Exclusive: Bush’s Knesset speech puts Obama’s Iran policy on the spot
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=5273
A political firestorm was stirred up in America’ by US president George W. Bush’s denunciation of those who would negotiate with “terrorists and radicals” in his speech Thursday, May 16, to the Knesset’s 60th anniversary sitting in Jerusalem.
Democratic candidate Barack Obama was not named, but Bush managed to push the senator into a corner on Iran.
Obama’s rejoinder that he has “never supported engagement with terrorists” did not shed light on his intentions as president towards Iran, its sponsorship of terror and nuclear aspirations. The candidate did not go back on his stated willingness to meet with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad under certain conditions.
DEBKAfile’s political sources disclose that Bush was stirred to anger when he heard that two prominent Americans had arrived during his visit to court Israeli and Jewish support for the Democratic candidate. He felt that his gesture to honor Israel’s anniversary had been used for internal American political sparring and retaliated.
DEBKAfile’s analysts go behind the scenes of the US president’s visit and examine its strong resonance on America’s presidential contest.
Obama to Campaign in 57 Islamic States
http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_051208/content/01125122.guest.html
RUSH: Hey, folks, you want to tweak the Drive-By Media with me right now? Want to participate in tweaking the Drive-By Media? You are aware, probably, that Barack Obama lost his bearings recently and said that he was going to campaign in all 57 states. You heard this? And everybody chalked it up to, "Well, he's tired." You know, this is a Dan Quayle moment. I mean, Dan Quayle goes out there and misspells potato, and we still get jokes about it. Barack Obama says he's gonna go out and campaign in 57 states, he was just tired, you know, it's been such a long campaign, he's been so many places, he probably thinks there are 57 states. Well, I have here a printout from a website called the International Humanist and Ethical Union. And here is how the second paragraph of an article on that website begins. "Every year from 1999 to 2005 the organization of the Islamic conference representing the 57 Islamic states presented a resolution to the United Nations commission on human rights called combating --" yes, H.R., get ready for the phone calls up there.
We're participating here in a tweak of the media. Obama said he's going to campaign in 57 states, and it turns out that there are 57 Islamic states. There are 57 Islamic states. "Every year from 1999 to 2005, the organization of the Islamic conference representing the 57 Islamic states," this is from the International Humanist and Ethical Union. And the title of the piece here is, "How the Islamic states dominate the UN human rights council," and there are 57 of them. So did Obama just lose his bearings, or was this a more telling slip, ladies and gentlemen? Obama's 57 states, not just a simple gaffe. He might have been thinking of the 57 Islamic states when he said he was going to campaign in all 57 states. (laughing) Can't wait 'til the Drive-Bys hear about this.
Christians Gather Against Global Warming
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/376084.aspx
CBNNews.com - Some evangelical groups have said it's a Christian's duty to fight global warming.
But a number of Christian Conservatives who gathered in Washington Thursday disagree.
They presented a moral case for slowing down the climate change fight.
"Many hundreds of scientists are saying 'wait a minute. What we're seeing as the consensus or what's purported to be the consensus really isn't a consensus of scientists. That there is uncertainty, there is disagreement,'" climatologist, Dr. David Legates, said.
Sen. James Inhofe says he used to believe in global warming till he really started to study the science, and he no longer buys what pro-climate control groups like the National Academy of Sciences and the United Nations claim.
"Just keep in mind they're the same guys who back in the 1970s were saying another ice age is coming and we're all going to die," he said. "So we thought we'd really look at the science and we did."
Inhofe states the science is flawed and schemes like the Kyoto Treaty and others will cost hundreds of billions of dollars and send food and energy prices soaring. And who gets hurt the worst by that?
"It disproportionately hurts the poorest of poor people," he explained.
"We're simply going to increase the hardship that the poor and vulneragble in this country and around the world are already experiencing," said Dr. Barrett Burke of the Southern Baptist Convention.
The Family Research Council's Tony Perkins says he doesn't want his generation remembered as naïve Americans.
"You can be green without being gullible," he said.
Falwell's Widow Offers Memoirs of His Life
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/376108.aspx
CBNNews.com - Moral Majority founder Jerry Falwell's wife has released a memoir of their life together, in remembrance of his death one year ago, Thursday.
The book, titled "Jerry Falwell, His Life and Legacy," offers untold stories about the late reverend.
Macel Falwell says her husband was "the polar opposite of his public persona" and proves it through recollections of fun pranks and bungee jumping.
"You could come and cut his arm off, and he'd say 'oh, that's ok, don't worry about it,'" she told WDBJ-7 in Roanoke. "He's just that type of person, and once somebody gets to know him, they just can't believe that they like him."
"I think (people) will understand that Jerry is not the Jerry they read about in the paper," she said.
The Falwells' son, Jonathan, encouraged Macel to write the book.
Outside of Falwell's personal life, the memoir also touches on the reverend's experience with the Moral Majority.
"Although the media painted him as an extremist, that was never true," she wrote. "Jerry was a moderate in all things, including his political views."
Macel aslo explains what happened the day before her husband's death. She says they went out to dinner that night and he didn't eat or say anything.
The next morning, she called his office.
When Falwell's secretary said she hadn't seen him, Macel knew her husband was dead.
"It's been horrible," she told the Religion News Service. "Every time I go into the house, I feel like he's going to be there. It's been terrible."
Still, she says the book has helped her say the things she never had a chance to, to show the world the type of man Falwell really was.
