack has reverberated throughout Israel and around the world.
The bombing took place in the Israeli town of Ariel in Samaria. It destroyed the family apartment of David Ortiz, a Messianic pastor. The force of the blast was so strong it shattered car windows three stories below.
His son, Ami, suffered major injuries including second and third degree burns, shrapnel in one lung, and wounds from head to toe.
Despite the life-threatening injuries, Ami survived - an outcome doctors called a miracle.
Police are investigating the bombing and attempted murder. A family source told CBN News police suspect either Palestinian terrorists or ultra-religious Jews.
Messianic Believers Under Fire
Some see the bombing against the Ortiz family as an unprecedented attack on Messianic believers - Jews who believe Jesus - or Yeshua - is the Jewish Messiah and see no contradiction between being Jewish and believing Jesus was the Son of God.
"One of the most difficult things for the family is that when the press originally brought the story out in Israel in Hebrew, they said that someone from a radical missionary cult was injured," said Calev Meyers of the Jerusalem Institute of Justice.
The Ortiz family asked Meyers to act as a family spokesman.
"The reason the press treated it this way is that the Messianic community in Israel are the victims of ongoing vicious propaganda against the community - especially in the ultra-religious media," Meyers said.
"The ongoing vicious propaganda that comes against families like this and against the Messianic Jewish community lays the basis for radical events or attacks like this against the community and that's what we're really trying to fight," he said.
The bombing highlights the harassment Messianic Jews have been suffering. In the city of Arad, an ultra orthodox sect has harassed the Messianic community there for years. In Jerusalem last year, a building used by three Messianic congregations as a house of worship was firebombed.
However, many have condemned the most recent bombing, including Ariel Mayor Ron Nachman.
"I know that if that event is based on religious reasons or something like that I condemn it because you cannot disturb anybody from doing what they want in their own private home," Nachman said. "And I will defend this idea as much as I can. And as the mayor of Ariel, I will do everything to help the family. The child is only 15 years old and it's terrible."
Ortiz Family: We Won't Give Up
In the meantime, Ami is still fighting an uphill battle to recovery.
The Ortiz family is asking believers around the world to pray for Ami's complete physical healing as well as forgiveness for those who committed this crime and that God himself would turn this situation meant for evil around for good.
They say it won't stop them.
Meyers said, "One of their messages would be, 'We're not giving up and we're going to continue to build the Kingdom of God in Israel, even in the face of this kind of aggression."
Analysis: Hizbullah seeks spectacular attack to avenge Mughniyeh's death
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1205420731311&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
This Saturday will mark 40 days since Imad Mughniyeh's assassination on February 12 by a car bomb in Damascus. Hizbullah's TV and Web sites have derided Israel's worries ahead of a possible major terrorist attack which "keep Israeli political, military, and security officials up nights."
Israel has enhanced security at its embassies and put its military on heightened alert.
In light of their past behavior, Hizbullah and Iranian threats must be taken very seriously.
They have three main options: an attack on northern Israel from South Lebanon, a major terrorist attack inside Israel or a major act of terror against Israeli or Jewish targets abroad.
Hizbullah has rearmed itself with a huge amount of long-range missiles and still has a large clandestine infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Yet the presence of the UNIFIL forces on the ground, the sharp criticism of the organization in the United Nations' latest report on Resolution 1701 and the unsolved Lebanese internal situation could endanger the group's long-range political goals and standing.
Moreover, Iran is probably not interested in a new conflagration at a time when its nuclear project has a good chance of surviving the latest international sanctions.
In case of an attack against Israeli or Jewish targets abroad, based on the example of the two attacks in Buenos Aires, it would be clear to everybody that this is a Hizbullah or Iran/Hizbullah operation and the political price could be very high.
The easiest way for retaliation would be a "mega-attack" inside Israel or the assassination of a high-level personality by a Palestinian proxy.
Not only would it be more difficult to accuse Hizbullah of such an attack, but this could have a very negative impact on the negotiating process with the Palestinian Authority and would possibly provoke a major IDF operation in Gaza if it appeared that the attack was prepared there. The last attack against the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva could be an example, if it is not already the beginning of the retaliation.
Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah, speaking in Beirut at a ceremony in February to mark "Resistance Week," said that Hizbullah is today in "the stage of martyr Imad Mughniyeh's blood."
This phase "focuses on developing the resistance on the operational level and opening new horizons. The escalation of operations has transformed the resistance's strategy from a traditional guerrilla war into a new unprecedented fighting school; somewhere between guerrilla war and traditional armies' operations."
Will Hizbullah act with Iran to retaliate for Mughniyeh's assassination?
Heading a high-level Iranian delegation, Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki attended Mughniyeh's funeral in Beirut "to commemorate the great hero" and expressed condolences "on behalf of the Iranian government and people."
Mughniyeh is being projected as an Iranian hero. According to Abu Wafa, a former leader in the Revolutionary Guards, on his first trip to Iran in the early 1980s Mughniyeh proved his military capabilities and excelled in his training.
After three months of basic training, he traveled to the Iranian front and took part in several daring operations behind Iraqi lines. Islamist bloggers in Iran have also praised Mughniyeh and published some very rare photos of him.
Blogger Mersad described him as "a super Mujaheed of the Islamic world…one of Ayatollah Khomeini's children."
Iranian leaders made harsh statements against Israel, stronger even than Hizbullah's. Iranian Ambassador to Syria Ahmad Moussavi warned that the death of Mughniyeh "will lead to an earthquake in the Zionist regime." The head of the Revolutionary Guards, Muhammad Ali Jafari, predicted that Israel would be destroyed by Hizbullah in the "near future."
Although Iranian officials have refrained from openly accusing Arab states of being involved in Mughniyeh's assassination, they have publicly expressed belief that the region is on the brink of conflict.
Ali Akbar Mohtashamipur, a co-founder of Hizbullah and current secretary general of the International Committee for Supporting the Palestinian People, claimed Mughniyeh's assassination was a "prelude" to "very dangerous and major events in the next few months" and that the US, Israel, and Arab states seek "to direct Lebanese issues toward a civil war."
Syria is itching to respond. Sadr-al-Din al-Bayanuni, controller general of Syria's Muslim Brotherhood, noted that all the world's channels covered the incident in real time except Syrian television.
Former Syrian vice president Abd al-Halim Khaddam, relating to Syrian television's failure to report Mughniyeh's assassination, said Syrian leaders were very embarrassed because Mughniyeh appeared in their country and they were telling the entire international community that they did not have information about him.
Beirut's Al-Akhbar evaluates that the Syrian leadership is heading toward retaliation against all the Israeli aggressions that have taken place against it (the retaliatory air raid against the PFLP Ayn al-Sahib training camp in October 2003; the flights over the Syrian presidential palace in Latakia in June 2006 aimed at pressuring the Syrian leadership; and the September 2007 air raid against what Israel designated as a 'nuclear facility' in Dayr al-Zawr) and at a timing of its choosing, "even if this response leads to the outbreak of a Syrian-Israeli war."
Interestingly, the Beirut pro-Syrian Al-Diyar evaluated that there are two conflicting options: either a Iranian-Syrian political and security escalation allowing Hizbullah to execute a qualitative operation regardless of the nature of the subsequent Israel response, or taking advantage of the assassination for a more major political breakthrough leading to "a major deal that might expedite solutions in more than one direction."
PM says worried Russian weapons will reach Hezbollah
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/966667.html
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed concern over Russia's continuing supply of sophisticated weaponry to Syria and Iran during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Jerusalem on Thursday.
Olmert stressed Israel's fear that these weapons, including advanced anti-tank weapons and anti-aircraft missiles, could find their way into the hands of the Lebanon-based guerilla group Hezbollah, supported by Syria and Iran, which has threatened to destroy Israel.
Lavrov responded by saying that Russia has no knowledge of Hezbollah possessing Russian weapons, and that if Israel has any information on the topic, Russia would be happy to look into it.
Advertisement
During the meeting between the two officials, the Russian minister mentioned the Middle East peace summit to be held in Moscow in the coming months as a follow-up to last November's U.S.-hosted Annapolis conference, which resumed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. Olmert, for his part, expressed doubts regarding the summit, saying "we must examine whether such a summit will serve the negotiations with the Palestinians, and only then to decide."
Lavrov inquired whether Israel would be willing to hold talks with Syria if Moscow were to mediate. "I am ready to begin a diplomatic process with Syria only if they distance themselves from the axis of evil and stop supporting Hamas and Hezbollah," Olmert said in response.
While visiting Syria earlier Thursday, Lavrov announced that the Moscow summit would aim to relaunch peace talks between Israel and Syria, and that the issue of the Golan Heights would definitely be on the summit's agenda. Israel captured the Golan from Syria in 1967 and Syria demands that the territory be returned as one of the conditions for peace.
Lavrov also met with President Shimon Peres on Thursday, shortly before his meeting with Olmert. Peres told the visiting Russian minister that "talk of peace from Syria arouses distrust within Israel."
According to Peres, Syria is smuggling massive amounts of weapons to Hezbollah.