"He just made everything happen for anybody and everybody," she said.
CA Court Strikes Down Gay Marriage Ban
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/375705.aspx
CBNNews.com - California's highest court struck down the will of the people of California to ban same-sex marriage, Thursday.
The state's supreme court justices ruled 4-3 against a popular marriage act passed by voters in 2000. California voters overwhelmingly passed the Defense of Marriage Act, or Proposition 22, by more than 61 percent.
But the court's latest ruling overturns that voter-approved ban on same-sex unions, saying it was unconstitutional.
"It's terrible. I don't know what to say," said Debbie Cram, one of the more than 4.5 million Californians who voted for the ban. "I'm really upset that the court is overturning what the people voted on."
"I don't believe this is a discrimination issue. " California resident Marcus Cram said. "This is not a discrimination issue, it's a morality issue."
"The court of California is trying to legislate the morality of Californians who already voted against gay marriage," he added. "The people of California are wanting to go in a different direction, and that is clear from our voting procedure."
Gay advocate groups are claiming the ruling is a major victory for equal rights, despite the fact that less than one-third of Californian voters support the idea of same-sex marriage.
Keeping Up the Fight
More challenges to the court's decision are in the works.
Marriage defense groups are working on a ballot measure for constitutional marriage amendment, which would prevent judges from overturning voter will. The initiative is hoped to be put to a vote this fall.
Currently, more than 1.1 million signatures have been collected for the measure.
"Thanks to the more than 1 million Californians who signed petitions, these out-of-touch California judges will not have the last word on marriage," said Brian Brown, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage California. "California voters will."
"A state marriage amendment is the only way to put Prop 22 safely from the reach of activist judges who cannot tell the difference between marriage and bigotry," Brown said. "We call on gay marriage advocates to halt the divisive and intolerant rhetoric which cruelly and falsely labels millions of Californians as 'hate mongers' because we support marriage as the union of husband and wife."
Lawyers with the Alliance Defense Fund are also planning to ask for a stay of the court's decision until after the fall election, said Glen Lavey, senior counsel for the group.
California's Secretary of State is expected to rule by the end of June whether they have enough signatures to put the amendment on the ballot.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Thursday that he "will not support an amendment to the constitution that would overturn this state Supreme Court ruling."
The high court ruling makes the Golden State the second state in the nation to allow same-sex couples to legally wed. Massachusetts adopted the practice in 2004.
Defending Marriage
When San Francisco officials in 2004 allowed gay couples in the city to marry, the ADF filed suit against the city for violating the Defense of Marriage act.
"The government should promote and encourage strong families," Lavy said. "The voters realize that defining marriage as one man and one woman is important because the government should not, by design, deny a child both a mother and father."
Gay rights advocates, however, argued the state was violating their civil rights by limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples.
As a result, the city of San Francisco, along with several gay and lesbian couples and gay rights groups, counter-sued to overturn state laws allowing only marriages between a man and a woman.
Setting a Precedent
"What happens in California, either way, will have a huge impact around the nation. It will set the tone," said Geoffrey Kors, executive director of the gay rights group Equality California.
Regardless of the ruling, it appears likely that an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court will occur. The nation's highest justices have never addressed the question of same-sex marriage.
Calif. Gay Marriage Opponents Push for Constitutional Amendment to Undo Court Ruling
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356258,00.html
SAN FRANCISCO — Even as same-sex couples across California begin making plans to tie the knot, opponents are redoubling their efforts to make sure wedding bells never ring for gay couples in the nation's most populous state.
A conservative group said it would ask California's Supreme Court to postpone putting its decision legalizing gay marriage into effect until after the fall election. That's when voters will likely have a chance to weigh in on a proposed amendment to California's constitution that would bar same-sex couples from getting married.
If the court does not grant the request, gay marriages could begin in California in as little as 30 days, the time it typically takes for the justices' opinions to become final.
"We're obviously very disappointed in the decision," said Glen Lavy, senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, which is pushing for the stay. "The remedy is a constitutional amendment."
With a stroke of a pen Thursday, the Republican-dominated court swept away decades of tradition and said there was no legally justifiable reason why the state should withhold the institution of marriage because of a couple's sexual orientation.
The 4-3 opinion written by Chief Justice Ronald George said domestic partnerships that provide many of the rights and benefits of matrimony are not enough.
"In contrast to earlier times, our state now recognizes that an individual's capacity to establish a loving and long-term committed relationship with another person and responsibly to care for and raise children does not depend upon the individual's sexual orientation," George wrote for the majority in ringing language that delighted gay rights activists.
Gay marriage opponents, meanwhile, derided the ruling as an example of judicial overreaching in which the opinions of a few justices trumped the will of Californians.
The last time the state's voters were asked to express their views on same-sex marriage at the ballot box was in 2000, the year after the Legislature enacted the first of a series of laws awarding spousal rights to domestic partners.
Proposition 22, which strengthened the state's 1978 one-man, one-woman marriage law with the words "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California," passed with 61 percent of the vote.
The Supreme Court's ruling Thursday struck down both statutes.
Still, backers of a proposed November ballot measure that would allow Californians to vote on a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage said the court's decision would ultimately help their cause.
"(The ruling) is not the way a democracy is supposed to handle these sorts of heartfelt, divisive issues," said Brian Brown of the National Organization for Marriage, one of the groups helping to underwrite the gay marriage ban campaign. "I do think it will activate and energize Californians. I'm more confident than ever that we will be able to pass this amendment come November."