Lavrov said that peace in the Middle East will be possible only within the framework of a comprehensive peace agreement between Israel and all its Arab neighbors, alongside a solution of all internal issues between Israel and the Palestinians. "There is already a UN resolution, there is the road map and Russia is very interested in advancing the Annapolis process forward," Lavrov said.
After his meetings with Peres and Olmert, Lavrov assured Israel that Russia's Middle East policy will remain the same under President Dmitry Medvedev. He was elected this month to replace Vladimir Putin, who will stay on as Russia's prime minister.
Lavrov said Israel and Russia have some common goals, like fighting terrorism.
Lavrov arrived in Israel Thursday after visiting Syria. After meeting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, Lavrov announced the upcoming peace summit, and said "we have not issued invitations but we're working out how to incorporate different suggestions."
Lavrov had announced plans to host the next Middle East peace conference after the Annapolis talks in November. He said on Thursday that everyone in Annapolis had agreed to the Moscow conference.
Russia's foreign minister also met members of the exiled leadership of the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Damascus before flying to Israel.
Sergei Kiprichenko, Russia's ambassador to Syria, said Lavrov's meetings in Israel would try to nail down a more specific date for the conference.
"We are definitely talking about holding it this year. The Israeli-Syrian peace track is guaranteed to be on the agenda. Syria is very interested and is making efforts for the conference to succeed," he said.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem said Syria would attend the Moscow meeting, although Israeli strikes against Gaza made it difficult for peace talks with Israel to resume.
"Syria cannot be absent from a major meeting that would discuss the Golan. But it does not make sense to restart the talks with Israeli massacres taking place in Gaza. An atmosphere has to be created first," Moallem said.
Syria agreed to attend the Annapolis conference only after a session devoted to the Syrian-Israeli peace track was included. No direct talks between the two countries took place at the meeting.
Peace talks between Syria and Israel collapsed in 2000 over the extent of a proposed Israeli withdrawal from the Golan, a plateau overlooking Damascus that Israel captured in 1967.
Tension between Syria and Israel have risen since then, with Syria dismissing Israeli demands to abandon support for Hamas and the Lebanese guerilla group Hezbollah, which fought a war with Israel in 2006. Damascus also wants an Israeli commitment to withdraw fully from the Golan.
Israeli planes raided a military installation in Syria in September. The target was described by a number of Western analysts as a nuclear facility. Syria said the complex was a conventional military building under construction.
Diplomats in Damascus said Israel and Syria have since exchanged messages, mainly through Turkey, which have not advanced prospects for resuming peace talks.
Diplomats said one of the messages was a warning from Israel that it would strike Syria again if Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in retaliation for the killing of a Hezbollah commander in Damascus in February. Hezbollah blamed Israel for the assassination of its top military operative Imad Mughniyah. Israel denied the accusation and Syria has kept a low profile about the issue.
Moscow was Syria's strongest backer in its struggle with Israel during the Communist era, but Russia has more recently been improving ties with Israel. Russia advised Syria not seek action against Israel at the United Nations Security Council after the Israeli raid on its territory.
Russia and Egypt sign nuclear energy pact
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008%5C03%5C26%5Cstory_26-3-2008_pg7_11
NOVO-OGARYOVO: Russia and Egypt signed an agreement on Tuesday paving the way for Russian firms to bid for lucrative contracts to build nuclear power plants in Egypt.
The nuclear energy deal was signed after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak met near the Russian capital for talks, which also covered Moscow’s plan to host a Middle East peace conference.
“Egypt, in cooperation with its international partners and the International Atomic Energy Agency is going to develop this (nuclear energy) sector, including through the agreement we have just signed,” Mubarak told reporters.
Egypt wants up to four nuclear power stations and an international tender to build the first of them may come as early as this year. Tuesday’s agreement clears the way for Russia’s state nuclear contractor to bid for work.
The Kremlin is lobbying hard for nuclear contracts abroad because it sees the industry as a high-technology sector it must develop, to reduce its dependence on oil and gas exports.
Russia is already building nuclear reactors worth $1.5 billion to $2 billion apiece in Iran, China and India.
Planned Middle East peace talks: Putin also said his officials were consulting with the United States and Middle East countries about hosting a regional peace conference in Moscow.
Russia is a member of the quartet of Middle East mediators with the US, United Nations and European Union.
The Kremlin is seeking a bigger mediation role, as it tries to re-establish itself as a Middle East power broker, a role it largely lost when the Soviet Union collapsed.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said while on a tour of the Middle East last week that the Moscow conference would follow up the US-hosted meeting in Annapolis late last year that restarted Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
But Putin indicated he saw the Moscow conference as distinct from Annapolis, signalling Russia did not plan to play a junior role to the US in the peace process.
“If this conference happens, we want it to be a Moscow conference by definition,” he said. “A meeting such as this should be an event in its own right.”
He said he and the Egyptian leader were concerned about violence in the Gaza Strip between the Islamist Hamas movement and Israeli forces. “Taking into account growing Israeli-Palestinian tensions, we believe there is a need for a mediatory role from Egypt and Russia.” reuters
Czech Far-Right Party Offers to Show Controversial Dutch Anti-Koran Film
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,341324,00.html
PRAGUE, Czech Republic — A Czech far-right party has offered to help a Dutch lawmaker distribute an anti-Koran film on the Internet if it is banned from being released in the Netherlands.
The offer was made after a U.S. company that provides Web hosting services suspended the site promoting Geert Wilders' 15-minute film, which has sparked demonstrations in the Netherlands even before it has been shown.
Hosting provider Network Solutions said it had suspended the promotional Web site until its sponsor could show that the plans for the site did not violate the service's standards.
"Over the last month, Network Solutions received a number of complaints," prompting it to seek reassurance about the content, it said in a statement. "We are still waiting to hear from our customer. In the interim, we have temporarily suspended the site."
The move has been criticized in tech circles, but the company denied it was "taking any action to limit freedom of speech or to preemptively censor content," saying that it was responding to complaints in this case. The statement did not elaborate on the nature of the complaints.
Dutch officials fear the movie could prompt violent protests in Muslim countries, similar to those two years ago after the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish newspaper.
The Czech Republic's small National Party offered to release the film on the Internet using one of its servers, the party said in a message posted on its Web site.
The exact contents of the movie, due to be released by March 31, are unknown, but Wilders has said it will underscore his view that Islam's holy book is "fascist." He has said he will release his movie on the Internet after television stations refused to air it.
Thousands demonstrated in central Amsterdam against Wilders' film Saturday in a protest intended to show that he does not represent the whole country.
Wilders heads a reactionary party with nine seats in the 150-member Dutch parliament, elected on an anti-immigration platform.
Iraqi Archbishop Rahho Found Dead
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07004.shtml
The Voice of the Martyrs was saddened to learn that the body of kidnapped Chaldean Catholic archbishop Paulus Faraj Rahho was found in a shallow grave outside the city of Mosul on March 13. He was kidnapped on February 29 after leading prayers at the Holy Spirit parish in Mosul. Three of his aides were killed in the abduction.
Church officials in Mosul reportedly had received a phone call from the kidnappers on March 12 informing them that the archbishop was dead and where they could find the body. It is not immediately clear whether the archbishop was killed or died of natural causes. There had been considerable concern for his health as he suffered from heart problems that required daily medical treatment. Nevertheless, the responsibility for this church leader's death must lie with his abductors.
Over the last eight months, attacks on Iraqi Christians have been escalating. In June, Father Ragheed Gani and three deacons were killed, two priests were kidnapped in October, and in January four churches and a convent were bombed.
Pray that Archbishop Rahho's co-workers and congregants will find strength, courage and peace in Christ. Ask God to raise up other cross-bearing disciples to continue His work in Iraq (Matthew 16:24) .
For more information on the difficulties facing Christians in Iraq, please go to www.persecution.net/country/iraq.htm.
Iraqi Christians Still Suffering Five Years After Start of War
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07003.shtml
SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Last Thursday was the fifth anniversary of the start of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. Initially, the minority Christian population in Iraq was mostly elated with the fall of Saddam Hussein. They envisioned the coming of peace, safe places to work and live and complete freedom to worship.
But that has not happened. Five years later Christians are caught in the crossfire of violence - and even targeted - more than ever before.
Although it is difficult to state how many Iraqi Christians are in the country, the number in 2003, prior to the fall of Saddam Hussein, was around 550,000. The violence lately has caused many Iraqi people, both Muslim and Christian, to leave the country. Church leaders in Iraq conservatively estimate that almost 75,000 Christians live outside Iraq, in Syria, in Jordan or in the West and that another 75,000 have fled to northern Iraq. That means less than 400,000 Christians remain in mainland Iraq. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has estimated that at least 2 million Iraqis have fled the country since 2003 and another 2 million are displaced inside the country.
Some say that in the past few years almost 500 Iraqi Christians, including pastors and priests, have been murdered because of their faith. Even more Christians have been killed in attacks, in fighting or kidnappings for money.
Just last week, the body of a Chaldean Catholic archbishop kidnapped in Iraq in February was found outside the northern city of Mosul. Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho was seized by gunmen in Mosul soon after he left Mass on Feb. 29. Three of his companions were killed, the latest in what church members called a series of attacks against Iraq's dwindling Christian community.