To date, 26 states have approved constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage.
In the past few years, courts in New York, Maryland and Washington state have refused to allow gay marriage, and New Jersey's highest court gave the state lawmakers the option of establishing civil unions as an alternative.
Massachusetts is the only other state to legalize gay marriage, something it did in 2004. More than 9,500 same-sex couples in that state have wed. The California ruling is considered monumental because of the state's population — 38 million out of a U.S. population of 302 million — and its historical role as the vanguard of many social and cultural changes that have swept the country since World War II.
California has an estimated 108,734 same-sex households, according to 2006 census figures.
"It's about human dignity. It's about human rights. It's about time in California," San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom told a roaring crowd at City Hall after the ruling was issued. "As California goes, so goes the rest of the nation. It's inevitable. This door's wide open now. It's going to happen, whether you like it or not."
The case was set in motion in 2004 when Newsom threw open City Hall to gay couples to get married in a calculated challenge to California law. Four thousand wed before the Supreme Court put a halt to the practice after a month.
Two dozen gay couples then sued, along with the city and gay rights organizations.
Gareth Lacy, a spokesman for Attorney General Jerry Brown, whose office argued to uphold the ban, said Brown would "work with the governor and other state agencies to implement the ruling."
The justices said they would direct state officials "to take all actions necessary to effectuate our ruling," including requiring county marriage clerks to carry out their duties "in a manner consistent with the decision of this court."
By Thursday afternoon, gay and lesbian couples had already started lining up at San Francisco City Hall to make appointments to get marriage licenses. The county clerk's office in Los Angeles issued a statement saying it was awaiting legal analysis of the ruling and a timeline for implementation.
California's secretary of state is expected to rule by the end of June whether the sponsors of the anti-gay marriage ballot measure gathered enough signatures to put the amendment on the ballot.
Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has twice vetoed legislation that would have granted marriage to same-sex couples, said in a statement he respected the court's decision and "will not support an amendment to the constitution that would overturn this state Supreme Court ruling."
Behind the Scenes of 'Prince Caspian'
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/375988.aspx
CBNNews.com - Prince Caspian, the long awaited second installment of the C.S. Lewis classic Narnia series, opens this weekend.
In the Prince Caspian story, the Pevensie children return to Narnia, but 1,300 years have passed. Aslan, the Christ figure in the form of a lion, disappeared long ago. And with his departure, the faith and enchantment of Narnia disappeared as well.
In this film, Prince Caspian and the children are on a quest to bring Aslan back and once again, defeat the dark forces of evil.
C. S. Lewis' stepson, Doug Gresham serves as a co-producer on the movie. This has been a 20 year trek for Gresham, with the success of the first film.
"I always knew that if we made good movies out of the Narnian Chronicles-they'd be successful movies. If we stay as close as possible to the book, we'd have successful films," says Gresham. Series new comer, Ben Barnes plays the movie's title role.
"I think that the main sort of pressure came from myself in terms of wanting to keep it a faithful adaptation to what C. S. Lewis had written. I didn't want to make him some cool, swash buckling action hero because that's not really who he is in the books. He's very anxious about being, growing up, and becoming a man, a king, and a leader. And he doesn't feel very comfortable or like he deserves it. So I wanted to make sure that came across," says Ben.
William Moseley and Georgie Henley return in their roles as Peter and Lucy. Georgie shares how her character developed from the first film to the sequel.
"I definitely think that she's matured and gotten stronger. I think that also reflects me as well," says Georgie.
William adds, "I was training and training everyday with a stunt coordinator. On top of that, I was running as much as I could and doing a lot of horse riding because I wanted to commit to this aspect of the film, as to the best of my abilities."
Skandar Keynes returns as Edmund. And Anna Popplewell, once again plays Susan, the cautious and practical older sister.
Like The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, this film serves up a powerful spiritual message.
Prince Caspian is rated PG.
Authenticated Documents Put Pressure On Venezuela's Chavez to Explain Damning FARC Ties
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356236,00.html
BOGOTA, Colombia — The onus is now on Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to explain evidence of his apparently intimate ties to Colombia's main guerrilla army.
Interpol on Thursday endorsed the authenticity of computer files seized in a rebel camp, announcing that Colombia did not tamper with documents indicating Chavez sought to finance and arm the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.
Venezuelan officials set up contacts with Australian arms dealers and arranged for missile training in the Middle East, according to the documents, which were on computer hard drives seized by Colombia and obtained by the Washington Post.
Yet Chavez responded sarcastically to Interpol's conclusions.
"Do you think we should waste time here on something so ridiculous?" he told reporters in Caracas.
Chavez has denied providing the FARC material support, but did not address the issue directly on Thursday. Instead, he called Interpol's secretary general, Ronald Noble, "a tremendous actor," "Mr. Ignoble" and an "immoral police officer who applauds killers."
Noble was unequivocal when asked about the authenticity of the computer files, though he made pains to explain that the 186-nation international police agency did not and would not evaluate their content.
More revelations are bound to emerge, as Interpol also turned over to Colombia 983 files it decrypted in a process Noble said took 10 computers two full weeks.
Colombian commandos recovered the three Toshiba Satellite laptop computers, two external hard drives and three USB memory sticks in a March 1 cross-border raid into Ecuador that killed FARC foreign minister Raul Reyes and 24 others.
Chavez says no computer could have survived the bombardment, but Interpol showed photographs in the report and video on its Web site of metal cases that protected the computers from Colombian bombs.