Carl Moeller, President/CEO of Open Doors USA, says, "the marginalized people of Iraq desperately need our prayers. The situation continues to grow grimmer for the targeted minority Christian community in Iraq. Pray that 2008 will be the year when the violence will decrease and Christians will not be killed and kidnapped simply for their belief in Christ."
Open Doors is one of the major providers of Bibles and Christian materials in Iraq in and is also working with displaced Christians in northern Iraq, Syria and Jordan with housing, food, clothing and water.
An estimated 200 million Christians worldwide suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ, with another 200 to 400 million facing discrimination and alienation. Open Doors supports and strengthens believers in the world's most difficult areas through Bible and Christian literature distribution, leadership training and assistance, Christian community development, prayer and presence ministry and advocacy on behalf of suffering believers. To partner with Open Doors USA, call toll free at 888-5-BIBLE-5 (888-524-2535) or go to our Website at www.OpenDoorsUSA.org.
Violence Escalates at Gospel for Asia's Sri Lanka Bible College
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07002.shtml
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka -- The volatile situation at Gospel for Asia's Sri Lanka Bible College is escalating as a local elected official and a small group of Buddhist monks are falsely accusing the school of being a front for a Sri Lankan terrorist group, the Tamil Tigers. The Tigers are fighting to divide Sri Lanka along ethnic lines.
On Saturday, March 15, the elected official attacked a school security guard who was on duty about midnight. The official, who was carrying a gun, severely beat the guard and threatened to return to the campus and rape the women. Earlier in the day, this man and the monks staged a protest at the school carrying banners and placards. The Sri Lankan media covered the protest.
After the midnight attack, the elected official filed a police complaint against the security guard, but the police arrested the official instead. The politician told police that he was acting out of patriotic concern for his country.
On March 2 a group of students from the Bible college were attacked while on their way to worship at a nearby GFA-related church. The militants responsible for that attack say their ultimate goal is to close down the Bible college.
Gospel for Asia's leaders in Sri Lanka ask prayer for the safety of the students and staff at the Bible College. They also request prayer that God would intervene in this injustice and stop this kind of violence against His children.
Gospel for Asia is an evangelical mission organization based in Carrollton, Texas, involved in sharing the love of Jesus across South Asia.
UN envoy says India risks religious violence
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/un.envoy.says.india.risks.religious.violence/17507.htm
The UN freedom of religion investigator has warned that India risks more religious violence, like Gujarat's 2002 riots that killed 2,500 people, as delays to bring justice encouraged an atmosphere of impunity.
"All these incidents continue to haunt the people affected by them and impunity emboldens forces of intolerance," Asma Jahangir told a news conference as she finished off a tour of India at the end of last week.
"Today there is a real risk that similar communal violence might happen again unless incitement to religious hatred and political exploitation of communal tensions are effectively prevented," said Jahangir, who is a Pakistani rights activist.
India's constitution is secular. Hindus account for 80 percent of India's billion-plus population, while Muslims account for about 13 percent, Christians less than 3 percent and minorities such as Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Parsis the rest.
Over the past two decades, India has suffered major religious riots between its different communities, like in the western state of Gujarat in 2002 when mainly Muslims were massacred by Hindu nationalists.
"Even today there is increasing ghettoization and isolation of Muslims in certain areas," she said, referring to Gujarat state run by controversial Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi.
But many of the perpetuators of religious riots have never been jailed amid a slow judicial system and what critics say is government inertia.
Jahangir criticised the slowness of government inquiries into previous religious clashes.
She said she was "astonished" that one government commission probing the demolition of a 16th century mosque in the northern Indian town of Ayodhya had received a 44th deadline extension.
The demolition of the mosque by Hindu nationalists sparked the 1993 bombings in Mumbai which killed 257 people. Those attacks were blamed on Muslim gangsters.
Jahangir criticsed law enforcement authorities for being reluctant to act against perpetuators of religious violence.
"At the same time, organised groups based on religious ideologies have unleashed the fear of mob violence in many parts of the country," she said.
"This institutionalised impunity for those who exploit religion and impose their religious intolerance on others has made peaceful citizens, particularly the minorities, vulnerable and fearful."
Jahangir, known as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion, highlighted attacks on Indians marrying people from different castes and religions in northern India, and attacks on Christians, lower castes and tribal people in the eastern state of Orissa last year.
In Orissa, where many churches were attacked around Christmas last year, she said there were credible reports that members of the Christian community had alerted authorities in advance.
Vatican: Pope's Baptism of Muslim Not a Hostile Act
http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/Vatican_Pope_Baptism_/2008/03/25/82935.html
VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict's baptism of an Italian Muslim over Easter weekend was not a hostile act against Islam, the Vatican's newspaper wrote on Tuesday after the public conversion prompted criticism in the Muslim world.
In a surprise move, the pope baptized Egyptian-born Magdi Allam, a well-known journalist and outspoken critic of radical Islamism, at an Easter Vigil service in St Peter's Basilica on Saturday evening that was broadcast around the globe.
Muslim commentators said Allam's hostile writings and his headline-grabbing baptism strained relations between Muslims and the Catholic Church and cast shadows over a recently agreed dialogue between Catholicism and Islam.
The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, apparently reacting to this criticism, wrote a front-page editorial arguing that Benedict's gesture was an expression of religious freedom and certainly not directed against Islam.
"There is no hostile intention toward such an important religion as Islam," editor-in-chief Gian Maria Vian wrote on Tuesday. "For many decades now, the Catholic Church has shown its willingness to engage and dialogue with the Muslim world, despite thousands of difficulties and obstacles."
But critics of the baptism questioned why the pope chose to highlight the conversion of Allam, known in Italy for his attacks on Islam. Church experts on Islam privately expressed concern that his message could strain inter-faith relations.
Writing in Sunday's edition of the Milan daily Corriere della Sera, of which he is a deputy director, Allam said: "... the root of evil is innate in an Islam that is physiologically violent and historically conflictual."
"DIFFICULTIES AND OBSTACLES"
Catholic-Muslim relations nosedived in 2006 after Benedict delivered a lecture in Regensburg, Germany, that implied he thought Islam was violent and irrational.
Muslims around the world protested and the pope, who said he did not agree with the Byzantine emperor he had quoted, sought to make amends by visiting the famous Blue Mosque in Istanbul and praying towards Mecca with its imam.
Earlier in March, the Vatican agreed with Muslim leaders to establish a permanent, official dialogue to improve relations.
L'Osservatore Romano said the Vatican remained dedicated toward dialogue with Islam: "Difficulties and obstacles should not overshadow what there is in common and how much can come of the future."
Aref Ali Nayed, a key figure in a group of over 200 Muslim scholars that launched the dialogue with the Vatican and other Christian churches, said on Monday the Vatican had turned the baptism into "a triumphalist tool for scoring points."
"The whole spectacle... provokes genuine questions about the motives, intentions and plans of some of the pope's advisers on Islam," Nayed, who is director of the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre in Amman, said in a statement.
Muslim Scholar Denounces Vatican Baptism
http://www.newsmax.com/international/vatican_muslim_convert/2008/03/25/82915.html
VATICAN CITY -- A Muslim scholar who participated in recent Vatican talks to improve Catholic-Muslim relations criticized Pope Benedict XVI's Easter baptism of a prominent convert from Islam as a "provocative" act.
Magdi Allam, an Egyptian-born TV and newspaper commentator who has denounced Islam as inherently violently, was baptized by the pope in a vigil service Saturday night in St. Peter's Basilica.
Aref Ali Nayed, director of the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Center in Amman, Jordan, criticized what he called "the Vatican's deliberate and provocative act of baptizing Allam on such a special occasion and in such a spectacular way."
"It is sad that the intimate and personal act of a religious conversion is made into a triumphalist tool for scoring points," Nayed said in a written statement.
He added that the baptism came "at a most unfortunate time when sincere Muslims and Catholics are working very hard to mend ruptures between the two communities."
Earlier this month, Nayed participated in two days of talks at the Vatican to prepare for an audience in November between the pope and Muslim religious leaders and scholars. Benedict's top official on interreligious dialogue, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, was among the participants.
The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano denied that the baptism had been played up, saying it was kept secret until just before the ceremony. It described the baptism as a papal "gesture" to stress "in a gentle and clear way, religious freedom."
"There are no hostile intentions toward a great religion like that of Islam," the newspaper wrote.
The Vatican has been eager to mend relations with moderate Islam and has placed a great deal of importance on the upcoming audience with representatives of 138 Muslim scholars who wrote to the pope last year calling for greater Muslim-Christian dialogue.
Their call came after Benedict gave a speech in 2006 citing a medieval emperor's words about Islam and violence. Benedict later expressed regret that the speech angered many in the Muslim world.
Nayed said work to improve relations would continue despite the "unfortunate episode" of Allam's baptism.
Allam, a deputy editor of Milan daily Corriere della Sera, has built his career as commentator and book author attacking Islamic extremism and supporting Israel.