The 39-page Interpol study was done at the request of Colombia, and Noble said Colombia alone must decide whether to make the contents of the computers public. Colombian officials have balked at revealing the entire contents, citing legal reasons and saying some documents could embarrass friendly nations.
Noble said he tried to get Chavez and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa, whom the documents also link to the FARC, to work with Interpol in its investigation, but neither responded.
"I've done everything in my power to invite Venezuela and Ecuador to participate," said Noble, a former U.S. Treasury enforcement chief.
Colombia has been leaking details from the documents since the day after the raid. The most damning evidence against Chavez was revealed to The Associated Press last week.
More than a dozen rebel messages detail close cooperation with Venezuela, including rebel training facilities on Venezuelan soil and a meeting inside Venezuela's equivalent of the Pentagon.
They suggest Venezuela wanted to loan the rebels $250 million and help them get Russian weapons and possibly even surface-to-air missiles.
Chavez says his only purpose is to ward off a U.S. invasion — not to supply the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.
"We aren't going to attack anybody. But I always say it: Nobody should make a mistake with us," Chavez told soldiers celebrating the anniversary of his return to power after a brief 2002 coup. "Our fatherland is permanently threatened by imperialism."
But military analysts say it is Colombia that should fear the 100,000 Russian-made assault rifles, 5,000 Dragunov sniper rifles and surface-to-air missiles Venezuela is amassing.
"These are just the sorts of weapons that the FARC would find interesting since these are the standard tools of guerrilla warfare," said John Pike, a military analyst at GlobalSecurity.org.
U.S. military officials say the weapons proliferation far outweighs any threat Chavez faces in the region.
"We are seriously worried about this great quantity of acquisitions," U.S. Lt. Gen. Glenn Spears said recently.
Chavez's military spending spree isn't on the agenda Friday at a summit of Latin American and European leaders in Lima, Peru, which is supposed to focus on food prices, climate change and poverty. But with Chavez and Colombia President Alvaro Uribe both attending, it is likely to come up.
Uribe only said he is satisfied with the Interpol report.
"Terrorism doesn't have borders or ethics," he said upon arriving in Lima Thursday for the summit.
Chavez, who has denied funding or arming the rebels, called Interpol's report "ridiculous." The documents suggest Venezuela was preparing to loan the rebels $250 million and help them get Russian weapons and possibly even missiles for use against Colombian military aircraft.
The nonpartisan Council on Foreign Relations on Wednesday urged the U.S. not to act unilaterally on the Interpol findings. But it also noted that Chavez's international arms purchases — which have increased from $71 million between 2002 and 2004 to $4 billion between 2005 and 2007 — "should be watched."
Many South American countries are modernizing armed forces that languished under the civilian rule that followed the military dictatorships of the 1970s and 1980s. Of these, Brazil is the biggest spender.
But per-capita comparisons by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies show Venezuela's defense budget of $2.6 billion is second only to Chile, which built up a large defense industry during the 1973-90 military regime of Gen. Augusto Pinochet.
Russia and China have quickly become Venezuela's main suppliers of military hardware.
Chavez said this week he plans to talk with Russia's president during an upcoming visit to Moscow about buying "long-range, anti-aircraft missile systems" and "tank battalions."
Venezuela plans to install a radar system with help from China and has begun negotiating the purchase of Chinese-made, K-8 military planes, which are mainly for training. But they can be used for combat and surveillance, Venezuelan Defense Minister Gen. Gustavo Rangel Briceno said Thursday as he handed out new Russian-made, AK-103 Kalashnikov assault rifles to National Guard troops.
"The best formula against the war is being well prepared for it," Chavez told soldiers this week, prompting rousing applause. "We will continue equipping the armed forces and now more quickly than before."
Chavez has bragged about proposals to build a Venezuelan rocket.
Many documents retrieved from the rebel computers discuss Venezuelan efforts to help the FARC obtain weapons, including rockets.
In March 2007, a rebel commander known as Timochenko wrote that "intelligence officials from our neighboring navy" say it's very difficult to obtain "rockets," but that "they're disposed to help us get all the parts to build them."
In a January 2007 note, Ivan Marquez, the rebel's main go-between with the Chavez government, mentions "the possibility of taking advantage of Venezuela's purchase of arms from Russia to include some containers destined for the FARC."
Another message from Marquez, dated Aug. 20, 2006, describes a visit to an anti-aircraft missile factory in China by a Venezuelan official who is said to have returned with a catalog for the FARC.
The FARC, which finances its military operations with drug-trafficking and kidnapping ransoms, is considered a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union.
Some U.S. politicians want Venezuela to be listed as a state sponsor of terrorism, along with Iran, Syria and North Korea. But that could prompt economic sanctions — a politically risky move against America's fifth-largest oil supplier.
Europe Plans to Build Manned Spaceship
http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,553276,00.html
The German Aerospace Center and European aerospace group EADS unveiled a plan this week for a European manned spacecraft. But the project will only lift off if Europe's politicians back it.
The news was only announced to a small group of people. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the aerospace group EADS Astrium had invited a mere handful of journalists to Bremen. Hardly any information had been revealed before the meeting, only nebulous hints.
Now the reason for the secrecy has become apparent. Astrium is planning to add a new chapter to the history of space exploration. Engineers have quietly been developing a plan that would lead to the entry of Europe into manned space travel -- if it gets political backing.
Planners say manned European spaceflight could become a reality within nine years. The essence of the plan is to turn Europe's unmanned Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) into a full spacecraft in two stages.
The Europeans are proud of the school bus-sized vehicle. Its first incarnation, dubbed the "Jules Verne," successfully finished its maiden flight a few weeks ago and completed an automated docking at the International Space Station (ISS). "We caused a stir in the world with that," DLR head Johann-Dietrich Wörner said. Just after the launch, Wörner received congratulatory text messages from NASA boss Michael Griffin and his Russian counterpart Anatoly Perminov. There were also euphoric reactions when the ATV guided the ISS to a higher orbit as planned.
An Unmanned Version in Five Years
At the moment, however, the showcase "Made in Europe" project cannot return to Earth. "Jules Verne" lacks the heat shield it would need to survive the hellish return trip through the atmosphere. "ATV Evolution" -- the project's working title -- is meant to solve this problem.
The first step, according to Astrium boss Evert Dudok, is to design an unmanned version of the craft by 2013. This part of the project was "very manageable," said Dudok, not least because such a capsule could easily be transported on an existing European Ariane 5 rocket.
The spaceship couldn't transport astronauts, DLR chief Wörner admitted, but it could be used to retrieve defective technical equipment and bring scientific experiments back to Earth. "We see that the ISS has a clear need for this kind of thing," he said.
If the Americans axe their Space Shuttle fleet in 2010 as planned, only Russian Soyuz spacecrafts will be left to transport materials back to Earth -- and they have room for three crew but virtually no cargo.
Technical Conundrums
In the second stage of the plan, the European spacecraft would be overhauled in order to transport astronauts. But there are still some technical challenges to solve. First, the spacecraft has to be fitted with a life-support system. Second, a device has to be added to catapult the transporter away from the launch rocket if there is a problem. The engineers would also have to make some changes to the Ariane 5 rocket itself, modifying it to include an emergency blast-off mechanism for the astronauts' capsule in case of problems.
According to Astrium estimates, a manned spaceship could lift off four years after the first stage -- around 2017. The capsule in the so-called Viking form would have a diameter of 3.3 meters (10.8 feet) and space for three astronauts -- more spacious than the Russian Soyuz, at least. At the end of the journey it would parachute into the sea, somewhere close to the equator, preferably along the African coast.
A Fruitless Project in the Past
The European spaceship would have a total weight of nine tons and could fly even further than the ISS. The European astronauts could travel in the spacecraft for two to three weeks, which could prove important given that the future of the ISS project is uncertain after 2015. "We also need to think of human space flight beyond the ISS," Wörner says.
The objective now is to tackle the project one step at a time. After an unmanned freighter successfully brings back cargo from space, engineers can "discuss further options."
The European aerospace industry is clearly exerting a little more pressure and placing great hope on the manned space project. The industry's future depends on landing a large order after the European ISS module Columbus and the ATV are completed.
For decades, the German aerospace industry has explored concepts for manned space flight -- at great cost and without lasting success. It poured massive resources into the orbital glider Sänger, for example. However, it turned out to be extremely expensive, was believed to damage the ozone layer and was shelved along with the "Sänger II." A similar fate befell the European Hermes project, which was promoted heavily by France in the mid-1980s. But with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the political landscape changed -- and costs escalated. The project, which cost billions, was abandoned in 1993.
Up to the Politicans
Politics will ultimately determine whether Europe launches manned spaceflights. And this week, Astrium didn't want to provide too many specific details about costs. But according to Dudok the project will not exceed €1 billion ($1.55 billion).
That sounds very optimistic. DLR board member Thomas Reiter recently told SPIEGEL ONLINE that overhauling the ATV for manned flight would cost "less than €10 billion ($15.5 billion)."
The ministers of the European Space Agency (ESA) states will meet for a conference in the Netherlands in late autumn. According to DLR chief Wörner, the German government has already sent some cautiously positive signals. The Italian and French space agencies are interested in the ATV Evolution, he added.
Less than a year ago, Wörner told SPIEGEL that "we need our own manned access to space. The current situation is embarrassing for us." As long as it relies on Russia and the US to provide manned space flight, ESA can't claim to be independent.
In that light, the "ATV Evolution" proposal is only logical. But it's up to ESA's member states to determine whether the proposal will develop enough political support -- and hence recieve the money it needs.
Poland to beef up European military club
http://euobserver.com/9/26142
Poland has opted to become a full member of the EU and NATO-linked military club, Eurocorps, in a move designed to spur on the creation of a significant European defence capability.
Warsaw from 2009 is to pledge 3,000 soldiers to the existing 60,000-strong Eurocorps force, hold 15 officer-level posts and forward a deputy director to the Strasbourg-based outfit, Polish media report.
The club currently consists of full members France, Germany, Spain, Belgium and Luxembourg as well as eight junior partners, including Poland, who each contribute a handful of technical staff.
Eurocorps is not an EU institution. It was set up as an independent Franco-German project in 1992 to help support EU, NATO and UN operations, seeing active service in Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan so far.
The organisation has strong political links to the EU, however. Its badge is a sword superimposed on a map of Europe and the EU's golden stars. A Eurocorps unit hoisted the EU flag and played the EU anthem outside the EU parliament in Strasbourg on "Europe Day" last week.
"Our decision to fully join Eurocorps comes from the conviction that Europe is becoming the second pillar of our national security alongside NATO," Polish defence minister Bogdan Klich said in Polish daily Rzeczpospolita on Thursday (15 May).