In a Sunday piece for Corriere della Sera, he said the "root of the evil is inherent in an Islam that is physiologically violent and historically conflictual."
On Tuesday, Ugo Intini, Italy's deputy foreign minister for Middle East affairs, criticized Allam's "very harsh condemnation" of Islam.
In an unusual appeal in a country where the government is highly respectful of the Holy See, Intini called on the Vatican, "after the emphasis given to Allam's conversion, to distance itself clearly from his statements."
More people have faith in resurrection than stock market - bishop
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/more.people.have.faith.in.resurrection.than.stock.market.bishop/17497.htm
The Bishop of Lichfield has used his Easter message to say more people have faith in the resurrection than the stock market.
The Rt Rev Jonathan Gledhill says England is “far from a secular country” as he spoke of people’s desire for a “return to real Christianity”.
He started his message by recalling Good Friday processions he used to take part in during the Seventies to Sugar Loaf Hill and in the Eighties through the streets of Canterbury.
“The first year or two the streets were deserted because no shops were open but year by year as the shops started to trade on Good Friday there were more and more people lining the pavements as we walked through the centre, singing hymns and carrying a cross," said Bishop Gledhill.
"And you could see that many of the families out shopping were puzzled as to why on earth the Christians were demonstrating. What’s the point of Good Friday? Shopping had become the new religion, the yuppies in red braces made fortunes out of our pension funds and the churches declined. This was secular Britain."
He told the congregation, however, that "times have changed again".
"With a new financial crisis in our nation the bubble of borrowing on the never never collapsing, people are coming to their senses. The brave new secular world where everyone is meant to have choices has proved unworkable without values that come from somewhere."
He said that immigration had challenged Christians in the UK "because they mostly are more devout than we are and their values make us take out and dust down our own Christian faith which is still built into our legislation and education however much we have tried to ignore it".
He stressed the importance of Good Friday by saying that society on its own "fails to solve our problems".
"Jesus Christ is God come to bring forgiveness and new life," continued Bishop Gledhill. "The cross shows how evil humans can be and what lengths God was willing to go to win us back. It shows that any and all of us can be forgiven and have a new start, and that peace with God and peace on earth are possible, because he died for us."
He pointed to the results of a survey published by Theos last week which showed that 57 per cent of Britons believe that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead.
"That’s way more than believe in the stock market," he said. "We are very far from being a secular country in our beliefs.
“I think there’s a kind of longing in the air in our country for a return to real Christianity, for people to rediscover how much they are loved by God and how much he wants to set us free to be the kind of people he made us to be.”
Growing clamour over embryology bill
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/growing.clamour.over.embryology.bill.row/17505.htm
Labour MP for Livingston Jim Devine has called on scientists, church leaders and MPs to meet face-to-face in an attempt to quell the row over a free vote on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill.
The leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland, Cardinal Keith O’Brien, last week attacked the Government for endorsing “experiments of Frankenstein proportion” and demanded that the Government allow a free vote on the legislation.
The Bill is highly controversial because it allows for the creation of part-human part-animal embryos, or so-called “hybrid embryos”, which are banned in most countries around the world. The Bill also compromises a child’s right to a father by proposing that IVF providers no longer need to take into account a child’s need for a father when considering IVF applications.
On BBC Radio 4’s “Any Questions” on Friday, Health Minister Ben Bradshaw denounced Cardinal O’Brien’s attack as “rather intemperate and emotive” and said that the Government was “absolutely right to try to push this through to the potential benefit of many people in this country”.
"I think if it was about the things the cardinal referred to, creating babies for spare parts or raiding dead people's tissue then there would be justification for a free vote," Bradshaw told the BBC Radio 4's "Any Questions" on Friday.
"But it's not about those things. He was wrong in fact, and I think rather intemperate and emotive in the way that he criticised this legislation.
"This is about using pre-embryonic cells to do research that has the potential to ease the suffering of millions of people in this country. The Government has taken a view that this is a good thing.”
Whilst the Conservatives and Lib Dems have indicated they will allow their to vote according to their conscience, the Labour Party has told its members that they will have to either vote in favour or abstain completely.
The Rt Rev Jonathan Gledhill said on Monday that the Bill was immoral and called on the Labour Party to allow its MPs a free vote.
“Laws in our country are based on values and principles and most of those are Christian ones,” he said.
“Part of that is to recognise conscience in MPs and that’s the reason why for important moral questions the whips are withdrawn and people are allowed to treat them as a matter of conscience and vote as individuals rather than as a party.
“It is recognised that no one party has a monopoly on morality.”
Bishop Gledhill added that it was “a very important part of the Christian faith that you should have respect for human embryos” as “potential human beings”.