"We treat NATO as the main security pillar, but we cannot forget Europe is increasing its capabilities and this stands behind our desire to join this process."
The EU has a mixed bag of military cooperation projects under its European security and defence policy chapter, with an EU-flag peacekeeping force currently at work in Chad.
But the new Lisbon Treaty could deepen military integration with a new article that envisages "the progressive framing of a common defence policy [that] will lead to a common defence, when the European Council, acting unanimously, so decides."
"We have to start a discussion on increasing the planning and operational capabilities of the EU. We expect a serious debate will start under the French [EU] presidency," Poland's Mr Klich said.
Bush hails Israel's "chosen people" as Arabs lament
http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKL1467922120080515?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - President George W. Bush told Israelis on Thursday they were a "chosen people" who can forever count on American support against enemies like Hamas and Iran.
On a day when Palestinians remembered homes and land lost as Israel was created in 1948, Bush made only fleeting reference to their aspirations for a state of their own in a speech marking Israel's 60th anniversary that was laced with references to God.
Basking in ovations on the second day of a farewell visit to a country where his presidency is hailed as a golden age, Bush again said little of the talks he has sponsored in recent months between Israel and the Palestinians, which he hopes can bring a deal on a Palestinian state before he leaves office in January.
Speaking of the "promise of God" for a "homeland for the chosen people" in Israel, Bush told the Israeli parliament after a visit to the Roman-era Jewish fortress at Masada: "Masada shall never fall again, and America will always stand with you."
He predicted the defeat of Islamist enemies Hamas, Hezbollah and al Qaeda in a "battle of good and evil".
Letting Iran have nuclear weapons would be an "unforgivable betrayal of future generations", he said. By comparing talking with such foes to appeasement of Hitler, he sparked a debate at home among those campaigning to succeed him as president.
Bush described the "bonds of the Book" -- faith in the Bible shared by Christians like himself and Jews -- as bolstering an "unbreakable" alliance between Israel and the United States.
Of the Palestinians, half of whom were pushed into exile to make way for the Jewish state, Bush said that, looking ahead another 60 years in the future, "the Palestinian people will have the homeland they have long dreamed of and deserved".
During a later visit to the Israel Museum, Bush, referring to the old biblical texts housed at the building, said "these documents tell the story of a righteous God and his relationship with an ancient people."
"There is no doubt in my mind that the patriarchs of ancient Israel and the pioneers of modern Israel would marvel at the achievements of this nation," he said.
"SLAP IN THE FACE"
The president's language in Israel has dismayed Palestinians looking for the U.S. superpower to mediate in their negotiations with Israel. Islamist Hamas, which spurns such talks, said Bush sounded "like a priest or a rabbi" and had delivered a "slap in the face" to those Palestinians who placed their hopes in him.
Bush said: "Some people suggest that if the United States would just break ties with Israel, all our problems in the Middle East would go away ... America utterly rejects it."
In scattered protests marking the anniversary of Israel's first day of statehood on May 15, 1948, Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip threw rocks towards Israeli police and troops, who fired tear gas and bullets in the air.
In a speech marking what Palestinians call the "Nakba", or catastrophe, when some 700,000 Arabs fled or were forced from their homes during Israel's foundation, President Mahmoud Abbas said: "Isn't it time for Israel to respond to the call of a just and comprehensive peace and achieve historic reconciliation between the two peoples on this sacred and tortured land?"
But Palestinian political analyst Ali Jarbawi said Bush's rhetoric showed Washington was not being an honest broker: "He is not talking about a two-state solution. He is talking about a state of leftovers for the Palestinians," Jarbawi said.
Arabs are especially sensitive to what they see as amnesia, or worse, among Israelis and foreigners about how many of them were forced into exile in 1948. By saying Jewish "refugees arrived here in the desert", Bush may have done little to persuade many Palestinians their own refugees are not forgotten.
Amid the standing ovations that have followed him since he arrived in Israel on Wednesday, there was some discord.
Three Arab members of Israel's parliament held up a sign reading "We shall overcome" and were escorted out of the Knesset chamber as Bush began to speak.
"HOPEFUL" ON DEAL
Asked about Bush's speech, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said the president was "hopeful" a deal could be struck by the time he leaves office.
In Ramallah in the West Bank, pedestrians stood at attention as sirens wailed for two minutes to remember the Nakba.
Calling Bush "the leader of evil in the world", Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said the group would never grow weak.
At Masada, a cable car carried Bush high above the Dead Sea to the plateau where, according to a Roman-era historian, 960 Jewish men, women and children committed suicide rather than surrender to Roman legions crushing a rebellion.
There have been few signs of progress in U.S.-brokered negotiations since promises were made at a peace conference in Annapolis, Maryland, in November.
In the latest setback to a deal, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said he will quit if indicted in a police corruption probe. The split between Abbas and Hamas and fighting between Israel and Hamas in Gaza have also hampered peace efforts.
On Friday, Bush and his wife Laura will wind up their visit to Jerusalem and fly on to Saudi Arabia before weekend talks in Egypt with Abbas and other Arab leaders.
Palestinians mark 'catastrophe' of Israel's birth
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=080515121549.42xatuzr&show_article=1
Palestinians protested across the occupied territories on the 60th anniversary of the "catastrophe" of the birth of Israel on Thursday as the Jewish state's army went on high alert.
The commemoration of the Naqba, or "catastrophe" -- the defeat of invading Arab armies and the expulsion or flight of about 760,000 people -- came as US President George W. Bush was to mark the creation of the Jewish state with an address to the Israeli parliament.
Thousands gathered in the West Bank political capital of Ramallah, waving Palestinian flags and demanding the "right of return" for some 4.5 million UN registered refugees scattered in camps across the Middle East.
Activists planned to release 21,915 black balloons -- one for each day since Israel's creation -- to darken the skies over Jerusalem during Bush's speech to the Knesset or parliament.
"On this good and beloved land live two peoples. One celebrates its independence and the other grieves in the commemoration of its Naqba," Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said in a televised speech.
"Israel's security is linked to our independence and our security, and the continuation of the occupation and the persistence of the Naqba will not bring security to anyone."
About 3,000 people gathered in the heart of the northern West Bank city of Nablus holding keys -- real and symbolic -- to abandoned houses in what is now Israel and burning a US flag to protest Bush's visit.
For Palestinians the fate of the refugees lay at the core of the decades-old Middle East conflict and has bedeviled past peace efforts as Israel has refused to allow any of the refugees to return.
In the besieged Gaza Strip, where Hamas seized power nearly a year ago, the Islamist movement has called for a march to the Erez crossing with Israel to protest a "new Naqba" -- a crippling months-old blockade of the territory.
Since the armed movement -- which is pledged to the destruction of the Jewish state and has launched hundreds of crude, homemade rockets at southern Israel -- took power in June, Israel has sealed Gaza off from all but vital humanitarian aid.
Two-thirds of the 1.5 million people in impoverished Gaza are refugees, the vast majority of them living off UN food handouts.
Hamas spokesman Abdelatif Qanua said the demonstrators would not march to the heavily fortified crossing of Erez itself but to a customs office some three kilometres (two miles) from the border with Israel.
"This demonstration is not a storming of the border or of the Erez crossing. It's a normal, peaceful demonstration. If the enemy disperses it, it will bear full responsibility for that," Qanua told AFP.
Israeli forces have mobilised to prevent any "provocative acts" and Israel has previously warned Hamas against marching on the border.
"The IDF (Israeli military) has concentrated large forces in those areas suspected of demonstrations," Major Avital Leibovich told AFP.
The army "is planning to take strong measures against any provocative acts of Hamas that may cause damage to the security of Israel," she said.
Bush's visit, which is also intended to encourage the Middle East peace process, has already been marred by violence, with a Gaza rocket slamming into an Israeli shopping mall wounding 14 people, hours after Bush's arrival.
Israeli Arab lawmakers will be boycotting his speech to parliament, and Palestinians have expressed outrage at the decision to hold the event on their Naqba Day.
Bush is "responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in the region," MP Jamal Zahalka, one of 10 parliamentarians from the three Arab political parties who will boycott the speech, said on Wednesday.
"His speech... shows complete indifference to the Naqba of the Palestinian people and its suffering."
Israel's three Arab parties draw support from the 1.2 million descendants of the 160,000 Arabs who remained in the Jewish state after the 1948 war.
Israel's Missile Attack Victims Recovering
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/376451.aspx
CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel- Ashkelon residents are finding it difficult to return to normal after a grad-model Katyusha rocket fired from the Gaza Strip struck a shopping mall in the Israeli coastal city Wednesday evening.
Israeli Defense Forces officials hint that a larger offensive against terrorists inside the Gaza Strip will happen now that President Bush has departed Israel.
Defense Minister Ehud Barak affirmed Thursday that escalated action against Hamas will happen sooner rather than later. Barak spoke during the closing ceremony of the president's conference in Jerusalem which celebrated Israel's 60th anniversary.
"We will return peace and security to Ashkelon and the communities along the southern border," Barak said.
Palestinians have fired rockets continuously in Southern Israel for the past seven years. Wednesday's attack, which seriously injured several people and sent scores of others into shock, suggests Palestinian success in achieving longer ranges for their rockets.
"After such attacks, like the one that happened yesterday, the blood boils and the gut reaction is to respond," Barak said, adding that weighing all possible options is top priority.
Barak was referring to dialogue with Egyptian Intelligence Minister Omar Suleiman as Israel weighs a cease-fire agreement with Hamas.
"What is demanded of us now is resolve, a deep breath, nerves of steel and cruel tolerance until the proper time," he said.
IDF to escalate Gaza operations
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1210668649372&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
The IDF plans to escalate its operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip after US President George W. Bush leaves Israel on Friday, senior defense officials said Thursday.
At the same time, Israel is continuing its dialogue with Egypt over the cease-fire proposal that Intelligence Minister Omar Suleiman presented in Jerusalem earlier this week and which Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is said to be leaning toward accepting.
Defense Minister Ehud Barak is scheduled to travel to Sharm e-Sheikh next week to participate in the World Economic Forum and to hold talks with Suleiman and possibly President Hosni Mubarak regarding the proposal, The Jerusalem Post has learned. Olmert is scheduled to visit Egypt for talks with Mubarak the following week.
Defense officials said Thursday that Barak and Olmert would likely "close the loose ends" on the cease-fire deal brokered by Suleiman with Hamas.
Earlier in the day, Barak visited the Ashkelon mall that was struck by a Grad-model Katyusha rocket on Wednesday and said Israel would find a way to stop the rocket fire in the coming months.