He said, “If you stop obeying God you start to limit the rights of human beings and this is a case in point. A society has to be judged by the way that it treats its poorest and most vulnerable and weakest. And what can be weaker than an unborn child?”
Bishop Gledhill said that scientists should not be allowed to do something just because they can: “We don’t have to do everything. Science must have limits.”
In a separate interview for Monday’s Birmingham Post, he called for a broad public debate on the issue to precede a vote in Parliament.
“We need to hear from ethics committees that have been set up, we need to hear whether it’s something that the public would find acceptable, we need to see why exactly they want to carry out these experiments,” he said. “I think most people are confused. It may be that if people have a horror of creating human-animal hybrids, they can reassure us.”
The Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Rev Christopher Herbert, also called for a free vote.
Bishop Herbert, who was a member of the Parliamentary Joint Human Tissue and Embryos Committee which considered the Bill before it was introduced to Parliament, told the Daily Mail on Sunday: "It is a matter of conscience and I can't see why the Government should not offer a free vote."
Weak dollar costs U.S. economy its No. 1 spot
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL1491971920080314
PARIS - The U.S. economy lost the title of "world's biggest" to the euro zone this week as the value of the dollar slumped in currency markets.
Taking the gross domestic product of both economies in 2007, the combined GDP of the 15 countries which use the euro overtook that of the United States when the European currency surged to a record high of more than $1.56 per euro.
"The curious outcome of breaching this latest milestone is that the size of the euro zone's annual output has now exceeded that of the U.S.," the economics department of Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street investment bank, said in a note to clients.
Taking official estimates of 2007 GDP -- $13,843,800 billion for the United States and 8,847,889.1 billion euros for the euro zone -- the economy of the latter passed the United States once converted into dollars, shortly after the euro topped $1.56.
The dollar sank to $1.5688 per euro late in European trading hours on Friday, at which rate the euro zone's 2007 GDP equates to $13,880,568.4 billion.
The 2007 GDP estimates are as published by the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis and provided to Reuters on request for the euro zone by Eurostat, the European Union's statistics office.
Food Prices Scary? You're Not Alone
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/344934.aspx
Grocery bills not only across America, but around the world are going up. Consumers worldwide are facing rising food prices.
It's called a perfect storm of conditions -- freak weather, changes in the global economy, including higher oil prices, lower food reserves and a growing consumer demand in China and India.
The poorest nations of the world run the greatest risk of hunger. Bread fights in Egypt resulted in the deaths of at least two people last week. Other clashes over food broke out in Burkina Faso and Cameroon this month.
Food Protests
But now food protests even break out in Italy.
"It's not likely that prices will go back to as low as we're used to," said Abdolreza Abbassian, economist and secretary of the Intergovernmental Group for Grains for the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization. "Currently if you're in Haiti, unless the government is subsidizing consumers, consumers have no choice but to cut consumption. It's a very brutal scenario, but that's what it is."
Prices are expected to stabilize, according to long term outlooks. Farmers are growing more grain for both fuel and food. This will bring prices down. This is already occurring with wheat as more crops are to be planted in the U.S., Canada, and Europe in the coming year.
Consumers, however, can expect at least ten years of more expensive food, according to preliminary FAO projections.
Supply and Demand
One of the driving forces behind the climbing food prices is petroleum. This one factor increases the cost of everything from fertilizers to transport to food processing.
The price of grain is going up too. Used to feed cattle, it is now in demand as a raw material to make biofuels. This in turn is causing a rising demand for meat and dairy products in China and India.
What analysts say is rare is the spikes are hitting all major foods in most countries at once. Food prices rose four percent in the U.S. last year, the highest rise since 1990, and are expected to climb as much again this year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
As recently as last December, 37 countries faced food crises. Twenty more had imposed some sort of food-price controls.
The U.N.'s World Food Program says it's facing a $500 million shortfall in funding this year to feed 89 million needy people.
In decades past, farm subsidies and support programs allowed major grain exporting countries to hold large surpluses, which could be tapped during food shortages to keep prices down. But new trade policies have made agricultural production much more responsive to market demands - putting global food reserves at their lowest in a quarter century.
Price Factors
Without reserves, bad weather and poor harvests have a bigger impact on prices.
"The market is extremely nervous. With the slightest news about bad weather, the market reacts," said economist Abbassian.
Economists say that for the short term, government bailouts will have to be part of the answer to keep unrest at a minimum.
"We need a response on a large scale, either the regional or international level," said Brian Halweil of the environmental research organization Worldwatch Institute. "All countries are tied enough to the world food markets that this is a global crisis."
No comments:
Post a Comment