"You need to grit your teeth, but not for many more months," Barak told the residents of Ashkelon during a tour of the scene together with Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilna'i and OC Home Front Command Maj.-Gen. Yair Golan. "We won't allow this to continue for much longer. I am not talking about years or many months. We will do what needs to be done."
Throughout the day a number of rockets were fired into Israel, including a Grad-model Katyusha that hit a field outside Netivot without causing injuries. Two Hamas gunmen were killed when IAF aircraft bombed a terrorist observation post in Gaza City before dawn.
Several people were treated for shock when Palestinians fired three Kassam rockets from the Gaza Strip at Sderot Thursday night. One of the rockets hit a synagogue, causing damage. Another projectile fell outside the city and police were searching for the third.
Earlier Thursday evening, Palestinians fired three rockets at the Sderot area. One of the rockets hit an industrial zone near the city, while another landed in a wheat field in the Sha'ar Hanegev region, causing a fire.
One woman was treated for shock in that attack.
Meanwhile, terrorists fired three mortar shells from the northern Gaza Strip at the Nahal Oz area. There were no reports of injuries in that attack, which raised to eight the total number of shells fired during the day.
In an indication of Palestinian success in increasing their rocket range, the IDF Home Front Command decided to connect Netivot to the Kassam early-warning alarm system. The decision was made following a security assessment held in the wake of Katyusha rocket fire nearby.
Defense officials said that while the IDF was preparing for possible military action in Gaza, Israel was still interested in obtaining a cease-fire with Hamas, via Egyptian mediation. The officials said that during his meetings with Suleiman and Mubarak, Barak would stress that Israel would only accept a cease-fire if abducted IDF Cpl. Gilad Schalit's release was one of its primary elements.
In addition to expediting Schalit's release, Israel has said that it would accept the cease-fire deal - which calls for a six-month halt to IDF operations and Hamas terrorism in Gaza - if Egypt made considerable efforts to curb the smuggling of arms into the Gaza Strip.
A senior official involved in the cease-fire talks said Thursday the defense establishment was skeptical that Hamas would release Schalit in exchange for a truce.
"The chances of this happening are slim," the official said. "If they don't agree to our conditions then the chances of a large-scale operation will increase significantly."
Bin Laden Releases New Message
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/376392.aspx
CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel -- Osama bin Laden released a new audio message coinciding with Israel's 60th anniversary celebrations.
The nearly ten minute message, which was released online Friday, affirms al-Qaeda's continuation of a holy war against Israel and its allies until Palestine is liberated.
Within the message, bin Laden says the fight for Palestine is the most important motivator in the war with the West.
"To Western nations. this speech is to understand the core reason of the war between our civilization and your civilizations. I mean the Palestinian cause," said bin Laden said.
"The Palestinian cause is the major issue for my #Islamic# nation. It was an important element in fueling me from the beginning and the 19 others with a great motive to fight for those subjected to injustice and the oppressed," he added.
Bin Laden describes in previous messages his support for the Palestinians. In a message released on March 20 he condemned IDF attacks on Hamas in the Gaza strip.
Laura Mansfield, head of the U.S.-based Internet monitors, said bin Laden "seems to be shifting gears" over the last decade. "In his initial messages, bin Laden's focus was on the removal of U.S. forces from #Saudi Arabia# but in recent years he has more closely wedded himself to the Palestinian issue," she said.
Authenticity of the message is pending verification.
Deadly China quake triggers massive aid response, calls for prayer
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/deadly.china.quake.triggers.massive.aid.response.calls.for.prayer/18806.htm
As the aftermath of China’s deadliest earthquake in over three decades continues to bring widespread havoc, chaos, and panic, Christians around the world are rushing to the scene with aid, supplies, and global appeals for prayer and reflection during these increasingly uncertain times.
"The first thing we're going to do is get water, food and shelter to those who are in need,” said Jeff Palmer of the Baptist Global Response, according to Mission Network News.
Although many Christian organisations spoke of the challenges of responding to the second major disaster so soon after the cyclone that ravaged across Burma two weeks ago, Christian groups said they would be undeterred in their efforts to serve and provide for those in need.
“It's the love of Christ that compels us, and we are commanded to help those who are in need,” Palmer explained.
World Vision, which has a community development centre just 200 kilometres from the earthquake’s epicentre, was among the quickest to respond to the crisis, and Franklin Graham, who is currently touring through China on a goodwill tour, said that his relief organisation, Samaritan’s Purse, would send aid “immediately”.
Church World Service said that it expected, along with its Chinese-based partner organisation, Amity Foundation, to budget a total of $1.5 million to help fund relief efforts throughout affected areas.
More importantly, however, was the need for what Christians described as a moment of prayer, unity, and reliance on God during crisis.
“[We call] upon the world churches to pray for and provide aid for the victims of the earthquake in Sichuan province. [We mourn] with the suffering Chinese people during this moment of great loss,” the China Aid Association said.
"Prayer is the strategy that we want to mobilise, first and foremost – praying for those who are in suffering, those who've lost family members, those already responding to the effort, [and] also pray for wisdom and knowledge of how to respond,” said Jeff Palmer.
The 7.9 magnitude earthquake, which struck China’s southwestern Sichuan province Monday, has claimed at least 19,500 lives. But the State Council, the country's Cabinet, said the number could rise to some 50,000, state TV reported, as nearly 26,000 remained missing or buried underneath debris on Thursday.
The earthquake is the nation’s deadliest since the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that levelled the city of Tangshan in 1976.
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